If you are in the market for a personal trainer to help you improve your
golf fitness, there are a few things to take into consideration, says Peter
Kadzielawski, co-owner of Equilibrium Personal Training. “Your new
trainer should be certified, but please understand that a certification is
not everything. Just because you have a driver’s license does not make
you a great driver,” says Kadzielawski.
According to Kadzielawski, you do have to go through a tough
program and pass a test to get certified, but the certification is basically
a license for someone to legally call himself or herself a personal trainer.
Consider hiring a personal trainer who is certified in golf fitness. Your
trainer does not have to be a golf guru or expert, but he or she should
understand the basic fundamentals of the swing and the importance of
balance, coordination, and flexibility in golf.
Kadzielawski has a few suggestions for hiring your next personal
trainer. First and foremost, your trainer should be fit and have several
years of experience training people. If someone can keep himself or herself in great shape, it increases the chances that he or she will be able to
help you. A personal level of fitness demonstrates that they themselves
have a personal understanding of what it takes to stay fit.
You should also look for a trainer with many years of experience
and references to prove it. Someone who has been achieving great
results with their clients won’t have a problem providing that information. Don’t hesitate to contact a previous client to see what their
experience with that particular trainer was like. Your trainer should be
able to show you how working on core flexibility and specific shoulder strengthening exercises and stretches improved their previous client’s golf game.
Second, Kadzielawski says that a great fitness professional will offer
a free consultation or orientation session to take the time to get to
know you. The first time you meet your potential trainer, he or she
should sit down with you and find out as much as they can about
you. It is a promising sign when the trainer asks questions about you,
your lifestyle, and your goals, rather than talking about how much they
know about general fitness and trying to impress or overwhelm you
with random information. For example, many golfers suffer from lower
back pain, and your new instructor should find out if you are one of
them. If you do suffer from this type of discomfort, your trainer should
share some ways to strengthen your lower back and stretching exercises
that can help you.
202 G O L F F I T N E S S
He or she should also stress the importance of strengthening your
abdominal muscles and explain how this can help take the pressure off of
your lower back and increase the range of motion in your golf swing. At
this time, your trainer should establish a plan to help you improve your
fitness and explain in simple terms how he or she will help you meet your
goals through specific exercises that will not only challenge your balance,
but also work on your coordination and increase your strength.
Finally, the orientation session is your last chance to figure out if
he or she is the right trainer for you, says Kadzielawski. If 15 minutes
into your orientation session you are out of breath and really hating it,
this trainer may not be for you. The trainer may simply lack experience.
A great personal trainer with the proper education and experience will
not “beat you up” during your first workout, even if you are a very fit
person.
If you are a golf-specific client, your first session should be educational and include a golf-specific fitness screen and low- to mediumintensity exercises. Your instructor should ensure that you understand
the basics and be clear about why he or she is choosing this type of
routine for your first workout. At the end of the orientation session,
if you feel a little tired, but also like you have been educated, inspired,
and motivated, and you even had a little fun, congratulations, you
have found the person who can lead you to an amazing life change and
improve your golf game in the process.
TRY A GOLF-SPECIFIC MASSAGE
TO RELIEVE PAIN
As a massage therapist, a GFM contributor, and an avid golfer, Lisa Ferguson is acutely aware of the physical tolls of the game, because most
of her clients are golfers. “To play a good game of golf, you must be fit
to play well. What does being fit really mean? It means being healthy.
Being fit means that your muscle tissues need to be healthy, flexible
and mobile. Healthy muscle tissues have the ability to create efficient
spontaneous movements and prevent injuries. That’s why spas offering
golf-specific massages are on the rise. It is important to knead out those
aches and pains that are so specific to golfers,” says Ferguson.
How does soreness affect a golfer’s swing? Think about having a sore
back. It is uncomfortable to walk, stand, sit, and sometimes even touch
the affected area. When muscle tissues are sore, they are weak and under
stress and need specific massage-related therapies. A golfer’s swing is
unnatural to the body because of the fact that you must be in a slightly
T H E H E A LT H Y G O L F E R 203
bending position while trying to hit the ball. The swing involves a stance
that requires you to shift your weight from the left to the right to the
left again, which demands flexibility in the hips, while at the same time
winding your upper back in a coiling movement while your hips stay
balanced beneath you. If your back is sore, your muscles cannot perform
efficiently, and you risk further injury, like a lumbar sprain or strain.
How Many Golfers Are Suffering?
More than 50 percent of golfers suffer from neck weakness, lower back
problems, shoulder or rotator cuff stiffness, elbow dysfunction, lower
leg imbalances, and/or wrist injuries. If a golfer continues playing with
stiffness and soreness in the back, further injury to surrounding muscle
groups is a risk. This can result in chronic pain cycles, which will interfere with enjoyment of the game. That is where golf massage comes
into play.
