Low back pain after golf? Your brain might be holding a grudge!

Did you spend the weekend teeing off on one of Nashville’s rolling golf courses, and now there’s a deep ache to a flash of hot pain?

Back pain after golfing is fairly common! In fact, during the warm seasons, we see golfers on a nearly daily basis at Revive Sports Recovery. Whether it’s lower back pain, pain on the sides (the obliques), or back pain while you’re sitting or trying to put your socks and shoes on, one of the biggest questions we get asked is whether you’ve injured your back! 

Back pain does not equal a back injury! Which is good news for you, but why can back pain after golfing be so debilitating if there’s nothing actually “wrong” or injured?

This pain you feel is actually like a deep seated grudge held by the most powerful organ in your body - your brain. 

Your brain as a protector

Think of your brain as the bouncer of a high-end nightclub, and your body is the club. Your brain's number one job is to protect the club at all costs. It's constantly scanning for threats, for anything that might cause damage.

Now, think about your golf swing. It's a quick, high-speed, rotational movement that takes about a second to complete. Meaning, during the week while you’re sitting for hours commuting in the car, sitting or standing for 40-50 hours working, exercising by moving primarily forward and backward, you’re rotating and swinging that club for approximately 0.012% of your week. For a brain that's not 100% on board with what you're doing, that swing looks like a threat compared to everything else you do. 

So, what does the bouncer do? It shuts it down. It creates a "pain signal" – that's the grudge. It's your brain screaming, "I don't like this! Nope, we’re done!" It's a warning, a protective mechanism, the pain will stop you from swinging again, so the brain has done its job of protecting you.  The pain is not an injury itself.

Why Your Yoga, Muscle Relaxers, or Saunas Aren't a Permanent Fix

You can heat or ice all you want. You can sit in the sauna for an hour or take some Advil or maybe get a relaxing massage. And you might feel better for a little while. But, you're just placating the bouncer in most cases. You're not convincing the brain that the course is safe. As soon as you step back on the tee and unleash that swing, the bouncer is going to get nervous again, and that "pain" is coming right back.

The real solution isn't to just quiet the pain. It's to have a conversation with the bouncer. It's about showing the brain that the golf swing, when done correctly and with a body that's prepared for it, is not a threat.

Sports Massage and Performance Stretching

At Revive Sports Recovery, our sports massage therapists and performance stretch therapists not only have years of experience working with low back pain after golf, we’ve also worked with athletes from every sports team in Nashville, as well as the US Olympic Team, and other pro teams outside Tennessee. 

Our sessions for your low back pain center around finding out why your brain is holding that pain grudge. 

• Is it a hip that's not rotating properly, forcing your back to take on more of the load?

• Is it a weak core that's making your brain feel unstable and unprotected during your swing?

• Is it a spine that only moves forward and backward and isn’t used to such fast, hard rotation?

• Is it a shoulder scapula that is inhibiting rotation in the upper back so the force goes down to your low back?

• Is it an old injury that your brain is still guarding, even though it has long since healed?

We find the source of the grudge, then we use targeted, precise techniques to convince the brain that it's safe to let go. That it can release the "pain" signal because the threat is gone.

This isn't about a temporary fix. This is about a permanent solution. It's about re-educating your body and your brain so they can work together, not against each other.

So, are you ready to stop treating the low back pain and start addressing the grudge? Are you ready to get back to the golf game you love, without that nagging voice in your back telling you to stop?

Good. Let's get to work. Schedule with one of our massage and stretching therapists today and let us talk to your bouncer brain about that low back pain grudge so you can get back out on the course, swinging as hard as you want, pain-free.