Posture Perfect: How Physical Therapy Can Transform Your Golf Game 

 

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Physical therapy isn’t just something you do when you’re recovering from an injury. Or at least, it shouldn’t be! Simple things like sitting behind a desk for too long, sleeping in the wrong position, or even being on your feet for many hours can affect your muscles, joints, and in turn, your posture. 

As a golfer, I know how the condition of my body can affect my game. I’ve got plenty of years of experience behind me, though, and it took me a long time to understand how small, everyday aches and pains can make my golf game harder and more frustrating. 

Here’s how physical therapy can transform your golf game… And why you shouldn’t wait until you’re injured to have a session! 

Understanding Posture in Golf 

The foundation of a good golf game is your swing. An excellent swing sets you up for success from the start, but a poor swing will always hold you back from becoming the player you COULD be. 

At the core of a great golf swing is your posture. Your swing involves the entire kinetic chain, from your legs to your shoulders and arms. To swing effectively, you need a combination of power, stability, and rotation—and none of those can happen if your posture is off. 

Good posture aligns the joints and muscles in such a way that they can move freely and transfer power from the legs upwards. Poor posture minimizes range of motion, reducing your power and making injuries more likely! 

How Physical Therapy Can Transform Your Game, From Tee to Green 

I’m not going to get into the nitty-gritty details of the perfect golf swing posture here. However, I will mention that it’s worth assessing your own posture to figure out if you’re on the right track or if it can be improved… And even experienced golfers’ posture can slip over time due to tight muscles or stiff joints. 

If you discover that your golfing posture is a little off, you’ll need to put in some concerted effort to improve it. Like anything, it requires both awareness and practice to get right. But here’s a bit of info you need to know—if your muscles remain tight and your joints are still stiff and misaligned, you’ll struggle to get it right. 

Here’s where physical therapy comes in. I highly recommend popping in for a session to loosen up tight muscles, improve your joint mobility, get some flexibility back, and extend that range of motion. 

Addressing Underlying Issues 

It can be hard to figure out the cause of an ineffective golf swing, especially if you’re been actively working on it, and you aren’t improving as much as you’d like. 

A physical therapy session could be just what you need to dig a bit deeper and discover (and address) any potential underlying issues. You can’t fix ‘em if you don’t know they’re there! 

Enhance Your Swing Mechanics 

Swing mechanics are the framework of a good golf game. A couple of physical therapy sessions can improve your swing mechanics by: 

Improving Flexibility and Mobility 

You might not even realize that your muscles are stiff and tight. If you sit behind a desk all day and don’t get a decent stretch, your muscles eventually “shorten”, reducing the range of motion, even if you don’t feel pain or stiffness. 

The same is true for joints. When they don’t get used often, they might become stiff and just not move as easily as they used to, even if you can’t quite feel how immobile they are. 

Physical therapy can help loosen up both muscles and joints and bring back that extended range of motion, allowing you to swing effortlessly and move exactly as a good swing demands. 

Strengthening Core and Stabilizing Muscles 

The core is the most underrated part of a good golf swing. Tightening your core during the swing provides string stability from the very start, and it helps you maintain your balance during the rotational part of the swing. 

A weak core is another result of long working hours behind a computer! Physical therapy can help strengthen your core and the surrounding stabilizing muscles, improving your balance during your swing. 

Improving Posture and Alignment 

Looser muscles and mobile joints make it much easier to keep your posture. And good posture means less chance of misaligned joints, so it’s a win-win situation. 

You’ll still need to pay attention to your posture during your golf swing because there are subtle nuances that the mind-muscle connection needs to activate. 

But swinging with improved posture and alignment WILL make it easier to move through the entire range of motion smoothly and transfer power from the legs and core. 

Boost Power and Performance 

Every golfer wants to add more power to their swing! Once you’ve had a couple of physical therapy sessions, you should start to see a noticeable change in how far you’re hitting the ball on each shot. 

Increase Clubhead Speed 

Clubhead speed refers to how fast the golf club is moving just before it makes contact with the golf ball. With looser muscles, more mobile joints, and better stability, you can really transfer more power from the big muscles of the legs through to the shoulders and arms as you bring that club down. 

The faster your club speed, the further the ball will go… As long as you hit it perfectly and don’t accidentally slice it! 

Improve Accuracy and Consistency 

A great range of motion coupled with no noticeable stiffness or restrictions should automatically lead to improved accuracy. 

And with regular practice and regular stretching (with a physical therapy session thrown in here and there), you can expect better consistency over time as well. 

Reduce Pain and Prevent Injury 

The golf swing uses just about every joint in the body, as well as more muscles than you expect. If they’re sore, stiff, or have a limited range of motion, your chances of developing aches, pains, and injuries are higher. 

Regular physical therapy can significantly reduce your chance of injuring yourself during your swing. If you’re ever feeling a little too stiff during your swing, stretch it out before swinging that driver, and book a physical therapy session to ease things up! 

Recovery and Rehabilitation 

If you DO get injured, physical therapy is the best way to make sure you’re good to go before getting back into your game. Hit that golf swing too hard before your body’s ready, and you’re on a one-way track to reinjuring yourself. 

Enhanced Body Awareness 

The mind-muscle connection is a real phenomenon and can be an amazing training aid. When your muscles and joints are stiff, it’s harder to put your mind to your muscles and create that focused connection. 

But with loose, easy muscles, proprioception is increased, meaning you’ll be more aware of your body and how it’s moving throughout your swing. 

Conclusion 

Golfers, just give it a try. Give yourself a bit of an unconventional gift and go for a session before you get stuck into your training. You’ll notice how fluid your movement becomes and with consistency, you should see a positive difference in your power and accuracy! 

About the Author Jordan Fuller is a retired golfer and businessman. When he’s not on the course working on his own game or mentoring young golfers, he writes in-depth articles for his website, Golf Influence.