Fit for Play
Strength Training in
the Heat of the Season
3 exercises for a successful summer maintenance program
by DAVE POND
W
ITH SUN, HEAT AND HUMIDITY factoring
into play, your personal fitness plays more of a role
in the success of every passing round. Although
you might have spent all winter lifting weights and building
muscle, summer is the time to switch to “maintenance mode,”
which ensures you’ll continue to play your best and stay off
the injured list.
Strength training for golf in-season should be maintained
but with less intensity and volume than in off-season, said
Richmond-based golf performance fitness expert Madeline
Parrish, one of the first fitness pros to earn Titleist Performance
Institute (TPI) Fitness Professional Level 3 certification. “The
in-season phase of training is considered to be a maintenance
phase, and your goal is to be ready to play and maintain the gains
you achieved in the gym during the off-season. ”
Golf is unique in that it’s a power sport, but one that can be
played by people of all ages and skill levels. No matter where
you are in terms of long drives and low scores, strength train-
ing should remain a part of your personal fitness equation.
STRENGTH + SPEED = POWER
“Strength training for golf is never about increasing strength
just for the sake of getting stronger,” Parrish said. “Its true
purpose is to help you become an athlete who moves well and
has adequate strength relative to your body weight in order
to hit the golf ball.”
To that end, there are a few key things to remember when
you’re playing lots of rounds during the summer months:
• Again, summer strength training is about maintenance—so
don’t overdo it. Save big gains for the offseason.
• Maintain the strength gains you’ve made. If you find you
need to increase something, change the complexity of
movements, not the amount of weight you’re lifting, pulling,
pushing or squatting.
• If you do want to add additional resistance, be sure you have
good movement patterns and are pain-free.
Whether you’re on the course or in the gym, be sure to incor-
porate lots of fluids and stretching into your routine. The last
thing you want is a preventable injury keeping you away from
Virginia’s most beautiful fairways.
Here are three exercises Parrish recommends as part of a
successful summer strength-training program:
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V I R G I N I A G O L F E R | J U LY / A U G U ST 2 0 1 8
1
›› UPPER BODY STRENGTH, ROTARY
STRENGTH, AND LOWER BODY STABILITY
SPLIT-STANCE TWO-ARM
CABLE INCLINE ROW
1. Attach two handles to a dual cable cross set at the lowest level.
2. Face the machine and grab the handles, one in each hand. Your hands
should be shoulder-width apart.
3. Step back with your left leg to the split-stance position, stabilize your
posture, and perform an incline row for five to eight reps.
4. Repeat on the opposite side.
A few simple adjustments will allow you to change the complexity of this
exercise as needed:
• The next progression would be to take a square stance with two handles.
• Progress to a split stance with one handle, or a square stance with one
handle in the same hand as your front leg. If you’re using one handle,
you’ll be in golf posture and can add upper-body rotation. Keep your
lower body and hips square to the cable machine.
To watch the full video go to:
mytpi.com/exercises/#split_stance_two_arm_cable_incline_rows
vsga.org