“You know you need to exercise for better health, so why not work on your golf game at the same time.”

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Swing Blade Enterprises was formed by LPGA Teaching Professional Karen Palacios-Jansen and her husband, Olympic Gold Medalist Dan Jansen, who decided to combine their talents to help provide people with inspiration for their golf games, businesses, and lives.

Swing Blade Enterprises provides unique programs, tailored to fit your individual, corporate, or group needs and recently launched their online golf training studio. Now golfers around the world can learn from Karen live in lessons designed to analyze your swing, increase your distance, and lower your handicap. MO.com readers can use the code Try-kpj-golf-instruction for 50% off their first lesson at http://www.powhow.com/classes/kpj-golf-instruction.

MO: How did you come up with the concept of combing golf instruction and fitness? Were you and Dan always interested in exploring the possibility of working together or did you have an “aha moment?”

Karen: I have always been interested in fitness and I worked out and played all sorts of sports growing up. So fitness has always been a part of my life. I met my husband when I gave him a golf lesson, so we have a lot of the same interests in golf and fitness. As a golf instructor, I am always looking for new ways to teach golf and adding fitness into my instruction seemed to be a perfect fit. When I was working for a golf school in Florida early in my career, I noticed that many of the participants would come down from the North during the winter and spend the weekends taking lessons, but then would return to NYC or Boston or where ever they were from and not touch a club for months until their weather improved. I started making video tapes of golf drills, stretches, and exercises for people so they could work on their swings, flexibility, and strength indoors during the winter. My videos become popular, so I decided to develop a program called Cardiogolf that combined golf swing, drills, and exercises to work on your swing and fitness at the same time.

When we where first married, we never planned on working together, so I guess we just had an “aha moment”. My husband Dan Jansen and I launched Swing Blade Enterprises back in 2002, a few years after we were married. We got the idea after we were invited to do an outing for Carpet One in Hawaii. Dan, who is a professional motivational speaker, was asked to speak for Carpet One’s top sales people. He suggested to the company that I come along to give golf lessons for their clients because golf was part of their package. We had such a good time working together and ended up being a big hit with the group, that we decided to form a company and develop corporate/entertainment programs. We decided on the name of our company to be Swing Blade to play off-swing for golf swing, of course, and blade for the blade on speed skates, since I am the golfer and Dan is the speed skater.

MO: Can you talk about the process of launching Swing Blade Enterprises and if you encountered any particular challenges along the way?

Karen: We never really had a formal plan when we launched our company, but we have had a lot of help from a team of people. We enlisted the help of a few businessmen, accountants, and website developers to help us run our business. Like any small business, we struggle with the day to day operations of the company and have had to learn as we go. We’ve struggled through the poor economy, so we have had to expand on speaking engagements and golf lessons and added health and wellness products and medical devices to our business to help our bottom line.

MO: How can golf fitness help people improve their golf games?

Karen: Contrary to popular belief, the golf swing requires a high level of athletic skill. Professionals are highly proficient in moving their bodies which is why, when they swing a golf club, it looks so easy, but it is not. If your muscles are weak, inflexible, and unbalanced you will have to make compensations in your golf swing which can lead to chronic swing faults and even injury. By simply adding a few golf-specific exercises into your daily routine, you can significantly improve your swing. As you gain flexibility, you will be able to make a fuller turn and longer, smoother swing movements which can help you avoid mis-hits. As you gain strength, you will be able to swing faster to add more distance to your shots. As you improve your endurance, you’ll be able to concentrate better and play longer without getting tired. Improving your fitness can improve your score and lower your handicap.

MO: What can people expect when they take an online lesson?

Karen: You can expect world-class golf instruction in the privacy of your own home or office, but taking a live online golf or golf-fitness class is much easier and convenient than taking a regular golf lesson at a golf course or driving range. You can choose the time and place you take the lesson. Many golf courses require that you be a member of the golf course to have access to golf instruction. Now you don’t have to be a member at a club or have to take the time to travel to the course. When you take an online golf lesson, you can expect the same swing analysis that you would receive at a conventional lesson. I can see you swing and evaluate your faults and give you exercises to correct them. I can demonstrate the swing and show you how to do the exercises and I can watch you to make sure your form is correct. When you take an online golf-fitness class, you’ll get a great workout to improve flexibility, strength, and power specific to golf. You know you need to exercise for better health, so why not work on your golf game at the same time.

To see what my students are saying about my online classes visit http://golfexpectations.com/2012/06/21/karen-palacios-jansen-delivers-a-fun-and-informative-online-golf-class/

MO: What inspired you and your husband to create the Dan Jansen Foundation?

Karen: The mission of the Dan Jansen Foundation (http://www.djfoundation.org/) is to solicit financial support and distribute funds to charities, with an emphasis on the fight against leukemia, which claimed the life of Dan’s sister Jane. Jane passed away on the day of one of Dan’s Olympic races. The foundation supports youth sports programs, education, and scholarship awards. Dan was inspired to help other families that have been touched by leukemia like his family was. One of the things that Dan’s foundation does is provide financial aide to families that need to travel for treatment. When Dan’s sister was ill, they lived in Milwaukee, but his sister had to go to Seattle for treatment. His family had a big financial burden since they had to fly to Seattle and stay in hotel rooms. Dan’s foundation provides funds to families for airline tickets and living expenses. We have been able to bring awareness to Dan’s organization through our company’s work which brings us pride and satisfaction that we can give back to society.

MO: Can you talk about your new partnership with Powhow and why it’s such an exciting time for Swing Blade?

Karen: With my new partnership with Powhow, I will be able globalize my company . Our passion is fitness and golf, so we have geared many of our new presentations to not only help people improve their golf games but also manage their weight and incorporate exercise into their daily routines. Powhow will revolutionize how I teach and present my material. With my new live online golf studio (http://www.powhow.com/classes/kpj-golf-instruction) , I am ushering in the future of interactive online instruction. Powhow’s global marketplace and live webcam class platform is allowing me to offer a cutting edge training experience. I love how my students from all over the world can participate in real time golf lessons online with the ability to interact with me. Sign up for your golf lesson now: http://www.powhow.com/classes/kpj-golf-instruction