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Score a Hole in One with Harpers Fitness
09-Jun-09
As the summer approaches and the nice weather draws in, wannabe golfers will be dusting off their clubs, slipping into their checked golfing trousers and teeing off in the sunshine. If you aspire to be the next Tiger Woods but don’t have the golfing know-how, Harpers Fitness has some great advice that will help you to tee off in the right direction.
Golf is a great way of keeping fit and healthy but before you have visions of hitting a birdie on the 18th at Augusta, your first port of call should be your local Harpers Fitness centre.
Harpers Fitness has developed a golf performance programme to whip all aspiring green jacket winners into shape. The programme is designed to improve golfing technique and skills whilst also providing the level of health and fitness that is required to enjoy the pleasures of a round of eighteen holes. The programme will also provide great golfing tips and advice along the way.
David Coulthard, Harpers Fitness health and fitness manager said, “Golf is a fantastic way to keep fit and healthy and enjoy the great outdoors. There are some easy tips for people to improve their technique and get more out of a round of golf.”
“The key message is core stability and strength whilst in a stretched position. This is vital to an injury free round of golf. There are some easy tips and exercises which can help develop this strength and stability.”
Some key tips and exercises are detailed below.
Develop good core stability & flexibility through a range of functional exercises:
Lying on the floor and completing crunches will not help, but doing lunges with a wood chop will do you the world of good! Do this by lunging forwards with your left leg whilst rotating a medicine ball from right to left and over your front knee. The heavier and harder you move the ball the more your core has to stabilise and decelerate the movement.
Progress the range of movement and your flexibility will begin to develop. Having the strength throughout the entire range of motion will mean you have a co-ordinated and stable swing, this is what is known as mo-stability (motion-stability).
Flexibility in the shoulder joint is essential:
Poor flexibility in the shoulder joint can lead to injury and a terrible swing. You can develop flexibility by using a cable machine and completing single arm chest presses or single arm rows whilst in a lunge position.
Cable training allows the trainer to put maximum tension through the stabilising muscles resulting in mo-stability. Shoulder pressing above your head will also aid in generating greater motion for the shoulder joint.
Transferring your body weight from right to left or left to right: (dependent on swing preference)
Wide stance lunges whilst rotating your arms will stretch and wake up the muscles surrounding the hips. By doing lunges with wood chops and overhead arm throws you not only develop strength and length around the hips but you also build core strength.
Kettlebell swings:
This is a great method of training for golf. Swing a kettlebell low, through your legs and up to above your head. Replace the kettlebell with a medicine ball and swing the ball back over your head so you’re reaching back. This is a good exercise to build core strength.
For information on your local Harpers Fitness gym please visit www.harpersfitness.co.uk where customers can download details of the latest golf performance programme.
