Golf Requires Rotational Strength and Flexibility-How to Increase Both

Most golfers, from scratch to casual took up golf with an inner vision of emulating their favorite pro golfer standing on the tee, winding up for a drive and letting it rip. There's a feeling of inner delight and pure satisfaction all golfers long to feel again and again when the club and ball "connect" sending the ball lofting down the center of the fairway. It's pure bliss. It's joy. It's addicting! However, much of what sets limitations on golfers ability to "hit the sweet spot" and create that beautiful loft has to do with their fitness level. The easier it is to torque or turn their body against resistance, the longer the drive. Tiger Woods taught us about that.

In pre-Tiger days, most pro golfers had fair to average fitness levels. Most were not thought of as "athletes" in the purest sense of the word regarding their fitness. In the years since Tiger emerged, most pro golfers who weren't fit, adopted a health conscious and fitness lifestyle. But, what most pro golfers already had was an ability to wind up and swing with power through their drive. The muscles used for most golf swings are located within the upper torso of the body, namely the shoulders, waist and back. Tightness and/or weakness in these key areas can greatly hamper a golfer's fairway results.

Don't wait until you are standing on the first tee to think about preparing your muscles. Practice the following easy-to-do exercises. They will yield good results in both increased strength and flexibility. The first one is called Wall Twist. It will help you increase your trunk and shoulder flexibility.

Stand with your back to a wall with your feet hips' distance apart. You should be about twelve inches from the wall. Hold your palms in front of your chest. Without moving your feet, slowly rotate from your waist around to face the wall, trying to touch your palms to the wall. Pause at your farthest point for a count of 20 seconds. Do not strain. Return to your starting position. Repeat the stretch turning the other way. Work up to 5 wall twists each direction holding each one for 20-30 seconds.

The second exercise is a strength builder. It's called Medicine Ball Rotation. Sit on a mat on the floor or a straddle a bench. Hold a medicine ball at your waist line with both hands. Lean back about 30 degrees. Slowly turn the upper torso as far as you can reaching the medicine ball downward. Contract your abdominals muscles as you rotate. Pause and return to the center. Go the other way. Work up to 3 sets of fifteen repetitions.