What Are the Health Benefits of Playing Pool?
A lot of people love playing billiards, as it is a great way to improve your own skill, or simply pass the time with friends. However, there’s more to playing billiards than you might think, and we don’t just mean technique.
Playing billiards actually has some health benefits. While you may not have thought about that aspect of the game before, you could be doing your body and mind a favor the next time you pick up a cue.
You’ll Burn Calories
Most people don’t think of playing billiards as a strenuous exercise, and for the most part, you probably won’t be out of breath during a game. That doesn’t mean your movements aren’t burning calories, though. In fact, the average player is going to easily walk about one mile in just one game of billiards. That may not seem like a lot, but in opposition to sitting on the couch watching TV, it’s a whole heck of a lot more.
Billiards Builds Focus
Trying to perfect your break or find the perfect angle to bank in your shot without knocking that 8-ball in requires a lot of focus. Pretty much everything you do around the pool table (expect chatting with your friends) requires a fair amount of serious attention. The ability to pay attention to the small details and focus on the task at hand while blocking out external stimulus is important for everybody. Playing billiards regularly can help you build those sorts of skills, which can be extremely useful when you’re away from the table too.
Improves Critical Thinking Skills
Much like billiards helps build your focus, playing the game can also help improve your critical thinking skills at the table and in life. For example, figuring a difficult bank shot or learning to slice your cue ball just right requires logical, step-by-step thinking.
Billiards slows aging in men
A recent study conducted by the University of Copenhagen says that drinking beer while playing pool with friends helps older men remain active, as it’s a sign of healthy socializing and it also combats the process of aging as elderly pool players still need to utilize their muscles.
Improves stretching, balancing power
When you play pool, you’ll need to stretch more, need to bend across the table top for reaching the cue ball at a desired angle, more so when complex shots are needed. At times, you’ll need to stand on one foot, which would improve your stability.
Sharpens your mind
Regular billiards and pool players often have sharper minds, as the game requires mental mathematical calculations and estimates to be performed, such as basic physics and geometry while playing.