Training the
Junior Golfer
William Healy, BA, CSCS, PGFA
I am a
firm believer in participating in multiple sports as a youth. It is not
necessary to be a four sport star as a golfer, but playing other sports during
the off season is a good idea. Clearly defined breaks between seasons are
crucial during the formative years, preventing overtraining and maintaining
motivation levels. Golfers take many years to develop as a player. I know of
many more cases of burn out rather than stardom. Most of the country experience
poor, possibly nonexistent playing conditions during the winter, making it
useless to go out to play or directly work on your game. The time off from golf
gives the athlete a physical and mental break from the sport.
The last
sport to include strength & conditioning in the development process is
golf, which makes proven techniques difficult to find. I started weight
training for golf way back in the 80's before that practice was common. Many of
my friends trained for other sports, so I prepared much like they did. Today,
the information available is considerably better that it has ever been.
Virtually every sport now has its own set of programs, making progress less
frustrating and more efficient. The ultimate goal of a golf fitness program is
to generate power during the swing.
Most
juniors need to participate in workouts geared toward training movements, not
individual muscles. Strength is utilized throughout a complete range of motion
in the golf swing, not from isolating muscles. During the golf swing, the mind
recruits groups of muscles to perform in a certain pattern and should be
trained accordingly. The kinetic chain has to be functioning optimally for all
power to be released. When you sedate the nervous system with machine training,
you run the risk of destroying your timing. The goal of any golfer should be to
enhance and support their development with training, not break it down. Like it
or not, the golf swing is a very complex motion with lots of moving parts. To
isolate muscle groups during training or even while teaching the golf swing can
actually be counterproductive.
While
training golfers, the primary goal is never to lose flexibility for strength.
The golf swing requires optimal flexibility in the shoulders, hips, lower back,
and hamstrings. Obviously the golfers are getting larger, but sheer bulk will
more than likely hinder the golfer rather than help. As juniors, I like my
students to learn a pre round stretching routine that they will continue to
utilize. Also, body awareness, balance, and stability will develop in the
teenage years.
The core
also requires special attention. I like to do quite a few rotational movements
which involve all three planes of motion. The majority of exercises are
performed standing, which closely mimics the swing. I am a big fan of dumbbells,
which are very versatile and can be used at golf-fitness-products-home.html as well. I use exercise tubing
and cables for a few movements that involve rotation.
Regardless
of the recent success of Tiger Woods and Michelle Wie, most golfers are in the
developmental stages of their career during their teen years. There are many
things to learn on the golf course, making patience and a sound training
program a priority. With the courses getting much longer, genetics are going to
play a much larger role. Just hitting balls will not get you to the tour
anymore. It just does not make sense to expend all your effort at the course.
If the ultimate goal is to continue to climb the competitive ladder, you must
continually search for ways to improve your swing, body, and mind.
If you
look at tennis, there are many similarities. Much of the previous development
came on the court, with kids hitting thousands of balls. The repetitive nature
of the motions leads to injuries, premature plateaus, and burnout. Without
having fitness in the picture, there are very clear limits. A much better
alternative is to either play other sports competitively, or workout and cross train
for your sport. I already see a huge shift in the competitive tennis arena, and
golf is soon to follow. Many television announcers will pick on the fitness
level or agility of a tennis player just as quickly as dissecting their
strokes.
The
blueprint for a teenage golfer includes participation in multiple sports,
conditioning, competition, and periodization. Be patient and focus on the
learning process. If you take lessons and correct your mistakes, each year you
will improve. If you do improve each year, eventually you will beat everyone.
Too many juniors and parents focus on score, when the overall development of
the player is more important. Every time you play an event you gain valuable
experience that should be to your benefit the next time you tee it up.
The same
blueprint is used for conditioning. Golf is a difficult sport to condition for,
because sheer power is not the answer. Perform functional exercises, use a wise
coach, and learn from your workouts. Take your flexibility routine and apply it
out on the course. Determine when to exercise, play, and practice for
synergistic results. Golf may be the toughest to integrate multiple factors,
allowing the golfer who understands fitness, golf, and rest periods to be at
the head of the class.
The only
thing stopping younger golfers from breaking through earlier is experience,
whether it is scoring or just how to manipulate all of the variables of being a
professional golfer. The athleticism of golfers will change dramatically in the
next few years, making conditioning imperative to an aspiring player's success.
As you see the successes of Tiger Woods and Annika Sorenstam, there is a clear
advantage to being a fit golfer. The future of golf contains much longer
courses, making it much more of an athletic event. Recovery rates will also
change, again making it vital to train for golf.
The
maturation process of a golfer includes learning when, where, and how often to
workout. Physical and mental preparation for your rounds are also steps to
becoming a stronger, more complete golfer. Believe me, when you compete, the
golf course and the situation will expose your weaknesses. The person that has
the ability to change the outcome of a match is you. Focus on bringing up your
weakest areas to be on par with the rest of your game. Create goals to work for
during each season, and strive to do your best to attain them. Many factors are
being applied to golf performance currently, which makes improvement more
interesting and applicable to everyday life.
Once a
golfer becomes an elite athlete, every form of training, preparation, and
recovery gets magnified. At this level, overtraining and injuries become more
common. I highly advocate using a logbook or journal to continually keep track
of the hours practicing, exercising, what you eat, and how you feel. I think
you will be surprised at the conclusions you come to. Everyone responds
different to conditioning, competition, pressure, etc. It is important to
discover what works for you and what does not. Sometimes the difference between
winning and losing may be a day of rest.
I hope
these observations will help guide the golfer through a maze of fitness
information currently available. Lots of changes are taking place in the
performance industry, making it very exciting to be a developing golfer.
William Healy BA, CSCS, PGFA is recognized as one of the world's leading experts of golf fitness. He is the Director of Fitness at the International Junior Golf Academy, and currently trains over 150 golfers each day including PGA, LPGA,Nationwide players, and the US Junior Champion.
William is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist
by the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Professional Golf
Fitness Instructor of the Professional Golf Fitness Association, a Certified
Fitness Trainer through the International Sports Sciences Association, and a
Certified Golf Fitness Trainer with Advantage Golf. William graduated from
Marshall University with a Bachelor Degrees in Sports Management and Marketing.
He played collegiate golf for both Ohio and Marshall Universities.
For more information about William, go to www.golffitnessexpert.com
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The articles at GolfFitnessProducts.net are for informational purposes only and are not intended to substitute for direct examination and exercise prescription by the appropriate health professional. It is strongly recommended that you do not perform any exercise program without the consent of your personal physician.
