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What gives Tiger Woods the swing speed to nail a drive 350 yards? What giveVijay Singh the stamina to spend hour after hour on the range? What helpedErnie Els bounce back from the knee injury that sent him back to the locker

room, and later the operating table, last season?The answer to all three questions is physical fitness. Modern tour players are gym

rats who spend hours working out each day. With the assistance of specially skilledtrainers, these players condition their muscles in ways that complement thedynamic forces of their swings. The end result – better golf and few injuries.

Now, the average player can gain similar improvement in their games and

AARON BADA ASSISTS HIDDEN CREEK OWNER ROGER HANSEN DURING A WORKOUT

TOTAL

WORKOUTProgram Blends Conditioning With Swing Mechanics

BY DAVE RAUDENBUSH

60 GolfStyles New Jersey

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TOTAL WORKOUT

physical conditioning.Golf Specific Fitness, a pro-

gram now offered at several facili-ties in the Atlantic County area,helps golfers develop the flexibili-ty, strength and speed necessaryto make a mechanically soundgolf swing. The program was cre-ated by Aaron Bada, a B8 PGAprofessional and certified trainer,who operates the GSF PlayerDevelopment Center at TiltonFitness in Somers Point. He alsooperates the program from Hid-den Creek Golf Club in Egg Har-bor and teaches golf at Sand Bar-rens Golf Club.

Bada also plans to open a GolfSpecific Fitness Center this spring inSomers Point. The center will be acombination exercise facility and golftraining center. Bada’s clients receive acombination of swing analysis, exercis-es to improve flexibility, strength andcardiovascular endurance and therapyto treat injuries. He developed his pro-gram as an assistant professional inCharleston, South Carolina.

“It was the perfect blend,” said

Bada of mixing conditioning withswing instruction. “Everybody fromthe younger low handicappers to olderplayers wants to play better.”

Bada is certified through the Inter-national Sports Science Association(ISSA) as a golf fitness trainer,National Exercise and Sports ScienceAssociation (NESTA) as a golf condi-tioning specialist, and also has earnedcredits through the Advanced Contin-

uing Education Institute (ACEI) forthe Total Golf Performance Enhance-ment and Injury Prevention Program.

Golfers who come to a GSF centerreceive a complete game evaluationwith a priority given to the physicalfitness necessary to play the game well.Students receive a swing evaluationrecorded on CD-Rom, then a consul-tation with Bada and a personal train-er. They create a individualized pro-gram for the student.

Players who come to GSF, eventhose who may be in otherwise goodshape, learn the importance of golf fit-ness. For example, men tend to haveoverdeveloped upper body muscles.Frequently, such players need to bal-ance bulk in their arms, shoulders andchest with flexible strength in theirabdominals, glutes, and lower back–the muscles that create the big,smooth turn common among mostgood players.

For most students, the programbegins with learning the correct pos-ture and address position.

“We try to get you set up properlyand effectively so you don’t work

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against yourself,” Bada said.Often, achieving that starting posi-

tion means improving the student’sflexibility through the hamstring mus-cles in the back of the legs andstrengthening the midsection, themuch talked about “core” area. Badabelieves a strong core is the secret to agood swing. The GSF Program focuseson not only training the core in tradi-tional ways but also in ways thatdirectly affect the golf swing.

Students learn exercises toincrease flexibility, range of motionand coordination. They also practicedynamic stretching techniques usedto warm up before a round, a key toinjury prevention and better perform-ance. For years, golfers frowned at theidea of weight lifting. Adding muscle,people thought was bad for the golfswing. In reality, the golf swinginvolves as much muscle activation asfootball, hockey, baseball and themartial arts, sports whose athleteshave recognized the importance ofweightlifting for decades. GSF stu-dents build strength, which helpsimprove posture, maintain the spineangle during the swing and boostpower and consistency.

Once he gets his students set up forsuccess, Aaron moves on to in-swingconcerns such as swing plane. Again,mechanical improvement goes handin hand with improvement in strengthand flexibility.

“Golf-specific training helps you toclear your hips more quickly and gen-erate more power,” Bada said. “Withexercises specific to golf, you definitelycan see a difference.”

The majority of players who cometo Bada’s center are between the agesof 45 and 65. Some of them have ahistory of injuries. Others want toavoid being sidelined by pains, strainsor worse.

“Prolonging the activity and playing

better is definitely a goal,” Bada said.Golfers who do not condition

themselves properly can suffer from avariety of injuries. Pain and stiffnessin the lower back, rotator cuff injuriesin the shoulders, and wear and tear tothe muscles and tendons of the handsand forearms are golfer’s most com-mon complaints. As many as 63 per-cent of all golfers report pain in thelower back.

The golf swing with all its twisting,torquing and explosive speed can behard on any player’s body.

“You can generate a tremendousamount of speed in the blink of aneye,” Bada said. The launching padfor all that force needs to be well pre-pared if a player hopes to avoid seri-ous injury over the course of a careerin the game.

GFS students also improve their

cardiovascular fitness. A healthy heartand lungs support a players endurance,giving them the stamina to walk thecourse and handle pressure late in around of golf.

According to Bada, “You have tomake yourself stronger from the insideout.”

The cardio component of the pro-gram calls for the student to work outthree to five times a week for 20 to 40minutes. Training activities includewalking, running, and using cardiomachines such as the elliptical trainer,recumbent bike, and rowing machines.

Students are measured each step ofthe way. The can observe their ownprogress in the form of increasedstrength, improved range of motionand weight loss.

The end result, hopefully, is a bet-ter, fitter golfer. ◆

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