Fusion Yoga has been running since last year early on a Monday morning. To make it more accessible for members, we are trialling a Friday evening class from 6pm – 7pm, so if you are curious about yoga and would like to give it a go, here’s a bit more information about yoga and the benefits for athletes – and everyone!
“Yoga, that’s stretching isn’t it?”
Yoga practitioners hear this a lot! We also hear that yoga is a gentle and relaxing form of exercise, which always makes us laugh.
Yoga can be relaxing, but it can also be very demanding and challenging – just as some of the regulars who come along to class!
Yoga is so much more than stretching. Yes, the poses help to lengthen out tight muscles and release stiff, stuck joints, but they also build core strength, improve balance, optimise breathing and development a knowledge in participants of safe alignment, which is a key element in injury prevention.
Yoga is also a great way to speed up recovery after a hard session or race, which is why many top sports people, from Ryan Giggs and Andy Murray to Jessica Ennis, Victoria Pendleton and Paula Radcliffe swore by yoga as part of their training.
Why is Yoga So Good For Athletes?
To be fully fit – to be fit in a holistic way – you need to have strength and stamina but also flexibility and balance.
Yoga can help athletes gain the full expression of their fitness and increase their range of movement to improve function within their chosen sport. For example, yoga poses can help athletes gain the range of movement needed to maintain their racing posture on a TT bike, something we have worked on in class over the months.
Yoga is also useful for helping with breathing, increasing oxygen to the body, building awareness and control of the breath and improving mental focus.
As well as the benefits in terms of strength, flexibility, recovery, injury prevention and balance, there are wider, proven health benefits associated with regular yoga practise. Yoga has been shown to help regulate cortisol, the stress hormone, reduce inflammation and boost immunity.
Mostly importantly, yoga is a really fun way to exercise, and it’s something different for triathletes, who seem to like a new challenge!
Why Is Alignment So Important?
The style of yoga we practise at Fusion is called Iyengar Yoga, which places a huge emphasis on proper alignment of the body. Learning to be aware of your body’s habits and eventually being able to correct them can help you avoid injury and get your body working like a well-oiled machine.
For example, if you looked at an old pair of shoes, would you see more wear on one area than another? Perhaps you rotate towards the inside of your foot, putting extra strain on your inner knees? Or perhaps you drop your arches and are prone to calf injuries? A misalignment in your feet can radiate up your body causing problems in the legs and hips.
Equally, if you are very stiff in the hips, you may be straining your knees when perform certain movements. And if you have a stiff upper back, you may well over use your lumber flexibility to compensate, resulting in low back problems.
Focusing on the alignment of the body can help to identify these issues and over time correct them.
Another good thing to know about Iyengar Yoga is that teachers are trained to a very rigorous standard over years. In fact, certified Iyengar teachers are amongst the most highly trained yoga teachers in the world, which is very reassuring for beginners.
Where and When?
- 5 Newton Terrace Lane, Suite A, G3 7PB, Glasgow,
- Friday evenings: 6:00 – 7:00pm
Any Questions?
You don’t have to be flexible to do yoga – yoga is for the willing, not the stretchy! If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me (Gillian McKelvie) by e-mail – GillianYoga@outlook.com. Or why not chat to some of the Fusion athletes who already come along to yoga regularly?
The athletes who have been coming along have progressed really well but we will be starting the trial block with some ‘back to basics’ for any new people who want to come along, so don’t worry, it won’t be too challenging straight away.
