47 EXERCISES TO INCREASE CLUBHEAD SPEED

• You can take the bar out of a rack or pick it up off the floor. 
• If picking it up off the floor, the same cues apply as the conventional deadlift.
• The dimmel deadlift begins with the bar at the hip level.
• Send the hips back keeping your weight in your heels and lower the bar until it is just above your knees.
• The lower back stays nice and flat. 
• To return to the top, focus on squeezing the glutes.
• We typically program these at higher rep ranges (15+ per set) but lighter weights.

• Set up with a hip-width stance.
• Your hands will be about shoulder-width apart, gripping the barbell just outside your hips.
• When viewed from the side, the shoulders will be slightly in front of the bar.
• The lower back is nice and flat the entire time.
• The Head is neutral to keep pressure off the upper spine area.
• Hips and shoulders come off the floor at the same rate.
• Weight stays in the heels.
• Rep is finished when hips, knees, and shoulders are locked out and in one straight line as you stand tall. 
• To return to the floor, send the hips back first putting your weight in the heels.
• Then send hips and shoulders down at the same rate.

The Romanian deadlift uses little help from the legs and really recruits muscles in the glutes, lower back, and hamstrings. You will want to start out light and make time to get in a hamstring or lower back stretch afterward.

• Set up is the same as with all our deadlifting movements. 
• Hip width stance, flat back, weight in the heels. 
• Hands gripping the bar just outside the hips.
• But for these, the hips will be slightly higher than normal. 
• You will feel as if you are only hinging at the hips using your glutes, hamstrings, and lower back to lift the weight as opposed to the legs. 
• Make sure to not have your weight shift into your toes and let the back round.
• The lower back is nice and flat throughout.
• The rep is complete with knees, hips, and shoulders locked out in one line. 
• To return to the floor, send the hips back keeping the weight in the heels.
• Hinge at the hips.
• If you are just starting out, build the bar up off the floor by placing it on some weights.

• To set up, stand upright with the barbell resting on your traps.
• Unlock the knees slightly and have a slight flex in the knees.
• Send the hips back as you lower your chest to the floor
• Always keep your lower back nice and flat
• The degree to which you can lower yourself will depend on your flexibility and ability to maintain a nice flat lower back.
• Only go down as far as you can maintain a flat back
• Return to the starting position by squeezing the glutes and lower back.

We begin with the air squat (which you can do at home) because it is a foundational movement in developing leg strength for creating more club head speed. Plus we will build off this over the next few movements as we add loading

• Set up with your feet shoulder-width apart or slightly wider.
• Hands can be out in front.
• Unhinge at the hips sending them back slightly
• The hips and shoulders will move down at the same rate until your hip crease is below the knee.
• It is important that your knees point in the same direction as the toes. For many, you will need to feel as if you are pushing your knees out to engage your glutes to accomplish this.
• The chest remains nice & tall.
• The lower back remains as flat as possible
• Avoid letting your weight get into the balls of your feet or your toes. 
• To return to the start position, push through the ground so your hips and shoulders rise at the same rate.
• The air squat is complete when hips and knees are fully locked out and in a straight line with the shoulders.

When an athlete first starts out with me and can show me they can perform a proper air squat then it’s time to add some loading. But I like to add a simple dumbbell or kettlebell before adding a barbell. I like to do that in the form of goblet squats

• The same points of performance apply as above so I won’t repeat.
• But you will be holding a dumbbell or kettlebell in front of you. 
• You can hold it anyway but focus on keeping the weight close to your chest. 
• With a weight in the frontal plane really focus on keeping your weight in your heels and not tipping forward.

The back squat gets a bad wrap by pundits that in my opinion, just don’t know about proper technique. You will be adding weight on your back so this will also recruit the muscles in your lower and upper back as well as hamstrings.

• The bar will rest on your traps.
• Use a shoulder-width or slightly wider stance. Most people will turn out their toes slightly. This is a matter of preference.
• Full grip on the bar with elbows pointed back and down.
• To begin the movement, the hips descend back and then down.
• Knees will always remain in line with toes. This recruits the glute muscles. 
• Keep the back and flat and the chest tall. 
• Descend until the hip crease is below the knee. YES! You should use the full range of motion!
• Hips & shoulder will both descend and rise at the same rate.
• Finish fully standing with the hips & knees fully locked out.

Whereas the back squat recruits more muscles in the posterior chain, the front squat involves the quads and abdominals a lot more. So it is also a core strengthening exercise for us golfers. Similar to the goblet squat, we will be adding weight in the frontal plane but in the form of a barbell which will require more upper back, shoulder, and forearm flexibility. All of which are beneficial to the golfing community.

• Set up is the same as other squats but the bar will rest on your collar bone.
• Hands will be outside the shoulders resting in the fingertips.
• Fight to keep the elbows high so that the triceps are parallel to the ground
• Really focus on filling your midsection with mass as if you were going to get punched in the stomach.
• From here all other points of performance remain the same.

This movement really works the glutes, legs, and hamstrings. You can use a pair of dumbbells or kettlebells.

• Grip the weights on each side of the body. 
• Step one foot on top of the box keeping the knee over your foot. 
• Press through your forward heel and stand all the way on top of the box.
• The chest remains tall the entire time.
• Place both feet on top of the box as you reset. 
• Step down and unless otherwise stated, alternate feet on each side.

The single-leg Bulgarian split squat is in our list of single-leg exercises to increase club head speed because it is great for developing unilateral balance and strength in the glutes which play a big role in your golf swing.

• To set up, find a step, bench, or pad to rest a foot on.
• Begin in a forward lunge position with the torso upright.
• Brace your core with the hips square. 
• The back foot is elevated on the bench.
• Lower yourself until the front thigh is almost horizontal or parallel with the floor. 
• Keep the forward knee in line with the toe and don’t let it pass the toes.
• Drive through the forward heel back to the starting position.

These are great for generating vertical force because you are lifting from a dead stop.

• All points of performance of the front squat apply. 
• Set up the box so that it is right behind you. Be careful when first performing these.
• Send your hips back and then down as you sit on the box/bench/mats. 
• Pause on the box/bench/mats for 1-2 seconds.
• Lean forward ever so slightly before contract your glutes and hamstrings to initiate the movement off the bench.
• Drive your hips forward at the top and squeeze your glutes hard.

This is one of the few exercises to increase club head speed that we included on this list that uses a barbell and band to provide accommodative resistance. It really helps develops hip explosiveness. The width of your band will depend upon your strength levels. Start out light and build up as you progress.

• Place the band over the bar making sure it is evenly spaced.
• The arches of the feet are standing on the band about hip-width apart.
• From here setup is the same as the regular deadlift; flat back, shoulders slightly in front of the bar, bar close to the shins.
• Activate your core by pressing out as if you were about to get punched in the stomach.
• From here perform similar to a conventional deadlift.
• Weight in the heels as you drive with the legs keeping the hips and shoulders rising at the same rate. 
• When the barbell gets above the knees you will really start to feel the resistance of the band. 
• Really try to explode at this point by squeezing the hips and glutes. 
• Stand to full extension. 
• It is helpful to watch our demo video.

The clean pull is an exercise Olympic lifters use to develop hip drive. We love to program these for our athletes to do the same. But before we assign these, athletes must have great deadlift form.

• Set up as you would a deadlift with a barbell over the mid part of the foot. The grip is just outside the hips, shoulders slightly in front of the bar, and back nice and flat.
• Perform a deadlift with the hips and shoulders rising together.
• You want to feel as if you are “pushing the floor away.”
• As you pass the knees you want to feel as if you are driving or “jumping the barbell up with your legs and hip drive. 
• The body and barbell should remain as close to each other as possible. 
• Feel as if you are driving the weight with the legs and not pulling with the arms. 
• This will take some time so start light and be patient. 
• Watch the tutorial video.

The hang power clean may be the most difficult movement on this list. It is a very dynamic movement that recruits the legs, back, and even arms. It is similar to the golf swing in that the power will come from the hips and legs first before finishing off with the arms. And similar to the golf swing, an early arm pull will result in a loss of power.

• Set up so your feet start hip to shoulder-width apart.
• Hands are about one thumbs distance from the hips.
• Lower the bar to just above the knees while maintaining a flat lower back.
• Heels remain down with straight arms.
• Your torso will then rotate to a vertical position before “exploding” with the legs and hips.
• The shoulders will then shrug, followed by a pull of the arms to get the barbell to land on the collar bone.
• Turn the elbows around the bar quickly.
• Catch the barbell in a partial squat before standing all the way up.

• Feet are set in a hip to shoulder-width stance. 
• Dip down and jump as high as you can making sure you extend the hips and knees. 
• The focus is to use the stretch-shortening cycle.

The seated dynamic box jump is great for developing explosiveness in the hips and legs.

• For the seated dynamic box jump you will need a box or bench to sit on.
• Bring your feet off the ground before forcefully bringing the feet back to the ground to initiate the jump onto a plyo-box.
• Make sure to reset on every rep.

• One foot is planted on the ground while the other is elevated behind you. 
• Use your arms and the momentum to jump off one leg and onto the box. 
• Start out with a low box and as you develop confidence increase the height.

Dynamic Lateral Step-Ups are an awesome exercise for increasing club head speed.

• Stand to the side of a knee-high box holding dumbbells in each hand.
• Place one foot on the box. 
• Begin the movement by stomping on the box immediately followed by a dynamic extension of the hip and knee.
• Immediately squeeze the quad and glute that are on the box to drive up onto the box.
• Keep the torso upright the entire time. 
• This mimics the extension that is created by the lead leg during a golf swing.

Now it’s time to combine the explosiveness of a box jump with some dynamic rotational work to really add some club head speed.

• Stand to the side of a box.
• Begin by rotating with your torso and arms to the side that is furthest from the box.
• Add a slight squat to the movement as well. 
• From here we want to mimic a golf swing.
• Rotate towards the box by shifting your weight to the lead leg.
• Then rotate the torso and arms towards the box. 
• Jump up onto the box by using the quads and hips.
• Land on the box with both feet.
• Reset and step down.
• Don’t forget to perform an equal amount on both sides.

Of all the hip stretches for golf, the 90 to 90 is the most dynamic because you will be constantly moving.

• You will start by sitting on the ground with your hips and knees at a 90-degree angle.
• The torso will be as straight as possible.
• Use a slow and controlled movement to switch from side to side.
• We recommend watching our video to see it in full detail.