Terry smiled as he walked off the 18th hole, counting the twenty dollar bills he had just won off his 3 golfing buddies during their regular Sunday game a couple of weeks ago. The five twenties he won off of each of his old friends was not what made him smile as he secretly slid the clear acrylic mouthpiece out of his mouth and into its container, which he quickly shoved into his pocket. The defeated looks on the faces of the guys who he used to lose to regularly was worth more than all the money in the world to him.

And to think, he had his dentist to thank for suddenly being able to hit the ball 35 yards farther off the tee. The performance enhancing orthotic (mouthpiece) his dentist had made for him allowed him to feel so steady over his putts that his short game struck fear into his friends who used to make fun of him as “the guy who couldn’t putt straight”.

Lucky for Terry, his dentist had been trained in Neuromuscular dentistry at the Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies.

A couple of months ago, at his routine dental cleaning and x-ray visit, Terry was complaining to his dentist about how badly his golf game was going, when his dentist asked him if he had ever heard of Performance Enhancing Mouthpieces that a lot of professional athletes were wearing to get an edge on their competition. His dentist went on to tell him that for an athlete to perform at their peak levels, their head, neck, shoulders, spine, hips, thighs, knees, ankles and feet all must be in alignment.



His dentist went on to tell Terry that if any part of the Postural Chain, from the head to the feet was off, it would affect his athletic performance. Strength, speed, range of motion, vertical leap, balance, flexibility, stamina and mental alertness while under stress, could all be affected if the human body was not in alignment with the axis of gravity.



Terry’s dentist then did an analysis of the way his teeth fit together and showed him how when he bit down, he hit on his back left teeth first, and then his jaw had to shift to get his back teeth to touch on the right side.



The dentist then explained to Terry that the lower jaw is connected to the shoulders and how if the teeth are off, the lower jaw will be tilted, which will make the shoulders tilted. This then causes an imbalance all the way down the Postural Chain which made his feet unstable and was one of the reasons he didn’t drive the ball well off of the tee and why he could never putt very well.

His dentist then went to a drawer and pulled out a thin, lightweight, clear orthotic (mouthpiece) and handed it to Terry. He told Terry that it would be his new “Secret Weapon”. Terry still didn’t understand.

The dentist told Terry that with the latest computer technology, he could determine the exact position his lower jaw should be in, to align his bite. When he wore a mouthpiece that held his lower jaw in this “balanced” position, it would then automatically align his neck, shoulders, spine, hips, knees, ankles and feet. All Terry had to do was wear the clear mouthpiece over his lower teeth whenever he worked out or played sports and he would immediately feel stronger, faster and have more flexibility, range of motion and balance. Terry was skeptical at first, but then his dentist did a series of tests placing a ball point pen between his teeth and Terry could immediately feel stronger and more flexible. Terry’s last bit of skepticism disappeared as his dentist told him that players in the NFL, NBA, NHL, Professional Soccer, Olympic Skiers and Skaters, Runners, Weight Lifters, Swimmers, Gymnasts, Surfers, Bicyclists, Triathletes, Tennis Players and Pro Golfers all used Performance Enhancing mouthpieces to gain an edge over their competition. His dentist told him that Terry’s wife could even use a Performance Enhancing Orthotic for Yoga, Pilates, Aerobics and working out at the gym.

Terry had one appointment to make molds of his teeth and have his bite computer analyzed. Two weeks later, he went back to pick up his orthotic, and his golf game has never been the same.

When he picked up his mouthpiece, he made his dentist promise him that if any of Terry’s three golfing buddies every asked, he would never tell them about the “Secret Weapon” he had made for Terry.


--
Editor's note: This article is part of our Men's Health Week series, happening June 11th-June 15th, 2012. Celebrate with us by visiting the DailyStrength Men's Health Week special page, and don't forget to check out Sharecare's videos and tips just for men!