We are pleased to announce that Sean Cochran, a nationally renowned golf fitness instructor and the personal golf fitness trainer to 2005 PGA Champion Phil Mickelson, has joined PGA.com as a fitness advisor. Cochran, who also has served as strength and conditioning coach for the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres major league baseball teams, will write a weekly fitness blog that will appear exclusively on PGA.com. He'll update it a couple of times a week, telling you about how to achieve better fitness, life on the road -- and in the gym -- with Lefty, plus answer your questions about fitness and how it can help you play better golf. More of Cochran's articles and his acclaimed fitness aids are available at his web site, www.bioforcegolf.com.
Strength in Your Core to Drive the Golf Ball Farther
I'm back in the states after a week and a half in the "old country," "bloody" good England that is. The outcome for Team Mickelson was not as we had hoped, but the trip was fun. We had quite a few experiences to say the least as Americans across the pond. Too many to get into in this article, but all in all it was fun, and I know we are all glad to get back to the states. Attention now turns to the PGA Championship in mid-August. Hard to believe the fourth major of the year is about four weeks away.
It seems appropriate at this juncture to introduce the next facet of a comprehensive fitness program for golf, and that is strength. Yes, strength training is a major component of golf. All too often it is incorrectly defined. The word strength is often associated with bodybuilders, barbells and dumbbells where bulging biceps are developed. The reality is so different from what is perceived that before we venture on I find it necessary to define strength in its true form.
Ordinarily strength and golf are not spoken in the same sentence. The reality of the situation is different from what many people think. Research shows the amateur golfer achieves a peak muscle activity of 90 percent when driving the golf ball. (Paul Chek, The Golf Biomechanic's Manual, pg. 144) Yes, 90 percent peak muscle activity is very high and requires a little something from your body. What it means is the stresses placed upon your body while playing golf are very high. In order for you to minimize the risk of injury and have peak performance on the golf course you must develop muscular strength.
If you need a little more evidence to support the connection between strength training and the golf swing take a look at the pros. Tiger, Phil, Vijay and Ernie all utilize golf fitness programs to improve their golf swing, and every one of their programs contain strength training exercises.
To fully understand strength training and the golf swing lets take a look at the definition of muscular strength. Simply stated, muscular strength can be defined as the ability of the body to exert the required levels of force to perform the functional movement at hand. (Michael Clark, Integrated Training for the New Millennium, pg. 369) In relation to the golf swing, this definition states it is necessary for the body to elicit the required force to maintain the anatomical postures of the swing.
For example, when you are swinging a club and find it difficult to maintain your balance or generate distance on your shots, this indicates you are lacking the required levels of core strength for the golf swing. Bottom line, your body's strength levels are limiting the ability of you to perform the biomechanics of the golf swing.
Tiger and Phil are not hitting their 7-iron 190 yards because they are weak. They are hitting all their shots with distance because they have developed high levels of core strength relative to their golf swing. Strength development assists in your balance capacities, decreases the possibility of injury and is the precursor to power in your swing.
Bottom line is if you desire to improve your golf swing and add distance to your shots, strength training and a golf fitness program must be part of your training. Next week we'll discuss the intricacies of strength training specific to the golf swing, very different than building bigger biceps in the gym.
Previous blog entries:
07/11/06 Use Progression to Keep Improving Your Golf Swing
07/04/06 Dynamic Balance Exercises
06/27/06 Two Types of Balance are Key to Your Golf Swing
06/20/06 Balance in Your Golf Swing Leads to More Power
06/13/06 Getting Yourself Ready for a Round of Golf
06/06/06 Joint Range of Motion and a Fluid Golf Swing
05/29/06 Flexibility Exercises to Help with Those Tight Muscles
05/23/06 Guidelines for Your Golf Flexibility Program
05/16/06 Assess Your Flexibility First
05/09/06 Better Golf Exercises to Improve Your Swing
05/02/06 Developing a Repeatable Golf Swing and Your Body
04/26/06 Increasing the Clubhead Speed in Your Golf Swing
04/18/06 How To Prepare for Your Round
04/17/06 Swing Faults are Not Really Swing Faults
03/27/06 You can improve balance in your swing
03/24/06 Improve Your Flexibility and See Results in Your Swing
03/20/06 Your Body is the Foundation of Improving Your Golf Swing
