Will lifting weights help you hit the ball further? Strength training for golf has been an interesting topic of discussion lately and we are going to show you how to build your workouts so you can hit the ball farther and stay injury free.
Being strong is never a weakness, and pro golfers like Rory Mcllroy and Bryson DeChambeau wouldn’t be spending time in the weight room if it weren’t going to give them an edge over the competition.
For the average golfer, strength training needs to focus on more than hitting a long drive. Their program needs to emphasize overall strength and general fitness.
Here is an example of a well-structured lower-body workout that will help golfers drive the ball further, improve their fitness, and avoid injury.
WARM-UP
- 3 Rounds
- 1-min Bike
- 10 x 90/90’s (each leg)
- 10 x Banded Backswing/Follow Through Steps
This warm-up accomplishes three goals; it elevates your heart rate, gets your muscles firing, and mimics basic movement patterns you will see in the weight room and on the golf course.
STRENGTH
- Box Squat
- 5 sets of 5 reps
Squatting is an essential movement to building overall strength. Box squats are beneficial exercises because they place additional focus on your hamstrings/glutes and quads and controls your range of motion, which reduces any risk of injury.
CONDITIONING
- 4 Rounds
- 200m Run
- 20 x Reverse Lunges
- 12 x Bent Over Rows
- 10 x V-ups
- 1-minute Rest
Creating a base of conditioning is vital to performance and longevity in all aspects of life. The more you focus on conditioning in the weight room, the less chance you have of your swing breaking down on the back nine while the rest of your group is fatiguing.
ACCESSORY
- 3 Sets
- 10 x Band Distracted Box Step-ups (each leg)
- 10 x Single Leg Crossbody Dumbbell RDL (each leg)
- 30-sec Side Plank w/ Twist and Reach (each side)
Post-workout accessory movements should complement the training session’s focus and be specific to the sport you are trying to improve. For example, the band distracted box step-ups are a perfect movement to promote stability in your knees while training the sensation of moving your weight from one side to the other in a golf swing and creating force through the ground.
MOBILITY
- 60-sec Pretzel
- 60-sec Couch Stretch
- 90-sec Frog Stretch
Working on your range of motion is crucial to improving your golf swing, avoiding/eliminating pain, and aiding in recovery. Each session in the weight room should finish with stretches that will help break up tight tissues worked over the past hour and address specific limitations that your body holds.
As a coach, my job is to help people like you assess their fitness and design a program to their specific needs. A fitness assessment is like a club fitting, and you should walk away with a plan that’s been customized to you.