Repeat after me: “Yoga isn’t only for yogis”. If you’re connected to sports in any way, you need to breathe, stretch, and create body awareness. And if you’re not, you need it twice as much!
Yoga is special because:
While the focus of this article will be on yoga for athletes, you should understand that any physical activity you do on a daily basis is related to a sport. Jogging, gardening, delivering, packing, carrying, etc. all need good mobility and a mind-body connection.
So, for the people who still think yoga is ‘lazy training’ and for those who genuinely want to learn more about yoga stretches and their benefits, I’ve compiled this science-based FAQ. Here, you’ll find everything from ‘why do it’ and the tips on how to start to the big names allegedly doing yoga for athletes and best practices.
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In brief:
Remember that time when you worked out after a long pause and found out about a billion new muscles in your body that can ache. Well, yoga will decrease the pain and prevent it in the future. Plus, it will improve your mind-body connection and make you mindful of your breathing, which will help you during the next workout.
First of all, read the answer to the previous question.
Talking strictly about sportspeople, no matter what their specialty is, it’s likely they don’t move every muscle of their body in all directions to discover their full range of motion. Not to mention some athletes think they don’t need flexibility because their professionally required motion range is somewhat limited.
Yoga for athletes provides:
The benefits of yoga for athletes are countless and include physical and mental perks. Both are essential for a successful career as an athlete, not to mention your overall health.
Aside from recovery yoga for athletes, there are types that can actually make you stronger.
First of all, it will strengthen you symmetrically. We’ve all seen people with amazing pecs, biceps, and abs, little to no volume in their legs, and constant back pains. That’s because of a workout asymmetry that focuses mostly on the anterior chain (the frontside muscles).
Yoga poses engage all the muscles and make them move in all directions, mobilizing whole groups (like your back or core), strengthening them, and relieving tightness and pain. By activating the posterior chain (the backside muscles) and your core (including the deeper stabilizing muscles), you’ll feel stronger and more stable than ever.
Besides this, by boosting mobility, yoga will make you strong indirectly by enabling your body to jump higher, lunge deeper, and reach farther.
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Easy:
A study showed an improvement in the balance and flexibility of a group of 14 athletes that did yoga 2 times a week, compared to a group of 12 who didn’t (7).
While you’re focusing on the key muscles needed for your sport, your back and core may not be the strongest. Working on them using yoga for athletes will help you relax your shoulders and stop sticking your pelvis out or chin forward.
If your sport requires precision, definitely try yoga for mindfulness. A study showed an increase in shooting precision by people who practiced mindfulness on a regular basis (4).
A 2020 study showed an improvement in soreness and fatigue relief in 31 soccer players after only 10 weeks of practicing yoga (10).
There are many famous athletes and even whole teams that have become yoga advocates due to its benefits (1):
Yoga is great for balancing out regular athlete workouts. Muscle training makes them tight. The muscles that aren’t used a lot get weaker. As a result, the stronger ones shorten, making others overcompensate for them, which may have negative consequences like improper posture and constant pains. Also, a limited range of motion makes you prone to injuries, which should be minimized if you’re an athlete.
Another problem yoga can help you solve is recovery speed. During every workout, your muscle tissues are damaged a little. Yoga will increase blood flow to those tissues, along with nutrients and oxygen, to boost the healing process.
And finally, physical activity is a stress for your body. Relaxing and syncing it with your mind is what post-workout yoga can achieve.
So, if you want to stay aware of your body and train all your muscles without making them tight and short, welcome to yoga for athletes.
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Here are several yoga types most suitable for athletes:
Performing yoga in a hot and humid environment can become a better alternative to the heat stress technique. According to a study involving female hockey players, it can enhance plasma volume and overall cardiovascular performance (5).
Yin yoga aims at tension relief and motion range improvement. If you feel constant tightness in your muscles and have a lot of stress in your body and mind, try this type.
A perfect type for post-workout stretch and meditation. It works on maximum relaxation and stress and/or pain relief.
Slower moves, deeper stretches, and more difficult poses are all featured in hatha yoga.
Keep in mind that you don’t have to limit yourself to one type. Find time for different poses to achieve different goals.
Here are the 7 universal yoga poses for athletes:
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If you want a more professional approach than trying different poses to see what they do, visit a yoga coach and tell them about the goals you want to achieve with yoga. A pro will choose a complex that will cater to your needs.
Also, consider adding pranayama practices later to improve lung capacity and perform even better (12).
A short daily session is better than a 60-minute one 1-2 times a week, especially for yoga beginners. There are no time-of-day limits, but logically, the more active complexes are best for morning or day, while yoga for relaxation is perfect for any time.
At first, 10-20 minute sets are great for the introduction of this new practice into your life.
And if we’re talking about how long athletes have to do yoga to see results, give it 10 weeks. But I recommend you stop thinking about the end result and focus on consistency and comfort. Don’t force yourself to do yoga every day in the morning and evening just to see results. Do you feel comfy doing it once 1-2 days? Perfect. 3 times a week? Not a problem.
Make it enjoyable, and you’ll see results shortly.
Based on scientific evidence and the experience of many famous athletes, the only thing there’s to say is that yoga is essential. It boosts body awareness and mindfulness, helps with stress and muscle soreness relief, improves focus and body stability, and connects your mind to the muscles.
You don’t have to start with tying your legs around your neck. Start with a downward dog and other basic yoga poses, do some yoga leg stretches, work on your back, and focus on breathing. Be consistent, and in 2 months you’ll already see results.
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