Anyone who plays golf knows that muscle injuries are part of the game.
Even though it’s considered a low-impact sport, the entire body is involved with each swing. Your spine twists, your arms swing, your hips rotate, and your legs and core stabilize the entire movement. And, most likely, you're either overdoing these moves or doing them wrong!
During a typical round of golf, you are likely to repeat these movements again and again with a great deal of force. Whether it’s “golfer’s elbow,” a back injury, knee pain, or something else entirely, every golfer knows that injuries of some sort are likely to occur.
If you’re a golfer and you experience an injury, you should know that a method known as sports
acupuncture can help speed your recovery.
What is Sports Acupuncture?
Sports Acupuncture is a combined approach of Western and Traditional Chinese Medicine that helps golfers and other athletes heal from injuries and strains at an accelerated rate. Sports acupuncturists use a specific needling technique to create a change in the fascial fibers surrounding the injured muscles. When used in combination with electric stimulation, sports acupuncture can help tightened muscles relax, repair inflamed and damaged tissue, and restore proper brain-body communication.
In addition to giving you an acupuncture treatment to relieve pain, a sports acupuncturist will also utilize treatment in order to help you avoid injury and muscle strain in the future - as well as help you increase your performance on the golf course.
Benefits of Sports Acupuncture for Golfers
It’s well known that acupuncture relieves pain, increases stamina, and improves athletes’ performance. However, the specific benefits of sports acupuncture for golfers include:
Improved swing mechanics
Restored muscle balance
Stronger hips to help take some of the strain off of the back
Increased range of motion and improved flexibility.
Reduced chance of over extending your muscles, injuring your joints, and compressing the spine in your lower back
Faster recovery from minor and acute injuries
Reduced risk of future injuries
In addition to the benefits above, acupuncture also calms the mind and body, helping you to relax and focus. Less stress means less tension throughout your body, which is not only good for your overall well-being, but it decreases your chances of injury on the golf course as well.
Common Golf Injuries
Golfers have to deal with a wide range of injuries. Some of the most common golf injuries include:
muscle strain
lower back pain
hip pain
repetitive motion injuries
knee pain
wrist pain
golfer’s elbow
rotator cuff injuries and shoulder pain
neck and upper back pain
Fortunately, all of these golf injuries can be effectively treated with sports acupuncture. Medications will only mask the underlying cause of the injury. Sports acupuncture will help get to the root cause of your pain and relieve it as quickly as possible.
Dr. Sarah Alemi at Eastern Roots Wellness is a licensed acupuncturist with a unique approach of combining modern sports medicine techniques with acupuncture to relieve pain, improve performance, and get you back in the game! Book an appointment today!