By Sean M. Cochran
Special to PGATOUR.com

It’s getting cold outside now, but even if the weather keeps you confined indoors and off the links, that doesn’t mean working on your golf game is off limits.

Last week we utilized our flexibility assessment to develop an individualized flexibility segment for your off-season golf fitness program. This assessment provided us with enough information to determine what areas of your body require flexibility training to improve your golf swing for the upcoming season.

The flexibility exercises were the first section of your golf fitness program and this week we will move onto our next step--strength training. Now, I know the words strength and golf are usually not found in the same sentence. Conventional wisdom has programmed many golfers to believe strength training is not beneficial to the golfer. The reality is very different. In order to execute every phase of the golf swing efficiently and effectively a certain level of muscular strength is required. This allows your body to correctly sequence the muscular contractions required of the swing, maintain your spine angle and generate power. If you are lacking muscular strength, the ability to execute the golf swing correctly may be compromised.

The information above indicates the importance of strength development relative to the golf swing, and for many of you increasing your muscular strength levels around your golf swing will be very beneficial come next season. As a result, I asked you to perform a muscular strength assessment known as the Elbow Hold last week and record your results. If you found yourself unable to perform the exercise for the time frame suggested this is a good indicator we need to increase your strength levels.

To achieve this goal we are going to refer back to some exercises from previous articles. As stated previously, before beginning your off-season golf fitness program, make sure you are in good health and cleared by your physician for physical activity.

The first exercise I’d like for you to perform in the strength segment of your golf fitness program is the Side Hold. Perform the exercise as described in the article, pay strict attention to technique and execute the exercise to the best of your ability.

The second exercise is the Medicine Ball Rotational Lunge. I suggest utilizing a three to six pound medicine ball with this exercise, but if you don’t have one available a light dumbbell or even a gallon of milk will suffice. Perform the exercise as described in the article with proper technique. I suggest performing 10-15 repetitions for one to three sets of this exercise.

The final exercise in this strength training segment is the Medicine Ball Diagonal Chop. Again, a three to six pound medicine ball is ideal for this exercise, but a light dumbbell or other weighted object will do the job. Execute the exercise as described, again paying strict attention to form, and note that 10-15 repetitions in one to three sets of this exercise is ideal.

At this point we have two of three integral segments of your off-season golf fitness program in place: flexibility and strength. Next week we will introduce the third segment of your program--power training.