The start of a new year makes people fixate on resolutions, many of them revolving around living fitter, healthier lives. Of course, if you’re an avid golfer, chances are there’s a looming resolution that’s focused on playing better golf, too.
Here, I’ve highlighted five pieces of golf fitness equipment that can shore up your swing and, in some cases, strengthen, lengthen, and tone the body making those swings, too.
GolfForever
Every amateur golfer would love to have increased range of motion and flexibility in their golf swing, not to mention greater rotational power, overall strength, and better mobility. Acquiring those things, however, isn’t always easy. Whether it’s gaining access to the appropriate equipment or having the right supervision to ensure that golfers are performing the strength training and stretching exercises safely and with good form, this journey toward better strength, mobility, and flexibility can be intimidating.
The GolfForever swing trainer renders many of those worries obsolete. For at-home workouts, the training aid utilizes a 44.5-inch training bar, a 15-pound latex training cord, two sweat-resistant rubber handles, a universal nylon door anchor (which attaches to any residential door), and two polymer carabiners that allow the swing trainer to be anchored to any sturdy object if a door isn’t available. For warm-ups on the range, the bar can be equipped with a weighted ball optimized to a D3 mass which mimics the feel of a driver head, albeit one that is heavier. Alternatively, the bar can be equipped with a heftier ball attachment for speed-training workouts.
Purchase of a GolfForever training aid offers a three-month free trial of guided workout videos, including golf lessons taught by Justin Leonard. Afterward, membership dues to access that material cost $25/month. – golfforever.com
SuperSpeed
Self-described as an “overspeed training system,” the SuperSpeed system is comprised of three club shafts equipped with distinct weights. Compared to a standard driver, the lightest club weighs about 20 percent less, the middle club weighs about 10 percent less, and the heaviest club weighs approximately five percent more. Overspeed is an apt name, too, since the training protocols challenge users to swing these clubs as fast as they can with the goal of increasing speeds with each swing. Needless to say, for the golfer who subscribes to the philosophy that maxing out at 90 percent power and speed during the swing is ideal, these drills will feel uncomfortable at first. So too will the swings that are made on your non-dominant side (incorporating a non-dominant grip). In other words, users should be prepared to swing as fast and as hard as they can, both right-handed and left-handed.
As a SuperSpeed trainer explains, these training protocols, which begin at Level 1 (39 total swings, recommended to be done three times a week), are designed “to get your body, your brain, and your nervous systems to train and understand that it can move very quickly.” Near the end of a session, users will likely be swinging the heaviest club faster than their normal driver; according to the company, after five weeks most users experience a five percent increase in club head speed. – superspeedgolf.com
ROTEXMotion
Created by a former U.S. Navy Seal, the ROTEXMotion series of training equipment features a handheld device that allows users to easily activate the core muscles used to swing a golf club. Extremely portable, the device only requires a flat vertical surface as a foundation, which means it can be used almost anywhere. There’s also a floor model, which allows users to activate and strengthen many of their lower body muscles, broadening their range of motion and mobility at the same time. In particular, the floor model allows users to strengthen their hip rotator muscles, which provides more stability during a high-speed rotational movement like the golf swing.
If you’re a player who suffers from a disjointed swing, one where the smaller muscles—namely the arms—take over or initiate the swing, the ROTEXMotion training devices could represent a solution. When used regularly, this training aid will ingrain the proper sequential motion of the golf swing, a motion initiated by the lower body and the core. – rotexmotion.com
The ONE Club
One of the key aspects of the golf swing is the release point, the moment at which flexed wrists release to a more neutral position. When executed at the appropriate time—in conjunction with the club head sliding through the impact zone—a proper release can produce significant amounts of club head speed. Of course, the release point is all about feeling, which makes it one of the more challenging aspects of the swing for instructors to teach. Fortunately, The ONE club trainer is designed so golfers can easily identify it while they’re swinging the device. Designed around a lightweight, 33-inch shaft, this training device features a sliding weight-and-elastic cartridge that moves up and down the shaft during the swing. It produces an audible (and tactile) cue when a user releases their wrists, as that motion extends the weight cartridge to the farthest end of the shaft away from the grip.
This piece of equipment can do more than just train proper timing during the swing. It can also train speed and power through the use of different weight and elastic combinations. Alcide Deschesnes, the device’s creator, likens the golf swing to the complex motion of jumping from a stationary position. To jump as high as you can, you don’t start from a static squat, he explains. Instead, you quickly bend your knees and use the energy that your body created in that motion to propel you off the ground. This device, though its sliding weight cartridge, trains the body to be more powerful and faster through the swing by engaging more muscles at key moments during the motion. Best of all, it’s compact enough for golfers to use it indoors all year long. – theoneclub.ca
Golf Stretching Pole
Not only is a good pre-round stretching program vital to playing your best golf—and staying injury free—it’s also equally important if you’re looking to improve your range of motion. The Golf Stretching Pole created by Randy Myers, the director of fitness at Sea Island, represents an ideal tool to assist in both endeavors, and it’s remarkably easy to use.
The device extends with a telescoping end, much like that old ball retriever you might have in your bag. Once extended, the pole serves as the supporting foundation for users to stretch out every muscle group and body region involved in the golf swing. From establishing good posture, to lengthening hamstrings, broadening a range of motion for rotational movements, and strengthening balance, the tool can help you improve every aspect of your body in motion—at least when there’s a golf club in your hands. Best of all, the device complies with the rules of golf, so you can use it during play. – golfstretchingpole.com
What pieces of golf fitness equipment have you had experience with?
