Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he shows you how to increase your clubhead speed, no matter whether you're small in stature like Bud Cauley or built like Craig Stadler. By the way, the video at the end is definitely worth watching. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: PGA Tour Rookie of the Year candidate Bud Cauley is 5-feet-7, 150 pounds. Well, he says 158, but you get the point. Bud is not a big man.
Nevertheless, Cauley averages more than 290 yards off the tee and is frequently mentioned by his peers as a very talented ball-striker. The sound of his shots resonate.
So how does a 158-pound golfer frequently drive the ball 300 yards? Center-face contact with a driver helps, but Cauley's secret is explosive power, says his trainer Jeff Fronk. Cauley is able to utilize his fast-twitch muscles better than most. He recruits things such as hip speed, leg thrust and a strong torso rotation to swing the club faster.
"If you aren't training for speed, you'll lose the ability to be quick as you get older," Fronk says.
Two medicine-ball exercises he uses with Cauley can help you train for speed, too. To watch Cauley in action, click on the video below.
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he shows you how to keep your golf muscles in proper balance so you can stay injury-free. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: Remember Shingo Katayama? He's the diminutive golfer with the funny cowboy hat who won 26 times on the Japan Golf Tour and has played in many PGA Tour events over the past decade. The first time I saw Katayama on the range at a PGA Tour event, I watched him hit shots right-handed and then flip around and hit shots left-handed. At first I thought he might be doing it as part of some bizarre drill or as a goof. He was actually pretty good at it. But then I was told he did it to maintain body balance.
Katayama knows that golf is a one-sided sport and if he doesn't train muscles on the right side of his body the same way he uses the muscles on the left side of his body, it could lead to pain and injury. While I don't think it's necessary for you to make right-handed and left-handed swings to achieve body balance, your workout routine should always include exercises that move the body in one direction and then the opposite direction. In other words, train as if you could play golf either left-handed or right-handed. For obvious reasons, exercises that focus on the transverse (rotational) plane of motion are great, but you should also consider ones that isolate specific muscle groups on one side of the body. Just remember to train the opposite group of muscles, too.
Dr. Craig Davies, a PGA Tour trainer and author of Golf Anatomy, says in our June issue that the pain you feel after a round is often a result of asymmetrical strength. To check if you have asymmetries, do any one-sided exercise to the point of exhaustion with the left side of your body and then do it with the right. You should be able to get within 90 percent of the reps on one side that you can do on the other.
For more information on achieving body balance, see Davies' article in our June issue here:
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he finishes his 20-in-20 workout series. This program will
get your golf muscles in shape so you can swing better with less chance of injury. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: If you combine the original beginner and advanced 20-in-20 workouts from last year and the new advanced version that was unveiled over the past five weeks, you should have a full library of golf exercises to keep you busy all spring and summer. Any time things start to get stale, go ahead and replace one exercise with another from the library. The only catch is that you need an equal number of lower-body and upper-body moves, so don't replace the med-ball push-up with a squat thrust, for example. If you're not familiar with the 20-in-20, it's simply doing two sets of 10 different exercises in 20 minutes or less. You essentially are combining your strength-training and cardio training into one efficient workout.
This week, based on your requests on Twitter (you can follow me @RonKaspriske), I'm going to give you two bonus exercises from the advanced 20-in-20 library. The hamstring-scissors exercise will strengthen and lengthen your hamstrings and also many of your core muscles. The one-legged glute bridge is a great way to achieve muscle symmetry in your gluteal muscles and also improve your sense of balance.
Next week, I'm going to start another series on common swing faults and the physical deficiency that often is the cause of the problem.
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he continues his series of his 20-in-20 workout. it will definitely get your golf muscles in shape. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: The 20-in-20 advanced workout for golfers (#20in20) was born from the notion that there has to be a more efficient and more engaging way to exercise than what is offered in traditional programs.
As I stated at the beginning of this series, a recent survey showed that more than half of new gym-goers quit working out within two months of starting for two reasons: It's too boring and it takes too much time. Having tried and tested a number of routines over the years, I couldn't agree more. There's nothing exciting about going to the gym and jogging on a treadmill for 30 minutes and then doing a circuit of weight machines for another 30. I just yawned typing that sentence.
Before unveiling this group of 10 exercises, which are meant to be done in a total of 20 minutes (two sets per exercise), I spent a lot of time speaking with golf-fitness experts about their training programs. Not only did I want to understand what types of conditioning a golfer needs to not only swing the club effectively, powerfully and safely, but I also wanted to know how much time it truly takes to get something out of exercising. There were many different opinions on those topics, but whenever I heard a common theme from the trainers, I jotted it down. From those commonalities came this total-body workout that not only conditions golfers for the punishment they take from repeatedly swinging a golf club, but also improves their stamina.
The final two exercises in the 20-in-20 are perfect examples. Alphabet Soup (T's, Y's, M's and W's) help build scapular stability as well as rotator-cuff strength and mobility. Those are two critical areas for golfers. And the squat thrusts train the lower body to use the ground as leverage to create a more powerful swing. They also will improve your cardiovascular health.
Note: You'll hear me say in the video that the squat thrusts are a "bonus exercise" that can replace any of the other lower-body moves in the 20-in-20, or be used as an add-on (a 21-in-21). Disregard that statement and consider squat thrusts as the final exercise of the workout routine. I originally intended for another exercise called the "lateral Heisman" to be the 10th exercise of the new 20-in-20 but changed it to the squat thrust at the last minute to help train explosive movement. In the coming weeks, I'll show you the lateral Heisman as well as three other exercises that you can use to mix and match and make your own 20-in-20 workouts if this one should become stale.
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he continues his series of his 20-in-20 workout. it will definitely get your golf muscles in shape. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and
remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: For the past three weeks, I've been rolling out new exercises for the advanced 20-in-20 workout for golfers. (Click here to get caught up.) This week, I've got two more. Simply put, the 20-in-20 is a total-body workout geared toward strengthening and lengthening golfers' muscles with the added benefit of improving endurance. The idea is to do two sets of 10 different exercises in 20 minutes. Complementary exercises are paired (one lower-body exercise and one upper-body exercise) so you can train with shorter breaks between sets and really get your heart pumping.
Keep in mind that this is an "advanced" workout and should only be attempted by golfers who already are working out regularly or have been cleared by their doctors for strenuous activity. There is a basic version of the 20-in-20 for beginners and it can be found here.
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he adds two more exercises to his 20-in-20 workout to get your golf muscles in shape. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and
remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: Two more exercises in the advanced 20-in-20 workout are debuting this week (click on the video below). The 20-in-20 name comes from the fact that you're doing two sets of 10 different exercises in 20 minutes. This workout is designed to hit all the muscle groups needed to play golf safely and effectively and also improve your endurance. It's designed to promote muscle symmetry as well. Your left side should be about as strong as your right, but that often is not the case for golfers because we play in one direction. Perhaps the best feature of the 20-in-20 is that you get a cardio and strength-training workout in one. Surely you have 20 minutes of your day to spare!
This week, I'm giving you the fifth and sixth exercises (there will be 10 total) to add to your workout. You'll receive the remaining four over the next two weeks (plus I'll have some bonus exercises in the ensuing weeks that you can use to keep the workout from getting stale). You can refer to the last two weeks' Fitness Friday posts for the first four exercises in the new 20-in-20.
As I stated in the introduction video, these exercises are NOT for beginners or anyone with existing medical conditions. Before attempting them, consult with a doctor or certified physical trainer. But if you're cleared to work out, be prepared. The 20-in-20 is not for the squeamish!
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he continues his series of his 20-in-20 workout. it will definitely get your golf muscles in shape. Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and
remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: Last week, I introduced the first two exercises in my new 20-in-20 workout. The name comes from the fact that you're doing two sets of 10 different exercises in 20 minutes. This workout is designed to hit all the muscle groups needed to play golf safely and effectively and also improve your endurance. It's also designed to promote muscle symmetry (your left side should be roughly as strong as your right).
This week, I'm giving you the third and fourth exercises (there will be 10 total) to add to your repertoire. You'll receive the remaining six exercises over the next few weeks. But in the meantime, you can refer to last week's Fitness Friday post for my previous 20-in-20 workouts (beginner and advanced) to keep you busy.
As I stated in the introduction video last week, these exercises are NOT for beginners, and anyone attempting them should consult with a doctor or certified physical trainer first. But if you're in the clear, this workout will be a fun challenge.
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he speaks with Sean Foley, who coaches Justin Rose,
Hunter Mahan and, of course, Tiger Woods. So much of a good golf swing
is about footwork and balance, says Foley.
Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and
remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: Since I debuted my original 20-in-20 workout last May (see below for the original beginner and advanced versions), many of you have asked for an even more advanced version.
Well the time has come, and over the next five weeks I'll roll out two exercises per week until you have the complete new 20-in-20 workout. In addition, I will also give you four bonus exercises you can supplement to add some spice to your routine. I compiled this workout after several conversations with top fitness experts, including Ben Shear, Kai Fusser, Randy Myers, Craig Davies, Chris Noss, Greg Rose, Ralph Simpson, Mark Verstegen, Mike Boyle, Gray Cook and Alwyn Cosgrove.
These exercises are designed to improve your golf swing by training all the major muscles involved. They also will help prevent injuries when you play by eliminating asymmetries in your muscle development. They will improve your strength, flexibility and also help you lose weight.
Not familiar with the 20-in-20? In short, it was borne out of the idea that you don't need to spend an hour or more in the gym to get a good workout. Rather than spend 30 minutes on a treadmill and then go lift weights, you can combine your strength training and cardio training into one speed circuit. You'll be doing two sets of 10 different exercises in 20 minutes. You can take short breaks between sets, but the clock is ticking.
Studies have proven that strength training is more effective than steady-state cardio in raising metabolism and burning calories. And studies also have shown that the majority of people stop working out within two months of starting simply because they burn out from spending too much time in the gym.
Now you don't have to. So if you're ready for a great golf workout, click on the video below to watch me introduce the new 20-in-20 and give you the first two exercises. Until you have the full circuit, you can implement these into the advanced version of the 20-in-20 from last year. That workout, as well as the original beginner version, is listed below.
Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he speaks with Sean Foley, who coaches Justin Rose, Hunter Mahan and, of course, Tiger Woods. So much of a good golf swing is about footwork and balance, says Foley.
Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and
remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: Maintaining balance is often discussed as a key to making a good golf swing, but what you rarely hear about is proprioception. What is it? In short, it's your ability to know where your limbs are without looking. If you can type without looking at your hands, if you can run without looking at your feet, then you have functional proprioception.
I used the word "functional" because, unlike balance, which comes from fluids in the inner ear and is involuntary, you can increase your proprioception through training. It might seem like it's a subconscious activity because you have become so good at it. But what you might not know is that you can improve your proprioception and, in turn, improve your golf swing.
I spoke with Tiger Woods' swing coach Sean Foley about this subject the other day. He's a big believer in becoming a better player through footwork. When you swing the club, you probably give little, if any, thought to what your feet are doing. But many of the game's best players and
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Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske,
Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction
Blog. This week he talks to trainer Ben Shear, who helped Luke Donald become the best player in the world (he's currently No. 2 behind Rory McIlroy).
Look for Weekend Tip
tomorrow, and
remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
Here's Ron: How did 5-foot-9, 160-pound Luke Donald become the No. 1 golfer in the world last year? Sure, a phenomenal short game helped. But another key was his efficient swing. There is no wasted motion, and that comes from hours of practice, but also a commitment to fitness.
Donald is trained by Ben Shear (@ben_shear). Shear says because Donald is competing against bigger, stronger players, he can't afford an inefficient golf swing. A hallmark of Donald's swing is how well its width is maintained--that leads to more clubhead speed as well as consistently solid contact.
In Golf Digest's April issue, on newsstands now (Tiger Woods on the cover), Shear explains that strong shoulder blades are a key to maintaining swing width. He offers a few exercises to get you swinging better. Click on the link here to learn more.
