When most people think of exercise for golf, they think of doing a few stretches and maybe walking, to build endurance. Flexibility and endurance is important for golf, but these types of exercises don’t work on your core muscles; those muscles that are deep within your abdominals, back and hips.  Neglecting your core muscles can increase your chances of injury if you practice or play a lot of golf.  Due to the repetitive nature of the golf swing, you’ll end up over-using the wrong muscles risking injury.

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that all adults do some sort of  functional fitness training — core-strengthening exercises that mimic everyday activities, such as bending and lifting — in addition to cardio conditioning.  For golfers, functional fitness should strengthen muscles used in the golf swing as well as mimic golf swing moves.

According to the ACSM ‘functional fitness training” is recommended for two or three days per week. Exercises should involve motor skills (balance, agility, coordination and gait), proprioceptive exercise training and multifaceted activities to improve physical function and prevent falls in older adults.

For golfers, functional fitness involves  integrating the demands of playing golf (not only walking or carrying a bag , but bending to tee up a ball, lunging to get in and out of bunkers, and balancing on unstable surfaces such as in sand or on a sidehill lie) and the movement patterns of the golf swing (rotation, stability, speed and balance).  The golfer is rotating almost every joint and muscle in the body as well as stretching through a full range of motion while maintaining balance along with speed, so you’ll want to incorporate exercises that require you to use several muscle groups in one fluid movement. This will strengthen and develop the muscles in the back, abdomen, pelvis, and hips, and promote stability and flexibility — all essential for swing the golf club more efficiently.

Check out these core exercises for golfers.