|
Recreation InformationBecoming an Eternal Golfer
by:
Sean Cochran
It happens to all of us, even as although we do not want to admit it. The reality is we all get older. Several of you may already cognize what I am talking about, and others may have yet to experience the development
of aging. Those of you who are reading this article and are no longer “spring chickens” get my drift. Even as if you are one of the lucky ones, still young, let me fill you in on what happens as the body gets a few miles on it.
Probably the biggest thing that we all dislike once
we creep into our thirties and forties is the extra poundage (i.e. weight) we tend to put on. (It is besides a lot harder to take off once
we get older.) Unfortunately, because our metabolism slows down, we are unable to pound down a burger, fries, and a couple of cokes without the bathroom scale hit “tilt” a few days later. In my mind, that probably is the most difficult adjustment we have to make: an adjustment in our nutrition intake as we age.
The second most noticeable difference as we age, especially for the more active individual, is it becomes a little more difficult to get out of bed. The back is a little sore, the knees are a little creaky, and, if you workout, the soreness does not go away as quickly. This is a result of a few things that happen to our bodies once
we get older. Number one is we lose a percentage of our muscle mass on a yearly basis. After the age of 25 (don’t quote me on the specifics, but I believe) just about 1% of your muscle mass is lost per year. Does sense now why we get a little sorer and acquiring out of bed is more difficult. We just do not have as more muscle to do the work.
I could go on and on with the depressing facts of aging, but let us look at just one more before moving on. As you get older you become less flexible. It takes you a lot longer to “limber up” for any sporting activity: golf, tennis, or a pick up game of basketball. Less flexibility predisposes you to experience more difficulty with certain movements: touching your toes, rotating during a golf swing, or even as reaching down to pick thing
up off the ground. Why does this occur? Our bodies, as a result of wear and tear, become more “tight” and “wound up” as we get older.
So there you have it! Several of the great things to look forward to as you get older (kidding of course). So if you’re in your twenties and you’re reading this article, “enjoy it piece it lasts,” because the road gets a little more difficult to travel as you get older. But, if you’re on the far side
your twenties, I am sure you can relate to the general results of aging in relation to your golf game. Quite simply, extra pounds decrease your stamina (and may affect your swing plane). Less muscle equals less distance off the tee, and ablated flexibility tends to do the turn in the golf swing more harder to perform. An unfortunate situation, but the nice news is that we can slow down the aging process and limit the effects of aging on your golf game.
Deceleration Down the Aging Process for the Golf Swing
I have given you a little “carrot of information” that we can slow down the aging process. How do we do it? It is really quite simple and only requires a little time out of each day (15-20 minutes) and a little discipline. Sounds pretty easy once
you think of all the benefits you stand to gain. What we are going to do is provide you several answers on how to slow down the aging process. Remember we can’t finish the aging process, but we can sure slow it down. The benefits of deceleration down the aging process are evident once
you see guys in their 50’s winning tour events. It just takes a little time, several knowledge, and discipline. If you are saying, “I don’t have the time,” let me ask you one question: How would-be you like to feel 10 years younger right now and hit the ball farther then you did in your twenties? I imagine the answer to several of those questions would-be be a resonant yes!
Let us start with the 1st topic that we delineated once
you get older, the additional pounds. Unfortunately, as you age your metabolism slows down. For those of you who are foreign with the word metabolism, think of it as your own internal furnace. It is the rate at which you burn fuel (food is fuel to the human body). Once
we are younger we tend have quicker
metabolisms, and as we get older they slow down. (I cognize it is a bummer.) Well, let me tell you, there are activities to speed that metabolism back up. The way to do it is by acting several fitness activities. If you are active and participate in several type of structured activity your body wish burn more fuel and elevate its metabolism during this time. In addition, if these activities are resistance-training activities (i.e. weights, tubing, light dumbbells, body weight), then over time you wish build several muscle. The great thing just about that is the more muscle you have the higher your metabolism wish be all the time (translation: you wish burn more fuel all day and night). A secondary benefit of such activities wish be greater stamina on the course. So rather than “spraying your shots” about on the back nine because you’re tired, you can have pinpoint accuracy going into the 18th.
Moving on to our second point, the loss of muscle mass as you age, this one is a tough one to swallow. Simply think, we really LOSE muscle as we age. Pretty depressing. The nice news is it can be limited or stopped. Before I give you the solution, let’s look at how this affects your golf swing. Essentially, in the golf swing you create club head speed. That club head speed is the result of creating motion power, which we define as torque. To create torque, the muscles of the body have to be flexible, strong, and powerful. Now guess what? If you have less muscle, what do you think is going to happen to your power outputs and club head speed? The answer is they wish decrease. No wonder they do senior shafts with a lot of flex. This is the golf manufacturers’ attempt to deal with this problem. It helps to a point, but we have a better solution. How just about putt thing
in your bag that does you stronger, improves your power, and gets back that lost distance? Sounds good? Well, it can be done if you implement a golf-specific strength-training program. You can get back that lost muscle mass, get back that power, and improve your drive distance. This is what we call the development of “golf strength,” and it can be done with a program that takes a total of 15 minutes a day!
Finally, moving on to the flexibility issue, our bodies lose flexibility as we age. Flexibility is a must once
it comes to the golf swing. Here is what happens once
you do not “work” on your flexibility. A loss of flexibility in the golf swing limits the ability of the body to perform the correct actions to create the proper swing. Essentially, your body won’t allow you to take the club back and through on the correct swing path. This leads to miss hits, slices, hooks, and a whole bunch of another shots that are really unpleasant. So how do we fix this problem or not allow it to become a problem? The answer is to implement a golf-specific flexibility program. This once again requires a daily commitment, but the time frame is really little (say 5 minutes a day). So again, ask yourself: Is it worth disbursement 5 minutes a day on flexibility to have the golf swing you would-be like? I bet most of you would-be answer yes.
The Magic Pill
Well, there you have the pleasures, displeasure, joys, and sorrows of the aging process. We all get older, but there are things we can do to prevent the displeasures and sorrows. If we take a little time every day and perform the proper exercises and activities, we can reduce the effects of aging and have a great swing for as long as we like. That’s the only magic pill we cognize of. If you would-be like more information on this subject and how to go just about up your golf fitness, take a look at our web site at www.bioforcegolf.com.
Sean Aeronaut is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the earth today. He travels the PGA Tour on a regular basis
with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has ready-made galore of his golf tips, golf instructions and golf swing improvement techniques accessible to amateur golfers on the website www.bioforcegolf.com. Check out his instructions and DVD, Your Body & Your Swing, on BioForceGolf.com. To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.
| |
