HEALTH & FITNESS: SPA TREATMENT FOR GOLF

By Melody Crow.

Photography by Thomas Toohey Brown.

Six-time LPGA winner Donna Andrews is lying on her stomach across a 65-centimeter, green stability ball. Her right arm is extended in front of her and her left leg is extended back. A broom handle balances precariously along the length of her spine.

Her assignment: to trace the letters of the alphabet with her extended left foot. The president of the LPGA Tournament Division concentrates on the task. After all, she’s improving her golf game — with a little help from The Spa at Pinehurst in the Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina.

Instead of focusing on swing mechanics, The Spa, in conjunction with The Pinehurst Company Golf Institute, is directing Andrews to work on her biomechanics (or the ability of her entire body to perform sport-specific movements). This innovative approach analyzes a golfer’s physical structure and posture as it relates to the requirements of golf.

"The best thing about this process is that it evaluates your whole body," Andrews says. "Lots of people will test for flexibility or strength, but they don’t teach you how to combine it all."

Stephen Phillips, assistant director of The Spa at Pinehurst, agrees. "Most golfers are trying to change their swing to compensate for pain or limitations of some sort," he explains. "Our goal is to correct what is causing these limitations, improve your golf swing, and enhance quality of life down the road.

"We are able to provide a very detailed physical assessment of the golfer’s current physical abilities and design a fitness program that is specific to their individual needs," Phillips continues. "In order to do this, we have the golfer, the fitness professional, and the golf professional work together. This is extremely unique."

TEST PATTERNS
Andrews’ session starts at the back of the Pinehurst driving range where she is met by Phillips and an array of diagnostic tools and equipment. Some, like the caliber to measure head carriage, look a little like medieval torture devices. But others, like the stability balls and discs, are more akin to toys. Andrews weighs in and her measurements are taken (including height; girth of hips, waist, arms, thighs, chest, and calves; and percentage of body fat). Her golf swing is videotaped.

Then the work begins.

Andrews is led through a rigorous series of exercises to examine her movements, such as shoulder mobility, spinal rotation, trunk flexibility, and hamstring mobility. Phillips assesses her balance, symmetry, and flexibility in her muscle groups.

On the agenda are tests with curious names like the "sweetheart test," which assesses neck flexibility. For this challenge, Andrews stands and turns her head from side to side. Then, she repeats the movements, elevating her arm and shoulder blade (as if her arm were around a "sweetheart"). In Andrews’ case, this movement increases the rotation of her neck, indicating a need for more neck flexibility.

The "waiter’s bow" test has Andrews standing again, legs together and one hand extended in front of her. She leans forward with her legs locked as if serving from a tray. The result? Her hamstring flexibility turns out to be acceptable.

Following that comes the "cigarette butt test." Phillips positions Andrews to stand with her back and hips against a wall. She then rotates her legs, with toes pointed out. She repeats the motion, with her toes pointed in. (Yes, think about putting out a cigarette with your foot.) This judges her hip rotation to be within normal range.

Ninety minutes and many movements later, things are heating up. A one-minute sit-up test measures Andrews’ muscle endurance. She completes 52. Next is a one-minute push-up test. Andrews completes a remarkable 35, earning her an "excellent" score.

Are you thinking "enough already"? Not even close. The most challenging tests and exercises are still to come.

REVIEWING THE SITUATION
Using such tools as a stability ball, stability discs, and an NRG ball (medicine ball with removable handles), Phillips checks Andrews’ stability and posture. She lunges while "chopping" through the air with a five-pound NRG ball. She squats while rotating the NRG ball by its handles. And then she squats some more with stability discs under each foot. Phillips reminds Andrews to retain correct posture, keep her shoulder blades back and together, and her head pulled back.

"Posture is an important fundamental in golf," Phillips explains. "It dictates how your head, shoulders, and hips align. Correct posture places less stress on the body and gives you better range of motion. Your posture also affects the fatigue of your muscle groups. This can play an important role toward the end of your round of golf."

Yes, yes, we all remember our mothers telling us to stand up straight. But the facts are that, over time, injuries, everyday stress — and even high-heel shoes — can cause even the most conscientious among us to compensate by changing posture. This, in turn, affects how a body performs.

Andrews learns, for instance, through the head carriage test, that she carries her head 5.65 centimeters forward. That doesn’t seem extreme. But for every centimeter her head is forward of normal (3 cm), it adds 10 pounds of load to her neck. When her head is forward, her shoulders and carriage move forward to compensate. This affects her hip alignment, knees, and so on — shifting her whole trunk or "core" — which is so important to the golf swing — out of line. When her neck doesn’t have to work so hard, it will open up her shoulders and back for a freer golf rotation.

Three hours into the evaluation, with the data compiled, Phillips has an accurate assessment of Andrews’ biomechanics. With this information, he designs a custom workout program for Andrews to take home. The plan takes into account her previous injuries, other treatments (she is an advocate of the system of muscle massage called Rolfing), and prioritizes the exercises for her. This "exercise prescription" has a very specific progression.

"We want golfers to evolve from flexibility to stability to strength, and then power last," Phillips says. "Flexibility and stability are 90 percent of golfers’ problems. They need that before they need power."

Phillips further explains, "Exercising your golf muscles correctly is key. The basic ‘bodybuilding’ style of exercising will not help specifically to improve your golf swing. To condition for golf, you must use unstable surfaces and sport-specific movements. For example, instead of doing a chest press on a machine, lie on a stability ball, pushing weights up and down. These movements will allow your core muscles and posture to stabilize, while your arms are moving."

PRESCRIPTION FOR GOLF SUCCESS
Back at The Spa’s state-of-the-art fitness center, Phillips goes over his recommendations for Andrews. Each exercise in the workout is demonstrated and its rationale thoroughly explained. Her exercise prescription includes three types of exercises: therapeutic, functional, and stability. She’s promised that strength and power training will come later.

The therapeutic exercises address Andrews’ specific physical issues. The stretches and exercises will balance her neck mobility and correct her head carriage.

Functional exercises are sport specific. The movements in Andrews’ prescription mimic golf. For instance, in one exercise, Andrews stands on stability discs while swinging a golf club. Finally, the stability exercises will help Andrews activate and strengthen the muscles in her deep abdominal region and her core for better balance.

Remember that assignment about tracing the letters of the alphabet? This exercise, as unusual as it sounds, teaches Andrews to control her hip movements, while stabilizing her core and retaining correct posture.

Andrews notes that the routine fits her lifestyle and is motivational — she’s learned something new. "In the past I’ve been told, ‘Here are your limits. Let’s match your swing to your limits,’" she says. "This is saying: ‘Let’s work to change your limitations to make the best golf swing."

Andrews sees great benefits for the average golfer in this program. "A lot of golfers have sore backs, sore legs, etc.," she says. "The stretches and flexibility exercises benefit everyone, even someone at my level. The average golfer often doesn’t think about stretching or the need to be flexible. They just think about strength and hitting the ball farther. But you can get stronger and stronger and not gain anything in your golf swing because you don’t have the flexibility to go with it."

DONNA ANDREWS
Occupation: Professional golfer; president, LPGA Tournament Division.
Birthplace: Lynchburg, Virginia.
Residence: Pinehurst, North Carolina.
Rookie year: 1990.
Tour status: Exempt.
LPGA victories: Six including the 1994 Nabisco Dinah Shore, a major championship title.
Other career highlights: In 1996, Andrews and teammate Mike Hulbert won the $1.5 million JCPenney Classic, beating Tiger Woods and his teammate Kelli Kuehne. Her most successful year in the LPGA to date was 1998, when Andrews finished the season as the top-ranked American and was third on the money list.
Amateur highlights: Five-time winner of the Virginia Women’s State Amateur Championship; 1984 and 1988 North-South Amateur champion.
Statistics: Top 10 in driving accuracy; 13th in greens in regulation.
Career earnings: $3,427,843 (as of July 21, 2003).
Industry involvement: Honorary chair of the 2003 Executive Women’s Golf Association Member-Get-A-Member campaign. She will play an 18-hole round of golf with the EWGA’s "Recruiter of the Year," the member who brings in the most new members in 2003.

ON YOUR OWN
Here are three stretches every golfer should use.

• Neck. Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, turn your head to one side and look down at your shoulder. Hold this pose for two seconds, release, and turn back to the center. Repeat eight times, then switch sides.
• Torso. Lie on your back on the floor or a mat. Hold your knees to your chest and roll gently from side to side, keeping your shoulders on the floor.
• Hamstring. Lie on your back with one knee bent, foot flat on the floor. Hold your other leg straight up. Using a belt, towel, or your hands, gently pull your leg toward you and hold two seconds. Release. Repeat eight times, then switch legs.