There’s just something about the thought of leaving the day-to-day problems and stresses of life behind for a little while, pulling on your golf gear and getting out on your favourite course for a round that brings a smile to your face and joy to your heart. Agree?
For golf aficionados, nothing will make you happier than the thought of a free day ahead to spend on the golf course. Here are just some of the ways golf will leave you feeling better off.
Mentally
Golf is FANTASTIC for your mental health. Exercise, fresh air, a dopamine rush and social interaction are all key factors for good mental health. Playing a round of golf will:
- Reduce stress. Getting some exercise is one of the best ways to reduce stress levels, and when that’s coupled with time spent in the great outdoors, the stress reduction benefits are even greater.
- Make you feel happier. Exercise releases those feel-good endorphins, which leaves you feeling happier and more content.
- Make you feel more relaxed. A low-impact exercise like golf will relax your body and mind, helping you feel more calm, relaxed and at peace.
- Stimulate your brain. In the same way the doing puzzles stimulates your brain, the mental and tactical aspect of golf is also challenging for your brain, and improves your mental capacity.
- Delay the onset of mental illnesses. Golf increases the flow of blood to your brain, which stimulates and improves nerve cell connections. This effect helps delay the onset of mental illnesses such as dementia.
Socially
The benefits of social interaction are well known, especially as you get older. Loneliness can be a common problem for older people, and leads to a whole host of negative effects, including poorer physical and mental health and decreased longevity. Golf counteracts the effects of loneliness for older people, as it has a strong social aspect as well as the physical and mental ones. Golf fosters relationships, as it’s played in a group setting, and walking and talking is all part of the game. Golfers can use their walking time to talk over their problems, discuss life events and share news. Golf is a great way to develop and maintain both new and old friendships – something that’s absolutely necessary for wellbeing as we age.
Physically
And let’s not forget the physical benefits of golf. Golf may be a low-impact sport, but it nonetheless provides many health benefits for the ageing golfer, including:
- Better heart health. You can improve your cardiovascular health by regularly walking the course – and walking can be just as beneficial as running. Swinging your clubs and hitting your shots also raises your heart rate and increases healthy blood flow to your heart.
- Stronger bones. We all know that weight-bearing exercise is essential for keeping bones strong as we age. Walking the course and dragging your clubs around turns golf into a weight-bearing exercise that’s easy on your joints but extremely good for your bone health.
- Better posture. Golf can improve your posture by training you to engage muscles in your back, arms, shoulders and chest, and by building core strength and awareness. Maintaining consistent posture throughout your swing will also lead to improved stability and alignment over time.
- Weight loss. Walking around a golf course is a significant distance, and golfers can easily exceed the daily recommended requirement of 10,000 steps in a typical round. The calory-burning effects are multiplied by pulling a golf buggy around; and even if you’re using a motorised golf buggy, the effects of climbing in and out of it constantly and hitting your strokes will still add up. Check out Parmaker’s great range of both walker and ride on golf buggies here: https://www.parmaker.com/product-category/buggies/
- Improved coordination and vision. Regularly hitting golf strokes helps you both maintain and improve your hand-eye coordination. As well, tracking the flight of the ball requires great vision, and doing this regularly does wonders for your ability to home in on small targets from long distances.
- Better sleep. Playing golf regularly will help you fall asleep more easily and enjoy better quality sleep when you do.
- Overall longevity. Any kind of exercise can add years to your life. The key is to find something that you enjoy and will continue to do regularly – like golf.
So, there you have it – golf is not just for fun, but goes a long way towards improving your health and wellbeing, as well as your quality of life. And what’s not to love about that?
