Good stability is important in all aspects of the game but especially for increasing your driving distance, having better control and preventing low back problems.

Think of it this way: If you try to push your car over a flat parking lot you lean into it and need to generate a good amount of force to start moving the vehicle. It's unlikely you could stand up straight and push with your arms and have the car move. You wouldn't create enough force. (Unless you have a Yugo). When you lean into the car and start to push you develop force that must be transferred to the vehicle. A key component is the ground. The ground gives you the stability. You're pushing against the stable ground but transferring the force to the car.

Now, what would happen if you were trying the same thing on a parking lot covered with ice? You probably would not even be able to move that Yugo. You would not have a stable base to push against. So in order to have good strength and power you need to have good stability of the joints.

Key joints for stability are the knee, lumbar spine, and shoulder. Research has shown that prior to initiation of movement, stabilizing muscles in the lumbar spine fire to prepare the body to move. So if I am going to raise my arm, something in my brain subconsciously sends a signal to my low back telling the muscles to get ready because were going to be doing something and we need a stable base to work against.

In people with low back pain or a history of previous low back pain, the muscles no longer function in that manner. They don't contract until after the movement occurs and are not able to hold a steady contraction. Rehabilitating these muscles has been shown to relieve the back pain. Now you can see why it is so important to have a stable core. It is essential to have good stability before working on strength. If you do strength training without good stability you risk injury and will have difficulty maximizing your strength and performance goals.

An essential and often neglected component of shoulder stability is the scapula. The scapula provides a big part of the stability for shoulder movements. Training shoulder stability is best accomplished with dumbbells and BOSU or stability balls. The trunk or core is probably the most important area for stability as much of our force and movement is transferred through this area.

Many people think of the core as just being the abdominals but this is not the case. The core does include abdominal muscles, especially the deep abdominals, but also involves muscles on the side and back of the spine. When training for stability it's important to train to resist motion. It is this component of resisting and controlling motion that is essential to injury prevention and transfer of forces to perform powerful and efficient movements. If you have poor stability during the golf swing it could show up as decreased club speed, abnormal swing mechanics, pain, or just inconsistency in your swing.

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flexibility

stability

The Swing

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