I can't count the number of times someone has asked me if I can help them get a 6 pack.
There’s a fundamental misconception that having a 6 pack means having a strong core… but there are a few issues at hand here.
You have SO many more muscles in your core than these. The “6-pack” is your rectus abdominis and it’s sections between tendons, so this is really just considered one muscle… and it might actually be the least important one!
Having washboard abs doesn’t mean you’re strong… it just means you’re lean. You have to be at 10-12% body fat for your abs to show through. The average American adult is between 28-40% body fat.
If you want washboard abs, you need to be consulting a weight loss professional, not a golf performance specialist.
Besides, it's not like your round of golf looks like a scene out of Top Gun.... right?
Now, of COURSE I support the idea of weight loss for people who need it. It’s going to make you more flexible, comfortable, make your clothes fit better, and help you have less pain… but it’s not why you're here listening to me.
Today we’re learning about your CORE. The whole thing.
A quick note: In golf, your back is going to move through every motion it has - flexion, extension, sidebending, and rotation - and do it pretty rapidly. The two pictures illustrate pretty well what it looks like when you’re moving through those ranges of motion, and when you’re trying to avoid them.
You need muscles to move drive you into these positions and SLOW YOU DOWN on time, and just the 6-pack won't do that.
Here’s the world’s shortest anatomy lesson.
You’ve got big muscles that produce a lot of force (gluteus maximus, latissimus dorsi, obliques, and rectus abdominis to name a few).
You’ve also got a TON of smaller muscles that help you move and stabilize. There are 3 sets of muscles alone between EACH of the vertebrae in your back, and each of them have a specific job in stabilizing your spine as it moves.
So why spend so much time worrying about one muscle, and none worrying about ALL the other ones shown here?
Boom. I promised you a short anatomy lesson. Was that short enough for ya?
WHY SHOULD I CARE?
If you ignore any of the above, there’s a good change your ball won’t fly very far, and you’ll be at a higher risk for injury.
Your core muscles have a few jobs in golf:
Transmit the force your legs have produced so it doesn’t go to waste
Produce a little extra force of their own
Slow it all down at the end - so your muscles absorb the remaining force and not the joints, discs, and ligaments.
Your basic core program is going to include you trying to stabilize or resist movement in EACH of those planes. There’s definitely more to it than that, but if you’re just starting out, this is as good a place as any to start.
Coincidentally, these are also the first-phase exercises we often do once pain starts to subside after a back injury! (Please note that if you’re having back pain or have sustained an injury, it is best to consult with a healthcare professional to be sure these movements are safe for you.)
Build your own core workout
This video shows you how to perform exercises in every movement or plane you’re trying to improve, and has easier and harder versions of each. You should expect to spend at least a couple weeks with any one version of an exercise before moving onto the harder version.
Eventually even these will get easy and you’ll need something harder or more specific.
Some of you may really want to start but these are too difficult, or something is going on with a shoulder or other body part that’s preventing you from doing these.
That’s my specialty. It doesn’t mean you can’t work on this… It just means you may need a little more individualized help. Schedule a call and let’s talk about it.
I’m not promising you 30 yards in 30 days like a Facebook ad I saw the other day… I'll leave the insane promises to the people you can't reach out and touch. My goal is to help you create meaningful and sustainable gains in the quality of your golf.
Sure, you could jump right into speed training... but for most people, we’d be skipping some very important building blocks - ones that will ensure you gain speed without compromising your longevity.
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