May 11, 2016
As fitness professionals we see clients who need sport specific training to keep them strong and injury free. In many parts of the country golfers are starting to hit the course this time of year. Arm your golfing clients with the exercises that will keep them golfing all season.
I have found that golfers, in particular, love their sport so much they spend a lot of hours and money on the golf courses attempting to perfect their swing, fine-tune their skills and lower their score. But…
…..very few gung-go golfers spend any time on improving their basic physical conditioning which ultimately, will improve their overall golf game.
The reality is the golf swing is a very complex, explosive and unnatural movement placing significant stresses and torque on the body parts involved. Because of the nature of the sport, golfers are at a high risk for developing overuse injuries to the muscles, tendons, ligaments and joint structures particularly in the low back, hip and shoulder areas. Professional golfers are injured on average twice a year and amateur golfers once a year, with the most common injury sites being the wrist (27%), back (24%), elbow (23%), shoulder (8%) and knee (7%). Most of these injuries are the result of the repetitive nature of practice swings, combined with a poor warm-up and weak trunk, shoulder and wrist muscles. The stronger, better-conditioned golfer will be less susceptible to injury and will recover more quickly after an injury. That’s where you come in! A good golf conditioning program will incorporate balance exercises, full body rotational movements and a stretching program that increases a golfer’s ability to rotate at the spine.
Try these exercises with your golfer clients!
Read more on Exercises for Strong Clients – Golfing…