Yoga for Cross Training Young Athletes

By Dr. Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Any well-rounded cross training program should include high-intensity cardiovascular work, strength training, stretching, and agility work. Athletes who are in training put a lot of strain on their bodies, which pushes them to the limits each and every day. If they neglect to stretch the muscles after working out, they run the risk of joint or muscle injuries. Yoga can provide that necessary balance within a cross training program. It can also improve athletes' strength, flexibility, coordination, stamina, lung capacity, and more.

Know Your Athlete

Young athletes can train for a variety of sports, from tennis to football. As they become increasingly involved in a specific training program, very often the muscles required for their specific sport become strong. Runners often have tight hamstrings, cyclists build up their quadriceps, and tennis and golf players often favor the arm they play with. This results in a body that is out of balance, which puts the athlete at risk for injuries and strains. Yoga instructors should be aware of the athlete's individual discipline, and then work the areas that are necessary to balance out the body.

Understand Injuries

Some athletes practice Yoga to rehabilitate after an injury. In this situation, they must take it slowly and gently, never pushing too far to irritate the injury or strain. Yoga instructors should ensure the athlete understands that a physical practice can be an effective way to heal, but it is not a miracle cure. It will take time, patience, effort, and practice to help the injury heal.

Sequence

Athletes are often used to rigorous workouts, where competition is inherent. You want to hold the interest of the athlete by structuring the class in a way that allows them to feel successful, strong, and capable. Begin with a few warm-up poses, and then progress to a sun salutation, warrior poses, or other standing poses that will ready the entire body for more flexibility work. Continue with a series of poses that target the hips and hamstrings, as many athletes feel tightness in these areas.

Encourage Mental Focus

A competitive nature often takes precedence when athletes engage in any type of activity. Yoga is a great opportunity to encourage athletes to forgo competition for inner reflection and mental focus. Yoga instructors can teach athletes to focus within as opposed to competing with others during a class. Athletes can also use Yoga time to visualize improved movement in specialized ways, executing particular plays, or achieving individual goals.

© Copyright 2012 – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

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Teaching Yoga for Arm Strength and Shape

By Faye Martins

Yoga is an excellent way to strengthen and tone the arms. Unlike weightlifting, which focuses mainly on isotonic strength building, yoga focuses on isometric work but includes isotonic and eccentric exercises. Isotonic exercise is performed when a weight is lifted or a muscle is engaged while it is contracting; isometric work occurs when a position or a weight is held, supported by a muscle, and eccentric strength building is what happens when a weight is lowered while maintaining control and muscle engagement. In other words, supporting weight even while the muscle is lengthening performs eccentric exercise. Obviously, these types of strength all have different real life applications, and they all stress different parts and functions of the muscle. Yoga is unique in its repeated and challenging exercise of all types of strength.

Because of this balanced approach, practitioners of yoga often report that the bulk doesn't pile on, but functional strength and definition greatly increases. The functional strength is granted by the many ways in which the muscles are trained, as most real life activities are going to require more than a single way of moving. The definition in lieu of bulk results from the way the muscles are constantly engaged and challenged without steadily increasing the weight they support. Yoga calls upon the muscles to work in different positions; intensities and ways without ever demanding the load they bear exceed the practitioner's body weight.

There are many different poses and routines a yoga practitioner may employ to build arm strength and shape. For the beginner, whether just starting out in yoga or unsure of her strength, downward dog is the place to start. Bending at the hips and placing the hands perform downward dog position and feet shoulder length apart so the body forms an upside-down "V." The arms in this position support less than half the body weight, but the practitioner's weight can be shifted to engage the arms more. It is the foundation of many yoga routines, particularly sun salutations.

When teaching new yoga students, make them aware that for a beginning position with a greater strength component, look no further than the plank. It is a basic push-up position and an intense workout for all the muscles of the arms. At the advanced end of the scale, there are many positions based on headstands that not only require lots of balance and flexibility but also support most or all of the body's weight on the arms. Many more positions lie waiting to be learned at your local yoga center and in many great yoga books, but almost any regular yoga practice will sculpt your arms into envious shape.

© Copyright 2012 – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

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Yoga Teacher Tips: Most Common Yoga Student Corrections

By Dr. Paul Jerard, E-RYT 500

Do you cover a prenatal warning before the start of a Yoga class? Every Yoga teacher should thoroughly go over it when adult female students come to your Yoga classes. You would be surprised how many will not tell you before class.

Also, you may want to add a Prenatal Yoga warning to your initial handout, waiver, or questionnaire, for new students. Prenatal Yoga classes are specifically designed for the safety of pregnant Yoga students. Do not teach pregnant Yoga students without Prenatal and Postnatal Yoga teacher training.

Forward Bend: For students who are in good health and who are not pregnant; the fold should be guided by the breath, while elongating the spine. Then the waistline will gently draw in to a point, while the heart draws toward the toes. This is easier said than done, but will help guide your students.

Neck Rolls, with the head tilted back, can grind the cervical vertebrae against each other, causing premature wear. This is not suggested for Yoga students of any age, especially middle age and up. Your Yoga students might do this warm- up exercise slowly - and that is much better than doing it fast, but it is still not acceptable.

Also related to neck movement - linear movement, and the front part of the neck circle, are fine - if done very slowly, but this still may not be a good idea for your older Yoga students. Any neck movements should be performed in Yoga training sessions, only after gentle isometric exercises for the neck. You should combine Pranayama with these isometric exercises for maximum benefits.

Lunge posture in Sun Salutations: The knee should be right above the ankle during this posture. When the knee is more forward than the ankle, this can cause premature wear of soft tissue within the knee joint.

The only exception to this is when the back knee is on the floor, as this takes pressure off the forward knee. However, if a Yoga student has an existing knee ailment, or is prone to knee problems, the knee should stay directly above the ankle and not beyond it. This may be considered very cautious by some teachers, but Hatha Yoga teachers are supposed to teach restraint and safety during asana practice, at all times.

As a Yoga teacher, your form might be very good, but you will still need to correct all student alignment problems when they arise. In Warrior II, some of your students will need to be reminded to keep the back arm level. It feels normal to them when the back arm is lower.

Tree Pose: Are some of your students are pressing the foot against the side of the knee on the balancing leg? The knee is not designed to take pressure from the side. This could cause premature wear over time. The foot should always be above, or below, the side of the knee - and never to the side.

© Copyright 2006 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

To see find out more about yoga or to see our selection of affordable courses, including our affordable online yoga teacher training intensive courses, please use the yoga resources on the right side of this page.

If you are a teacher, yoga studio manager, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles). Please be sure to reprint each article, as is. Namaste!