With most of the country beginning to thaw after a long winter, your body may not be used to playing long rounds of golf, let alone exercising.
In preparation for swinging a club in cold weather, many golfers do not warm up properly for a range session or their round, and that can be a recipe for injury.
Common injuries in golfers affect the back, knees, wrists, shoulders and more. The back isn’t designed to rotate for a golf swing, so mobility can be a great starting point for your workout.
Members of the NYU Langone Health Sports Performance Center team spoke up golf weeks Fitness guru Averee Dovsek shared some helpful injury prevention tips for golfers.
Featuring: Heather Milton MS, RCEP, CSCS, Jamie Nguyen MS, OTR/L, Monica Seu OTR/L, CHT, CLT
Be consistent sooner rather than later
Sticking to a regular exercise schedule can help prevent the occurrence of typical overuse injuries associated with doing too much too soon.
For example: Engage in resistance training and stretching 2 or 3 days a week to keep the muscles, tendons and ligaments ready to play early in the season.
Progress slowly
Don’t jump into your old habits too quickly.
If you took the winter away from gaming, start with about 50 percent of the total playing time that you left off last season. Each week you advance by 10 percent until you return to your previous game plan.
Track your volume
Golf balls on the driving range. (Photo: Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via AP Images)
Keep track of how many balls you hit on the range or on the course.
Some research shows that hitting more than 200 balls a week increases the risk of injury for some golfers.
Focus on your strength muscles
A lot of the power in the golf swing comes from your lower body.
By making sure you have strength and stability in your hips and core, you can carry more speed through the racquet without relying on your shoulders, arms, and wrists to take the brunt of the work.
Watch out for soft tissue injuries
Most golf injuries are soft tissue injuries caused by overuse.
Over time, these conditions can become chronic and cause tissue maladaptation. Results are much better when symptoms are addressed sooner rather than later.
If you have pain that doesn’t improve with rest, it’s important to get checked out by a doctor.
Your technique can be your downfall
Many golf wrist and elbow injuries can be due to technique and form.
If you’re new to the sport or have recently changed your swing technique and are in pain, it’s worth getting checked out by a golf pro or golf instructor.
Source : sports.yahoo.com