What Are the Best Exercises for the Golfer?
With all the talk about the players on tour getting stronger and more flexible, we hear a lot about exercising for golf from television commentators and read about it in the golf publications. But what exactly are the best exercises for the amateur golfer?
A great question that has a good answer, but before we give you the answer let us provide some background so the answer makes a little more sense to you. First of all, discussing the golf swing for the time being will get us rolling.
What exactly is the golf swing? The golf swing is an athletic movement that requires using of the entire body from "feet to fingertips" in order to complete the swing. Realize that the golf swing is not about the club, not just about your grip, or where your head is during the swing. The golf swing is a movement that requires your entire body to move through a sequence of movements with the correct timing. To perform the "athletic movement" of the golf swing requires the body to begin at address, move through the actual phases of the golf swing and complete it with the follow through. In order to perform this activity with efficiency and repetitively, the body must have certain physical parameters.
These parameters, as I call them, are actual physical categories of the body that need to be developed to a certain level. These categories of the body are the platform from which the body is able to perform the athletic movement of a golf swing efficiently. The categories are probably familiar to many of you, but for the purpose of this article let us briefly run through them.
The body is required to have certain levels of flexibility, balance, endurance, strength, and power to complete a golf swing. If the body lacks in any of the above categories, then the results will be seen in the golf swing. The results are usually in the form of poor mechanics, bad shots, or poor scores on the course. So, now that we know what the connection is between the "body" and the "swing" let us address the question about the best exercises for golf.
The Best Exercises for Golf
Let's say you walk into your local health club and see all the fancy machines and aerobic machines at the facility to get you shape. What ones would choose? Would you choose running on the treadmill for 30 minutes, or would it be better to push out a couple sets of bench presses? Well, the answer to our question really lies within the connection between your swing and your body.
I will tell you that exercises meant to "pump you up!" or give you that "six pack" are not necessarily the correct exercises for your golf game. Neither is that weight training program you used back in high school. So, with those thoughts in mind what do you think the best exercises for golf are?
Right now we know, in general terms about the golf swing, what is required of the body for the golf swing and what exercises are not good for the swing. Armed with that knowledge we can decipher what the best exercises for golf are for you.
Beginning with flexibility, we know that the entire body must move through certain ranges of motion to perform an effective golf swing. And what happens if your body is not able to move through the required ranges of motion of the golf swing? The answer: the golf swing will mechanically suffer resulting in shots that are less than optimal. So part of the exercises that are good for golfers are flexibility exercises and, even more so, flexibility exercises that work the muscles used in the golf swing through the movements involved in the golf swing. So first and foremost flexibility exercises should be on the top of your list.
The second category of exercises that would be conducive to the golf swing would have to do with balance. We hear about balance in reference to the golf swing all the time. "Stay balanced through the swing; transfer your weight to maintain balance during the swing…" But what does balance exactly mean? Balance is the ability to control your body through a specific movement pattern. The movement pattern we are discussing just happens to be the golf swing. We know the importance of balance in relation to the golf swing, so how do we train our body for better balance in the golf swing? Before we answer that question we need to know a little more about balance. Balance in relation to the body has to do with the connection between your nerves and muscles. Essentially your nervous system, as a result of messages sent from your brain, tells your muscles how to move to maintain the body's balance. The more efficient your nerves and muscles are to these messages the greater balance abilities the body develops. So balance exercises train both the nervous system and muscular system to become more efficient at this function. Summing it all up, balance is the second category of exercises that will assist your golf game.
The third category of exercises that are beneficial to golf have to do with your muscles. The golf swing requires the muscles of your body to move through a specific range of motion (flexibility) and help with your balance capacities. In order to perform these actions and others, your body needs certain levels of strength and endurance. The definition of strength is the ability of the muscles to exert force for the given "athletic action" (simplified definition but a good working definition for us). Endurance is the ability of your muscles to do the same activity over and over again for a specific amount of time.
First off, let us discuss strength. The golf swing has one intention of developing club head speed while maintaining balance through the swing. The muscles in your body must have enough strength in them to do both. Now, when we discuss building strength for the golf swing it is NOT the type of strength needed to bench press 250 lbs. Or squat 500! It is strength geared towards the improvement of your swing. I refer to this type of strength as "golf strength." So when you get to the gym, performing strength exercises like bench press will not help your swing. Exercises that train the body in the positions and through the movements of the golf swing will help your swing.
In addition to strength, we need to develop endurance in your muscles. Think of how many swings you may take over the course of 18 holes. In order for you to be able to swing the club the same way on the 18th hole as you did on the 1st hole. Your body has to have high levels of endurance. This will allow your body to perform the golf swing without getting tired. You develop endurance similar to how you develop "golf strength." Utilize exercises that train the body in the positions and through the movements of the golf swing. Lighter loads with higher repetitions will be used for these exercises. The end result will be the development of "golf endurance."
The final segment of exercises beneficial to your golf swing is power training. Power training is geared towards the ability of your body to generate high levels of club head speed. Power development by the body is what allows for greater distance on your shots. Clubs help, golf balls help, but it really comes down to the piece of machinery, your body, swinging those club and hitting those golf balls. Development of power for the golf swing is very similar to the development of "golf strength and endurance." It is the utilization of exercises that place your body in the positions and move you through movements similar to the golf swing.
Summary
So there you have it, the answer to the types of exercises best for the improvement of your golf swing. I think you now realize it is not one exercise, but a group of exercises that incorporate flexibility, balance, endurance, strength, and power. A combination of these exercises is what will enhance your golf swing. Looking for specific exercises? Take a look at our website www.bioforcegolf.com

Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the website www.bioforcegolf.com. Check out his manual and DVD, Your Body & Your Swing, on BioForceGolf.com. To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.


Putting and My Aching Back!
I am guessing that all of us can relate to the title of this article. I am sure you have bent over for that 4 footer (can't give you that 4 footer, sorry), and felt that lower back feel tired, sore, painful or tight. Regardless of what the word is, you feel it! I also am guessing that some of you have changed to belly putters for the reason that your back hurts when you putt! Even if you are one of those players that has switched to a belly putter because of back pain, that pain is an indicator of something else going on within the body. I am sure we could use the excuse: I am older now and that is just what happens; or maybe we use the "cave man excuse": humans just were meant to walk on two legs! Regardless of what excuse you use, there is a reason and solution to solve those lower back problems. Even if you don't realize it, the lower back that you feel when putting is also affecting the other parts of your game (i.e. driving, long irons, chipping, pitching, etc.) This article has the goal of explaining why your back is sore when you putt and what we can do to help alleviate the problem.
Why Does My Lower Back Ache?
Well, let me say this to start. If you are in agreement with the "caveman excuse" you are in the ballpark as to why the lower back begins to ache on the 12th or 13th green. Standing upright, which is a specific posture (keep that word "posture" in mind throughout this article), places stress on the lower back. When I say stress, I am talking about the muscles of your lower back working to support your body in a specific position. The same holds true for when you putt. You get behind the ball, line the putt up, look at the line, maybe crouch down, take a few practice putts, and then away you go. In all the actions described above, your lower back is actively working to maintain posture in all those positions. Do this little activity to give you an idea of what your back is doing all the time to support your body. Take your hand and make a fist. Squeeze that fist as hard as you can for one minute, no less, more if you can. Now relax. How do your hand and forearm feel? Pretty tired, huh, maybe stiff. What you just did is exactly what your lower back does all the time. It is constantly contracting to hold your body upright. After time it gets tired and the result is a sore, stiff, and tight lower back.
Up to this point we understand that the lower back is involved to a great extent in supporting the body. Now, how about when we move? Have you ever felt that back tighten up when you are getting out of a chair, and then you have to wait a second after you stand up before you start walking? Again, I will guess that the majority of us can answer yes to this question. This an example of a movement where the lower back is already fatigued, but nevertheless the lower back is now involved in moving the body, even though it is fatigued. When you walk, run, bend-over, turn, or rotate, your lower back is involved in the movement. The lower back gets a so-to-speak "double whammy" when it comes to what it does for the body. The lower back is involved in both supporting a position in which you place your body and also in the movement of the body. (If you need an example of how much the lower back works during the day, keep your fist clamped for a day, and see how your forearm feels the next day.) So at this point we know the reasons why our back is sore when we step over that 4 footer for birdie (sorry it is still not a gimme in my book, gotta be inside the leather). It is a twofold reason: number one has to do with posture, and number two with movement. Now that we know why our lower back gets sore or tight, how do we fix it?
How to Fix that Aching Lower Back
Before we describe ways to fix the lower back let us first give some suggestions to those who already have severe lower back problems. I would first suggest you see your personal physician. Always better safe than sorry. If you are someone who constantly has a sore lower back or you get up every morning with a stiff back, go see your doctor. You never know what might be going on in that lower back area. Quite possibly you may have a problem with a disk, a bone spur, or any number of serious lower back problems. I have seen a lot of these issues in my day, and I will say, number one, it always important to be under the supervision of a physician in such cases, and, number two, if you catch such lower back problems early they are much easier to treat than the ones that linger. So do yourself a favor and go see your physician before things get worse.
Now, on to how to help eliminate the lower back that tires on the back nine of your weekly round. We know from above that we are using the back "24-7" so to speak. Golfing requires the lower back to work even harder than normal. This is a result of the rotating, stabilizing, and power production required of the swing. The lower back is getting tired because it is neither strong enough nor does it have enough endurance within its muscles to support the activities you perform on a daily basis!
I am betting by now you have a pretty good idea of what to do to rid yourself of that lower back soreness. The lower back must become stronger and increase its endurance capacities. This will increase the durability of the lower back to withstand the stresses placed upon it during your daily activities. Strength can be defined as having enough force production with your muscles to perform a certain activity, and endurance is having enough energy in those muscles to do an activity over and over again. These are simplified definitions, but they work well for what we are talking about. Strength in relation to the lower back has to do with the ability to maintain postures. You must get the lower back strong enough to maintain the postures of the activities you participate in (i.e. golf). Endurance in the lower back is creating enough stored energy in the lower back muscles to do to whatever activity it is that you do over and over again without getting tired (i.e. golf swing).
The combination of strengthening the lower back and creating more endurance within these muscles creates the highest probability of the lower back staying healthy for all activities. The next question you probably have is: what are the proper exercises I should perform to get my back in better shape for golf? Take a look at our products at www.bioforcegolf.com for more information on this topic.
About the Author
Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the website www.bioforcegolf.com. Check out his manual and DVD, Your Body & Your Swing, (www.bioforcegolf.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=93) on BioForceGolf.com. To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.


Becoming an Ageless Golfer
It happens to all of us, even though we do not want to admit it. The reality is we all get older. Some of you may already know what I am talking about, and others may have yet to experience the phenomenon of aging. Those of you who are reading this article and are no longer "spring chickens" get my drift. Even if you are one of the lucky ones, still young, let me fill you in on what happens as the body gets a few miles on it.
Probably the biggest thing that we all dislike when we creep into our thirties and forties is the extra poundage (i.e. weight) we tend to put on. (It is also a lot harder to take off when we get older.) Unfortunately, because our metabolism slows down, we are unable to pound down a burger, fries, and a couple of cokes without the bathroom scale hitting "tilt" a few days later. In my mind, that probably is the most difficult adjustment we have to make: an adjustment in our nutrition intake as we age.
The second most noticeable difference as we age, especially for the more active individual, is it becomes a little more difficult to get out of bed. The back is a little sore, the knees are a little creaky, and, if you workout, the soreness does not go away as quickly. This is a result of a few things that happen to our bodies when we get older. Number one is we lose a percentage of our muscle mass on a yearly basis. After the age of 25 (don't quote me on the specifics, but I believe) about 1% of your muscle mass is lost per year. Makes sense now why we get a little sorer and getting out of bed is more difficult. We simply do not have as much muscle to do the work.
I could go on and on with the depressing facts of aging, but let us look at just one more before moving on. As you get older you become less flexible. It takes you a lot longer to "limber up" for any sporting activity: golf, tennis, or a pick up game of basketball. Less flexibility predisposes you to experience more difficulty with certain movements: touching your toes, rotating during a golf swing, or even reaching down to pick something up off the ground. Why does this occur? Our bodies, as a result of wear and tear, become more "tight" and "wound up" as we get older.
So there you have it! Some of the great things to look forward to as you get older (kidding of course). So if you're in your twenties and you're reading this article, "enjoy it while it lasts," because the road gets a little more difficult to travel as you get older. But, if you're beyond your twenties, I am sure you can relate to the general results of aging in relation to your golf game. Quite simply, extra pounds decrease your stamina (and may affect your swing plane). Less muscle equals less distance off the tee, and decreased flexibility tends to make the turn in the golf swing much harder to perform. An unfortunate situation, but the good news is that we can slow down the aging process and limit the effects of aging on your golf game.
Slowing Down the Aging Process for the Golf Swing
I have given you a little "carrot of information" that we can slow down the aging process. How do we do it? It is actually quite simple and only requires a little time out of each day (15-20 minutes) and a little discipline. Sounds pretty easy when you think of all the benefits you stand to gain. What we are going to do is provide you some answers on how to slow down the aging process. Remember we can't stop the aging process, but we can sure slow it down. The benefits of slowing down the aging process are evident when you see guys in their 50's winning tour events. It just takes a little time, some knowledge, and discipline. If you are saying, "I don't have the time," let me ask you one question: How would you like to feel 10 years younger right now and hit the ball farther then you did in your twenties? I imagine the answer to both of those questions would be a resounding yes!
Let us start with the first topic that we described when you get older, the additional pounds. Unfortunately, as you age your metabolism slows down. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the word metabolism, think of it as your own internal furnace. It is the rate at which you burn fuel (food is fuel to the human body). When we are younger we tend have faster metabolisms, and as we get older they slow down. (I know it is a bummer.) Well, let me tell you, there are activities to speed that metabolism back up. The way to do it is by performing some fitness activities. If you are active and participate in some type of structured activity your body will burn more fuel and elevate its metabolism during this time. In addition, if these activities are resistance-training activities (i.e. weights, tubing, light dumbbells, body weight), then over time you will build some muscle. The great thing about that is the more muscle you have the higher your metabolism will be all the time (translation: you will burn more fuel all day and night). A secondary benefit of such activities will be greater stamina on the course. So rather than "spraying your shots" around on the back nine because you're tired, you can have pinpoint accuracy going into the 18th.
Moving on to our second point, the loss of muscle mass as you age, this one is a tough one to swallow. Just think, we actually LOSE muscle as we age. Pretty depressing. The good news is it can be limited or stopped. Before I give you the solution, let's look at how this affects your golf swing. Essentially, in the golf swing you create club head speed. That club head speed is the result of creating rotational power, which we define as torque. To create torque, the muscles of the body have to be flexible, strong, and powerful. Now guess what? If you have less muscle, what do you think is going to happen to your power outputs and club head speed? The answer is they will decrease. No wonder they make senior shafts with a lot of flex. This is the golf manufacturers' attempt to deal with this problem. It helps to a point, but we have a better solution. How about putting something in your bag that makes you stronger, improves your power, and gets back that lost distance? Sounds good? Well, it can be done if you implement a golf-specific strength-training program. You can get back that lost muscle mass, get back that power, and improve your driving distance. This is what we call the development of "golf strength," and it can be done with a program that takes a total of 15 minutes a day!
Finally, moving on to the flexibility issue, our bodies lose flexibility as we age. Flexibility is a must when it comes to the golf swing. Here is what happens when you do not "work" on your flexibility. A loss of flexibility in the golf swing limits the ability of the body to perform the correct actions to create the proper swing. Essentially, your body won't allow you to take the club back and through on the correct swing path. This leads to miss hits, slices, hooks, and a whole bunch of other shots that are very unpleasant. So how do we fix this problem or not allow it to become a problem? The answer is to implement a golf-specific flexibility program. This again requires a daily commitment, but the time frame is very little (say 5 minutes a day). So again, ask yourself: Is it worth spending 5 minutes a day on flexibility to have the golf swing you would like? I bet most of you would answer yes.
The Magic Pill
Well, there you have the pleasures, displeasure, joys, and sorrows of the aging process. We all get older, but there are things we can do to prevent the displeasures and sorrows. If we take a little time every day and perform the proper exercises and activities, we can reduce the effects of aging and have a great swing for as long as we like. That's the only magic pill we know of. If you would like more information on this subject and how to go about improving your golf fitness, take a look at our web site at www.bioforcegolf.com.
Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2004 Masters Champion Phil Mickelson. He has made many of his golf tips, golf instruction and golf swing improvement techniques available to amateur golfers on the website www.bioforcegolf.com. Check out his manual and DVD, Your Body & Your Swing, on BioForceGolf.com. To contact Sean, you can email him at support@bioforcegolf.com.