Yoga 
may be a four-letter, foreign word for some Physique and Bodybuilding athletes but it shouldn't be. You may be ripped to the bone, have the best physique, but if you lack flexibility and mind control your training, and eventually your quality of life, will be compromised.
A little yoga can improve your workouts and maybe even extend your Physique or Bodybuilding career and you don’t have to ditch your current training to take advantage of it.
Mastering the physical and mental challenges of yoga can be a revelation for most athletes accustomed to years of a different kind of training. Many Physique athletes and Bodybuilders are used to conditioning in a particular way, usually by isolating specific muscle groups with the aim of increasing the intensity and frequency of the training regimen; this kind of conditioning focuses on isolating different parts of the body.
Yoga, on the other hand, is based on the principle of integrating the body as a whole and shifts the emphasis to the quality of the movement. This new holistic approach can reveal weaknesses and imbalances that may never have been exposed before. As you might expect, this will come as a surprise to many athletes who think they are in tune with their bodies.
For many years, I thought that if I devoted time to yoga it would take away from my intense, hard-core training sessions where I was working to add to while shaping my physique and I was intimidated by my inability to perform the poses in a yoga class. I was reminded by my wife, yoga doesn’t just “stretch” the body; it also strengthens all muscles, including the deep stabilizers; heightens body awareness, reduces stress; and counterbalances the repetitive actions I performed everyday in the gym. By adding yoga to your regimen you will ultimately result in a full-spectrum approach to your conditioning.
My wife has been teaching and studying yoga as a practice for over 12 years and has tried for a long time to get me to incorporate yoga into my training regimen. It was not until just recently, that I began listening to her and seeing the benefits for myself. Not only is she a fantastic yoga teacher, she has been instrumental in making me a better man and a better athlete. So there you go. Don’t underestimate the extent to which yoga can change your life – you just never know.
The practice of yoga was first developed in India and has evolved over thousands of years. Yoga disciples use poses, or Asanas, to prepare their bodies for meditation practice – much as a physique competitor or bodybuilder would prepare for an upcoming competition. The poses also serve as a means to alter one’s consciousness and mental focus in the spiritual quest for “enlightenment.” This spiritually transformative process is, in fact, the overriding purpose of the practice of Hatha Yoga. In essence, yoga is designed to bring body, mind and spirit into balance.
Through the practice of yoga, competitive physique athletes and bodybuilders along with new athletes alike can benefit from this type of balance. This is especially true when athletes have pushed their bodies to the max, resulting in weakness or injury. Yoga can restore a weakened body and build it back up. yoga postures, breath work and inner focus can help rebalance, strengthen and restore overtaxed muscles, joints and ligaments. Through this restoration process, athletes can increase their career longevity and develop an inner balance that will last a lifetime. Balancing the mind, body and spirit is a primary philosophical principle of yoga. It is considered the true way to honor the body.
Athletes in all sports are finding that yoga conditioning not only elongates tight, shortened, fatigued muscles but also brings calmness and clarity to the mind. Some athletes begin the practice to rehabilitate an injury and to gain more flexibility, stability and strength. Others take it up to increase their powers of concentration and quiet the mind. And some do it because a spouse, friend or coach has been harping on them and they finally sidestepped their ego and are giving it a try. The reasons are many, but the results are consistent.
One of the best lessons a physique or bodybuilder competitor can learn from practicing yoga is how to respect their body’s strengths and limitations. This knowledge is essential to preventing sports injuries. Yoga is a powerful biofeedback tool, which can help athletes develop better body awareness. Listening to the body and responding to its messages is a way to honor the body and not push it over the edge.
What Style is right for you?
Hatha Yoga is the umbrella term for many different styles of yoga, such as Anusara, Ashtanga vinyasa (sometimes called “power yoga”) and Iyengar. These styles are all powerful, dynamic, alignment-oriented types of yoga that are well suited for fitness and sport adaptation.
Depending on your goals and personality you may prefer one form of yoga to another. For example, some athletes may prefer a style of yoga that emphasizes holding postures for longer durations, while others may prefer a format that emphasizes optimal alignment. Certain physique and bodybuilding athletes may gravitate toward a style that accentuates the spiritual aspects of yoga, whereas others may relate more to a style that emphasizes the physical component. Some will be seeking a gentler therapeutic yoga style that focuses on stretching poses, while others will want to increase their strength and stamina. Finally, some will be keen to touch on all of these elements in one class.
Here’s a brief description of some of the more popular forms of Hatha Yoga:
Anusara: A modern style of yoga that focuses on optimal body alignment; using the body’s strength to keep the muscles engaged while stretching practices this form of yoga.
Ashtanga Vinyasa: Sometimes referred to as “Power Yoga,” this is probably the most physically demanding style of yoga. It emphasizes strength, flexibility and stamina by combining breath work with a series of poses often done in quick succession.
Iyengar: Considered one of the more therapeutic types of yoga, this style emphasizes alignment through the use of props such as chairs, blankets, blocks, straps and pillows. This style is especially good for novices.
Bikram: Bikram yoga is also referred to as “Hot Yoga.” The focus here is on the repetition of 26 poses, each performed twice. It is typically done in a very hot room, to warm the joints for movement.
Kripalu: This gentle form of yoga focuses on the mind-body connection through the practice of meditation during poses.
Kundalini: Also well suited to beginners, this style merges stretching, breathing and meditation.
Viniyoga: This style is usually taught one-on-one. Students are encouraged to work at their own pace, integrating movement with breathing and awareness.
Some of the many benefits of adding yoga into your routine include improved strength, finding and achieving better balance, and gaining added flexibility. Yoga invariably improves joint and muscular flexibility, which is crucial to the body’s overall structural soundness.
Enhanced joint and muscle pliancy translates to greater range of motion, or an increase in the performance latitude for a particular movement or series of movements. I am becoming a huge advocate, finding that the more I work to maintain my flexibility (something that wanes with age), the less likely I am to suffer an overuse injury. In addition to the three I have already mentioned I believe that mental focus and control are the greatest benefits.
The physical benefits of yoga for any physique or bodybuilder competitor are huge. But they’re nothing in comparison to the mental benefits. Most people, particularly competitive athletes, tend to think of yoga as a great “workout” – a means to tighten the core, flatten the stomach and tone certain muscles. Sure, it does that. But as soon as the rigorous portion of the class comes to a close and it’s time for Savasana (corpse pose), otherwise known as the Meditative portion of the session where the you lie down on your back for a period of quiet meditation, I watch new people flee for the door, ducking out early as I wanted to do at first under the false belief that this most important asana is optional and unnecessary – the hard work is done.
This final part of your yoga session is meant to improve your ability to quell, quiet and control the impulses of the mind, to clean mental house, center focus and promote serenity by silencing the endless and seemingly unmanageable mental chatter that invades our daily experience and undermines the expression of our “best self” within.
In other words, Savasana is the most important part of the practice for us as competitive athletes (and everyone). Why? Because the mind is a mysterious contraption, more often than not an actual enemy, constantly feeding us with negative and fear-based signals that keep us trapped, afraid and all too often paralyzed to unlock the dormant and untapped potential within that is yearning to come out.
What does this have to do with athletic performance? Everything. When you look at the highest levels of any sport, all the athletes are incredibly talented. They all train equally hard.
Much like a muscle, the mind can be trained. And consistent practice of yoga when followed up with proper Savasana is the best way I have found to not only improve my sleep, reduce stress, quell negative mental chatter, and manage (and walk through) fear, it informs my entire approach to training and competing.
In my opinion, EVERY physique athlete and bodybuilder – irrespective of if you compete or not – has the potential to enhance his or her ability by adopting a consistent yoga practice. I’d go so far as to say that if you’re not practicing yoga, you’re competing at a disadvantage and missing an opportunity to enhance peak performance.
Looking for an athletic edge? This is it. So get on it, before your rival does.
Subscribe to RxMuscle on Youtube
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|||
