Cross-Training for Golf

"Train General to Improve Specific" - Louie Simmons

Before Tiger Woods hit the pro tournament scene you never really heard of golfers cross-training. Even after years of Tiger dominating, he was an outlier for following a regimented strength and conditioning program. Today there is an evolution happening in golf and most golfers on the PGA tour take their cross-training as seriously as professional athletes in other sports.

Improving your general athletic abilities potentiates improvements in your golf game and reduces the risk of injury. Don't make the mistake of mimicking your sport in the weight room. A study from the University of Hawaii in 2011 proved that baseball players swinging heavy bats or heavier objects actually decreased bat speed. Other studies corroborate this fact. The same is true for boxers and the negative effect of shadow box holding weights or jumping rope with a heavy rope. Golf is no different. You need to train general to improve specific.

3 exercises that golfers of any level can incorporate are: the goblet squat, standing single arm shoulder press and side plank with a reach.

Goblet Squat- Stand with feet under your hips, toes slightly turned out, grab a weight with both hands and hold it to your chest, With good posture lower yourself until your hips are at or below your knees and stand up. That's one rep. Perform sets of 5-10. Squats build total body strength and durability while improving your posture. They are also great for your knees and ankles.

Standing Single Arm Press- Stand tall with a weight in your hand at the front of your shoulder. Keeping your knuckles parallel with the ceiling, press straight up until your elbow is locked out. Carefully lower the weight back to the front of your shoulder. That's one rep. Perform sets of 3-10 on both sides. The single arm shoulder press strengthens your shoulders, triceps and wrists while opening up your shoulders, increasing range of motion.

Side Plank with a Reach- Balance on the side of your bottom foot and forearm. While maintaining your balance reach under your torso with your top arm and back up to the starting position. That's one rep. Perform sets of 8-30 on both sides. This exercise increases rotational power by strengthening your glutes and obliques while improving the durability in your lower back and shoulders.

These 3 exercises are great for golfers. Focus on the basics in the weight room and skip the gimmicks to make real improvements to your golf game and your life. Weak things break and strength is never a weakness.