Golf off-season. What are you doing?

This is a year around sport no matter what climate you live in.  And, it is no secret that golf fitness is here to stay.  Since Tiger Woods has proven to the amateur golf community  that general fitness can lead to golf fitness, many have hit the gym as often as they hit the links.

The “what” and “when” can make or break a golf fitness program, especially if you are starting deconditioned or injured.   Will your golf fitness elevate your golf handicap?  Maybe, if you have enough golf skill.  It will DEFINITELY increase your stamina and strength for reducing fatigue or injury during your golf season.

Titleist Performance Institute recommends that 7 fitness components are addressed in a golf fitness program:  posture, balance, mobility, stability (combination of strength and balance), power, coordination, and endurance.  As a certified Titliest Golf Fitness Instructor I have gone through 5 courses to perfect the evaluation techniques of the fitness components listed above.  With the proposed program below all of these components will be addressed.

Mike Romatowski who contributes to TPI and trains at  Core Fitness in Timonium, MD suggests 3 phases of training during the year (listed below).  Periodizing your training is especially important if you live in cold weather and are unable to consistently swing a club during the winter months.

1)  OFF-SEASON

WORK ON:  Rehab, Posture, Mobility, Stability, Balance

TIME FRAME:   3-4 months from Nov – Feb – IN OTHER WORDS, RIGHT NOW!

*Before you begin any fitness program, make sure you have addressed your injuries (Rehab)

Posture is actually the first step to changing and improving your ability to enhance your golf swing.  If you don’t have good body awareness or enough flexibility to achieve good posture, club head speed or trunk separation gains decline.  This can something that takes a lot of time to improve, especially if you have ignored it.  Once you have sufficient mobility and acceptable posture, maintain it with stability exercises.  If you have sufficient mobility and stability, you can address pure strength.  The better strength base you build during off-season, the more power you can build during pre-season.

HOW?:  Yoga, Pilates, dynamic and /or static stretching for posture, body weight functional exercises (with weight if ready) for strength and balance.  Doing abdominal exercises will not necessarily give you stability.  ”Finding” your stability may require the assist of a healthcare or fitness professional.

2)  PRE-SEASON

WORK ON:  Power and Coordination

TIME FRAME:  1-2 months in March and April

Power = strength x speed.  If you were able to work through your injuries and mobility deficits so that you could build a strength base, you are ready for power training.   With this type of exercise we are adding speed to our strengthening exercises.  Golfers are often concerned with getting bulky and losing their swing mobility.  If you follow a power training workout with some coordination drills, the power carryover onto the golf course will improve.

HOW?:  Olympic weight lifting with low repetition and high resistance, plyometrics for power, speed drills for speed, agility drills for speed and coordination, TPI golf posture stability drills for coordination.

*Specifically:  Crossfit, Insanity, P90X for power…but be careful not to overdo it and get injured prior to golf season.  Many of these programs are too advanced for people who do not have a strength base.

3)  IN-SEASON

WORK ON:  Mobility and Endurance

TIME FRAME:  5-6  months May – Oct

During golf season you want to focus on not getting tight or fatigued.  Since you fixed your mobility deficits during preseason, use this time to maintain it.  Light cardio will maintain your endurance.   Remember that cardio is purely raising your heart rate.  If you continue with 1 or 2 sessions / week working on low load power exercises or interval training you will not only maintain your endurance, but also maintain power.   Using the interval training as cardio will also control any weight gain.

HOW?:  Yoga, Pilates, Moderate intensity cardio (running, cycling, rowing), interval training and Olympic lifting for maintenance only.

Sundog Rehab

Still feel lost?  Have injuries you are worried about aggravating with an aggressive program?  Get into the clinic!  Get evaluated with a physical exam, video analysis and personalized program.  See info here for contacting me to get started ASAP.  There are only 3 -4 months left before the season starts.  Apppointments are conveniently located at Sundog Rehab in Rapid City.

Resources

YOGA FOR GOLF:  http://ptsportswellness.wordpress.com/2010/06/04/back-pain-keeping-you-off-the-links/ GOLF EX FOR STIFF

PEOPLE:  http://ptsportswellness.wordpress.com/2010/05/28/are-you-a-stiff-golfer/

YEAR AROUND GOLF CONDITIONING:  http://www.ajga.org/media_center/coverstories/08_Stories/11-5-08.asp

Exercise your Vestibular System for Improved Balance

Balance is something that most people are born with and develop in the first few years of life.  At the same rate, as we age, we begin to lose it.  BUT, it is never too late to start working on your balance.  Below are some ideas but first it is important to understand what gives us balance.

The four primary components of good balance are:

1)  Proprioception (awareness in space) – coordination b/t sensation and orientation to upright

2)  Vestibular system in the ear  - controls equilibrium, balance, and orientation to up

3)  Vision

4)  Strength – trunk, hip, ankle

If you deficits in any of these the body has to compensate through the other three components to maintain balance.  This is similar to someone who is blind develops a good sense of smell and hearing to make up for inability to see.   Some people are born or work hard to develop some of the components  above to become excellent at balance.  Professional athletes have superior components of balance.  This is in part to exercising the proprioception, strength and, visual system to improve reaction times and precision of power required to excel at their sport.  Through vigorous training and repetition of activity, they become experts.   Not all people are born with superior components of balance.  When we age and become more sedentary proprioception, vision, strength, and the vestibular system begin to decline.  As balance declines in older adults, fear of falling promotes lack of movement and these systems become even weaker.  This can be delayed by exercising and maintaining each system.

The vestibular system is highly developed in the early years of life as toddlers and children are playing on merry-go-rounds, teeter totters, monkey bars and swings.   These toys can all be found in playgrounds.  Other games that we used to play are “upsy daisy”, “bucking bronco” on your dads knee,  and “rocket launcher” in the swimming pool.   Bounce Houses are one of the most popular events at birthday parties.  Kids become obsessed with these games and toys.  They focus on inversion, foot/hand precision, rapid change of direction, and strength to enhance our vestibular system.

Without even realizing it parents are helping developing their child’s vestibular system.  These children become fearless if balance is developed properly and early in life.  Before you know it, those kids are zooming down the mountain without ski poles and doing flips on the gymnastics floor.  The minute we stop exercising our balance, we begin to lose it.  Athletes will continue to enhance or maintain balance through their sport however most sports do not focus on inversion, heights, or rapid change of direction on an unstable surface.  Gymnastics is one of the most popular sports for young children and involves jumping, hanging, and flipping.  Unfortunately, many kids do not continue past age 8-10 with it.  Recess time and PE classes are cut exponentially until middle school.  The kids who do not participate in sports are left in the dust and vestibular systems begin to decline.

As we become adults, unless we practice inversions in yoga, take part in rock climbing, mountain biking and sports alike we become deficit in our tolerance to positions other than upright.  If one other component of balance is lost – strength, vision, or proprioception – risk of fall is exponentially increased.  The “use it or lose it rule” becomes vital to long-term maintenance of balance.  This is already common knowledge as many people are practicing their single leg balance (for proprioception), strengthening their core/hips with gym programs and getting their eyes checked for long-term optical health.   How do we exercise our vestibular system?  As physical Therapists we have people do balance exercises (such as single leg standing) with eyes closed. This takes away vision to force the vestibular system and proprioception to compensate.  Great exercise but…Boring.

It is never too late to start playing

Instead, I say we all resume childhood games.  Play at the playground:   go swinging  merry-go-round, order a Bounce House for your next bar-b-que at the park.  If you have kids, play the same games with them.  Start doing somersaults and hand stands on the wall like you did when you were 6 years old in gymnastics class.  This would be the fastest way to start exercising your vestibular system.  If you want a more organized form of exercise, take Yoga, go rock climbing, or enroll in a trapeze class.  It will be fun and will keep you on your feet longer with less chance of falling.  And, it is never too late to start.  There is no reason why your 80-year-old grandma can’t get on the swing set with the grand kids.

Use it or lose it for prolonged vestibular function and balance.

Yoga or Pilates? Part II

If you are attempting to decide between Yoga or Pilates, this and my previous blog will give you a rundown of each and how to decide which might best suit your needs.

Part II – Pilates

Part one included a full description of the various styles of Yoga and how to choose the best one for you.    The Pilates Method was founded on and continues to be based on the visions of its founder Joseph Pilates.  He was a an athlete interested in Eastern AND Western medicine who developed a practice that would give you the tone and strength of a boxer or dancer.  Similar to Yoga, it follows the principles of balancing the body.  Also like Yoga it is a practice of poses and postures however it incorporates a repetition / fine tuning of a secondary movement while sustaining that posture.  The exercises are focused more on precise and concentrated control in small to large ranges of movement for improving flexibility and developing the core or “Powerhouse”.   The last two principles similar to Yoga are coordination of breath and Flow of movement during engagement of the postures.

One of the main reasons that Physical Therapists are such advocates of The Pilates Method is that it focuses on the main stabilizing structures of the trunk that tend to contributing or directly linked with the spinal and peripheral injuries we see every day.  The Serratus Anterior, Longus Coli, Transverse Abdominis, Multifidis, pelvic floor, diaphragm, deep hip rotators, and rotator cuff are the key contributors for local stabilization the spine, hips, and shoulders.  Many of these muscle groups segmentally attach to the spine / ribcage  which enhance the positioning and precise movements necessary for rehabilitating or preventing an injured spine.  The big “mover” muscles on the surface of the body (pecs, lats, traps, gluteals, and rectus abdominis) are responsible for large, powerful movements required for daily movements and enhancing athletic performance.   However if they get weak / shortened due to postural changes or over training they become problematic.  While Pilates strengthens the deep stabilizers as mentioned above, it also works at elongating these superficial “movers” that might be problematic.

Joseph Pilates

Joseph Pilates

The Pilates Method founder was a boxer, diver, skier, gymnast, and war hero (as a Nurse) from Germany.  He served in WWI and invented his first apparatus (a version similar to today’s Reformer and Cadillac) in which he attached springs to hospital beds so that wounded soldiers could continue to strengthen their bodies while healing from their injuries.  In a lot of ways, Joseph Pilates was a Physical Therapist, although Physical Therapy was not invented in the US until the Polio Epidemic.  These were the first indications that Nurses could not care for the sick/wounded patients in addition provide rehabilitation.  They needed another practitioner to emphasize the relearning of fine and gross motor skills necessary for them to return to prior level of function.  We will save that for another Blog.

Well, the Pilates idea was a hit.  He was asked to train military personnel, famous athletes, and eventually emigrated to NYC to open his first studio in 1926.  He went on to develop 500+ exercises on the principles still used today:  concentration, control, centering, flow, precision, and breathing.  He turned Pilates into an art and developed many instructors to continue advancing and spreading the benefits of it.  This video demonstrates how beautiful the movements are when performed by advanced students.  The movements came to assist in the physical training of advanced technical dancing and continues to be one of the training methods of choice for them.

The Practice

1)  Mat Classes – as in Yoga Classes, mat classes follow a logical sequence of postures/exercises.  Similar to Yoga, classes are in group setting and do not allow for individual instruction.  Classes are usually offered in gyms (as part of the membership) or Pilates studios for 15-20$.

2)  Apparatus or Machine work – Using the Reformer, Cadillac, Wunda Chair, Ladder Barrel and Magic Circle (to name a few) these sessions are usually one on one or very small groups.  This allows for more individual manual and verbal cues from the instructor on proper breathing and form.  One of the downfalls of the individual lesson is that it costs a lot more.  It is comparable to having a personal trainer (50-120$/ hour).    Of course, some the the best success stories come from those who hire individualized training. 

In my opinion, there are good, bad, and mediocre instructors.  Most people only need mediocre instructors to actually see a change.  Once you learn the form, the instructor becomes a coach more than anything.  If your goals are to become advanced at Pilates, then get a good instructor, pay the bucks, and watch your body dramatically change.  If you are motivated and have the opportunity to take a few individual classes to get going and maintain your practice with a Mat class, you will see good results.  It just depends on your ultimate goal.  If you have an injury and want to continue your Pilates practice after a rehabilitation course, I would recommend individualized Pilates.  This will allow you to communicate better with your instructor on proper modifications and any symptoms you  may be having.

Like Yoga Studios, Pilates studios can be found in every City in the world and in many private locations (homes) as well.  A good list of resources are listed below to help you find a reputable location.

To answer the original question…

Depending on your ultimate goals, the factors described above will help you make a decision on which is best for you.  I tell my clients who have never experienced either to begin with Yoga.  Especially if you have limited flexibility.  Many of the Pilates poses (even the beginners ones) require at least a moderate amount of hip flexibility and if attempted might leave you feeling frustrated.  For those who have natural flexibility or hypermobility in the joints, Pilates would better meet your deficits safely as it would focus on supporting your spine.  Now, does that mean that Yoga doesn’t improve core stability and Pilates doesn’t improve flexibility?  No.  Quite the opposite.  Both practices will improve these deficits, they just focus on them in a slightly different manner.  Many people will choose Yoga for the spiritual component alone.  Myself included.  To solve this problem of choosing, gyms have come up with classes that work on Yoga and Pilates principles (eg. PiYo at 24 hour fitness).

In the end, it might be better to do a little of both.  Find your preference by trying a few classes of each and finding your FLOW.

Resources

Ellie Herman – advanced Pilates instructor and advocate

Descriptions of Pilates equipment

Balanced Body Pilates – a comprehensive Pilates resource

Stott Pilates – another comprehensive Pilates resource