MAKE THIS YOUR BEST GOLF SEASON YET!

By: Mindi Boysen, TPI CGFI

Okay ladies! Put those cute white skorts, sleeveless tops, and Sandbagger sandals away! It’s not only time to pull out the capris and sleeves, but time to pull out your best “golf body” yet!

Yes! As you prep your closet for a new warmer wardrobe, think about prepping the most important club in the bag…YOU! Here are some things to think about for the upcoming golf season:

1. TURN-TURN-TURN!

If you’ve taken a little golf time off this summer, then you most likely took time off from rotating your body, too. Our bodies sit, stand, and walk forward in a sagittal plane. Golf is a sport primarily in the transverse or rotational plane. And what makes the body rotate?.....each vertebrae in the back along with the tiny muscles around the spine. Which part of the body is statistically injured the most in people who golf? The back! So before you even pick up a club…dance, twist, turn, push, and pull in a way that generates rotational strength and elasticity in the vertebrae and more importantly, the discs between them!

2. THE GRASS ISN’T ALWAYS GREENER…

Okay, maybe it is, but the turf during the AZ golf season is also deeper, thicker, and wetter! So forget about using your putter when you’re 15 feet off the green anymore. It’s time to get those hand, wrist, and forearm muscles prepared for “punching out”. The small muscles from the fingers to the elbow take a lot of beating especially for women. Hitting balls fat or having the club twist in your hand while swinging out of thicker rough can cause tendonitis and ligament damage in unprepared tissue. Haven’t thought about that, have you? Check out the exercise database on www.fitforgolfusa.com and click under “arms” for exercises to strengthen and stretch. 　

3. IF YOU WANT TO TALK THE TALK, THEN WALK THE WALK!

The pros do it and so should we! Walk the course, I mean. If you are not a “walker” then 18 holes may be too much to bite off, but try these ideas:

-Share a cart, but take turns driving and walking certain holes.

-Walk the front nine, but grab a cart at the turn and ride the back nine. ‐‐‐Use a pull/push cart! Carts these days are easy to maneuver

-Carry your bag for 6, use a pull cart for 6, and ride a cart for 6 holes

-Carry that bag for 18 holes and be proud of it!

Hey! Any little bit helps! Walking makes golf exactly what it is supposed to be…a SPORT!

It is understandable that you may have health issues (ankle/knee/hip) that prevent you from walking. If you can walk around your block at home without pain, then you can try walking on the golf course!

Now is the perfect time to prepare your body for this golf season. During overseeding (upcoming October) is a perfect time to focus on your rotation, wrists and arms, and endurance and strength of your lower body. For examples of exercises for the above goals, logon to www.fitforgolfusa.com . Remember to contact your physician before starting any exercise program. Or contact a TPI certified golf fitness instructor for a full body screening.

May this season prove to be your fittest yet!...FIT FOR GOLF AND FIT FOR LIFE!

Mindi Boysen is a Titleist Certified Level II Golf Fitness Coach endorsed by Tatum Ranch Golf Club in Cave Creek, AZ. Her new book, Synergistic Golf, outlines each day of the year with golf performance & life enhancing tips. Her 3 DVD series demonstrates flexibility, strength, and stability exercises used in the golf swing. Mindi is available for private or group golf fitness training as well as seminars and nutritional consultations. Contact her at (480) 203-6228 or mindi@fitforgolfusa.com or visit her site at www.fitforgolfusa.com

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