Stretching can release the tightness of your muscles, but not improve the quality. Scarred tissue and ‘hot spots’ are very common and can hinder your flexibility and lead to pain and discomfort. There are ways to eliminate these issues on your own. Here is a great article and video that will help you improve the quality of your muscles.
http://stronglifts.com/soft-tissue-work-release-your-pain/
Clayton Garland, PGA, C.G.F.I.
Author of: Golf Fitness FOR MEN
http://blog.pgaclay.com
There is no secret to nutrition. Your body needs a certain amount of calories everyday to maintain its current state (stay the same weight). Eat more than you need and your body stores it in reserves called fat. It’s that simple. So what you have to be able to do is find out how many calories you need everyday, and shoot for a number that is lower. The easiest way to do this without a bunch of fancy calculations is this:
Your current body weight X 10 = the amount of calories you need to stay the same weight
So for example, if I weight 200 pounds, I would need 2,000 calories per day to stay the same weight as I am now (200 x 10= 2,000). Once you figure you have figured this number, you have a base line from which you can start.
If you think 2,000 sounds like a lot, think again. Most fast food combos will run you between 1,000 and 1,500 calories! That’s 75% of your daily calories in one stinkin’ meal! The best way to eat during the day is in small portions, but more frequently. Personally, I try to eat every three hours. I also aim for about 400 per meal which, considering I usually eat 6 meals per day, equates to about 2,400 calories per day.
One last point to get you started, a good rule to live by is this: if it didn’t exist 200 years ago, don’t eat it. Basically what this means is stay away from prepackaged foods and soda. Protein bars are a great way to get a meal in if you are busy or at work. I think they are a beautiful thing and I eat them like crazy. These protein bars should be the exception though, not the rule. Get your nutrition from lean meat, potatoes, rice, whole wheat breads, beans, nuts, and fruit. They pack a big nutritional punch and do not contain excess sodium and preservatives.
As I study the professional golfers on the PGA Tour, I have begun to notice that even the pro’s make poor shots. Just like you and me they will have a poor drive that puts them in the trees or rough. They will hit it into a bunker or have a strange lye. But what I have noticed that really separates the amateurs from the pro’s is what they make of the shot they have in front of them. The pro will make the best of a shot no matter where it sits on the course. For instance for a bunker shot an amateur might try to scoop the ball out of the sand instead of opening the club face and slicing between the ball and the sand. A pro keeps a cool head when in a poor lye and looks at the best possible shot options. Where an amateur will get frustrated and let that mentally block them from choosing the correct shot, making there position even worse then the last. Now when I have a poor shot off the tee or towards the green I take a deep breath and ask myself what would the pro’s do? This has helped me to make some great recovery shots that gets my confidence level back up and gets me back into the game mentally. If there was one thing I could recommend to beginning golfers it would be to stay calm no matter what the situation and just think that after every poor shot is a chance to make an even better one!
Ever wonder why you always stretch, but never seem to get any more flexible? It seems like a pretty simple concept right? Stretch your muscles to increase range of motion and flexibility right? Wrong! There is much more to increasing your range of motion and flexibility than bending over and touching your toes. Stretching a muscle that is cold does little good. This is because the muscle will contract back to its tightened state quickly after the stretch.
In order to get the most out of your stretching routine, you must first warm up your body’s core temperature. How do you do this? Light exercises that do not require high intensity. Some examples might include:
* pushups while resting on your knees
* swinging your arms in big circles
* squats with no weight
* crunches
* curling light weight
* dead lifts with no weight
* jog in place
Performing 10-12 repetitions of each of these exercises should help to increase your core temperature and get your muscles warmed up. Now that your core temperature is raised, your muscles will be less resistant to contracting back after you finish stretching. This will also allow you to stretch the muscle fibers further with a reduced risk on injury.
When stretching, the best way I’ve found to maximize your time is to hold each position for 12 seconds, relax for 3 seconds, then immediately hold the stretch again for another 12 seconds. This process does not allow the muscle enough time to begin to contract and helps to elongate the muscle even further. A few last tips that will help keep you injury-free:
* Never stretch to the point of pain- stretch until you feel strong resistance and then hold.
* Slowly come out of the stretch. Putting a muscle on a strong stretch and then immediately releasing tension can lead to a pulled muscle.
* Breathe during the stretch- holding your breath reduces blood flow and oxygen.
Follow these basics of stretching and you are well on your way to increased flexibility!
So I have taken approximately five lessons now at Golf Galaxy. The location nearest me now uses the online locker room where the pro uploads your lesson and gives you a recap of the lesson. I am posting this lesson in the hopes that I can get feedback on my progress, any recommendations to help me improve, and hopefully some feedback on if you think this lesson seems to be useful and worth spending my money on. Let me know what you think!
I have been thinking about picking up the Medicus Driver or Iron but am not completely sure if it will be worth the money. I have heard that you don’t learn to swing better but learn to swing the Medicus properly so it won’t break but when it comes to correcting your golf swing with a real club it doesn’t make much of a difference. If this is true I am not sure if it’s worth the money. Has anyone personally used this training aid and what did you think of it?? Is it worth the money?
I would definately recommend any beginning golfer to take at least a lesson or two with a local PGA Pro. My first lesson was priceless and this is what helped cure my slice. Yes thats right I have been able to cure my slice! The first lesson was basically the Pro analyzing my swing and correcting problems in it. First was that I was swinging from out to in. This a common problem for beginning golfers and is what causes a wicked slice. Just like in pool when you want to put “english” on the cue ball you are basically putting a right or left spin on the ball. When I would swing from out to in the club face would make impact with the ball from right to left causing a spin on the ball to the right. Low and behold everytime I hit the ball that way there would be a terrible slice. Some causes of this were my back swing which I lifted my front foot off the ground and most importantly I would try to crush the ball like a baseball. This would make me loose control of the tempo of my swing and in most cases cause me to stand upright giving me the out to in swing pattern. The PGA Pro would film my swing then compare it to Tiger Wood’s swing and wow were there differences. Since I have dove into the game of golf one person worth studying is Tiger. It’s not really because of all the wins or all the hype. The reason I study him is because of his routines, consitancy and disipline. As you begin to follow him because of his golf mechanics you will understand what truely makes him so great. Below is a video outlining the swing I have been working hard to achieve and for any beginner is a perfect example of what to work towards.
