GolFIT Carolina

Bob Forman
Director, The Golf Fitness Academy
Certified Golf Fitness Instructor 

You love golf and you want to play it forever, especially now that you’re about ready to settle into retirement.  But your game isn’t quite up to speed like it used to be and/or your playing time has become limited due to an annoying ache that’s disrupting your ability to play. 

It’s a scenario that’s all too common for the Baby Boom golfer, but one that can often times be addressed with a sensible golf fitness program.  Take it to the bank, a knowledgeable golf fitness instructor can work magic with the “seasoned” player in (re)gaining distance, improving playing performance and satisfaction, and keeping those nagging golf-related injuries in check. 

As we age our bodies naturally change and there’s a perception that those changes, for the most part, will negatively impact how we feel and look.  We just assume that with each passing year we’ll get a little flabbier, lose some muscle tone, and slow down as part of the aging process.     

Granted, we will lose a step with each decade, but this assumption that the better years are behind us is bogus and one that research tells us isn’t necessarily true.  Most of the negative physiological changes that take place in our bodies are not from getting older, but fueled mainly by the fact that we become less active.  It’s the inactivity that, above all, results in muscle weakness and tightness, an increase in body fat, and a reduction in cardiovascular function.    

These debilitating consequences have a direct effect on our ability and desire to perform a task like swinging a golf club or, for that matter, even going out and playing a round of golf.  The good news is that it’s all preventable! 

Let’s be perfectly clear, though, there is no quick fix and a little sweat equity is required.  There’s no magic pill or 5-piece golf ball that will change you into a better golfer overnight, but working with an experienced golf fitness instructor will definitely optimize the physical makeover, offering safer and more productive outcomes that will be realized sooner out on the golf course. 

Identifying your individualized starting point is crucial and can only be accomplished with an up-front golf readiness assessment.  If a golf fitness assessment is not offered, walk away, as this tool is crucial in identifying your personal weaknesses and charting a course of action.   

This will also make for a much safer, more productive program as you transition back to those days of playing around in the playground, literally, as most of the progressive exercises are functional in nature.  Your time will be better managed and that equates to quicker improvements in your golf game, not to mention the way you feel.    

Once the deficiencies have been identified and corrected, your guided program should progress into golf-specific strength and balance exercises, followed then by some power drills to pump up the speed factor in order to fulfill your craving for distance. . . and we all have a bit of that craving. 

Sitting back and growing older gracefully is old school.  Today, Baby Boomers are doing things their parents would never have dreamed of at their age.  Playing better, healthier golf into their 60s, 70s and even 80s is definitely one of those. 
 
If you want to re-gain the distance you once had, if you don’t want to ache the day or two after a round of golf, if you want to be able to bend down more easily to tee the ball up or pick it out of the hole (who needs those gadgets at the end of your putter?!), if you love the game and want to play it forever, you need to get into a credible golf fitness program.  No doubt, it’ll be the best investment you make.