Golf Exercises You Can Do Indoors During Cold Weather

In the past, the game of golf as not been looked at as a physically demanding sport. As the years have gone along, we have started to put more of an emphasis on being physically fit in general as well as for golf. Golf is a sport in which you use almost every muscle in your body in order to swing the club. Everything from distance to consistency can be helped by being physically fit for golf. As the days get cooler and winter approaches, we may find ourselves starting to get comfortable indoors, preparing our bodies for upcoming holidays filled with food and excitement, and physical activities may fall by the wayside. Below I’ve listed some exercises that can be done indoors to help maintain your fitness for the next golf season.

Stretching: Stretching can be done virtually anywhere and especially indoors. One of the most important things in golf is flexibility. Here are some ways to improve your flexibility inside your own home.

• Sit on the floor and try to touch your toes to stretch your hamstrings.
• Tilt your head side to side and hold it for 10 seconds to help stretch your neck.
• Pull your arms across your chest and hold for 10 seconds to help stretch your upper arms and shoulders.
• Sit on the floor and put the bottom of your feet together and then push down on your knees to stretch the hips.
• Hold a club out in front of you and slowly turn you back and shoulders to face the left and then right side without moving your feet.

Asst. Golf Pro Michael Loosley stretches his hips by pushing his knees towards the floor.

Another way to help maintain good health for the golf season is to do cardiovascular exercises such as running on a treadmill, riding a stationary bike, exercising on an elliptical machine, or even walking up and down stairs to get your heart rate up and improve your overall cardiovascular health.

Strength conditioning, in addition to working on your flexibility, will probably the most beneficial ways to improve your golf swing and increase your distance. The most important muscle groups to focus on strengthening are the larger muscles close to the core of your body because you use the core to swing the golf club. The core includes the back, chest, abdominal area, and upper legs. These exercises can be done with a home gym or by going to your local fitness center. Exercises that can help to strengthen these areas are:

• Back: Reverse fly, reverse sit-up, pull-up, lat pull, and row
• Abdominal Area: Sit-up, crunch
• Chest: Bench press, push-up, fly
• Legs: Squat, leg curl, leg extension, jogging, leg press

Alex, assistant golf pro

To schedule a lesson with me or another Kissing Camels golf professional, or to ask about other golf destinations we would recommend visiting during Colorado’s winter season, call our golf shop at 719.636.2520.  You can also reach our golf team by leaving a comment on this post.

Enjoy the season!

-Alex
Assistant Golf Professional
Kissing Camels Golf Course at Garden of the Gods Club

Kissing Camels at Garden of the Gods Club is a private golf course accessible exclusively to Members, guests of Members, and overnight Lodge guests. For more information, please visit our website at www.ggclub.com.