Yoga has many benefits for anyone who steps on the mat. Whether you’re a runner, cyclist, or weightlifter, yoga for athletes can help improve recovery, mobility, focus, and proprioception.
A study college athletes found that 10 weeks of yoga significantly increased flexibility and balance compared to those who didn’t do it. Research of 2020 highlighted the potential benefits of using yoga as part of a football program to help reduce some injury risks.
From gentle, spiritual practices to more physically demanding practices, there are over a dozen different types of yoga that can all be tailored to your needs. This is why yoga for athletes has become mainstream. All of these benefits come in handy on the field or track and can also help build a resilient, injury-resistant body.
“If we train our bodies for the unexpected, we are better able to handle the uncontrolled crash, the unexpected shock as we run toward our home base,” says Laurice D. Nemetz, E-RYT 500 and associate professor assistant to the Pace University College of Health Professions, Pleasantville, in New York.
Want to create your own yoga routine? Start with these poses.
- Start on all fours, with your knees directly under your hips and your wrists a few inches in front of your shoulders. Point your fingertips forward and spread your fingers wide.
- As you exhale, tuck your toes in, press your hands together, straighten your arms and legs, and lift your hips toward the ceiling. Keep your hands shoulder-width apart and your feet hip-width apart.
- Rotate your arms outward to avoid hunching your shoulders. Keep your elbows straight and engage your biceps to prevent them from locking. Look at your toes and keep your ears in line with your arms.
- Hold the pose for one minute.
- From downward-facing dog, inhale high with your right leg. Exhale to bring your right foot between your hands for a low lunge.
- Move your right hand to the inside of your right foot. Place your right foot up to the edge of your yoga mat. Keep your right knee aligned with your ankle. Plant your right foot into your mat.
- Keep your shoulders stacked over your wrists or lower to your elbows (keep your forearms parallel) for a deeper stretch.
- Extend your back leg long and straight. Squeeze your glutes to keep your hips square. Push the back of your knee toward the ceiling to engage your leg muscles. Lower onto your back knee for a passive stretch.
- Look toward your mat.
- Wait a few breaths. Move through downward facing dog and repeat on the other side.
- Start in downward facing dog, hands shoulder-width apart and feet a few inches apart.
- Lift your right foot off the ground, bend your knee and push it toward your chest, then place it between your hands.
- Lower your left knee to the mat and release your toes so the top of your back foot is on the floor.
- Keeping your front leg bent, lift your chest and raise your arms toward the ceiling.
- Press your hips forward and keep your front knee pointed straight forward and aligned above your ankle. Position your hips so that both hip bones are pointing forward. Engage your heart.
- Reach your arms high and face your palms toward each other. Keep your shoulders supported.
- Stay here for a minute, then switch sides.
- Start in a high plank position: arms straight, shoulders tucked over your wrists, body straight from head to heels.
- Keeping your core tight, bend your arms to slowly lower toward the floor, keeping your elbows close to your body. (Get on your knees if necessary.) When you reach the floor, tuck your toes so the tops of your feet are on the mat.
- With your hands on the mat beneath your shoulders, press into your palms and lift your chest off the floor using your arms and back muscles. Keep your elbows close to your sides, with a slight bend. Keep your legs straight and press the tops of your feet into the mat.
- Open your chest and press your shoulder blades toward your lower back, away from your ears. Do not tense your lower back (it should appear elongated). Engage your legs, keeping them straight and pressed against the floor.
- Hold for at least 5 breaths.
Inhale: Cow Pose
- Start on all fours with your knees under your hips and your hands under your shoulders. Keep your back flat, your gaze towards the ground and your neck long.
- As you inhale, lift your tailbone and chest toward the ceiling while dropping your stomach toward the mat.
- Keep your shoulders away from your ears, your shoulder blades wide behind your back, and your head in line with your torso.
- Exhale into cat pose.
Exhale: cat pose
- Start in cow pose.
- As you exhale, round your back, tuck your tailbone, and curl your chin toward your chest.
- Keep your shoulders and knees in place.
- Inhale into cow pose.
- Repeat this flow for up to 10 breaths, or more if desired.
- Start by lying on your back on your mat. Bend your legs to place your feet flat on the mat.
- Hug your knees to your chest, reach behind your thighs and slowly spread your knees apart while lifting the soles of your feet toward the ceiling.
- Place your arms between your legs and grasp the edges of the little toes of your feet. Press your feet as if you were standing on the ceiling.
- Pull your knees toward you as you lower your head, shoulders, and backs of your arms toward the mat.
- Stay for up to a minute, then slowly bring your knees together and lower your feet to the mat.
- Start on all fours with your hands shoulder-width apart and your knees hip-width apart.
- Bring your right knee forward, placing it on the ground behind your right wrist.
- Slide your right ankle toward your left wrist, so that your right shin crosses your mat at a comfortable angle.
- Extend your left leg back and slowly lower your hips toward the floor. Keep the top of your left foot flat on the floor.
- Keep your hips level, with your weight distributed evenly between them (avoid digging into your right hip).
- From here, you can either remain standing—keeping your hands on the ground in front of you, your chest lifted, and your core engaged—or you can fold forward, slowly moving your hands forward in front of you and lowering your chest forward. ground.
- Hold the pose for 5 to 10 breaths, then switch sides and repeat.
- To come out of the pose, tuck your left toes, press into your hands, and slowly bring your right foot back to the starting position.
