Discussing Health: A Fun Way to Stay Fit
Disc golf is going from strength to strength, not only here in the United States, but across the world. Disc golf courses have been opened in countries like France, Belgium, Czech Republic, Iceland, Peru, Mexico, and many more across the planet. While the U.S. still leads the pack when it comes to the amount of courses it has, there is no denying its growing international popularity. This year’s Disc Golf European Open is expected to attract record numbers of players at spectators from both North America and Europe. It is a fun sport that provides a surprisingly high level workout when played, something that is often overlooked by people who take part in the sport on a purely recreational basis. For those of you that are unaware of the health benefits that disc golf can offer, read on to find out more.
Navigating the Course
In a similar way to golf, disc golf is a sport that is played over a large area of terrain. Often the terrain of courses can be hilly, or perhaps they are located in wooded areas. Walking around from hole to hole takes time, and also burns lots of calories. Walking up and down hills, negotiating obstacles in the woods, and looking around to find your disc is great exercise. Every disc golf course is different, with some being larger than others, so the more challenging the course the longer you expect to walk. At a large course you could end up walking somewhere in the region of 3 to 4 miles throughout the entire 18 holes. Just walking around the course provides a great workout in itself, but when combined with the effort required to throw the disc the workout gets even better.
Throwing the Disc
While you may think that not that much exertion goes into throwing a lightweight disc into the air, think again. Ok, so it is not like you are throwing a shot-put, but provides a good workout just by itself. To put it into a little bit of context, it has been measured that someone who weighs 200 pounds will burn somewhere in the region of 550 calories just by throwing a disc around while playing disc golf for 2 hours.
When you put together the walking around and the throwing the disc involved in playing a round of disc golf, it is very likely that you will burn over 900 calories in the process. When the recommended number of calories in 2500 for men and 2000 for women, a simple subtraction reveals that you could burn off a nice chunk of your calorie intake just by playing disc golf for a couple of hours.
A Cheap Way to Keep Fit
Along with all the health benefits that playing disc golf provides, there is also the added bonus of it being a very inexpensive sport. The only specialised piece of equipment you really need to play it is a golf disc, and these can be bought for as little as $10. When visiting a course you may have to pay somewhere between $5 and $10 for 18 holes, and more often than not a free rental disc will be provided. You don’t need any other special clothing, equipment, or training to start playing, just simply find your nearest course and get started.
Improving and Expanding Facilities
As the popularity of disc golf grows, so does the need for more courses around the country. As you can see the health benefits it provides are impressive, and the inexpensive and accessible nature of the sport means it really is suitable for everyone. There is no denying the increasing obesity problem that America is dealing with, and the factors are not just down to too much salt and fat in our diets. Regular exercise is just as important and a balanced healthy diet, and disc golf provides an excellent way for people of any age to stay fit and spend time outdoors. Disc golf courses have the potential to provide years of sustainable recreation with just a little maintenance needed, at a very low cost. What’s more, disc golf courses have very little impact on the nature that surrounds them. Improving, expanding, and installing new disc golf courses in parks and recreational areas across America can only be a good thing..
Hannah says
Thanks for posting this article, it’s very encouraging! My fiancee and I just started playing disc golf together the past two days, before then I have never played it. I love the fact that you can play this sport for little or no cost, for me and my fiancee it takes about 2 and a half to 3 hours to get through 18 holes. I might start throwing me disc from the blue tees for more of a challenge rather than from the red tees. The longer I play, the better in my condition. Thank you again for posting this.
Gary Auerbach says
Every new course is a plus.
Anna says
There is some necessary equipment – discs of course you can buy new or used – and will last awhile. I don’t play a ton – and when I do it’s strictly recreational BUT I did put some money into a nice bag. I went to this disc golf store one day that was selling them. Super nice – they sold many kinds but I went with a Revolution bag. I actually just ordered another for my boyfriend. I got a mini since I don’t have a ton of discs. But I got him a bigger one – he loves it and it has a lifetime warranty – highly recommend! Not sure if you can post links but the site is discgolfer.com. Seriously all the other bags were cheapie compares to the Revolution. I woudnt skimp on a bag.
Kim Storozhuk says
FlyDiscs is a website where you can design cute discs with your own designs. You can do a his and hers disc!
Here is an article on the top rated disc golf discs of 2015 to help you pick out the perfect discs to learn with.
http://www.flydiscs.com/2015-top-disc-golf-discs/
Alex says
I’ve been playing disc golf for 12 years and I’d have to say that it’s still one of my favorite activities. I’ve gotten pretty good but, even when I was terrible I really enjoyed disc golf. Being outside, getting some excercise, hanging with friends or family, getting some sun/fresh air, little to no cost and learning about something new are all reasons I encourage people to play. There are always new courses and discs that you can try out.
The website posted is a directory of most the disc golf courses in the world. You can search by city/state or zip code.