Golf and Back Pain

 

Golfers tend to suffer back pain for a number of reasons: There are the usual reasons for back pain, such a joint in the back becoming 'locked', or a muscle or ligament strain, or worse still, a disc bulge or prolapse. If you have maturity on your side then degeneration of the spine doesn't help, or artheritis or another diesase process. The space for your spinal cord can become narrowed causing leg weakness, and fractures are not unheard of.

However, amongst the doom and gloom, there is the hope of golf related pain being due to the imbalance of the back and pelvis due to the activity being one-sided causing an unequal strain, often in the sacro-iliac joints. Osteopathy and physiotherapy (and chiropractic) can help with a number of the causes of back pain listed and two or  three sessions can often help relieve the symptoms, with some exercises thrown in to help you, should  the niggles re-appear at a later date.

But let’s try to avoid the pain in the first place – or minimise any re-injury. What can you do to help prevent back pain?

Warm ups and cool downs are essential in any sport. If you are taking it seriously and want to avoid injury, see it as important as remembering your clubs. Warm –up can be taught by any good Pro, but need to involve warming up the muscles you will be using in a safe way –ie dynamic stretching:

Pre Game, and pre,pre game!

Rotation is an important part of a good swing, and many of us, who may be in front of computers, or driving as part of our job, may be stiff inbetween the shoulder blades. This is a good exercise before you even leave the car! Stay seated and look over your right shoulder, then continue rotating so your right shoulder is also rotating backwards. KEEP YOUR SITTING BONES FIRMLY PLANTED or you can hurt your back! Repeat the exercise the other side and hold and relax into the stretch for 30 second – holding onto the back of the chair is a good way to do this. Next, gently repeat but swing and ‘pulse’ –not bouncing to increase the stretch –but just within a comfortable range of movement to keep the vertebrae mobile –NOT to increase the range of movement (you have already done this when holding the stretch).

Another seated stretch is to put your left ankle on your right knee, then hinge forward from the hips –the stretch should be felt in the buttocks- but if hamstrings (back of upper leg) are tight –you may feel it there first.

Also in the car –put your hands on the top of the steering wheel and chin to chest – and reach for the windscreen – curl your back for a good stretch down your spine and between your shoulder blades.

You have rotated your neck as part of the first stretch – now, keeping your nose facing forward, tilt your head to the right- whilst your left hand holds onto the underside of the seat, if you can, or put your hand behind in the small of your back. Use the right hand to add some weight onto the top of your head –don’t pull though, and hold for 30 sec and repeat opposite side.

Finally, imagine your pelvis is a bowl of water –tip the water out of the back of the bowl towards the back rest of the seat, then forward towards the steering wheel- do 10 each way.

You can do all the above throughout the week whenever your car is stationary, or on your office chair – then immediately pre-march –you can do them all in a standing position, using a club for support, which makes limbering easy!  You will feel better for it generally as well.

Throughout the Game

 Be careful when you pick up your bag – bend knees – toes facing forward, keep as close to the bag as possible. Even picking up the ball, remember to squat as much as possible – you are more vulnerable after using those muscles to carry your bag and repeatedly doing a one-sided activity.

Larry Foster,an orthopedic surgeon who calls himself "a bad golfer, but a good golf orthopedist." wrote "Dr. Divot's Guide to golf injuries” and also suggests:

“• Consider switching to a putter with a longer shaft.

• Slow down the backswing to minimize rotational stress on the lower back at the top of the backswing.

• Adopt a big shoulder and hip turn on the backswing (classic swing technique).

• Make sure body weight is properly shifted to the right foot during the backswing, and that the arms and shoulders are kept within the plane of the swing at the top of the backswing.”

Also, he says don’t:

“• Place the feet too far apart at the address phase (this limits the hip turn later in the swing and increases stress on the lower back).

• Hyperextend the spine on the follow-through, but rather utilize the relaxed upright "I" position (classic swing technique).”

Post Game

Golf is a one-sided activity which causes an unequal strain on the body, so it makes sense to ‘swing the other way’. For those who are unsure, this means, in this case, after you have been swinging to thwe right throughout the game – you cool down by swinging to the left –to balance out your body. Similarly –rotate your head more to the right –or simply, swap hands and do a reverse golf swing a few times.

 Injuries Common to Golfers

As well as back pain there a number of injuries common to golfers. These include: Shoulder pain, hand, wrist and thumb problems including carpal tunnel and knee pain.

For Treatment

For an individual assessment and treatment, please call 01332 553332 where we can treat you and discuss some of the ways you can minimise injury further.

How does a Golfer differ from an Athlete?

The Olympics has been a fantastic testiment to human endurance and achievement with world records being broken and personal best's being smashed. Unlike the seemingly unlimited boundaries of IT, for instance, sports also highlights physical limits and the Olympics was no exception in demonstrating the body's reaction to injury.

 Whether you are a professional athelete or an amateur, injury will occur if the body is not capable of what you are asking of it and apart from accidents, it commonly this means 'too much too soon', so effective, patient warm-ups and cool downs are paramount in all sports.

 Another cause of injury is repetitive strain - golf is a good examples of this. Repetative actions especially coupled with poor technique, can overcome the bodies ability to compensate and can mean the difference between being able to continue or not. A good golf pro is essential if you are prone to injury, as is a good osteopath, physiotherapist or chiropractor who, as well as patching you up, will help your body cope with the demands of repeated postures, especially if you are striving to improve.

 Common golfing injuries are back pain- often in the pelvic joints as they try to absorb the rotation from the swing but also from bad habits such as not bending the knees when picking up the ball repeatedly or poor lifting technique when lifting a heavy bag or standing too hunched up when putting.

Shoulder, wrist and hand pain can also occur as can knee pain and there are various goog golfing tips which can help- just look on our website in the Blog section. Exercises which can help prevent golf, or other sporting injuries are also available from physical therapists who specialise in treat sporting injuries and are tailor made to you.

 So with one similarity highlighted, golfers-feel free to call yourselves athletes! At least you can justify your training!

 For more information call About Backs & Bones - Tel 01332 553 332

     Visit our website, or Facebook

Manual work needs manual medicine!

How often do you say to yourself “I shouldn’t have done that” It may apply to many aspects of life, but where manual work applies, it can have more serious implications. So often we think “ I’ll just finish this gardening” then injure ourselves because our muscles are physically tired, but this becomes even more problematic when we really need to carry on. You can’t move house and stop in the middle because you are tired and if your work is manual, you simply have to continue.

To keep injuries to a minimum, there are a few rules to keep in mind, especially if you are more vulnerable eg a builder, electrician, plumber or gardener for instance.

The best rule is to think about your FEET.

F- Fit –are you fit to do the job or is someone else better suited? Does it need to be done at all? Or is there a tool you can use to make things easier?

E- Environment – Are you in an awkward space? Can anything be moved to make your job easier? Are there dangers which need to be considered first?

E- Effort – Consider what you are moving, carrying or working with and the strain on your body in a particular position. Can it be made easier?

T – Time – Are you in a hurry? Rushing a job puts pressure on us making muscles work harder than they need to and we tend to take risks when we are short of time.Spreading the load by taking breaks gives muscles time to recover and reduces injuries.

And if you are moving things – think FEET again – they need to be pointing in the direction you are going, to avoid twisting which is one of the high risk factors for back and rib injuries – but don’t look at them –look where you are going too!

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Just an update,

..from our Mad Hatter's Tea Party. Firstly, thanks to everyone that came along and to all the people that made the delicious cakes -we had plenty!
The weather stayed dry for us, though quite windy. But that didn't stop people coming along and enjoying themselves, having a cup of tea and chit chat with other people. Racheal Frost brought a very large bear for us to use as a raffle prize, and he turned out to be very popular - everyone wanted him! Chloe, our physiotherapist, was the lucky winner!



Today I opened up our donations box and counted up.

We raised a total of .   .     . *Drumroll please*  .      .      .   £257.94!

So again, thanks to everyone that turned up to support us, and Target Ovarian Cancer. & Thanks for all the donations you made! You were all very generous!

Keep up to date with the latest offers & goings on at our facebook page , website and twitter!

Mad Hatter's Tea Party!

The day’s are flying by & soon it’ll be our Mad Hatter’s Tea Party! Make sure your diary is clear for Sunday 24th June @ 3pm! -Everyone’s Welcome!There's going to be;

• Cake - and lots of it!
• Refreshments
• A Raffle!
• Saxophonist - to keep you entertained!
• A magician - for the children, or the child inside you!
• A stall for Forever Living Products.

Also.. a FREE 15 minute spine / muscle / joint assesment with either Andy - our Osteopath or Chloe - our Physiotherapist. If you have the assesment, you will then be presented with a voucher for money off further treatment, if you need/want it!
Diane - our Kineseologist will be around on the day if it is her you wish to speak to.


All we're asking for is a small donation for Cake and Refreshments. All the money raised will be donated to Target Ovarian Caner. If you cannot make it to our event, but would still like to donate to this amazing charity, then please visit our Just Giving Page, and make your donation via that. www.justgiving.com/aboutbacksandbones

For more information, and to keep up to date, visit our Facebook Page which is updated daily! www.facebook.com/osteopathyderby           www.aboutbacksandbones.com

When it IS a Good Idea to Complain about Feeling Fat.

 

Many women may prefer to have a slimmer tummy and we usually know the cause of one that bulges a little too much. But what if we genuinely have no idea why we have developed a belly bulge? What if it just gradually appeared, and rather than bloating up one day then down the next-which may suggest irritable bowel syndrome- it seems more of a constant fullness? You may be considering going up a size in clothes, or feel generally bloated and your face may be fuller than it was.

In most cases, it is simply more calories or less activity, or both, but if you really analyse your lifestyle and cannot see a change, and if you have noticed other symptoms too, it may be worth investigating a little further.

One diseases whose symptoms can easily be ignored is ovarian cancer. It is non-specific and signs can easily be brushed aside. As well as bloating, symptoms include pelvic, abdominal or back pain and feeling full quickly. Sometimes there are urinary symptoms or bowel changes and extreme fatigue. It is easy to look on the internet and worry yourself, but an experienced clinician eg a good GP or nurse, can determine if your symptoms warrant further investigation. However, if symptoms persist despite reassurance, you need to return for a second opinion- you know your body best.

The charity 'Target Ovarian Cancer' is one which helps raise awareness and helps clinicians to be more alert. 'The Eve Appeal' is another which raises money to further research and raise awareness, into gynaecological cancers generally. With 1:50 women of all ages contracting ovarian cancer, that’s the 5th most common cancer, it cannot be ignored and because it is so vague, it has often progressed further than other cancers before help is sought, making treatment difficult.

At ‘About Backs &Bones’ we are having a Mad Hatters Tea Party to raise money and particularly, to raise awareness about this disease. Not only that, we are offering a free 20 min consultation with an osteopath or physiotherapist for anyone who has aches and pains and a £15 voucher for those new to the clinic, with £5 being donated to 'Target Ovarian Cancer'.

So keep Sun 24th June free at 3pm and come and support us at 506 Duffield Rd, Allestree, DE22 2 DL. Come and have a chat about your health, especially muscle and joint problems or questions about Ovarian Cancer –or at least come and have some afternoon tea!

See more details on Facebook! www.facebook.com/osteopathyderby






www.aboutbacksandbones.com

Planting a few thoughts...

Welcome sunny weather, gardening and...back pain!

Sound familiar? It's the wonderful combination of the relief of being outside and full of the joys of spring, and the contrast of a body that hasn't done this kind of activity for months on end, perhaps is more used to sitting at a desk, in a car, or on a sofa ... and is complaining!

 

But it need not be this way. Just a few simple precautions can reduce the likelihood of our Derbyshire clay soil getting the better of us and help us feel confident in gardening throughout the summer without repercussion.

First of all-see it as the exercise that it is- and warm up. That doesn't necessarily mean jogging down the street and stretching (though it may help) but simply avoid the harsh transition between relaxing Sunday morning papers and digging trenches!

For instance, start with the lighter tasks which don't involve prolonged bending or heavy lifting and progress to the heavier tasks. Even then, avoid hours flexed in one position weeding or planting and intersperse it with carrying around tools and clearing rubbish, as wells regular tea breaks- after all, it is supposed to be a leisurely activity isn't it?

Regularly straighten, stretch and walk around and try to avoid positions with one leg forwards whilst stooping, as this often strains the sacro-iliac joint giving rise to low back pain. If you have to do this, then make sure you put the opposite foot forwards for a while: you are using opposite muscles, giving one half of your body a well-earned break and creating more muscular balance in your body. This in turn helps prevent strain on joints and it is often the small simple actions which avoid injuries.

Plan when to finish and stick to it! That way you can wind down rather than doing heavy tasks when you are tired, which is increasing your chance of injury. Stretching afterwards will promote a good blood flow, rejeuvanating tired muscles and reducing lactic acid build-up and subsequent aches.

So a few simple steps can make a real difference. In contrast, someone who says they only bent to put on their socks, but is now in agony, often has done the damage previously - for example, the preceding day...gardening!