A few weeks ago I was interviewed for a piece the New York Times was doing on the “drawing in” ab manuever that is supported by many trainers (myself included until recently). I encourage you to give it a read because it is pretty informative. I’m mentioned at the very end.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/22/fashion/22FITNESS.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1
There are 4 factors that you can directly control that determine how far the ball will go when you hit it. While it is difficult to determine the exact value that each factor plays in achieving distance, we can say with certainty that some factors are more important than others.
While this short article will help you understand the role each factor will have on your distance, I suggest that you try out my interactive Virtual Launch Montior and Distance Optimization Dashboard to see exactly what launch conditions will optimize your distance.
The Fantastic Four, in order of importance, are:
Club Head Speed
Clubhead speed is the single most important factor in maximizing distance. When you hit a golf ball, energy and momentum from the clubhead are transferred to the golf ball. Clubhead speed represents the amount of energy/momentum that the club has. Higher clubhead speed equates into more energy available to be delivered to the ball.
Quality of Contact
You can swing like a gorilla, but it will not mean anything at all if you don’t make quality contact with the ball. When we talk about quality of contact we are talking about how close the ball comes to striking the center of gravity of the club, or as it is typically called, the “Sweet Spot”.
When you hit something directly on its CG, you transfer the maximum amount of energy and cause the object to move straight away from the point where contact occurred.
Note: Ball Speed is a function of clubhead speed and quality of contact. This can also be refered to as the “Smash Factor”
Launch Angle
Measured in degrees relative to horizontal, launch angle refers to the initial angle at which a ball leaves the clubface. Launch angle is determined by a number of factors, including angle of attack, swing speed, loft, and shaft flex.
More loft creates a higher launch angle, causing the ball to go higher, but more swing power is used on the vertical component, meaning less distance. Less loft causes the ball to fly lower (meaning it is going to be pulled down faster due to gravity), but more swing power is used on the horizontal component, meaning potentially greater distances, if you hit the ball fast enough.
Spin Rate
The amount of spin on the ball also has a considerable effect on the amount of distance the ball will travel. A ball with less spin cuts through the air better than a ball with more spin. If there is too much spin then the ball will rise quickly and lose forward momentum.
This is what happens when your shots start out low and then “balloon” way up and come down on a very steep angle. If there is too little spin then the ball will not stay airborne long enough to realize maximum distance.
Remember, backspin helps a launched ball stay airborne longer, but too much will cause the ball to rise quickly and lose large amounts of distance. There is an optimal spin level for your swing in order to maximize distance.
One final point is that as you decrease loft, you decrease the potential for backspin and increase the potential for side spin, which could potentially cause accuracy issues.
When starting your golf condition program you should plan on following a general training progression.
Weight loss/maintenance would be a focal point through the entire golf conditioning program, especially at the beginning.
Following a logical progression from simple to advanced exercise movements, like I suggest above, will ensure you get solid results and play better golf.
I keep mentioning this because so many golfers that are starting a golf fitness training program want to hop straight into the golf specific training movements.
What benefit will you receive from high neural demand sport specific movements if you cannot master basic pull/squat/push movements? Can you run before you learn to walk?
Yesterday’s workout was ok. I felt decent starting off, but my energy dropped pretty quickly, so I cut my workout short.
BW Squat/Pushup/Ab Circuit 5 times through with 1 min rest between sets
DB OH Squat/DB Squat/Shoulder Press/Lateral Raise 5 times through with 1 min rest between sets.
Today I kept my workout very simple and very short. I was feeling like crap before my workout, but after completing this routine I felt like a million bucks.
Warmup
Cable Squat W/Rotation: 3 sets of 10 reps with 45 seconds between sets
Wood Chops (Down): 3 sets of 8 reps each side with 45 seconds rest
Wood Chops (Up): 3 sets of 8 reps with 45 seconds rest
Wood Chops (Side): 4 sets of 10 reps with 45 seconds rest
Squat And Hold: 10 BW Squats followed by 10 second hold then 20 squats with 20 second hold.
This workout wasn’t killer intensity wise, so I should be able to do another total body workout tomorrow.
I realize that many of you have already downloaded my complimentary golf fitness training e-book, but if you have not be sure to get it now! It is filled with great training information and tips and will give you an understanding on why golf fitness training is so important if improving your golf game and body is a goal of yours.
With more than 30,000 downloads, it has proven to be a great educational resource for golfers of all levels on how they can improve their distance, golf game and body.
If you already have it, please pass it onto others and let them know about my site and this blog. The more people I can make aware about the benefits of power, strength and flexibility training for golf the better! Thanks!
P.S. You will need to submit your e-mail address to receive the e-book, but I will never sell or rent out your address for any reason whatsoever. I dislike spammers as much as you.
Coffee is a very common beverage consumed all over the world. One of the primary ingredients in coffee is caffeine, a powerful nervous system stimulant. Here I am going to discuss some of the more recent findings on this popular beverage and stimulant.
Coffee Causes Dehydration: A 2005 study conducted by Lawrence Armstrong, a professor of exercise and environmental physiology at the University of Connecticut, concluded that that drinking moderate amounts of caffeine does not lead to dehydration. The results were published in the International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.
Armstrong explains that moderate amounts of caffeine (200-300 milligrams or about the equivalent of two cups of brewed coffee) does in fact have a diuretic (water loss) effect on the body, but does not cause total body dehydration.
It is the same effect as how drinking a lot of water will increase your urine output for a while and then eventually will decline. Just because you are going to the bathroom more does not mean you are dehydrated.
Coffee Makes It Harder To Sleep: Coffee usually has significant amounts of caffeine in it. Multiple studies have shown that caffeine can reduce the overall quality and number of minutes a person spends sleeping.
In a 2006 study, published in the Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, Canadian scientists showed that the members of the caffeine group slept less and had a lower quality of sleep relative to the control group.
In short, caffeine consumption can reduce the quality of a person’s sleep, thereby making it increasingly difficult to wake up rested. It can also can increase the number of times a person wakes throughout the night. These results have been duplicated and supported in many previous studies on the effects that caffeine has on sleep.
Despite the proven and well documented effects caffeine can have on your ability to get quality sleep and wake up rested, many people choose to drink coffee or other caffeinated beverages at night in hopes of warding off fatigue during late work shifts, nights out and evening study sessions. If a good night of sleep is your goal stop consuming caffeine after 4PM.
Caffeine As A Performance Enhancer/Fat Burner: Caffeine is a powerful nervous system stimulant. This results in increased muscular contractions and can improve your power output. More importantly, it can have a very powerful effect on mood and well-being/alertness, which is closely tied to your ability to handle both physical and mental stresses. This is the reason that it is banned in the Olympics and many international sporting events. It is a powerful stimulant that works.
While caffeine can have a positive impact on explosive events primarily due to the mood enhancing effects caffeine offers, the real benefit comes during longer (5+ minutes) efforts at higher intensities (70%+ efforts). In this way, caffeine benefits endurance activities more than explosive events.
A lot of fat loss supplements include caffeine and tout it as a fat burning ingredient. Caffeine itself will have a very minimal impact on the total number of calories burned (typically burning a nominal 10-15 additional calories an hour). The real benefit for the recreational athlete is the effect it has on your mood.
Caffeine revs up your nervous system and improves your mood, which enables you to do more work with less perceived effort. This results into a better workout and you end up burning more calories than you could without caffeine.
The typical performance enhancing caffeine dosage for the recreation athlete is anywhere from 300-500 milligrams taken about an hour before exercise. This gives the caffeine a chance to get into your system and work its magic.
Decaf High On Diptenes, Low On Blood Pressue: A study led by Dr. Robert Superko of the Fuqua Heart Center in Atlanta, suggests that drinking decaffeinated coffee leads to a rise in bad cholesterol whereas drinking regular coffee does not.
According to Dr. Superko the reason for the increase in cholesterol from decaf is because the species of bean used for decaf is different. Decaf is usually made out of the robusta bean and regular coffee out of the arabica bean. The difference between the two is that robustas have a relatively high concentration of fats called diptenes, and these fats contribute to the increase in blood cholesterol.
Dr. Superko notes that while the cholesterol increase they found is significant in the lab, it is a pretty small change of about 10 points in the real world. This is not a huge drop in cholesterol, but if you are looking for ways to drop your high cholesterol number, and you currently drink a lot of decaf, stopping the decaf may help out.
In the same study it was discovered that if you have high blood pressure that caffeinated beverages will increase blood pressure levels while decaf will not. Obviously, if you have high blood pressure, avoiding caffeinated beverates can help you manage your blood pressure.
As a note, Dr. Superko presented these findings to the American Heart Association in 2005
Obviously, this article is intended to inform you about some of the pros/cons of coffee and caffeine. The jury is still out on whether it is good, bad or neutral for you. As always, consult with your doctor before implementing any dietary changes. The response to caffeine varies by individual. Coffee can have a significant impact on individuals with diabeties, high blood pressure, expecting mothers or any other heart related conditions.
The past few days I have been doing strictly sprint based training. I needed to switch it up and get away from the lifting portion of my training. I have been doing an old sprint competition warmup that I did during my track days. This warmup takes about 20 minutes and also serves as an excellent total body workout.
After doing this warmup I am usually sore all over for the first week, especially in my legs, abs and lower back.
Extended Track Warmup (20 minutes)
Ankle/Knee/Hip/Torso/Shoulder Complex
3 Dimension Lunge/Squat Circuit (Light): Goal is to prepare all my joints for movement in three directions.
Skip/Hop/March/Jump: 10m at a time, 10m rest. Repeat 4 times for each movement.
Technique Acceleration Runs: 50-60% acceleration runs focusing on acceleration mechanics, body lean and foot slide/ground strike technique.
Speed Leg: 1 step fire/3 step recovery for 10m. Focus on technique, then speed
You will see a natural progression in the warmup from general preparation movements (movements that will prepare you for any sport) to more specific speed/sprint movements.
Total body speed work like this will increase the overall efficiency of my nervous system, which will make my body faster, more coordinated and more powerful in all athletic movements, including the golf swing.
So I mentioned that I did a lot of easy acceleration runs in my circuit yesterday. They were not anything killer, maybe 60% efforts at best. Despite the lack of intensity all parts of my legs, especially my glutes and calves, are sore. My entire midsection, both front and back, is sore also. I forgot how many muscles sprinting uses. The pushoff required to get up to speed requires a lot of energy and uses a lot of muscles.
I can’t wait for it to warm-up so I can get outside and do some 100 meter intervals around a track. Absolutely nothing will get me into shape faster than 2-3 great interval sessions on the track per week. I love doing my old track workouts because I have not found anything better (and I have tried a lot of stuff) when it comes to getting into great shape quickly.
Once I bump up the intensity and lower the volume of these acceleration runs they will also make me a lot faster in all the other sports I like to play, including basketball, softball and football.
You have to see this. It is hilarious. Tiger Woods takes down a would be club stealer. You must have Flash installed on your computer to view this video. If you do not have Macromedia Flash Player you can download it here.