Junior Golf Academy - Fitness Programme
Why do you have to participate in a golf fitness programme?
A vast majority of top armature golfers are increasing in awareness of the importance of getting fit for golf. This is directly due to players such as Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Lee Westwood, Camilo Villegas, etc. participating in / and promoting the benefits of having a fitness plan that they stick to throughout the year.
In the past most golfers have had “a don’t” care attitude towards their health and fitness planning. In today’s highly competitive golf world – being healthy and fit could give you the edge on your competitors.
“Golf has changed. Players are stronger, fitter and their endurance is better. It’s turned into a truly professional sport. I’m not saying it wasn’t 20 or 30 years ago, but guys didn’t include the nutritional and physical fitness part that they do now” - Greg Norman
Golf fitness is not about building muscle to hit the ball further. Golf fitness is about being in the perfect anatomical position every time you hit the ball. Distance is a by-product of flexibility and power, both of which are important in golf fitness. You need the due physical capacity to maintain the correct spine angle every time you hit the ball. Any weakness could cause inconsistent delivery of the club on the ball.
Improving specific fitness components will not only enhance your performance, but will also add the benefit of maintaining your form and allowing you to have a long successful injury free golf career.
Preparation and conditioning of young Elite Amateur players will consist of:
What is periodisation ?
As part of an annual golf fitness programme, the best amateur and professional players in the game have success because they have a periodisation program. Periodisation is setting goals with a set of objectives and making a 1-year, 5 year and 10 year plan. Periodisation was initially used in many Olympic sports in the Eastern bloc to prepare and build up to specific times where the main competition was. All the top golfers in the world are now adopting this system by planning their annual competition schedule around Major competitions / tournaments.
How does this relate to you as an amateur golfer?
Your scheduling has to be modified to plot the important times of the year, for example, Club Championships, Pro-Ams, important Amateur tournaments etc. For this purpose we are going to use a simple programme called the traffic light planner.
Traffic light golf calendar – the rules.
The traffic light planner rules are a simple way to plan a golfer’s goal setting and objectives taking in to consideration the important times of the year where competing is a priority. The approach is simple, use 3 different colored pens and color in the weeks of the year noting the following:
RED IS STOP – to mark the time that you are away from competition. This is down time when you are most compliant working on your body and swing with your golf coach. From experience this when integrating your physical fitness programme with your technique has most effect
YELLOW IS TRANSITION – this is the time you are getting ready for tournaments or in-between major competitions. It also defines when you are returning to full golf participation and full practice sessions and starting to implement swing / technique / equipment changes. This may be at smaller “B” tournaments or weekend competitions building up to the bigger more important tournaments / competitions.
GREEN IS GO – this is the time when you want to maximize your performance. From a physical perspective you taper off your training and focus on tournament preparation and recovery.
Please complete the following Traffic light Golf Calendar for the up coming 12 month period. Do not forget to also fill in the goals – column (Technical, Physical, Well-being. Psycho / Social)
During the following 12 months we will guide you to be able to self assess your body and swing and have strategies in place to maintain your physical and technical performance.
Why do you have to participate in a golf fitness programme?
A vast majority of top armature golfers are increasing in awareness of the importance of getting fit for golf. This is directly due to players such as Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Lee Westwood, Camilo Villegas, etc. participating in / and promoting the benefits of having a fitness plan that they stick to throughout the year.
In the past most golfers have had “a don’t” care attitude towards their health and fitness planning. In today’s highly competitive golf world – being healthy and fit could give you the edge on your competitors.
“Golf has changed. Players are stronger, fitter and their endurance is better. It’s turned into a truly professional sport. I’m not saying it wasn’t 20 or 30 years ago, but guys didn’t include the nutritional and physical fitness part that they do now” - Greg Norman
Golf fitness is not about building muscle to hit the ball further. Golf fitness is about being in the perfect anatomical position every time you hit the ball. Distance is a by-product of flexibility and power, both of which are important in golf fitness. You need the due physical capacity to maintain the correct spine angle every time you hit the ball. Any weakness could cause inconsistent delivery of the club on the ball.
Improving specific fitness components will not only enhance your performance, but will also add the benefit of maintaining your form and allowing you to have a long successful injury free golf career.
Preparation and conditioning of young Elite Amateur players will consist of:
- Sport specific physiological and functional assessment
- Individualized strength and conditioning programme
- Nutritional guidelines for golfers
- Periodisation and long term goal setting
What is periodisation ?
As part of an annual golf fitness programme, the best amateur and professional players in the game have success because they have a periodisation program. Periodisation is setting goals with a set of objectives and making a 1-year, 5 year and 10 year plan. Periodisation was initially used in many Olympic sports in the Eastern bloc to prepare and build up to specific times where the main competition was. All the top golfers in the world are now adopting this system by planning their annual competition schedule around Major competitions / tournaments.
How does this relate to you as an amateur golfer?
Your scheduling has to be modified to plot the important times of the year, for example, Club Championships, Pro-Ams, important Amateur tournaments etc. For this purpose we are going to use a simple programme called the traffic light planner.
Traffic light golf calendar – the rules.
The traffic light planner rules are a simple way to plan a golfer’s goal setting and objectives taking in to consideration the important times of the year where competing is a priority. The approach is simple, use 3 different colored pens and color in the weeks of the year noting the following:
RED IS STOP – to mark the time that you are away from competition. This is down time when you are most compliant working on your body and swing with your golf coach. From experience this when integrating your physical fitness programme with your technique has most effect
YELLOW IS TRANSITION – this is the time you are getting ready for tournaments or in-between major competitions. It also defines when you are returning to full golf participation and full practice sessions and starting to implement swing / technique / equipment changes. This may be at smaller “B” tournaments or weekend competitions building up to the bigger more important tournaments / competitions.
GREEN IS GO – this is the time when you want to maximize your performance. From a physical perspective you taper off your training and focus on tournament preparation and recovery.
Please complete the following Traffic light Golf Calendar for the up coming 12 month period. Do not forget to also fill in the goals – column (Technical, Physical, Well-being. Psycho / Social)
During the following 12 months we will guide you to be able to self assess your body and swing and have strategies in place to maintain your physical and technical performance.
