Easy Exercises To Improve Your Golf Game Have you gotten sloppy when it comes to hitting the ball? Do you experience aches and pains in your body every time you go golfing? Then there must be things you are not doing right or you just take certain things for granted. Want to know what? Exercise and your health. And this is one of the most important factors of playing golf! Exercise is great for your body as it helps you relax, lose weight, stay fit, agile and healthy. No doubt golf is a form of exercise, but there are other exercises that you should do, to improve your game of golf. It is very critical to develop neuromuscular efficiency and work on your balance, mobility and flexibility to become a good player.To help you become a better and healthier golfer, try out these exercises Stretching exercises Get in the habit of doing a few stretching exercises before every round of golf. Here are some of the suggested stretching exercises: •
Stand up straight, flex your upper body (from the hip up) towards the left with arms stretched out and then to the right.
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Get into a stride position, place your hands on your right thigh let your back knee drop towards the floor while you stretch both arms over your head.
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Sit in a squat position, knees open and lift both your hands over your head. Stand up for a while, maintaining that position, then slowly stretch arms back to your sides.
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Twist the torso towards your flexed knees and hold the position for a while.
Some of these exercises are also great warm ups before a golf game. Remember to repeat exercises in the set of 5 or 10 keeping your strength and stamina in mind. Consult your health professional before doing any of the above exercises. Shoulder exercises The shoulder is a part of your body structure that is heavily involved in all phases of golf. •
Try rotating your shoulders to the left and then to the right as often as possible. This exercise will help you manage your stance during golfing.
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Lie on your right side with bent knees, palms clasped and arms straight in front of you. With your knees on the ground, rotate your upper body in the other direction and repeat the same move to the left and right sides.
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And be sure to balance yourself while you are at it. With this exercise early release and scoop will be a thing of the past and in no time you will be able to put the holes and hit the targets.
Please note, you should consult your doctor before doing any shoulder exercises; so as not to further strain the shoulders. Take brisk walks every now and then While playing on the golf course, you will constantly have to walk from one point to another. So, it is invariably an important and basic exercise for all golfers. Whenever you can, ditch the ride and take short distance walks around your neighborhood. Back strengthening exercises Golf players who aren’t doing adequate back exercises are likely to have problems with their swing as this will affect your posture not to mention the excruciating back pains you’ll experience. Carry out these simple exercises to strengthen your back. •
Bend forward at the hips and touch the floor with your fingers.
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Step into a stride position and extend your left leg then lift your right arm, rotate the spine and head and maintain this position for 10 seconds.
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Lay flat on your back
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Stand with legs together, hands hanging loose by your sides and lean backwards, hold the position for about five seconds then come back up
In addition to these exercises, use GSRN's Timing Improver. This program lets you practice indoor and master the technique of swing. All you need is three minutes every day and you will notice the difference. Balance exercises Most of the common flaws amateur golfers experience is the result of poor posture. This can cause lower back pain as well as pain in the wrist and elbow. Inability to maintain good posture can also lead to mishits. This is not all, it becomes difficult to hook the ball and you end up blocking the ball. You hit the ball from inside sending it in the wrong direction. This can be prevented through exercises that strengthen the abdomen (lower parts of the body) and the gluts. Two easy exercises that you can try are: •
Stand feet together looking straight, bend your knees slightly, to remove any tension and stay in the position for a while
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In the above position, lean forward a little and shift the center of gravity to the mid foot instead of the heels. This will also open the chest and allow the natural flow of air.
Do these exercises as often as possible toenhance your balance, once again checking with your health professional beforehand. Bending exercises to improve golf posture
To get the powerful swing it is very important to do some bending exercises to improve the club grip and get powerful swings. Some easy to do bending exercises are: •
Bend forward at the hips, flex your knees slightly.
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You can also bend forward at the hips a little beyond your normal golf posture.
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Next, hold dumbbells in front of your thighs with your palms facing each other then slowly raise the dumbbells to the side and then up.
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Finally, slow back down to pre-stretching position.
This can be done a couple of time during each week from the comfort of your home and the only equipment needed cost less than $10. See how convenient that is? (Consult your health care professional prior to using the above exercises.)
Arm strengthening exercises Without a good grip on the club you can hurt yourself and others if it accidentally slips out of your hands. Beside that, you are bound to hit and miss more often than you would want if you lack the necessary arm strength. Here are some arm strengthening exercises: •
Let your right arm hang loose while you swing it in a circular motion, do this about ten times and then do the same with the left arm.
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Lie face down on a bench, keep your upper shoulders off the bench and raise your hands to form L, Y, W and T shapes.
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Get down on all fours with your right hand behind your head, your elbows pointing to the sides, then rotate the shoulder till it point towards the ceiling.
Early release Early release,also known as scoop the club. A common cause of early release in amateur golfers is elbow and back pain that the golfer may be suffering from. Scoop the club happens if the lead wrist releases too quickly during the downswing.The downswing is often dominated by the upper body during the swing. Lack of stability and mobility in the lower bodycan cause upper body domination which results in loss of power and inconsistent shots and toe hits. NB. It’s very important you seek medical advice prior to using any of the techniques and excersizes suggested in this publication.