TRAIN SEQUENCE, BUILD POWER

When it comes to training your body for golfing fitness, there are exercises that work specific areas and others that are more multifaceted. By building strength, improving stability and training the ideal power sequence, the exercise we will look at today definitely falls into the second group. Regular gym-goers will associate it with the classic kettlebell swing, but if you can pack a rucksack with some heavy objects, you have the ideal DIY prop to perform it at home. Here’s how it works. Always consult your GP before adopting any new fitness regimen.

1 Get set

Stand upright, feet a little wider than shoulderwidth apart. Hold the rucksack in both hands, and add a little flex to both knees.

2 Squat to swing back…

Use a straightforward squatting motion to kickstart a backward motion, the rucksack swinging back between your legs. Naturally, your knees will flex a little more and your hips will increase their hinge. Aim to keep your chin up and your back as straight as possible.

3 … Thrust to swing through

The key movement in this exercise, the forward motion is driven by a thrust from your hips and NOT a swing of the arms. Coming from your glutes, that thrust will ideally feel like an aggressive pop – which takes your body from squatted and flexed to extended and upright. Your arms – which do nothing but hold on to the rucksack – will continue to swing forward through the momentum created by this explosive extension. From here, squat back down again, the rucksack swinging back down between your legs, and repeat.