I did a little bit of research, as usual, in recent weeks, and came to the realization that there is one muscle group that most golfers do not work on much, but it is definitely a key to achieving distance potential. This group is the lats, the muscles of the upper and middle back. Women in particular tend to have much smaller lat muscles than men.
The reason this muscle group is important is that it is very involved in the winding and unwinding of the golf swing. The stronger these muscles are, the more torque you can put into the golf swing.
The best way to work out these muscles without much in the way of equipment, is the pull up. Unfortunately, pull-ups can be quite difficult, and most people, especially people who are a bit over weight, find it difficult to perform just one repetition. However, by simply using a chair to support some of your weight, you can still do pull-ups and increase your strength.
We do this by setting one foot on the chair. This takes away some of the body weight, which makes it a little easier to do a pull up. Doing our best not to push up with that foot, we pull ourselves up until our chin as even or slightly above the bar. If you lower yourself back down slowly, you will continue to work the muscles.
You can try a variety of grips on the pull up bar. First, try an overlapping grip with the hands shoulder width apart. A more difficult version would be to place the hands outside of shoulder width apart. Or you can also try a very narrow grip, with the hands just a few inches apart. You can also do a chin up, which is done by grabbing the bar so that palms face toward you.
Since the pull up hits the back and arms, and the shoulders to an extent, it is a great exercise for the golfer seeking to add some distance without spending hours in the gym.
Scott Cole www.powergolftraining.net
I’ve been a golfer for over 30 years, and a student of Pai Lum Kung Fu for the past eight years, achieving the rank of 1st Degree Blackbelt. Although these are obviously radically different activities, to excel in either one, you must develop similar characteristics. Both golf and Kung Fu are total body activities that also engage the mind.
First we will focus on flexibility. The more flexible you are, the more potential your golf swing will have, as you will be able to generate a longer golf swing with a wider arc, one of the major keys to increased power. Obviously, flexibility is very important to the martial artist. Again, the greater the flexibility in your technique, the greater the range of motion you may have, and thus, the greater potential for power. Also, greater flexibility helps prevent injury.
Next is strength. In both golf and the martial arts, you do NOT need to be super strong to have significant power. Huge muscles typically are not important to either activity. However, a decent amount of strength is clearly important. Traditional martial artists tend to work out the body in more traditional ways, without the use of heavy weights. This results in a lean and hard body, rather than a big and bulky body. A less bulky body allows the martial artist to maintain greater flexibility. This is also important to the golfer. We don’t often see 250 pound linebackers who have a good golf game, but it is not uncommon to see a quarterback play golf well, not to mention a hockey player.
It is also important for the golfer and martial artist to be strong mentally. When in a fight, the martial artist must maintain his cool and composure at all times. By doing so, he will make few mistakes that his opponent may capitalize upon.
I am reminded of the early days of the UFC when Royce Gracie dominated that sport. He was often matched against opponents much larger than he (he usually weighed in at about 170 pounds). Typically, he would wait until his opponent would charge in and try to kick him to the head or body. This type of technique often results in less balance for a martial artist and Gracie would capitalize on this by moving in quickly to take his opponent down, then work into a position where he could choke out his opponent, or put him in a joint lock, forcing a tap out or a broken limb.
There is no other sport that requires you to be more mentally tough than in golf. That is why Tiger Woods is the best. He is simply much stronger mentally than any of his competitors, and that is why he often wins even when he is off his game.
In Kung Fu, we generate power by maintaining proper balance and being rooted to the ground. In the movies, you will see fighters leaving the ground and performing those fancy, jumping, spinning kicks. But, once you leave the ground, you lose power. If you watch any of the old Bruce Lee movies, you did not often see him leaving the ground when he finished off a kick or a punch. Occasionally, but not often.
In golf, the best players will keep their balance. This is the most important factor to having a powerful golf swing and consistent ball striking ability. That is why even when they swing hard, they maintain good balance.
Finally, both activities require you to remain relaxed to perform at the best of your ability. If there is any excess tension, you lose power, flexibility and touch. That is why breathing and relaxation techniques play a crucial role in the mastery of both.
So, if you have the opportunity, go learn a little Kung Fu! I guarantee it will help your golf game!
Scott Cole www.powergolftraining.net
I’ve been a golfer for over 30 years, and a student of Pai Lum Kung Fu for the past eight years, achieving the rank of 1st Degree Blackbelt. Although these are obviously radically different activities, to excel in either one, you must develop similar characteristics. Both golf and Kung Fu are total body activities that also engage the mind.
First we will focus on flexibility. The more flexible you are, the more potential your golf swing will have, as you will be able to generate a longer golf swing with a wider arc, one of the major keys to increased power. Obviously, flexibility is very important to the martial artist. Again, the greater the flexibility in your technique, the greater the range of motion you may have, and thus, the greater potential for power. Also, greater flexibility helps prevent injury.
Next is strength. In both golf and the martial arts, you do NOT need to be super strong to have significant power. Huge muscles typically are not important to either activity. However, a decent amount of strength is clearly important. Traditional martial artists tend to work out the body in more traditional ways, without the use of heavy weights. This results in a lean and hard body, rather than a big and bulky body. A less bulky body allows the martial artist to maintain greater flexibility. This is also important to the golfer. We don’t often see 250 pound linebackers who have a good golf game, but it is not uncommon to see a quarterback play golf well, not to mention a hockey player.
It is also important for the golfer and martial artist to be strong mentally. When in a fight, the martial artist must maintain his cool and composure at all times. By doing so, he will make few mistakes that his opponent may capitalize upon.
I am reminded of the early days of the UFC when Royce Gracie dominated that sport. He was often matched against opponents much larger than he (he usually weighed in at about 170 pounds). Typically, he would wait until his opponent would charge in and try to kick him to the head or body. This type of technique often results in less balance for a martial artist and Gracie would capitalize on this by moving in quickly to take his opponent down, then work into a position where he could choke out his opponent, or put him in a joint lock, forcing a tap out or a broken limb.
There is no other sport that requires you to be more mentally tough than in golf. That is why Tiger Woods is the best. He is simply much stronger mentally than any of his competitors, and that is why he often wins even when he is off his game.
In Kung Fu, we generate power by maintaining proper balance and being rooted to the ground. In the movies, you will see fighters leaving the ground and performing those fancy, jumping, spinning kicks. But, once you leave the ground, you lose power. If you watch any of the old Bruce Lee movies, you did not often see him leaving the ground when he finished off a kick or a punch. Occasionally, but not often.
In golf, the best players will keep their balance. This is the most important factor to having a powerful golf swing and consistent ball striking ability. That is why even when they swing hard, they maintain good balance.
Finally, both activities require you to remain relaxed to perform at the best of your ability. If there is any excess tension, you lose power, flexibility and touch. That is why breathing and relaxation techniques play a crucial role in the mastery of both.
So, if you have the opportunity, go learn a little Kung Fu! I guarantee it will help your golf game!
Scott Cole www.powergolftraining.net
As is my custom, I started my New Year workout routine on the first Monday of the New Year. Now, keep in mind, I worked out more consistently in 2008 than any year in the last 15. But, as the holidays approached, and I tried to get a lot of my other work completed so I could relax for a couple weeks, I slacked off.
Today, I started my new routine. As someone who is experienced with working out, I knew I needed to not go all out today, or I would be in serious pain on Tuesday, since I had not worked out for three weeks. I warmed up as I always do by jumping rope for a few minutes along with some light stretching. Unfortunately, my "gym" is in my garage, although these days I do not do heavy lifting. So, since I live in Pennsylvania, it is a little cold in there in the mornings in January.
I went through my entire 45 minute workout consisting of a variety of pushups and pullups, but may not have been loose enough. Near the end, I felt the familiar twinge in my upper back, under my shoulder blade, that indicates the onset of a muscle spasm. As the day wore on, the spasm became more painful, and now it will be difficult to get through all of my routines the rest of the week.
Although I don't believe I over did it, as the rest of my upper body is a little sore, but not too sore, I probably should have eased into the routine a bit more.
The moral to this story is...if you have not worked out for a couple weeks or more, don't over do it the first few workouts, especially if you are starting a routine once the golf season is underway. Sore muscles on the golf course tend to inhibit good scoring!
Scott Cole www.powergolftraining.net
When I've played with a lot of amateur golfers over the years, the one way they tried to hit the golf ball further off the tee is simply by swinging as hard as they can. Unfortunately, most of the time, they lose their balance in the process, which defeats the whole purpose of the effort.
Most amateurs with a handicap over 10 simply do not have a golf swing that is capable of generating a lot of power. Those that do, generally have no idea where the ball is going when they do hit it hard. Usually, the problem lies with a major flaw in the golf swing. No matter what you may read online in most golf fitness websites, improving your strength will not do the trick.
The single most important factor to hitting the golf ball a long way is maintaining your balance. You see, if you lose contact with the ground during your swing, or you do not have the appropriate weight shift, you will lose power. Have you ever seen any of the big hitters falling over after they hit a tee shot? No, their swing ends with a perfect finish with the weight on the left foot. Even when Tiger Woods goes at it hard, he finishes with perfect balance.
My first suggestion for adding power to the swing is to first have a good stance. If you are crouched over too much, or too upright, too close, or too far from the ball, you will not maintain a good enough balance to drive the ball a long way. The same can be said if your feet are too close together or too far apart (about shoulders width, or slightly wider is proper). Your weight should not be on the toes, nor on the heels. The stance should also not be too open or too closed.
Work on this at home... Take off your shoes and socks and look for the area on the bottom of the foot, in the area we refer to as the ball of the foot, where there is a depression between the two big pads, and where there is a shape of an upside down V. If you press hard on that spot (you may need to search for it a bit), you will get a bit of pain. If you do, you found the right spot. Now, stand yourself up and stand on one foot, and focus on that spot on the bottom of your foot. Try to really feel that spot as the tightest to the ground. Now switch feet and try to get that feeling with the other foot. Finally, get into a proper golf stance and try to get that feeling in both feet.
This is your beginning point for learning how to draw energy from the earth to help generate more power into your golf swing. This is a basic concept in the art of Kung Fu for learning how to generate power in our techniques, and it applies well to the golf swing as well.
Scott Cole
www.powergolftraining.net