EXERCISES TO STRENGTHEN YOUR KNEES
1
SUPPORTED DEEP SQUAT
This is a great warm-up for your hips, knees and ankles. Simply hold on to a golf cart, post or stretching pole and make a deep squat with your heels on the ground.
“ Supported deep squats help develop strength in your quads and total lower body while helping you maintain a tall golf posture through your torso and spine,” White said.“ By using a support, you can more easily achieve the proper form( with your knees over your ankles and your hips sitting back) versus a traditional squat.
2
REVERSE TOE TOUCHES
This is a great exercise to help improve your toe touch or hip hinging.
• Slowly squat down as far as you can go, placing your fingertips on the ground directly under your toes( or as close as you can get).
• Keeping your hands in contact with your feet, lift your butt and extend your knees.
• Slowly repeat this process for the prescribed number of repetitions.
“ Reverse toe touches promote flexion and extension of the knee while increasing mobility in the hamstrings,” White said.
ILLUSTRATIONS BY ARTHUR MOUNT
3
SINGLE LEG BALANCE GOLF STANCE WITH TORSO TURNS
This exercise helps develop better balance and proprioception( your body’ s internal messaging that drives our movement through your central nervous system) in your golf swing and improves lower-body stability.
• Start by standing on one leg and getting into a stable golf posture.
• Lift your lead leg and cross your arms over your chest.
• Trying to keep your lower body stable, begin to rotate your trunk back and forth and try to maintain balance.
• Repeat on the trail leg.
“ All of the knee stabilizers are active to maintain your balance,” White said.“ Adding the torso turn simulates the upper body movement needed in the swing while also engaging your lower body.”
vsga. org N OVEMBER / D ECEMBER 2017 | V IRGINIA G OLFER 39