When it comes to your short game and putting in golf, your physical fitness doesn’t have a huge impact. You don’t need a ton of flexibility, strength, or balance for these shots compared to the long game.
In the long game, especially when it comes to generating club head speed, those physical qualities, especially power, play a big role in your golf potential, and that’s exactly where cardio comes in.
What Your Golf Needs For Cardio
● Walking Your Golf Course
While some level of cardio fitness is necessary, golf is more of a leisurely walk with breaks, so it shouldn’t put too much pressure on your cardiovascular system.
Unless you’re incredibly out of shape, most players should have no trouble taking in and using oxygen to walk the course, especially those who regularly play golf.
Excessive cardio, especially at high intensity and volume, can actually slow you down and reduce your power.
● Golf Swings
To build up your club head speed, you need to work on your ability to produce more force during a short burst of time.
Now, cardio training won’t help you with these. In fact, too much cardio can actually have a negative impact on these power-building elements.
So, when you’re on a mission to boost your club head speed, your training should target similar energy systems, connective tissues, and muscle fibers that are vital for generating power and speed in your swing. To see real improvements, you’ve got to do very short, low-rep, high-power activities.
Also, make sure to rest adequately between sets or reps to recover and deliver near-maximum power in the next round.
The key to effective power and speed training is that you’re moving close to your maximum speed and power in each rep.
To get the results we’re after, you need to keep the set duration short (ideally under 10 seconds or five reps) and ensure that your recovery between sets allows you to replicate the same high-power output or something very close to it in your next set.
Why Do You Face Fatigue in Your Golf Course
● Hydration and Nutrition
Staying hydrated is also essential, so make sure you’re drinking plenty of water.
Have a good meal a couple of hours before teeing off, and bring some snacks with you to the course. It can make a huge difference in your performance.
● Checking Out Mentally
Take a moment to think about your best rounds of golf versus your worst ones. When you’re in the running for a great score, chances are you won’t even notice fatigue by the end of the round. But on those not-so-great days, it’s easy to mentally check out, and the round becomes a real drag.
● Lack of Muscular Exercises
Exercises like squats, deadlifts, lunges, push-ups, pull-ups, and rotational work with cables, bands, or medicine balls are excellent for training your muscles to handle the power and endurance required for peak golf performance.
They can also be done in a way that gets your heart rate up, giving you a good cardio workout and burning calories.
Or any exercise that challenges your major muscle groups in the 3-12 rep range is helpful.
To shed fat, you need a combination of reducing calorie intake and increasing activity.
I’m a big fan of strength training when trying to lose fat because it not only elevates your heart rate and provides a cardio workout but also helps improve power, strength, and mobility, which are crucial for increasing your club head speed potential.
What’s the Another Option for Golfers Instead of Cardio?
Golfers need to be able to walk the course, which is essentially low-intensity cardio, while also having the ability to generate a high level of power when they swing.
You need a certain level of cardio to ensure you don’t get exhausted on the course and to maintain good overall health. However, further gains in cardio won’t dramatically impact your golf scores.
Power, on the other hand, is a game-changer for golf performance at all levels, and it offers significant room for improvement. As we age, we tend to lose speed, power, muscle, and strength more rapidly than cardio fitness, making it even more crucial for seniors.
When your time for training is limited, and you’re looking to maximize the returns for overall fitness, try these workouts:
- 5-10 minutes: Begin with dynamic mobility & basic body weight exercises, which serve as both a warm-up and a mobility routine.
- 5-10 minutes: Power exercises, focusing on the lower body, core, and upper body.
- 20-25 minutes: A mix of strength and general conditioning exercises, again targeting the lower body, core, and upper body.
Final Thoughts
This article aimed to provide some clarity on the physical conditioning required to unlock your golf potential.
For those who enjoy cardio workouts and wish to maintain them while boosting club head speed, here’s some valuable advice: Start by monitoring your club head speed. If it’s already at your desired level or increasing, that’s fantastic.
However, if you’re putting in considerable effort but not seeing improvements in club head speed, it’s time to evaluate how much of your training is dedicated to activities that don’t contribute to power enhancement.
Also, consider how your cardio training affects your recovery. If you’re doing power training or swing speed practice in a fatigued state due to excessive cardio, you might be hindering your progress.
You might be surprised at how much cardio you can incorporate through the type of training I’ve outlined in this article, alongside regular walking or low-intensity cardio. This type of cardio doesn’t demand lengthy recovery periods and won’t compromise the gains from your speed and power training.
To be clear, I’m not advocating against cardio. It has its health benefits. However, the more cardio you engage in, especially at higher intensities, the more likely it is to impede your speed gains. It also reduces the time and recovery capacity available for activities that can truly boost your speed.
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