Do Golfers Workout?

One of the widespread beliefs about golf is that it is a low-impact sport, with low loads and, therefore, a relatively low risk of suffering muscle injuries. This may be because a large part of the population practices it as a leisure activity, including amateurs, the elderly and other people who use it as a rehabilitation therapy, since it is also recommended for patients who have suffered joint pathologies.

This belief often begs the question: do golfers workout?

Golfers need to workout to improve their performance. The back, posture, concentration, etc. play an important role in golf practice.

In addition, the game combines multiple actions, such as walking, standing to swing and hitting the ball and one of the most important aspects for a good golf practice is to control the precision and the distance of the shot.

Considering these factors, it is clear that strength training and physical abilities greatly benefit the development of performance in golf.

Here’s our explanation of how workout helps golfers improve their performance and what exercises they include in their daily workout!

Why Do Golfers Workout?

More Performance and Fewer Injuries

In the practice of golf, as in that of any sport, it is convenient to take into account the minimization of risks. Back and shoulder injuries are all too common for practitioners of this sport. Good posture and an excellent state of joints and muscles will be of great help in prevention and, probably, in improving sports performance.

The most common injuries in golf include epicondylitis, sprains, pain in the knees, back and rotator cuff, tendonitis, and carpal tunnel syndrome, to name a few. Although adopting preventive measures is important to improve performance, some of the main reasons for these injuries include lack of core strength or flexibility, insufficient warm-up, and overuse of certain muscle groups.

The evidence indicates positive relationships between the golf score and the power of the legs. Other aspects, such as high lift or grip strength with the dominant and non-dominant arm, trunk rotation speed, and general muscle strength, improve overall results in this sport. These improvements would include increased shot, ball, club, and ball speed.

Posture and Breathing

Both the postural part and, especially, the respiratory part reduce the pressures in many parts of our body, ensuring that pressure increases are managed effectively and minimize risks.

A standing person with very pronounced spinal curves bears more pressure on some parts of their intervertebral discs than if these curves are less pronounced.

Nerve structures will be excessively compressed and may be the source of problems such as sciatica, low back pain, bulges and herniated discs. As golf requires prolonged standing, these increases in disc pressure are a source of pain on too many occasions because they press on important nerve structures. Golf practice is most likely to accentuate this increase in pressure.

One of the protection mechanisms is the synergy of the muscles involved in preserving these structures through exercise. The deep stabilizing muscles provide firmness, and this synergy is necessary to have effective security in actions.

Joint Stability and Mobility

Muscle training manages to give stability to the joints. A lax shoulder musculature predisposes to destabilization that is a source of injury. The training that provides joint stability is important to avoid this problem, and strength training is essential.

Rigid joints with little mobility are highly likely to be injured in sudden or large-amplitude movements such as those necessary in the practice of golf. Little mobility implies excessive coaptation, more risk of injury and less effectiveness in the gesture. Achieving decoupling of the joints is necessary to avoid these problems and to nourish and regenerate the joints effectively.

More Swing Speed

More strength in the muscles means more power and precision in the shot and less fatigue at the end of the match. In golf, increased power translates into more shot speed. A good level of muscle training also helps prevent injuries and trauma that can affect the back.

Tone the Muscles Used in Swinging

The arms, triceps, and forearm muscles play a decisive role in a solid and controlled shot and hitting the ball with speed and precision. And to raise the club, the traps, deltoids and rhomboids are the used muscles. The oblique crunches, for example, are critical to ensuring a tight, controlled torso twist that any golfer should have. It is necessary to do a strength workout to tone the muscles used in golf swinging.

Recommended Exercises

Although many exercises are of interest for improving sports performance in golfers, let’s discuss the ones that can benefit golfers the most.

In the practice of all the exercises, breathing follows these guidelines:

• inhale in two seconds,
• exhale in four and
• repeat three times,
• after the last, try to open the ribs without air, slowly and progressively, to maintain expiratory apnea for 6 to 30 seconds, depending on your ability

Below are the exercises that improve respiratory parameters, reduce anxiety, improve concentration, and prepare the muscles for the efforts required by playing golf. The objective is to reinforce and strengthen your body’s core, the central axis, to achieve good stability, improving flexibility and the rotation capacity of the body.

• Split Squat: The first of these exercises is a squat that will allow you to work on mobility, stability and strength in the lower body.
• The Upside-Down or Dead Bug Exercise: This exercise is excellent for working the abdominal region and lower back. Strength is needed to effectively transfer power from the lower body to the upper body on the golf swing.
• Chest Push-Ups: Push-ups, when done right, are a great help in golf swing work.
• Pelvic and Hip Rotation: This exercise prepares the muscles of the trunk for a rotation movement. This will help preserve the rotation when you return to the courts.
• Upper Body Rotation: These muscles help keep the back in a good upright position and allow the spinal column to rotate.

Both the upper and lower body must be well-toned, and above all, a good stretch before starting each round of 18 holes is essential to avoid injuries.

Conclusion

We hope the information above has answered your question, ‘Do golfers workout’? Golfers need to work out, specifically, strength exercises because it provides more strength to the specific muscles used in golf swinging, which means more power and precision in the shots, more speed and fewer injuries and trauma that can affect the back.