66 Health
A U S T R A L I A ’ S
G O L F
N E W S
L E A D E R
Thinking outside the box
From juniors to amateurs to seasoned Tour pros – warming up for a round should be more than just the lazy first-tee stretch and a cup of coffee. Golf-specific exercises will help get your body in tune while helping your balance, coordination and swing adaptability. MichaelJones With the exception of technique advice, many tour pros seem reluctant to try something different — maybe out of fear or being told by coaches not to step out of the controlled environment. I think in any professional sport athletes need to take some control of their own destiny; if it’s not working or if you do not seem to be improving, then maybe look at things from a holistic approach. As a tour pro there are so many variables you must consider: mental training, technique training, organizational training etc. I think golf fitness is just another variable that tour pros should consider when they have a schedule for tournaments and travel. Even the greatest sceptic of golf fitness would have to acknowledge that if you are in better shape then you travel and recover better, your immune system remains active and you handle those
4am wake calls with more of a positive attitude. Some of the pros I speak to at tournaments tell me they think they’re doing ok even if they don’t train. My response is usually “maybe you’re not working towards your optimal potential.” They’re happy with that, but who knows: they may be a major winner in the making if they just started to think outside the box. It seems like golf is such a conservative sport: tour pros may think completing golf fitness training or any kind of non-traditional training which is not encouraged by coaches may result in them being seen as “not part of the norm”; and this may have an effect on their image or popularity. They have failed to consider that the top ten players in the world could not give two hoots if they’re doing training that’s not trendy — it’s the result they’re concerned with at the end of the tournament. Static stretching is archaic, and there is lots
Push up on two Swiss Balls: Some exercises stimulate the mind or create a positive distraction for tour pros while at the same time work at improving balance, strength, stability and co-ordination. of scientific evidence and studies that prove that static stretching in relation to golf can have a negative impact on the golf swing. Studies completed by human movement and bio-mechanic professionals support this opinion. It is crazy to think that, as a leading nation in many world sports, the science behind optimizing an athlete’s ability always encompasses physical development through some overloaded training regime outside the play aspect of the particular sport. Golf, on the other hand, still relies on repetitive swing training — which is the biggest cause of injury in the game. It then relies on
www.insidegolf.com.au
non-specific stretching to neutralise the hours and hours of unilateral non-symmetrical swing action which builds one side of your body more than the other side. Considering the money involved in the sport, it’s astonishing to see it so far behind all other sports. If stretching is so important to tour pros and their coaches, why don’t coaches get their students to stretch while they’re having a lesson instead of just hitting balls? I have watched lots of tour pros for years – for many of them, their physical game preparation was minimal. Some did static stretching but no warm-up. Others started by drinking a coffee or energy