Is Golf Driving Range Good Exercise (Here’s the truth!)

Golfing is typically considered a sport reserved for all people of all ages, particularly senior citizens, to play in their spare time. There are several reasons behind this notion. For instance, striking golf balls do not seem as daunting as running after a ball and exceeding all the limits of endurance in the game of soccer.

While athletes undergo intense training in other kinds of sports to build up their stamina, is it the same for golf?  Most people do not think of a golf driving range as a form of exercise as, according to them, swinging a golf club is as easy as shelling peas.

So, is golf driving range good exercise? Golf driving range is excellent exercise and can even help you lose weight and get in shape, mainly if you are committed to regular golf practices. Walking 9 to 18 holes offers many cardiovascular benefits, mainly if you do it regularly. However, I suggest combining going to a golf driving range with cardiovascular, strength training, and flexibility exercises for optimal results.

In addition, since you are competing against yourself in golf, it does not appear as challenging and vigorous to most people. However, an enormous proportion of people, not only the elderly, find golf addictive, frustrating, and worth their time and money.

Well, it is not as simple as it appears to the naked eye as one requires immense power and strength to make a good enough strike.

You might also wonder about the most Important Muscles Used To Improve Your Golf Swing; I wrote an article about the 7 Vital Muscles for Golf Swing Speed. I encourage you to check the article out.

Is Golf Driving Range A Good Exercise?

Most sports performance coaches recommend the golf driving range as one of the most proper yet therapeutic ways to exert. It has been recognized that walking around the golf course while carrying the entire kit of golf clubs helps to shed excess calories from your body. It is because golfers usually swing the club for a minute or two and spend most of their time walking around the entire course.

This way, they can walk approximately seven kilometers during an 18-hole round. Walking for more than a mile in the scorching heat on uneven and smooth surfaces helps you burn as many as a thousand calories.

Carrying all your golf essentials doubles the load on your muscles and aids in cutting more fat from your body. It will be meaningful if you avoid using a golf buggy as they reduce the walking distance. Thus reducing your calories burn rate to half.  

Robert Yang is a fitness expert and founder of the Performance Lab in Encinitas, California. He stated some thought-provoking facts when asked whether driving ranges serve as a good form of exercise or not. According to Yang, swinging a golf club is as tough as lifting a heavy weight.

A golf swing puts immense load and torque on the body, so you can only lift it four times. Also, it is extremely hard to get in a better shape just by swinging balls as one cannot change their body shape easily.

So, to improve your golf game, you should focus on power training that will allow you to strike the ball forcefully. In addition to intense training sessions, good posture is another important thing golfers work hard for. A straight posture will help you rotate your arm more efficiently, thus making your swing better.

Kevin Burns, a Minnesota-based fitness instructor, also clarified that you could not lose a few pounds just by striking a ball with might and main. The idea is quite futile as there are very little to no cardiovascular benefits involved.

However, the situation reverses if you consider walking nine to eighteen holes regularly. It would enhance your heart rates and breathing rates.

Is Golf Driving Range Cardio?

While golf can be a leisurely recreation, going to a golf driving range is also an excellent way to exercise and burn calories. Mainly, hitting balls on the driving range is a perfect way to burn calories, especially if you hit the range regularly.

However, a golf driving range is not enough to get you in shape; I suggest you incorporate walking, running, strength training, or even yoga into your fitness routine.

How Often Should You Go To The Driving Range?

Going to the driving range about four times per week and playing golf at the range will help you improve your golf game and become a better golfer. Regularly hitting the driving range will elevate your golf game and improve your golf skills, including putting, chipping, and even hitting balls.

Watch the video below for driving range practice tips, including drills to improve your game.

How Many Calories Can You Burn On A Golf Driving Range?

An average golfer burns 201 to 462 calories per hour while playing golf at the driving range (Source: Harvard Health Publishing). The number of calories typically burned will depend on whether or not you are using a golf cart or carrying golf clubs, your weight, and the intensity of your activity.

Whether you are 16 or 60, golf is one of the best ways to keep you fit as a fiddle. You can easily burn a tremendous amount of calories. But, of course, it all depends on your body type, the type of golf course (hilly or flat), and how high the mercury goes that day.

It has been estimated that an average-sized individual of about 155 lbs. is likely to burn an average of 201 calories every hour in the driving range.

Similarly, a person weighing at least 185 lbs. burns approximately 294 calories per hour by being at the driving range. Also, it has been reported that an individual is likely to burn about 3.5 calories per swing.  

Activities	125-pound (about 56.70 kg) Golfer	155-pound (about 70.30 kg) Golfer	185-pound (about 83.92 kg) Golfer
Golf When Using Cart	201	252	294
Playing Golf While Carrying Clubs	330	396	462

How Does Golf Keep You Mentally and Physically Fit?

As a physical activity, golf offers several benefits, including cardiovascular and metabolic benefits, enhancing mental health and well-being, and even expanding your lifespan, according to a study issued in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Another study issued in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine by Kristiann Heesch discovered that women battling depression who averaged 150 minutes of moderate exercise (golf, aerobics classes, tennis, swimming) or 200 minutes of walking per week were less affected by their depression than when researchers began following them three years prior.

A healthy mind is as important as toning up your body’s muscles to keep you in good shape. People often indulge themselves in different activities to keep themselves mentally sound. Like other sports, golf is a leisure activity that has been proven to alleviate stress levels.

In golf, you are competing against yourself most of the time and trying to break your score. Golf not only enhances your brain stimulation but also improves your problem-solving capability. In addition, an open environment, a breath of fresh air, and good company of friends will keep you socially active and improve your mood.

Golfers who prefer to walk on the driving range are more fit than the ones who saddle themselves in the buggy. However, if you think that doing forty full golf swings will help you build up muscles, then you’re wrong.

It is possible if you complement your weekly rounds of golf with daily workouts, only then will you be able to build good shape.

See also: 8 Main Reasons Why Golf Is a Good Sport.

How Is Golf Beneficial For Seniors?

The 12-week program by researchers from the University of Southern California assesses participants’ agility, balance, and grip strength before and after joining the golf program. According to researchers, golf encourages seniors to socialize and players and improve concentration and quality of life.

Initial study results indicate that practicing improves seniors’ walking and standing ability and promotes balance, strength, and cognitive processing, including paying attention and remembering.

Healthcare providers highly appreciate and recommend golf to improve seniors’ cognitive and motor skills or the elderly with a sedentary lifestyle. In a study, Dr. Andrew Murray, a sports medicine consultant at the University of Edinburgh, has enlisted various health benefits of golf.

For instance, playing golf regularly would help improve breathing and pulmonary function. Moreover, it protects against life-threatening diseases like colon cancer, breast cancer, and diabetes.

It’s @rydercup week. Here are the key points on Golf and Health. Significant overall benefits, and much can be done to maximise benefits via @BJSM_BMJ @EdinburghUni https://t.co/I6wUOyIc2K pic.twitter.com/uQmIw78nv2

— Golf & Health (@GolfAndHealth) September 24, 2018

What Should You Do Before A Round Of Golf?

There are certain exercises that not only enhance your golf swinging abilities but also protect you from other debilitating conditions. For instance;

1- Lifting Weights

People who work with weights have increased muscle strength. The toned muscles not only improve your game of golf but will also protect you from bone deformities later in life.

2- Stretching

Stretching is one of the common exercises performed by golf players before starting their routine. Since a powerful golf swing requires flexibility, strength, and stability, a good stretch would surely be helpful.

Golfers with stability or mobility issues often suffer back pains that may aggravate later in life. That is why it is often suggested to do a quick warm-up for approximately five to ten minutes to avoid any sprains.

This warm-up may include light activities like walking, jogging, stretches, and rest.  

Are There Any Drawbacks Associated With Golf?

Like any other sports, some risk factors are also associated with golf. For instance, the risk of skin cancer is potentially high among golfers who do not take adequate preventive measures.

Also, back pain is highly common in golf players, typically those who have poor mobility and tend to play without warming up. However, the benefits this sport offers have outnumbered all its risks.

A golf driving range is one of the best forms of exercise for senior citizens and the younger generation. It not only helps you maintain a perfect posture but also provides you with mental and physical stability.

See also: Will Playing Golf Help You Lose Weight? (Here is the truth!)

Wrapping Up

Overall, hitting golf balls at the driving range can offer tremendous benefits, including reducing stress, networking, and physical and mental fitness. Thus, a golf driving range can be considered an excellent physical activity as it gets your body moving. 

A golf driving range is also a good way to reach your physical activity requirements (weekly 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity), as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggested.