The Golfing Blog

A Stronger Golfing Core

The winter months are an important time to prepare your golf game and body for a new season. If you want to play your best injury free golf it is important to have sound swing fundamentals and a strong core, starting with your abdominal muscles. By strengthening your abdominal muscles you will create support for your lower back and help prevent injuries. One of the simplest exercises you can do to get stronger abs is the "Plank".

How to perform the bridge:

Lie down on your stomach with your legs straight and together.

Lift your upper body, bend your elbows at a 90 degree angle so your forearms lie flat on the floor.

Make sure your elbows are aligned directly under your shoulders.

Flex your feet so that your toes are pushing into the floor.

Tighten your entire body and prop yourself up onto your elbows and the tips of your toes.

It is important that your back is flat,legs are straight and you are looking directly down toward the floor.

Hold this position for as long as you can without feeling strain in your low back.

Start your workout with the number of repetitions where you can feel the effect of the exercise without pain.

Try to add time to each repetition and gradually increase the number of repetitions to your workout as the weeks progress.

An important note
When you do the Bridge Exercise for the first time perform your set up in front of a mirror so that you can check that your body position is proper. You will then be able to associate a feeling with how your body looks in the mirror when performing your workout in the future.

To let Scott help you improve your golf game this winter click here.

‘Tis the Off Season

The offseason is key to any sport. It lets you rest that aching back, sore shoulders, etc, and gives your mind a break from the endless swing thoughts that consume your summer. The beauty of it is, you don't have to play golf nonstop to keep yourself sharp. There are some key things you can do to stay in shape and make sure you hit the ground running next year:

• Loosen up. With all the time stuck indoors, don't let your body get too stiff this winter. Do some basic stretches each day for your hamstrings, hips, calf muscles, shoulders and neck. Find your most stiff areas and work them every day. This keeps the rust off, and if you stick with it you could end up more flexible than you were in the past.

   

• Get in the Groove. Indoor golf domes (like Scott at the White Pines Golf Dome or the Buffalo Grove Dome) or heated ranges are great for keeping your swing consistent. Scott can give more detailed advice, but I'd recommend an early winter lesson, finding two or three things to work on, and really groove your swing into a repeatable, reliable motion.

   

• Change it up. Playing the same sport 12 months a year is a great way to burn out. Other sports work similar muscle groups and keep your body versatile. Basketball, paddle tennis, and racquetball are great for not only conditioning but also hand-eye coordination, balance, and strength of all those small muscles you can't really work with machines at the gym. Outdoor winter sports are great – skiing works leg strength and balance, for example. Swimming laps is probably the best all-in-one workout for cardio, strength and flexibility (really, it's underestimated – try doing a few laps if it's been a while and see how you hold up). Even simple stuff like running around with the kids keeps you moving and keeps your mind & body fresh.

Enjoy the last few days of decent weather, and then go enjoy the offseason!

An Old Exercise May Be The Best Medicine For Your Golf Game

There have been so many advances in exercise equipment that help you target and improve specific parts of your body but one of the most effective pieces of equipment for your golf game is one of the oldest, the Medicine Ball.

The medicine ball is great for training the core muscles in a way that allows you to simulate the motions of the golf swing while strengthening your core. It also has several advantages over using machines when it comes to training your golf body.

Medicine balls are an inexpensive piece of equipment that can cost $25-$95 depending on the weight of the ball.

The portability of the medicine ball allows you to workout when and where you want.

Unlike many machines you can perform your exercises at the speed you perform your golf swing which allows you to train at a speed that best simulates your sport.

For all these reasons and many more training with a medicine ball can be one of the best things you can do for your golf game so give it a try.

To improve your golf game contact Scott by clicking here.

Balance & Strength on the BOSU Ball

For some good balance work & core exercise, try this simple but effective exercise at the gym.

You'll need a BOSU Ball (see below) – which looks like half of an exercise ball with an inflated half and a flat half. Do this exercise near a wall or sturdy weight machine, so you can hold on if you lose your balance. Stand on the flat part of the BOSU ball with feet shoulder width apart. From here, slowly squat down halfway, then stand up straight again. Keep your abs tight and your lower back straight – DON'T arch your back. Focus on balancing and keeping the footplate level (don't let the plate tilt forward or backward).

Again, always do this near a wall or sturdy object. Never work on a BOSU ball in the middle of a room. If you do & you fall, you'll probably end up seeing me for physical therapy (not how I like to get new patients!).

This is also a good position to do bicep curls with dumbbells – gets your core and arms working together.

Thanks for reading – more to come!

For Better Golf Posture, Strengthening Your Abs

When it comes to mistakes made by golfers one of the most devastating mistakes they make comes in the area of posture. The most common mistake is poor posture in the set up because how you set up determines how you can swing the club. The next mistake is golfers being unable to maintain their posture during the golf swing. In either case one of the main reasons that golfers have difficulty with their posture is they have weak abdominal muscles. So it is time for a simple workout to help strengthen your Abs, which will improve your posture.

Most of us are familiar with doing Curl-ups, but to get a more intense Curl-up workout we are going to take your head out of your hands and place weights in them.

What you need:
Start with a set of dumbbells at a weight you feel you can control or a medicine ball of similar weight.

The Exercise
Lie on you back with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Hold the weights in your hands with your arms straight. Tighten your abdominal muscles with a pelvic tilt (push your navel down into the floor) as you lift your head and shoulders off the floor. While reaching toward THE CEILING, keep your chin tucked (do not allow it to jut forward). Make sure to keep the abdominals tight the entire time. Start with 3 sets of 15.

The stronger your abdominal muscles become the easier it will be to set up and maintain proper posture throughout the swing. The result will be a better swing and golf will be more fun.

To improve your game and have more fun you can contact Scott by clicking here.

The Golf Swing Begins with a Solid Foundation

If you want a solid repeatable golf swing you need to build it like a building, from the ground up. A good lower body sets the foundation for the golf swing and many people overlook a key region of the lower body, the hips. The hips are a vital component in the stability of the golf swing, so today I am going to provide you with an exercise that will help you strengthen your hips.

The exercise is called Gorilla Walking.

What you need:
The best and most reasonably priced product I have found for this exercise is the Xercuffs from SPRI Products.

Gorilla Walking:
Place the Xercuffs around your ankles. With your abs tight, flex your knees slightly, stay on your toes and keep a wide base of support. Now move in a lateral direction by taking small shuffling steps. Keep your toes pointed straight ahead as you step. Make sure to keep tension in the band at all times. Shuffle 15 ft. in one direction then return. Slowly build up to 15 reps.

You will be surprised at how few reps you will be able to do at first but as you increase the number of reps the more solid your golf foundation will become. By doing the little things you can make great progress in your golf game.

For more help with your golf game you can contact me at 312.719.7268.

Stretch Fast, Stretch Slow?

Here's how you make two kinds of stretching work for you:

To get more flexible in the long run, stretch slowly every day. Stay relaxed, feel a mild stretch, not an intense one. Do this every day and your muscles will slowly get longer, letting you move more freely and with less pain. This is also great for your cool-down – after playing basketball, running, or a long day in the yard or in the car.

To warm up for golf or exercise, you want to stretch fast. Use rapid, repetitive and more aggressive motions that simulate the motions you'll be using. Think sprinters doing high-knees and jumping up & down before racing. This pumps blood to the muscles and generates heat (hence, warming you up), which gets you ready to go and helps prevent pulled muscles. These effects are temporary, though, so this won't really make you more flexible in the long run.

So if you have tight muscles, you'll want to gently stretch out every day for several weeks to loosen up for good, and you should also take a minute to warm up before activity so you don't strain your hamstrings or rotator cuff. Start with wedges on the range before pulling out the driver. If you can't hit the range first, warm up by holding your two longest irons together and swinging them in full, exaggerated swings. Get your muscles & joints moving, but don't hurt yourself. If the weather's cold or the round is slow, throw a few in during the round to stay loose.

Scott and I will post more warm-up stretching soon. For now try to stay warm any way you can, and start your off-season stretching regimen while the snow falls.

Guest Contributor, Ryan Hartley of Praxis Healthcare.

Returning To Golf After An Injury

I recently received a question from Amy who asked "How do I return to
golf after a nasty lower back injury?" She has been cleared for physical
activity but upon returning to the game her swing now feels foreign. This
is a common occurrence for those who return to the game with either a
body that functions differently or a swing which unconsciously has been
altered by the golfer protecting themselves from the injury they have
encountered.

To do this right and get back to playing it takes a team and lots of
communications. I would start by setting up a meeting with your Physical
Therapist, your PGA Golf Professional and your trainer(if you have one).
You and your PT can then inform the others what specifically you have been
through, if there are any limitations, concerns and any elements of your
set up or motion which could aggravate your body. For me it is important
to know those things because it directly impacts how I work with the person.

Personally, after my spine surgery I had to come to grips with the fact that
after all the years of concentrating on my set up and posture I was no longer
allowed to have perfect posture. It can be maddening.

After everyone is on the same page you can begin. The best way to get back
into golf is to start with the short game and gradually work your way
up through your game. Don't be in a hurry to get to the full swing, it is
just like the progression during Physical Therapy. Over a period of weeks:
Putting first, followed by chipping, 1/4 wedge shots, 1/2 swing wedge shots,
3/4 wedge shots. After working up to 3/4 wedge shots gradually start hitting
full swing shots starting with shorter clubs up to the driver. I would
initially limit the amount of shots to maybe 60 with your PGA Professional
alongside you each step of the way to help you understand your new swing,
the feel and the feedback. Your pro can also give you drills and discuss
exercises along with a fitness professional that are best for you, your golf
and your body.

In the north the winter is the perfect time to get back into the game
because you can train without the temptation of playing. Then when the
weather breaks you will be ready to return to the golf course.

Again I need to stress being patient, down the road you might find this
setback to be a valuable educational experience and you may just come out
the other side a better golfer enjoying the game even more.

If you need advice getting back into the game, or just getting into the
game you can contact me by clicking here.

Beware!!

We see lots of preventable injuries in our clinic. Here are a few exercises I would highly recommend that you avoid, and some alternatives/modifications to take their place.

• Deep squats: Two reasons.
  • Most people arch (hyperextend) their spines when they squat, putting enormous pressure on the discs of the lumbar spine – a great way to herniate (aka "slip", "bulge", or "blow out") a disc.
  • Going too low puts incredible stress on the cartilage of the knees – a great way to tear your meniscus. Put a chair behind you to help prevent going too low.

  Alternative: Squats with tubing. Place your exercise band (preferably the kind with handles) on the ground so the handles are about 3 feet apart. Stand on the tubing with the balls of your feet, grab the handles, and stand up straight. Keep your abdominals tight, spine straight, and knees apart as you lower down slightly less than halfway, then push back up. As you raise up, tighten the thighs, buttocks and calves, keeping the abs tight and spine straight. 3 sets of 15-20 reps.

• Bridging with hyperextension: Bridges are great, but not if your back is rounded or arched.

  Modification: Keep your abs tight, spine straight, and push up from the buttocks. Your butt should lift you, not your back.

• Good mornings: Most people will hyperextend their back instead of extending from their hips. Your back should not be rounded/arched at any time during this exercise. If you can't do that, don't do this exercise.

  Alternative: Stick with bridging and squats with tubing. Stay tuned or contact me for more alternatives.

Ask Ryan: Stretching the Wrist & Forearm

Scott recently asked me why a student of his couldn’t get his right hand to go palm-up (like holding a plate) at the top of the swing.

There are a few muscles that could cause this. I’ll start with the forearm. To stretch them, straighten your elbow and hold the arm slightly out in front of you. Turn the arm palm down, put your other hand over the back of the palm(top picture), and pull toward you. You’ll feel this up the side of the forearm. Hold for 5 seconds, relax and repeat 10 times. This can also be done with the palm turned up(bottom picture), which will stretch the other side of the forearm. It’s important to keep the elbow straight, and to put your pressure through the hand (not the fingers).

If you have any problems or questions with these stretches, email me or leave a comment. We check these and other related areas in our Golf Fitness Analysis sessions – contact Scott or me to set one up. Thanks!