Thursday, September 26, 2013

DRIVING FORCE: Lee Brandon, CSCS Cover Story in SouthlandGolf magazine, writer; Mike Lednovich


Secrets to my Longer drives:  For full article in Southland Golf magazine Page. 48-49
Cut and past link if browser doesn't open:



















Creating shoulder rotation is key to maintaining a tall posture

NECK/ SHOULDER TURN STRETCH:
Goal:  For those wanting more LENGTH off the tee.


1.  MUSCLES:  Lats, shoulders, arms

2.  ACTION:  
                  a.  Select a stable bar approximately chest height.   
                  b.  Stand perpendicular to the bar and take your address position by bowing forward and arching your back with your arms holding on to the bar mimicking your finish position first.  
                  c.  Make sure your posture is tall and your head is in line with your entire spine.
                  d.  Shoulder blades retract and de-elevate as the first start of the move (Down and back).  Think Shoulders down and back so your chin can turn over your shoulder facing the ground. 
                  e.  With the arms straight, fire your Lats and triceps (back of the upper arm) for full range stretch on the tendons and muscles .  Golf swings dictate a quiet head, replicate this mechanism in the gym while lifting.
                  f.  Hold for 10-30 seconds pretending your bracing your entire spine creating a better shoulder turn pointing your belt buckle to the ground.

3.  TIPS:
                  a.  The lats connect your arms to your spine all the way down to your tail bone.  
                  b.  Cautious not to over arch your back or elevate your shoulders getting into your neck.  
                  c.  THINK A TALL THOUGHT!
                  d.  Spin around and then execute the same stretch mimicking your back swing take-a-way.

Load and lift in the gym to undo rotations the swing creates!   Above is a wide cable row maintaining a tall postured position!!!

WIDE CABLE ROW: 
Goal:  For those wanting more POWER off the tee.

1.  MUSCLES:  Lats, shoulders, arms

2.  ACTION:  
                  a.  Select a weight you can do aprox. 10-15 repetitions  
                  b.  hold grip lightly as you would in your golf grip...feel your strength i your finger tips
                  c.  Shoulder blades retract and de-elevate as the first start of the pull.  Think Shoulders down and back.  If there were a pencil between your shoulder blades, it should snap!
                  d.  when the arms straighten, fire your triceps (back of the upper arm) for full range stretch on the tendons and muscles at the elbows and between the shoulders with out your head moving.  Golf swings dictate a quiet head, replicate this form in the gym while lifting.

3.  TIPS:
                    a.  The lats connect your arms to your spine all the way down to your tail bone.  
                  b.  Cautious not to over arch your back or elevate your shoulders getting into your neck.  
                  c.  THINK A TALL THOUGHT!

Cut and past link if browser doesn't open:

tall posture at address
Stay tall through impact


332 yard drive at impact


PGA show Jan. 2013 with Lisa Vlooswyck, Canadian Champion

Monday, September 23, 2013

GOLF WEEK: Long-drive legends: Lee Brandon takes sport in new direction


Long-drive legends: Lee Brandon takes sport in new direction

Lee Brandon overcame nearly severing her arm to becoming the women's long-drive champion. In the upper right photo, Brandon is pictured with LPGA legend Laura Davies.
Lee Brandon overcame nearly severing her arm to becoming the women's long-drive champion. In the upper right photo, Brandon is pictured with LPGA legend Laura Davies.
Editor's note: The RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship started Sept. 18 in Mesquite, Nev., and will finish with the Open Division finals Oct. 30 in Las Vegas. To celebrate the event, which attracts hundreds of golfers from dozens of countries, Golfweek is compiling a series of profiles of prominent long-drive participants who helped shape the sport.
One moment, Lee Brandon was a rising star in the arena of strength training and physical conditioning. She was an assistant trainer for the New York Jets, the first women to hold such a position in the National Football League.
The next moment, she was falling through a glass doorway and severing her left arm almost completely. The incident occurred before stricter regulations on the construction of glass doors were enacted.
Brandon ultimately would recover and become the women’s world champion in the RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship. Looking back, it was the accident that set the tone for her life.
“I remember waking up (from surgery),” she said. “I expected my arm to be gone. I looked over, and it was there. I couldn’t feel it, but it was there.”
A doctor approached her. “We used an experimental procedure,” he said. “We don’t know if we’ll have to remove your arm.”
Gradually she regained feeling – and then motion – in the arm. As this was happening, she made up her mind that she, as a trainer, would help as many people as possible with their physical problems, big or small. She would devote her life to it.
“At first, I thought my life was over,” Brandon said. “Then I realized I had to readjust my thinking.”
Today Brandon, 51, is known as an expert in coping with or eliminating back pain among athletes. She trains individuals in many sports. Her clients range from Olympians to celebrities to ordinary people. She also is a popular motivational speaker, spreading the gospel of dedicated training.
Golf became her litmus test, if you will. She was 35 and had never hit a golf ball in her life. Regardless, one of her clients challenged her to a long-drive contest. If she won, the client would buy her a membership at a golf club along with golf lessons. If he won, his prize would be free training for a year.
She won, slugging a 265-yard drive with an awkward stance and grip.
“I don’t care that I’m the oldest woman in the competition,” Brandon said at the 2013 RE/MAX World Championship. “If I can help reinforce the importance of golf fitness, then I’m making an important contribution. This long-drive championship is a showcase for fitness.”
Brandon is a tall, strong woman who has surpassed 350 yards in long-drive competition under favorable conditions. “I don’t feel bad about being powerful and gifted,” she said. “If there are 40 to 50 million women my size, I would like to encourage all of them to use their natural athletic talents.”
Observed Art Sellinger, founder and CEO of Long Drivers of America, which runs the world championship: “The RE/MAX does more than just shine a spotlight on men and women who can hit the golf ball a very long way. It recognizes some people who believe in helping others and who make the world a better place.
“What Lee has done is remarkable, and we are honored to have her as a past champion in this event.”
Hint: Guys, forget all the testosterone talk and man-up rhetoric. Do not challenge her to a long-drive contest.


Monday, September 16, 2013

WORLD LONG DRIVE CHAMPIONSHIPS--2 DAYS PRIOR TO EVENT

Well, it's 102 outside today.
Fabulously dry!  Oh, so amazing...
Just to be here is so exciting!
Visualization at the empty grid prior to the event is powerful home field advantage. 
Why am I here?  I love this adrenaline.  I love this sport. I already have the ring and Tee shirt, so truly I'm here to have fun and enjoy such a wonderful event and powerful group of women.
 In the end, after all is said and done, the events over, it's our friends and family that make sanity out of the insanity!!!  
For example,  After 30 years, my favorite HS Geometry teacher-- Mr. DiGiovanni-- and I reconnected for lunch in LV prior to the Championships.
His influence, belief and support, in part, inspired me to invent the AB-Inforcer(R) Core Biofeedback Trainer.  It is now being used as a therapeutic training tool in over 300 clinics for those with bad backs!  It's simple geometry that teaches bracing for bad backs. 
In the end, I am constantly reminded, winning is not always about being the best in the World, but our investment in others that cross our paths!  There's no ring from great memories, no Tee shirt for silent investments in others lives-- manner a fact, Mr. D's selfless investment in my life has made me a better person. His belief helped me find my brilliance, and now downstream his selfless deeds are impacting thousands! 
I am here to hit 5 sets (2 min, 45 sec per set) of six golf balls, someone will win!  I will give it 100% because that's all I know how to do. If I am blessed to be the last women standing, we will celebrate...if not we stand and celebrate any way because we have already won!

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

DRIVING DISTANCE: Southland Golf - Sep 2013

I am so excited to share this article with you all.  I had the honor of doing a photo shoot and share some (not all :)) of my secrets to distance and power in Southland Golf - Sep 2013.

Watch for the RE/MAX World Championships at www.LongDrivers.com for streaming results...
Champions win belts this year!  I guess I've always had belt envy with those boxers...I love my ring!


For those of you interested in Training services or purchasing an AB-Inforcer Wholesale, contact us directly at admin@areyourlightson.com for details...