To warm up, walk around, slowly swinging and circling your arms.

Trunk rotation and Hip stretch - Hold driver horizontal behind shoulders, while keeping head and neck straight, rotate shoulders, trunk and hips 5 to 6 times.

Spine and Hip stretch - Hold driver vertically with both hands, thumbs up and squat to a comfortable babalcned position.  Stretch head, neck and upper back forward.  Hold 30 seconds.

Calf Stretch - Hold driver with both hands and place one foot behid the other.  Toes pointed forward, back leg straight.  Press heel to ground.  Hold 30 seconds.

Regardless of what grip a golfer prefers; interlocking, overlapping or 10 fingered, good wrist flexibility during the swing requires both hands be in parallel alignment.   Natural wrist motion occurs when the palms are facing one another along the target line.  The most common golf-related injury is tendinitis.  To avoid this, stretching the wrist/forearm before every round of practice of play is necessary.  Have a golf teaching professional assess your grip because it is the sole connection to your club.  Wrist action is a critical part of the game.

Approximately 25,000 people sprain their ankel each day.  The acute ankle injury is the most common sports injury encoutnered today and is responsible for up to 30% of sports related injuries in young athletes.  Left untreated, a sprained ankel can lead to chronic ankle instability, high reoccurrence rate, and secondary complications due to prolonged ankle pain.  Careful diagnosis with adequate immobilization and early treatment of an akle sprain is imperative.

Physical Therapy treatment involves swelling control, pain free RPM and then strengthening stabilizing muscles.  Restoring “proprioception” in the ankle joint will help reduce the risk of re-injury.  Proprioception is the ability of the muscles surrounding a joint to respond to abnormal positions and situations.  For example, when standing on an uneven surface like grass the ankle adjusts to the surface to prevent fall and injuries.  After an injury, proprioception, like strength and flexibility, is impaired and requires rehabilitation.  To ensure complete healing of an ankle sprain and decease the chance of recurrence be sure to have the sprain properly treated by your physician and Physical Therapist at FreeMotion Physical Therapy.

The Game Ready is a new compression coldwrap that you will find at FreeMotion Physical Therapy which is specifically designed to treat swelling and pain.  With an acute injury, the recommendation is R.I.C.E. (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation).  The Game Ready allows you to receive ice and compression and can be incorporated into your physical therapy treatment.  The Game Ready works by using ice water and combining it with compressed air which is then circulated through a bladder that covers a patient’s injured limb.  Unlike a bag of ice which may only cover one side of intermittent compression at a constant temperature reaching as low as 36 degrees.

Here at FreeMotion Physical Therapy we currently use the Game Ready for treating shoulders, ankles, knees and elbows.  We have seen great results, especially with post operative patients and/ or acute sprains.  Our patients ask to use this machine because the results are very impressive.  The goal of the unit is to decrease swelling quickly, allowing strength and function to improve rapidly.  The Game Ready is already being used by the majority of  the NFL, NBA and Division 1 NCAA athletic programs.

In the last few years many training programs have evolved with a focus on strengthening the “CORE”.  What is the core?  What benefits will I reap by strengthening the core?  How do I correctly train the core?

The core or trunk consists of the abdominal, hip and spinal musculature.  This is where the body’s center of gravity is located and where weight bearing movement begins.  Many of the peripheral muscles of the arm and legs attach to the spine or pelvis - the core.  If the core is stable, the peripheral muscles are biomechanically more efficient; thus reducing the risk of injury and improving performance.  An increase in core strength results in improved balance and stability of the pelvis and spine.  This allows an athlete to have the ability to generate more power not only from the core muscles but from the shoulder, arms and legs - because these muscles are anchored to the core.  Core strength is a prerequisite to optimal sports performance.  Running, lifting, jumping, twisting and throwing will all benefit from strengthening your trunk and you will be less susceptible to injuries.

How do I strengthen these crucial muscles?  Many people do sit ups or abdominal crunches.  This is a good beginning exercise but it does not simulate the actual athletic endeavor ( I can not think of a sport that takes place lying on one’s back).  Olympic lifts, medicine ball exercises and physio balls can be used to effectively strengthen the core musculature.  Please call FreeMotion Physical Therapy to make and appointment for your personal evaluation and training session.  We will help you efficiently strengthen your core and enhance your athletic performance plus reduce your risk of injury.