Center For Endurance Sport

It's GOLF Time

Hitting a golf ball is really simple right? All you have to do is find the most effective way to generate force through your body to the ball. So why are you still reading?

Yes- it's a bit more complex isn't it……

You see the research shows that successful golfers swing the club different than one another. There are some subtle, and some major differences, between players' swing. However, every successful player has a certain sequence their body uses to generate power form the ground up. Here at the Center for Endurance Sport, we utilize the latest technology to measure just this. 12 infra-red cameras take pictures of your swing 500 times a second to make sure we don't miss any aspect of your swing. As you swing, force plates measure your weight shift to reveal how your transfer energy to the club.

Getting an accurate view of how you swing a club is important. It provides us information to see how you use your body, in a very quantatitive manner. This gives us a very specific direction to see where the weak links are in the transfer of enegy from the ground to the ball. You can't "see" this with a slow motion video camera - its data we are able to reconstruct in the 3D world.

3D analysis is one very important component of our services, but we don't stop here. Your swing is like your signature. Different, and unique to you. Its OK to sign your name different than everyone else. Guess what -your swing is the same way. Attempting to replicate the swing of your favorite Tour player is a great way to fight your body. Tha't why we perform a complete musculoskeletal evaluation. If you don't identify why you move the way you do, you'll never be able to clean up the weak links in your swing. You might have some flexibility limits. You might have a lack of control of certain joints of the body. Maybe you've got some stability issues. Whatever the source, they all show up in your signature - your swing. Identifying and clearing up your biomechanical issues is the best way to performing at your potential. Come see what we can do for you!

Presenting the 7th annual: Running Medicine 2010: Running Through the Ages

The Center for Endurance Sport has hosted 6 previous conferences for physicians, physical therapists, and athletic trainers on Running Medicine. Each year, we feature the preeminent speakers on topics unique to running - It's a who's who in the clinical aspect of caring for the Running Athlete. This year's conference on April 2nd and 3rd with a Keynote presentation by gold medalist and running legend, Frank Shorter. Presenters will highlight unique concerns for runners at all stages of their athlete development. Day two will highlight innovative research by our peers in the field of Running Medicine. Take a look at the brochure if you are interested in submitting an abstract. If you are a clinician who specializes in treating runners, this is a an educational event not to be missed.

If you are a physician, physical therapist, or athletic trainer and would like more information, click here to view information and register for the "2010 Running Medicine: Running through the Ages."

Today's Focus: The SPEED Clinic

Approximately one year ago, our Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Virginia developed a unique SPEED Clinic (Strength, Power, Endurance, Education, and Development).  Located conveniently in the Fontaine Research Park, Charlottesville, VA, the SPEED Clinic is rapidly evolving and current services offered include:

• Biomechanical Evaluation
• Physiologic Testing
• Technique Training
• Performance Improvement

Our goal is to develop the SPEED Clinic to be the leading athletics performance research center for gait and motion analysis worldwide.  In an academic setting, our objective, research driven services will transform the efficiency and training of today's endurance athletes.  It is our belief that by finding and correcting biomechanical inadequacies, we can make a significant difference to the health, safety, and peak performance of both elite and recreational athletes.