Do You Know 8 Surprising Health Benefits Of Golf?
There are only a few sports that are popular worldwide. And, fortunately, golf is one of them. It is a very challenging yet fun game that is played on a huge outdoor course. The primary objective of the game is to send the golf ball into a set of holes. And this needs to be done with as few strokes as possible using different types of golf clubs.
What does this tell you? That you need to be putting a lot of physical as well mental energy in the game of golf. And when you invest such facilities into the game, the outcome is inevitably going to be good, right? So maybe it’s time you learn all about the health benefits of golf.
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Unlike other sports, golf is a game that can be played by people of all ages. It doesn’t matter if you’re 15 or 50, there’s no limit to how far you can go, literally. And let me also tell you that golf is not always supposed to be played professionally.
Many golfers consider the game as their favorite pastime. And that’s completely normal too. You can either play it on your own or with a group. The choice is all yours.
Now let’s talk about the health benefits of golf so the next time you can feel even better about yourself for playing the game.
1. Golf improves mental health
The mental benefits of golf can change the way you react to many situations in your life. Since your body and mind are exposed to the wide, open outdoor space, you can gain a lot from it.
Exposure to the natural green of the golf course relaxes your body and mind, reduces stress and helps in doing away with anxiety. And this can go a long way in improving your mental health.
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The sunlight that your body is exposed to gives you all the vitamin D you need. And we all know what vitamin D does, don’t we? It lowers the risk of depression, certain cancers, and heart disease. So knowing that your body is benefitting from all the exposure to the green and sunny outdoors can help lift your mood and alleviate anxiety.
2. Golf builds up bladder strength
Pretty surprising, isn’t it? Who ever thought that playing golf could strengthen the bladder! Well, golf is full of surprises indeed. When you’re playing a round of golf, you’re not going to visit the restroom constantly. It can take a lot of your time if you had to keep doing that, right?
So many golfers simply learn how to hold it. And this helps in strengthening the bladder capacity.
Golf doesn’t only strengthen your bladder but also your leg muscles. Many women golfers have experienced their leg muscles becoming stronger, mainly in the quadriceps. After all, playing golf just keeps getting better and better. (Golf fitness training)
3. Golf burns calories
Golf courses are as big as 200 to 300 acres. Imagine covering all this distance in only a single round of golf. That is a lot of walking, isn’t it? If you don’t take the option of cart-ing around, then, on an average, you would be walking a distance of at least 6 to 7 km.
And to top this off, if you decide to carry your personal golf clubs, you will end up burning additional calories. Walking for long distances with your set of golf clubs and then playing the game as well can burn at least 1000 calories. And this is only for a single round of golf.
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4. Golf keeps your heart healthy
As I have mentioned above, playing golf involves a bit of walking and exercising. And this not only burns calories but also keeps your heart healthy. The job of walking, carrying the golf clubs and swinging them increases your heart rate.
This contributes to increasing and pumping up the blood flow. And when your blood flow improves, the risk of developing heart diseases decreases. It also helps in lowering the bad cholesterol level in your blood.
5. Golf improves the way your brain works
One of the best health benefits is improving blood flow. Increased blood flow doesn’t only help the heart but also the brain. It means that the healthy blood flow in your brain will further improve and stimulate your nerve cell connections. This has the ability to delay certain mental illnesses like dementia. (How exercise benefits the brain)
The game of golf requires you to compete with other golfers as well as yourself. This can help in building up self-esteem and confidence. The activity also requires you to tally scores, plan and execute strategies and improve hand to eye coordination. And do you what all this does? It keeps your brain active when it comes to logical functioning.
6. Golf improves vision
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Playing with golf balls can be quite a challenging experience, don’t you think? I mean look how tiny they are! Among the sensory health benefits of golf, this one ranks the highest. Golfers have to learn how to hit on target from a great distance.
In situations where the golf ball is on the tee, players have to properly evaluate the edge of their vision while also keeping a check on their hand to eye coordination. And what does all this mean? Better vision.
7. Golf reduces risk of injury
When you’re playing sports, the risk of injury runs pretty high, doesn’t it? But this doesn’t apply to golf because the game of golf isn’t a contact sport. Even though there is some physical activity like walking, swinging the golf clubs and pivoting involved, the game is primarily about strategy, accuracy, and coordination.
8. Golf helps in getting better sleep at night
A round of golf can tire out your body. Playing golf doesn’t seem as challenging as other forms of sports. But once you get on the golf course, you realize how physically demanding it is. Sleeping faster and deeper is one of the best health benefits of golf. Golf requires you to put in a lot of effort, both physical and mental.
So this contributes to getting better sleep at night and that too for longer hours. And we all know how beneficial sleep is, right? It is required to repair the tissues and muscles of your body. Good sleep also helps in regenerating cells. (What you should know about sleep apnea and golf).
The Health Benefits of Golf
That’s a wrap!
These are some of the greatest health benefits of golf that you can get from the game. So it’s crucial to learn how to play golf properly. Acquiring the most fundamental skills in the game of golf can not only benefit you on the course but off the course as well.
But whatever you do, please make sure that you stretch a little before playing a round of golf. It helps in preparing your arms, shoulders, and back for all the walking and swinging that you’re going to do on the turf.
I hope this article provided you with the information that you were looking for. I made it a point also to explain some mental benefits of golf that can help improve the way you live.
When did you start playing golf? And how has it impacted your life?
Please share your wonderful experiences with us here.
You might also like:
- Do you know what percentage of golfers break 90 and how to do it?
- 7 Best Golf Websites That You Can Benefit From
Sources:
1. https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/golf-health-benefits
2. http://www.healthfitnessrevolution.com/top-10-health-benefits-golf/
3. http://golfgurls.com/7-top-health-benefits-of-playing-golf/
