With all the buzz about the US Open in San Diego right now, I thought I’d write a short post on how acupuncture can help Golfers get out of pain and play better. Pretty much everything I say for golfers applies to tennis players too.
Golfer’s Elbow is an acute, or chronic inflammation of the tendons that attach to the inside of the elbow joint. The medical term is medial epicondylitis. These tendons are part of the muscles that flex the wrist inwards, and close the fingers around an object such as a golf club.
Tennis elbow is the exact opposite. An inflammation of the tendons that attach to the outer elbow, and are part of the forearm muscles that curl the wrist back and open the fingers. The medical term is lateral epicondylitis.
These tendons become inflamed when micro-tears develop over time from shock and impact. Tendons don’t have good blood circulation like muscles, so these tears are slow to heal and can become chronic, especially when not given adequate time to rest and recover.
The anti-inflammatory effect of acupuncture can greatly hasten the recovery from these sports injuries. Acupuncture also enhances blood circulation to speed the healing. I usually see rapid improvement in golfer’s, and tennis elbow, provided the arm is given enough time to rest and heal.
Aside from elbow pain, golfers frequently suffer from various shoulder and low back pain issues, which often develops from repeated training of one side of the body. This can cause imbalances. The pain and spasms that result can usually be addressed with several acupuncture sessions, which allow full mobility and a better swing.
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I have golfer’s elbow and would like to explore acupuncture as a treatment. I live in New York. Thanks.
Jerry Warshaw
Fantastic write-up! I genuinely enjoyed it. I’ve read much the same blog page around physical pain reduction. It’s totally worth going over.