It is easy to understand why flexibility is an important topic when talking about the swing itself. You need to rotate away from the ball and then turn your body quickly back through the hitting area when making a swing – the need for flexibility is obvious. What might not be as obvious, however, is the role that flexibility can play in creating great posture.
Believe it or not, it is quite helpful to be flexible when you are trying to settle in to a solid stance. If your body is too tight in certain spots, it will be hard to stand comfortably over the ball in a position that promotes a great swing. The list below outlines the parts of the body that play a role in your stance.
- Hamstrings. This is one of the key areas as far as your stance, and the rest of your golf swing, is concerned. If you have tight hamstrings, it will be difficult to flex your knees and tilt your upper body out over the ball at address. Even if you do manage to get yourself into this position at address, you might struggle to stay down in your stance throughout the swing. In other words, you may feel yourself straightening up as the swing progresses, leading to all sorts of problems. By improving on your hamstring flexibility, you should be able to improve your swing all the way around.
- Calves. Continuing the back-of-the-leg trend, it is also helpful to have plenty of flexibility in your calves. In just the same way that your hamstrings can cause trouble when they are tight, so too can tight calves get in the way of a quality swing. This issue may not be exposed when playing from flat ground, but it can quickly become a problem when you find yourself on an uneven lie. Specifically, when the ball is well above your feet, you will need plenty of flexibility in your calf area.
- Lower back. As you might expect, lower back flexibility is an important element for all golfers. Not only will it be easier to get down into your stance when your lower back is not tight, but you will have a much better chance to complete a full turn in your backswing. No matter what level of golfer you happen to be at the moment, improving on the flexibility in your back can go a long way toward elevating your performance.
Do you think any of the points listed above are currently an issue for you? If so, you may want to seek help to work on improving your flexibility moving forward. The best way to do so is to work with a professional. Nearly any gym is going to have a trainer who is qualified to help you improve your flexibility in specific parts of your body. In fact, if you explain that you are a golfer and you would like to work specifically on flexibility that will help your golf swing, the trainer should be able to point you in the right direction.
The great thing about working on your flexibility to build a better stance is that same flexibility can help you once the swing begins, as well. Relaxed muscles which are ready to do their job will make it easier to strike quality golf shots time after time. As you know, golf is a hard game, so you don’t want to make it any harder by having to play with tight muscles. Make a plan to improve your flexibility and that perfect posture you’ve been looking for might suddenly be within reach.
