Fitness Friday: The Best Damn Gym Equipment for Golfers

In our May issue, we identified the best products for golfers in categories ranging from meat jerky to cruise lines to fitness equipment. For golfers interested in getting in shape, we include products for both a small home fitness setup and what to look for in a big box gym. Here's our guide—and instructional video—to buying the best damn gym equipment for golfers.

Fitness-training equipment can prepare your body for optimal performance and injury prevention on the course. And if you're willing to invest some real cash, taking advantage of some innovations in fitness products makes getting in shape easier than ever. Our choices single out those pieces of equipment that are simple and versatile to use, functional for golf training and, in many cases, affordable. Don't want to fill your garage with stuff? We also recommend the best commercial gym for golfers. Golfers need to focus their training on three main areas:
(1) Things that improve mobility, so they can perform the complex sequence of movements needed to swing a club effectively.
(2) Things that improve stability, so they can swing a club with the right blend of power and coordination. (3) Things that protect joints and soft tissue from the ill-effects of repeatedly swinging a golf club. For the most part, every product that made our list can be used to achieve at least two of those goals, if not all three. These products also succeed in making exercise more convenient than having to travel back and forth to a commercial gym or follow a class schedule. But perhaps their best attribute is ingenuity. There are other products on the market that do similar things to those selected here, but those products didn't do as good a job of simplifying what needs to be done to get golf fit, or shortening the time required to get a good workout. Playing a round of golf is long enough.

Commercial gym: Equinox
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Dumbbells: Bowflex SelectTech 552, $349
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Elliptical: Cybex 770AT Total Body Arc Trainer, $8,000
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Foam roller: SKLZ TrainerRoller, $40
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Medicine ball: Assess2Perform Ballistic Ball, $395
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Resistance bands: SuperFlex Lite Bands Packs, $40
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Stability trainer: Bosu Balance Trainer, $130
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Strength trainer: Surge 360, $2,000
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Stretching aid: The True Stretch, $2,500
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Suspension trainer: Redcord Mini, $190
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Swing-training bands: Instant Replay, $109
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Treadmill: Life Fitness Club Series, $5,500
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Universal: Free Motion Dual Cable Cross, $5,500
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Weighted bar: ActivMotion Bar, $120-$150, depending on weight
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