Good Exercises for Improving Your Core Strength?

[saevel25]

I’m reading a book called Foundation. It’s a method to retrain the body to use the muscles that support the back . 

[Cantankerish]

Just a note on this topic...You can train your core muscles every day (abs, obliques, to some degree your lumbar).  They rebuild very quickly.  For anyone over the age of 40, it makes a lot of sense to start with strengthening these muscles as the central point of your exercise.  This goes doubly for golfers.

[Nave]

I've been following Rickie Fowler for years and watched some of the exercise videos by his coach Chris Noss. For my core strength (not situps) I do these instead at the cable machine in the gym and it has helped my stability and flexibility a lot - while working my core.

Here is an older video with a similar upper body stretch and rotation exercise:

 

[cooke119]

On ‎12‎/‎16‎/‎2016 at 9:02 PM, upndown21 said:

I will second the yoga. The flexibility and balance gained has helped me tremendously.

Good, I have my first yoga class tomorrow. I took it years ago but stopped because of work, etc.

[cooke119]

Took my first yoga class, boy am I out of shape. It will definitely help with flexibility and balance, we worked a lot on that, and strengthening the core.

[cooke119]

Into my second month of yoga, going three times a week. First month my upper back hurt a little from stretching muscle, etc. that haven't been worked after 45 years of office work. Definitely becoming more flexible, I can feel it, and the back has stopped hurting. I talked to the instructor and she told me to back off a little on my stretches, i.e., don't push it so soon, good advise. I believe it is starting to help my golf game but only time will tell right now, (haven't played that much here in New York, weather hasn't cooperated).

[Cantankerish]

Hey man, that is excellent news.  Has it just been the yoga or are you using weights at all?  I ask because (as I said above) you can work most of the core muscles daily.  No need to settle for 3 days per week.  This should not be at odds with your yoga instructor's advice either.

Go for some targeted upper and lower abs & obliques daily.  Try for at minimum five different exercises giving you a different one each day.  You can also insert some lumbar and lunges (thigh/butt) up to 3x/week.  You do not need weights for any of this stuff, but after a few months you can get more advanced with added weight.

 

Do tell us how it feels to be more fit when your first 18 comes about.

[cooke119]

On 4/5/2019 at 4:09 PM, Cantankerish said:

Hey man, that is excellent news.  Has it just been the yoga or are you using weights at all?  I ask because (as I said above) you can work most of the core muscles daily.  No need to settle for 3 days per week.  This should not be at odds with your yoga instructor's advice either.

Go for some targeted upper and lower abs & obliques daily.  Try for at minimum five different exercises giving you a different one each day.  You can also insert some lumbar and lunges (thigh/butt) up to 3x/week.  You do not need weights for any of this stuff, but after a few months you can get more advanced with added weight.

 

Do tell us how it feels to be more fit when your first 18 comes about.

Haven't added weights yet, I'm taking it slowly because I have had three back surgeries and don't want to get reinjured. For right now it is yoga plus I do leg lifts on other days. I can't do sit ups, they are bad for my back. Although the upper back pain is gone I can still feel it in my back, still getting everything stretched out. Playing tomorrow, I'll let you know how it goes.

[sophia K]

Pilates helps, the main purpose of the pilates is developing the core strength.