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Teaching
Pros – Detect a Skill Buster
By
Robert Mottram, PT, ATC - 12/00
The
body is made up of numerous interrelated systems. The most obvious
in golf are the nervous, muscular and skeletal systems which work
together to form the neuromechanical system.
The degree of function of this complex system is determined
by the condition and wellness of muscular balance, flexibility,
static and dynamic postural stability, strength and power.
Each
individual has a certain level of physical ability and a specific
level of developed skill relative to the demands of any given task.
The problem is that many golf instructors are unaware of
which of the physical performance factors are deficient in their
student. Typically, we are unable to identify, for ourselves, the
physical performance characteristics that we may be having problems
with unless we stress our bodies to a point of physical break down.
Many times muscular imbalances
influence the function of the working joints and how well the body
executes the brain’s swing command.
In the presence of muscle length-tension imbalances,
what may be a correct skill message leaving the brain often ends up
with the golfer posing in disbelief watching their ball sale over
the fence into an equally surprised homeowners sliding glass door.
Consequently,
until obvious symptoms develop - either physically or in our golf
performance – we, and our dedicated golf professional, go on
making the adjustments that we can, for as long as we can, and then
typically blame our performance problems on other non-physical
performance factors - mental breakdowns, poor equipment, and
lack of practice or play.
The GOOD
NEWS is that certain steps can significantly influence and improve
the players physical performance factors - once they are identified
through the proper evaluation process - regardless of age and/or
relative condition.
!
First, and most obvious and easily identifiable, is observing
the golfers posture. External
appearance is often times a window to what has developed underneath.
(However, the key is to be able to identify poor versus good
posture!) Misalignments and asymmetries in the golfers structural
system will affect the brains message to perform the preferred swing
task. Unfortunately,
every poor performance that has been interfered with by muscular imbalances
is recorded in the brain and correct swing memory is altered.
This leads to an ongoing inconsistency in performance and
results in minimal improvement.
!
Second, once identified, slow static stretching of muscles
that have been found to be short and tight will have a fairly
dramatic effect in decreasing the resistance to stretch during the
swing, and therefore, influence and improve golf performance.
It
is important, and quite helpful, that the serious golf instructor
learn to distinguish lack of skill versus lack of physical ability
or limiting physical factors as it relates to the golfers swing.
Failure to make the connection between performance and
inadequate neuromechanical systems will always result in short term
fixes of swing faults. As
much as the teaching pro uses these quick fixes and temporary
adjustments, correcting the underlying etiology will be difficult.
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