The Loop
Fitness Friday: Back to basics
*Editor's note: Every week my colleague Ron Kaspriske, Golf Digest Fitness Editor, presents Fitness Friday on the Instruction Blog. This week he shows you how to get started with a basic workout. Look for Saturday Morning Tip tomorrow, and remember to follow me on Twitter: @RogerSchiffman.
Roger Schiffman
Managing Editor
Golf Digest
*Most of my tips and advice on golf fitness, nutrition and injury treatment are geared toward people who are familiar with the game and are experienced gym goers. But recently, Golf Digest's Web Editor Sam Weinman asked me to give basic tips on golf fitness to those who are about to try the sport for the first time, or have had a long layoff.
It's a great topic and very apropos because many of you will play one of your first few rounds of the year over Memorial Day weekend. I had to give some thought as to what a person absolutely needs to know before playing golf.
Obviously, good golf fitness goes well beyond a decent warmup and stretching before you tee off, but I also had to be cautious not to overwhelm newbies with too much information. So I boiled it down to five essential things. If you know someone who is thinking about playing for the first time, recommend taking a look at [these tips here](http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-instruction/golf-beginners-tips#slide=37.).
GolfDigest.com actually tackled all the things you need to know to play golf for the first time. If you want to see the entire package, click here.
*Ron Kaspriske
Fitness Editor
Golf Digest *