POWER YOGA FOR GOLF

POSES AND EXPLANATIONS

1.     Seated cross leg twist:  this pose is to build strength and stability in the anterior and posterior spine.  To open up the spinal column increasing the rotations.  It syncs the movement with breathing and settles the athlete down.  You can become more aware here of your weak or tighter twisting side, perhaps sidelining an imbalance injury in the back before it happens

2.     Slither forward into cobra:  this action rather than a single pose is to strengthen the upper back and shoulders and triceps equally on both sides.  It will become apparent very quickly which is your weaker side doing this pose…strengthening the upper back and shoulders goes along way to avoiding injury with the repetitive golf swing.

3.     Inverted table pose:  this pose helps to open o=up the posterior spine of a golfer.  Their posture is very forward all the time, even time even when the amateur must carry a heavy awkward golf bag.  Doing this pose will help bring potency to the front of the spine creating a better more upright posture.  The more upright and extended the posture is the more powerful and deeper the coil of the spine can be on their swing.

4.     Seated forward bend: while this might seem contrary to the pervious pose it is not.  It is very important for golfers to work to open their hamstrings.  By having more open hamstrings they can avoid any pulling that might be done on the hips and pelvis, causing it to tuck, and inevitably changing the integrity of their posture.  To reiterate golfers need to extend and open the spine as much as possible in order to get the most powerful twisting action.  The formula for power and mantra for power yoga for sports is strength plus flexibility. 

5.     Plow pose:  it is crucial for a golfer to work to open their neck and since they size up their poses and are very internal and always thinking they can become very military in the neck.  The look is that of a poking turtle head or a soldier ready to salute a superior.  This repetitive motion can cause stain and tightness in the back of the neck so a gentle opener one that will also help stretch and relieve back pain becomes critical.

6.     Camel pose: this pose continues the thought of opening and stretching to relive stress and strain on the neck, however it opens the cervical spine in the opposite directions.  At the same time this pose with again address postural issues by opening further and deeper into the back.  Camel pose also helps to open the rib cage and lungs which will enable the athlete to increase lung capacity and the ability to breathe deep into the belly alleviating stress response and keep the golfer in a calmer state throughout the match.  Also this pose opens the front of the thighs, hip flexors and quads, which will help release the hips tightness and in time with practice a looser hip will reduce stress on the knees

7.     Side planks:  this pose with help strengthen a vulnerable shallow jointed shoulder that a golfer depends on for effortless wings.  Opening the side body ribs and shoulder joint clearly leaves athletes with greater range of motion which leads to and effortless swing.

8.     Pigeon pose:  a favorite of all this deep glute stretch with open the hips.  Golfers tend to hold tension in the hips which as I mentioned before a tight rigid hip for an athlete will always result in more energy and stress released to the more vulnerable joint which is the knee.  Anytime we can open the glutes reduce tension in the stance and help protect the knee we are ahead of the game!  The reaching twisting variation you can do with this pose will also help to open the ribs increasing breath capacity and deepen the stretch in the opposite quadriceps.

9.     Toes tuck and untucked hero’s:  NOT the favorite to most is this two part stretch.  These stretches are designed to alleviate a multitude of foot and ankle problems for the golfer.  This sport puts a lot of stress on the bottom of the foot, with the strong push when finishing the swings.  Keep full range of motion in the Achilles tendon, the bottom of the foot (plantar fascia) bottom of the toes once again gives you more power in the ankles and feet, an often neglected spot.

These poses all together are designed to fully open the golfer up to the maximum for his/her sport.  Often athletes will eliminate stretching from their routine due to lack of time or misinformation, these poses will open up the golfer in the critical spots in the most efficient use of their time to increase their power on the course and take their game to the next level.