Golf Warm-Up Exercises
By: Krystal Evans – Physiotherapist, Level 2 Medical TPI Certified Total Balance Physiotherapy
With the anticipated return to golf, we at Total Balance Physio would like you to be ready to get back out onto the course as soon as possible. With the ongoing weeks of not being able to play and a possibly more sedentary lifestyle, you may have lost some of your flexibility, strength, and control.
It is important to be aware that you may have to warm up for a longer period of time than you have previously. Here are a couple of good warm-up exercises to include in your routine:
Pelvic Rotations with Golf Club Support
- Stand in golf posture with the support of the golf club in front of you.
- While keeping your trunk steady, rotate your pelvis. This should be more of a pelvic twisting rather than a side-to-side movement of the hips. It may be helpful to think of driving your hip backwards into your back pocket.
- This exercise is to help with the initiation of the pelvic rotation necessary for the start of the backswing and the beginning of the downswing.
- Do this 20 times on each side.
W Turns
- Standing in golf posture place the golf club behind your shoulder blades (make sure you do not place the club behind your neck).
- While keeping your pelvis steady, rotate from your upper body only.
- This exercise is for the separation of your upper half and lower half, not about how far you can rotate. It is more important that you keep your pelvis steady and focus solely on separation.
- Do this 20 times on each side.
Windmills
- Start by standing in a golf posture
- This exercise is done in 2 stages:
- 1st stage: Keep the lower half of your body steady as you rotate your trunk from 1 side to the other. Do this 10 times.
- 2nd stage: Your lower body should now move with you as you rotate your trunk. Do this 10 times.
- This exercise is to help gain more separation from the upper and lower body as well as fluid mobility throughout the golf swing.