Yoga is well-known for its mental and spiritual benefits and it’s also great for you physically. Many people who consider themselves fit scoff at what they think is a nothing more than a glorified stretching class, but our Yoga classes will challenge you, both physically and mentally.
While Yoga can be an excellent option for a gentle workout, there are a variety of styles that will help you to improve your fitness or sport.
Yoga for cross-training can help you:
– Heal old injuries
– Prevent new injuries
– Improve balance and stability
– Increase range of motion and agility
– Improve concentration
– Keep muscles supple and strong
– Improve core strength
– Increase flexibility
– Relieve stress and tension
– Break habitual, repetitive movements
– Improve breathe awareness and learn proper breathing techniques
As you can see from this partial list, there are many reasons to try one of our Yoga classes for cross-training. AuburnFit1 Yoga will challenge those rarely used muscles and at the same time release tight, overused muscles from your sport.
Before you add Yoga for cross-training to your routine, know what your needs are. A regular Yoga practice will increase your somatic awareness, helping you to tune in and listen to your body’s needs. For example, if you have bad shoulders from an overuse injury, you will probably want to avoid fast-paced vinyasa sequences that have you doing many chaturangas (yoga push-ups) which could do more harm than good. That’s why it’s important to not only go at your own pace, but to talk to our qualified teachers beforehand to discuss your needs and concerns so they can help you adapt the poses to your body. Improved body awareness will help your sports performance and help you learn to recognize when you’re pushing yourself too far and need to back off. A more therapeutic approach might be better for you than a vigorous Yoga practice if you are already engaged in an intense fitness or training routine.
When attending an AuburnFit1 Yoga class, remember that Yoga is not a competitive sport. Pay attention to your body and don’t aggressively put yourself into poses that your body does not want to do—you want Yoga to help you in your sport, not hinder it. Don’t think that just because you are already fit you can walk into Yoga class and do the more difficult poses, especially if you have any existing back, knee, or shoulder issues. In our Yoga class, it’s ok to slow down and breathe.