Golf may be your weekend passion, but without proper strength and flexibility training, your body may not enjoy the sport as much as you do. While elbow, wrist and low back injuries are common problems for all golfers, women golfers have more potential to develop elbow and wrist injuries due to their greater relative joint laxity and lower muscle mass in the upper body.
Lateral epicondylitis, also known as tennis elbow, is one of the most common golf injuries. It results from the excessive forces required to grip and swing the golf club. On it’s own this is not overly taxing, but often the body is unaccustomed to using these muscles, particularly early in the season, which is the highest likelihood of injury.
It is possible to avoid elbow and wrist injuries by performing hand and wrist strengthening exercises, starting at least 6 weeks prior to golf season and continuing throughout the season. Working with golf professionals and trained medical professionals to correct poor grip or swing mechanics and learning appropriate stretching and strengthening exercises to prepare the muscles and joints for golf will minimize your risk of injury.
Most golf injuries are due to overuse, especially the muscles that are untrained for the great stresses of that sport. As a result of our geography we spend the winter dog sledding and ice fishing, neither activity simulates the golf motion, nor prepares the golfing muscles and joints for the onslaught of activity at the first sign of green grass. For most of us the golf clubs are put away in October (if we are lucky) and pulled out in May. A visit to the driving range for a bucket or 2 of balls and then the season is in full swing, and the body is still in hibernation from the long winter.
Early recognition and treatment of injuries optimizes recovery and enables a speed return to the greens. Whether its elbow, wrist or back pain, your body often lets you know there is trouble. You can prevent serious injury and secondary compensation problems that develop by seeking professional help early.
Tennis elbow usually starts out slowly with a mild pain on the outside of the elbow caused by gripping, lifting milk out of the fridge, grasping your coffee cup or lifting overhand. If it is treated early, the golfer will likely miss only a few weeks. Without rest and subsequent strengthening of the forearm muscles, the pain progressively gets worse so that even minimal activity hurts, muscle inhibition and weakness occurs. The same is true with wrist and back injuries. Unless the athlete rests from the aggravating activity, and changes the mechanics of the swing to address the weaknesses that caused the injury, the injury will not resolve completely.
Tennis elbow is not an inflammatory condition but repetitive micro-tears of the muscle at the tendon junction. Rest, ice and medication will help reduce the pain, but not correct the cause. Active Release Technique™, IMS and acupuncture will breakdown adhesions within the muscles, restoring their strength and flexibility. Golf specific strengthening and stretching exercises, along with a biomechanical analysis of your swing will ensure a safe return to golf and a long, injury-free season.
Bragg Creek Physiotherapy is hosting a woman’s only golf injury prevention clinics in April. Golfers of all levels are invited to participate in a comprehensive program that will include swing mechanics and posture, injury evaluation, golf-specific strength and flexibility training, and instruction on safe, effective grip and swing mechanics. Further details can be found on our website.