People that love the game of golf regardless of how good they are all wish for one thing, more distance. Why? Because distance matters. More distance, when controlled, can mean less strokes to get to the green. Which cans clearly mean a lower score. (If you can putt.) And to get more distance you need to improve your swing speed.

HOW DO YOU INCREASE GOLF SWING SPEED?

Thats the million dollar questions. And I have a free answer for you. You are going to be shocked because it is simple. 

Strength. 

You need to have more strength to be able to produce more power to be able to drive the ball further. A, B, C. That’s it. 

WHAT’S THE CATCH?

But if it was really that simple wouldn’t we all have incredible golf swing speed and driving distance. Logic serves that if we all just get stronger we can all have more distance. Well you are right. Go ahead get stronger. 

Here is the catch.

Educated and experienced personal trainers, like myself, exist not just to be a therapist or make sure you show up to your workout. We have specific training & knowledge that allows us to increase your strength and translate it to sport performance. That’s why the guy that can squat 400 pounds and bicep curl 50s isn’t necessarily the best golfer. Sometimes that guy is all show and no go.

This process WILL look different depending on your health history and current physical fitness. After all, if there was just one exact way to get stronger and hit the ball further that applied to every person, I wouldn’t have a job or a leg to stand on.

BUT, every person has to go through the same progression to get to strength and power. In previous posts we touched on our approach that we use with every golfer – flexibility/range of motion, stability and then power. If you try to do 2 before 1 or 3 before 2 you won’t get the results you are looking for. Which is where we come in as personal trainers. Follow the right progression based on where your body and you get the right results. Simple.

TOP 5 STRENGTH EXERCISES FOR SWING SPEED IN GOLF

If you already follow an exercise program or like to work out here are a list of my top 5 exercises to improve your golf swing speed. How they are implemented within the program obviously make a difference, as mentioned above. But just implementing them into your routine in any manner will help immediately. You will notice that 3 of the 5 exercises are lower body, this is because the stronger and more stable you are in your legs will allow you to swing harder without a loss in stability which will give you speed immediately.

Back Squat

Power from the swing starts from the ground up, if you know how to use force from the ground up and understand how to load properly you will hit the ball further. This is why the back squat is so beneficial for distance.

• TIP: the back squat is a technical lift, start light and master the mechanics to get the best results in the long run.

DB Deadlift

Again, same reasoning as the back squat, however, it is an easier exercise to accomplish. And arguably easier place to start with all golfers. The drawback is that it is not quite as efficient as the back squat. It can’t be loaded as much because you are restricted by the weight of the dumbbell. In our gym that goes up to 100 pounds. It also works the muscles in a different capacity than the back squat because the load is below your waist instead of on your back. This differentiates it from the back squat, giving it a place in your training program. 

• TIP: form is of the highest concern. Poor form can lead to low back aggravation and tightness. Maintaining core bracing is and a flat back is essential.

High to Low Core Rotator

This movement teaches the appropriate kinematic sequence while mimicking the downswing. This allows us to train the translation of power from ground through core and to the club. 

• TIP: your arms are the lever in this exercise. The further away from your body line you can keep them the more load you place on your core. The more load you place on your core the stronger it can get.

Single Leg RDL

Again, teaching the body how to load properly is the foundation of power in the swing. This exercise helps give you stability while also being able to focus on power and speed.

• TIP: your range of motion will be limited backs on hamstring flexibility. Tight hamstrings will impact your ability to balance, or be stable. If this exercise is difficult you likely need to implement a stretching routine. Check out our golf specific stretching routine here.

Eccentric Core Rotator

This teaches the body how to isolate the eccentric muscle contraction phase and will help increase force production right away. Not an easy way to isolate the muscle but gives a fantastic output for speed and power.

• TIP: proper eccentric load is all above maximizing the time spent in the muscle lengthening phase. Perform this exercise with even more control than usual to get the maximal results.

WHERE TO START

If you are familiar with the exercises or perhaps you are already working with a trainer. Find a way to incorporate these into your weekly training program. In the event that you don’t know how to add these exercises to your workout, reach out to us for an appointment. We are eager to help you develop the distance you have always dreamed of. We work both face-to-face and in online training formats. 

And if that is not possible, the safest place, with the largest impact would be flexibility. I didn’t talk much about it here because I have an entire article dedicated to the topic. Go read Golf Flexibility now. Implement those stretches and you will feel better, move better and play better.

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