Golf is a sport that requires many fitness components. Strength, power, swing speed, agility, stability, range of motion and balance are but a few that come to mind.
I thought I would start the first article off with 4 key exercises that are going to target both core and trunk stability in addition to balance. Your ability to maintain control using the hips, leg strength and trunk muscles are paramount to making good consistent shots off the tee or on the green.
The following exercises are easy to incorporate into a general fitness regimen or do alone either at the beginning of the day or as a break from your work. If you don’t have a half BOSU ball, the ground is fine. Most gyms have this piece of equipment as part of the gym arsenal.
Bosu
Static Novice
Upper Body Exercises
Elbow Plank
Place your elbows on the soft dome of the Bosu.
Raise your hips off the floor until your body is straight as a plank and feet shoulder width apart.
Contract your abdominals to maintain this plank position.
Hold this plank position as long as you can without forfeiting technique.
Do not let your hips drop or upper body sag into your shoulder.
Side Plank
Lie sideways with one elbow on the soft dome of the Bosu; bend your knees behind your body.
Raise your hips off the floor until your body is straight as a plank.
Contract abdominals to maintain this plank position.
Hold this plank position as long as you can without forfeiting technique.
Do not let the upper body sag into your shoulder.
Lower Body Exercises
¼ Squat
Stand on the platform side of the Bosu with your feet hip width apart.
Using a wall for support, squat down about six inches and hold there.
Let go of the wall and work to maintain your balance.
Your goal is to maintain your balance for one minute without holding onto the wall.
Split Squat – ¼ Squat
Stand with one foot on the platform side of the Bosu.
Bend your back leg slightly..
Using a wall for support, squat down about six inches and hold there.
Let go of the wall and work to maintain your balance.
Switch legs.
Your goal is to maintain your balance for one minute without holding onto the wall.
Perform each exercise 2-3 sets.
Frequency: 2 x per week, 2-3 days in between each session.
Good luck. Regularly incorporating these into your fitness regimen will go a long way to establish a great base of support and ultimately better performance on the course.
For more information and detailed programming for sport, fitness and health in general please visit Dave Smit at www.320fit.com or via email at [email protected]