Golf is supposed to be gentle. Peaceful. Meditative. Yet why are most weekend golfers Googling “why does my rib feel like it’s being stabbed every time I swing.” Side strains are one of the most common injuries in rotational sports, and golfers seem to collect them like loyalty points.
This blog breaks down what a side strain actually is, why golfers get them, how long they take to heal, and how to stop getting ambushed by your own obliques.
What is a side strain?
A side strain is a tear of the oblique muscles, most commonly the internal oblique, which attaches to the lower ribs (Campbell et al., 2013). These muscles create rotational power in the swing, help stabilise the trunk, and apparently enjoy ruining weekends.
In golfers, the injury typically results from forceful rotational loading, especially during the downswing (Garrison et al., 2013).
How do golfers get side strains?
Golfers injure their obliques the same way cricketers, baseball hitters and tennis players do: rapid trunk rotation under load (Chaudhari et al., 2014). That violent twist from the top of the backswing into acceleration is a prime setup for eccentric overload of the obliques (Cohen & Towers, 2009).
Common golfing culprits:
- Overswinging to impress your buddies and trying to hit the ball too hard
- Trying to add 30 metres of carry in one afternoon
- Cold starts straight from car boot to tee box
- High-volume driving range sessions
- Swing changes altering trunk load distribution
What muscles are usually involved?
Research shows that the internal oblique is the most commonly strained trunk muscle in rotational sports (Garrison et al., 2013). But golfers may also irritate:
- External oblique
- Serratus anterior
- Latissimus dorsi
- Intercostals (occasionally)
When these muscles strain, they often pull at the rib – muscle junction, which can make deep breaths feel like a personal attack (Robinson & Barron, 2014).
What are the symptoms?
Side strains typically present with:
- Sharp, localised pain on one side during trunk rotation
- Pain when coughing, laughing or sneezing (fun times)
- Tenderness over the lower ribs (Cohen & Towers, 2009)
- Pain during the downswing or follow-through
- Reduced rotational strength or speed
- Occasionally bruising
How is a side strain diagnosed?
A clinical assessment is usually all that’s needed:
- Pain with resisted trunk rotation
- Pain with side flexion
- Local tenderness and possible swelling
- Pain on rib compression or deep breathing (Campbell et al., 2013)
Imaging (ultrasound/MRI) is reserved for cases where:
- Symptoms persist
- High-level athletes need a timeline
- A rib stress injury is suspected (Pirruccio & Klinge, 2016)
How long does it take to recover?
Recovery times borrow heavily from baseball and cricket literature:
- Grade 1: ~2–3 weeks
- Grade 2: ~4–6 weeks
- Grade 3: 6–10+ weeks (Conte et al., 2012)
Reinjury is common if you return too early, because the obliques are used for literally every element of the golf swing (Cohen & Towers, 2009).
Should you keep playing?
If you enjoy compensatory movement patterns and future back pain, sure.
But for everyone else: No.
Continuing to swing through a side strain increases healing time and elevates reinjury risk (Pirruccio & Klinge, 2016). Your rib cage is politely asking you to stop.
What’s the treatment?
Early phase (0–7 days, but it can be longer depending on the severity)
- Relative rest
- Ice/heat as tolerated
- Gentle mobility and breathing drills (Hides et al., 2008)
- Pain-free core isometrics
Intermediate phase
- Progressive strengthening of trunk rotation and anti-rotation
- Hip and thoracic mobility work
- Serratus activation (Nevin & Delahunt, 2014)
Late phase / Return to Swing Exercises – The stuff you have to earn through your rehabilitation
- Medicine ball throws
- High-velocity trunk work
- Gradual return to hitting: chips → irons → drivers
- Load monitoring (Malliaras et al., 2015)
Research is very clear: progressive reloading reduces reinjury rates in rotational athletes (Garrison et al., 2013).
How do you prevent a side strain?
- Warm up properly (we as your physio’s know you don’t, so please listen to us)
- Improve trunk strength, especially anti-rotation
- Increase swing volume gradually (Malliaras et al., 2015)
- Maintain hip and thoracic mobility
- Improve technique to reduce excessive side-bend (Kibler & Chandler, 1994)
- Build swing speed progressively
A strong, well-controlled trunk helps you create speed without tearing anything important.
The 18th Hole
Side strains are frustrating, painful, and annoyingly common in golfers – but they heal well with structured rehab. Respect the early phases, load progressively, and you’ll return with a swing that’s smoother, stronger, and far less likely to sabotage you on the 14th tee.
If you suspect that you have a side strain, book your precision assessment with us and begin the road to not only swinging better, but swinging pain free.
References
1. Campbell, A. et al. (2013) ‘Rehabilitation of abdominal and groin injuries in athletes’, Sports Health, 5(1), pp. 18–28.
2. Chaudhari, A.M., McKenzie, C.S., Borchers, J.R. and Best, T.M. (2014) ‘Lateral trunk lean in baseball hitting: initiation, progression, and relationship to lower oblique injury’, Sports Health, 6(6), pp. 465–471.
3. Cohen, S.B. and Towers, J.D. (2009) ‘Internal oblique muscle strain in professional baseball players’, American Journal of Sports Medicine, 37(2), pp. 324–328.
4. Conte, S.A., Fleisig, G.S., Dines, J.S. and Wilk, K.E. (2012) ‘Injury trends in Major League Baseball over 18 seasons’, American Journal of Sports Medicine, 40(8), pp. 1797–1803.
5. Ekstrand, J., Healy, J.C., Waldén, M. and Lee, J.C. (2011) ‘Acute muscular injuries in professional football players’, American Journal of Sports Medicine, 39(6), pp. 1226–1232.
6. Garrison, J.C. et al. (2013) ‘Oblique injuries in baseball players’, Sports Health, 5(5), pp. 400–406.
7. Hides, J.A., Stanton, W.R. and Stanton, P. (2008) ‘The relationship between abdominal muscle function and low back pain’, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 40(6), pp. 1160–1166.
8. Kibler, W.B. and Chandler, T.J. (1994) ‘Musculoskeletal adaptations and injuries due to overtraining in professional golfers’, Sports Medicine, 18(6), pp. 413–420.
9. Malliaras, P., Cook, J.L. and Purdam, C.R. (2015) ‘Managing musculoskeletal load in sport: The role of load monitoring’, British Journal of Sports Medicine, 49(5), pp. 243–244.
10. Nevin, F. and Delahunt, E. (2014) ‘The effect of technique training and trunk muscle training on trunk muscle strength and endurance’, Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 24(6), pp. e461–e472.
11. Pirruccio, V. and Klinge, S.A. (2016) ‘Oblique muscle strains: diagnosis, rehabilitation and return to play’, Current Sports Medicine Reports, 15(6), pp. 353–356.
12. Robinson, P. and Barron, D.A. (2014) ‘Abdominal muscle strains in athletes’, British Journal of Sports Medicine, 48(2), pp. 150–151.
