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Golf Conditioning Program

Allen’s Authority in Fitness and Human Performance…

Golf Conditioning for the Golfing Athlete

Every golfer wants to play better golf, and golf is a highly athletic event!  The most common method used to achieve this goal is a combination of professional lessons and more practice.  Although this approach seems logical, it is the very reason many golfers end up injured and rarely reach their golfing potential.  Why?  It’s simple, few golfers associate the need for improved physical conditioning with their quest for improved performance.

Fitness Together approaches golf conditioning in a truly sport specific manner.  Our program is built entirely upon the principles of functional exercise.  Unlike exercise programs developed upon a bodybuilding format, toning, or upon muscle isolation exercises, functional exercises are designed to restore balance, flexibility, strength, and coordinate movements.  The human brain does not think in terms of isolated muscles.  Instead, it recruits groups of muscles in uniquely programmed sequences.

A golfer’s conditioning program must be designed to integrate the whole body.

The FT Four Phases of Training

There are 4 physical factors that must be addressed in order to help the golfing athlete.  The 1^st is flexibility, the 2^nd is stability, the 3^rd is strength and endurance.  And the 4^th is power.  It is important to address these factors in the correct order.

The 1^st phase in the FT golf-conditioning program is to improve flexibility, as this is the catalyst for all subsequent aspects of golf-conditioning.  Stretching allows the development and maintenance of optimal joint range of motion in the golfer’s body.

Poor flexibility alters the body’s biomechanics, progressively disrupting their swing.  In other words, optimal joint range of motion is a prerequisite of the golf swing.

The 2^nd phase is stability.  What exactly does stability mean, and how does it apply to the game of golf?  There are 2 key types of stability.  The 1^st is the ability to remain in a static position without losing good structural alignment.  The 2^nd type is the ability to keep all working joints in alignment during any given movement.  When you have inadequate postural stability, you have a poor chance of reproducing a consistent swing.

The 3^rd phase is strength training and endurance and can be enhanced using functional movement patterns that will readily transfer to the game of golf.  The need for strength and endurance can’t be overstated.

Finally the 4^th phase is to develop power.  The more power a golfer can transfer from his or her body through the club to the ball, the farther he or she will be able to drive.  Any attempts to improve golf strength and power without first restoring flexibility and stability will result in muscle imbalance and more likely lead to injury!

To start an aggressive approach to your goals, we recommend working out 3 times a week with your trainer