Looking for a new way to get in your resistance work? You might be surprised to find that yoga makes a perfect companion for athletes of all sports as well as fitness enthusiasts.
Yoga can help you develop better a breathing technique while it improves your balance, flexibility, core strength, and endurance.
Benefits of Yoga for Athletes:
- Develop Deep, Relaxed Breathing
If you participate competitively in a sport or simply join the occasional fun run, you are aware of the impact breathing can have on performance. Deep, relaxed breathing is the foundation of reducing performance anxiety and improving concentration. Yoga helps you develop a habit of breathing correctly. - Increase Core Strength
Yoga poses are ideal for building core strength. The slow, focused movements require a strong mid-section and the isometric contractions of many exercises will add a new form of resistance training that you won’t find in your typical machine-based workouts. - Increase Flexibility and Range of Motion
The style of vinyasa yoga Chris teaches involves slow, steady movements that are ideal for athletes. Frequent yoga practice can increase flexibility, range of motion, and strength while relieving muscle tension. Whether you are a runner or a golfer, improved range of motion often helps to improve performance. - Improve Balance
Yoga is a perfect way to incorporate balance work into your training routine. Balance exercises are often overlooked by athletes, but are one of the most effective ways to correct muscle imbalance or problems with body mechanics. With most sports and weight training routines you tend to perform repetitive motions that develop some muscle groups while others are ignored. Yoga is ideal to fix these imbalances. - It’s Great Cross Training
Yoga is a great low-impact way to cross train. Cross training is necessary for athletes who do the same sport or exercise routine year-round. Adding yoga can also help reduce injury, relieve training boredom, add variety and help recover from hard aerobic or strength workouts. Yoga can be done at a high or low intensity levels and there are hundreds of postures that can provide a workout for any athletic need. - Mental Focus and Clarity
Yoga builds a strong mind-body-breath connection that can help keep you calm, clear, and focused during the most crucial moments of your athletic performance. The added bonus here is that you also this same mental clarity and calmness in the rest of your life, reducing stress levels and making your relationships more harmonious.
“If I hadn’t done yoga, I’d be out of the league by now.”
~ New York Giants Wide Receiver Amani Toomer after 13 seasons in the NFL.
