There are many bad habits that can be picked up while trying to learn the ropes of weight training at a gym. Because most members aren’t taken through a training session or two to learn proper technique and safety, people learn by watching others workout. This is a mistake! Everybody is built differently and have different skill levels, so learning by watching could predispose one to an injury.
It is the adolescent age group that needs the special attention to form and technique. This is because their growth plates haven’t stopped lengthening yet. Injuries to the growth cartilage may disrupt the bones blood and nutrient supply which may disturb and retard growth. The more stress that you place on their joints; the more likely they will develop problems as they continue to grow. But with proper technique, form and exercise selection the likelihood of having a chronic injury decreases.
It is important for the adolescent golfer to have a sound base of proper form and technique because of the carryover that an incorrect training program could have to a golfer’s game. Golf is all about sequencing movement patterns, timing and muscle memory. So developing the nervous system comes first, since this is the foundation for improving performance in skills that require balance strength and power. Muscle hypertrophy will also occur as muscle mass increases .All to often teenagers (preadolescent athletes) are overwhelmed with the idea of looking big and strong, so they push themselves beyond their limits and neglect proper form to overcome resistance adding stress to the growth plates and possible irreversible damage. So getting the adolescent golfer on the right track early in their training career is of great importance, so that mistakes can be minimized and skill levels will flourish sooner than later. Exercises that help to develop the nervous system can be performed on an exercise mat, and then progressed to a stability ball, and then a pulley machine. Exercises that require multijoint movements such as an opposite arm and leg sequence movement while on a stability ball requires stabilization and neuromuscular control of the core muscles, and of the extremities, makes it a valuable exercise for an adolescent golfer.
It becomes too easy for inexperienced adolescents to strain ( injure) themselves when performing exercises that require a spotter, but try to go it alone anyway. Bench pressing squatting and lunging are typical exercises that require a spotter and require balance on the athletes part. All too often the athlete is not ready neurologically to handle these exercises and on top of that they will try to max out the weight with poor form. So exercise selection especially for the golfer is critical not only for increasing performance but for the overall health of the individual.
Trainers and coaches must see the importance that adolescent athletes which includes golfers need to be instructed on proper form and exercise selection before they develop bad habits by watching others workout, or get put on a generic workout program instead of an individualized program that will attend to their specific needs. I have been astounded in the past to have seen many student athletes (which includes golf teams) workout together on the same generic programs and how form isn’t stressed as well as the amount of weight given and the exercise selection. How is performance supposed to increase if the neuromuscular system isn’t even being challenged? I have even seen many complain about shoulders and backs hurting after a workout, but they will probably continue on doing those exercises not knowing that in the future this could develop into a more serious problem.
