What Is It?
Flexibility, stability and strength in our spine, hips, shoulders and golf specific muscles are all essential components of a golf fitness program.
At the Titlest Performance Institute, they have found, after numerous studies on the top pros, that physical limitations or weaknesses in these areas WILL ABSOLUTELY determine what type of swing faults each one of us will produce.
For instance, if you have limited strength in your core it may be impossible for you to maintain good posture during your downswing causing you to stand up or early extend at impact. A postural loss can affect all aspects of your golf swing including balance, timing and rhythm. This can cause blocked shots to the right or hook to the left. (For right-handed golfers) It can be almost impossible to fix this problem, unless the limitation(s) in our body is addressed. Therefore, correcting these limitations should be the main focus when designing a golf fitness program.
COMMON FAULTS LINKED TO PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS AND MUSCLE WEAKNESSES
- loss of posture
- early extension
- over the top
- flat shoulder plane
- sway
- slide
- reverse spine angle
- hanging back
- casting/early release
- “chicken winging”
How Does It Work?
To identify any physical limitations that prevent our bodies from functioning efficiently (with regards to the golf swing) the founders of TPI have developed a series of 13 functional tests. Through the utilization of this specialized screening, a TPI Certified Golf Fitness Instructor (CGFI) can pin point any physical limitations in the crucial golf areas that will dramatically affect the efficiency of your golf swing. By analyzing the data from the screening, a CGFI can then pin point the specific area of physical limitations and predict what swing faults may be present with out ever watching you swing.
This important information can then be used to prescribe your golf fitness program designed to address your specific limitations and help you develop a good foundation on which to build a great golf swing. This information will also provide your teaching pro valuable information they can use during your lessons.
What happens after the assessment?
Once the one-hour assessment is complete, a TPI Certified Golf Fitness Instructor (CGFI) will review the results with you to identify any physical limitations or weaknesses that you may have and how they relate to your swing. (This is paramount if you are trying to address a swing fault and can’t seem to make progress.)
Then based on the findings, a CGFI will work One-on-One with you on your customized corrective exercise program to address your limitations and swing faults. Due to the motor learning that is involved, you will also be provided an Online Video exercise program to further enhance the benefits of your program.
Benefits
The customized exercise program will re-educate your muscles so they can function properly. This in turn will help you swing more efficiently and reduce the chance of injuries.
Let’s face it, we all want to hit the ball straighter, farther and most importantly, play PAIN FREE. To accomplish this we need to be more efficient in our swing. To be more efficient in our swing, we need to have our bodies functioning more efficiently. To make our bodies function more efficiently, we need to perform the proper corrective exercises that address our specific limitations. Therefore, it makes sense when designing a golf fitness program to focus on exactly what limits us from functioning efficiently. By doing so, not only will your golf swing improve, so will your daily living functional activities. Basically, you’ll feel better in all aspects and probably won’t need to reach for the ibuprofen after your round of golf. What a bonus!!!!