If you’re looking to increase your club head speed, and add yards to your drive, then you should know that all of the golf strength and conditioning coaches RSNG has spoken to say the same thing: the stronger you are, the further you can hit the ball.
It’s a simple equation, but adding strength in the gym can be fraught with pitfalls if you don’t approach it in a progressive, sustainable way. If you’re unsure where to start, then the good news is that RSNG has gone to golf strength expert and pro Tour coach Jamie Greaves (who trains pros like the LET’s Charley Hull) to provide a one-stop, zero to hero solution that doesn’t even require a gym.
Exercises such as squats and presses, have been shown to correlate nicely to increased club head speed
With just a single pair of dumb-bells – or kettlebells – and a resistance band, you can build a stronger, more effective body in just four weeks, that’s also more injury reistant. The idea that merely training for strength makes you more likely to be injured, and less mobile, is just wrong. In fact, the opposite is true. And that goes double if you first lay the groundwork to stabilize your joints and prepare your muscles, which is what this workout – the first in a series of four, weekly, full-body blasts – will do.
As Jamie Greaves tells RSNG, “The following workout is a nice intro, to learn and develop solid movements, using some patterns that we will look to progress over the coming weeks. These include multi-muscle exercises such as squats and presses, which have been shown to correlate nicely to increased club head speed.”
So, over the next month RSNG will be dropping a new home golf workout into the mix, every week. All the exercises will be doable at home with either a dumbbell or kettlebell, whichever you have to hand, as well as a resistance band, all of which are easy to buy online.
If you are carrying any injuries or are in any doubt about your readiness to exercise, you should always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare professional before engaging in any programme.
Do the following golf workout twice a week to start seeing results, leaving at least 48 hours between workouts, or add it into your current program. Use the embedded video guides to nail the form and sooner than you think, you will start to feel healthier, and stronger!
1. Elevated Push-Up, Sets: 3 Reps: 8 Rest: 60 seconds Place your hands on a bench or box, and ‘screw’ your hands into it, to stabilize your shoulders and help your elbows to track at around 45°. Lower your chest to the bench and then press up under control for a full range of motion. Move your body as one whole unit through the rep, without rounding or extending your body excessively. Target: chest, triceps, plank & upper body push.
2. Heartbeat Squat, Sets: 3 Reps: 6 Rest: 60 seconds Start in a standing position, feet facing slightly outwards, holding a dumb-bell or kettlebell at arms length. Lower yourself into the squat to your full range of motion and stay tall through your torso. The weight will help you do this by acting as a counterbalance. Pause at the bottom position and slowly bring the weight into the chest before driving back up to standing. Repeat but really try not to round your upper body, or lift up from the squat as you move the weight inwards. Target: quads, glutes, core.
3. Banded Low Row, Sets: 3 Reps: 12 Rest: 60 seconds Start in a seated position with a resistance band wrapped around your feet, gripping the ends in each hand. Draw your shoulders back and then row the band in towards your bellybutton and squeeze. Don’t rock your torso back as you pull – stay upright and keep your torso still. You should feel your lats working hard. Target: lats, upper back, core.
4. Single-Leg Bridge, Sets: 3 Reps: 6 each side Rest: 60 seconds Lie on your back and lift your hips with one foot on the ground close to your body. This will form a bridge between your shoulders and knee, as you push through that heel on the floor to drive up to the top and squeeze your glute as you do so. Make sure that you drive up through your whole range of motion each time and that the motion happens at the hips and not the lower back. Do the reps on both sides. Target: glutes, core.
4. Y, T, W, Sets: 2 Reps: 15 (5 of each) Rest: 60 seconds Start lying facedown on the floor with your arms spread out to 45° to make a Y shape. Lift the arms up off the ground as far as you can, and hold before lowering. Make sure you keep your arms straight and forehead on the ground as you repeat.
Next, move your arms directly out to the sides to form a ‘T’ shape. Again, do the lifts through your maximum range of motion, holding at your end range each time.
Next, bend the arms to form a W shape at shoulder height. Again, do the lift through your maximum range of motion, squeeze and hold before lowering. Keep the W shape tight as you perform the reps. Target: upper back, upper spine, rear shoulders.
5. Golf Posture Dynamic Palloff Press, Sets: 2 Reps: 30 seconds total each side Rest: 60 seconds Start in a golf posture with a band attached at mid-torso height and held into your body. Push the band away so that your arms are straight, and make small motions in a variety of directions with the band. Return and repeat. As you do the reps, stay as stable through the body as you can, resisting the pull of the band and feeling the resistance in your core. Set up the band so that it is in line with the hands when the arms are straight. Do reps on both sides. Target: core, spine.
Follow the author @adventurefella and adventurefella.com
Jamie Graves is a strength and conditioning coach who specializes in training golfers and has also played the game himself for over 20 years formerly reaching a plus figure level. He currently works with golfers of all ages and abilities including tour players such as Charley Hull and Meghan McLaren. Jamie offers in person sessions at his private facility at Northampton Golf Club as well as online through his JG Golf Fitness App, helping all golfers to move better, get stronger and swing faster! Follow him on Instagram and visit his website for more.