Learning from Tiger Woods
The August 14, 2000 issue of Time Magazine features an article about Tiger Woods titled The Game of Risk - How the Best Golfer in the World Got Even Better . Although I have no specific interest in the sport of golf, I do have a long-standing fascination with the general theme of the article: how can someone learn to do something better?
That s precisely what the Alexander Technique is all about. And while Tiger Woods has probably never heard of it, it s interesting that his quest for a better golf swing parallels in many ways the process F. Matthias Alexander - the developer of the Alexander Technique - went through a century ago.
Alexander was
...to create complete backswings and powerful drives. Golf fitness programs really keep you in the best physical shape necessary to take the perfect shot. When is it time to turn to a golf fitness program? Any time is my answer. ...
Neither his doctors nor his vocal coaches were able to help and so he set off on his own, using a system of mirrors to monitor his performance in order to see precisely what
...shoulders and hips. 5. Rotational strength training can also be easily done at home. Rotational strength training requires simple and inexpensive golf fitness equipment such as dumbbells, exercise tubing, stability ball, exercise band and a medicine ball. Rotational strength exercises ...
That s what Tiger Woods did in order to improve his swing. I knew I wasn t in the greatest positions in my swing at the Masters, Woods said. But my timing was great, so I got away with it. And I made almost every putt. You can have a wonderful week like that even when your swing isn t sound. But can you still contend in tournaments with that swing when your timing isn t good? Will it hold up over a long period of time? The answer to those questions, with the swing
...you are looking to improve your golf swing power, mechanics and consistency a credible golf fitness trainer can help you achieve these goals much quicker. Why? Because a golf fitness trainer will assess your physical limitations and golf swing faults ...
The article notes that Woods has become …an obsessive student of the game who reviews videotapes of old tournaments for clues about how to play each hole. Alexander too was an obsessive student of his performance and in the end his obsession paid off not only in providing a solution to his voice problem, but later in the discovery of a process that could be taught to others who wanted to improve the quality of their physical functioning.
What is most remarkable about Woods, the article continues, is his restless drive for what the Japanese call kaizen, or continuous improvement. Toyota engineers will push
...will be less. The core is again at the center of this discussion pertaining to the golf swing. At this point, we know that a large range of motion creates a greater X factor in the golf swing. This will ...
And that s Alexander, too. Never content with the progress he had already made - first in solving his own voice problem and later in developing better ways to teach others, and to train teachers in his Technique.
Wood s first instructor, Rudy Duran, commented that he has the ability to stay in the present during a tournament and focus on hitting one shot at a time.
Alexander, too, discovered that in order to change his way of speaking he had to learn to stay focused on what he was
...More of the body is involved. Many of these types of exercises mimic movements required in the golf swing. The body becomes better conditioned for the anticipated movement and strength improves as well. Core strength is important to the golfer ...
It s no wonder that so many leading performers in the fields of acting, music, and dance have studied the Alexander Technique and have publicly endorsed it. It turns out that this ability is also very useful for people who don t consider themselves to be performers but whose performance of activities in their daily lives has put harmful stress on their bodies, often to the point of causing pain such as backache or stiff shoulders and necks.
Learning how to monitor your thoughts and actions in real time
...it. "Weight training will cause me to lose feel." By strengthening your muscles specific to golf, you will have better control of your body. A golf fitness program trains your body specifically for your golf game. When you improve functional ...
Robert Rickover is a teacher of the Alexander Technique living in Lincoln, Nebraska. He also teaches regularly in Toronto, Canada. Robert is the author of Fitness Without Stress - A Guide to the Alexander Technique and is the creator of The Complete Guide to the Alexander Technique at [http://www.alexandertechnique.com]http://www.alexandertechnique.com.