Rebuilding Dave's Swing: 2015 Edition

[GolfSpy Dave]

Rebuilding the Swing: 2015 Edition

 

It seems like winter is my time of reflection. For the past few years, I have taken on swing and fitness projects during the least golf friendly days of the years.

 

I live in drought plagued northern California, so our winters are not really that bad, but I do find it ironic that I look to improve my performance in an outdoor sport when the outdoors are the least hospitable.

 

Regardless of why, once the temperatures drop, my brain begins to scheme and plan, focusing on one simple question.

 

“How can I play better golf once the weather gets better?”

 

In winters past, I traveled to Callaway HQ for a fitting, worked with a physical therapist and an indoor golf pro, and most recently worked with a personal trainer Charles Burton to drop a ton of weight and increase strength and flexibility.

 

When I look back at that list, it makes me wonder why I am here again detailing a new venture. Why would I need to set up another project? Based upon previous projects, I should be fitted, fitter, and flexible.

 

The short answer is because it's golf. This silly game we play is not about mastery, but improvement. Each one of those previous projects yielded real gains in my game, while at the same time showing me new areas for improvement. Golf is a marathon, not a sprint. It's a lifelong pursuit. I get that.

 

If life had remained steady, and I was making those incremental gains, like finding more fairways and carding lowers score, I probably wouldn't be writing this. But life rarely stays on path, and in fact, last October, things went sideways.

 

As some of you know, last October I thought that I had the stomach flu, and it instead turned out to be gallstones. After a relaxing weekend stay, I left the hospital minus one organ and with a prescription of no golf, or exercise of any kind really, for at least the next six weeks.

 

Those of you who followed my fitness thread last year know that I was walking/jogging three miles a day, every day. That streak broke the day I went into surgery. 400+ days in a row of three miles or more, only stopped by abdominal incisions. That's not too shabby.

 

Readers of that thread also know that although I was increasing in strength and balance, my golf power was waning. Previous drives in the 250-260+ range were now going 225. That's “pounded” to 225.

 

Let's just say that four incisions through the abdomen, one removed organ, and weeks of no exercise/golf did not help the power equation. Once I finally was cleared to swing again, the game I had was not one that I recognized. I was (am) more than a little frustrated and pissed off at the current state of my play.

 

Thus the necessity of a new project for 2015.

 

Dave's 2015 Plan

So what is it going to be this year? Fitness? Lessons? Gear? Actually, it is going to be all of those. My plan this year is to approach the game from all three angles rather than just one or two. This year, it is going to be a fitness/swing/equipment story. Here's where I'm at and what I am thinking.

 

Fitness

The upside of all of this is that getting an organ removed actually helps one to keep the lost weight off. I'm still hovering around 190-195, but I am not as lean as I was last year at this weight. Muscle takes maintenance. I view myself as a fat skinny guy. The weight is off, but some of that 2014 muscle has switched to fat and I need to switch it back. Gotta get pool-ready by summer…

 

Body reconditioning is going to come through a combination of nutrition and exercise. It's not quite as cut and dry as last year.

 

Currently, I am relearning what is OK to eat, as fat digestion post gallbladder removal can be a bloaty/gassy ordeal. It's trial and error finding out what works and what does not. I'm still loosely following the calorie guidelines from the Lose Itâ„¢ iPhone app. Probably will be more diligent about this if the weight starts to pile back on. The new part in the equation is that now not all calories are created equal.

 

I also need to get back to the daily mileage and workout sessions. The energy and willpower are just not always there. These tie into the diet as well, as my energy levels post surgery seem to swing quite a bit with what I eat. Way more than before.

 

Supposedly, the six months after surgery mark is the magic time for some of this to self-correct. We will see about that in April.

 

The Swing

When I lost the weight last year, I noticed a serious decline in distance. I would jokingly explain this by the loss of belly mass effecting the force=mass x acceleration equation. It's simple physics, right? Maybe not a joke after all.

 

Post-surgery, the culprit has been acceleration. I know that my swing speed is down. I was always 99-104 or so with the driver. Now I'm about 92-95. I get it. I had scalpels in the abdomen. A cut muscle just ain't gonna work that well.

 

So if you couple decreased mass with decreased acceleration, and then sprinkle in a bit of flip and over the top resurgence, you get a swing that is not really being all it could be. Power-wise, it makes perfect sense that I'm just not able to hit the ball as far.

 

The irony is that scoring has been OK. Pretty great even. Scores are back in the 80's. Ball flight looks great. Little draw, with a miss of a block or occasional snapper. If I club up, I can make the distances.

 

One could argue that I could and maybe should be happy with this. Being the shortest hitter in the foursome is fine if you card the lowest score. Maybe I'll need to accept that after all is said and done.

 

Maybe this is my new power equation. I just can't shake the belief that there is still untapped power. I believe that I can find it through fitness and technique.

 

Maybe I'm delusional. That will be part of the discovery.

 

Equipment

I think that the discussion of the current state of the swing merges right into the appropriateness of gear in my bag. It was all custom fitted for me at some point, but that point is not right now.

 

There are a few fitting questions to address:

• Are the shafts now too stiff?
• Are they too heavy?
• Do I need to add another hybrid?
• Do I need more loft in the driver?

 

I look at it like this. My old pants don't fit since I have lost all of the weight. Why should the clubs fitted to my pre-surgery body still fit either?

 

Could the old gear fit OK again once the recovery is truly complete and I'm back to where I was? Or, am I where I am going to be going forward?

 

Regardless, the equipment question needs to be addressed if I am going to play my best golf this season. I will likely get to it a bit later though in the project. I want to see what the fitness/swing work can produce before I shell out the coin for new gear.

 

Look at me being all non-impulsive with my purchases. How grown-up!

 

Going Forward

My plan is to chronicle what I am doing in this thread. I am doing so for mainly two reasons. First, it will keep me on track. Even if this just ends up being a Dear Diary thread for me, it will keep me accountable. I know that this really helped last year with the fitness. I kept the course knowing that someone could be reading about what I did or did not do.

 

And that brings us to the second part. I think that some of you will be curious and want to read along. Maybe you are in a similar situation with some golfing barrier. We have all likely faced some adversity that has affected our game. Maybe it was an injury, new job, new kid, or whatever. Something kept us from playing the golf that we thought we were capable of playing.

 

Maybe this thread will be nothing more than curious entertainment for you, but maybe it will also inspire you to put in just a bit more work on your game. Is putting keeping you from breaking 80 or 90? I believe that you can do something about that. It just takes the will and determination.

 

Right now, I'm not willing to have my 7i only go 140 when it was going 160 a few years ago. Maybe that's my new reality, but I'm not going to accept it until I have exhausted all the options I have.

 

I am going to update this thread with my progress through the spring. You can see below that I have saved the next three sections for specific updates with regards to Fitness, Swing, and Equipment. My plan is to update them whenever something significant happens in one of those areas, or maybe something as simple as trying something new.

 

It should be an interesting ride

 

[GolfSpy Dave]

Fitness and Nutrition Updates

 

Initial Assessment- February 8

Outside of the new scars on the abdomen, my current fitness level is actually pretty good.

Strength is down, as are balance and endurance, but not as far asI thought.

 

Here is my current workout plan for the month.

Warm-up

Balance on one leg with the other leg forward, bent 90° at the hip and knee. 60 seconds each side then as long as possible eyes closed. This is a fun one to assess balance. I know that I have lost some mojo in the balance arena. Pre-surgery, I could balance almost indefinitely on one leg with my eyes closed. Now it's about 20 seconds. Not bad, but not where I was.

 

Try this yourself. See how much tougher it is to balance when you close your eyes

 

Workout

30 Prisoner Squats (fingers laced behind head)

15 Push-ups, hands on sides of exercise ball (these are rough, but I can still do them)

60 second plank - push up position arms, feet on exercise ball.

25 step back lunges

 

For the past two weeks, I have been doing this MWF, running through the series three times. Tomorrow, I'm going to push it to four cycles. Takes about 45 min.

 

Walking/Running

Going to shoot for 4 days next week. So far, when I have gone out, I have only walked 2 miles, not three. Just easing back into the mileage here. May see if I can get back to three miles comfortably by the end of the month.

 

Hopefully walking 18 as well at least once a week. Out with Tim next Friday.

 

Nutrition

Back on Lose It to track calories. The magic food post-gallbladder removal seems to be grilled chicken breast. Skinless, of course. Building my arsenal of foods I can still eat. Annoying but overall enlightening. It's really easy to avoid foods if you know that serious pain will follow. BF Skinner is now my dietitian.

 

UPDATE: February 16th

Overall this was a solid fitness week. Was able to walk 18 twice without getting too winded. One course was a bit hilly and I did suck some wind there. However, I was also puffing on a birthday cigar. I blame Tim for that one. Tim did not get winded, but he was riding in a cart, not pushing one like me.

 

The only real issue was that bumping my workout up to include the lunges last week meant that I couldn't walk without looking like a gunfighter for the rest of the week. Glutes and hamstrings were destroyed. Electrical stimulation, advil, and birthday week alcohol did little to help. I just write that one off to the rust in the tendons.

 

Big win though was that I actually did my whole three-mile course this week for the first time, and felt good about it. So nice to feel like  I have not lost everything fitness-wise after last year.

 

That being said, I may skip lunges this week

[GolfSpy Dave]

Swing Updates

Initial Assessment- February 8

OK so the initial on this part is a little after the fact. I got back to playing golf around mid-December. Tim and I went out and played 9 on a very soggy course one afternoon. Swing was garbage, but it was still one of the best rounds that I have ever played. Not being able to play really made me appreciate that I was back playing.

 

That appreciation of just happy to be playing lasted one round.

 

I expect to hit all fairways and greens when I play. It's not realistic, but I know that I expect it. The greatest issue then, and now is a lack of power in the swing. Drives are finding fairways, and approach shots are heading toward greens. The issue is that both are coming up short.

 

I worked with Tim on a project using a Trackman a few weeks ago and it was truly enlightening. Driver speed was down about 8 mph, and irons were down too. As I mentioned above. My current equation is not one of power.

 

But the golf has been good

Truth be told, I have shot some of my lowest rounds in a few years in the past month or so. Here is one from January 5th:

 

And here is another from last Tuesday:

 

Couple rounds in the 80's should be a cause for celebration for me. Instead, they are motivations to do better. In both of those rounds, a couple of things happened that led to the scores.

• We played up a tee from our usual spot.
• I clubbed up at least one club, sometimes two on approach shots.

I owned the fact that the ball is not going far right now, and was able to put up some OK scores in spite of myself. Classic play situation showing what the new swing is like.

 

155 in on a par 4. Big green-side bunker between me and the green. Can't be short. This shot should be 7i all day for me. Knowing I am not hitting it as far, I hit 5i instead. Hit the green, and made the putt. That's how I got the birdie on #8.

 

So the swing is not terrible, I couldn't tell you when I last had two birdies in a round. Maybe never. Again, the swing looks good, just super short. There is a major power sap in there somewhere.

 

The Plan as of February 8th

 

Training Tools--TOUR STRIKER

My first avenue toward fixing the swing will come via the Tour Striker 7 iron. I have had issues with flipping/early release. Previous instructors have suggested the Tour Striker, but I never got around to picking one up. It's time to put this thing into the swing help mix.

 

Let's see if I can even hit a ball with it. Flipping with this will put everyone on the range at risk. I may become a range divider smashing monster. Gotta get that shaft leaning forward at impact. Not that I haven't tried this in the past.

 

Thankfully Martin Chuck, the inventor of the Tour Striker, has some instructional videos to help me along.

 

UPDATE February 16th

Bought a new training tool last week. Less than $20 too. Check it out.

 

Yep, that's a chair. Didn't have on at the house that would work so I went and snagged this beauty at Sam's Club. I grabbed the chair after seeing this video from Martin Chuck:

 

I know that this is a huge issue for me. I just can't feel that hip sequence naturally. The chair really does help.

Had a synergistic moment regarding the chair yesterday. Was chatting with a local veteran instructor and he was explaining how that move from the top really opens up the possibility for good golf.

 

As I have never been able to feel this move, let alone practice it before, I am optimistic about my chair.

[GolfSpy Dave]

Equipment Updates

 

I've got quite a bit of golf gear in the garage. You probably do to. It's what we golf addicted tend to do. Gear is necessary for the game, and better gear can make the game better. Naturally, we should substitute the word  fitted for better.

 

All of my gear that I play with was fitted at one point in time. A lot of it was fit at company headquarters, by fitters who really know their stuff. I feel confident that it fit me when I was fitted, but maybe not so much now.

 

Here is what's in the bag right now:

Driver: Cobra Bio Cell Pro, Fujikura Pro 65, stiff (optional 70g whiteboard, stiff)

Fairway: PING G25 3W, stock stiff

Hybrids: 21° and 23° PING i25, stock stiff

Irons: 5-AW Callaway RAZR X Tour, Dynamic Gold S300

Wedges: 54°/58°Cleveland CG14 2° Up

 

I also have been cycling through the PING i25 irons (Stock PING X-flex, soft stepped once) that I was fit for last spring and a set of Wilson Staff FG Tour M3 irons with stiff C-Tapers. There is also a set of TaylorMade Burner 2.0 irons (stock stiff) in the conversation.

 

As you can see, there is some heft in those shafts. All stiff, all a bit heavy. Whenever I have been fit, all of my stats improve dramatically whenever I go with a heavier iron shaft.

 

Maybe that's changed. Maybe the weight is now slowing me down and costing me distance. Maybe what was once fitted no longer fits.

 

This is the section that I am going to hold off addressing as long as possible, as I think that progress with fitness and swing will definitely affect my interaction with the gear. Maybe it'll all be fine once I get back on track physically. Maybe it's just winter rust and cold. 

 

Not sure, but one thing that I will definitely be exploring is this little situation:

 

More to come

 

February 16th UPDATE

Well, I have come to realize that the 2014 gear just won't cut it at this point. Zip ties are on, and these three sets are relegated to the corner of the garage. Played some rounds. Went to the range. Made some gear decisions.

 

Each set went south for a different reason. The impulse-purchased Burner 2.0's are too light. As every fitting ever has told me, a light shaft equals sprinkler for me.

 

Although heavy enough, the i25's are just too high launching. These are by far the shortest of the crop right now. Not sure what is really the culprit, but the shaft isn't helping me. That's for certain.

 

The Wilsons were a bit of my last hope. These were built with the c-tapers after the Ping fitter suggested that shaft as being a good fit for me. I do like the weight, but there is not a touch of bend in these now. Another set to add to frustration corner.

 

 

And so we are back at the RAZR X Tour/DG S300 equation. They are the longest, and most accurate of the ones I have, but I still think that the old tech in the head could be upgraded to something a little longer and more forgiving.

 

Then there is that whole shaft flex thing. Buddy picked up a Bio Cell+ driver from Divot.com last week. We play about the same game, but he plays a regular shaft in his driver. I hit more fairways when we played last Friday, but he was always 20 yards longer. I could really use that shorter approach these days.

 

 

[Aotearoa_Brad]

This is great Dave! I'm certainly interested in following along. I'll be interested in the increasing speed part in particular - I'm swimming and doing PiYo (pilates/yoga) for core strength and flexibility, but speed is also something I need to work on.

[JBones]

Dave, are you still using the Golf Gym Power Swing?  I love that thing; 10 swings is equivalent to a 30 minute workout.

[GolfSpy Dave]

Dave, are you still using the Golf Gym Power Swing?  I love that thing; 10 swings is equivalent to a 30 minute workout.

I've got that and a handful of new toys to sort through. That may be my project this weekend since it's raining. That and watching the dog run indoor laps. None too bright that one...

[sp0rtsfan86]

Sounds great. Always looking forward to hearing how a new change works out. Best of luck to you.

[GolfSpy Dave]

-Updated-

Thanks for the motivation Theo

[jbil8802]

Good luck buddy. The loss in distance is temporary and will give you the opportunity to strengthen other parts of your game and learn how to hit different shots with different clubs. You will be fine, I have no doubts.

[wbealsd]

I just wanted to mention I appreciate this thread.  I too, use the winter months (usually starting in January) to start preparing for the golf season and, with not only age, but my shoulder injury last year (btw, I had my gall bladder removed years ago...) I not only relate to what you're doing but it helps me organize my own approach to my "winter game plan."

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

BTW, over the past couple of years I've been moving toward stiffer shafts.  That whole "mass/energy" stuff is true. I don't swing as hard but get better results if I use the heaviest shaft I can manage to control.

 

A couple of other golfers have made similar comments:

The Real Moe Norman

"I like my clubs very very heavy. E3 to E8 swing weights. I believe in mass as much as speed" - Moe Norman

http://advancedballstriking.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=234&t=2219

A fitting for Ben Hogan......at his peak.

Hogan preferred as stiff a shaft as possible. (43¼" driver 269cpm). "..He believed that, under pressure, a soft shaft will fail you...". 

http://www.wishongolf.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8692&p=64091

[GolfSpy Dave]

I just wanted to mention I appreciate this thread.  I too, use the winter months (usually starting in January) to start preparing for the golf season and, with not only age, but my shoulder injury last year (btw, I had my gall bladder removed years ago...) I not only relate to what you're doing but it helps me organize my own approach to my "winter game plan."

 

Thanks for sharing!

 

BTW, over the past couple of years I've been moving toward stiffer shafts.  That whole "mass/energy" stuff is true. I don't swing as hard but get better results if I use the heaviest shaft I can manage to control.

 

A couple of other golfers have made similar comments:

The Real Moe Norman

"I like my clubs very very heavy. E3 to E8 swing weights. I believe in mass as much as speed" - Moe Norman

http://advancedballstriking.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=234&t=2219

A fitting for Ben Hogan......at his peak.

Hogan preferred as stiff a shaft as possible. (43¼" driver 269cpm). "..He believed that, under pressure, a soft shaft will fail you...". 

http://www.wishongolf.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8692&p=64091

Thanks for sharing those. The lighter=faster and farther equation has never been the case for me.  Love the idea of pairing Moe Norman and Ben Hogan on the course. For some reason I see Hogan being very agitated

[Kenny B]

Be careful how much you jog.

 

A Danish health study has concluded that light and moderate joggers have lower mortality than sedentary nonjoggers, whereas strenuous joggers have a mortality rate not statistically different from that of the sedentary group.

 

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/news/20150202/when-it-comes-to-jogging-easy-does-it-study-suggests

 

[GolfSpy Dave]

Be careful how much you jog.

 

A Danish health study has concluded that light and moderate joggers have lower mortality than sedentary nonjoggers, whereas strenuous joggers have a mortality rate not statistically different from that of the sedentary group.

 

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/news/20150202/when-it-comes-to-jogging-easy-does-it-study-suggests

I saw that last week or so too. I took as Dr.'s advice to skip a day or two. 3-4x a week should be fine with a round or two walked on top.

[Kenny B]

I saw that last week or so too. I took as Dr.'s advice to skip a day or two. 3-4x a week should be fine with a round or two walked on top.

 

 

Just remember....

 

[GolfSpy Dave]

2/16 updates added

[GolfSpy Dave]

No update this week, save my opinion that the flu is totally lame.

Having your whole family have it too is uber lame times infinity.

Didn't touch a club, do a push up, eat much, or even drink a beer for a week.

 

Madness, I tell you.

 

I did finally get to watch The Soporanos though. Nothing like being a decade late to an amazing party.

 

More good golf stuff for next week. I promise. My will is totally destroying this cold.  That and Pseudophed...

[Hula Rock]

interested to here about the transition form S300 to R300.

[GolfSpy Dave]

interested to here about the transition form S300 to R300.

It's been interesting. I need a few weeks of swings and I'll spill the beans. So far all I can say is that the data is looking unexpected

[GolfSpy Dave]

OK so I've been a bit remiss on the thread updates. Without going into too much depressing detail, the last six weeks have been rough. Our house has had family-wide illness, two deaths (grandparent and dog), brutal (and new) allergies, and another illness over spring break.

 

Needless to say, best laid plans have gone into a holding pattern for a bit. But that's going to change this week.

 

This week, look for updates regarding:

• Workout schedule (including some new assessment and workout toys)
• Swing/Play Update (3/4th of the game is good, but that last 1/4th is a train wreck)
• Equipment Update (bought new stuff to play with. What else can you do when sick in bed?)

 

Anyway, hopefully you can find some entertainment or commiseration in this thread this week.

This week, I right the ship!