Although golf is a non-contact sport, injuries can occur. The most common cause of injury is a strained muscle because the golfer did not properly exercise his or her body before swinging the clubs. General fitness and good health can prepare a golfer’s body for the unusual body movement of the golf swing, but a good stretching routine can also help. There are three main parts of the body that you will want to warm up before putting golf balls on: the back/torso, the arms/shoulders, and the legs.
Back/Torso
The most common injury that arises in golf is some type of muscle strain in the back or torso. Before grabbing a stick, you should bend at the waist and try to touch your toes, and hold that position for 20 seconds. Repeat this as many times as you feel is necessary to loosen up your lower back.
After loosening up your lower back, take a golf club and secure it behind your back with your arms. Begin to twist your back from side to side. Start with small twists and make larger twists as you warm up. You can also gradually bend forward at the hips as you twist.
Finally, take each end of the stick, place it behind your neck, and start doing shoulder rolls. This twist is similar to the previous exercise, but you should start to loosen your shoulders and arms. You can also choose to stop the twist at its furthest point on each side, to really stretch your back muscles.
Arms/Shoulders
To loosen your shoulders, take your left hand and raise it above and behind your left shoulder. Take your right hand, place it behind your back, and interlock your hands. Hold this stretch for approximately twenty seconds and switch hands. Again, do this as many times as you feel is necessary until you get the desired flexibility in your shoulders.
To loosen up your hands and wrists, take two sticks in your hands and rock the puppies back and forth. Then start moving the sticks up and down, and then around. Also, just waving your hands around is a good way to loosen up your fingers.
Legacy
The hips are very important in the golf swing, so you want to make sure they are loose before you swing. Lie down on the floor, lock your hands behind one of your knees, and pull that knee up toward your chest. Hold this stretch for twenty seconds, release, and switch legs.
While on the floor, sit up, spread your legs apart, and extend your hands out in front of you. This should stretch the hamstrings. Again, hold this stretch for 20 seconds and repeat as needed.
