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For most golfers, the worst thing they can encounter is the dreaded back injury. Anyone who plays golf for a considerable amount of time over the years, without exception, will experience some form of back pain or back injury. This leads to lost time on the course playing the game that we love. The number one cause of this is the effects of the golf swing on the spine and surroundingmuscle groups and tissue. In my investigations I discovered a very disturbing fact: Each time we swing and strike the golf ball we place up to 8 TIMES OUR OWN BODY WEIGHT in the form of stress on our spine! .....as an avid golfer myself this shocked me, as i’m sure it will shock you. Now if we couple the awesome amount of stress we put our body through each time we swing the club over 18 holes, you can see why back pain is the number one cause for lost time on the golf course. Imagine now if you will, that most of us definately don’t have the perfect swing by a long way, we maybe don’t swing the club along the correct plane most of the time, then add to that the fact that you may already have a weak back and your really could be only one swing away from serious back trouble. I think if you’re honest with yourself you will agree that the golf swing is far from a natural movement for our bodies to perform. Most people think that the power in the golf swing is entirely generated through the arms, but in actual fact the main centre of the power generated comes from the low and deep abdominal wall or stomach muscles. It’s a medical fact that a strong abdominal area gives better support to the spine and surrounding muscle groups. Most back pain stems from an imbalance in muscle groups pulling the natural alignment of the body out of shape, this can be from over-working one group of muscles and not working another group or even just from the every day activities we do in our working lives. This is especially true for people who spend a lot of time seated throughout their working day, as some muscles tighten when seated and some stretch out. This leads to a muscle imbalance and you should be aware of this if you go straight to the course after a long period of sitting down......this is when you are most vulnerable to injury. So what are the five steps to help us prevent back pain creeping into our game? 1:A good stretching and warm up routine, before we even think about hitting any balls, is the first thing we should do before anything else. A good physical therapist or medical professional, who is familiar with golfers and golf specific fitness and conditioning routines can provide you with specific exercises and stretching routines to suit each individual. We are all different, and so are our weaknesses and strengths so this step should be your first port of call in the fight to protect yourself from injury. 2:Book a lesson with your club professional and ask him to take you through swing basics to get you using the correct stance and posture when you address and swing at the ball. If your club pro uses video to assess your swing that will be even better, because you will be able to see first hand where you are going wrong through the entire swing. 3:Once you and the pro have pinpointed the mistakes in your swing and stance, use the drills he teaches you to correct them as much as possible, the sooner you get swinging the club on the correct plane the better as you are then placing less stress on the back. 4:Have your clubs checked to make sure they are the correct length and the flexibility in the shaft is right for your swing. Those two factors can have a drastic effect on your back and surrounding muscle groups if they are not detected early enough. 5:Warm down! After a round of 18 holes you will have walked a good few miles and put your back through quite a workout, if you had just hit the gym or been for a run you would always warm down afterwards. This works wonders in injury prevention so perform a light stretching routine (should be covered by your physical therapist) after you finish your round. Following these 5 tips will undoubtedly reduce your chances of suffering a painful and very restricting back injury and at the same time get you swinging the club in the right way. This can only be good for your back and improve your golf game. Happy golfing and stay injury free.
About the Author
Gareth Longbottom was a back pain sufferer of 10 years until he discovered the techniques that helped him become pain free 4 years ago. He now helps people with muscle and back pain free themselves, visit his blog: www.backpainsecrets.blogspot.com discover how you can live a pain free life the natural way.
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