Chiropractic and your Golf Game

Spring is finally in the air and many people are already getting back into more outdoor activities with even more to come. Golf in particular is one I personally enjoy and is especially on my mind with Dr. Reinecke speaking on the radio during KELO’s golf talks. For those trying to get a bit more out of the game and always looking to improve upon it, chiropractic can certainly help.

The December 2009 issue of the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine had a study entitled, “Effect of spinal manipulative therapy with stretching compared with stretching alone on full-swing performance of golf players: a randomized pilot trial.” In this study, a total of 43 golfers from two clubs in Sao Paulo, Brazil were divided into two groups with relatively equal overall age, handicap, and initial distance on a full swing. In both groups everybody performed three swings before any treatment was performed and then went through a series of stretching exercises before performing another three swings. In group 2, however, they received chiropractic care in addition to the stretches before taking their second set of three swings. This setup was repeated for a total of four weeks. At the end of the study it was found that stretching alone didn’t create a significant change in ball distance in either an increase or a decrease compared to the initial, pre-stretch swings. In the chiropractic group, however there was a significant increase in ball distance after the golfers got their adjustments.

It’s important to note that these golfers weren’t initially in any kind of pain in their spine and that they were adjusted simply wherever the chiropractors found a subluxation of the spine. Therefore, the patients weren’t in any pain that restricted them at first and cleared up with the adjustment, but rather their body was restricted even without any symptoms simply because of all the other biomechanical influences a subluxation has besides pain.

So this Spring if you’re looking to stay at the top of your game in golf, or any other sort of sporting activity, and even just to stay in optimum condition in general, be sure to go to your chiropractor and get adjusted. Just because there isn’t any pain doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem holding you back from performing at your best.

--Joshua J. J. Jorde D.C.

Read the original abstract here

Or listen to Dr. Reinecke speak on the golf show here