YOUR DAY JOB MAY BE WREAKING HAVOC ON YOUR GOLF GAME
Bob Forman
Director, The Golf Fitness Academy
Certified Golf Fitness Instructor
You probably don’t realize it, but what you do off the golf course can often times influence how you do on the course. The computer age can be much to blame for our golfing frustrations, as can some of our day jobs.
For many, sitting a good part of the day hunched over a computer, desk, workstation, or patient (as in the case with dentists and surgeons) does not bode well for posture in general, and can wreck havoc not only on your health, but on your golfing performance.
One distance-robbing, swing-altering consequence from this sedentary epidemic, which is impacting golfers of all ages and levels is the C-posture. No longer just an older golfer's affliction, C-posture is characterized by a bowed spine and rounded shoulders while setting up over the ball.
This upper cross syndrome, as it’s more clinically called, is defined by a shortening or tightening of the chest muscles and a concomitant lengthening or weakening of the upper back muscles (rhomboids). This imbalanced combination pulls the shoulders forward creating that rounded shoulder posture that is becoming more prevalent out on the golf course.
Not only does prolonged sitting in a hunched over position bring on this condition, as the body adapts to the position its placed in, too many sets of chest strengthening exercises in the gym will also lead up to it. This is exacerbated if little or no focus is given to the opposing rhomboid muscles.
It’s estimated that more than a third of all golfers have this condition and it will rob them of power, distance, and accuracy. C-posture reduces a golfer’s ability to take the club back in the backswing by up to 30%, as the body cannot rotate around a bent spine as easily as it can a straight one. This reduction in backswing may decrease the golfer’s ability to generate clubhead speed and power, resulting in lost yardage.
As a compensation to increase the backswing, a golfer with a C-posture will stand taller as they bring the club back, allowing for greater range of motion. This “loss of posture” or “dynamic posture” swing fault, however, can affect swing path and balance, adding to the tendency for weak, off line shots.
To correct upper cross syndrome and C-posture, focus should be placed on specific exercises to stretch the tightness and strengthen the weakness. Two such exercises are the doorframe stretch and the upper back squeeze.
The doorframe stretch is a good exercise to stretch out the chest and front shoulder. Raise your arms about shoulder height and place your forearms against a doorframe with the elbows bent 90 degrees. Without moving your feet, gradually lean into the door until a gentle stretch is felt across the chest and/or shoulders. Hold for 15 seconds and repeat 2 to 3 times. Remember to breathe normally. Don’t overdo this stretch!
The upper back squeeze will focus on the strengthening of the upper back (rhomboids). Take an exercise tube or band, wrap it around a solid fixture about chest height, and grab onto each end. Step back till a sufficient stretch is felt in the tube/band with arms outstretched in front of you and palms down. From this starting position, slowly pull the arms back, keeping the elbows up and away from your body, as far as comfort permits and then return to the starting position. You should feel your shoulder blades squeezing together. Repeat 15 to 20 times. Exhale on the effort.
If what you do for a good part of the day is creating anatomical imbalances in your body, you need to correct the imbalances that are developing or have already developed in your musculoskeletal system.
For C-posture the initial emphasis should be on strengthening the back and stretching the chest. Don’t go hog wild in the gym with a bunch of chest exercises to get that chiseled look as strengthening a muscle will also tighten a muscle. Work first to get balance back in the upper body by lengthening the chest and tightening the upper back by doing the two exercises mentioned. As posture improves, you can slowly incorporate strengthening of the chest back into the routine.
A physical assessment by a credible golf fitness instructor will be able to identify whether or not you have any deficiencies, like upper cross syndrome, and how severe they are. This blueprint will allow for a targeted exercise program that will correct the imbalances, bringing balance back into the system.
Once that’s done, the body will be able to do what it needs to do in order to swing an efficient golf club. You’ll still need assistance with technique, though, to help rewire the brain-body connection (or what’s been falsely called muscle memory) in order to fix the wrong movement patterns. That’s where a teaching professional can help.
Don’t quit your day job! Instead, focus on exercises that will correct the upper cross syndrome to help your golf game and your posture in general. Fixing the C-posture will get you more yards down the fairway, improve your playing performance, and enhance your playing satisfaction. It may also help alleviate any neck or upper back stiffness/discomfort that you may be experiencing.
