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Exercise Tips For Improved Golf Swing Performance.
A couple quick toe-touches before tee-off is nolongersufficient to maximize optimal play
performance. More and more players are expanding
their practice time beyond the driving range and
into the weight room. It is almost as if you're
at a disadvantage by not making this transition.
Additional training will enable longer drives, a
more coordinated swing, increased muscular
endurance, act as injury prevention and will
increase recovery times so that you can play more
often!
The golf swing is a very powerful, dynamic
movement that placessevere stress on the shoulder,
elbow, and wrist joints and forces the lower
back, hip, and legs to absorb a great deal of
shock on impact. Over time, with continued
practice and regular play, this can take its toll
on the body. A lack of flexibility and muscular
strength can lead to imbalances in the muscles
and weakness in the joints that can severely
inhibit swing mechanics.
Many golfers develop overuse injuries, such as
golfers elbow (tendonitis or inflammation in the
medial epicondyle or funny bone), and pain or
stiffness in the lower back which can eventually
lead to arthritis. Both of these unfortunate
occurrences can only be treated with rest and
progressive strengthening forcing you to avoid
your favorite pass-time (4-6 weeks)!
My recommendation is to use exercise as a
preventative measure to help avoid the potential
of injury and improve your game as opposed to
waiting for injury and using exercise for
therapeutic measures. By including a flexibility
and strengthening routine to your golf-
conditioning program it is a win-win situation.
A full-body resistance program will allow you to
develop more power with less effort making for a
smoother swing. It is important here to emphasize
the concept of full-body. When golfers attempt to
expand their training beyond the driving range,
they typically tend to focus only on muscles they
believe to be important such as the lower back,
stomach, and shoulders. In fact, the golf swing
utilizes almost every muscle in the human body to
develop maximum force. The legs generate most of
the power of the swing, the core (lower back, and
stomach) absorb the majority of the force, the
chest, upper back and shoulders are responsible
for the swing action and follow-thru. The arms
are also involved and are used for club control.
Once you embark on a recommended flexibility and
strengthening routine, not only will your total
body strength improve through a regular
resistance program, but you will notice a
significant increase in muscle coordination and
function, as well as an increase in power
production, and resistance to force, all while
avoiding possible painful injuries.
Why let your game suffer while you wait to
recover after an injury' With the addition of a
regular flexibility routine, you can expect
greater joint flexibility and improved range of
motion all of which make for more pain free
rounds of golf!
By: Marc Laverdure B.Sc., C.S.C.S.
*For a more personalized program to suit your
individual training needs, please contact me at:
iwantresults@doctorworkout.com