Walking Down The Fairway Of Life
He stuffed the last greasy mouthful of double beef burger into his mouth. Juggling its packaging in one paw and propelling his trolley with the other he kept on walking down the fairway of life. Brown remnants of some sauce snaked down his chin. The glistening temporarily stained skin made him look like there had been a major culinary accident in the vicinity. This was eating on the run golf style. Getting something substantial into you at the halfway mark. Nine holes had been and gone. Nine more holes had just begun. I don’t know how he does it, digesting mid stride and mid swing.
Golfing & Ambulating At Full Pace
Grip and rip it, I suppose, but be careful of the sticky stuff infiltrating upon the handle and causing slippage. The smell of BBQ was in the air and the flies buzzed around in celebration of the gross consumption of fast food. Jake was a genius at swallowing large mouthfuls and ambulating at full pace. Nothing was going to hold up this man when he was intent on getting somewhere in a hurry. Jake could locate his golf ball wherever on the fairway and bend down to lash at it in one shambolic movement. The earth might shake for a moment but that ball was struck for kingdom come no matter the lie.
Fairways & Work-Outs For Golfers
Eating on the run has never been my cup of tea, but for many golfers it is all part and parcel of the experience. Getting those calories into you in an effort to load up on the necessary energy to meet the athletic challenges ahead. Non golfers probably fail to comprehend the physical demands of the game, as they often only observe the gentler aspects of the sport. On average a golfer will briskly cover around 10 kilometres plus during a round. 18 holes of golf is rarely played in a straight line. Swinging hard at around 60 plus full shots for the average golfer can take it out of you. When you combine the search for errant golf balls for your four ball grouping it is an enduring activity over all sorts of ground. Sand traps and waste areas are like walking in desert on hot days.
The physical and mental concentration called for is considerable over nearly 5 hours in competitive rounds.
Food For The Golfer
Personally, I don’t like to eat a big meal during my round of golf. I understand the need to refuel but it has a deleterious effect on my game. I find when my body goes into digestion mode I lose my fine motor skills to some extent and am more likely to stuff up shots. My preference is to drink plenty of water and maybe snack on a piece of fruit. This minimises the bad but provides me with some extra energy toward the end stages of my round. Jake was the opposite, as he seemingly had no problems with the digestion of carbohydrates en masse and revelled in the gobbling process. Some golfers love a meal to break up the lengthy test and look forward to lunchtime on this basis. Golf courses with an outdoor BBQ or readily available fast food service are beloved by Jake and his ilk. Of course, the game of golf attracts all sorts and this is another reason why we love the game so much.
Those golfers who like to enjoy an alcoholic beverage or two as they traverse the course are often inclined to chow down on a burger when appropriate. Balance in life, as we know, is pretty much everything.
The Fabric Of Golf
Golf is an interesting experience in the 21C. We live in an age of theory, intellectual pursuits, touch screens, and diminishing physical stuff. Jobs are more likely to involve using your head, as in your brain, these days. Human beings are still basically sensual creatures, the descendants of monkeys with big brains, but our worlds are becoming virtual and digital. Golf is almost akin to an ancient activity involving a ball and stick. It is a return to former times in this regard but with a strategic dimension as well. Golf is process orientated. Keep your head down and swing. It is played on a defined geographic strip of land. A microcosm where for four plus hours we toil and tarry in search of economical scores. A combination of effort, technique, concentration, and dumb luck. This is the golfing universe where similarly dressed adherents employing standardised tools compete for small rewards. Indeed, for the vast majority of golfers the game itself is reward enough. Playing golf transports us away from the worries and concerns of the real world for half a day and it is often therapeutic on this basis alone. A tiny amount of really elite golfers make a living from playing the game professionally. An even tinier subsection of these professional golfers make vast sums of money from competing at golf on the world stage. The millions of ordinary golfers dream about these rare talents and fantasise about their lifestyles, as teenage girls do about movie stars.
Personally, I reckon this is a waste of time and missing the point.
Real Golfers Like Jake
Day dreams about golfing royalty aint going to help you with your game. Indeed, it is more of a distraction from the job at hand. Real golf is a hands on pursuit. It is an activity more befitting a tradesman or artisan. Thoughts about uber rich golfers are polly waffle. Get real golfers and drill down to get your hands dirty. It is all about the lie of the land and less about Rory’s new hairstyle. Jake was not one to pontificate about professional golfers at the pointy end of golf. His loud burp dispelled any and all thoughts about extraneous BS. Dialing up the power Jakey unleashed the beast on a fairway club in search of greener pastures. The golf ball rocketed forward toward the target amid cries of envious appreciation from our four ball partners. This is where the beating heart of golf resides. In these moments, is where the love of the game flourishes among us ordinary golfers. In those all too rare instances where man/woman golfer, club, swing, and ball connect to glorious rapture out on the course. In the green cathedral where unseen angels don’t sing but well played shots do on occasion. Burger burps aside, Jake had struck a beauty and the landing on a par 5 green was accompanied by expressions of awe and miraculous acclaim. “Houston, we have touch down.”
Golf is good. Life is good. Burp, belch, “bugger, those onions are repeating on me!” The Jake grin said it all really.
“A general healthy eating pattern helps to support the needs of fit, energetic and lean golfers. Nutrition is often based around lean proteins for muscle repair and recovery and quality carbohydrate foods to match fuel needs. In addition, fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and wholegrains provide important vitamins and minerals, along with healthy fats.
Low glycemic index (GI) carbohydrates choices such as brown rice, multigrain bread, porridge or baked beans can be better fuelling options to sustain training requirements and prevent fatigue over long days of training and competition.
Individual nutrition requirements will be determined by training load, specific athlete needs, training goals, body composition goals, health and adjustment for growth in younger athletes.”
©GolfDom
