Spring has sprung and people are flocking to the golf course in droves to take advantage! Golf is a great sport. It takes concentration, determination, skill and composure. It also is an easy way to injure one's self. Think about this. In an average golf game a typical golfer takes about 200 golf swings (including practice swings). The speed of the golf club on average is about 86 mph for a typical male golfer and the swing takes less than a second! Professional golfers generate more than enough torque to rupture vertebral discs or even cause a fracture! Couple these facts with a flexed posture, walking up hills and valleys, avoiding trees, an occasional sprinkler head or two and add in a deconditioned athlete, and you have a recipe for disaster! You can do things to lessen the chance of injury:
1) Improve muscular strength: Developing muscular strength will not only increase club head speed which in turn will provide more power, but will also lessen the chance for injury. Pay particular attention to the core muscles. There is a plethora of information on core strengthening. In fact, I will be posting information on this topic soon. Utilize training that will increase core stability, (BOSU ball, theraballs, etc). This will drastically reduce the chance for muscle strain.
2) Improve your Flexibility: Probably even more important than strength is flexibility. Stretch! Warm-up prior to golfing. In fact, you should work on flexibility throughout the week, it's easy, and the only equipment you need is the floor and/or a wall! Stretch after the round as well! Even if you ride in a cart instead of walking, bouncing around in that cart is not very good for your spine! Here is a good link with pictures of golf strecthes:
http://www.drrogeraz.com/exercises.html
3) Improve your Cardiovascular Conditioning: I know no one runs through the golf course, but you do walk a lot, up hills, down hills, etc. If you improve your cardiovascular health, you will fight fatigue, help stay focused and lessen the chance of over-exertion injuries. Besides, cardiovascular health will help you live longer so you can play more golf!
4) HYDRATE!!!: Dehydration causes fatigue which leads to injury. Dehydrated muscles are more apt to strain/sprain.
5) Have Fun!: Mark Twain once said "golf is a good walk spoiled." It is easy to lose your cool when you chase around that little ball that always wants to fly into the water or spend some time on the beach. But if you let your temper get the best of you, you will rush your swing, swing too hard, and increase your chance of injury. In fact, I had a friend who did just that, swing too hard, broke his club shaft which in turn cut his forearm causing him a trip to the emergency room and 20 stitches. They also don't give rain-checks for temper-tantrum induced shortened golf rounds!
A Doctor of Chiropractic is uniquely trained to address health concerns that can affect your golf game. Since the majority of the golf swing is created by creating a lot of torque in the spine, rotating the shoulders and hips, it would make sense that someone whose very focus is on the musculoskeletal system (muscles, joints, ligaments, etc). Visit a chiropractor for an evaluation of your system, he/she will find any areas of restriction and help remove them so that your swing is more fluid, which in turn will improve your game, reduce the chance for injury and increase your enjoyment!
Below is a video I made on golf and chiropractic:
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