We continue in our golf injuries series here at St. Johns Chiropractic & Performance, where we educate you on why different golf injuries occur and how you can get them properly evaluated and treated to return to the golf course as quickly and safely as possible. Our two most recent blogs talked about low back pain (which is the most common golf injury) and elbow and forearm pain. Today we arrive at the neck and we will talk about why some golfers have neck pain that occurs during their golf swing or after playing a round of golf!
To recap what we have already talked about, research shows that approximately one in three golfing athletes will have a significant injury each year that will cause them to have pain with golf related activity and will limit their playing ability and may cause them to miss rounds, practices, and matches. (1-2)
Low back pain, forearm and elbow pain, wrist and hand pain, knee and foot pain, and shoulder pain are other common sites to have an injury or discomfort besides the neck. Golfers in the Jacksonville, Florida area certainly are not immune to these golf injuries as golf is available year-round for the most part and we have a high population of golfers in this sunny area.
Within the golf swing, the most strain is placed on your neck during the backswing and during the follow through. This is where most golfers will experience neck pain and it often limits the physical motion during these two phases of the swing. Common neck pain diagnoses for golfers include disc herniations and bulges, joint irritation, nerve entrapments, muscle strains, and ligament sprains.
Pain When Golfing in Saint Johns, Florida?
At St. Johns Chiropractic & Performance, we help adults, youth athletes, and recreational golfers of all skill levels get out of pain & then rehabilitate their pains & injuries so they can quickly get back back to golfing, running, or whatever it is that they love and desire to perform at 100%! Grant Speer is a Doctor of Chiropractic & a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist here is St. Johns County. He is a former collegiate basketball player who understand the needs and demands of athletics. He has assisted many local golfers in getting rid of aches and pains to help them get back on the course. He is also certified by the Titleist Performance Institute which is the global leader in evaluating mobility & stability limitations within the body as well as swing faults.
If you are a golfer who is dealing with limited mobility or even pain during or after your rounds, then you could benefit from our comprehensive approach and care!
Golf-Related Neck Pain Near Ponte Vedra
Golf requires a lot of mobility and functional stability. Functional stability is an athletic term that means your joints and muscles are able to activate at the right time, the right amount, and in the right way. More importantly, when your muscles and joints are needed to activate, they should be relaxed. Faults in mobility and functional stability can create timing errors in the golf swing that often overload certain tissues that have to compensate and make up for the lack of mobility or functional stability in one area.
Taking neck pain as our example today, it’s somewhat rare that neck pain is experienced because of a lack of mobility or stability in your neck as a golfer. Usually, neck pain will result because of stiffness or tightness in the hips, feet, mid-back or shoulders which will cause extra strain on the neck joints, tendons, and muscles.
This creates the need for a sports injury specialist who can assess movement in the entire body and not just the side of pain. The best sports chiropractor in your area will be able to evaluate your body and tell you why you are having neck pain and what other areas of your body are lacking the needed balance of mobility and functional stability.
Treating Neck Injuries in Jacksonville Golfers
The best treatment for golf related neck injuries includes local treatment to the neck muscles and joints to decrease pain and normalize neck function. After this, it would be all about improving mobility and functional stability in other areas of the body that caused the neck pain to occur in the first place.
Here’s how a typical golfing athlete at St. Johns Chiropractic & Performance might get treated if they had neck pain. We would initially use chiropractic manipulation, soft tissue therapy (myofascial therapy) on the muscles, rehab exercises and other modalities to decrease pain. Then based on our exam will target other areas of the body to improve function. If their hips and mid-back (thoracic spine) had a lack of mobility that caused their neck pain, we would target our treatment to those two spots.
This improvement in mobility at the hip joints and mid-back would allow our patient to swing a golf club more freely and without having to overload and compensate with his or her neck muscles. We at St. Johns Chiropractic & Performance always aim for a long-term solutions as well as quick ones. This is why we educate our patients on what is going on within your body and teach you stretches and exercises to do at home to retain the new mobility you just received.
We are here to help you become the best athlete you can be, for as long as you want to, and doing it all pain-free! Allow us to help you on your golfing journey!
Do you need a sports injury expert in St. Johns County? Contact or call/text us today at 904-217-7078 to schedule your appointment.
