Weight Training for Golfers to Improve Strength and Flexibility

Greg Norman may not be one of the most mentally tough golfers out there, but physically he is a specimen with tremendous talent. He owes a lot of it to a rigorous strength training program that includes squats and free weights. As baseball players learned years ago, the weights are your friend and they will not negatively affect your swing or cause you to become muscle bound and stiff. It actually increases your flexibility. The same is true for golfers who need weight training to increase performance as well as reduce the risk of injury and increase speed of recovery after injury.

According to a study performed by the South Shore YMCA, in which a group of golfers spent eight weeks performing one set of 8-10 reps of strength training exercises combined with flexibility without playing golf at all, the golfers reported a 24% increase in hip and shoulder flexibility along with a 5% increase in club head speed. They also reported a remarkable improvement in overall strength as well as how they felt, not to mention an improvement in how they looked.

For a professional golfer or a serious year round golfer you would divide your season up into the following categories in order to assess your exercise and fitness needs: early pre-season; late pre-season; in-season; and the closed season.

Let's start with the early pre-season. This is when you want to bulk up a little bit after your break. The goal is to increase functional strength and an increase in the number of muscle fibers. This will also help train your nervous system. During the late pre-season, you want to increase working on muscle mass as well as perform some heavier lifts with less reps for power with a goal of preparing yourself to unload as much force as quickly as possible to add length to your drive. This will help improve your speed as well as power.

During the heart of golf season, you will want to adjust to a maintenance mode where you stop pushing yourself and focus instead on maintaining the strength gains you made. You maintain the same number of sets and maybe increase your repetitions and possibly reduce the number of workout sessions from three a week to two. Always incorporate daily aerobic sessions of at least a half hour to maintain optimum mental health as well as endurance for those final holes. In the off season, you want to relax for a while, and than incorporate some very light weight training to slowly prepare yourself for the next early pre-season.

Based on my experience as a professional personal trainer with International Fitness Professional Association (IFPA), 24 hour Fitness, and Bally Total Fitness certifications, the following group of weight training exercises are optimal for golfers and should be performed three days per week. Any fitness professional at the gym can explain the following exercises if you need a definition. Never weight train two days in a row with the same muscle group since your muscles grow during the rest period. Just remember to adjust the weight, sets, and repetitions according to your seasonal needs - moderate weights of three sets and 8-10 reps for functional strength, one or two sets of 3-5 reps for power, and three sets of light weights of 12-14 reps for maintenance and flexibility.

Here's the exercise list. Remember to warm up for at least 5 minutes on a treadmill before and cool down for at 5 minutes following the routine.

-Dumbbell bent over rows with a barbell. Maintain a flat stable back as you bend over at 90 degrees and pull the barbell to your chest breathing out as you pull the weight up. This will help strengthen your back which is the base of your upper body's power and stability and can easily be thrown out playing golf.

-Dumbbell triceps extensions or push downs which can be done with a parallel bar or with a two pronged rope either by extending your arms out straight forward over your head or pressing straight down.

-Biceps arm curls with dumbbells, either one at a time or two at a time or with a machine.

-Dead lifts - standing straight up holding a weighted barbell and bending over with your back completely straight in a slow controlled manner. A great exercise for the often neglected hamstrings which are a major component in the power base that helps deliver the inertia for a great drive.

-Dumbbell bench presses to increase pectoral and triceps strength to help keep your upper body sturdy and firm during your swing

-Barbell squats (the king of lower body exercises). Should be done with a spotter and probably avoided initially until you're a more experienced lifter. Until than, the hack squat machine leg press machine will adequately build mass and power in your thighs.

-Cable wood chops (almost all gyms have a cable system and you can use these to imitate parts of your golf swing one arm at a time)

-Lat pull down to the front to strengthen the large muscles that flare out in your upper back (never perform these behind the back and keep your back still at all times to focus the tension on the lats).

-Reverse crunches which can be performed on a contraption where you place your legs under a pad and your abdomen is supported on a pad. With your hands behind your head you allow yourself to bend your head down and in a slow controlled motion raise your upper body to strengthen your lower back. The tension should be felt in your lower back, glutes, and hamstrings.

-Aerobic exercise - 30 minutes of exercise 4 to 5 times a week is a necessity for optimum mental health, focus, and endurance for those last few holes.

The final few repetitions should be hard but you should not lift to failure like a body builder. Also, a little soreness in the beginning is normal, and good. Your causing slight tears in your muscles which will repair themselves making them bigger and stronger. However, any sharp pain should cause you to terminate the exercise immediately. Remember to stretch, which could be another article. A trainer can give you some pointers, such as placing your hand on a beam or wall and leaning forwards to stretch your chest or lying flat on your back with your arms pointed straight backwards to stretch your back. Also, if you're serious about your golf game, don't get too caught up in the body building mentality and remember that you are training for functional strength and flexibility. Brute strength and bulging biceps are not an asset on the golf course.

Source -
Weight Training for Golf By Paul Rogers About.com