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Golf for Women: How To Prevent & Treat Injuries

Golf for Women: How To Prevent & Treat Injuries

Golf may be a low-impact sport, but like most sports, injuries are inevitable. Most of the injuries that golfers are prone to are caused by repetition and rotational stresses.

The good news is that you’re able to take preventive measures that will help condition your body, improve your swing, and reduce the chance of injury.

Common Injuries

A study compared the injuries of LPGA players and female amateur golfers. They discovered that the most common injuries to female golfers are:

  • Tendinitis in the elbows
  • Back pain
  • Rotator cuff or shoulder pain
  • Wrists and fingers
  • Knee pain

These injuries are caused by inadequate warm-up, excessive play, a poor swing technique, or from hitting the ground during a swing.

While you can use a swing trainer andanalyzer to help develop proper form, you’d need to work on physical conditioning to help strengthen and protect joints from further injury.

How to Prevent Injuries

If you’ve had a sports injury before playing golf, it would help to consider whether that may create a physical limitation that could negatively impact your swing.

To prevent injuries when you’re playing golf, you’d need to improve your range of motion by working on your flexibility. This will also help with the rotational stresses that are placed on the spine and the muscles when you swing your golf club.

Before you tee off, make sure to warm up properly and wear golf shoes with short cleats. This will help to reduce strain on the knees and ankles, and you’ll also find that it will help improve lower back pain.

As you make your way through the course, your muscles will get tired. This can lead to improper form on the swing, as well as bad posture, like walking with a hunch. Try to pay attention to your posture when walking and playing, as this can help to prevent injuries too.

Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation

The repetitive motions in golf can lead to back and neck pain, joint sprains, and tendonitis. A physiotherapist can help to not only relieve the pain but also enhance your performance. If you currently have an injury, they can help speed up the recovery process and provide a foundation that can prevent further injury.

When you work with a physio, they’ll create a program that’s specific to your needs. They use a wide range of techniques, such as manual therapy, electrotherapy, soft tissue massage, and a strength and conditioning program. These will help you to develop good movement patterns, as well as develop flexibility, which will improve your range of motion.

Benefits of Physiotherapy

Whether you have had previous injuries or you’re looking to prevent injuries, a physiotherapist will guide you and design a program for you to improve your core strength and balance. This will help you with your swing follow-through.

You’ll find that they’ll help you improve the mobility of all your joints, as well as helping you improve shoulder musculature and flexibility of your hips, which are both critical to your backswing.

Working with a physiotherapist will also help to identify where your form is lacking and what part of your body is compensating. With so many body parts working in tandem during a swing, you want to make sure that your form is spot-on to prevent injuries. You can do this by developing good swing habits and conditioning your body for better mobility.

Conclusion

There’s no need to wait until you have an injury to go and see a physiotherapist. By taking the step to meet with a physio early on, you’ll not only help improve your golf game but get a head start on preventing common golf injuries. This will keep you on the greens for longer while helping to improve your scorecard.

 

Written by Jordan Fuller, Golf Influence

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