Fit For Golf Training App - 2024 Forum Review

[GolfSpy_APH]

Testers Announced!

 

What is Fit For Golf?

Created by strength and conditioning coach Mike Carroll, Fit For Golf was established all the way back in 2014, but it wasn't until 2017 that the first online program was launched.

Mike had learned about how some trainers at the time were using apps to deliver online programs and decided to create his own Fit For Golf App. So, what does the App feature?

As part of the Fit For Golf app, there are a variety of programs and workouts to suit all golfers that can be done at home or in the gym. It also includes "easy-to-follow videos," a schedule, and a progress tracker to ensure all involved keep on top of their programs.

Finally, the app also includes support, where golfers can reach out to Mike or one of his support team for guidance and assistance.

 

Please welcome and congratulate our selected testers!

@MaxEntropy

@berkeleybob

@Subdiver1

@ILMgolfnut

@taylorjonasher

@PJVicary

[MaxEntropy]

Introduction

First of all, a huge thanks to MyGolfSpy and Fit For Golf. I was very excited about the prospect of this test when it popped up – as an aging golfer, anything I can do to improve my strength and flexibility should prolong my golf “career.”

My name is Blake. I am currently 56 years old and live in Akron, Ohio. We are fortunate to have no shortage of quality golf courses within about an hour drive. The biggest downside? Winter. I haven’t set foot on a course since early November, and we likely have about another month until we can play. I started playing somewhat seriously after I graduated from college and got my handicap to the 15-18 range. Life happened and I took about a 10-year break where I only touched my clubs a couple times. As my kids got older, I started playing again and really got bit by the bug and have played as much as I can for the last 8-ish years. For the last few years, that has been about 50 times on the course (~30 for league nights + ~20 additional rounds). Last summer was a very good season for me – I broke 80 for the first (and second) time and got my handicap as low as 7.4. Currently, I am sitting around 11.

The strengths of my game are most definitely short game and putting, but my scores are mostly dictated by how well I am driving the ball (i.e. keeping it in play/avoiding penalties). I can salvage a score around the greens, but my best scoring days are when driver behaves. I am long for my age/handicap as Arccos has my current driving average at 253 yards. This is down about 10 yards from my peak after finishing the SuperSpeed review in 2020.

(This drive ended up 299 down the middle)

I have followed Mike Carroll on Twitter for a few years and almost pulled the trigger on his app a couple times, but just never really got around to it. The program offers a variety of plans depending on your goals. Since we will more than likely not be starting until around the time golf starts again, I will be focusing on the “In Season” plan. This is subject to change without notice, of course.

In general, my fitness level is decent for my age, but I am overweight. I am about 6'1" and currently weigh around 235 lbs and was as low as 210 lbs in 2019. 210 isn't bad for my frame. In 2018-19, my wife and I were going to the gym 2-3 times per week and, even though I did not really pay much attention to what I ate, I seriously tracked the amounts in my FitBit app. A trip to Vegas and the pandemic were my undoing. These days, we don’t make to the gym as often and I don't eat well. For family health reasons, my wife has been out of state for the better part of 3 of the last 6 months. I struggle to eat healthy when left to my own devices, mostly out of convenience. During the off-season last year, I started playing pickleball at least once per week. I enjoy it and it is a better cardio workout for me than anything I do at the gym. I also referee for a youth basketball league during the winter, which also helps keep me moving and is a decent cardio workout. My wife has a gym membership that allows me to tag along for free and I can do band and medicine ball work at home.

My goals/expectations for the program are (in my perceived order of importance):

1)      Increased strength
2)      Improved flexibility
3)      Weight loss

I know Fit For Golf is not a weight loss program, but I am hoping it will be a welcome side-effect of doing more regular workouts.

Edited February 7 by MaxEntropy

[berkeleybob]

Introduction

Heyo!

First things first. Thanks much, MGS forum, for giving me the opportunity to join the rank of tester. As a past participant of forums for other interests, I can truly say that this place tops them all. I have found that it always strives to grow and evolve, to find new ways to involve and interact with the community it serves. I’m fortunate to feel a part of it, and to hopefully make a contribution that folks will find helpful. 

Who Am I

My name is Robert Ferrer. I am 57 years old, and I’m an American expat living just outside of Copenhagen, Denmark. I bought my first set of clubs at the tender age of 39, played consistent golf for four years, injured my back and took a break. I’ve been slowly but surely getting back to a regular schedule for the past six years. I project that 2024 will be my breakout year for playing consistent golf again.

Why Am I Excited to Test This App

I’m one of those guys whose life has been blessed with the ability to eat anything, have a moderate exercise schedule and gain little or no weight. That’s worked pretty well up until now, where my body has been asking for a little more attention. So, I’m entering a phase in my life where I’m changing the way I eat and creating more time for more than just walking the dog. This past year or so, I have researched other ways to exercise and train for golf, but I lack the discipline to stick to any plan other than some stretching exercises that I learned years ago and smashing balls at the driving range.

Enter the Fit for Golf Training app. I want to know if this app will help me accomplish what I want out of fitness training in my house on my own. I want to know if this app will keep me engaged over the next few months, the rest of 2024, and possibly beyond. I want to know if this is a big ask and if this app is up to this personal challenge of mine.

The goals for my use of this app are simple:

1. I want to create and sustain a training regimen for someone who has never joined an exercise gym in his life.
2. I want to increase strength in my arms and body to minimize pain and build power.
3. I want to increase my flexibility to the point where I can bend down and tie my shoes without groaning.

I’m hoping that meeting these goals will translate to my golf goals, which include:

1. A stable and consistent swing
2. Balance from address to follow-through
3. More yards on the drive
4. Control on the fairway as I approach the green.

Once we get started, I’ll pop in now and again to let you know my initial progress. For now, I’m excited, nervous and a little scared. I truly am exploring an undiscovered country.

Edited February 8 by berkeleybob

[Subdiver1]

Introduction

Thank you MGS staff, Fit for Golf and all of the MSG community members for this opportunity.  I will endeavor to elucidate and impassion your desire for fitness in golf and in life, rather than engender fatigue with bombastic prose.  I mean, you know, from here on…

My name is Scott and this is my second testing opportunity.  I am definitely an advocate of these tests; I refer people to the testing forums whenever the opportunity arises and I couldn't be more appreciative for any opportunity to contribute.

 

Golf - I grew up playing in the northeast and have been the source of greens-keeping crews’ nightmares for about 45 years (I think I actually had clubs before I was out of diapers so maybe a couple of more years). These days I primarily play out of Eastern FL and Western WA to a 5 handicap.  I play recreationally and in organized tournaments throughout the year as well as a weekly evening league; all of that is strategically planned to ensure my chiropractor’s kids can go to really nice, private colleges.

Fitness - What do I know about fitness?  I don't have an academic background in Sports & Exercise Science, fitness or biomechanics.  My experience is practical and started out of necessity during an active military career and grew into a lifelong desire to stay fit; (hmmm) there’s that word again.  I ran physical fitness programs and developed training regimens to help others qualify for certain programs that had physical performance requirements.  I may have dabbled in an active life over the years (see pic, since everyone else is including them, that was Boise, ID; air temp was in the mid-30s. It was warmer in the water than it was out of the water, which is why I look like I might have been working as a non-union glass cutter ).

 

   

These days everything is mostly body weight and HIIT with an occasional weight room session and consistent running during more temperate weather.  I find that running helps walking the hilly WA courses (I walk 99% of rounds in WA) and staying energetic in the Florida heat.

The fitforgolf.blog website provides a good background on Mr. Carroll and I peaked my interest in the training.  I am really excited to see how my golf game, and general fitness can benefit from one or more of them.  And I'm really jazzed to have the opportunity to play with it a bit and pass an assessment along to others.

-       One initial, but very minor concern, is that he states that the program is designed to be started as one transitions into the off-season.  This absolutely makes sense.  Since we are starting as the season starts one of the things I will be looking at is how seamlessly the program works through the later, advanced, stages and returns to Phase 1 (Off-Season).

-       There are 37 Blog entries and 29 Podcasts averaging a bit over an hour each.  While I would love to review every one of these for my own education and for input to my review, but hey folks, I do have to get some golf in, oh and a few workouts too.  Right? 

Okay, let’s talk evaluation!  I may have grown a little…corpulent over the last couple of years.  But…(don’t ask me how this works) I still appear to be in decent “shape;” hey, round is a shape!

I'm really looking forward to getting started.  Once I do: 

-       My plan is to at least sample the Beginner (101) and Fundamentals programs.  That may change once I get into the app, but I’d like to be able to understand the gap between 101 and the more advanced programs.

-       Objectively, metrics will most likely be based on:

o   What demonstrable improvements occur in repetitions, sets, weight or time depending on the workout format?

o   Range of motion improvement?

o   How has my game been affected (scores/hcp)?

o   Has a there been a measurable change in clubhead speed or ball carry?

o   Any other measurable impact in health or fitness.

-       Subjectively speaking:

o   How do I feel after the workouts?

o   How do I feel after working on a program for a period of time?

o   How do I feel the program has affected my other workouts and general fitness?

o   How do I feel my swing has benefited/suffered?

o   How do I feel after a round since starting the program?

Okay, that might sound like a lot to digest right out of the gate...but let's put this program to the test!

 

Edited February 13 by Subdiver1
Initial post

[ILMgolfnut]

Hello everyone! My name is Jeff Necessary (yes, that's my real name; who would make that up?). I grew up and spent most of my life in Arkansas but now live in North Carolina. I'm 63 years old and I've been a golfer since 1979. My earliest memories of golf are driving past Hot Springs (Ark.) Country Club over and over on trips to visit my grandparents, seeing the golfers out there on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon, and wanting to be one of them. 

I want to thank the MGS staff for selecting me for this test, and Fit for Golf for giving us this opportunity. 

I had about a 20-year hiatus from golf after a shoulder injury; during that time I switched obsessions to running, lost 40 pounds and completed 19 marathons in nine years before I lost the motivation to get off the couch and train. So I know about getting fit and training for a goal, but now I've put those 40 pounds back on. I got back into golf two years ago and I'm more obsessed with the game than ever.

This is from my last marathon, at London in 2016 (yes, that's Big Ben in the background).

Over the next few weeks, I plan to use that background of marathon training to get in golf shape with the help of this app, and bring the readers along for the ride. Right now (pre-test) I'm doing power walks to improve my cardiovascular fitness, and a 15-minute workout I got from a YouTube video that uses body weight and light dumbbells as the resistance.

My fitness goals for this test and beyond are to get through 18 hole rounds without my swing going to Hades on the 16th fairway because I'm tired, to lose some of that weight, and to gain distance and swing speed. And if I get to where I can play 36 in a day, so much the better. I work from home most of the time and can pretty much train whenever I want; hotel fitness rooms may also come into play for me. I just assembled a home gym for my significant other; suspect that will get plenty of use during this test.

EDIT ON APRIL 20: After more delays than Mike Carroll or any of us would have wanted, we've finally been cleared to start the test, at least those of us with Android phone. Apple version is still being held up (by Apple). Initial impressions are that the download process is standard from Google Play. Once you get there, register (and pay) and you're good to go. First thing you see is your dashboard. Once you get going and put workouts on your schedule, it will show you something like this: 

But I want to particularly point out the box next to the blue one, marked All Programs. Click that, and you're taken to a page with FFG Program Matcher and Library. If you click Program Matcher, it will ask you questions about your goals, your workout experience, where you are in golf season, and how long you want your workouts to be, and make recommendations to match your answers. The recommendation screen will look like this: 

From there, you pick one and get going. But if you review this list and don't see one you like, or that you don't have the right equipment to do, go back to Program Matcher and tweak your answers to get another list; you're not committed yet. Each program is straightforward, with a list of the equipment you need, a list of the specific exercises and video instructions for how to do each one.

Edited April 20 by ILMgolfnut
First impressions

[taylorjonasher]

Introduction

Hello! My name is Jon Taylor, hailing from Marion, IA. First and foremost, I’d like to thank MGS and Fit for Golf (FFG) for this incredible opportunity. I’ve been eyeballing this app for a couple of years, have downloaded it and almost pulled the trigger on a membership multiple times. To be a part of this testing and evaluation is something that I am particularly interested in, I’m excited to see how it pans out and if it’s something that I can provide some insight to the MGS community as to the value and function of the program. Let’s freakin’ go!

I am a father of three (14, 11, and 6) and have been married to my wonderful wife for 18 years. I’ve been playing golf regularly for about 10 years, but have gotten more serious (too serious if you ask my wife) about improving in the last 3. Last year I was able to finish the season at 12.5 (unofficially), down from 18. My goals this year are to break 80 and reach the single digits, hopefully staying there. 

My intent is to replace my current workout regimen with FFG to increase strength and flexibility, ideally increasing clubhead speed and reducing fatigue. My current workout plan is a progressive overload running 4 training days per week, and I also try to do two days per week of yoga and at least one cardio session. Honestly, the cardio gets put to the back burner most weeks. Why? Because it sucks, and you know it too. Right now, my cruising speed is 100 - 105, with my max speed around 110. I believe that I have the potential to reach 115 - 120, so we’ll see what gains the program brings about without using any other specific overload or overspeed training such as Stack, which the fun crusher my wife already told me “no” to. I have a Garmin R10, which provides kind of accurate data indoors if it’s set up perfectly, so we’ll see how well I can track that data. I might just have to head to the sim once a month to tally progress. 

I think the biggest thing I am going to have a problem with during this test is taking photos and videos of myself actually doing the work. I’m one of the “old guys” that works out at the University of Iowa Rec Center, and I hate all the d-bags that are utilizing machines as camera tripods to take duck lipped selfies of them cranking out 15# hammer curls and barbell thrusters. I’m trying to figure out how I am going to covertly join the ranks of self videographers without too much added d-baggery. I may end up doing some of these workouts at home to try to share some of the videos. You all just might get post workout shirtless selfies as a consolation prize - who knows?!

With all of this on the table, I want to thank MGS and FFG again for affording me this incredible opportunity. I truly aim to provide the most honest (and candid, if you can’t already tell) reviews of what is great and what is not to help all of you decide if this is a worthy spend of your hard earned dollars. Let’s go!

Edited February 8 by taylorjonasher

[PJVicary]

Hi everyone. My name is Paul Vicary and I am a 73 year old who loves the game as much today as I did when I was introduced to it at the age of 2 1/2. I was born in Ontario and spent time in Vancouver, Pittsburgh (Go Steelers!) and Atlanta before calling calling The Villages here in Central Florida home. 

I have played the game competitively since the age of 12 and at one point was able to get my handicap down to as low as +1. However time has a habit of becoming the great equalizer and I now struggle to keep my handicap in single digits. (Currently playing to a 6)

Having had neck surgery back in 2015 I have found that titanium is much more forgiving in a club head than in two rods screwed into your back. Doctors said I should be happy to just being able play again but i was not satisfied. The competitive juices push me to try and get back to the way things were. 

I want to thank MGS for selecting me and helping to push me to become more fit. My current exercise regime consists of a 15 minute stretching routine before heading out to the course. Like many others I joined a gym and drive by it two to three times a week. I needed accountability and being chosen in this test might just be the answer.

My goal is to go from being less like Izzy Mandelbaum and more like Gilad Janklowicz/ I need to lose weight (20-25 lbs) Increase my stamina so that I can walk 18 holes . I need to build my core strength, range of motion, club head speed and by default feel stronger and hit the ball longer. Easier said than done. I am committed to do what’s necessary and report back to you, my peers how things are progressing. Stay tuned! 

Edited February 8 by PJVicary
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[MGS-Forum-Mod]

Beta Tester Placeholder

[Josh Parker]

Congrats testers!  Looking forward to seeing some results!

[sirchunksalot]

Congratulations testers! 

[Rob Person]

Congratulations testers!!! Hope you get the most out of it!

[Preeway]

Congrats, fellas. I’m really keen to follow along with this test as improving my fitness is a big goal for myself and I’ve been looking for apps like this to help me on my journey. 

[ejgaudette]

Congrats everyone, here's hoping this works for you. I have used this app some before and really enjoyed it.

[DonnieGolfs]

Congratulations everyone, this is one particular test I'm looking forward to the results. Do any of the testers have/use the Stack System and plan to integrate the collaboration I've been hearing about in the app?

[ZJeb67]

Good Luck to those selected.  I'll live vicariously through your progress 

[russtopherb]

Congrats all! Looking forward to seeing what you get out of the program, and how it works for all of you.

[TJ Hall]

Congratulations testers!  Looking forward to following your progress with this.

[jbern]

Great group of testers! Congrats @MaxEntropy. @berkeleybob, @Subdiver1, @ILMgolfnut, @taylorjonasher & @PJVicary! Have fun and let the hard work begin! 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Congrats to the testers! I look forward to following along, as you work toward the best versions of yourselves. 

[TSauer]

Congrats, testers! I'm hoping to see a rendition of Ben Crane's workout video..

 

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

Congrats testers. Enjoy. It’s made a big difference in my overall health. Love it up!

[ILMgolfnut]

2 hours ago, DonnieGolfs said:

Do any of the testers have/use the Stack System

I don't have it, but I've looked into it. Perhaps as the test goes on (and I find a spare $350) I will incorporate the Stack into my training. 

[Michael.Sandoval33]

Congrats testers! Can't wait to follow along and see the progress made with the program! 

[Shrek74]

9 hours ago, GolfSpy_APH said:

Please welcome and congratulate our selected testers!

@MaxEntropy

@berkeleybob

@Subdiver1

@ILMgolfnut

@taylorjonasher

@PJVicary

Congrats team!! I look forward to all the comments and updates and stuff as you move along in the program. Good luck on the process!

[Alan Scalzi]

Enjoy the process!

[fixyurdivot]

Congratulations testers!!   I look forward to hearing what you all think of this product and whether it helps your game.

[Dweed]

Congratulations all. Enjoy your testing process.

[Bad Golfer]

Congratulations Testers! I'm looking forward to see how you guys progress Through this program and see how it helps you overall with your swing and flexibility. 

[MaxEntropy]

On 2/6/2024 at 7:44 AM, DonnieGolfs said:

Do any of the testers have/use the Stack System and plan to integrate the collaboration I've been hearing about in the app?

I do not have the Stack System, but I do have SuperSpeed. It will be interesting to see if I might be able to integrate it. We are supposed to have a call with Mike Carroll at some point. I will definitely ask if he has any recommendations on how best to do it.

Edited February 7 by MaxEntropy

[Paul Hedrick]

Congratulations testers!  I am looking forward to reading your reviews.