Exercise of the Week: Kneeling Jump to Hurdle Jump

I've been messing around with some lower body plyos as part of my lower body training.  Here's another one: kneeling jump to hurdle jump.

Exercise of the Week: Hurdle Jump to Broad Jump

With this exercise you are going to train lower body power in two ways: the vertical plane and the horizontal plane.

Let me warn you before you go jumping right into broad jumps....literally.  Broad jumps can be very stressful on the lower body.  Make sure you have been working on box jumps, squat jumps or hurdle jumps before you get into any broad jump training.

Three Exercises to Help With Your Golf Game.....or Lack Thereof

Yeah, it's golf season.  I know it doesn't feel like it, but it is.  It's time to sneak away from the house early on a Sunday morning before the kids get up and spend a few hours in the great outdoors with your buddies.  The thing is that 3-5 hours on the golf course can be great or it can be absolutely miserable if your  golf game goes off the wagon.  So in order to spare your wife and kids the wrath of your golfing anger management issues I am going to give you three exercises that might help improve your game.  They are: quadruped extension / rotation, the bowler squat and medicine ball rotational throws.

So what is so special about these three exercises and how are they going to tie up some of the loose ends with your swing mechanics?   Let's take a look at each exercise.

Quadruped Extension/Rotation
One of the more common problems with the average weekend golfer is a poor shoulder turn because of a lack of thoracic mobility . Your backswing should start with a shoulder turn and continue all the way through to the top of your backswing allowing you to get a full turn.  The other thing with thoracic mobility is that it will allow you to create the "X-factor" which means your ability to separate your upper body from the lower body.  Not being able to separate the two will not only mess up your swing mechanics but will also rob you of power.  The important thing to consider when performing this exercise is to think about locking the hips in.  In order to do so I suggest sitting back towards your feet in order to lock those hips in.  Remember, you want to create separation between the lower and upper body.


Perform one set of 8-10 repetitions per side as part of your dynamic warm up.

Bowler Squat
The bowler squat is going to address two issues: hip stability and hip internal rotation.  Again, we want to create that "X-factor" in your swing.  You can not do that if you have poor hip stability.  From an internal hip rotation standpoint, if you have poor hip internal rotation this can lead to a sway, a slide or both during your swing.  A sway is excessive lower body movement away from the target during your backswing not allowing you to load that back leg.  A slide is just the opposite.  Excessive lower body movement towards the target during the downswing not allowing you to transfer energy to the upper body. Both cases are usually a product of lack of hip internal rotation and both cases will usually mess with the sequencing of your swing along with creating a loss of power.


Perform 8-10 repetitions on each leg as part of your dynamic warm up

Medicine Ball Rotational Throws
Medicine ball rotational throws are an exercise that will help you link up thoracic mobility, hip stability and hip internal rotation in a dynamic manner.  Also, medicine ball throws are a power exercise.  The ability to generate power is one of the first things to go as we age.  You may be strong in the gym, but are you able to generate that strength at a rapid rate?  I know that for a lot of us golf is not a power game.  Most are happy just to hit the ball straight down the fairway without any regards to how far they hit it.  I'm not one of them, because don't chicks dig the long ball?


Perform 2-3 sets of 8-10  throws to each side after your dynamic warm  and  prior to your strength training work.


Give these three exercise a shot and see if they do anything for your game.  If not....get back to the range.

Exercise of the Week: Kettlebell Deadlift