cfinn

The best note to remember in any competitive setting is that there is a big difference between losing and failing.  In fact, we want to strive to fail because this means we are learning from pushing our boundaries.  Part of daring to be different requires you to try new things as part of your personal growth towards whatever your personal goals are. This can apply to achievement in sports, business, family life and any other number of things, but what I’d like to talk about is how it relates to taking care of your body. I see and talk to so many people on a daily basis who are stuck in ruts but haven’t been willing to change.  Trying new approaches is different and most people don’t like different.  These are some of my favorites: The person who has had the same workout regimen for years and [...]

*As seen in GOLFWRX* You are probably reading this article because the title made zero sense to you when you read it.  You are probably thinking, “Slow training makes me go fast? Everyone knows you have to train fast if you want to go fast. We have all seen SuperSpeed Golf’s commercials. This guy is an idiot.” With that rationale, not sure I can blame you! If you’re a golfer and you want to move the clubhead faster, with more efficiency and for many more years to come, however, I encourage you to read on with a bit of curiosity and even skepticism if that is more your flavor. What you find out might turn the way you train 180 degrees onto its head. I know it did for me. When I started training athletes more than 10 years ago, I subscribed to the “train fast to [...]

The secret to successful long term development, improvement, and health in the game of golf is understanding that you only have a finite number of hours to work on your game to get better.  You have to prioritize what is important holistically as a golfer and make the time for those elements. Lessons, practice, equipment education, and fitness are all critical parts of the formula for golfers.  Unfortunately, the fact that when the golfer’s body breaks down they can’t swing doesn’t cross the mind of a golfer or their parents until it happens. For the junior golfer, finding time to train their bodies so they stay healthy, continue to develop for long term success and maintain their performance levels during heavy in season play is one of the hardest things we see juniors and their parents face. During the school year, it is equally as tough with [...]

I have been getting a lot of questions, particularly from collegiate golfers, asking about the benefits of running during the in season. This has always and will continue to be one of the biggest shocks to me.  The short of it is this: a lot of running in season is perhaps the most counter intuitive training that a golfer can do on multiple levels. Asking for Injuries The first reason this is just senseless is that it unnecessarily increases the chances of injury for the players.  Most injuries in golf happen because of repetitive use, so why would we want to add more repetitive use into the equation? When we look at athlete load and risk for injury, the most likely place for it to occur is when there is a spike or drop in the overall load the athlete has on their body.  This can be [...]

If you’ve been playing the game for long, you’ve probably been told that strength training for golfers will get you bulky, restrict your mobility and can even get you hurt so that you can’t play the game.  But how true is this argument? This is a contested topic on many media platforms and even among coaches and golfers themselves. The curious part of this is that the people having the discussions are usually doing so with little to no good information to draw their conclusions from. If you don’t want the sports science information regarding this topic, please stop reading. If you would like to be informed, enjoy the next 5 minutes! I don’t disagree with those who say that strength training is a one of the worst things to do for your golf game. It will bulk you up, it can cause your mobility to be [...]

The driving range is the biggest barrier to a golfer's success.  Period.  It is a place where quantity is king, and quality is the court jester.  Repeating swing after swing in a blocked practice format actually breeds repetitive injuries and ends careers.  Minimal carry over onto the course from the range is what keeps handicaps and frustrations high, while contributing to the high number of injuries that we see on a regular basis. The sad thing is that most golfers think that taking lessons, beating balls on the range and playing in tournaments is the simple three ingredient formula to elite level success. From a mindset standpoint, it is easy to see how this happens.  If you want to get better at golf, hit more golf balls, right? Wrong! This is where we need to have the discussion about quality vs quantity and how important time management [...]

By Physical Performance Consultant Chris Finn of Par4Success Introduction Many have probably heard the saying, “You have to train fast to be fast.” In the world of sports performance, however, very little is that cut and dry. In the past month, my athletes have been training very slowly, particularly in the lowering phase of their lifts, known as the eccentric phase. I am currently training golfers, athletes whose sport requires short burst of explosive effort. Why would we be moving slowly then? While commonly overlooked, focusing on the eccentric phase of movement can return great results for athletic performance for strength and power athletes. In this post, I will discuss the what the research says about eccentric overload and eccentric focused training as well as different means of overloading the eccentric phase of movement.  First, lets talk about the tri-phasic nature of movement. Nearly every movement in [...]