Many golfers struggle with lower-back pain, but you don’t have to suffer through it round after round without some relief. Jennifer Fleischer, a Golf Digest Certified Fitness Trainer, says that the fix for nagging pain could be as simple as doing this one dynamic stretch.
Get into an athletic stance with your feet slightly wider than shoulder width. Hinge at the hips to lower your torso so it’s parallel to the ground. Place your right elbow on your right inner thigh and brace your right fist against your left inner thigh. From there, extend your left arm and rotate your torso up towards the ceiling so your left arm passes your left hip on its way to pointing straight up.
Do one or two sets of these rotations, switch arm positions, and rotate for 10 more in the opposite direction.
“Because of the nature of the golf swing, it’s very common for golfers to be more restricted through their thoracic (mid-) spine on one side more than the other, so you can always focus more time on the side that feels tighter,” Fleischer says.
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You’ll feel a stretch in your hamstrings, too, which Fleischer says is key for taking pressure off of your lower back. This move also “improves your hip-hinge mechanics so you don’t put as much stress on your spine throughout the round”, she says.
Lastly, this stretch will make your thoracic spine more mobile. With the ability to rotate more, your lumbar (lower) spine won’t have to compensate as much, Fleischer says. If your lower back is working less in the golf swing, you’re going to experience less lower back discomfort.
You can do this stretch before or after your round, or both.
“This dynamic move is great for warm-ups to help get a bigger turn and can be done as a post-round stretch to help reset the body and improve symmetry,” she says.
Try it the next several times you play. The cure to your lower back pain could be as simple as incorporating this move into your routine.
