The Chest Pass (1 Leg) Exercise is a great way to build power and speed in your arms and chest while developing your shoulder and core stability, and challenging your balance.
The Chest Pass (1 Leg) Exercise forms part of the Golf Power series of innovative and dynamic exercises that are designed to efficiently build explosive power in your golf swing, increasing club head speed and shot distance.
Equipment
This exercise requires a medicine ball and a wall to throw it against. Alternatively, you could throw the ball to a partner.
This is a power training exercise, so use a moderate weight that enables you to move fast, in an explosive (plyometric) movement, while always maintaining control and proper form.
Quality of movement is much more important than how heavy a ball you are throwing.
For power exercises, the end of the set shouldn’t necessarily feel harder. Your effort level should remain relatively high throughout the set.
See How Much Weight Should I Lift? for more information.
Steps
- Start by standing on one leg, your standing leg slightly bent, facing a wall about 3 feet (1m) away, holding a medicine ball at arms length in front of your chest.
- In one explosive movement, bring the ball to your chest and then throw the ball as hard as you can against the wall.
- Catch the ball with both hands and return to the starting position.
- Continue for the desired number of repetitions.
- Repeat on the other leg.
Focus on throwing the ball equally with both arms as you remain stable and balanced.
Keep your abdominal muscles engaged, your chest up and back flat.
You should feel it working your chest, arms, hips and feet.
Variation
When you first perform this exercise, make one throw at a time, resetting your position and balance in between reps, and concentrating on throwing as explosively as you can while maintaining perfect form.
As you become more proficient, try to link the throws together into one continuous movement – when you do this you won’t fully catch the ball between reps, just guide it back to your chest and then explode it into the wall.
As your strength increases and the exercise gets easier, either throw the ball harder or progress to a heavier ball.
For a slightly different challenge, try this exercise with your foot either lifted behind you (featured), or with your knee up in front of you.
There are a number of other throw exercises in the Golf Loopy Train like a Champion System that offer a variety of challenges, you can see them all by clicking here.
If you have any questions or comments about this or other articles on Golf Loopy, please send us an email.
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