Category: Flexibility

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Is Your Posture Getting “Slouchy”?

If So, Begin Implementing Sit To Stands In Your Excersises

Is Your Posture Getting “Slouchy”?

As you’ve heard me say Many Times, Sitting Down too much plays havoc on the human body in a multitude of ways. From Weakening our Legs and Core, too tightening our Hip Flexors, and especially Rounding our bodies and creating The C-Curve ‘UNDER’ POSTURE, – Which, is a sure sign of weakness and stifles our circulation!

As far as the golf swing goes, we NEED strong legs and a strong upright back to allow a natural shifting and rotating of the hips – not to mention maintain a stable spine angle.

A simple exercise to maintain your strength and posture is the SIT TO STAND exercise which will help your body and golf swing in virtually every area.

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Kneeling Psoas Stretch

Kneeling Psoas Stretch

In my ‘not so humble’ opinion, THE #1 Problem – that’s the genesis of all musculoskeletal problems is” THE CHAIR!!

In fact, many people (including me) have called the Chair…’THE NEW SMOKING’.

In short, we sit down too much in our culture, and nature didn’t give us feet, legs, and hips to sit down as much as we do. We were given these limbs to MOVE and have MOTION, and when the body is moving – all of the systems in our body begin to function.Things like: Circulation, Breathing, Clearer Thinking, Digestive, Stronger joints, etc.

Since we don’t live outdoors and move like the Hunters/Gatherers that we truly are, and we consequently sit down too much, I highly suggest that during the day, people get up from their desks, and do a few Kneeling Psoas Stretches (as shown in the video above). A few of these periodically throughout the day will do wonders for your well being……..ON and OFF the Course!

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WHAT IS JOINT CENTRATION?

THIS CAR HAS A DAMAGED WHEEL AND TIRE
WOULD ‘JUST ‘FIXING THE WHEEL GET THE CAR BACK ‘IN SHAPE’?

Let’s Define Centration

Back in my early twenties, I had a professional golf career cut short due to TWO Knee surgeries and TWO  MAJOR wrist surgeries; after which my golf swing was never quite the same.  My story is not unique because for decades, I’ve had people come to me who’ve had multiple surgeries throughout their bodies and limbs – many of them for the SAME injury; and a high percentage of them are still dysfunctional. (On that note, I think the record for the most surgeries I’ve seen was 19 from a guy who came to me last year).  Again, It’s not uncommon for me to see people who’ve had multiple surgeries, and as they’ve gotten older, are in worse shape, often times not being able to play golf anymore.

HEY, WAIT A MINUTE, ISN’T THE REASON THAT PEOPLE HAVE SURGERIES TO BEGIN WITH IS TO ‘FIX’ THE PROBLEM?

Then, why do so many surgeries not ‘Fix’ the problem?  In fact, the last statistics that I’ve heard is that around 30% of Back Surgeries are Re-Do’s.

In My Opinion & Experience, I believe that despite the incredible new procedures in medicine, that the majority of surgeries address the ‘SITE OF THE PAIN’ (and injury) and not the ‘SOURCE OF IT’.

The fact of the matter is; that if a person’s body is out of proper alignment, there will be friction and load bear pressure applied elsewhere (just like when the misalignment of the chassis of the car blew out the wheel).  When the joints of the body line up, friction is then taken off of the joints which will usually prevent and eliminate the pain. 

Getting your body back into the design that Nature’s gave us will certainly help rehab and restore your body – and get you back on the golf course!

This is why I created THE POSTURE SYSTEM VIDEO SERIES – where you can find out what Posture Type you are; and more importantly, WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT!

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The Benefits of a Cold Shower – A Sure Way to Feel Great

As I get further along on my life’s journey, it never ceases to amaze me how Mother Nature gives us SO MANY ingenious ways to heal ourselves and solve our problems.  Let’s face it, in life – there are times you feel on top of the world, and times you feel under the weight of it.

It’s no secret by now that the mind and the body directly affect one another and that stress is a factor in over 80% of all illnesses and diseases.  The truth is that ‘Thoughts are Things’ and ‘How’ we think can affect How we ‘Feel’.  For example, when we receive Great news, we’ll tend to feel Great and conversely, when we get Bad news, we’ll tend to feel ‘Bad’ (which will often lead to health problems like ulcers, high blood pressure, headaches, blocked arteries, ad infinitum).  I love the expression, ‘The body is the dumping ground for our mind’.

Put good thoughts into our body, Get Healthy.  Put Bad thoughts in, Get Sick.

I’ve learned that a sure way to feel GREAT (and therefore ‘Think’ Great) is to take a 30-60 second cold shower… Yes, that’s right a Cold Shower!  In fact, a REALLY Cold Shower!  (I can hear you now…”OMG, are you crazy, that’s Nuts?!”)  But, the truth is that taking a cold shower will definitely exhilarate you – sometimes to the point of ecstasy!
 

The following benefits have been proven to have derived from cold showers, or even ice plunges:

  • HELPS RELIVE DEPRESSION  
  • IMPROVE THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
  • ‘GREATLY’ REDUCE INFLAMMATION
  • REDUCE STRESS
  • BOOST TESTOSTERONE IN MEN & INCREASES FERTILITY
  • IMPROVE CIRCULATION
  •  IMPROVE SLEEP
  • HELP IN MUSCLE RECOVERY (Do you notice how athletes spend a lot of time in ice baths?)
  • DRAIN LYMPHATIC SYSTEM 
  • STRENGTHEN EMOTIONAL STABILITY AND WILL POWER.
  • And, HAS ACTUALLY HELPED MANY PEOPLE CURE DISEASES BY REMOVING TOXINS THUS ALLOWING THE BODY TO HEAL ITSELF.

I’ve been incorporating taking cold showers daily for some time and can tell you first hand that it makes me feel GREAT!  Starting the day with a cold shower carries over throughout the day and as mentioned, has an amazing number of health benefits.

In case you’re wondering, “Is it hard to do?” – “Is it Scary?” – “Is it Torture?”, etc., I’d be lying if I told you that ‘at first’ it wasn’t easy!  However, you’ll notice that after the initial shock and the first few seconds, the shock wears off and the water doesn’t feel so cold – (i.e., you begin to get ‘used to it’); which is simply because the initial blast forces your abdominal breathing to become more dynamic and actually begins to internally warm you up.  The warmth that comes from within, then settles you down and the initial shock goes away.  In time, I arrived at the point where my initial hesitation of going in the cold shower has been conquered by KNOWING how good I’m going to feel afterward.

As usual, there are certain conditions where I wouldn’t recommend people taking a cold shower, including pregnant women, high blood pressure, etc.  If you have serious health issues, definitely see a physician first.

I’m going to be writing more articles on some of Nature’s RX Remedies which will all be available to Members in the Library.  Members of the Fredericks Golf Instruction & Learning Center can comment in the comment section and let me know their experience.

 “Come on in, the Water’s fine!”

Roger Fredericks

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The Site of Pain is Seldom the Source of Pain

For a LOT of years, I’ve been very involved in both the golf profession and also the world of physical training, and I’ve learned that most of the problems encountered in both of these activities, are seldom the genesis of the “actual” problems.

For a LOT of years, I’ve been very involved in both the golf profession and also the world of physical training, and I’ve learned that most of the problems encountered in both of these activities, are seldom the genesis of the “actual” problems. For example, in the golf swing, coming over the top is probably the #1 most common swing fault in golf.  Yet, the truth is; that coming over the top is usually a symptom of poor lower body swing mechanics.  I’ve learned that by just working on the actual “over the top” move itself, usually isn’t effective.  However, by working on – and getting the lower body to work correctly, the over the top move will usually go away. 

I see the same thing in people’s bodies.  For example, I feel that the #1 cause of tight backs and restricted shoulder turns, isn’t necessarily the back itself, but rather tight lower bodies. When people have tightness in their hamstrings and their hips, the upper torso will usually always suffer as well.  Just by doing upper body stretches to increase your shoulder turn, usually won’t be effective. In this case, by loosening up the legs and hips, will usually always increase upper body range of motion.  In fact, in many cases, by freeing up the hips, will sometimes create up to 40 degrees more range of motion in the shoulders! – That without doing any upper body stretches.  

What I’m recommending, is that the next time you have a problem in either the golf swing or your body, take a look around and find WHAT is causing the problem.  Getting to the root cause is usually a permanent cure.

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Why Stretching A Muscle…Doesn’t Always Stretch The Muscle!

“Hey Roger, I don’t get it?  I’ve been stretching my hamstrings for years, and they‘re still tight.  Even when I was a kid, I couldn’t touch my toes and I still can’t!” If I had $10 for every time I’ve heard that, or something similar, I’d be in a considerably higher tax bracket!  The truth is that many people think…

“Hey Roger, I don’t get it?  I’ve been stretching my hamstrings for years, and they‘re still tight.  Even when I was a kid, I couldn’t touch my toes and I still can’t!”

If I had $10 for every time I’ve heard that, or something similar, I’d be in a considerably higher tax bracket!  The truth is that many people think that by stretching a particular muscle is going to get that muscle flexible – especially the hamstrings.    However, that usually isn’t the case.  Remember, that muscles work in ‘Chains’ ( much like tile on a roof) and they all run and work together.  Therefore, when one aspect of the chain is tight, other muscles in that chain are apt to be tight as well.  For example, whenever I see a tight upper back and shoulder  (which is becoming epidemic in our culture), I’ll see a tight calf just about every time.  When I see this condition, I’ll usually go to work on their calves and work up the chain and finally get to their upper back.  My Clients are always amazed at how their shoulders are feeling better when I often times don’t even touch them! 

jean swing

Regarding golf,  many people struggle with straightening of their legs in their golf swings, and upon recognizing that they’re hamstrings are tight, will begin feverishly stretching their hamstrings – and as I mentioned – usually don’t get acceptable results.   The reality is that the hamstrings work closely with the Inner thigh muscles – Outer thighs, Quadriceps- Hip flexors and Glutes – and ‘Especially’ The Pelvic Flexors and Extensors.  (All of the programs in my book ‘The Flexible Golf Swing’, and my DVD ‘Secrets of Golf Swing Flexibility’ DVD  are arranged so that you’ll be working ALL of the muscles in their respective chains.

In addition, try working the following stretches: And afterwards try the Runners Stretch again, and you should see a noticeable difference.

And that’s No Stretch!

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TEST YOUR HAMSTRINGS

Maintaining flexibility in your hamstrings is crucial for maintaining longevity in playing golf, simply because having a stable lower body and flexible hip rotation is fundamental for a fundamental golf swing. Although it may not seem like it, golf – like all sports is a LOWER BODY GAME in which the lower body dictates to the upper body. The old adage that in sports, ‘the first to go are the legs’ is certainly true in golf as well.

The BAD NEWS is that as we age, we tend to lose our range of motion, not to mention muscle mass and bone density. However, the GOOD NEWS is that we can not only retard the aging process, but actually achieve superb flexibility by doing the Right Stretches – the Right Way – EVEN AS WE GROW OLDER!

Take the Hamstring Test in today’s video and find out precisely where you are (or aren’t?); And KNOW that you can get it back!

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A SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE STRETCH FOR THE RHOMBOIDS

Rhomboid Stretch – For better extension and coil.

One thing I learned years ago was the body is ONE BIG WORKING UNIT, where everything is linked together. For example, our Hips control our Shoulders – and our Shoulders control our Arms, etc. Often times when my students come to me to for a specific musculoskeletal problem, I often don’t usually work on the site of the problem, but rather the source of it. A typical example of it is when people want to have greater extension of their arms for a longer and deeper backswing. In the majority of cases, I’ll end up first stretching out their hips – then their shoulders.

Regarding our Back and Shoulders, we have some major muscle groups that help control our shoulder blades called the Rhomboids. These muscles work in unison with the Trapezius, Levators, and others.

In today’s video, I, along with golf great Tommy Jacobs, and Susan, are showing a very simple and effective stretch to warm up the Rhomboids for greater extension and power in their golf swings.

Don’t forget though, that to gain superb flexibility, one must stretch ALL of the major muscle groups and muscle chains to work ALL of the muscles in our bodies. That’s specifically why I created The SECRETS to Golf Swing Flexibility Video Program.

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SOME VARIATION FOR BICEP STRETCHES TO COUNTER THE SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE


By now, you’ve probably realized that there’s an ongoing theme in my Videos and Newsletters that deal with the “Modern – Sitting Down Forward Bending Lifestyle” that we’re all victims of (i.e, if you drive cars, sit at desks and sofas, and even bend over in Golf Stances for decades – on and on).

The reason that I harp on this so often is because it’s crucial that we continue to do counter-stretches and exercises that get us away from the Forward Bending and help balance our torsos; which will thus help eliminate friction on the joints – and pain.

In today’s video, I, along with golf great Tommy Jacobs, and Susan, demonstrate two simple stretches that you can do throughout the day to help loosen up your biceps; which in most people tighten up as the shoulders round forward.

Just doing these simple stretches a couple times throughout the day will certainly help you with your Flexibility and Posture.

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A GREAT HIP TEST AND STRETCH FOR YOUR HIPS AND QUADS

Without question, all sports (And Golf IS an Athletic Motion) relies on Lower Body Function, and THE most important part of the Lower Body are the Hips and Legs. PELVIC STABILITY, and I’m referring to how well the Hips and Legs Stabilize as well as Rotate, is Absolutely Crucial in the performance of the Golf Swing. However, (and you’ve heard me harp on this for years), our Sitting Down Sedentary Lifestyle has REALLY tightened our hips and legs over the last few decades, not only causing havoc in our golf swings, but especially in our overall physical health and posture.

The video above is not only a TEST of your Hips and Quads, but also is a Highly Recommended STRETCH that will help you dramatically loosen up your Lower Body and allow you the freedom to perform a Fundamental and Powerful golf swing. I recommend that most people hold the stretch for 2-3 minutes in the beginning, and as the leg and lower back begin to come down easier and sooner, you can do it for as little as a minute a side.