June 28, 2023

What is the key to a powerful swing? According to John Novosel, golf swing speed coach for golfers like Martin Borgmeier (long drive world champion), “the stronger the golfer, the better the golfer”. Here’s our interview with coach Novosel, where he explains the benefits and strength gains that Flywheel Training has enabled him and his athletes to achieve:

1. What role does flywheel training play in your training regimen?

Flywheel training with Exxentric plays a major role in my training. I use the kBox and the kPulley 3-4x per week. Sometimes I do flywheel training only and other times I combine it with other forms of training.

2. How has flywheel training improved your performance on the golf course?

My niche is speed and power for golfers (and myself).  So, it’s very simple, I’m looking to increase the speed of the club and ball and that will in turn produce longer drives. The modern game is all about power and if you look at recent Major Champions, they all crush the golf ball.

Flywheel training allows me to incorporate strength and power moves and do it safely.  This translates to more speed!! This winter I was able to add 3-5 mph to my clubhead speed and that translates into 15-20 yards of carry with the driver!

“The kBox & kPulley have been huge for me to develop eccentric strength, size and power. Plus I love that there is no strain on my back.”

Source: John Novosel IG post

 3. For those unfamiliar with eccentric training, could you explain what it is and how it helps with golf?  

There are 3 phases when doing power work in the gym: eccentric, isometric, and concentric.  Eccentric would be the lengthening phase, isometric at the ‘bottom’, and then concentric is the shortening phase. Studies and my own experience support that heavy eccentric loads optimize and increase power.

Flywheel training especially with the kBox gives you those increased eccentric loads in a way that the user totally controls and is also totally safe. For example, if I’m doing squats on the kBox, and I go to the bottom of the motion and it’s my last rep and I’m ‘stuck’, I simply stop the flywheel and I’m done.

The other big advantage of the kBox is that the harness takes the strain off of your back on a squat.  As a golfer, you need to do everything you can to protect your back, so I’m always looking for ways that I can get stronger but not stress the back.  Traditional lifts like squats, deadlifts, etc… are good per se, but can be very bad for golfers because of the stress on the back.

4. What advice would you give to golfers that are looking to improve their performance?

The most important piece of equipment you have is your body.  Simply put, if you can improve your body, you will improve your swing and your performance.

If you want to hit the ball further, improve your body.
If you want a better swing, improve your body.
If you want to be more consistent, (wait for it)….improve your body!

5. How important is strength training for golf performance and injury prevention on different levels? 

That is a major concern of mine. We just highlighted why it’s the key to performance.  Moving better does prevent injury, but what I think might be more important is ‘not injuring yourself while exercising’.  For example, for a lot of golfers, when they do a squat with a barbell, they put a ton of stress on the lumbar spine.

Conversely, the kBox with the harness allows you to get a great lower body workout with squats, but NO pressure on the spine. The flywheel technology also allows you to add speed and power safely to any movement and that’s something that can typically be very hard on the golfer’s joints when doing those movements with conventional methods.

“If your training doesn’t include a kBox, you’re missing out. Get one or get to a gym that has one, it adds eccentric loading like you’ve never felt before.”

Source: John Novosel IG post

6. Who can benefit from strength training in golf and are there any differences between different levels of players? 

EVERYONE.
Yes, there are huge differences in strength. The longer the player (more speed and power) the stronger they are. The longer the player, the lower the handicap. By the transitive property the stronger the golfer, the better the golfer!!

7. Which muscle groups are the most important when you want to improve your power and club head speed?

The golf swing involves all muscles, but what we typically see with more powerful golfers are strong Lats/Triceps and a strong lower body, especially the glutes.

One of my favorite exercises to work the lower body in a golf fashion is to do Zercher squats with rotation.  So, I set up for a Zercher squat, then as I go through the concentric portion I start to rotate and completely load into my left leg (IR of the left hip) and fire that right glute.

Then the eccentric load hits hard, and I learn to control that, from there I go the other way (my follow-through), so I get into my right hip and fire that trail glute. There’s no other device that gives me this movement or feeling and it’s a game changer for me to do to keep me strong and ready to swing a golf club!

“We got out the kBox to bake in some feels and Martin Borgmeier felt the difference! You need to light up the muscles so you don’t think your way thru a swing!!!”

Source: John Novosel IG post 

 

John Novosel
Golf Swing Speed Coach
Follow coach Novosel on Instagram