The Rotational Lift (1 Leg) Exercise is a great way to improve the mobility and stability around your hip capsules and shoulders, improving your balance while simultaneously working your obliques, upper back, chest, shoulders, and hips.
The Rotational Lift (1 Leg) Exercise forms part of the Golf Balance series of innovative and dynamic exercises that will develop your balance and body awareness for improved consistency and ball-striking from any lie, and for a more efficient golf swing, enabling you to generate more power while maintaining a solid base of support.
Equipment
This exercise requires a weight that can be comfortably held in both hands. You can use a medicine ball (featured), weight plate, dumbbell, or something similar.
This is not a dedicated strength exercise, and the amount of weight you lift isn’t so important. Choose a weight that makes the movement challenging, but enables you to complete all of your repetitions (reps) with proper form.
If you are performing this exercise as part of a Golf Loopy Train like a Champion System programme workout, you should be able to complete the prescribed number of reps in the allotted time with proper form – adjust your tempo accordingly.
See How Much Weight Should I Lift? for more information.
Figure 1. Rotational Lift (1 Leg) Exercise Video.
Steps
- Start by standing on your left leg, holding a medicine ball in both hands.
- Balancing on the inside of your left foot, turn your shoulders and hips to the left.
- Squat down and bend at the hips as you lower the ball to your left, straightening your right leg behind you.
- Stand tall, extending your left leg as you pull the ball back up to your chest by firing from your glutes and torso.
- Turn to the right as you push the ball up and away from you, simultaneously bringing your right knee forwards and up in front of you until your thigh is parallel to the floor.
- Return to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
- Switch legs and repeat on the other side.
This is a complex movement, but it’s well worth the practice to get it perfect.
Keep your chest up and your back straight , rotating your torso throughout the movement.
You should feel it working your obliques, upper back, chest, shoulders, and hips.
Variation
If, at first, you find this movement too difficult, try the Reverse Woodchop Exercise.
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There are a number of other golf-specific balance exercises in the Golf Loopy Train like a Champion System.
The Golf Loopy Perfect Warm Up, an exercise routine that has been scientifically designed to prepare your mind and body for playing golf to the best of your ability in just 7 minutes.
Introduction to the Swing like a Champion System.
Golf Anatomy and Kinesiology, a collection of articles describing the roles of the muscles involved in the golf swing.
