PART X:  Golf Specific Exercises

Stretch ‘em Out for Golf and Life (Part 2)

Continued from blog entry – “The New Season . . . PART X (Part 1)”

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I’ve had students come to me in the spring, after going through a winter-long exercise program, who had picked up 30 or 40 percent in terms of lower-body rotation. I could do things with them that I’d never been able to before. I could get them to release the golf club. So instead of blocking or slicing the ball to the right, they could turn the club over through impact. Their bodies could rotate 15 or 20 degrees more to the left so the golf club could release and extend. They just couldn’t do it before. You can take all the lessons in the world, but if your body is not going to go there, the information is useless.

A word of advice: Many individuals do stretching exercises that are great for the overall body but are not golf specific. They don’t activate the muscles that work in the course of a golf swing. The exercises in these posts do just that.

Exercise (1) stretches the quad muscles. Hook your toes over the back of a chair as shown and hold for a minute. You will probably feel the quads “burn,” and that’s good. Relax and repeat. Alternate legs.

Exercise (2) benefits the hamstrings. Set your heel on the chair as shown, grab your toe and pull until you feel the stretch in the hamstring. Hold for a minute or as long as you can. Do the same with the other leg. Repeat.

Exercise (3) is another exercise for the hamstrings.  Lie on your back with one leg straight and extended
as shown. Hook a towel over the front of your foot and pull down and toward your head. Again, hold it for a minute or as long as you can. Go to the other leg, then repeat.

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Repeat all these exercises as many times as you can, gradually building up the number of repetitions.

Do the exercises here (and on the next two posts) when your body is warm. Do a few minutes on the
treadmill or stationary bike to work up a sweat. Or take a hot shower before you begin stretching.

By the way, don’t limit your exercising to the off-season. This should become a year-around regimen, at least three or four times a week and especially important on the days you play golf. Once you establish that regimen, you’re on your way to feeling better and scoring better.