Produced by Aaron Wallace, personal trainer and golf fitness and biomechanic specialist for Life Time Fitness in Troy, MI.

Many golfers today are realizing the potential for improvement in their long game through the use of flexibility and strength training exercise.

Just take one look at most pros in this era and you will quickly see the advantages for the consistency and length of drives and long irons that exercise provides.

But many golfers also ask how exercise can improve their short game. These golfers know the majority of their shots will occur from 100 yards and in so the ability to shave strokes with a more consistent short game can be invaluable.

To understand how we can improve our short game we must first look at the movement more closely.

When using a range of wedges and the putter, you remove most of the leg movement from your swing.  The golfer’s torso moves in a pendulum fashion allowing for proper shoulder turn and movement of the arms through the chipping and putting.

Just like swinging any other club, the turn of our torso guides our arms through the chipping and putting movements. During these golf skills, it is extremely important to have a consistent turn that allows us to be as accurate as possible.

The following exercise can assist in developing proper turn while keeping our legs stable.

Supine Ball Russian Twist: Lie supine on a fully inflated Swiss ball with your head, neck and shoulders supported by the ball.

Bring both arms in front of your chest with the arms fully extended and palms together or grasping a small medicine ball or dumbbell.

Slowly rotate your shoulders along the Swiss ball allowing your arms to go with your torso. Always keep your eyes looking at the ceiling and your hips pointed to the ceiling.

Once you feel your head or hips begin to rotate, stop and return to center and repeat for the opposite side.

Remember to always keep your head and hips facing the ceiling. This best imitates the movement during chipping and putting.

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