How to Reduce Stress Through Exercise
By Bryan Rose
Golf can be a great stress reducer. Of course it also can be a great stress creator if things are not going well for that round. Keeping calm and reducing stress are key, however, to turning around a few bad holes. Through exercise, golfers can actually train themselves to become stress free while performing physical activity.
Instructions
Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Find a quiet spot in gym or play favorite music on the MP3 player to drown out noise. Depending on what exercise routine is being done, this could mean finding a treadmill away from others or lifting weights in a more secluded area. For cardio workouts, it could simply be running or walking on a lightly used trail.
Focus completely on the exercise at hand. For weightlifting, focus on the muscles being used. Use lighter weights and slower movements. The idea is to completely block out what is going on in the outside world and focus on the task at hand. For cardio work, focus on the pace or cadence of the exercise.
Stay in focus mode during breaks or rests in the workout. When lifting weights, think about the next rep or how muscles are feeling at that time. Stay in the moment of the workout. For cardio work, think about the distance left to run or how legs are feeling at the time. The main goal is to stay focused on the body and the task at hand.
Replay the workout following the exercise. Focus on the good aspects of the workout, the amount of weight lifted, the distance ran or walked and how good the body feels. Do not worry about the things that are negative, such as being tired or not lifting as much as others.
Transfer these steps to the golf course. After a bad shot, rather than focusing on what went wrong, focus on the shot at hand. Think about the muscles being used and fluidity of the swing rather than score and distance. This will help calm the mind and remind the body of the task at hand.
Tips & Warnings
Yoga is a great exercise regimen for golfers due to the focus involved and the strength and stretching required. There are many different types of yoga, so finding one that fits a golfer's personality should not be hard.
Consult a doctor before starting any new exercise program.
About The Author
Bryan Rose is an experienced journalist and web writer, spending nearly 12 years in the publishing industry. Rose works for a variety of Demand Studios websites, writing mostly for ehow.com and Golflink.com. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in History degree from the University of Wisconsin.
