Have you ever worked on a change of pace with your instructor, did you feel like you really had it on the range and then completely lost it the moment you got on the first pitch?
Here’s the thing: It’s not like you forgot what to do. It’s that your body literally doesn’t know how to do it yet. Not really. Not when it matters. I’ve seen golfers get frustrated because they can’t make their swing changes stick. They understand the concept. They know what they have to do. But the second they’re standing on a ball with a bat in their hands, especially when there’s a bit of pressure? Straight to the old model.
When you’re out there playing golf, you’re in performance mode. Your brain is thinking about where the ball should go, what the wind is doing, whether you can clear that bunker and about 17 other things. At that point, your body adapts to what it knows best—the movement pattern you’ve created over thousands of swings. Even if that model isn’t great, it’s familiar. It’s comfortable. This is what your nervous system believes.
This is where these three exercises come in. They will do two big things for your game. First, they will develop the strength, mobility and stability that make a good golf swing possible in the first place. Second (and this is the part most players miss), they will help your body learn new movement patterns in an environment where you are ready to take in new information.
When you are doing these exercises, there is no ball to hit. There is no target to worry about. There is no score card to worry about. You’re just practicing movement. You are teaching your body how the new pattern feels, over and over again, until it becomes familiar.
These are simple exercises that any golfer can knock out in five to ten minutes a day, max. You can make them in your living room, garage or even your office if you have a few feet of space. They will transform your movement and help your body feel better overall.
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3 exercises to help your golf swing
Exercise 1: Declining return pattern
It’s about teaching your body the basic loading and unloading sequence that powers every good golf swing.
Take a stretch band (one of those resistance bands you can get at any sporting goods store) and hold it across your chest. You’ll stretch it out a bit, keeping the tension the whole time. Now, step back with your lead leg to create a split stance.
Do a step back while keeping the bar stretched across your chest, loading into your trailing leg. You will rotate internally at your hip of the track, not sliding away from the target. Your goal is to keep that footprint on the ground.
Switch to the side of the downstroke, keeping the bar across your chest but pulling your back leg. As you turn your shoulder with the bar extended, feel the vertical pressure pushing through your lead leg.
Perform 10 repetitions of the back movement load, then 10 repetitions of the downward movement movement. Feel the difference between the two positions. Feel how your body moves from one to the other. This is the model you are after.
Exercise 2: Early Extension End
whether your hips pull toward the ball on the descent and you lose your posture, you need this exercise. For this, you’ll need either a friend to help you or an anchor point to attach your stretch band to. If you have a friend, have them hold one end of the group. If you’re alone, wrap it around a doorknob or a sturdy post – something that won’t move.
Get into a split position with your leg behind you. Hold the other end of the band in your hands and there should be some tension on it. You want to feel like you’re pulling against resistance.
Turn as if you are making a downswing and as you do, feel your side of the track (right side for a right-handed golfer) pushing the shot. Your right shoulder should work down, not out and around. Under and through.
The gang will want to hold you back. You’re fighting against that pull, which forces you to push into the ground to maintain your posture and rotate instead of lengthening. Do 15 repetitions of this.
Exercise 3: Dynamic step drill
Golf is not a static sport. You are not standing still and just rolling in place. A dynamic change is taking place. There is movement. There is rhythm. And if you only train static positions, you’re missing a big piece of the puzzle.
For this exercise, hold your stretching band in front of you with both hands and stretch it. You want tension on it, so pull it to engage your upper back and shoulders.
This has a back and drop component. For the backstroke version, start with your feet together. Now, step off the target with your trailing foot and as you complete the step, return to your backswing. The bar lies flat in front of your chest, and you’re rotating your upper body as you pull and charge to that side of the track.
This is the training of the dynamic loading model of the backward motion. You are not just returning to the country. You are entering the turn. You are creating width. You are being loaded with motion. This is how the swing should actually work when you’re swinging a club. Do 10 repetitions of this. Go back, go back, feel the load. Go back, go back, feel the load.
For the downswing version, start with your feet together as before. This time, step toward the target with your lead foot and as you complete the step, do a full shoulder turn. The bar is still stretched out in front of you, and you’re rotating your upper body as you walk forward and then shoot. Do ten more repetitions of the squat.
One thing to keep in mind while doing these: Make sure you’re paying as much attention to the backswing as you are to the drop. They’re equal elements of the same movement, and you want to make sure you’re targeting them both the same amount. Focusing too much on one over the other leads to imbalance or even injury.
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