I can’t help but compare the human body to a home. Some homes are broken down and neglected. The owners never mow their yard, leave junk out in front, and never fix broken fixtures. They either think they don’t have enough time or simply do not even notice that their house is in disrepair.
Whatever the reason… fixing it isn’t that hard.. just four simple stretches can start laying the foundation on a new Golf Home (GH for short) for massive improvements in your score, driving distance and stamina on the course.
I like easy, of course, I’m naturally lazy by nature. Contrary to belief, I don’t like spending a lot of time in the gym. I like to get the most out of my workouts in a short amount of time.
But I also like destroying my friends in a round of golf too, so a little work is needed here.
In fact, later in this blog post, I’ve created a basic stretching routine to start laying the foundation for your new GH (your body) which only takes 4 to 5 minutes at most.
But first let’s discuss a few serious topics we need to get out of the way before you get started laying the foundation of your new golf game.
Training Around Golf Injuries
Almost every day on Twitter I am asked about injuries and how to best train to strengthen the injured areas. To be honest, it’s better to lay a solid foundation than work on shaky ground.
Injury questions are tough and it is pretty much impossible to make recommendations over Twitter. Since I am no injury expert, I refer these people back to their doctor or Dr. Larry Foster and his fantastic book “Dr. Divot’s Guide to Golf Injuries“. Some injuries need surgery and much like a home with a broken window, no amount of duct tape and plastic (temporary fixes) is going to make the window new again.
Build Your Golf Fitness On A Solid Foundation
With all that said, I think the best idea is to build a solid foundation FIRST.
When I design a golf fitness workout program, it is based on the principles of functional exercise. Unlike exercise programs developed using body building principles, or muscle isolation, functional fitness for golf is designed to improve golf performance and reduce injuries.
Golf is a high impact sport on your hands, elbows, shoulders, and your lower back. Designing and developing an exercise routine that helps protect all of these areas is essential.
Restoring Balance Back To Your GH (Golf Home)
To build a solid foundation we must pay special attention to restoring balance back to your body.
Wear and tear, your job (some have highly repetitive jobs), how you sit, how much you weigh, and flexibility are all factors that can set you up for being injured more easily. Restoring balance is often the boring work of stretches, beginner type strengthening exercises, and core work. However, this is the foundation of the house. Without it, we might as well have dirt as our foundation.
Restoring your body back to balance is easier than you think. If you have neglected your fitness and nutrition, you might be living in a broken down dump of a house (your body).
Golf Flexibility Workout
Here is a short flexibility and stretching routine you can use to start reversing the effects of aging and prepare your body for more advanced workouts.
- Inch Worms with Upward Dog x 10. Keep your legs as straight as possible. This is a great movement for your hamstrings, calves and lower back. Almost everybody is tight here and this will really help loosen you up. When you get good at this, you should be able to place your palms flat on the floor when you bend over.
- Standing Torso Twists with Golf Club On Shoulders x 30. Place a golf club or broom stick on your shoulders and drape your hands over the ends. Twist slowly to the right and left. Do not over-rotate.
- Side Bends x 30. For this I like to hold a stability ball or towel overhead. Bend over to your right and feel the stretch in your lats and torso. There is some lateral movement in golf, and this will help prepare you for it.
- Table x 30 seconds. This one really stretches out your forearms and shoulders. It may look weird but its worth doing if you have hand issues. Sit on the ground with your hands behind you. The easier method is to have your fingers pointing forward towards your feet. The more difficult method is to point your fingers behind you. Raise up your hips so that your body forms a table. Pretend that people are serving drinks off your belly.
I would perform these daily, there is no overdoing any one of these. The basic movements are easy and will at most take 5 minutes before bed or when you first wake up in the morning.
Start preparing that foundation for harder workouts and MORE distance.
Chris
