If you really want to see improvements in your game, start stretching on a regular basis.

D. Rutti - You may know that the size of your stomach predicts your chances of having a heart attack and that tight jeans look a lot better on a well toned derriere, but did you know that there is also a connection between your level of physical fitness and your golf swing? It's true! Something as simple as stretching on a regular basis can actually make you a better golfer.

A loose, limber body will always perform better in any type of physical sport...and that includes golf. It turns out that football players and gymnasts aren't the only ones who need to keep their bodies in shape to perform well. Golf may not require barreling down the field with a helmet on or balancing on a thin beam, but it does require the ability to move freely and twist and turn smoothly.

The Golfer's Stretch
We are not saying you need to commit to complicated workout program and spend all your free time in the gym. You can actually get a tremendous benefit just from stretching your body in certain ways on a regular basis. The key here is "on a regular basis." Consistency is required to see any type of physical improvements, and that includes stretching to improve your game.

Many people do some minor stretches just before hitting the course, but this is actually not very effective. If you want to see some real improvements in your game and in the way you feel while out there hitting the ball, you need to do stretches that have proven to make a difference for golfers and perform them at least a few times a week.

There are some great programs which will show you simple stretches that can be done in the mornings before putting on your clothes for work or just before going to bed. They won't take you but a few minutes and are very easy to work into your daily life so they become a routine. Once they become a routine you will do them without thought and you will notice improvements in your game as well.

The Extra Mile
Doing stretches proven to make a difference for golfers will loosen up your body and change the way you move and twist while playing golf, but there are some extra incentives if you want to go the extra mile and do even more to improve your overall fitness.

If you incorporate a day or two of strength training into your life or start doing some type of cardio workouts along with your golfer's stretching, you will notice even greater differences in your life...that includes your golf swing, your love life, and even your career.

Yoga is also a great thing as it increases the mind-body connection and relaxes the entire body so you are more focused mentally. Again, this will help all aspects of your every daily life, but will translate into a better golf game as well.

This doesn't have to be intense and it doesn't have to consume all your free time. Golf is a much better way to pass the time, that is certain! Yet, those who really want to see improvements in their game will have to start stretching on a regular basis. If you decide to go a step beyond that you will only benefit all the more, but stretching is absolutely essential to the making of a great golfer.

Core strength and balance are crucial to playing the best womens golf. Flexibility also plays an important role.

D. Rutti - Some people question whether golf is actually a sport. They think it's just a game, something similar to chess, I guess. They certainly don't think golf is played by athletes or by anyone else who needs to be physically fit.

Those people are wrong. It's obvious they've never played golf. Anyone who has ever spent time with this great sport knows just how physically demanding golf can be. It's definitely important to be physically fit when you want to play golf as well as you can.

Getting fit for golf may be even more important for women's golf than it is for mens golf, but golf fitness for women probably gets far less attention. Women often lead more sedentary lives than men. After all, many of us work in offices, sitting behind desks all day. Some men, such as construction workers and auto mechanics, have jobs that require and build up their physical fitness. That gives those men an automatic advantage on the golf course. Most women don't have that advantage, so they need to work a little harder on their golf fitness. But that's not the only reason we need to work harder to succeed at the game of golf.

Many women lack the type of upper body strength that so many men almost seem like they were born with. But as much as we would like to have strong upper bodies, strong and stable legs are even more important for a woman golfer. It's obvious that walking up and down all those hills requires strong legs, but so do long drives. Not many people realize that the length of a golfer's drives comes directly from leg strength and balance.

Core strength and balance are crucial to playing the best womens golf. Flexibility also plays an important role. After all, if you're not flexible enough to keep your arms straight while swinging them around your body, you won't be able to swing a club properly. Your backswing will be too short and you won't be able to follow through the way you would like. Flexibility is essential to building a repeatable and effective golf swing.

It's no coincidence that strength, stability, and balance are the three keys to golf fitness, in addition to being the three keys to successful golf. They are every bit as important to women's golf as they are for men. It's just that these key characteristics can be harder for women to achieve because women have a built-in disadvantage. Women have far fewer muscle fibers than men. In other words, women are built differently than men. Their muscles are weaker, so women have to work harder to achieve golf fitness. But we can do it!

Women can step up their golf fitness using a variety of exercises and workouts, include stretching and other flexibility training, cardio training, strength training, core strengthening and specific techniques that improve your overall balance. All will increase your golf fitness if you are diligent. You can exercise in private at home, or if you like you can join a gym or a health club. Either way, you'll gain a competitive advantage and add to the enjoyment you get from playing this great sport of golf.

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