Simple Tips to Preventing Golf Injuries

Here are some simple changes and adjustments that you can make to help prevent golf injuries:

1)  Proper Club Fitting

Proper fit clubs can decrease stress to your body during the golf swing, help avoid poor swing biomechanics and avoid altered postures.

2)  Play Golf Consistently

I don't think most golfers will have a problem with this one.  Playing golf consistently will avoid long times of breaks and golf related activities

3)  Push your Golf Cart

Pushing your cart instead of pulling will cause less stress and torque to your body and help prevent injury

4)  Use a Longer Putter

This may decrease stress and strain while putting and avoid increased flexion when playing around of golf

5)  Use a Dual Backpack Strap

Carrying a golf bag with a single strap may be hazardous to the low back, shoulder, and ankles.  Using a double back strap will allows for proper distribution of weight across both shoulders

6)  Warm up prior to playing golf

A 10 minute warm up prior to playing golf has shown a >50% decrease risk of injury.

Making some simple adjustments can help prevent injuries when playing golf and help you enjoy pain free golf.  For more information contact Pursuit Physical Therapy at 407-494-8835 or visit us at www.PursuitTherapy.com, and check out our Golf Treatment Program that analyzes golf swing analysis, movement screen, injury prevention, and rehabilitation to address any golf related injuries and injury prevention.  Get back to a pain free golf swing today!

Why Do I Have Low Back Pain When I Golf? Can Physical Therapy Help?

This is for all of the great fathers out there for Father's Day, who are probably on the golf course right now, and who will make it home in time to watch the end of the U.S. Open!  Are you noticing that your golf scores are higher lately?  Are you starting to get low back pain (LBP) when golfing?  Have trouble beating your friends on the gold course now because of LBP?  Well, this is the blog post for you regarding golf and low back pain!  Do you know that common site of injury among professional and amateur golfers is the low back. Low back pain (LBP) is the most common injury and makes up roughly 25-50% of golf injuries.

Many of you are probably on the golf course right now with your friends, but what do we know about golfers with low back pain? Research shows that golfers with LBP have poor neuromuscular control to rotate at increased speeds. This is essential to a complex and powerful movement such as the golf swing. This is why after experiencing LBP it is essential to start physical therapy to retrain this neuromuscular control associated with the golf swing and to make sure your LBP does not return.  Not only is it about the low back when talking about golf and LBP, but what occurs at the hips and pelvis is also relevant.  Research has shown the low handicap golfers have increased pelvis rotation speed, increased hip muscle strength than high handicap golfers!  Both of these factors can be addressed with physical therapy.

The modern swing (vs the classical golf swing) is more popular with most golfers due to its increased power and distance produced. Increasing the hip to shoulder ratio with the modern swing can be problematic due to the increased stress placed on the low back, which may also predispose you to LBP. Also, the increase lateral bending and "reverse C posture" with your follow-through, as shown in the picture below, may also cause you to have LBP. 

These are factors all can be identified, treated, and be prevented from causing you to have LBP when playing golf.  Golfers with LBP have been shown to have decreased trunk and hip range of motion (ROM). What do you think happens when you perform a golf swing but you don't have enough ROM? The body will compensate at another joint causing increased and unwanted stress/load to the adjacent joint, predisposing it to injury.  For example, look at the importance of lead hip internal rotation needed for your follow through in this picture below. This could be one of many factors that is causing your LBP.

Many golfers suffer from LBP and this is something that physical therapy can help with.  Doing something as simple as warming up for 10 minutes prior to golfing can decrease your chance of injury by 50%!  Don't settle for having LBP ruin for golfing scores and the time you should be enjoying.  Call Pursuit Physical Therapy today at 407-494-8835 and be seen by our Titleist Performance Institute Certified clinician now!  We can help treat your LBP, address any biomechanical impairments that are influencing your pain, and get you back to pain free golfing! 

Visit our website at www.PursuitTherapy.com and even see what our golf specialty program has to offer.

Top 10 Reasons People Should Go To Pursuit Physical Therapy: 3) The Patient is Placed First

3)  The patient’s interest and what is truly best for the patient is placed first.

At Pursuit Physical Therapy, the patient never has to question whether their care is being prolonged, or sessions being added simply for profit. Fundamentally, this practice was formed with the intent to place patients first; to give patients the best outcomes as possible, as quick as possible! No one patient is alike, nor will they be treated as so! Bottom line, what is best for the patient’s recovery dictates how many treatment sessions are needed. The “typical recommendation” for physical therapy can be for three sessions per week for four weeks, with no incentive to get you better, faster—Not at Pursuit! Because you are constantly being reassessed throughout each session by your Board Certified specialist, if four sessions is all you need—four sessions is all you will pay for!  Call Pursuit Physical Therapy at 407-494-8835 of visit us at www.PursuitTherapy.com to get more information and get out of pain now!

Looking for Treatment for a Golf Injury around Orlando, FL? Look at my new TPI Profile!

The Titleist Performance Institute (TPI) recently upgraded their website and many links.  Click here to view my new TPI profile and get my contact information, credentials, and level of training.  This makes it very easy for those who golf around the Central Florida and local Orlando area to find any TPI certified expert.  Do you have pain with your golf swing?  Low back pain after golfing 18 holes?  Research shows that you can decrease your injury rate by > 50% by just warming up for 10 min prior to golfing!   Visit www.pursuittherapy.com to find out more information about our golf specialty program and golf swing assessments.  Get back to golf pain free and schedule your consultation now.

Tennis Elbow, Try Physical Therapy! No Need for an Injection

Tennis elbow (or lateral epicondylitis)  is a common elbow injury experienced by tennis players and other tasks that involve repetitive motions of the wrist and elbow. Typical signs and symptoms include pain and tenderness over the lateral epicondyle ( lateral elbow), worsened by resisted wrist extension and passive wrist flexion, and decreased grip strength.  Many people rush to the physician and get an injection for their first line of treatment and go on playing or doing their activity.  Current research actually showed worse long term outcomes with patients with chronic lateral epicondylitis who received corticosteroid injections.   A recent physical therapy study actually showed great outcomes with patients with  lateral epicondylitis within 5-10 visits.  What is even more amazing is when physical therapy included a cervical spine (neck) intervention that outcomes were reached in fewer visits!   Physical therapy is associated with short-term relief, the fewest recurrences, the best rate of full recovery at one year, and the lowest rate of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug use.   There is no need to be in pain or to play tennis with elbow pain.   Contact Pursuit Physical Therapy at 407-494-8835 or visit www.pursuittherapy.com for more information regarding your elbow pain.  Get pain free in fewer visits than the standard treatment!

What is Physical Therapy and is it Appropriate for Me?

As our country struggles with economic hardship and the cost of healthcare continues to climb, the cost-benefit of direct access physical therapy services is more evident.  Direct access refers to the ability of a patient to access physical therapy services without a physician's referral.  Thus, patients with pain and musculoskeletal deficits do not have to report to their primary care provider in order to receive a prescription for physical therapy.  Instead, they can report directly to a physical therapist, an expert in biomechanics and musculoskeletal injuries, without any major restrictions or physician referrals.   Florida is one of the few states that allow direct access to a physical therapist without any major restrictions.  Clearly, physical therapy is by no means the cure for every condition, but it can provide quick, effective results at a minimal cost for many musculoskeletal problems. 

It is also critically important to address medical conditions as early as possible in order to avoid chronic pain and to optimize therapeutic outcomes.  A recent physical therapypublication found that “less than 5% of shoulder rotator cuff tears are due to traumatic and single-injury mechanisms, whereas 95% of all tears are due to gradual wear.”  For example, addressing the biomechanics of the shoulder at the earliest signs of pain through physical therapy will help to prevent a full muscle tear; thereby optimizing successful treatment, preventing further injuries, and ensuring independent, long-term management of the condition.  Physical therapists are the experts in biomechanics and motion, and we help patients to function by using latest techniques to treat and prevent musculoskeletal injuries, thus improving your quality of life.

The physical therapy profession continues to grow, advance and adapt to modern health care needs into the 21^st century.  The purpose of this post is to make people aware of ALL options when seeking medical care, and that physical therapy is easily accessible, cost effective, and a clinically powerful alternative for many orthopedic conditions.  Just ask any of the individuals that have already been treated at Pursuit Physical Therapy.  The Pursuit Physical Therapy staff has unmatched academic credentials and experience treating a variety of orthopedic conditions, chronic pain, back pain, sport-specific rehabilitation, and golf swing analysis.  Moreover, Pursuit Physical Therapy prides itself on promoting only the very best evidence-based practice with optimal patient care, and patient satisfaction.  Pursuit Physical Therapy promotes the vision of the future of physical therapy, which is physical therapy provided by doctors of physical therapy, recognized by consumers and other health care professionals as the practitioners of choice to of which consumers have direct access for the diagnosis of, interventions for, and prevention of impairments, functional limitations, and disabilities related to movement, function, and health.  Visit www.pursuittherapy.com or Pursuit Physical Therapy at 407-494-8835 for more information regarding physical therapy and how we can help you get out of pain!

Exercise is medicine!

Achilles Tendinitis: Can Physical Therapy Treat This?

Achilles tendinitis is a common injury that many athletes and non-athletes experience.  It may be caused by too much stress to quick to the Achilles tendon (like running for the first time) or too much stress over time that is associated with a lack of calf flexibility or a work related activity.  Many believe that this is an inflammatory condition but research shows that this is more of a degeneration of the tendon and not an inflammatory condition.  This is why sometimes, NSAIDs and other anti-inflammatories don't help with treatment.  Physical therapy has been shown to have great outcomes with Achilles pain and have been recommended as the first line of treatment.  When treated with manual therapy, stretching, and strengthening, your pain and symptoms should begin to decrease within the first couple of visits.  Some patients have even been pain free in 2-4 visits!  For more chronic Achilles pain, treatment may takes longer, even up to 4-6 months, but a good outcome is expected. Physiopedia has a great resource and tool kit regarding information, diagnosis, and best treatment for any achilles tendinitis or tendinopathy.   Visit www.pursuittherapy.com or call Pursuit Physical Therapy for more information regarding the treatment of Achilles pain and what is the best treatment for you!

What is the Key to Generating Power in a Golf Swing?

So after you have treated your LBP and you have a pain free golf swing, what is the key to generating power?  EPSN Sports Science did an excellent clip on the importance of the kinematic sequence with Rory McIlroy, breaking down the basics to the kinetic chain.  How can someone who is 5'9" and 160 lbs drive the ball 300+ yards?  Well, the KEY TO POWER is the kinetic chain and the ability to improve the transfer of energy from the hips, to the trunk, to the arms, and through the club.

The graph above is an example data that you can gather with a 3D golf swing analysis.  Each line dictates a different body part.  With the golf swing, and ideal sequence is needed, and thus you get a graph like this.  Now the transfer of energy is measured with the downslope of each line after the peak of each body part.  This measures the deceleration of each joint, or the transfer of energy.  Increase slope = increased energy transferred.  This dictates the power you can generate with your golf swing.  You can train yourself to improve the neuro-muscular control and strength of each body part with the proper training and specific exercises.  With the proper exercises you can become more efficient at transferring energy with your golf swing, thus hitting the ball farther, and decreasing your scores! You don't need to have pain to consult Pursuit Physical Therapy.  Call now and schedule a golf swing consultation and start generating power with your golf swing!

Are you ready for the Masters!

In honor of the Masters this week, we are posting about the golf swing and pain all week.  Checkout the Pursuit Physical Therapy facebook page for our daily golf posts.  How do you decrease low back pain with your swing?  What impairments are common with LBP?  What are the most important muscles during the golf swing?  Feel free to ask any questions you have.  Also check out our website under specialty programs to see our golf swing program, V1 golf swing analysis, and Titleist Performance Institute screen to get you to a pain free golf swing!

What is Wrong with Healthcare?

We could go on for hours about this, but recently TIME published two articles: High Cost of Healthcare and  Why Medical Bills are Killing Us that are great reads that show some of the problems with healthcare.  All of health care is going to be challenged to do things better by managing expenditures, maximizing cost effectiveness, improving access, decreasing practice variation, and ensuring that the care provided is implemented with the best interventions supported by evidence.  So how are private practices and small healthcare businesses going to stay in business in the future?  A Cash-based service.  Healthcare has been forced to the level of mediocrity due to the increased need in healthcare services, decreased reimbursement, and restricted insurance company guidelines.  Currently, working in the standard insurance-based PT clinic, I find myself not having enough time with each patient, double-booking patients who need one-on-one care, placing patients with assistants, and results are delayed and decreased due to the current system.  A cash-based service would allow one-on-one patient care for one hour, providing great outcomes, allowing patient needs to dictate treatment not insurance company guidelines, no grouping multiple patients together, not worrying about what services get reimbursed, and still being able to generate revenue for a business to be profitable.  Pursuit Physical Therapy will be a new brand of outpatient physical therapy that is cash-based, providing one-on-one patient care, by doctors of physical therapy, by board certified specialists, using evidence-based practice, thus showing better outcomes in a shorter number of visits.  Pursuit Physical Therapy care is based on treatment outcomes and what is best for the patient, and not guided by insurance companies or strict guidelines.  We will offer a high quality of healthcare that people need, showing better outcomes than the other standard area physical therapy clinic and will see valuable enough to pay cash for our services. 

Do I need to warm up before golfing?

A recent review of golf injuries reported that 50% of golfers do not warm-up prior to playing golf.   They went on to report a significant decrease in injury rates by 60% in golfers who stretched and warmed up for at least 10 minutes before playing.    Don't forget to warm up for 10 min prior to golfing to help prevent injuries.  If you need any ideas for warm-up look at the Pursuit Physical Therapy YouTube Channel and click on the golf playlist for warm-up exercises.