A selection of golf-fitness and golf training articles

Seriously though golf-fitnes is some thing we should not ignore no matter what our age.

Like all sports we should warm up with some pre golf excerises so that we are properly loosened up before the game, this way we may avoid those aches and pains.

Our first article in this series is by Sean Cochran, Sean is Phil Micklesons fitness coach.

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How to Prevent Your Golf Swing from Breaking Down with Golf Fitness Exercises

by: Sean Cochran

It happens to all of us. We loose our golf swing, make some type of unknown modification in how we swing the club, and everything falls apart. What can we do to prevent our golf swing from leaving us?

Remember this saying as you continue to read this article; “Proper Preparation Precedes Success and Confidence”. Think about this phrase for a moment and then keep reading.

I write about this subject because of an e-mail I received from a fellow golfer. The e-mail read:

“Sean, while out practicing I appear to have injured a muscle(s) in my back just below my left shoulder, and also around the outside of my left side rib cage. I have tried to continue to play golf through this injury, hoping it would get better but I had to stop.

Hitting down and through the ball proved to very difficult and I seemed to be pulling out of shots early and topping the ball on my iron shots a lot.

Do you have any golf-fitness exercises in your book which will heal the injury and prevent a re-occurrence?”

Absolutely! I do have golf-fitness exercises to help you with the prevention of such an injury occurring.

But let’s get back onto the topic of this article and that is the loss of our golf swing.

“Loosing” your golf swing can occur for a number of reasons. Typically, they fall into one of 3 categories:

1) Mechanical 2) Physical 3) Mental

A loss of your golf swing on the mechanical side of the equation is pretty simple to understand. Essentially, you have made an adjustment in the mechanics of your golf swing causing compensations to occur. These compensations result in poor shots and possibly a great deal of frustration, if you do not know what is happening.

Often times the amateur is completely unaware of the changes they have made wreaking havoc on their golf swing.

How do you go about solving such a situation?

Through proper instruction from a qualified teacher is the first part of this equation. A qualified teaching pro will be able to diagnose the problem and provide you guidance on how to fix it.

The ball is then in your court, meaning you must use this information and go practice (remember, proper preparation precedes success or confidence).

The second reason for the “loss” of your golf swing is a publicized matter, and it is your body.

Remember it is your body that swings the golf club. If your body is unable to swing the golf club properly, the ability to swing it without compensations will occur.

The e-mail above is an example of such a problem. The amateur golfer has incurred an injury as a result of the body not being flexible, strong, or powerful enough to swing the golf club properly over a period of time.

Keep in mind the golf swing requires certain levels of flexibility, balance, strength, endurance, and power to swing the golf club correctly. If any one of these facets within your body is not up to par (no pun intended, but it fits real well doesn’t it?), the swing will suffer.

Often times body impairments causing you to “loose” your swing are not as severe as an injury (they will get that way if ignored), but rather they are a slight discomfort, muscle pull, or fatigue. Which cause compensations to occur in your golf swing.

Again, we can go back to the phrase “proper preparation precedes success and confidence”. You must properly prepare your body for the golf swing. This is where golf fitness exercises are beneficial.

Golf-fitness exercises develop the levels of flexibility, balance, endurance, strength, and power within the body to swing the golf club properly. Golf-fitness exercises prepare the body to swing the golf club just as practice ingrains the mechanics of the golf swing.

We finally come to the third category, the mental aspect of golf and fitness. Mental blocks, certain thought processes, or a lack of confidence can directly affect your golf swing.

I have found through my work over the years with professional athletes the development of a sound mental approach to golf begins with the body and progresses from this point to swing mechanics.

If you develop a strong foundation in your body, it provides you confidence that you can perform the mechanics of the golf swing correctly.

Once the physical foundation is developed, you can create the optimal swing mechanics on top of this foundation. Once these two “building blocks” are in place. The mental approach towards the game is confident, relaxed, and focused. Again, let’s go back to the phrase; “proper preparation precedes success and confidence.” Confidence in your golf game can only occur if the physical foundation and fundamentals of the golf swing are in place.

To summarize, “loosing” your golf swing can be attributable to essentially 3 different categories.

These categories are your golf swing mechanics, your body, and your mental approach to the game.

To minimize the possibility of “loosing” your golf swing, develop a flexible, strong, and powerful body to support your golf swing mechanics. On top of this body, develop an efficient golf swing. This will allow your mental approach to be focused, relaxed, and confident.

If you are confident in your body’s’ ability to swing the golf club, the mechanics of your swing to execute the shot, the ability to mentally focus will be much easier. This is what separates good golf shots from bad golf shots on the golf course.

Sean Cochran

About The Author

Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2005 PGA & 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the website www.bioforcegolf.com. To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.

support@bioforcegolf.com If you would like to comment on this article you can do so here.

Here is an article by Jack Moorhouse

Jack has been helping golfers all round the world improve their handicap for years.

You can visit his site here.

Reduce your handicapToday!!

An Easy And Simple Golf Conditioning Program by: Jack Moorehouse

Your body dictates your golfing ability. There’s no way around it. If you’re fit, chances are you’ll play better golf. If you’re not fit, chances are you’ll play poorly. While you should stay in shape all year round, the winter is great for starting a golf-specific fitness program. Regardless of age, gender, or playing level, participating consistently in a golf-specific exercise program pays dividends in your game and in your life.

A golf-specific conditioning program consists of resistance training, cardiovascular conditioning, and functional flexibility. Resistance training strengthens the “core” body— the abs, low back, and hamstrings. Cardiovascular conditioning generates energy to play longer at peak performance. Functional flexibility enhances swing mechanics and shot execution. Together, these three components build strength, suppleness, and stamina. The also build confidence in yourself and your game.

Functional Flexibility

Flexibly is a key to a consistent golf swing. Recreational golfers often lack the flexibility to perform swing mechanics correctly. Instead, they compensate for it by making adjustments in their swing. They risk hitting a bad shot and injuring themselves. Adding flexibility exercises to your winter workout improves your swing mechanics and your shot execution.

The Lunge with a Twist Exercise combines the power in your lower body with the core rotational movement needed for maximum golf swing speed and distance. Use a medicine ball or a single dumbbell for this exercise.

• Assume a standing position with your arms straight and hanging down in front of you, holding the dumbbell or the medicine ball.

• As you step forward with one leg, rotate your upper body to the same side holding the medicine ball or the dumbbell chest high the whole time.

• Return to the starting position and do the opposite leg.

• Repeat each side 10 times for 3 sets.

This exercise improves rotational range of motion and strength. It also strengthens the core area of your body. The Seated Twist is an offshoot of this exercise. Instead of standing and lunging forward, you simply twist from side to side while sitting on a chair and holding a dumbbell chest high. This exercise can be done in your office.

The Straight Leg Rotational Hamstring Stretch stretches the hamstrings, hips, lower back, and mid-section. It trains the hamstrings, glutes, hips, lower back, obliques, and upper back muscles.

1. Begin by placing feet shoulder-width apart, extend arms overhead, and clasp hands together. Turn so that you are facing to one side.

2. Slowly extend arms toward the top of your shoes, keeping your legs straight.

3. Extend downward to your level of tolerance, pause slightly, and return to the starting position.

4. Rotate torso, shoulders, head, and arms to the other side.

5. Slowly extend arms toward your shoes, keeping your legs straight.

6. Reach downward to your own level of tolerance, pause slightly, and return to the starting position.

7. Return to the other side and repeat the same sequence, then return to the center position.

8. Perform 15 to 25 repetitions.

Yoga is also a good exercise for enhancing flexibility. PGA pro Jamie Mulligan includes Bikram Yoga in his conditioning program. Bikram Yoga involves making precise movements for 90 minutes in a superheated room. It keeps the body loose and supple, and strengthens concentration and focus

Resistance Training

Resistance training should be part of your winter conditioning program. When you improve strength, you improve control and balance. Also, strength training involves body awareness, muscular control, and coordination—all key elements for improved golf. When you do resistance training, you increase blood flow through a functional range of motion, and strengthen the tendons and ligaments in you body’s joints. In conjunction with a stretching program, strength training improves flexibility, not hinders it.

The strength-for-golf commponent of your program addresses your body’s “core” area—the abs, low back, and hamstrings. Contrary to popular belief, weight training does not cause you to lose “feel.”

A golf-specific conditioning program incorporates moderate weight, with medium (12-15) repetitions, and in a time frame of 30-45 minutes. This type of program is designed to improve your golf-specific strength and endurance, not build muscle. A typical strength training exercise includes

• Leg Extensions • Leg Press • Leg Curl • Low Back • Abdominal • Rotary Torso • Double Chest • Super Pullover • Triceps • Biceps • Forearm • Four-way Neck

The Tire Exercise is a different type of resistance exercise. Invented by golfing great Henry Cotton, this simple exercise strengthens the arm and wrist muscles and helps you judge swing speed.

Take your normal stance with the tire positioned as the ball. Employing a normal grip use a quarter swing to hit the back of the tire, moving the club head as fast as possible. The pitch of the swishing noise and the sound of the club’s impact are your speed indicators. The loudest crack at impact is heard when the clubhead is released properly. Do 3 sets of 15 to 20 swings. Then turnaround and do it from the left side.

Aerobic Conditioning

Improving your cardiovascular system boosts energy. It also increases stamina and focus. Waking, biking, stair stepping, running, and swimming are all good cardiovascular exercises. Since golfers walk a lot, many focus on it as their main cardiovascular workout. A cardiovascular program incorporating 20-30-minutes of walking at an intensity 10- to 15-percent higher than when you walk a course works well for most golfers.

Using the winter to get in shape pays dividends. It improves your golf game, enhances your quality of life, and builds self-confidence. Instead of being depressed this winter because the season is over, start a golf-specific conditioning program to get yourself ready for the spring.

About The Author

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book “How To Break 80…And Shoot Like The Pros!”. http://www.howtobreak80.com He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands across the globe to lower their golf handicaps instantly.