Extreme Golf Fitness

YOUR WINTER GOLF FITNESS PROGRAM STARTS HERE

Wow, it's been so long since I last blogged! Don't ask me where the time has gone, I can't believe we're well into October already!

We've had the Dunhill Links over here for the past week, which I only managed to go and see on the Sunday, which was great though. The weather stayed perfect for the whole week, thank goodness but as soon as everyone left town, the weather took a turn and it hasn't stopped raining since! Typical.

Well done to Nick Dougherty for winning at last, can you believe also that Niall (my son) managed to get his glove!..... amongst other players hats and autographs. We've got a whole box full of stuff he was kindly given from the players such as Rory McIlroy (so sweet), Henrik Stenson, Jimenez and many more.

Anyway, this week we need to talk about getting fit and getting into shape for next season over the winter, so I'll be posting a whole load of programs and plans for all you keen golfers out there to start on your winter program....you are planning a winter program aren't you?

Keep checking in or subscribe to this blog as I'll be updating it most days on how to plan your winter program.

Why not subscribe also to my WEEKLY TOP TIP and receive valuable information, advice and more delivered directly to your inbox.

DON'T GO AWAY.....THERE'S MORE TO COME

liz@extremegolffitness.com

IS TECHNOLOGY LOWERING GOLF SCORES?

It's always an interesting topic to get people stating their point of view.

According to Dr Bob Rotella:
Fifteen years ago the average American male golfer's handicap was 16.2. The average female golfer's handicap was 29. TODAY, the average American male golfer's handicap is 16.2 and the average female golfer's handicap is 29!
Dr Bob Rotella, The Golf Of Your Dreams

What does this mean?

GOLFER'S HAVEN'T IMPROVED DESPITE TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES!

My husband would now say; 'ah, but the courses are getting longer and more difficult ' and he'd be right.

What's your view?

Have your say and comment here or e-mail me at liz@extremegolffitness.com

Interesting Fact:
There are approcimately 68 million golfers around the world playing on 40,000 courses!

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CALLING ALL SENIOR GOLFERS

Okay, so you're finally a senior golfer. Nothing wrong with that, we're all going to be one one day.

From the age of 40, unfortunately we lose approximately 1lb of muscle mass per year and the process of aging brings degenerative joint changes, reduced range of motion and loss of balance to name but a few!

BUT THERE'S SOME GOOD NEWS FOR SENIOR GOLFERS.....

Even though you've been playing golf for years, you're the group who are most likely to see a dramatic improvement in your golf game due to following a specific golf fitness program.

You can even slow down the natural process of aging by starting your golf fitness program, improving your flexibility, stability and strength and at the same time IMPROVE YOUR GOLF. What more could you ask for from a golf fitness program?

If you're a senior golfer and are following a golf fitness program, the strength training phase of your program will also help you in building muscle mass, which is essential for seniors.

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For further information, e-mail me: liz@extremegolffitness.com

GOLF EXERCISES...SOME AMAZING FACTS TOO

I find in my business there is a lot of stigma attached to golf fitness. Many golfers don't understand or realise that golf fitness is an integral part of a golf improvement program. I can't understand why that is.

My husband, Garry, is a PGA Professional who teaches at the St Andrews Links Academy, here in St Andrews, Scotland. He gets golfers of all ages and all abilities coming to him for lessons...all day long. They know that he will give them a 'quick fix'. If they are having certain problems with grip, distance, chipping or putting, they know that if they see him for an hour, he will sort them out and have them fixed within an hour. Which is great, because he is truly a great teacher of golf.

Garry will also talk to them about fitness and golf specific conditioning because he also believes that a golfers physical fitness is an integral part of a training program, but the majority of the golfers he teaches don't follow up with some form of physical training because they honestly don't believe they need it.

Here are some amazing facts about your golf swing:

Fact #1

Did you realise that every time you use your driver, you achieve approximately 90% of your peak muscle activity! That is the same intensity as lifting a weight that you can only lift FOUR times because it's too heavy!

Fact #2

Not only that..... during the downswing, the compression on the spine is 8 times your body weight!!!!!

Can you still believe that most golfers won't even consider training their bodies for a truly physical, vigorous activity such as golf?

I know that all you golfers who are reading my blog now do understand the importance of getting physically trained for golf, otherwise you wouldn't be reading this right now, would you?
So, WELL DONE to you and carry on with the good work.

A lot of golfers seem to watch Tiger Woods' every move and copy everything that he does, golf related. It's because he's such a perfect example of the ultimate disciplined golfer. How come golfers aren't realising that his fitness regime is a part of this too?
Tiger is such an advocate of physical fitness and he knows that it's equally important to be physically trained as it is to be technically trained.

“I've always felt that golf is a sport, and you have to train as if it's a sport........

You have to work on your entire body and make sure you maintain a good cardiovascular level as well. It's not just about building brute strength but being able to carry that strength for a long period of time.”

Tiger Woods

Spread the word that golf fitness is just as important as having lessons with the pro, pyschological sessions and nutritional advice. It's just a piece of the whole pie! 

Get started today, find yourself a great golf fitness trainer or check out my website for some great free golf exercises.

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Feel free to e-mail me, or Garry at liz@extremegolffitness.com for any comments, suggestions or advice.

TESTING YOUR CORE STRENGTH FOR GOLF

You can never learn enough information on how you can improve your core strength, especially if you're a golfer.

Getting to know how good your core strength is, is an absolute must. This will tell you how efficiently your abdominals are working and whether you need to concentrate on this area alone before starting on other areas of your golf swing or if your core strength is already efficient.

Here is a simple test that you can do at home to find out how efficient those abdominals really are:

1. First, lie down on a flat surface on your back.
2. Bend your knees so that you're feet are on the floor.
3. Place one hand underneath your back, directly in line with your navel.
4. Press your back into your hand so that you feel hard pressure on your hand.
5. Take a deep breath in then slowly exhale and as you do so gently lift your right leg just off the floor.
6. Inhale and lower the leg back to the floor. Exhale and repeat on the left leg.
7. Note exactly how much pressure you placed on your hand underneath your back throughout this
    exercise.

1. Was the pressure on your hand:
a) Hard
b) Medium
c) Light
d) No pressure

2. Did the pressure remain constant throughout this exercise?
a) Yes
b) No

If you answered a to both questions then you're core stability is working efficiently and you will only need to maintain your core strength.

If you answered b-d for question 1 and b to question 2 then your core strength is not working efficiently and you will need to concentrate on strengthening the abdominals.

Click here to take you to some core strengthening exercises  or e-mail me at liz@extremegolffitness.com for further advice on how to maintain your core strength.

Visit www.extremegolffitness.com for more fitness tips, golf exercises and golf fitness products.

NATALIE GULBIS AND LORENA OCHOA'S FITNESS TIPS

Well done to Lorena Ochoa for winning the 2007 Ricoh Women's British Open right here in St Andrews. It was a stunning victory for Lorena who held on to the lead throughout the event. I was very fortunate to watch her triumphant moment walking up the 18th from the best view at the event.
What a fantastic moment it was for Lorena and her family and friends, who had travelled with her to support the number one Mexican golfer around the course and who were giving some well deserved cheer and motivation.

I met up with Lorena Ochoa and Natalie Gulbis and found out some interesting facts about their fitness regimes.

Natalie said 'I work out every day and feel that fitness is a very important aspect to the game of golf'. 
She also told me that she does two hours of cardio and incorporates strength training with weights and core work for two hours also. I asked her if she thought that being flexible was important for a golfer and she replied that it was and that she is already very flexible so doesn't need to work on that part of her fitness so much as the strength and core work.
Her core work which will give her the stability for a solid swing mainly consists of Swiss Ball exercises.

Lorena Ochoa, World's No. 1 said 'I am a very flexible person and my training consists of running half-marathons'.

Ochoa also insisted that a physical fitness regime is an INTEGRAL part of a golfers training program. Without her training schedule, she simply wouldn't be in the position she is today. She also stated that she is a very flexible person and felt that this was important to her game.

I found Lorena to be very friendly and she was being very gracious by chatting to everyone who congratulated her. Winning her first major title and also becoming the first woman to win a professional title on The Old Course at St Andrews, for me, couldn't have happened to a nicer person.

Both Natalie and Lorena are both very flexible, which goes to prove that FLEXIBILITY IS PARAMOUNT IF YOU WANT TO IMPROVE YOUR GAME.

Have a look at some flexibility exercises on my website or send me an e-mail for more information on how to improve your flexibility at liz@extremegolffitness.com

RICOH WOMENS BRITISH OPEN & BEING IN LOVE WITH THE HOME OF GOLF!

I am so fortunate to live right here in St Andrews!

I never EVER thought I would hear myself say that and my husband will be so impressed. When we first met, which was in England, I told him that I wanted to travel and live in different places but the one place I would never live in is Scotland (because my husband is Scottish!). I basically told him to forget about ever going home to the Bonny Banks again as it was far too cold and depressing...............and here we are!! AND I LOVE IT (I hope he doesn't see this blog or I may be eating humble pie!).

Anyway, it's not only the golf side of St Andrews that I love, it's also the fact that you meet so many nice people from all over the world, some of them famous too! I've been at the Ladies Open this week and managed to watch Ochoa, Creamer, Gulbis, Wie, Se Ri Pak and many more. It's quite hard to follow players around on The Old Course though as there's so many gorse bushes around the greens and to be honest, you get to see so much more on the TV, but you can't beat the atmosphere and it was very well organised. I preferred it much more than the men's Open in Carnoustie (see previous blog as to why).

Wie didn't make the cut (surprised), she wasn't impressed when she came off the course but she did sign my daughter's pink Barbie hat! Much to the disgust of my very tired, very grumpy 3 year old daughter who protested very loudly shouting 'I don't want that lady to write on my Barbie hat'. I had to calm her down by bribing her with a new pink sparkly hat.

 

The weather here has been very windy and the players have had to play a completely different game to what they normally do. Most of them probably thought they were really good golfers before they played here this week. Rebecca Hudson has done well and seems to be keeping calm and collected but Lorena Ochoa seems to have it well under control, being relaxed and chatty round the course. I think she'll keep it up for the last round tomorrow to hopefully win the title.

Will report back tomorrow............

For more information and exercises for golf improvement log on to www.extremegolffitness.com or e-mail me at liz@extremegolffitness.com

Thierry Henry, Ronaldinho & The Barcelona Team At The Home Of Golf!

Just thought I would post a random blog about Niall and I meeting Thierry Henry and Ronaldinho in St Andrews, the 'Home Of Golf'.

Barcelona football team are staying at St Andrews in the Old Course Hotel as they are training here for a week, so Niall and I decided to go along and see if we catch a glimpse of them leaving the hotel.

Much to our amazement, the whole team were just wandering around the hotel and we didn't know which way to turn, that was until Thierry Henry walked through the lobby and then I knew exactly what to do. He signed an autograph for Niall and I had my photo taken with him. However, it was a camera phone that I had to deal with as Garry had taken the memory stick out of our Nikon camera the night before without telling me! That's why the photo looks really dodgy and it was dark in that lobby!

Ronaldinho walked through and Niall shouted over to him and asked for his autograph. He very kind and  signed Niall's Brasil shirt then as I was fumbling around trying to sort out my camera phone, he stopped and came back for a photo with Niall. How nice was that? Astonishingly, there were no other cameramen, press or fans anywhere to be seen, how lucky were we!

I wonder if there going to try any golf this week, if they do, I'll try and get a few snaps!

E-mail me at liz@extremegolffitness.com and visit my website: www.extremegolffitness.com

The British Open, Tigers Balls & Alcohol Fuelled Crowds!

Friday 20^th July: Day 2

In the afternoon, my husband Garry, son Niall and I decided to go along to Carnoustie. I couldn't believe the price of the admission fee; £50!!  Lucky for us, my husband, Garry is a PGA member so he gets his fee refunded, I had borrowed a pass off a friend of Garry's and Niall gained free admission due to the fact he's under 16. So all in all, it worked out well.

Next, I wasn't surprised to find that mobile phones and cameras are completely banned. I'm quite glad about that as I've been to other tournaments (especially in China), where the crowd happily snap away, not having any consideration for the players. Unfortunately, I then wasn't able to get any snaps of players, but did see plenty.

We watched Tiger stroll up to the practice green where he looked so focused and relaxed. I'm sure he wasn't, but he has such a calmness about him. His first tee shot of the day saw his ball out of bounds in the Burn to the left of the fairway. Some lucky young boy, who strangely Garry had taught at
St Andrews Links Academy the previous day, rescued his ball from the burn by jumping in. The press were round him like flies, taking hundreds of photo's. He was actually offered £500 for the ball there and then! Maybe I should consider selling Niall’s ball that Tiger gave him in Mission Hills in China.

 

You can see more on the ‘Ball In The Burn’ story here: 'Teenager Seizes The Moment'

On our travels, I spotted a Radio DJ celebrity, Spoony, who also plays golf and hosts the Spoony Classic, which is a charity fund-raising Golf Tournament. Niall got his autograph and told him that he thought he was a really good golfer. Spoony told Niall that he was lying!

As I mentioned earlier, Garry has been teaching the guy who find Tigers ball in the Burn. He’s over here with a US Juniors Tour group and Chris DiMarco’s son is also in that group. Garry has been teaching them all week and apparently Chris DiMarco’s son plays left handed but putts right handed! Garry has been teaching them this morning again. As I write this Chris DiMarco has shot 66 today and is -3 for the tournament, so they’ll be happy with that.

The only disappointing thing about The British Open, which I was disgusted to see, were many very drunk men wandering or staggering around the course with beer in hand, slumped against posts, on the floor or actually throwing up! They probably hadn’t even seen any golf.
Considering that cameras and phones are confiscated at the gates upon arrival, due to them being misused, then why are men free to wander around in a drunken state quite able to cause a scene at any point. This kind of behaviour was seen by Garry as he watched a Radio Presenter interview Peter Dawson from the R & A, when at one point a drunken man shouted abuse at the Radio Presenter!
Why are people allowed to drink themselves into a stupor at such a highly publicised sporting event? The R & A should re-consider allowing so much alcohol consumption.

Visit my website www.extremegolffitness.com for fre.e golf exercises or e-mail me on liz@extremegolffitness.com

What To Eat Before, During and After Your Golf Game

There have been a few times when I completely forgot to pack anything to eat into my golf bag and I can honestly say that my concentration, my energy levels and my complete game went downhill from the moment I started to feel hungry. My mum can verify that!! I am not a happy golfer without food.

It's really important to pack a few healthy foods into your bag for the duration of your game. Well, You wouldn't go for four hours without eating at work or at home, so why do it during an athletic event!! Your body needs to fuel itself for stamina, strength and concentration.

Below are a few basic guidelines and ideas about what to eat before you tee off, during and after your game.

1. 2 Hours Before Tee Off:

• You will need some important proteins early on in the day, around 2 hours before you tee off. These can include turkey sausages, eggs, bacon, fish or oatmeal. Typically, this woul be breakfast time if you had an ealy tee off time.
• Drink plenty of water or unsweetened fruit juice. Avoid caffeine and alcohol at all costs as they will only make you dehydrated.

2. Just Before Tee Off:

• At this time you will need foods that are slow-releasing carbohydrates. These can be a slice of rye bread, oat bran muffin, whole grain cereals, orange or grapefruit.
• Again, have a drink of water (with added minerals is best).

3. On-Course Snacks:

• Water, water and more water!
• Apples, grapes or nuts are best foods to snack on throught your game.

4. Just After The First Nine:

• Just after your first nine holes, eat something a bit more substantial such as dark flour bread (no white bread), bagels, slow-release energy sports bar and an unsweetened electrolyte drink.

5. The Last Hour Of Play:

• You may need a quick boost of energy now, so go for a banana, raisins and unsweetened fruit juice.

6. After Your Game:

• It's important to give your body and muscles recovery foods so that you'll be ready for your next game! This time you'll need fast-releasing carbohydrates such as a sandwich with chicken, beef, tuna or turkey. Salads, cheese and yoghurts are also on the list here.
• Drink water, fruit juice and you now may have a tea or coffee!

These are just a few helpful ideas of the types of food you should be eating to play great golf.

If you want any further advice on golf nutrition, please e-mail me:

liz@extremegolffitness.com