Welcome to Golf Swing Guide
Periodization For Golf Training Article
. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for further reading, click here.
Improve Your Golf Swing and Driving Distance with Golf Stretches
from: Sean CochranThe golf swing is arguably one of the most difficult athletic
actions to perform. The golf swing requires you to draw the golf
club through a long range of motion with proper technique and
exact timing.
Any error in swing plane, timing, or sequence will cause your
golf swing to suffer, and suffer it will. Unfortunately, the
result of your golf swing suffering will be errant shots, poor
golf scores, and frustration on the golf course.
Often the amateur is at a lost for why their golf swing results
in errant shots. Countless hours are spent at the range in an
effort to improve their golf swing. Hundreds or even thousands
of dollars are spent on lessons each year, and not to mention
the purchasing of new equipment.
It all adds up to a lot of time and money spent on improving the
golf swing. Unfortunately, for many amateur golfers their
handicaps and score never improve. Leading to the question "why
is my golf game not improving?"
If this is you and this question lingers in your mind. The
answer to your question could easily be staring right back at
you in the mirror. The failure of improvement may have
absolutely nothing to do with the driver you are swinging, the
teaching pro helping you with your swing, or even your practice
routine. It could all do with you! Yes you, the physical body
swinging the golf club.
Keep in mind the golf club does not perform the mechanics of the
golf swing. Nor do the mechanics of the golf swing execute
themselves without you. It is you and your body executing the
mechanics of the golf swing. The point to make is your body
directly affects the mechanics of the golf swing.
Additionally, the golf swing requires your body to encompass
certain physical qualities to execute the mechanics of the golf
swing correctly. These physical qualities are certain levels of
flexibility, muscular strength, balance, and power. If you are
lacking the minimal amounts of flexibility, balance, strength,
and power to execute the golf swing correctly. Compensations
will occur even before you swing the golf club.
For example, let's look at your flexibility. The golf swing
requires you to draw the golf club through a large range of
motion. The backswing requires a full shoulder turn to set the
club in the correct slot for the downswing, and the finish
position is almost a mirror image of the backswing.
In order to perform these parts of the golf swing correctly, the
muscles of your body must be flexible. An inflexible body in
which muscles are "tight" creates restrictions in movement.
Restrictions in movement in relation to the golf swing will
undoubtedly result in limitations pertaining to golf swing. The
limitation will impede you from creating a full shoulder turn
and balanced finish position. This causes compensations in the
mechanics of the golf swing.
The entire body needs to be flexible for the golf swing. Certain
muscles more than others are involved in the golf swing, and if
these muscles are "tight" they will directly affect your golf
swing. One such set of muscles is your hamstrings.
The hamstrings (back side of your upper leg) are often "tight"
and cause problems to many people, not just golfers. However,
they have a profound effect on the golf swing and it is not a
good effect. Hamstrings that are "tight" are in a shortened
position. The shortened position of the hamstrings has a direct
effect on the position of your hips. Your hips will be "tucked",
directly affecting your posture. This in itself can hamper the
ability to place oneself in the correct position at address
within the golf swing, not to mention maintaining a proper spine
angle during the swing.
Additionally, "tight" hamstrings place an undo amount of stress
on the lower back. Large amounts of stress on the lower back
cause fatigue, soreness, and increase the possibility of injury.
If you are a golfer that has ever experienced lower back pain
you know the effect it has on your ability to swing the golf
club correctly.
A combination of a postural change and undo amounts of stress on
the lower back, just begin to scratch the surface of the effect
inflexible muscles can have on the golf swing. "Tight" muscles
change the kinematics of the body. As a result, the biomechanics
of the golf swing must be altered. These alterations usually
lead to compensations in the mechanics of the golf swing
resulting in errant shot patterns on the golf course.
And no matter what you do in terms of practice or instruction
these alterations will not go away until you address them. Just
as you address swing faults, you must address flexibility
faults. Flexibility faults can be addressed through golf
stretches.
Golf stretches enhance the flexibility of your body in relation
to the golf swing. Golf stretches often times return muscles
that are "tight" such as the hamstrings to their proper length.
This results in the ability of your body to perform the
biomechanics of the golf swing correctly. If you are one of many
golfers who are not finding their golf swing improving through
practice and instruction. Take a moment and look at the body
swinging the golf club. This very well may be the root of your
golf swing problems. Fix your flexibility faults through golf
stretches and find yourself on the road to lower golf scores and
more enjoyment in the game of golf.
Sean Cochran
About the author:
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.
Periodization For Golf Training News