Champions Digest December 2016 | Page 7

WARM UP Pre-tournament fitness warm-ups are essential to helping students enter competition feeling prepared, focused and relaxed. At GGGA, students are guided to “activation” through fitness. Activation is essential for a strong golf game! Players feel activation through a sense of readiness, feel and balance in their bodies. This is accomplished through a special approach called dynamic stretching as well as using resistance band exercises. DYNAMIC STRETCHING BENEFITS A PLAYER’S RANGE OF MOTION AND MOBILITY, IMPROVING THEIR GOLF SWING. EXAMPLES OF DYNAMIC STRETCHING: • Leg swing (lateral / forward and back) • Lung torso twists • Deep body squats • Walking hamstring stretch • Shoulder mobility stretches Resistance bands warm up the muscles but also puts them through a short burst of resistance training to strengthen the proper muscles for play. This helps increase power and performance. “Shoulder Blade Retraction” is an example of a resistance band warm-up where you pull a band apart for 30 seconds while maintaining good posture.