Friday, 13 April 2012

• A Caddy's Workout

  
  
  Traversing the bustling streets of Manhattan is no easy feat. From honking cabs to burning calves, the streets of the Big Apple are not for those who have not prepared mentally, but more important physically.
  

  While hoofing the streets is a good way to build up leg strength, stretching is key to ensuring that a day on the road does not end with an empty tube of icy hot.
  Working as a caddy for four years has instilled many a lesson in endurance upon my soul and the soles of my shoe. Walking five miles with two 40 plus pound bags hanging from my shoulders has taught me to relish in a morning ritual I have created around ridding myself of morning grogginess and stiffness.

  I will start out with a nice reach into the air as I am awoken by the sound of a blaring alarm at 4:45 AM. This stretch is crucial as it gets my blood flowing and joints cracking, but it also will aid in loosening up and preparing for the immense weight of the golf bags that will crush my spirit. I will usually do circles with my arms, forwards and backwards, for about 3 minutes.

  Neck stretches are important as well, I usually will do them as I raise my head from the pillow and do double takes at the clock in disbelief that I am awake at four in the morning. I do them because the last thing a caddy wants to hear on the links is that foreboding crack that will leave you sore for the back nine. I will start with a gentle nod back and forth and then move onto clockwise and counterclockwise rotations.

  Next up is the all-important leg stretch. Stepping out of bed on the wrong foot can be a death dealer when your livelihood relies on traversing the fairway. When I start up, I will sit in bed and reach for my toes, even though every fiber in my back tells me that the right thing to do is lay down and sleep in for a few more hours. After touching the toes, I will move one leg off the bed and prop it against the wall to stretch out my calves.

  At this point I have fully arisen from my slumber and bed. After eating a banana and drinking a cup of milk, I will make my way down to the golf course. I find that even though I prepare in the morning and I eat a decent breakfast, my body is always left sore afterwards. 

  I question my readers if they too suffer from tiredness and other pangs after a day of sauntering about!

  Have you ever been a caddy before? Have you ever experienced these pangs and aches?!

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