Get Fit for Golf Season: Don't Neglect These Tips
by Morgan Fobbs
The annual ritual of the start of golf season is coming up fast. If you want to have a better season than last year (fingers crossed!), then here are some tips for preparing in advance. And I am not simply talking about getting your golf shoes out of the garage to clean them off. Rather, you need to prepare your body itself for golfing.
You might thing that playing golf itself is enough to qualify for your fitness goals. Certainly there are some moderate benefits, but even more important is preparing your body for the new golf season after a winter of too much sitting around.
Of course the fitness benefits can be almost non-existent for those who don't walk but rather ride the course in a cart, and then stop for burgers and beers after the round. Unless you are disabled, I encourage you to walk your golf rounds this season, and save the money and global-warming contributions from golf cart usage.
However, in order to get to that point, you've got to get your body ready for the physical demands ahead. The purpose is to get yourself ready for the long walks and long periods of standing around waiting while golfing. You will gently build strength in muscles that golf requires frequently.
So we are looking at stamina and aerobic exercise to prepare for the lengthy golf course, and flexibility and key muscular training for longer drives, more accurate swings, and general mid-body strength. None of this involves the heavy weight lifting that body builders do. Rather, the key is to gently strengthen the muscles worked repeatedly in the asymmetrical, repetitive game of golf.
Rotational and hip flexibility, shoulder strength, and the muscles of the lower back all make up the unique swing of each golfer. And working the legs and lower back will also reduce those spasms that can result from long days on the links. If you have spent all winter stuck in a cubicle like me, then a pre-season warm-up is essential.
You can do many exercises at home, or during your lunch break at work, and for the most part, you don't need to get all sweaty doing so. When golfing, your torso rotational power depends on the muscle groups in the lower back, abdominals, thighs, buttocks, and hips, so start by doing some stretching of those areas. Then move on to strength training, still concentrating on the core areas--your power zone.
The core is the area between the knees and chest made up of all the bones, ligaments, and muscles within. There are countless exercises to help you work your core, including hamstring stretches, lower back stretches such as imitating a "cat" doing arches and hunches, gentle torso twists, side rotations with resistance, crunches, and gentle trunk rotations.
If you have been sedentary all winter, start out slowly. You don't want to risk injuring one of your core muscles, as that would set you back tremendously, and may cause you to miss the start of the golf season. Warm up for a few minutes with an aerobic activity of your choice, such as on a stationary bike, elliptical trainer machine, or my favorite, walking uphill on a treadmill.
The most important factor is to start early! I will lay out some specific exercises in an upcoming article, but don't wait to start the process until a week before your first round. Take a few minutes each day starting now, and your torso strength and stamina will improve tremendously before the first game of the season. Your enjoyment and perhaps your score will both improve, too.
Morgan Fobbs loves helping people improve their golf game and is a golf guru. You won't believe the shocking golf secret revealed in this absolutely free report that will take strokes off your golf game, so visit as soon as you can. Don't reprint this exact article. Instead, reprint a free unique content version of this same article.
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