A good golf swing requires groups of muscles to work together to produce a motion that combines fluidity, power, and control.  Just as over-training one muscle will lead to imbalance, tension in one area will lead to problems in your whole movement. If you want to improve the flow and balance of your swing, you need to know how to stretch the muscles involved: the external abdominal obliques, the flexor digitorum, the latissiumus dorsi, the pectoralis major, and the gluteus maximus.

Your external abdominal oblique muscles, which run up each side of your waist from your pelvis to your ribcage, are crucial for twisting and bending movements. Any tension here will affect your swing from start to follow-through.

Instructions:

To stretch your oblique muscles, lie on your back with your arms at right angles to your body. Keeping your feet on the floor, bend your knees then allow your legs to all to the right until one knee is on the floor with the other resting on top. Slowly bring your kneed up toward your right arm.  Stop when you can feel the stretch and hold it for 20 second, taking slow deep breaths. Return to you starting position and repeat on you left side. Do five repetitions on each side. Your pelvis with tilt and lift off the floor during this stretch, but your shoulders should stay at all times. You can do this stretch with or without an exercise roller.

The flexor digitorum is the muscle in your forearm that controls your grip. If tension here affects how you hold the club, then you’ll lose accuracy.

Instructions:

To stretch these muscles, stand facing forward with a wall on your right. Hold out your arm and put your palm flat against the wall with fingers up and slightly splayed. Bend your knees to lower your upper body about 5 to 10 cm so that your hand moves down the wall. Now gently straighten your knees while keeping you hand in the same place. Hold the stretch for 20 to 30 seconds. Repeat with your left arm.

Your latissimus dorsi, the muscles in the upper part of your back running from your armpit to your spine, are involved in all lifting and pulling movements. Tension and stiffness here pull your shoulders back and effect you follow-through.

Instructions:

To stretch your latissiumus dorsi, stand upright with your feet slightly more than shoulder-width apart. Raise your arms above your head and put your palms together. Keeping both feet flat on the floor, allow your upper body to lean over to one side, making sure not to lean back or bend forward. Keep your hips above your feet. You shouldn’t be pulling sideways; the weight of your arms should be enough to give the stretch. Bend as far breaths. Repeat five times on each side

Although stretching a tight muscle can feel uncomfortable, none of these stretches should be painful. Stop if you experience sharp pain, and if pain persists, you should consult a doctor or physiotherapist. For the maximum benefit to your golf swing, you should aim to do these stretches once or twice every day and as part of your warm-up before playing round. With care and attention, you could soon see improvements in your game.

A full trunk side stretch is a great place to start as it works to stretch your shoulders, mid-back and the powerful latisimus muscles.

Instructions:

Start by bringing your arms overhead and interlocking your fingers and reaching to the opposite side. Focus on keeping your weight on both feet.

You can progress to using your club to help get a deeper stretch for each side.

Hold for 10 to 20 seconds per side. Repeat 5x per side.