10 Things That Happen When You Sit 8+ Hours a Day (And How They Destroy Your Golf Swing)

“I played pro golf for 25 years, and now I have a desk job. My hips and glutes are tight from sitting, and it’s ruining my game.” - Shane, UK

You're losing distance off the tee, and it has nothing to do with your swing. It's what you're doing for 8+ hours a day before you even get to the course.

Sitting all day is destroying your golf swing in ways you can't see but definitely feel: restricted rotation, lost distance, and swing faults your pro can't fix.

Let’s get into the 10 things that happen when you sit 8+ hours a day (and how they destroy your golf swing)

1. Hip flexors tighten → Can't turn into your backswing → You lose coil and power, resulting in a weak, short drive that leaves you 20+ yards behind your playing partners

2. Glutes shut down → Loss of ground force power and distance → You're swinging with just your upper body, generating no power from the ground up, which costs you 15-20 yards you can't get back with new shafts

3. Core stops firing → Back muscles compensate, causing pain and injury risk → Your lower back takes all the stress it wasn't designed to handle, leading to lower back pain after 18 holes and potential injury that keeps you off the course

4. Lower back stiffens → Your lower back starts taking on rotation that your hips, upper back and shoulders should be handling

5. Upper back locks up → Incomplete shoulder turn, shorter swing arc → Your backswing stops at 60-70 degrees instead of 90, creating a short, restricted swing that produces weak shots and frustrating distance loss

6. Posture deteriorates (S posture or C posture) → Early extension (standing up through impact) → You lose your spine angle, the club comes in steep, and you hit fat or thin shots because you're not staying in your posture through the ball

7. Lower body sequencing breaks → All arms swing, no power transfer → You cast the club from the top, lose lag, and swing with just your upper body, resulting in slices, pulls, and zero distance

8. Shoulders round forward → Restricted club position at the top → You can't get the club on plane, leading to an over-the-top move, weak slices, and rotator cuff injuries

9. Hamstrings tighten → Can't maintain posture through impact → You stand up (early extension) to compensate for tight hamstrings, leading to inconsistent strikes, loss of power, and shots that never feel solid

10. Recovery slows → Takes longer to "loosen up," → You need 3-4 holes to find your groove, then by hole 14 fatigue sets in, your swing breaks down, and you blow up your score when it matters most

The Fix: The Rotation Revolution

You can buy all the equipment you want and take endless lessons, but if you don't systematically reverse what sitting destroyed, you're just slapping on a Band Aid without fixing the root cause - your flexibility.

The Rotation Revolution is my 3-step system that takes just 25 minutes a day to undo the damage that 8 hours of sitting causes. It's specifically designed for competitive golfers over 45 who sit all day and refuse to let their chair cost them yards.

Step 1: LIBERATE (3-4 Weeks)

We start with a Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) assessment—the same physical screening system PGA Tour professionals use. This identifies exactly where sitting has locked you up and how those restrictions are showing up in your swing.

What we target:

• Tight hip flexors that prevent proper loading

• Stiff lower back blocking rotation

• Limited turn in your spine stopping your backswing

What happens: Through targeted mobility work, we systematically release these restrictions. Guys are shocked when they touch their toes for the first time in years or feel their hips actually rotate freely again.

The result: Your body can finally execute the swing your pro has been teaching you. Those swing faults start disappearing because the physical limitations causing them are gone.

Step 2: ACTIVATE (2-3 Weeks)

Now that we've freed up your movement, we wake up your glutes and core—what I call the King and Queen of the swing.

What we target:

• Dormant glutes (your ground force power source)

• Shut-down core (your stability foundation)

• Rotational power through golf-specific movements

What happens: We fine-tune your exercises to incorporate rotational power.. Everything can be done in a hotel room, your home gym, or living room. No special equipment needed.

The result: You generate MORE power with LESS back pain. Like my client Maureen, a competitive club player who won her club championship after 3 months. She didn't swing harder—she just learned to use her glutes and core properly.

Step 3: DOMINATE (Ongoing)

Here's what most golfers get wrong: they try to build speed on a body that doesn't move correctly. That's why popular speed training gadgets often fail—they skip straight to speed without addressing mobility first.

What we target:

• Overspeed training that's safe and controlled

• Training your nervous system and fast-twitch muscles

• Building speed while maintaining posture and control

What happens: We use progressive training that translates directly to the course. You're not swinging out of your shoes or losing balance—you're teaching your body to generate more clubhead speed while staying in control.

The result: You gain back those 15-20 yards. You start outdriving guys you used to lose to. The compliments roll in at the 19th hole: "What are you doing differently?" "Did you get a new driver?"

You go from hoping to compete to expecting to win.

Watch the golf training:

Carrie O'Rourke is a TPI Certified Golf Fitness Professional and two-time Golf Fitness Association of America award recipient. She helps golfers over 45 gain distance and consistency through her proprietary Pacesetter Player Methodology and premium coaching program, The Golf Flex Academy.