Sports Series: Yoga For Golf – Hit It Faster, Harder, Longer! Like A Professional?

Yoga For Golf:

In the modern world, golfers are looking for any advantage they can get, on the course. Whether their goal is to hit the ball further or simply to play the game longer or more efficiently, yoga for golf may be another tool to add to the arsenal to see improvement in your game.

Yoga for Golf is another post to our “Yoga for Sports Series”. If you haven’t read our post on “Yoga for Sports Series: Some of the Benefits That Yoga Has on Athletes and Their Training“, head over and give it a read!

Why Is Yoga Good For Golfers?

The idea of golf seems simple. You swing a club and hit a ball. In practice, though, the concept is challenging to execute. Besides baseball, where you have to hit a round ball with a round bat, at pitches coming in at 90+ mph, hitting a golf ball with accuracy and length is the second most challenging skill in sports (just our opinion, of course!). 

Interesting Find:

According to a post on Sean Cochran Sports Performance, a swing can be broken down into 6 different components all in one single swing. Furthermore, these 6 movements are also known as biomechanical movements. Setup, backswing, transition, downswing, impact and follow-through. 

In order to build a consistent and repeatable swing however, you need to develop two challenging physical attributes, balance, and flexibility. These 2 concepts are important for virtually all sports. Balance is essential in a golf swing if you want to be consistent. Maintaining proper balance throughout the entire golf swing is more complicated than it seems, though.

The ability to control your weight as you shift it back and forth is crucial if you want to develop excellent golf skills.

Likewise, flexibility is the other part of the golf swing that limits the amount of power you can generate. Much of the power in the golf swing is derived from rotation between various parts of the body. The more flexible you are, the better you can rotate, and the more powerful your golf swing becomes. Take this quote for instance from Golf.com, “the longer back your hands travel, the more speed they’ll gather coming through”. Consequently, we ask you, how can you get better rotation and your hands back further? Flexibility, right!

These two factors in the golf swing are why yoga can be so beneficial for golfers. Through the use of strategic poses, golfers can use simple yoga poses regularly to develop better balance and increased flexibility that will leave them with lower scores and more enjoyment from the game.

Research Tidbits On Yoga For Golf:

BBC News posted a short article discussing new research suggesting that 30-minutes of yoga per week could help golfers improve their swing. Specifics of the study included golfers who performed 2, 15 minutes sessions per week, for 6 weeks. The conclusion was a 2-3 degree difference in range of motion (ROM), equating to increased club head speed. 

If you head on over to Golf Digest there are also 2 great videos on Yoga for golfers, contributed by Katherine Roberts, a yoga performance specialist. 

Additionally, Keiser University talks specifically about flexibility and balance as we have discussed within this post. However, they take things even a step further. For example, mental focus, strength and endurance, as being 2 other huge factors in improving anyone’s golf game. 

We’ve discussed before, yoga in multidimensional with no limitations. It can be catered to fit your individual needs. Oftentimes, it’s about finding what poses or style fits those needs, and then executing them. 

Yoga Poses For Golfers

Above all, if you want to get results, you have to be consistent. Although we will provide you with 3 basic poses to help with your golf game, it doesn’t end here.

In particular, like any athlete knows, the more you practice the more potential you have at bettering your body and mind within your craft.

I. Revolved Crescent Lunge (Parivrtta Parsvakonasana)

An intermediate level yoga pose, this pose allows for spinal rotation and stretching of the hips. Both of these things are fundamental in any good golf swing and can be used to better flexibility. 

II. Half Lord of the Fishes (Ardha Matsyendrasana)

Despite the funny-sounding name of this pose, it has tremendous benefits as a yoga pose for golfers. Basically, a simple seated twist, it will develop disassociation between the two sides of your body. This disconnect between right and left is a trait found in some of the best golfers in the world.

Steps:

1. Firstly, sit on your yoga mat with your legs straight out in front.
2. Then, bend your left knee, proceeding to bring your right leg underneath your bent left leg. 
3. Now, take your left leg and fold it over the top of the right leg.
4. Take the left hand and place it behind your on the mat, then inhale and raise your right arm straight up.
5. Exhale and position the outside of the right arm to the outside of the left thigh. As you exhale try and twist your body more each time. 

Related Article: Yoga for Core Strength and Flexibility: Here Are Our Top 5 Poses!

III. Kneeling Balance

No list of yoga poses for golfers would be complete without a pose that targets the core. A strong core is paramount to controlling your golf swing and maintaining the required balance. This pose will develop your core while at the same time, improving your balance and enhancing coordination.

Here is A Quick Video Just For You Golfers!

These three yoga poses are great first steps in harnessing the power of yoga for golf. Many of the best players in golf have realized the power of yoga in enhancing their games as well as athletes around the world, so don’t miss out!

If you want to win more skins and out-drive all of your friends regularly, you need to have a secret weapon. That secret weapon is, yoga for golf.

Related Article: Yoga Maneuvers and Stretches to Help Develop Better Posture

Final Thoughts!

Now go out, improve your game, and crush your competition with your new secret weapon!

Have a great day, please feel free to share our blog posts on social media and be sure to visit us again soon.

References:

• https://seancochran.com/concepts-of-the-golf-swing-for-optimal-performance/
• https://golf.com/instruction/driving/how-golfers-really-generate-golf-power-study/
• https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-47238970
• https://www.golfdigest.com/story/fitness-friday-a-great-yoga-program-for-golfers
• https://collegeofgolf.keiseruniversity.edu/odd-pair-golf-yoga/