Most golfers are only too aware of the “front 9″ and “back 9″.
In this article, I want to introduce to you the often forgotten “side 9″.
Improving Your Front-9
Golfers who rush from the parking lot to the first tee often report that they don’t really get into the groove until the fourth hole or so. A proper “Warm-up” helps to lubricate joints, increase the pliability of joints, and to direct blood to your golfing muscles. Nothing new there right? Just one advancement perhaps. Static stretching can temporarily reduce your muscle power. Warmups should consist of dynamic stretches instead and light areobic activity such as a brisk walk. Save ALL static stretches for when cooling down AFTER your game.
Improving Your Back-9
Finish strong! “Fitness” allows you to maintain good technique & concentration throughout the 18 holes. Mobility stretches can help throughout every round of practice or play, as well as during the course of a game, as feels necessary. This promotes a consistent swing. Plus, if you play or practise regularly, you will benefit from appropriate cool-down.
The “Side 9″
This is a phrase I have invented with my clients, jokingly, to demonstrate the 9 key pillars behind 100% golf fitness. Here they are:
1. Flexibility
It all starts with being sufficiently flexible. If you start developing muscles in an already overtight body, you only compound matters! Flexibility first before strength and endurance conditioning.
2. Mobility
Flexibility refers to single joints. Mobility refers to compound / multiple joints. Once single joints are sufficiently flexible, the next stage is to sufficiently mobilise the entire golfing body.
3. Stability
Now we have sufficient flexibility / mobility, we must then determine specific joint stability and compound joint stability. This decreases the chances of injury later and sets up a strong foundation for power development.
4. Ability [Balance & Posture & Coordination = whole in one!]
Essentially this refers to the skill level of the golfer. Some golfers are naturally talented; others have to work at it.
5, 6, 7. Scalability (Endurance, Strength, Power [ESP])
This is where most golf fitness programmes normally begin! Only when I am happy with stages 1-4, will I start progressing the fitness programme to include endurance – strength – power work. I like to think of this as a continuum although the reality is each supports the other to an extent. That’s where this concept of scaling the fitness programme comes from; from Endurance to Strength to Power. When you have all 3 in equal proportions, again I joke, you have ESP (an innate awareness of how to physical perform in any golfing situation, from tee to green!). I also joke, all golfers must Push More (weights) to Pull Less (on their swing)!
8. Sustainability = Nutrition
Being out there for 18 holes means you must consider food and hydration or pay the consequences! Plus you can’t outtrain a poor diet. Sound nutrition plays an important role in your overall conditioning.
9. Invisibility = Mental conditioning. Putting it all together!
Ok slightly contrived but this essential last key pillar refers to how you put the other 8 factors together as well as your mental game. Hence it represents largely intangible factors but is important nevertheless.
So there you have it. You were already aware of the “front 9″ and the “back 9″, but if you want to play them equally well, you must consider the “side 9″ (the 9 key pillars behind 100% golf fitness).
Golf fitness can seem confusing because essentially it demands every aspect of fitness from flexibility to endurance to power etc, but once you start to see it as a continuum, what you need to do should start making a whole lot more sense!
With fitness too, it’s not possible to train every aspect simultaneously either. That’s why for golf you need to build a progressive periodised workout routine with a wide variety of exercise alternatives.
Coming soon….
Noel Lyons is Marbella’s #1 Golf Fitness Trainer. Robogolf is a revolutionary golf fitness program designed specifically for the busy middle-aged corporate golfer who wants to become a golfing machine (but who would rather be playing golf than working-out).
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