Exercise Program For Golfers May Help Improve Performance
A study that could help golfers maximize performance are being presented this week by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh’s Neuromuscular Research Laboratory at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine in Nashville, June 1-3.
The study proved that a specific eight-week exercise program developed in the Neuromuscular Research Laboratory could help improve golfers’ performance.
Most golfers who want to improve their performance use the expertise of teaching professionals to modify swing mechanics. Yet, sports medicine professionals also may have the ability to help maximize performance through a golf-specific exercise program, as proven by a University of Pittsburgh Neuromuscular Research Laboratory study.
In the study, 15 average recreational golfers completed the eight-week golf conditioning and training program, designed and scientifically validated by the University of Pittsburgh team to improve physical characteristics. Pre- and post-training testing of participants included assessments of hip, torso and shoulder strength, flexibility and balance, swing mechanics and golf performance. Strength was measured with an isokinetic dynamometer. A clinician used a standard goniometer to look at flexibility. Single-leg standing balance was assessed using a force plate. Swing mechanics were studied with a three-dimensional motion analysis system, and golf performance was evaluated with a launch monitor system.
After eight weeks, shoulder, hip and trunk flexibility improved significantly in 22 of the 26 flexibility measurements taken. Hip and torso rotational strength also were improved. Golf performance improved, including an average carry distance increase of about 18.5 yards, and an average total driving distance increase of about 17.5 yards. Average ball speed increased about 6.5 miles per hour with average club head speed improving about 4.5 miles per hour. Upper rotational velocity at acceleration point of the golf swing increased by about 31.7 degrees per second.
“A clinician-prescribed, golf-specific exercise program like the one we’ve validated in our current study would complement the instruction provided by a teaching professional in order to more effectively improve performance in golfers,” said Yung-Shen Tsai, Ph.D., P.T., who led the study.
Other investigators include James Smoliga, D.V.M.; Timothy Sell, Ph.D., P.T.; Joseph Myers, Ph.D., A.T.C.; and Scott Lephart, Ph.D., A.T.C.
The University of Pittsburgh Neuromuscular Research Laboratory is housed within the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s Sports Performance Complex, in the Center for Sports Medicine. Laboratory faculty includes those from the sports medicine program at the university’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and the orthopaedic surgery department at the university’s School of Medicine.
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