If you play golf, how strong should you be?
This depends on your age.
The younger you are, the more you can get away with less strength. You are capable of moving your body faster than us older folks.
Once you reach 40, you’ll want to start to pay far more attention to strength training, as that is around the age when we start losing muscle mass due to sarcopenia.
At the same time, we’ve already lost some of our explosiveness as our body speed slows.
With this in mind, older golfers probably want to be a bit stronger than the average person who doesn’t participate in activity that requires some strength.
After all, the golf swing is a total body movement pattern that engages every major muscle group.
How to measure overall strength
The best way to measure overall strength is by determining how much weight you can lift with the four basic barbell exercises.
These are the squat, deadlift, bench press and overhead press.
According to the National Golf Foundation, the median golf age in the U.S. is around 54. I think I also saw somewhere that the average age is about 46.
With this in mind, for our strength standards, we’ll look at the age of 50.
Our strength standards are based upon statistics complied at Strength Level. They compile the information as users of their website input their lifts.
Note: The data collected from Strength Level is from people who lift weights. They range in experience from the newbie to the elite.
It is estimated that only 20-25% of the population lifts weights.
Squat Strength Standards
For the Squat, the average 50 year old male who lifts weights is capable of performing a single rep at 255 pounds, while the average 50 year old female is able to squat a single rep at 143 pounds.
Beginner lifters in each category average 126 pounds for men and 58 pounds for women.
Keep in mind, this does not consider bodyweight.
The average 200 pound male squats 323 pounds for a single rep, while the average 150 pound woman can squat 168 pounds.
The website also allows you to compare your lifts by age and bodyweight to other lifters who are inputting their numbers.
According to Strength Level, based upon my most recent squat session, where I did a couple sets of 5 at 240 pounds, my 1 rep maximum is around 270.
I currently weight about 195 pounds and I am 58 years old. This places my squat at higher than 62% of lifters my age and weight and above the average 50 year old, no matter their weight.
Admittedly, this is my weakest lift, and that’s been due to an inability to train it consistently until now. In a few months, barring injury or illness, I should have my squat more in line with my other lifts.
Deadlift Standards
I’ve long argued that the deadlift is the absolute best exercise for golfers, given how many muscle groups it trains.
The average 50 year old male can deadlift 299 pounds while the average 200 pound male can deadlift 373 pounds. Keep in mind, these are averages for people who actually train.
The average 50 year old female can deadlift 171 pounds and the average 150 pound female can deadlift 197 pounds.
Beginner lifters among 50 year olds deadlift have an average deadlift of 154 pounds for men and 75 pounds for women.
This is another lift that I have not been able to train as consistently as I like due to a low back issue I’ve had for 20 years.
However, for some reason, my deadlift has outpaced my squat by a big margin. My one rep maximum is 350 pounds (this is an actual lift, not calculated based upon poundage for sets of 3 or 5).
At my age and weight, that puts me in the top 22%.
Going forward, I’m not sure how heavy I will train this lift, as I am generally satisfied with how far I’ve taken it.
Bench Press
The bench press is the lift that helps us develop the most upper body strength and it should be trained for overall strength.
For golfers, I would argue that the overhead press, which we’ll discuss next, is the more important lift.
However, the bench press can drive strength gains in the overhead press, so it shouldn’t be ignored.
The average 50 year old male lifter is able to bench 193 pounds for a single rep, while the average 200 pound male is able to bench 246 pounds.
The average 50 year old female lifter is able to bench 99 pounds and the average 150 pound female is able to bench 114 pounds.
50 year old beginner males average 92 pounds and 50 year old females average 34 pounds.
The most weight I’ve benched is 231 pounds. That puts me into the top 23% for my age and bodyweight.
Overhead Press
As I mentioned, the standing overhead press is probably the better of the two upper body exercises discussed here.
Because we are standing, we are getting some work all the way from our feet up through our wrists when we are at the top of the movement.
This is also the most technically challenging lift, and ultimately we will lift the lowest amount of weight with this exercise compared to the others.
Given the training it does for the shoulders and back, it is an important lift to incorporate into your training.
The average 50 year old male lifter is able to press 126 pounds for a single rep. The average 200 pound male is able to press 160 pounds.
The average 50 year old female lifter is able to press 66 pounds, and the average 150 pound female is able to press 77 pounds.
Beginner 50 year old males average 58 pounds and 50 year old female beginners average 25 pounds.
Just as an example of what training can do for you, a couple years ago when I was getting coaching on these lifts, I witnessed a 70 year old woman, who probably weighed no more than 125 pounds, press 72 pounds.
As for me, my maximum weight to date is 150 pounds. That puts me in the top 25% for this lift for my age and weight.
Strength Standards For Golfers
So, what does all this mean for you, the golfer.
Well, just consider this… at 58 years old, I am still able to swing the driver over 110 mph, and I am pretty sure I can stretch that to at least 115 mph with regular practice.
The fastest I ever recorded myself was about 120 mph, and that was 15 years ago.
Between then and a couple years ago, I had lost a considerable amount of strength due to a lack of training, and I am not yet done making gains.
All the while, I have a tricky back and much tighter hips as a result of sitting on my ass for my real job for years.
The benefits of strength training are clear… as you get older, you can still maintain much of your ability after 50 if you train.
And, if you want to play golf at a decent level past age 70, strength training will help you considerably.
The reality is, you don’t need to be super strong either.
I presented this data to show what people can achieve through consistent training, and it won’t take years to attain those levels.
Many people can make significant strength gains within about six months with proper programming.
After that, they can simply go on a maintenance program.
Now, get to work!
