We are now onto the third component of a comprehensive golf fitness program to improve your golf swing. We have talked about flexibility and balance for the golf swing, which are very important. Now we introduce the third component which is strength training for golf.

Ordinarily the words strength and golf are not spoken in same sentence but the reality of the situation is very different from what people think. Research shows amateur golfers achieve a peak muscle activity of 90 percent when hitting driver. (Paul Chek, The Golf Biomechanic’s Manual, pg. 144) What this means is that your body is being placed under a high level of stress each and every time you swing the golf club. In order to minimize the risk of injury, develop peak performance on the golf course and play better golf, you must incorporate strength training into your golf fitness program.

To provide some empirical evidence on the importance of strength training and its prevalence on the TOUR today, just look at Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and, well, just about every other top player as well. They all utilize golf fitness and incorporate strength training in the development of their bodies and their golf swing. If the best golfers in world are utilizing strength training in their programs, it might be good for you to do it as well.

What I see as the biggest misunderstanding in strength training and amateur is the definition of strength. Once we understand what strength means, it’s easier to understand why it’s such an important component in golf.

Simply put, strength is the ability of the body to exert the required level of force to perform the functional movement at hand. (Michael Clark, Director: National Academy of Sports Medicine) In relation to the golf swing, it is necessary for the body to elicit the required force to maintain the anatomical postures and spine angles of the golf swing.

An example of this is when you swing a club and find it difficult to maintain balance or generate distance on your shots, that’s an indicator that you’re lacking core strength in your golf swing. It simply means your strength levels are limiting your ability to perform the biomechanics of the golf swing.

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The Russian Twist starting position.

Knowing the research and the definition of strength as well as what TOUR players do, we should understand the importance of strength and the need for these type of exercises to be part of golf fitness program.

A great beginner level golf specific strength training exercise is the Russian Twist. It is a great strength training exercise for golf for a variety of reasons. First, it focuses on the core region of body, which we know is the powerhouse of the swing. Second, it’s a strength training exercise that occurs in rotational pattern and we know the golf swing is rotational. Third, it’s a simple exercise to perform for most any amateur golfer.

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The Russian Twist finishing position.

1. Begin the exercise sitting on the floor, knees bent, heels pressed to the floor, and toes pointed upward.
2. Clasp the hands together and place in front of the stomach.
3. Lean the upper body back until you feel your abs “turn-on”.
4. Begin by rotating the torso (shoulders, and chest) to the right as far as possible. Focus on rotating the entire upper body, not just the arms, allowing the head to track behind the arms and shoulders. Pause at the farthest point of rotation and then return to the center.
5. Next rotate to the left, following the same guidelines. Return to the starting position and repeat.
6. Perform 15-25 repetitions.

Over the next few weeks we’ll delve more into strength training and provide some more exercises to improve the golf swing as well as how to develop a strength training program to improve your golf swing.

Sean M. Cochran is the personal strength and conditioning coach for 2006 Masters winner Phil Mickelson. He is co-owner of BioForceGolf.com and the author of several books, including most recently, Your Body & Your Swing. Cochran, who has worked as a strength and conditioning coach for the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres as well as working individually with players like Chicago Cubs pitcher Mark Prior, started working with professional golfers, most notably Mickelson (who won the 2004 and 2006 Masters, and the 2005 PGA Championship), in 2002. Recognized as one of the world's foremost authorities in golf-specific strength training, he has spoken at numerous seminars and clinics around the country. BioForceGolf.com was founded in late 2004 to respond to the need of the amateur golfer for quality information on golf-specific-strength training. The site provides subscribers the highest quality information in the areas of golf training, nutrition, and general instruction.