Get Fit to Golf - Golf Swing Biomechanics Analysis and Fitness Clinic

A

abdomen	Frontal, middle aspect of torso, between pubic bone and ribs
abdominals	Muscles found within the abdomen, including rectus abdominus, external oblique, internal oblique
abducted /abduction	Movement of limb away from body mid line or laterally
abductor machine	An apparatus that resists against the leg as you lift your leg towards away from your body from a standing position to a wide-leg position . Note: The same apparatus can also be changed to work as an adductor machine by manipulating the position of pins to cause resistance in a different direction.
abductor muscles	Muscles of the outer hip that is responsible for lifting your leg away from the body
adducted /adduction	Movement of a limb inwards towards the body or medially
adductor machine	An apparatus that resists against the leg as you contract your leg towards your body from a wide-leg position to the standing with legs together position. Note: The same apparatus can also be changed to work as an abductor machine by manipulating the position of pins to cause resistance in a different direction.
aerobic	Brisk exercise that promotes the circulation of oxygen through the blood. Examples include running, jogging, and swimming.
alternate	To change between ie. change (alternate) arms
anaerobic	Low impact exercises and stretches that do not promote the circulation of oxygen through the blood. Eg. yoga, tai chi
anatomy	The study of the structure and function of the body
anterior	Referring to the front of your body or body part
anterior tilt	Forward tilt, or forward positioning of structure
apex	Highest point, or furthest point from reference
articulated	To unite by forming a joint or joints.
axillae line	lateral armpit or underarm area

B

back extension bench
balance	The ability of the neuromuscular system to maintain the optimum alignment and center of gravity during biomechanical rotation in a golf swing.
basket hang	Exercise performed taking your body weight on your forearms with your feet off the floor.
bilaterally	Pertaining to both sides of body
biomechanical fault	Fault due to abnormal biomechanics within the body
biomechanics	The study of the mechanics of a living body, especially of the forces exerted by muscles and gravity on the skeletal structure. The mechanics of a part or function of a living body, such as of locomotion. In this program "biomechanics" is referring to the movement of your muscles and skeletal structure during the rotation of the golf swing and the forces affecting them like centre of balance and gravity.
bones	Rigid structures composed of calcium, minerals, collagen and other compuonds which act primarily to provide a skeletal framework for the body. There are 206 bones in your body.
buttocks / bottom / posterior	The lowest part of the torso which you sit on.
Backswing	When the golfer takes the club away from the addressed ball, continues until the club is moved back towards to ball.
barbell	Bar with two round weights on either end and is held by both hands on the bar. More weights can be added to the bar.

C

centre of balance	Anatomical point which serves as the centre of gravity for the body. Varies in people but generally is located in front of the second sacral segment. It does not refer to the ability to balance on one foot or walk in a straight line. In this program it relates to the biomechanical centre of balance of your body during the golf swing. It is the ability of the neuromuscular system to maintain the optimum alignment and center of gravity during biomechanical rotation in a golf swing.
cervical	Pertaining to the neck region
cervical spine	Series of vertebrae which make up the spinal column in the neck region
concave	Projecting inwards, the area within a curve
convex	Projecting outwards, the area outside a curve
chili dipping	When the top of the ball is struck by the bottom of the club, causing it to jump straight up and plonk back down.

D

dumbell	Hand weight
draw	To induce topspin onto the ball causing in to move from outside to in on your swing and is the opposite to fade.
divot	A piece of turf lifted when ball is struck - typically on fairway, played to create backspin.
dipping / reverse tilt / lack of power	Lack of power during a golf swing where the golfer is not be able to correctly rotate the hips and have poor balance.

E

elevate / elevated	To lift up
extremeties	Arms and legs
extension	Movement of straightening a joint or bending the spine backwards
external auditory meatus	The outer ear (external part of ear that is visible)

F

facet joint
fade	To induce backspin onto the ball causing it to travel through the air following inside to out swing and is the opposite to draw.
fat (hitting)	When the club strikes the ground well behind the ball.
flat pelvis	Pelvis which has little or no forward tilt
flex / flexion / flexed	Decreasing the angle between two points
flexibility	Flexibility is a joint's ability to move freely through a full and normal range of motion. In this program flexibility mainly refers to the ability to move correctly in the rotation of a golf swing.

G

gluteal muscles / glutes

Primarily pertains to the gluteus maximus muscle, which forms the bulk of the buttocks shape. Other gluteal muscles include gluteus medius and gluteus minimus

H

Herniated disk	Slipped disc (medical term: prolapsed intervertebral disc) is a condition in which, due to a tear in the outer fibrous ring, the central part of the intervertebral disc is protruding into the spinal canal. Most commonly this occurs in the lowermost part of the spine, especially between the fourth and fifth vertebral bodies and between the fifth vetrebral body and the sacrum. This protrusion usually occurs to one side of the spinal canal, at the point where a nerve root leaves the canal.
hip flexor	Muscles which act to flex the body at the hips
hook /hooking	To induce topspin onto the ball causing in to move from outside to in on your swing and is the opposite to a slice.
Hook-lying	Position in which you are on your back, arms by your side, knees and hips flexed to approximately 90 degrees
Hypertonic	Increased muscle tone beyond the normal
Hypotonic	Decreased muscle tone beyond the normal

I

imbalance	Without balance, unequal
intrinsic muscles	Pertain to deeper lying muscles within body
Ipsilateral	On same side as point of reference

J

K

Kyphosis

Natural posterior curve of spine ie. thoracic curve

L

lateral	Towards the side
lateral trunk	Side of the trunk
levator scapulae	Mucle located in the posterior neck region
ligament	Tough fibrous tissue used in stabilising joints
locomotion	Refers to motion or movement of some kind
locomotor	Object or muscle which acts to move body ie. attain locomotion
lordosis	Natural anterior curve of spine ie. lumbar curve
lumbar	Pertaining to the lower back, beneath the ribs

M

muscle imbalance	Position in which muscles in an agonist/ antagonist relationship, or bilateral muscles do not have equal tone, and thus are imbalanced
muscle strain	An injury that damages the internal structure of the muscle. It is a partial tear of some of the small fibers that make up the muscle.
muscles	Contractile tissues used for many physiological functions, but primarily assist in movement
musculoskeletal system	Body system comprised of skeletal bones and muscles which has many functions but acts primarily to attain locomotion and balance

N

neuromuscular system

relating to nerves and the muscles they stimulate

O

oblique /oblique direction	Direction at 90 degrees
occipital bone	The bone that forms the back of the skull including the rear and the rear bottom of the skull. It encloses a large oval hole, the foramen magnum, the opening through which the spinal cord becomes continuous with the brain.
orthotics	Structures used to correct foot position imbalances and affect posture. A mold is taken of the feet and from that tailor-made inserts are created to put in the shoes to correct posture.

P

pec / pectoralis	Upper chest muscles attached to the front of the chest wall and extending to the upper arms and under the breast area. They are divided into the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor muscles.
pec dec machine	A weight resistance training machine that enables unilateral and bilateral chest, back, and shoulder conditioning.
pelvis / pelvic	Area of body beneath abdomen, comprised of the pelvic bones, pelvic muscles and organs
posterior	Referring to the back of your body or body part
posture	Attitude of body as expressed by the musculoskeletal system
posture fault	Fault within the posture of the body
pronated position	The act of turning the palm or palmar surface of the forefoot downward. That motion of the forearm whereby the palm or palmar, surface is turned downward.The position of the limb resulting from the act of pronation.
pull	When the ball flies in an inward direction after being stuck. Not the same as draw/hook as these are shots affected by spin.
push	When the ball flies in an outward direction after being stuck. Not the same as fade/slice as these are shots affected by spin.

Q

R

radioulnar joint

The radio-ulnar joint's axis is an oblique line that connects the superior and inferior radio-ulnar joints in the arm.

S

sacrum	Large triangular area of spine at base of spinal column, above the coccyx
scoliosis	Lateral deviation of of spinal column (curvature of spine)
shoulder blades	Two large flat bones of the shoulder on either side of the upper back connected to your arms and to which the humerus is articulated...the scapula.
skeleton	Framework of bones providing support for your body. There are 206 bones in your body.
Skinny (hitting)	To strike the ball above it's centre causing it to skip and bounce along the ground rather than rise through the air.
slice / slicing	To induce too much backspin onto the ball causing it to travel through the air following inside to out swing and is the pposite to hooking.
Smith Machine	Apparatus with a bar fixed to the side supports and can only move vertically up or down, therefore being of support when executing moves where your body weight is not centred. The weight is adjustable on the bar.
spinal curve	Natural antero/ posterior curves of spine ie. kyphosis, lordosis
spinal scoliotic curve	Lateral curvature of spine which is not natural
spine	Series of vertebrae which collectively forms the spinal column. The spine is divided into 3 sections: cervical, thoracic, and lumbar (lower back).
spine angle	The optimum positioning of your spine in your golf posture that will enable an optimum and accurate golf swing. In an optimum swing the angle of the spine remains constant throughout the swing until the follow-through. Deviations from the optimum spine angle will cause a swing fault. The correct posture should have a spine angle of 30 degrees.
supinated position	Applied to the hand, the act of turning the palm forward (anteriorly) or upward, performed by lateral rotation of the forearm. Applied to the foot, it generally implies movements resulting in raising of the medial margin of the foot, hence of the longitudinal arch.
Swing	The action of hitting the golf ball with the golf club which includes the takeaway, backswing, downswing, and follow through.
swing plane	The plane that the shaft of the club and/or the clubhead's arc during the golfswing.
swiss ball

T

thermo-band	Approximately 1 metre length of elastic band that can be stretched to give extra resistance in exercises and stretches.
thin (hitting)	To strike the ball above it's centre causing it to skip and bounce along the ground rather than rise through the air.
thoracic spine	Upper back area behind the chest
thorax /thoracic	Region of torso above abdomen and beneath shoulders, most easily visualised by the ribs...chest area
torso	Trunk area...between neck and pelvis
trapezius	Muscles from back of nech and shoulders spreading to the mid back area in the thoracic spine area.
trunk	Area of the body consisting of the thorax, abdomen and pelvis.

U

V

W

X

Y

Z

SOURCES AND REFERENCES

The following sources and references were used in the glossary or terms and throughout the site.

Medical Sources / References

MedTerms.com http://www.medterms.com/Script/Main/hp.asp

Medical Dictionary http://medical-dictionary.com/

Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/

Carolyn Kinser, Lyn Allen Colby; Therapeutic Exercise, Foundations and Techniques; Third Edition, FA Davis Company Publishing, Philadelphia, 1996.

Lucille Daniels, Catherine Worthingham: Therapeutic Exercise, For Body Alignment and Function; WB Saunders Company Publishing, Philadelphia, 1977.

Florence Peterson Kendall, Elithabeth Kendall McCreary, Patricia Geise Provance; Muscles- Testing and Function; Fourth Edition; Williams and Wilkins Publishing, Maryland, 1993.

John V. Basmajian; Therapeutic Exercise, Student Edition; Williams and Wilkins Publishing, Maryland, 1980.

Golf Sources

Dictionary of Golf Terms (used for Get Fit To Golf glossary of terms golf definitions)
http://www.golfeurope.com/almanac/golf_terms/dictionary.htm