Golf, a Pathway for the Body, Mind, and Spirit
Over the past week, I challenged myself to learn golf. When I was younger, I always pictured golf as something I’d take up later in life — perhaps when other, more physically demanding sports were no longer accessible to me.
But after a few swings on the driving range, I realised how deceptively challenging golf really is. It demands mental focus, refined technique, and total body coordination. Beyond that, it opens up a unique pathway for rewiring the brain and, perhaps, for spiritual growth too.
Lesson 1: The Importance of Letting Go of Control
My first couple of lessons felt surprisingly good. I was making solid contact, sending the ball flying, and feeling a sense of rapid progress. Then came my third lesson — and things got real.
Despite sticking to my usual morning routine (joint warm-ups, the Five Tibetan Rites, breathwork), my swing felt off. I was muscling the ball with my arms instead of initiating the downswing from the hips and letting the clubhead do the work. Instead of trusting the natural arc of the swing, my mind wanted to interfere — to control it, to force an outcome.
In golf, trying to steer the club mid-swing is a recipe for inconsistency. Like so much in life, the more we cling to control, the less flow we allow.
Lesson 2: Inviting New Neuroplasticity
As I raised my torso too early in the swing, I caught myself unconsciously doing what I would on skis — starting a turn by shifting my weight and posture. I’ve been skiing since I was three, so that movement pattern is deeply ingrained.
This made me reflect on how sports mirror our mental pathways. Golf demands new neural connections and fresh muscle memory. It invites neuroplasticity — the brain’s remarkable ability to rewire itself at any age through intentional practice and learning. It’s a daily reminder that the mind is far more adaptable than we often give it credit for.
Lesson 3: Humility and Acceptance
It’s humbling to go from feeling competent in one sport to being a total beginner in another. But this humility is essential if we want to break old patterns, in sport and in life. We often live inside habitual thoughts and movements without questioning them. Taking up something new cracks that open — it humbles us, invites curiosity, and expands our capacity for acceptance.
Lesson 4: Strength — A Blessing or a Curse
Golf is a sport that demands selective, well-timed power. I learned quickly that using too much upper-body strength, especially early in the swing, is counterproductive — it ruins tempo, balance, and accuracy.
It reminded me of the art of self-mastery found in martial arts: knowing when to apply force and when to hold back. Just because we have strength doesn’t mean it serves us in every moment. Sometimes restraint is the true skill — being light and fluid, like a butterfly, rather than charging ahead like a bull.
The Gift of Being a Beginner
I hope this experience inspires you to pick up something new — and to approach it with humility, openness, and curiosity about what you’ll discover in yourself along the way.
What would you like to learn next?
With much love,
Stephanie