Photo by Joshua Humpfer

Introduction

It’s ok to exercise out of doors in twos as long as you can socially distance. That’s cool as golf met this criteria last time with 10 minute pre booked tee times, change your shoes in the car park, don’t touch the flag or the rakes, etc. However, this time around the Government didn’t want any exceptions like golf or tennis so we’re grounded for a month.

So we have two choices:

  1. Sulk, stay at home watch Netflix all day and drink lots of alcohol
  2. See it as an opportunity to turn over a new leaf – to do other stuff and be ready to play golf post lock down (and drink some alcohol too)

Make a plan

I tried the first option but became bored quite quickly, so set about making a plan.

Here’s my top 10

  1. Drink more water
  2. Exercise daily
  3. Read a book
  4. Do Luminosity 
  5. Listen to music
  6. Call friends to see how they are
  7. Daily golf drills
  8. Eat nice food
  9. The round tuit list
  10. Drink alcohol

Drink more water

Photo by Ratanjot Singh

I’m very guilty of forgetting to drink sufficient water. We’re supposed to consume about 2 litres a day. It’s very good for brain stimulation and flushing out toxins from the body. Being grounded means toilets aren’t that far away so no excuse now!

Exercise daily

Photo by Olimpo Avila Salazar

We now have the opportunity to utilise the daily commute time for a morning stretch, Pilates or yoga Zoom class 

I‘ve dusted off my mountain bike and pumped the tyres up so ready to go – no mountains yet but a couple of foothills await…

Getting outside for fresh air and exercise is key to our mental health so study the weather forecast, dodge the showers and go. Better still; buddy up with someone so you’re more likely to do it if someone else is relying on you

Discover your neighbourhood and some new walks – there are no time limits on exercising so go for it!

Read a book

 Photo by Ben White

Doesn’t have to be a golf book, but if you want to try:

  1. The Inner Game of Golf – Timothy Gallwey
  2. Extraordinary Golf – Fred Shoemaker
  3. Attention, the secret to you playing great golf – Karl Morris
  4. Little Red Golf Book – Harvey Penick
  5. Four Iron in the Soul – Lawrence Donegan 
  6. Every shot must have a purpose – Pia Nilsson and Lynn Marriot
  7. Be a Player – Pia Nilsson and Lynn Marriot

Do Luminosity

Photo by Jean-Louis Paulin

Luminosity is a collection of varied on-line brain puzzles which will help stop your brain turning to mush www.luminosity.com

Categories include speed (reflexes not the drug), memory, attention, flexibility, problem solving math and language. Exercises take about 20 mins a day. You can start with 3 x free games a day which should only take around 10-12 mins

https://help.lumosity.com/hc/en-us/articles/203068944-Where-are-the-free-games-

Listen to music

Photo by Engin Akyurt

When did you last find the time to actually sit still for a while and listen to your music collection?

Now is your chance to reacquaint yourself with some old favourites and immerse yourself in some cool sounds

Call friends to see how they are

With a little more time on our hands we can call, Zoom, Skype or Facetime friends. It will make them feel better that you care. For golf buddies, pencil some dates in the diary giving you something to look forward to post lockdown

Daily golf drills

In my previous blogs 18-20 I explored various training aids. During lockdown I’d recommend an Orange Whip light speed; just 5 minutes a day will keep your golf swing going, improve your fitness and increase your clubhead speed.

www.orangewhip.co.uk/product

Eat Nice Food

 

Photo by Irina Ermakova

We can’t eat out at the moment but we could treat ourselves to some nicer foods and eat at home

The round tuit list

In the last lockdown I rediscovered some amazing family videos and  finally got around to transferring them from VHS to DVD. What could you discover on your “round tuit” list?

Drink Alcohol

Photo by Terry Vlisidis on Unsplash

So if you’ve successfully made it through some or the entire list above, you’ve definitely earned yourself a drink to celebrate

Summary

So there you have it, slob on the couch or seize the moment – it’s your call…..

If you’d like to discuss any of the topics above – just get in touch.

tony@thegolfswingcompany.com

07764 895 045

www.thegolfswingcompany.com

Facebook: @TheGolfSwingCompany