Fitness – Keep it Loose

I recently sat down with our Head Golf Instructor at the Four Seasons Golf & Sports Club, Jack Daneshmand, to compare what we find most common in each of our practices. For Jack, naming the swing fault he sees most often came very quickly: early extension. 

There are multiple physical reasons a golfer may demonstrate early extension, causing inaccurate contact on the ball:

Tight hips forcing spinal posture to change

Restricted hip rotation leading to excessive forward movement

Inability of separating upper body from lower body

Difficulty weight shifting without moving body left or right

If your body can move correctly, it will minimize early extension in your golf swing. Or as Jack likes to say, “body motion influences how the club will swing.”

Windshield Wipers • 10x each side

GOAL: Lower body and back mobility

Lying on your back, bend both knees. Keeping feet apart, rotate both knees to left until you feel a stretch in hips and/or back. Hold for 2-3 seconds and transition to opposite side.

Hip Rotation with Cable • 10x each side

GOAL: Upper-body stability with lower-body mobility, hip strengthening

Set cable arm at elbow height with a low to moderate weight. 1. Hold the cable in front of center of body. 2. Driving the motion with hips and legs, rotate cable away from cable arm. Be sure to allow the trailing leg to rotate, causing a heel lift, similar to your downswing. IMPORTANT: Complete on both dominant AND non-dominant sides.

Half-kneeling Bounce Pass • 10x each side

GOAL: Lower body stability with upper body mobility, core strength and power generation

Best to complete with second person or near a wall. Begin in half kneeling position. Raise medicine ball overhead to the same side as the knee that is up. In a diagonal motion, activate core and release ball in downward angle to opposite side. Repeat on opposite side. 

Tilt Board Balance • 10x each side

GOAL: Movement control, weight shifting

1. Stand on a tilt board in your golf stance with weight on forward foot. 

2. Weight shift to back leg and rotate trunk away. 

3. Weight shift to front leg. 

4. Follow through with trunk and hip rotation.  

IMPORTANT: Complete on both dominant AND non-dominant sides.