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Golf would seem like a gentle sport.
You don't get punched or tackled — unless your
golfing partner is having a really bad day. Your body isn't jarred or jostled and your legs aren't pounding the roads.
The inherent dangers of golf aren't obvious. It has been
reported by UPMC Sports Medicine (2007), that around 62% of regular golf players
suffer injuries related to their game, causing an average of 5 weeks golfing lost per year…….the golf player can
often experiences injuries at a greater rate than most people realise.
Don’t let injuries handicap your golf game!
Most Golf injuries are avoidable
Golf is an extremely demanding sporting
activity. The act of swinging a golf club places significant uneven stresses upon your body; as such throughout your round
of golf you are using the same specific muscles over and over again. This repetitive one-sided action can lead to injury ,
muscle imbalances and poor flexibility.
In order for you to develop club head speeds that can exceed 100 miles
per hour in less than one fifth of a second, muscles and joints are also stressed
to near their limits.
Many common golfing injuries result from some aspect
of the swing; which involves an explosive forward motion and those violent muscle contractions. The forces associated with
these muscle contractions are amplified even further in golf as you're holding a club with a relatively heavy head
which acts as a long lever arm. Multiply these repetitive forces together through out a round of golf and you can start to see how muscle injuries/strains
and imbalances occur, increasing faults within your game.
The list of possible golfing injuries is surprisingly
extensive with the upper, mid and lower back, the hips, the shoulders, the elbows, the wrists and the hands being amongst the most common seen in
physiotherapy departments.
However it is not all doom
and gloom; the risk factors for injury are for most part within your control. It makes more sense to avoid injuries in the
first place; but if they do occur, and caught early on, most injuries can be eliminated or significantly decreased; preventing
the need for time off the golf course.
To reduce the likelihood of injury and help achieve the
ideal golf swing, clubface alignment, club-to-ball interface and speed it is essential for the golfer to possess
· Good posture
· Flexibility
· Stability
· Strength
· Power
We here at Trailside
Physiotherapy offer a wide variety of physiotherapeutic treatments that are designed with the golfer in mind; these include
· Postural advice Good posture protects your back and stems from understanding and
maintaining the balance between the four main curves of the spine
· Manual therapy are applied movements to reduce stiffness, relieve pain and restore normal movement.
· Rehabilitative exercises include strengthening, stretching and core stability exercises.
· Soft tissue massage to relieve muscle spasm, reduce scar tissue and encourage healing.
We also offer a musculoskeletal screening programme that
is designed to enhance your sports performance. The screening programme identifies poor posture patterns, tight soft tissues
as well as deficiencies is strength and stability.
Our physiotherapists will then devise an individually tailored, client centred programme that is designed to resolve
these problems.
The programme would normally include elements such as
· Stretching exercises
· Strengthening exercises
· Balance work
· Postural re-education
· Aerobic advice
With these elements optimised, you have the factors in place to help prevent
injury and allow you to play to your potential; the rest is then down to you.
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