The Best Exercise for Golf
By Tony Colesano, LATC CSCS PES
“What’s the best exercise for golf?” This is one of the most common questions asked of fitness professionals by golfers. “If there was one exercise I could do to help me improve my game, what would it be?” Dumbell exercises to strengthen my arms? Crunches to strengthen my core? Leg press to strengthen my legs? How about a good stretch? Everyone wants to find that quick, easy, simple exercise to play better. They’re seeking that secret trick to get the competitive edge. The typical response from fitness experts on that question would be, “There is no such thing as a quick fix. You need to make a commitment to a regular exercise routine. You need to incorporate stretching, a strength routine, cardiovascular exercise, and you need to eat well. Once you have faithfully executed this well rounded approach over a 6 to 8 week period, you’ll see results and you’ll be playing much better golf.” Although this is true, something very interesting happened a few years back which changed my answer to that question. I now believe there is one best exercise for golfers.
Consider this scenario. You’re late for your very early tee time. Your buddies are honking the horn in your driveway. Your frantic rush to get ready, grab your clubs, and get out the door has left you tense and anxious. As you arrive at the course, check in, and climb up to the first tee box with your bed-head and your shirt on inside out, you reach up high with a yawn and a stretch to the sky like a cat getting up from a nap. You place your driver behind your neck and, while holding on to each end of the club with your hands and standing upright, you rapidly twist from right to left to prepare for your swing. A shake of your head, a few twists of your grip, and you’re ready to tee off. As you prepare to strike the ball in your stance and mentally initiate your swing, you step back like a batter asking for time when the pitcher takes too long. OK…now you’re ready. You step back up with extreme confidence that today is going to be the day. You master your stance, take a slow deep breath, squint at the ball, and here you go. A slow steady backswing with professional poise followed by … a rusty, jerky downswing and a worm-burner to the ladies tee.
Does any of this sound familiar? For many golfers, it describes a very common occurrence. Golfers typically do not warm up before they initiate a round of golf. Because of this neglect, it takes a few holes and about the first 20 swings to finally get warmed up. Warming up means exactly that — actually increasing the tissue temperature of your muscles. What would your partner say if she saw you drop your clubs at the first tee box and take a lap around the first three holes before teeing off? There’s no doubt about it; it is tough to do on the golf course. Stretching is more commonly done, yet still scarce.
In the scenario described above, those twists with the club behind the neck (as pictured below in image 1 and 2) are probably one of the more common pre-game warm-up and stretch routines for golf. Some golfers do this or will reach all over with their arms for 10 to 20 seconds before they play ? mostly to look as if they’re getting ready. Let’s face it, 10 to 20 seconds of what looks like some sort of minor standing seizure cannot be very effective in helping your golf game or preventing injury while playing golf. Although the Upright Twist shown here does have some benefits, it is not recommended. The position it places the shoulders in is awkward, unnatural, and straining on the rotator cuff muscles. It also encourages an unnatural forward head position. Most importantly though, it is not sport-specific.
Let’s analyze the above scenario even further. So you dub the first drive, and now you’re grumpy. You ignore your partners’ compassionate comments, and you stomp ahead to your ball at the ladies’ tee. Your partner steps on the gas of the cart for half a second, moves the cart about three feet forward and slams on the brakes, reminding you of how far your impressive first drive went. You rush the next shot and off it goes into the woods. As your partner covers his or her mouth to hide laughter, you curse under your breath as you unzip your bag to get another ball. This comedy continues until you reach the fifth tee when, magically and suddenly, your swing returns, and you play happily ever after for the next 14 holes.
So, who was that playing the first four holes? Because it certainly wasn’t you. You showed who you were from 5 to 18. Why is it that, even though you did your little spazzy pre-game upright twist routine, you couldn’t find your swing until the fifth hole?
When I had just started working with a larger population of golfers, I established a philosophy which I felt very confident in and which had been producing great results for my clients. The workouts I put golfers through incorporated all the components of fitness in a unique and interesting way ? to keep my clients inspired and motivated while yielding results. In an effort to stay current with the industry, I did my research and continuing education. “Sport specific” exercise was a hot topic in the fitness industry at the time. Every continuing education event that I attended addressed ways of incorporating sport-specific exercise into traditional fitness routines. My interest and success in training golfers influenced me to come up with some sport-specific exercise for golfers. So I started thinking about the game of golf and the physical demands placed on a golfer’s body. I tackled it from so many different funky angles. In an attempt to make a workout sport-specific, I thought, for golfers maybe the workout should be four hours long, like a round of golf (but what golfer wants to give up all that golf time?). Or maybe I should have 18 exercises and do three sets with some, four sets with others, and maybe a few with five sets (that was craziness too!). Of course these were all unreasonable. Then I finally focused in on the swing and the mechanics of it. Once I started concentrating on the golf stance and, more particularly, the spine angle (as seen below in images 3 and 4), it all came together.
To improve your golf swing, golfers should swing in a plane that maintains a specific spine angle. This means that the angle of lean from the hips (with a rigid and stable trunk) should be maintained as the golfer swings from backswing to follow-through, in order to maintain a desired ball strike clubface position. If and when the spine angle is maintained, a greater degree of rotation can be achieved, which yields faster clubhead speed and longer shot distance. If the spine angle is at all compromised, the degree of rotation is limited or cheated, the clubhead speed is decreased, and the distance the ball travels is affected. In addition, consistency of how the clubface kisses the ball is compromised and results in significant unpredictability of where the ball goes. I know, this is all too technical. The following is a more simple description of why spine angle is important to your swing.
Spine Angle Twist (seen below) is an equal rotation right to left, without regard for the concept of backswing and follow-through. It is an exercise performed to increase a golfer’s ability to rotate the spine in a golf stance spine angle. It should be used to give the body the ability to rotate through a larger range than demonstrated in a golf swing. This gives a golfer the ability to swing a golf club without restriction or stiffness from either end of their swing, allowing golfers to establish consistency and control. The result is increased clubhead speed, longer drives, consistent ball striking, decreased risk of injury and, most importantly, a more pleasant and satisfactory round of golf. It is important, and admittedly difficult, to avoid mimicking the golf swing while performing the spine angle twist. Remember that your goal with the exercise is to warm up and stretch the spine in the plane in which you will swing the golf club. I consider this exercise the best exercise for golfers because of its instant impact on improved performance.
The next time you schedule an early tee time, make sure you set your alarm clock the night before. Put your shirt on right side out. Buy your foursome a light and healthy breakfast. Step up to the first tee box with confidence. Then Spine Angle Twist away to make your first drive feel like your typical fifth drive.
Whenever someone asks me, “What’s the best exercise to get rid of my gut?” I respond with “Pushaways.” A quick and simple answer to a very common question. “Pushaways? What are those?” they ask. And I respond sarcastically with, “Pushaways from the table!” I then explain how eating too much is typically the problem ? however, the best way to lose your gut is to implement a balanced program of strength, cardio, and healthy nutrition… blah… blah… blah. I go on to say that there is no such thing as a quick fix with fitness, and never a one-exercise cure for anything. EXCEPT, I have found that the Spine Angle Twist has an incredibly instant and magical impact on improving a golfer’s ability to swing the golf club and hit the ball farther. It’s practical. It’s simple. It doesn’t take long. It prevents injury. It enhances performance. You don’t need to go to the gym. Anyone can do it.
Tony Colesano is a Fitness and Sports Medicine Professional with numerous certifications and has been working in the health and fitness industry for over 15 years. He is the Director of Fitness at the Country Club at New Seabury, President of Crescendo Sport and Fitness, Inc., and a Certified Orthotic Fitter with Surgi-Care, Inc. Tony offers sports training and conditioning services as well as injury consulting to individuals, groups, and teams. For more information on Tony and his services, visit his website at www.sportandfitness.org or call him directly at 508.241.2939.
*Remember to Consult with a Physician Prior to Initiating this
or any Exercise Program
Consider this scenario. You’re late for your very early tee time. Your buddies are honking the horn in your driveway. Your frantic rush to get ready, grab your clubs, and get out the door has left you tense and anxious. As you arrive at the course, check in, and climb up to the first tee box with your bed-head and your shirt on inside out, you reach up high with a yawn and a stretch to the sky like a cat getting up from a nap. You place your driver behind your neck and, while holding on to each end of the club with your hands and standing upright, you rapidly twist from right to left to prepare for your swing. A shake of your head, a few twists of your grip, and you’re ready to tee off. As you prepare to strike the ball in your stance and mentally initiate your swing, you step back like a batter asking for time when the pitcher takes too long. OK…now you’re ready. You step back up with extreme confidence that today is going to be the day. You master your stance, take a slow deep breath, squint at the ball, and here you go. A slow steady backswing with professional poise followed by … a rusty, jerky downswing and a worm-burner to the ladies tee. 
occurrence. Golfers typically do not warm up before they initiate a round of golf. Because of this neglect, it takes a few holes and about the first 20 swings to finally get warmed up. Warming up means exactly that — actually increasing the tissue temperature of your muscles. What would your partner say if she saw you drop your clubs at the first tee box and take a lap around the first three holes before teeing off? There’s no doubt about it; it is tough to do on the golf course. Stretching is more commonly done, yet still scarce.
the concept of backswing and follow-through. It is an exercise performed to increase a golfer’s ability to rotate the spine in a golf stance spine angle. It should be used to give the body the ability to rotate through a larger range than demonstrated in a golf swing. This gives a golfer the ability to swing a golf club without restriction or stiffness from either end of their swing, allowing golfers to establish consistency and control. The result is increased clubhead speed, longer drives, consistent ball striking, decreased risk of injury and, most importantly, a more pleasant and satisfactory round of golf. It is important, and admittedly difficult, to avoid mimicking the golf swing while performing the spine angle twist. Remember that your goal with the exercise is to warm up and stretch the spine in the plane in which you will swing the golf club. I consider this exercise the best exercise for golfers because of its instant impact on improved performance.