By Chris Byers, PT, Advanced Rehab and Sports Medicine
In 2008, the National Golf Foundation records reported 27.8 million golfers in the U.S. With this number of people golfing, it is not a surprise that the number of golf-related injuries has increased significantly in the last 10 years. Several studies have looked at the injury rate of golfers from professional to amateurs or recreational. They closely estimate the rate of injury of professionals at 60 percent and all others at 40 percent. The studies also found that the large majority of injuries are related to overuse of the injured body part. These studies found the following three areas to be the most affected or most common injury sites:
- Low back pain in the spine
- Wrist pain
- Elbow pain (medial and lateral epicondylitis)
The most common injury is to the back. Rotational forces of the swing can put significant strain on the spinal muscles and compression on the discs. The PGA reports 33 percent of their professionals will suffer back injuries lasting longer than two weeks. The best-known golfer in the world, Tiger Woods, is currently recovering from back surgery and is not sure whether he will golf professionally again.
Elbow pain is the second most common injury for golfers. Several causes can be cited but the two most popular are hitting the ground first or what is called hitting it “fat,” and over-swinging, which pulls on the wrist extensors. The risk of these injuries increases with age and frequency of play.
Wrist injuries are more common in professional golfers as they use more wrist action in their swings and hit a much higher number of balls on the practice range than amateurs. Other injuries can happen in the shoulder and neck but are far less frequent.
Are you willing to take the chance that you won’t be in the injured 40 percent or would you be willing to do a little prevention? Let’s make a choice to decrease the risk of injury by performing a simple 3–5 minute warm-up.
This is where the use of a dynamic stretching program will be your body’s friend. Studies show that a dynamic stretch of 3–5 minutes can decrease your risk of injury by 50 percent and repeating this routine after your round will prevent muscle soreness and stiffness. Dynamic stretching is a fairly new concept and simply means moving while you stretch. Moving body parts to their limit of motion at a slow and gentle pace and using the muscles to move the limbs, increases blood flow and body temperature, which in turn warms the muscles. Moving to the ends of your range of motion stretches the joints and muscles as well. Now in 3–5 minutes you have stretched and warmed up, while looking like the cool guy on the course instead of those doing traditional static stretching.
Instead of trying to describe a dynamic stretch routine on paper, I will refer you to Miguel Angel Jimenez. He has a 3–5 minute program that is not only entertaining but effective. YouTube title is “Miguel Angel Jimenez: Watch his unique warm-up routine.” The link is
www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGiGEDnU6Tg.
Consulting your local professional can improve the balance of your swing and decrease your risk of overuse injuries as well. If despite your dedication to the warm-up and dynamic stretching program you suffer an injury, don’t play through it. For strains and sprains use ice and stretches as you rest from golf activities. Call a physical therapist if the injury won’t improve to get advice about a next step.
For more information, you may contact Advanced Rehab & Sports Medicine at 309-664-9104 or www.advrehab.com. Their office is located at 135 N. Williamsburg Dr. in Bloomington. Free assessments are offered within 24 hours of contact for patients of all ages.
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Photo credit: Mike Watson Images/Thinkstock