Golf and exercise

The word is out: getting your body in better shape does wonders for your game.

The American Journal of Sports Medicine just released an article that describes how golfers that did stretches that improve hip flexibility also experienced less lower back pain! And the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research released their findings on golfers that combined weight training with pylometrics. These are the type of exercises in which a muscle is stretched before it explosively is contracted. Think about jumping up onto boxes and the kind of routines you see the football pro’s do in spring training. The participating golfers in this research project were able to significantly increase their clubhead speed and distance over the course of an eight week program.

So if you are looking forward to improving your scores, think about adding exercise into your golf routines. At "Level Fore" my Indoor Golf teaching facility, we created a complete, golf-specific exercise routine and we call it the "Integrated Golf" workout - it addresses all components of golfer’s body, from cardio to resistance training to balance training as well as some of the above mentioned plyometrics. Our students love it! It prepare their body for the task of the golf lesson - explosive, repetitive, long-range of motions from a slightly bent forward-leaning position at address. Biomechanically, the golf swing it is a tremendously challenging motion for the body! The National Institute of Health research shows that there are more back injuries in Golf than in Football!

Best of all, our exercise routines do not take a lot of time. It is quite easy to include some of these things into your routines - just write me a note and request one of my "5-Minutes to Better Golf" flyers and I will be happy to send one to you!

Is this the solution to all your swing problems?

No, but implementing these tips will make your body perform better so you can actually swing easier. That’s what it will take to become a better golfer!

Dr. Christian Reichardt