Blog Post

Golf Warm-Up Exercises Guaranteed to Prevent Injury and Improve Performance

8 August, 2024

A proper golf warm-up is essential for avoiding injury, especially as you start to get on in life. In this blog post, I share 5 of my go to pre-round exercises - exercises that help me to loosen up and allow me to play my best golf.

The older I’ve gotten the more I’ve begun to realise just how important it is to properly stretch off and warm up before taking part in sports, especially golf. At 36, I’m by no means old but boy have I started to feel it over the past few years. In my teens and twenties, I regularly jogged, swam, and played football and golf without a care in the world. A ‘warm up’ for me was walking from the car park to the football field or the first tee.

Fast forward a decade and now even getting out of bed in the morning makes me feel like an 80 year old. Therefore, on the rare occasion that I do play a sport like golf or football, I make every effort to set aside enough time to properly warm up and ready my body for the physical onslaught ahead.

But, before I get onto how I exercise before golf, let’s begin with the why.

Why Warming Up is Essential

What many golfers don’t realise is that the golf swing is a complex, full-body movement that requires coordination, flexibility, and strength. Without a proper warm-up, our muscles and joints aren’t properly prepared for the physical demands that lie ahead for 9 or 18 holes. Failing to properly warm up can lead to reduced performance and a higher risk of injuries such as strains, sprains, and even more severe issues like tendonitis or back injuries.

However, a good warm-up helps increase blood flow to your muscles, improves your range of motion, and mentally prepares you for the game ahead. It sets the tone for your round, allowing you to get out of the blocks quickly and get straight into the groove from your very first tee shot.

My 5 go to pre-round exercises

Here are 5 of my preferred ways to warm up before teeing off. Given that I live very, very close to the golf course, I often prefer to perform these exercises immediately before leaving the house, allowing me to go straight into my range session with a body that is already stretched out and warmed up.

1. Dynamic Stretching

I like to start with dynamic stretching which helps to activate my muscles and improve flexibility. Given I’m playing golf, I focus on my shoulders, hips, and lower back—key areas involved in my swing. I find that exercises like arm circles, torso twists, and leg swings can help loosen up these areas effectively. If you’re looking for examples, check out this handy YouTube video which has 21 dynamic warm-up stretches from the awesome Redefining Strength.

2 Glute Bridges

Next up, we have glute bridges. These are excellent for engaging your glutes and core, which are essential for a powerful and stable swing. This exercise involves lying on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground, and then lifting your hips towards the ceiling while squeezing your glutes. This is definitely one I prefer to do before leaving the house and is also a favourite of mine before playing football. This helpful video from Airrosti Rehab Centers walks you through the correct way to perform glute bridges.

3. Hip Flexor Stretch

The hips play an important role in the golf swing, so properly warming your hip flexors up is important. Tight hip flexors can restrict your swing and lead to lower back pain, something I am all too familiar with, unfortunately. I usually warm up my hip flexors with these two key exercises explained by Upright Health in the video below.

4. Shoulder Rotations with a Club

Unlike the warm up routines and stretches mentioned so far which I usually perform at home before heading to the course, the final two exercises are easy to perform at the golf course.

I like to use my golf club for shoulder rotations to mimic the motion of my swing. I hold the club behind my back with both hands and slowly rotate my shoulders in a controlled manner to stretch and warm up the muscles.

Having completed a few reps of my should rotations, I then grab two clubs from my bag for extra resistance and complete a few more exercises like those in this video by We play golf.

5. Practice Swings

The final part of my warm-up before heading to the driving range or first tee involves performing a series of slow practise swings. I begin with simple half swings, gradually increasing the range and speed as my muscles begin to warm up. Not only are these practise swings a good way to prepare my body they also help reinforce good swing mechanics before I start hitting golf balls.

I’ve no doubt that making a conscious effort to spend 10-15 minutes warming up before heading to the golf course has had a positive impact on my physical health and on-course performance and is very much something I d0n’t plan on stopping anytime son.