Golf Fitness Self-Assessment
Bill
Hartman, "Your Golf Fitness Coach"
Before I design any golfer’s
fitness program, I perform a complete orthopedic and functional assessment and
a swing analysis to determine the golfer’s needs in comparison to the
demands of the sport of golf itself.
This establishes the golfer’s
fitness priorities; the aspects of their training program that will have the
greatest impact on their performance. In other words, it helps establish
a plan of action.
To attempt to improve performance
without some direction or a plan is a crap-shoot. Maybe you’ll get lucky
and actually do something to help your game. Maybe you won’t.
The following assessment is just a
small part of what I do during my assessment process. You can use it to
get an idea as to where you stand in comparison to the demands of the game of
golf.
POSTURE TEST
Every golf book I’ve ever read
talks about the importance of posture. I’ve yet to find one that
effectively explains how to measure it. You can use this test.
Stand with your back against a
wall and your feet about 12 inches from the base of the wall. Place one
hand in the small of your back and press your low back against your hand.
If your posture is normal, your buttocks, upper back, and the back of your head
will be in contact with the wall. Your head should remain level. If
you have to lean it back to make contact with the wall, you’re cheating the
test (shame on you for cheating). The inability to make these contacts,
especially the inability to make contact with the back of your head, is usually
an indication that you have too much curve in the thoracic spine (upper back),
a forward head position, or a combination of both. Failure on this test
will typically limit your ability to rotate your spine sufficiently for an
unrestricted golf swing.
SEATED ROTATION TEST
Golf is all about rotation.
Here’s a quick test for your spinal rotation.
Hold a golf club or broomstick
behind your shoulders while in a seated position. This position limits
the influence of shoulder range of motion, which often substitutes for spine
rotation. Turn the torso first to the right and then to the left as far
as you can comfortably. Do not shift your weight from one hip to the
other, as this will give you an inaccurate result. For an unrestricted
golf swing, you need about 60 degrees of rotation in the spine. Make sure
to keep your eyes focused straight ahead as the cervical spine (neck)
counter-rotates during the golf swing. A restriction in spine rotation
means that you must compensate somewhere else to gain full turn in your golf
swing. This will result in overuse of the shoulders or a swing fault such
as excessive rotation of the pelvis, straightening of the trailing knee, or
increased side bending of the spine. Each of these can result in injury
and pain.
SHOULDER ROTATION TEST
An unrestricted golf swing
requires full internal and external rotation of the shoulder. Here’s a
quick test for external shoulder rotation.
Lie on your back and place one
hand in the small of your back as you did for the posture test and press the
lower back down on your hand. This prevents cheating the test by
increasing the spinal curves. Lay your arm on the floor perpendicular
from the body with the elbow bent to 90 degrees. Rotate the shoulder
backward and attempt to lay your forearm on the floor. If you can’t lay
the forearm flat on the floor, external rotation is restricted. This will
restrict your backswing on your trailing side arm and restrict follow-through
on the lead side arm.
Here’s a quick test for internal
shoulder rotation.
Assume the same starting position
as you did for the external rotation test. This time attempt to lay the
forearm on floor by rotating the shoulder forward. Normal internal
rotation of the shoulder is 80 degrees. So the arm should rest just above
the floor for normal rotation. Limited internal rotation of the lead arm
will restrict your backswing and limited internal rotation of your trailing arm
will restrict follow-through.
HAMSTRING TEST
The hamstrings attach to the
pelvis (you’re actually sitting on the attachment). Tight hamstrings can
restrict your ability to assume proper pelvic and lumbar posture in your
address. Here’s an easy test.
Lay on your back with your hand in
the small of your back. This will prevent your back from substituting for
tightness in your hamstrings. With the knee straight, raise the leg from
the floor to your best height without straining. You’ll need to raise the
leg about 70 degrees from the floor for an unrestricted golf swing.
THOMAS TEST
This is a test for the hip
flexors. Tight hip flexors (more specifically a tight psoas muscle) will
limit hip extension and hip internal rotation. They can also restrict
spinal movement. Here’s the test.
Lie on your back and pull one knee
to your chest with the other leg straight. In a negative test, the
straight leg will rest flat on the floor. In a positive test (showing
tightness), the straight leg will be raised from the floor.
This is a very important test as
tight hip flexors are a common limitation for golfers who also do a great deal
of sitting as part of their daily job. Tight hip flexors will restrict
hip extension, which also limits follow-through. More importantly, they
will restrict hip internal rotation in the backswing. Limited internal
rotation of the hip in the backswing prevents adequate loading of your powerful
hip muscles. This creates a power drain and reduces club head speed
resulting in shorter drive distances.
HIP INTERNAL ROTATION
This tests hip internal rotation
directly. By doing it in a seated position, we eliminate the influence of
the hip flexors.
In a seated position and keeping
the weight evenly distributed on both buttocks, rotate the hip so that the
lower turns outward. Normal hip internal rotation is about 35
degrees. Limited internal rotation of the hip in the backswing prevents
adequate loading of your powerful hip muscles, which creates a power drain and
reduces club head speed resulting in shorter drive distances.
ABDOMINAL STRENGTH
This is a simple test for your
abdominal strength and coordination.
Lay on your back with your hip
bent to 90 degrees and feet off the floor. Place one hand in the small of
your back and press the lower back firmly down on your hand. Slowly lower
your feet to the floor without reducing the pressure on your hand.
If you are unable to lower your
feet without reducing pressure on your hand, your hip flexors are dominant in
the movement. This means that the abdominal muscles are most likely too weak to
dissipate forces away from the spine or to generate optimal force during the
golf swing.
How’d you do? If you
couldn’t pass all the tests with flying colors, you may have some work do
to. Everyone can improve his or her flexibility and strength.
Addressing your weak points will eliminate swing faults, improve performance,
and prevent injuries.
FYI...If you're considering hiring a fitness professional to guide you in your quest to improve your golf game, be sure that your complete assessment includes proper orthopedic testing and swing analysis. Both are necessary for a totally accurate exercise prescription.
Click here for Bill's Article "Foundational Strength, Your First Golf Strength Training Program"
Bill
Hartman, "Your Golf Fitness Coach," is a Physical Therapist who has a
degrees in Movement and Sports Science. Training golfers since 1990, Bill is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (NCSA), USA Weightlifting
Sport Performance Coach and a Level 2 Active Release Techniques Practitioner
(ART).
Bill
also has advanced training in shoulder, knee and spine rehabilitation
as well as many methods of strength, power and speed training. "Your Golf Fitness Coach's Video Library, Volume 1" is packed with information that will help your game immediately.
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