One of the most interesting similarities between the sport of golf and the discipline of yoga is that to achieve the best results you have to engage your mental faculties in a big way. Both in fact rely majorly upon the mind, and yet the majority of people try to turn a blind eye to this fact.
For some reason, most people prefer to focus on the physical mechanics of the golf spielen swing or the physical stretching in yoga and do not see their way to looking deeper. Yet, once one delves into the mental realms of either golf or yoga both practices become transformed onto a far superior level. It is only by engaging the mindfully that one will achieve optimal results.
The lessons learned in both golf and yoga are frequently surprisingly similar. You learn the arts of balance, focus, being in the now, being mindful, working with your body instead of against it, relaxing, and controlling your breathing.
You are no doubt already aware of the yoga benefits of strength, stamina, and flexibility. But this is just scratching the surface of the myriad benefits of yoga that can exponentially elevate your game of golf.
In your yoga practice, you work with your breath. Inhaling and opening your body – prana. And exhaling and releasing your body – Apana. Working with your breath instead of fighting it, harnessing your energy, and maximizing it.
In golf, you can use your breath in the same way. Maximizing your power, swinging in tune with your breath, making it easier, your swing flowing with your breath, naturally and instinctively.
As you breathe in and pause for a moment before exhaling, this could be reflected in the slight pause at the top of the backswing.
As you breathe regularly, deeply, and rhythmically your body remains relaxed and free from anxiety or nerves. In attending to your breathing you ensure that you remain relaxed and that your swing is relaxed.
No first tee nerves, no anxiety, so long as you attend to your breath. No more poor shot choices caused by anxiety that gets in the way of clear thinking. The higher brain functions are inhibited when anxious – you simply cannot think clearly.
But you can learn to just breathe your way to relaxation, making sound shot choices and you can have easy, natural, rhythmic swing.
Another learning from yoga that can be applied to golf is the ability to focus with complete and full attention. As you focus on total absorption to find balance in the asanas you learn what 100% focus really is. One slight distraction in your mental focus and you wobble…
In yoga, you learn how to remain connected and focused, and to be immune from distractions. You know how useful this art is when applied to the golf course.
I mentioned balance in relation to focus. In yoga, and in golf, balance is something that is striven for all of the time, in every asana and in every golf swing. Again these learnings from yoga can be taken and incorporated into your golf game, leading to a beautifully fluid and flowing, natural swing that begins and ends in balance.
In each asana, you rotate and shift your body so as to find your center. It is only when you find your center that you truly find balance. You only find your center when your mind and body are both absorbed in the process of doing what you are doing, not attached in any way to the outcome. Your focus is on the now, at the moment.
When you are centered there is harmony between mind and body, harmony between conscious and subconscious, and a symphony that incorporates relaxation and acutely focused awareness. This conscious relaxation and focusing on the moment is something that you can take with you and apply to the golf course. This acutely focused awareness keeps your swing path on a plane and your attention upon the shot in the hand.
In every asana, there is a balance of movement that centers around your core. Your core remains strong, stable, and balanced. In the majority of yoga poses your lower body grounds, your upper body lifts, and your spine, and back are straight, broad, and open.
Visualize your posture in golf as if you were looking down at yourself from the ceiling. See how you position your head, looking down at your hands and the ball, and how your swing just moves your body around that central line of your core. Remaining centered, balanced, and strong.
I just mentioned visualizing. It is impossible to do something that you do not visualize first. In golf, as you visualize a shot that you wish to make you pave the way to making it. Visualizing is a powerful way in which to train your mind and body to be successful in any sport.
And now I just introduced success. In yoga, we learn perseverance, determination, confidence, and success, amongst many, many other wonderful arts.
These are just a few reasons why I make the statement that yoga and golf are extremely complementary. Do you agree? Hamburg Golf Check out my website now.
