Physical condition and fatique that affects your golf swing

[sai-jin]

I'm currently paying more attention to my stamina and muscle fatigue when playing golf and how to overcome a bad shot.

 

I train everyday and at times I overtrain, so I some times have exhausted hips and leg muscles. I notice that when that happens,

my legs and hips refuses to move and I hit low pulls with my driver. With my irons I either pull draw or I hit is thin and ball flies right fade.

 

So share your experiences... I'm currently trying to figure out a way to avoid those shots when I'm feeling the way I felt. Someone said:"Just turn both feet towards the target a little, so

you are almost set up like a chipping set up".

[Mr_Theoo]

What usually gets me is my back will start to tighten up and i don't have good posture in my set up. Which ends up with me early extending and hitting a lot of thin slices. I've started to work on it more and its getting stronger but still plagues me from time to time

[wbealsd]

What usually gets me is my back will start to tighten up and i don't have good posture in my set up. Which ends up with me early extending and hitting a lot of thin slices. I've started to work on it more and its getting stronger but still plagues me from time to time

Likewise, it's the back for me. I'm trying to pace myself and work out more to build up the endurance, but once it tightens up about all I can do is try to release as much tension with my practice swings before I setup for the shot and try to swing as smoothly as I can. Seriously, at this point I don't have an "in game quick fix" for it and I'm not sure I ever will

[sai-jin]

Strengthening the back is actually not too hard. I do: Abs crunch followed by reverse crunch everyday.

 

I use my lower body so much that I can get tired pretty easily down there.

[GolfSpy WD]

It is very easy to overtrain. I'm going on a golf exercise regiment and a few days ago I played 18 holes after a fairly brutal workout. By about the 15 hole I simply couldn't swing. For me it's a full body thing though, I simply didn't have the energy to keep going.

 

IMO if your back is hurting you need to stop. As someone with chronic back pain, you don't want to aggravate that sort of thing.

[sai-jin]

How about tennis / golf elbow? Luckily my joints are very strong, but when I heard of this, I started to do much more wrist curls to strengthen my forearm muscles.

[GolfSpy WD]

How about tennis / golf elbow? Luckily my joints are very strong, but when I heard of this, I started to do much more wrist curls to strengthen my forearm muscles.

 

There are a few threads kicking around about tennis elbow. I'll see if I can dig em up. I've never had it myself, but I tend to have back issues and have learned to not mess with them.

[sai-jin]

I run and jog everyday and I do a lot of multiple sets with small weights. No more heavy weights.

 

And I cook my own food too with simple yet fresh veggies and eat only chicken and fish.

 

So far this has helped me tremendously.

[Aotearoa_Brad]

Firstly, WD - completely agree. You don't want to aggravate an existing injury (especially back). My undergrad degree is in Sport Science, and while I certainly don't purport to be an expert, I was in class for most of the lectures

 

While it's great to do something everyday if you can manage it, rest days are as important in any training regimen as anything else. Something that you could look at doing is using the time that you would have trained (one session a week) and use it for an active recovery session (massage, acupuncture, hydrotherapy (sauna, hot/cold showering etc)).

 

There's a great online report on Recovery Training by the Performance Unit of the Australian Institute of Sport, which touches on types and importance of recovery (mostly physical but touches on psychological recovery techniques as well). It is not golf-specific, but these are common training principles, and the science applies all the same. If you want to read the report, you can access it HERE

 

Enjoy

 

Brad

[sai-jin]

I went to the range today because I really want to be able to hit draws consistently, specially with my 3 irons.

 

I hit 200 balls and once I was done, my left forearm was burning... I forgot about this that I had it last year when I hit too many balls =\

[dru_]

I think that as with most things fitness related there is a fundamental lesson we all have to learn about our own bodies:

 

There are two types of pain and we need to know which is which. There is the pain of a body in motion and use building strength, and there is the pain of an injury.

 

You have to learn which is which. The only way to do this is to work out and learn your body. The game of golf uses a bunch of different muscle groups, many of which we don't use in our largely sedentary lives. As several people have already mentioned, they find that they feel it first in their backs. Though they didn't elaborate, I would guess that most lower lumbar regions, and they find that as they play the twisting range of motion is decreased.

 

This would be a normal body in motion pain (discomfort), however, back problems have become so very common, that pushing through this discomfort can lead to complications of underlying injuries, so KNOWING the difference is critical.

 

That said, I am an advocate for everyone, to focus on core muscle strength. Human's did not evolve to sit. The more we learn, the most common thread is that many of the things we associate with modern 'civilization' are the very things causing many of our modern ailments. One of the biggest contributors is that we sit too much. It is bad for our circulation, and worse, it weakens out body core. Abs, Lumbar, Obliques. Lumbar pain happens because the abs, glutes, and obliques have gotten weak enough that they aren't carrying their fair share of the burden when you twist and lift.

 

What can you do about it?

 

Well, the first part if probably obvious, get stronger. But that doesn't mean get in the gym and lift. We aren't looking to be beach bodies, that are all show and no go. What a golfer wants is long muscle, endurance strength and support. In a word, we want muscle tone. Unfortunately, when someone says 'workout' in the context of men, you have mental image of the muscle bound guys lifting weights. Women, you get a better mix of weights, cardio and such, but at the end of the day, both genders need the same thing. Good cardio (walking 18 holes covers that), and core. For many of us, that core is *hard* to do. the traditional things like crunches really aren't that effective, and in some cases are destructive.

 

IMO, the best things that we can do as golfers to build that core muscle is not lift, but to use our bodies as resistance. Pilates Yoga in specific. Done regularly it will improve the things we need most, with the least impact/damage. The key is, don't expect to 1 class of 30 minutes of Pilates and expect immediate results. As a matter of fact, if you go into that class and do everything the first time, you'll probably have the wrong results because you won't be able to move for 3 days afterwards. Work your way into it. It may take a month of doing 20 minutes 4 days a week to get that core where you want it, without excessive discomfort. But once you get there, you'll have something that you can do with minimal time commitment (and you can do it in the privacy of your home if you wish).

 

Fitness is *hard*, and if your core is weak enough that 18 holes is causing discomfort, it will be even harder. I started with Pilates almost 3 years ago. I am a programmer, I spend upwards of 60 hours a week in front of a desk. I was 265lbs (6'3"), and I had lost pretty much all flexibility, with a very weak core. It took months before I could do a complete pilates workout that didn't focus on anything specific, just a general workout. Eventually I started running too. Right now I am doing the Insanity 60 day routines ( while still running and cycling ).

 

I am down to 200lbs and can play golf, walking without discomfort, and bear in mind, I live in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains on the north side of Atlanta. A "Short" "Flat" course around here is a 3 mile walk with nearly 2000ft of total elevation change.

 

I say all of this not as a medical expert, but as a patient. One who used the injury excuse to avoid discomfort for too many years, and found out that it was slowly killing me. I have had both knees surgically repaired/rebuilt. I have a shoulder that needs to be repaired that I have declined to have surgery on and a back that at one point was prone to hurting bad enough that there were days when I needed 30-40 minutes in a scalding hot shower to be able to get out the door into my day. It was not easy, but you can get there (and I'm still not to where I want to be).

 

Just to give you and idea how far you can go.

 

18 months ago, I barely finished my first 10k run. It took me 87 minutes. It took two days to recover from it. My knees & my back both hurt so bad for 3 days after that I almost quit trying. In October, I ran a marathon in 4:56 minutes. In February I returned to the scene of that first 10k and finished it (in 29 degree temps) at 51 minutes. Two weeks ago, I ran a 10 mile race and finished it in 92 minutes.

 

28 years ago, I was relearning to walk having spent a couple of months in a wheelchair.

 

Don't be afraid of pain, learn the difference between discomfort and injury and you can get to where you want to be.

[sai-jin]

Amazing. Thank you for the insight and lots of respect on what you went through and what you did to recover.

 

I'm a pro athlete (not in golf of course), and I am lucky enough to be blessed with a strong healthy body that I can build on.

Even when I'm not training, my body fat % is only around 16%. I have very strong legs and core as well as upper body muscles.

I'm an explosive type athlete, so stamina can be an issue at times.

 

About my forearm muscles, it seems that it's the main muscle that's burning and not the connection to the bone / joint, only took 12 hours to heal,

but that reminded me that my grip muscles are not my strongest. I think this left forearm burning sensation is from not using the muscles that much in golf and

suddenly, I hit 200 balls in full strength. So it's a de-training.

 

I tend to be a little lazy doing muscle training in that area, but after reading your story, I think that just gave me a boost to not be lazy.

 

So thank you!

[kygolfer1980]

I typically walk and I can tell a huge difference right now on the back 9 with fatigue. I was lazy over the winter, no exercise and alot of beer. Now I have to shed all those pounds and my golf is suffering presently.

[sai-jin]

I hear you. Keeping fit in USA can be a chore, I think because the typical food here is the reason, whereas in Japan, we eat much healthier combination of food and it's a life style, so they are readily available

and takes less effort to do.

Do you know that in Japan, pizza hut medium size (usa small size) will cost you around $18-$25? Almost same with McDonalds? So that's the money factor too... it's expensive to get junk food.

 

Also, I think that it also depends on what kind of athlete we are. In the ring, I'm more of an explosive power type, but stamina is lacking. This has a lot to do with my muscle mass, weight, body shape and training.

Even when I was trained to increase my stamina, it doesn't go up much and my power suffers.

 

So I have decided that if I were to play seriously, I would never walk... lol ... the first thing that gas out on me are my legs.

 

I think I have to start learning how to swing better on the back 9 when my lower body and done for.

[Kor.A.Door]

It is very easy to overtrain. I'm going on a golf exercise regiment and a few days ago I played 18 holes after a fairly brutal workout. By about the 15 hole I simply couldn't swing. For me it's a full body thing though, I simply didn't have the energy to keep going.

 

IMO if your back is hurting you need to stop. As someone with chronic back pain, you don't want to aggravate that sort of thing.

I don't think it is that the backs are actually hurting, if that is the case yes, you should stop, I have the issue of the having my lower back get tight or stiffen up on me which makes the turn through very difficult. I think that is what the other guys are talking about here, not actually hurting, it usually happens to me about hole 13 or 14.

[wbealsd]

The back pain I mentioned earlier is tightness, as Lefty describes, mostly just an aspect of age. Since I usually only have time to play 9 hole rounds, My back usually doesn't tighten up unless I play a full round on 2 of our local courses that have very hilly back 9s (or I just practice too long at the range).

 

Dru_ is dead on in his assessment though, I'm also in IT and ALL of my coworkers are younger than I and at least half are struggling with weight and chronic health issues.

 

I'm 6' 2" and 170 and planning on walking at least half my play this year. I hope to use some vacation time I've accrued to play more full rounds.

[revkev]

I typically walk and I can tell a huge difference right now on the back 9 with fatigue. I was lazy over the winter, no exercise and alot of beer. Now I have to shed all those pounds and my golf is suffering presently.

 

Be careful about this my friend - It gets harder and harder to shed those pounds each year - I know this from experience!

 

How are you doing with that transition from the 59's to the JPX's in the middle of the bag by the way?

[kygolfer1980]

I'll shed them no doubt, have the tough mudder in Sept as motivation. I'm like a yoyo, always put on a winter coat. Lol

 

I still really like the MP 59's but the JPX's are still a puzzle. I'll hit a great shot with them and then a horrible one. The irons are where I'm struggling most right now. Missing alot of greens.

[sai-jin]

KY: if you need help with nutrition and food, I can help you a little.

 

They will be pretty tasty, and cheap meals which are not hard to make.

[kygolfer1980]

KY: if you need help with nutrition and food, I can help you a little.

 

They will be pretty tasty, and cheap meals which are not hard to make.

Appreciate the offer. I know exactly what to eat, when, and how much. It's just a matter of doing it. I actually keep myself pretty educated on nutrition and exercise. My problem has just been the care to do it of late. It's time to tough mudder train now so I'll get it together.

[revkev]

I'll shed them no doubt, have the tough mudder in Sept as motivation. I'm like a yoyo, always put on a winter coat. Lol

 

I still really like the MP 59's but the JPX's are still a puzzle. I'll hit a great shot with them and then a horrible one. The irons are where I'm struggling most right now. Missing alot of greens.

 

I was wondering - I really had trouble going over the break between the JPX pros and the regular JPX's as well - now that I have all pros I have much less difficulty - I don't hit long irons that well anyway - I've carried 5 hybrid forever and have considered going to 6 on a number of occasions - regardless I hit the JPX pro 5 and 6 better than I did the plain JPX so at least I've opened up the possibility of carrying those two irons under certain conditions.

 

I can't imagine the jump from the 59's which look so wonderful and the JPX's.

[EricL]

I'm a 6' 54yo who in the last year dropped from 195lbs to 165lbs, and daily do 500 crunches, 100 push-ups and stretching. The weight loss has helped my endurence. I'm also adding some jump rope to help with short term intensity. The older we get the easier it is to injure yourself with new activity. To paraphrase my doctor, "your muscles are still strong, but your connecting tissue doesn't have the same strength". And since I only started playing golf 10 years ago, I don't have a lifetime of hardening on the body to carry me through.

 

I've had golfers elbow issues twice. Both time at the beginning of the season. Once severe enough so that I felt a pop in my forearm.

 

The cause was sloppy stroke hitting into a matt with the right hand gripping too hard, and hitting too many balls too fast at the start.

 

On the prevention side exercise helps. The forearm curls are good, I do a powerball 5 times a week. If you're not familier, it's a gyroscopic exercise tool. Pull a string to get it started and your hand motion accelerates it. Trust me, you get it spinning at 12,000 rpm (I got one with a tach) and it's a good workout. I do 3x2:00 on each hand. It's also an excellent rehab tool if you are coming back from injury. Low speed gives you a light work out, high speed ... You get the idea.

 

If I have some elbow soreness after practice or play, I ice it, stretch, and test the area. Soreness in the forearm is one thing, but if the area where the tendons connect to the elbow is tender, that's the start of tendinitis.

 

The time I ignored it and felt the pop in my forearms cost me two months. Took about two weeks for the soreness to go away, and then another six weeks because damages tendons need time to rebuild.

 

To be clear, I'm not a doctor, this is just my experience, and you should consult your doctor with any questions.

 

Edit: after reading makes me sound like fitness junkie. Reality is I was a 6' 127 lb kid in HS, and if I don't keep up with the exercise, I get back pain.

[kygolfer1980]

I was wondering - I really had trouble going over the break between the JPX pros and the regular JPX's as well - now that I have all pros I have much less difficulty - I don't hit long irons that well anyway - I've carried 5 hybrid forever and have considered going to 6 on a number of occasions - regardless I hit the JPX pro 5 and 6 better than I did the plain JPX so at least I've opened up the possibility of carrying those two irons under certain conditions.

 

I can't imagine the jump from the 59's which look so wonderful and the JPX's.

I have thought about ordering 59's in the 4,5,6,7 to have the complete set.