Want to take strokes off your golf game? Athletic performance has two major components – physical and mental. A commonly known benefit of floating and sauna use is pain relief. But did you know they can both help your mental game as well?
Physical benefits
Floating in the anti-gravity and magnesium rich environment makes your body feel pretty amazing after 90 minutes. Magnesium Sulfate (Epsom Salt) helps to relax muscles, reduce swelling and pain from arthritis, and relieve pain from fibromyalgia and various causes. The anti-gravity environment allow your tight muscles, ligaments and tendons to deeply relax. The absence of pressure points and gravity allow your body’s circulation to work more effectively to detoxify and heal.
A lesser known benefit of floating is that it provides the perfect environment for you to become very body aware. The quiet space really pay attention to your body and the messages that it is sending you. It is not uncommon to be able to really pinpoint a sore spot or feel that the source of pain is actually somewhere slightly different than the area you have been treating through massage or physiotherapy. Identifying your sore spots makes them much easier to treat.
Being body aware may also show you where your body is out of balance, holding unnecessary tension, or needing some extra TLC. By practicing body awareness in the tank, you are also better able to position your body every time you swing a club. You are much more aware of your current body position and can judge if it is the best position for the stroke you are about to take. Small improvements in your form show up in a big way on your scorecard.
Mental benefits
Visualization – can have an even greater impact on your game. Playing the course in your head, imagining yourself making every shot easily. Seeing the ball fly further and straighter. Feeling how your body moves effortlessly through the stroke. Seeing yourself sink the perfect putt for your best round ever.
Studies have shown that athletes who visualize success have a slight improvement in their game. However, athletes who visualize and mentally experience the entire physical process of the game improved their performance dramatically. Floating promotes the generation of large amounts of slow Theta brain waves, which are directly linked to the production of mental images of uncanny power and reality. *
Want to learn more about floating? Check out our Float FAQ page.
(*Taken from “The Book of Floating, Michael Hutchison, pg 173,175)