Back Pain From Golf: Why It Happens and How to Keep Playing
Golf looks easy on the body, but the swing is one of the more demanding things you can ask of your lower back. If a round leaves you sore, or if back pain is starting to cut your season short, you are not alone. Here is what is going on and what you can do about it.
Why the Golf Swing Bothers Your Back
A golf swing puts a fast, twisting load on the lower back, then finishes with the spine bent back and to the side. Done hundreds of times over a season, that repeated rotation and extension wears on the structures of the lower back. Amateur golfers tend to feel it more, because the swing often relies on the back instead of the hips and core.
Where the Pain Is Usually Coming From
In golfers, back pain most often comes from the facet joints, the small joints at the back of the spine that take the load during the twist and follow-through. It can also come from the discs, the SI joint, or the muscles. If the pain travels down a leg, that points to a nerve being involved, which is a different problem that should be checked.
How to Keep Playing
A few things make a real difference:
Warm up before you swing. A few minutes of movement and easy practice swings prepares the spine for what is coming.
Work on hip and core strength. When your hips and core do their job, your lower back does not have to absorb the whole swing.
Watch the finish. Arching hard backward at the end of the swing loads the facet joints. A more balanced finish takes pressure off.
When It Is More Than Soreness
Soreness that fades with rest is usually just fatigue. Pain that keeps coming back, pain that travels into a leg, or any numbness or weakness is worth getting evaluated. Those can mean a disc or nerve is involved, and catching it early gives you more options.
How We Treat Golf-Related Back Pain
Treatment depends on where the pain is coming from. Facet joint pain often responds well to targeted injections and radiofrequency ablation. Disc or nerve pain may be treated with epidural injections. Physical therapy aimed at your swing and your core is part of almost every plan. The goal is simple: get you back on the course.
Back Pain Treatment in Castle Rock
Dr. Carrera is double board-certified in interventional pain medicine and physical medicine and rehabilitation. The practice treats back pain and other spine, joint, and nerve conditions with non-opioid, procedure-based care for patients from Castle Rock, Castle Pines, Lone Tree, Parker, Highlands Ranch, Centennial, Denver, Monument, and Colorado Springs, and surrounding communities.
Is back pain getting in the way of your game? Call 720-455-3775 to find out what is causing it.
