Kellion ImpactStik User manual

User Manual
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BEFORE you attempt to teach yourself the golf swing, we highly recommend
that you consult a good teaching professional for an overall evaluation of
your swing. In the long run, you will save yourself a lot of time, energy and
frustration. Because of the extremely complex nature of the golf swing, even
the best golfers will run into unexpected bad habits. There is a saying, "prac-
tice does not make perfect, practice makes permanent. Perfect practice
makes perfect." You need the trained eye of a professional teacher to see the
subtle swing anomalies that can plague your golf swing. No other sport
requires as much attention to detail and precision as does the golf swing.
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CAUTION:
Before you start to swing the ImpactStik
• If you have any medical conditions such as back problems, ten-
donitis in any of your joints, shoulder joint problems, etc., please
consult a medical professional first. The golf swing can aggravate
these conditions.
• Make sure there is nobody near you when you are swinging the
ImpactStik. Make especially sure that there is nobody standing in
the direction of your swing. Serious bodily injury could result if you
strike someone with the ImpactStik.
• The ImpactStik weighs approximately 2 pounds. It is about 2 times
heavier than a regular golf club. There is a sliding weight mecha-
nism that accelerates very rapidly, generating inertial energy. A
serious amount of momentum force is generated when swinging
the ImpactStik.
• Never strike balls with the ImpactStik.
• Never strike the ground with the ImpactStik. Swing the ImpactStik
1-2 inches above the ground. The internal mechanism could get
damaged if you repeatedly strike the ground with the ImpactStik.
• Do not dent the tubing of the ImpactStik. Dents on the tubing will
interfere with the internal mechanism of the stick. If the tubing is
dented, replace the ImpactStik immediately with a new one.
• Do not attempt to open or repair the ImpactStik. If you try to repair
it, you may alter the safety features designed into the stick.
Swinging an incorrectly repaired ImpactStik could be potentially
dangerous to you and people around you.
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The Mechanical Design of the ImpactStik
The ImpactStik is designed with the correct physics for improving a golfer's swing. By utilizing a sliding
weight mechanism, the ImpactStik provides a special type of progressive resistance that helps a golfer devel-
op a natural feel for an accelerating golf club. Because the physics of the mechanics are correct, the
ImpactStik works more synergistically with the unconscious (sub cortical) neuromuscular physiological
reflexes of the human body, which fire automatically during the swift downswing of a golf swing.
The ImpactStik mechanism is excellent for developing feel of the pendulum sensation of the golf swing. It
corrects outside-in swings, reverse pivoting, weak left arm, deceleration at impact, poor follow through and fin-
ish. Because the ImpactStik is two times heavier than a regular golf club, swinging it on a regular basis when
you are off the course will help develop proper golf musculature and general muscle tone so that you will
strike the ball more solidly and more effortlessly. Using it as a warm up device before a game will help tune
your swing and set your swing tempo and rhythm. The impact feature simulates actual outdoor ball striking,
so that you can get the same benefit while using it anywhere. The ImpactStik with its simple set of exercis-
es is a remarkably effective golf swing training aid.
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Variable Center of Gravity, Progressive Resistance, and Human Neuromuscular Physiology
The ImpactStik was designed to work synergistically with human neuromuscular physiology. Human body movements are con-
trolled by both our conscious (cortical) and unconscious (subcortical) minds. Our conscious (cortical) mind, which operates up
to approximately 0.6 second, cannot attend the event of the downswing which happens in approximately 0.25 second. For this
reason, the golf downswing is mostly controlled and performed by our unconscious (subcortical) mind. Most amateur golfers
cannot recall what actually happens during impact.
This fact—that the golf swing is performed mostly by our unconscious mind—is the reason why it is so difficult to learn the
golf swing.
Our unconscious mind, which operates under different rules than our conscious mind, functions via pre-programmed muscle
firing sequences commonly known as “muscle memory”. These “muscle memories” can only be reprogrammed by neuromuscular
stimulation.
The innovative design of the ImpactStik provides the mechanical attributes necessary to correctly effect powerful changes at
the subcortical neuromuscular level.
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Familiarize yourself with the ImpactStik
“Center of gravity” feel
• Get into a normal golf stance.
• Hold the ImpactStik close to the very end of the handle, in your
usual golf grip.
• At first, swing it slowly and lightly back and forth in front of you
to experience a sliding weight sensation. (You will feel a weight
sliding down the tube shaft as you swing, and then quickly
retract back).
• After a few of these loose back and forth swings, re-grip your
hands on the handle of the ImpactStik, holding it an inch short-
er (choked down). Swing it again back and forth in front of you.
The stick should feel lighter and easier to swing. Use more
wrist hinge to swing it.
• After a few swings, again re-grip your hands on the handle
holding the stick another inch shorter. The stick should feel
even lighter. Whip more with your hands and wrists as you
swing.
• Keep doing this until you have reached the bottom end of the
grip.
By changing your hand position on the grip, you change the
center of gravity of the ImpactStik. This will affect your swing
biomechanics in different ways. By changing your grip posi-
tion you can change the ratio of hands and wrists, arm, hip,
and large body movements.
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Impact
Once you have familiarized yourself with feeling the ImpactStik’s changing of
the center of gravity, you are now ready to experience impact. Start with an
easy “trial” full swing and work up as follows:
• Hold the ImpactStik approximately half way down the grip. Swing easily, and
then continue to repeat the swing, increasing your speed each time until you
feel a definite impact inside the ImpactStik, and hear a distinct click or “whack”
sound. You may try choking down more on the grip if you find it hard to do this.
You should also try using more wrist movement in your swing to help achieve
impact.
• Now, swing it repeatedly 5-10 times, making sure that you click it each time.
• Change the position of your grip and swing it 5-10 times. Keep changing your
grip position up and down and swing the stick until you notice the difference
in changing the center of gravity of the ImpactStik as you change your grip
position.
• Holding the ImpactStik longer requires you to use more hip and large body mus-
cles to swing. It also requires you to do a bigger and fuller swing.
• Holding the ImpactStik shorter requires you to use more hands and wrists to
swing. It also requires you to do a shorter (three quarter), more compact swing.
You have now familiarized yourself with the feel of progressive resistance and
the variable center of gravity function of the ImpactStik.
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Exercises
NOTE: The exercises are described for a right-handed player.
Left-handed players should transpose as appropriate.
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Exercise 1 - Wrist loosening exercise
• Hold the ImpactStik by the grip and get into a normal square
stance.
• Grip down on the stick. The ImpactStik should feel lighter the
further down you hold it on the grip.
• Using mostly your wrists and hands, swing the stick back and
forth gently in front of you in a rhythmic fashion. Do less than a
half swing. Use no power in this exercise. You don't need to
click it.
The point of this exercise is to loosen your hands and to learn to
cock your wrists. It is also to learn to feel the correct pathway or
biomechanics of your hands, wrists, and arms.
• In your half backswing, try and keep your left elbow straight
and rigid and cock your wrists as much as you can. Bend your
right elbow and tuck it tightly against your right oblique stom-
ach muscle. The ImpactStik should point straight upwards or
more.
• In your downswing and follow through, start bending your left
elbow just after you pass the impact area. Make sure your left
elbow is tucked tightly against your left oblique stomach mus-
cle. Do not pull your elbow backwards behind the body. Flip
your left forearm upwards. The right arm and elbow should
start to straighten out near the impact area and fully straight-
en out as you follow through two to three feet beyond the
impact area. Your right hand should roll over (pronate) the left
hand during follow through. The wrists should be fully cocked
by the end of the follow through. The ImpactStik should point
straight upwards or more.
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