Swing Exercise
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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 (See below
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 2005 PGA & 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.
To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.
Golf Tips: Disasters To Avoid In The Down Swing
Why do so many golfers have problems with their downswing?
Here are some tips to help you avoid a disaster in your downswing.
One of the major flaws in a player`s game is the eternal preoccupation with the club head.
There are three main reasons. The first is that golfers, like other people, want to be comfortable and don't trust themselves to make a big move.
The third is an overpowering impulse to make the club head move, to do something with it, right from the top. This we call the eternal preoccupation with the club head.
It stems, actually, from a complete misunderstanding of the swing, and there are two reasons for the misunderstanding.
The first thing people find hard to believe, apparently, is that a golf ball is driven straight by hitting it from the inside.
The average player has the almost overpowering conviction that if he hits the ball from inside this line it will fly far out to the right.
He cannot see how anything else can happen. He also knows that when he takes the club to the top of the backswing it is well inside this line.
His first instinct, when he starts the club down, is to manipulate the head out onto the line or near it, so he can bring it down along the line and so knock the ball straight.
When the player does this the first movement he makes takes his hands and the club away from his body. The instant they move away they get outside the plane they must be in to hit from the inside.
Before we go further, let's look at the plane of the swing. It is extremely important. If we understand it, learning the right action will be easier.
From the top of the backswing to a point near the end of the follow-through, the head of the club describes what we can call, for convenience, a circle. It isn't a true circle but that isn't important. Suppose we liken this circle to the rim of a wheel.
Then we cover the wheel with skin, let's say, so it's like the head of a drum with a hole in the center for our head to stick through. We now have a flat circular surface, the plane.
During the swing this plane inclines or leans toward the player from 25 to 40 degrees, the exact amount depending on the length of the club used and on whether the player is an upright or a flat swinger.
When we start from the top to move the club out onto the line of flight with either our hands or our shoulders, we don't change this plane a little bit, we change it a great deal.
The result is that we can't help but bring the club in from the outside when we hit.
In this respect it is well to know, too, that at the top a very slight move by the hands forward, or toward the line of flight as they start down, moves the head of the club a comparatively great distance.
A mere two inches by the hands moves the club head out a foot, throwing it outside.
It is, as we say, already outside as it starts down.
When you realize that this slight move of the hands is instinctive you don't know you make it then you can understand how hard a pro has to work to cure hitting from the outside.
A second reason for preoccupation with the club head, and this with most people is the chief reason, is the instinctive urge to get the club moving fast.
The average player, knowing he must get club head speed to hit the ball as far as he wants to hit it, thinks in terms of the head. It's normal that he should, but that is just another of golf's contradictions.
The instant the player tries to move the club head he makes three ruinous actions.
He turns his shoulders a little bit, which throws the club outside; he starts to open up the angle between the shaft and the left arm, breaking the eternal triangle; and he stops moving his hips.
Still another thing the average player often does-and this is the most insidious of all is permit the club head to break the eternal triangle by failing to move his hands fast enough.
It is easy to see that once the downswing is begun, the hands and the club must move at the same relative speeds or one will get ahead of the other. The simplest way to alter one of these speeds is to let the hands lag slightly as they come down.
When they do that the club head, which is steadily gaining momentum, keeps right on moving, the angle between the shaft and the left arm begins to open, and the imaginary line of the eternal triangle begins to lengthen.
You have, in effect, hit from the top and have done it without ever trying to flip the club head or indeed make it do anything.
You have just, unconsciously, slowed your hand action a little bit. The triangle has been broken early and the power is gone from the swing.
The reason a great many players make this mistake and it pursues them all through their golfing lives is because they subconsciously fear that the club head will never catch up to their hands in time to hit the ball straight.
They fear knocking it far out to the right with an open face. So, without ever being conscious of what they are doing, they make sure it will catch up by slowing down their hands, and they succeed, invariably.
This, without a doubt, is the chief reason a practice swing often looks so good and the swing when the ball is there is so bad.
In the practice swing there is no fear that the club head won't catch up, so the boys clip the cigar butts and dandelion tops like the pros.
They should remember that if the face of the club is square, it makes little difference how far the hands lead the club head at impact.
The attempt to move the club head faster also brings on the hand lag.
When a player's efforts are bent on making the club head move, the very effort tends to slow down the hands. Once the hands get behind, they will never catch up; the eternal triangle, once broken open, can never be closed again.
Another peculiar effect of the hand lag is that it tends to prevent the movement of the hips, and the weight, from the right leg to the left.
If you will take a few practice swings, deliberately slowing your hands through the first half of the downward arc, you will notice immediately that your weight doesn't flow over to your left side. And as long as you retard your hands, you can't move your weight over.
For anyone afflicted with the deadly hand lag there is an exercise that is a great help. We call it the arrested practice swing.
Take a No. 2 or No. 3 wood, tee up a ball, and address it. Now go to the top of the swing and start down at half speed, being sure the hands move with the shoulders and club in the one-piece unit and that the hips move out past the ball. But stop before the club reaches the ball. This swing will retain the wrist cock until the hands are almost opposite the ball.
Done at half speed or even less, the wrist cock can be held until the hands are actually past the ball while the club head is still about six inches or more short of contact.
Make this practice swing four or five times, interrupting it each time before the ball is hit. Speed it up a little but still keep control of the club so that it doesn't hit the ball.
On the next swing, speed it up a little more but don't stop it. Let it go through and hit the ball.
If you are a confirmed hand lagger, the feeling you will get will be the strangest you have ever felt in golf. You will be amazed at where your hands and hips are, that they can be so far advanced, seemingly far in front of the club head at impact. But that is where they should be, where they have to be if you are to get the late hit and the timing that bring the distance the good players get.
Soon you will get the feeling of bringing the hands down in one piece with the shoulders and the club.
You will get the feeling of the hands and the club moving together at their respective speeds through the first big area of the downswing.
You will feel that the hands are alive and active, but that they are moving themselves and are not trying to move anything else.
Those feelings are among the most important in the entire golf swing.
It may help you to visualize the downswing as segments of three circles or rings, one within the other, all connected with each other and all turning. None of these is a true circle, of course, but for purposes of the image let's think they are.
The inner circle is the hips, and the hips move laterally as they turn.
The middle circle is the path taken by the hands as they come down from the top. The outer circle is the path taken by the club head as it comes down.
All three rings are started turning by the first movement of the hips. The club head, assuming a driver is used, starts about three and one-half feet behind the hands, owing to the angle of the wrist cock.
If the hands are to maintain their three-and-a-half-foot lead, they must travel relatively fast to keep the correct position.
It is here that the hands either try to throw the club head, or lag, waiting for it to catch up.
as the club head. If they don't, the club head will begin to overtake them. In other words, the middle ring has to keep moving to keep pace with the outer ring.
The instant it doesn't, the outer ring starts to gain on it, the angle of the wrist cock begins to open up, and the swing is ruined.
You may be prompted to ask at this point, how, if the hands must keep their lead, the head of the club eventually catches up (or almost catches up) with the hands at impact.
This may be especially puzzling when you think that this happens when the swing is fast but that you can prevent it with the slower one you use in the arrested swing exercise.
The second is the advice, deep rooted because it has been repeated for so long, to turn or spin the hips.
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