Golfers in Michigan will soon be ready to head back to the links after a long cold winter sitting on the couch watching sports and Hallmark movies. As we get a little older our bodies aren’t ready for jumping directly onto the first tee, grabbing the weapon of mass destruction and flailing away, as wildly as possible, to hit that 300-yard drive into the woods.
In this issue we want to help you get ready for those first swings of spring, as well as, an injury-free golf season.
To get a jump start on your golf fitness here are a series of exercises created by Golf Fitness expert, Matt Schultz for Back 9 Report.
-Stretching & Flexibility: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKwSJPv9q6s&t=94s
-Strength & Stability: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMlLxsaAbgw
-Balance & Proprioception: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuRkGJpwJ3s
Yoga For Golfers website is another great resource for exercises to help release tension and stretch those tight muscles that restrict a golf swing. World renowned fitness expert, Katherine Roberts has helped train professional golfers, MLB teams and other elite athletes to get the best from their games.
We chatted with Katherine at the PGA Show a couple of years ago and you can watch the video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiHXsARb14s
Most of these exercises require few additional props and simply need a commitment to ‘Just Do It.’ Maybe saying no to that extra piece of pie might be advisable, as well.
We hope these articles and videos help each of you have a safe and enjoyable 2023 golf season.
‘DESKERCIZE:’ Get Fit at Home, or at the Office
By Mike May
As Old Man Winter settles in, it’s time for golfers to get in shape for the 2023 golf season. Put down that piece of pumpkin pie, now is the time to work on stretching, strength, and flexibility, so you can be more like Bryson!
Its much easier than you think to incorporate exercise and fitness into your daily life, at home, or at the office, without spending hundreds of dollars for a fitness club membership.
Check out these ten ‘deskercizes,’ created by Cedric X. Bryant, Chief Science Officer for the American Council on Exercise, and John Porcari, Executive Director, La Crosse Exercise and Health Program at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. They can transform your life into a fun, fitness frenzy, plus they are perfect to keep you fit and flexible throughout the year.
- Paper Pushups – With your arms outstretched while grabbing the edge of your desk, lean at 45 degrees, and do pushups. Start out slow. Just do four-five reps and build up to more as you are able.
- Book Press – Pick up the heaviest book that you can hold with both hands. Extend it above your head and lower it behind your neck. Repeat the process. This easy exercise increases tricep strength and firms those saggy muscles at the back of your arms
- Shoulder Blade Squeezes – To improve your hunched posture, stand up and squeeze your shoulder blades back and forth. Hold the squeeze on your shoulder blades for 10 seconds. Keep doing this and build up to a set of ten.
- Office Yoga – Keep a yoga matt at the office and lay it out on the floor for some impromptu stretching. There are a multitude of easy yoga poses for beginners online. Start slow and build up. You’ll be doing the Downward Dog in no time.
- Chair Squats – Stand a few inches from the edge of your chair, lower yourself until you are seated in your chair, stretch out your arms parallel to the ground, and keep your back straight. This will help ease those lower back issues you incur from long hours hunched over at your desk
- Tricep Desk Dips – With your back to a desk, reach back and grab the edge of the desk. Then, bend your arms and lower the body, while putting tension on your triceps. Be careful the first few time you do this. It seems simple, but once you get down, you have to be able to get back up.
- Wall Sits – Stand next to a wall and lower your back along the wall until your legs are parallel to the floor. Hold that position, then have your back move up the wall to the original position.
- Standing Calf Raises – While grabbing the back of your chair, put your feet together, and get up on your tippy toes. Hold this position for 10 seconds and repeat. This will strengthen those calf muscles and enhance those sexy calves when you wear your high heels.
- Leg Raises – While sitting in a chair with your back straight, extend each leg, individually, holding that pose with the leg parallel to the floor for 10 seconds. Believe it or not, this is very good to tighten and strengthen your abs, which also helps reduce pressure on your lower back.
- Phone Pacing – While making those big deals on the telephone, use a headset and walk around your office, rather than just sit in a chair. This little bit of cardio gets your heart pumping blood to your lower extremities and you will see an increase in your focus, as well.
Get fit and ready to hit it ‘Bubba Long,’ in 2023. Use these simple ‘deskercizes’ and be ready to hit the first tee when warmer weather finally gets here.
Try ‘Deskercizes’ — just for the health of it.
