| |
| |
|
Golf Information |
|
|
|
Back Fitness for Senior Golfers
Back injuries are prevalent among golfers of all ages and especially for senior golfers. Age has a way of letting us know subtly that our bodies no longer react like the good old days of 20 something. The back is one area of our body we can't afford to take for granted. Whether you suffer from minor aches and pains, mild discomfort or even general tightness, your back could be at risk as well as your game. So how can we protect our backs from the wear and tear of age while creating longevity in golf? The first thing to check is your posture. If you don't know the right way to sit, stand or lift weight, then you are far from learning the complexities of swing mechanics! The "perfect swing" is something many attempt to learn by watching or reading a book. Yet, it's a motor skill, which also draws upon your 'feel' for things. When you first learned to swing a golf club, you might think you were learning things from 'scratch'. But were you? You already knew how to stand. If you tend to slouch while standing, or if your back muscles were poorly developed, you probably ended up trying to create the "perfect swing" by sight rather than by the feel of things. Maybe your upper back is making up for your lack of lower back flexibility. Perhaps your lumbar pain results from underdeveloped hips or abs. It doesn't matter where your 'weak link' lies. It always kicks in a series of "compensatory" moves. These wrong moves are not only an open invitation to injury- they can take you years to correct and refine - if you are blind to the underlying postural flaw. Experts agree that an erect posture with neural spinal alignment can give you an added rotation of up to 30°. Imagine the extra momentum that would lend to your club head! Three simple ways to Improve your Swing with Better Posture: 1.Stand Tall! When you slouch, you compromise the normal curvature of the back, which is important for proper joint movement. Try this simple experiment: Sit on a chair in the bent-over posture. Your shoulders are slouched and the neck protrudes outwards. Try to swing your arms. Most of the movement will come from your elbows, rather than your shoulder joint (which has a bigger range of motion). Next, sit up straight, with your shoulders squared and your neck in proper alignment with the spine. Your arms will swing freely from the shoulder and rotate freely in any direction. More importantly, the right posture will keep your back healthy and minimize the sheer forces on the spine - which form the root cause of pain. 2.Bend at the Hips (not at the Back!) When you bend, make sure your back is in a neutral position. That can only happen if you bend from your hips. To facilitate this position, make sure your lower abs are properly engaged. Strong abs are the very foundation of a powerful, fluid stroke! 3.Improve Stability Better balance and coordination help to effectively transfer the momentum of your swing to the ball. Stabilize your torso by keeping your feet shoulder width apart- having them too close or too far apart will affect your balance. Learn to shift your weight smoothly from one foot to the other. It will greatly reduce the impact on your lower back. Finally, do not lean on the toes or roll at the heels. A shaky foundation can kill momentum before your club head strikes the ball. It may take some time to get accustomed to the new posture. But these simple changes will help you play better golf longer. Doesn't that make it worthwhile? Susan Hill is a fitness trainer, CHEK golf biomechanic and sports nutrition specialist. Her work has been featured in Golf Illustrated, Travel Golf, Resort Living and SELF magazine. For on-line golf specific exercises and stretches, visit http://www.fitnessforgolf.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Its Not About The Bicep Curl When It Comes To Golf Fitness Training How many of you have read, "It's Not About The Bike" by Lance Armstrong? What we learned about Lance's life is that his mission is all about survival, digging deep from within, honoring your goals and commitments, and following your dreams in spite of the often difficult road to the top.Following an interview I did recently with Annika Sorenstam's trainer, he made me think about golf fitness training at the elite level and what it was really about. Secret Sneaky Tactic To Get A Complete Used Golf Club Sets On A Discount With Auction Sites Have you experienced this when you're bidding on ebay or other auction site? You bid on an item, lets say used golf club sets, you put you're first bid. Then you leave it for a while thinking you'll be winning on the bid. Golf Swing Technique And How To Improve It There are two approaches to achieving a better golf swing. There is improving your physical capabilities?and improving your golf swing technique. Golf Fitness: The Quickest Way To Play Better Golf Golf has always been viewed as a game of leisure. But today's golfer is leaner, stronger, and fitter. This IS Golf - Womens Golf The Korean women golfer Jeong Jang (JJ) chose the British Women's Open Golf championship at Royal Birkdale, Southport, to win her first title. What's more she led from start to finish to win by four clear shots. Ratings and Ranking Golfers Who's the best?Who's the best golfer in the world? Not such a difficult question. You probably only have to choose between a handful of golfers - Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen and Phil Mickelson. Junior Golfers Gain A Competitive Edge By Building A Stronger Body Strength training for juniors is supported by organizations such as the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). Each of these organizations encourages children's participation in appropriately designed training programs as long as they are competently supervised. 5 Easy Steps To Replacing Your Golf Grips Replacing your golf grips is like servicing your car; you must do it on a very routine basis to keep them in top working order. We suggest changing your grips at least once a season, maybe even twice depending on where you live and how much you play. Golf Driving Tips To Correct A Common Mistake One of the most common mental errors golfers make when driving the ball is to try and hit it as hard as possible.This article will deal with golf driving tips to help you correct this problem that is hampering many golfers and greatly hindering them from making any progress. Tips For Correcting A Golf Slice Correcting a golf slice is the fastest way to shave strokes off of your golf game. Slicing a golf ball is one of the most common errors that an average player makes. Reluctant to Try Golf Instruction? Maybe you or a friend had a negative experience with an instructor. It could have been a personality conflict or some other problem. What Do Trees Have to Do With Golf? On our way back from a recent round of golf, Fritz and I were discussing the way most golfers evaluate golf courses. We've had this discussion before, and it inevitably gets around to my heartfelt conviction that trees do not enhance the "golfing experience". Strength Training For Junior Golf Much debate has occurred about kids and strength training. There's been concern about growth plate damage. Here's A Golf Training Tip To Boost Your Drives Every golfer would like to have a golf training tip to increase their drives by 10, 20, 30 or even 40 yards. But what do you need to focus on to accomplish that?Have you ever received a golf training tip that didn't work? I think we all have. History of Golf- How it all Started Since before the time Mary Queen of Scots was disciplined for playing golf two Sundays after the murder of her husband Lord Dernley in 1567. Golf is known to have been played at St. Can A Golf Swing Video Change your Game? There are many golfers who have been exposed to many a golf swing video and yet there has been no effect on their game. At least not a positive one. Golf Fore Success Golf has a crazy way of telling who we truly are as a person. Many people judge us by the way we play the game. Secret 7 Necessities for Great Golf The game of golf can be difficult when you consider all of the individual elements. Most golfers are overwhelmed with information regarding which tips will benefit their game and which ones won't. Purpose Driven Golf I want you to meditate on a couple points for a moment:1. Why an earth are you playing golf?2. Simple Tips For Improving Golf Swing There are loads of resources both on-line and off that you can turn to for easy tips on improving golf swing. More than likely, you are looking for simple pointers on improving golf swing that you can start with yourself, because you are not in a position to hire a professional to help you improve your swing.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2007 |
