Week 11: Brief stretches can lead to smoother swing

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Stretching before a round helps prevent injuries and leads to a more fluid golf stroke.

Stretching before a round of golf does more than prevent injuries. It also ensures that you will have the flexibility for a more fluid golf stroke. Ari Weller, a fitness trainer in New York City, provides you with a few basic stretches that will help you, and your swing, stay healthy.

Standing Side Bend

From a standing position, bring your left hand over your head and extend it as far to the right as you can. As you do this, bring your right hand below your belt line and extend it as far to the left as you can. Your arms will look like they are trying to form a circle. Then switch directions. Do ten stretches on each side.

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Standing Quadricep Stretch

Use your right hand for balance by holding a pole or doorway. With an upright posture, bend your right leg back at the knee until you can grab your right foot behind you with your left hand. Now slowly rotate your chest to the left. You should feel a deeper stretch in your quadriceps. Hold the stretch and breath deeply for fifteen seconds. Then switch legs.

Forearm Stretch

Lean forward and place the palms of both hands on a bench so that your fingers are facing you. Keep your arms as straight as possible. Slowly lean downward and backward, until you begin to feel the stretch in your forearms. Breathe deeply in this stretch for 10 seconds. This will help keep your forearms loose on the course.

Wrist Rotations

Place the insides of your wrists together and hold your hands open, as though you were forming a "V" with your hands. Rotate your hands downward and bring them up through your forearms. Your wrists will now rotate so the backs of the wrists are together. Keep rotating until the insides of your wrists are touching again. As you continue to rotate your wrists through this range of motion, you will feel them loosen up and it should help the wrists feel more comfortable as you rotate through your swing.

Seated Glute Stretch

While sitting on a bench, cross your left ankle over your right thigh. Hold your right foot still with your right hand and keep your left leg steady with your left hand. Gently lean your head and chest forward over your legs. Do not worry about how far down you can go. Just breathe deeply and feel the stretch in your left glute. Breathe deeply and stay in the stretch for 30 seconds and then switch legs. This is a great way to keep your lower back and glutes warm and flexible as you wait your turn to hit off the tee box.

If you are struggling stretching due to knee pain, you might be suffering from osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. If you are living with OA, various treatments do exist, such as ORTHOVISC®, which provides up to six months of knee pain relief. Made from ultra-pure natural hyaluronan, which is found in healthy joints, ORTHOVISC® is injected into the knee joint where it acts to replace your natural joint fluid, to help cushion, protect and lubricate your knee.

ORTHOVISC® is a proud sponsor of PGATOUR.com. Talk to your doctor to see if ORTHOVISC® is right for you.

Or visit our Web site at http://www.orthovisc.com/ for more information on how to maintain your knee health to help you keep playing the game you love.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

ORTHOVISC® is for patients who do not get adequate pain relief from simple pain relievers like acetaminophen or from exercise and physical therapy. ORTHOVISC® is not for use in people with known allergy to hyaluronate preparations, to gram bacterial proteins, with infections or skin diseases in the area of the injection site or joint. Common side effects include joint pain, back pain, headaches and pain or redness at the injection site.

This is a paid placement by DePuy Mitek, Inc. The opinions expressed above are those of DePuy Mitek, Inc. and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the PGA TOUR.