Strength & Conditioning Consideration for Golfers
- 20 May 2020
- Physio Form
Golf is predominantly a technical, closed loop sport. However, the emergence of Tiger Woods & his impressive physical condition led to a rise in Golf-based strength and conditioning. In addition, as courses got longer and swings demanded more force, we witnessed a rise in Injury rate. Specifically, of the lower back.
The benefits of strength and conditioning program goes further than just hitting the ball far. A professionally devised strength and conditioning program can lead to;
- Injury prevention
- Improved ability to generate power
- Improve motor skills
Core Strength
Huge biceps aren't going to be particularly useful. As most golfers know, the idea is being able to transfer force through the body. The key here is the core. Despite common misconception, the core is more than just your 6 pack (abdominals), so a 100 sit ups a day isn't going to cut it. Golfers should work on anti-movement exercises. More Bracing > Less Crunching.
Power
Another misconception is that golfers don't need to lift heavy loads. This is generally perpetuated by the fear of getting too muscular and less flexible. In truth, lifting heaving during functional movement patterns such as squats or lunges is exactly what you need. A rep range between 1-5 directly targets strength with less emphasis on hypertrophy (muscle growth).
Off-season Vs In-season
In a perfect world, most of your hard work should be done during the winter, this means that your efforts can be aimed at your performance during he season. It also means that you won't have any muscle soreness going into competition. However, a reduced volume program can be continued throughout the competition season.
Get Started & Try this Exemplar, Minimal Equipment Workout:
A| Warm Up
Stretching & Foam Rolling
5 Minutes Cardio of choice (Jogging, Skipping, Cycling)
B| Full Body
Press up 5 x 5
Inverted row 5 x 5
Jumping Alternate lunge 5 x 5
Broad Jump 5 x 5
C| Core Unit
Plank 3 x 30 secs
Suitcase Carry 3 x 30 secs (both sides)