Yoga For Atheltes
Yoga For Atheltes
Yoga For Atheltes
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Tatiana V. Ryba
University of Jyväskylä
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Increased Relaxation
It is virtually impossible to overemphasize the role of
rest in an athlete’s recovery after heavy training loads.
It is a rule of thumb in yoga to rest when making a
transition from one kind of asana to another. Even if
athletes don’t feel like they need one, the rest ensures
that their muscles return to their balanced tone and
gives them the opportunity to feel the effects of the
pose.2 The yoga session concludes with 5–10 min of
relaxation in corpse pose (shavasana), during which
Figure 2 Warrior pose 2 (virabhadrasana 2). the mind/consciousness is trained to be indrawn/
internalized. My students particularly enjoy corpse
spine. In yoga, flexibility exercises involve loose and pose with elements of the autogenic training.
relaxed muscles, relieving muscle tension and soreness Asana practice includes both physical and psycho-
while increasing range of motion and agility.6 Many ath- logical processes that can facilitate injury prevention
letes find such poses as downward-facing dog (Figure for athletes. The key component seems to be yoga’s
4), modified cobra, and reclined leg stretch (with the potential to help athletes become more attuned to their
help of a yoga belt) to be particularly helpful. bodily processes, needs, and signals and thus be able to
Acknowledgment
Tatiana Ryba is with the School of Human Kinetics, University of British
I would like to thank Craig Wrisberg and John Kalten- Columbia. As a graduate teaching associate, Tatiana has taught yoga
born for their useful comments on the column. and physical education courses at the University of Tennessee.