What Are The Best Exercises For The Golfer?

With all the talk about the players on tour getting stronger
and more flexible, we hear a lot about exercising for golf from
television commentators and read about it in the golf
publications. But what exactly are the best exercises for the
amateur golfer?

A great question that has a good answer, but before we give you
the answer let us provide some background so the answer makes a
little more sense to you. First of all, discussing the golf
swing for the time being will get us rolling.

What exactly is the golf swing? The golf swing is an athletic
movement that requires using of the entire body from “feet to
fingertips” in order to complete the swing. Realize that the
golf swing is not about the club, not just about your grip, or
where your head is during the swing. The golf swing is a
movement that requires your entire body to move through a
sequence of movements with the correct timing. To perform the
“athletic movement” of the golf swing requires the body to
begin at address, move through the actual phases of the golf
swing and complete it with the follow through. In order to
perform this activity with efficiency and repetitively, the
body must have certain physical parameters.

These parameters, as I call them, are actual physical
categories of the body that need to be developed to a certain
level. These categories of the body are the platform from which
the body is able to perform the athletic movement of a golf
swing efficiently. The categories are probably familiar to many
of you, but for the purpose of this article let us briefly run
through them.

The body is required to have certain levels of flexibility,
balance, endurance, strength, and power to complete a golf
swing. If the body lacks in any of the above categories, then
the results will be seen in the golf swing. The results are
usually in the form of poor mechanics, bad shots, or poor
scores on the course. So, now that we know what the connection
is between the “body” and the “swing” let us address the
question about the best exercises for golf.

The Best Exercises for Golf

Let’s say you walk into your local health club and see all the
fancy machines and aerobic machines at the facility to get you
shape. What ones would choose? Would you choose running on the
treadmill for 30 minutes, or would it be better to push out a
couple sets of bench presses? Well, the answer to our question
really lies within the connection between your swing and your
body.

I will tell you that exercises meant to “pump you up!” or give
you that “six pack” are not necessarily the correct exercises
for your golf game. Neither is that weight training program you
used back in high school. So, with those thoughts in mind what
do you think the best exercises for golf are?

Right now we know, in general terms about the golf swing, what
is required of the body for the golf swing and what exercises
are not good for the swing. Armed with that knowledge we can
decipher what the best exercises for golf are for you.

Beginning with flexibility, we know that the entire body must
move through certain ranges of motion to perform an effective
golf swing. And what happens if your body is not able to move
through the required ranges of motion of the golf swing? The
answer: the golf swing will mechanically suffer resulting in
shots that are less than optimal. So part of the exercises that
are good for golfers are flexibility exercises and, even more
so, flexibility exercises that work the muscles used in the
golf swing through the movements involved in the golf swing. So
first and foremost flexibility exercises should be on the top of
your list.

The second category of exercises that would be conducive to the
golf swing would have to do with balance. We hear about balance
in reference to the golf swing all the time. “Stay balanced
through the swing; transfer your weight to maintain balance
during the swing…” But what does balance exactly mean? Balance
is the ability to control your body through a specific movement
pattern. The movement pattern we are discussing just happens to
be the golf swing. We know the importance of balance in
relation to the golf swing, so how do we train our body for
better balance in the golf swing? Before we answer that
question we need to know a little more about balance. Balance
in relation to the body has to do with the connection between
your nerves and muscles. Essentially your nervous system, as a
result of messages sent from your brain, tells your muscles how
to move to maintain the body’s balance. The more efficient your
nerves and muscles are to these messages the greater balance
abilities the body develops. So balance exercises train both
the nervous system and muscular system to become more efficient
at this function. Summing it all up, balance is the second
category of exercises that will assist your golf game.

The third category of exercises that are beneficial to golf
have to do with your muscles. The golf swing requires the
muscles of your body to move through a specific range of motion
(flexibility) and help with your balance capacities. In order to
perform these actions and others, your body needs certain levels
of strength and endurance. The definition of strength is the
ability of the muscles to exert force for the given “athletic
action” (simplified definition but a good working definition
for us). Endurance is the ability of your muscles to do the
same activity over and over again for a specific amount of
time.

First off, let us discuss strength. The golf swing has one
intention of developing club head speed while maintaining
balance through the swing. The muscles in your body must have
enough strength in them to do both. Now, when we discuss
building strength for the golf swing it is NOT the type of
strength needed to bench press 250 lbs. Or squat 500! It is
strength geared towards the improvement of your swing. I refer
to this type of strength as “golf strength.” So when you get to
the gym, performing strength exercises like bench press will not
help your swing. Exercises that train the body in the positions
and through the movements of the golf swing will help your
swing.

In addition to strength, we need to develop endurance in your
muscles. Think of how many swings you may take over the course
of 18 holes. In order for you to be able to swing the club the
same way on the 18th hole as you did on the 1st hole. Your body
has to have high levels of endurance. This will allow your body
to perform the golf swing without getting tired. You develop
endurance similar to how you develop “golf strength.” Utilize
exercises that train the body in the positions and through the
movements of the golf swing. Lighter loads with higher
repetitions will be used for these exercises. The end result
will be the development of “golf endurance.”

The final segment of exercises beneficial to your golf swing is
power training. Power training is geared towards the ability of
your body to generate high levels of club head speed. Power
development by the body is what allows for greater distance on
your shots. Clubs help, golf balls help, but it really comes
down to the piece of machinery, your body, swinging those club
and hitting those golf balls. Development of power for the golf
swing is very similar to the development of “golf strength and
endurance.” It is the utilization of exercises that place your
body in the positions and move you through movements similar to
the golf swing.

Summary

So there you have it, the answer to the types of exercises best
for the improvement of your golf swing. I think you now realize
it is not one exercise, but a group of exercises that
incorporate flexibility, balance, endurance, strength, and
power. A combination of these exercises is what will enhance
your golf swing. Looking for specific exercises? Take a look at
our website NutriFitness


About The Author: Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized
golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA
Tour regularly with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has
made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing
improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the
website http://www.bioforcegolf.com. Check out his manual and
DVD, Your Body and Your Swing, on BioForceGolf.com. To contact
Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com