Yoga and benefits for cycling?

There are so many varieties of Yoga and many of them can be modified to the practitioner's physical requirements and goals. For many people, taking a class from an experienced instructor is definitely the way to go. But for others, a researched home practice can be just as effective. For anyone who's considering starting out on their own, do some homework first.

Personally, I'm not comfortable going to a gym or Yoga studio. But over the last several years, I've developed several asana series on my own using Yoga Journal magazine and an assortment of books, and I choose the series I do depending on how I feel that day both physically and mentally. I'm far from being an advanced practitioner. For instance, I wouldn't attempt Headstand without an instructor because I have neck and shoulder issues, and I may seek out a teacher one day to learn how to do it safely. But I've definitely come a long way on my own.

I say this not to refute any of the advice above because it's very good advice, but to reassure anyone who thinks they'd prefer to start off on their own. Again, do some research. Learn about the various types of Yoga and the possible modifications that you can use. And ease into the practice, starting simply and paying close attention to how your body responds. You may end up heading straight for the nearest class, or you may develop a wonderful, personal, home practice.

I started with the yoga from the Cyclo Core series by Graham Street. About 6 months after that I ventured into a level 1 class at my gym. My gym is a full service club, that is not one of those "huge" gyms that advertise on TV. It's been around for 50 years, starting as a tennis and swim club. They have 5 classes a week, so it's not like it's a big part of the program. I have found that I was glad I had it done it on my own before I went to class. The instructors are all very good, some are 500 hr. certified and others 250 hour, who are working on the 500. They all have taught for years. At first, I was put off by the "spiritual" part and the "noises" some of the participants made. But, I got used to it and now I can say, it really helped me through my difficult months last year with the fibromyalgia. I also have scoliosis and many other sports injuries and it just has taught me to stretch and relax! I never do the advanced classes, doubt I could handle those poses, but I have improved a lot.
I never thought that anything could have me totally relaxed and practically sleeping on the floor in front of others, but it did happen.
+1 on the Bikrahm yoga. The guy who started it has a studio near the university I go to and some of the other students go. I think I would faint doing poses in that heat.

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Originally Posted by Kalidurga

There are so many varieties of Yoga and many of them can be modified to the practitioner's physical requirements and goals. For many people, taking a class from an experienced instructor is definitely the way to go. But for others, a researched home practice can be just as effective. For anyone who's considering starting out on their own, do some homework first.

Personally, I'm not comfortable going to a gym or Yoga studio. But over the last several years, I've developed several asana series on my own using Yoga Journal magazine and an assortment of books, and I choose the series I do depending on how I feel that day both physically and mentally. I'm far from being an advanced practitioner. For instance, I wouldn't attempt Headstand without an instructor because I have neck and shoulder issues, and I may seek out a teacher one day to learn how to do it safely. But I've definitely come a long way on my own.

I say this not to refute any of the advice above because it's very good advice, but to reassure anyone who thinks they'd prefer to start off on their own. Again, do some research. Learn about the various types of Yoga and the possible modifications that you can use. And ease into the practice, starting simply and paying close attention to how your body responds. You may end up heading straight for the nearest class, or you may develop a wonderful, personal, home practice.

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Great advice. Whether you choose to do it at studio, gym or at home, it pays to be discerning. Some DVDs are better than others. Read reviews and take it slow. If you go to a gym or studio, ask about the instructor's training level. Experiment with styles and teachers.

I was lucky in that my first instructor has 14 years of experience under her belt. In some cities, that wouldn't be terribly unusual, but in Indianapolis, it's not as common. As much as I like my studio, they employ some newbie instructors who are simply not as good. Even among well trained instructors, there are some I like, and some I don't. Unfortunately, my favorite instructor is on an indefinite sabbatical and isn't teaching any more. Even though it's been over a year since she made that decision, I'm still heartbroken about it. No one else I've gone to compares, and my practice has gotten really off track.

I, personally, like the studio/gym environment, but I find my house to be do distracting for yoga. The cats like to join in. If it works for you, and you're able to develop a mindful practice, then great. I sometimes balk at the expense of my studio, not because I don't think the price is worth it, but because it seems like an extravagance. My studio operates on a slim profit margin, and the instuctors aren't getting rich from it.

You all have mentioned some good things here, things that I had not really even thought about. Like instructor trainning. I have the DVD-was a birthday present- and have been doing that to the best of my ability. I guess having a gymnastic background has helped a bit because the poses are often called one thing and I knew it as something else from gymnastics.

I do not know if my small town has yoga at any of the gyms. If they do they probably will not see me because it is too expensive $$$$ to join. I have always had a hard time with paying good money for exercise when you can go right out the door for a bike ride, run, or hike. I guess I see what I can find out from the internet and anything else you wise people can say.

Red Rock

Tonight will be my first instructor-led class. It'll be here at work for the next 6 Thursdays. I think it'll be a good introduction to yoga and maybe give me the basics so that I can do the DVDs and not hurt myself.

Pilates might be something to look into as well. Stretches tendons and ligaments while strengthening the core.

+1 on finding a good instructor. Your instructor should have at least 200 hours of training, should be familiar with contraindications and should know a lot about alignment. Anatomy training is a must.

I highly recommend that if you are embarking on a yoga practice as something you plan to do many days a week or every day (yoga can be practiced every day) that you start out with a highly trained instructor, not a DVD. Many of the benefits of yoga come from proper alignment in the pose, and if you are misaligned, like in any other physical activity, you run the risk of creating an imbalance, not reaping the benefits, or developing a repetitive stress injury. A trained instructor should be able to see any misalignments and help you to correct them. They can also provide you with alternate poses if you need them - no pose should ever be forced upon the body. A good instructor will also keep you focused on your breath - if you are not constantly breathing throughout the practice you're not really doing yoga, you're doing calisthenics that look like yoga. The breathing practice provides the most immediate benefits of the overall yoga practice, and if you do choose to practice on your own, make sure you're focusing on your breathing!

FYI - I have a daily home practice. I used to take regular classes but now that I'm unemployed I'm saving my pennies. I'll be back to weekly classes as soon as I get a new day job. Even as a teacher I really benefit from taking classes with more advanced instructors.

Keri Schneider, RYT-500

Yoga has been very important in my life for about 10 years now. It has helped me in sculpting,hiking, biking and my mind. It is so hard now a days to focus on one thing. And yoga has taught me to focus and relax. I can not even begin to think of all the things it has done for me. I highly recommend taking at least a year of classes before even doing the video. That way a teacher can guide you to do things right. A video is great but a teacher can actually put theri hands on you and make minor adjustments that can make all the difference in the world I promise. Then once you know what you should be doing then do the dvd's. I say a year cause it really took me that long to really get it right to where i wasn't sore after and was breathing like I was running.

To address the OP's question, as a complete novice yogini, what I'm really noticing is that cycling tends to flatten the lumbar curve, and a lot of yoga asana help restore neutral spine (sitting postures, the Warrior poses and various back bends are what I've done so far).

By contrast, Pilates teaches neutral spine, but in practice a lot of the exercises are done in imprint, and very few of them really do anything to increase the lumbar curve.

Pilates always hurts my neck and back. I've done it many times and finally stopped. Yoga never does. There's a little "thing" between those who do Pilates and yoga at my gym, like Pilates is tougher. Then there's Centergy, which is basically yoga turned into athletics, with no breathing or spiritual aspect. I actually like that class. No matter which class or instructor i try (and they are all Stott certified instructors), I just can't do the Pilates without feeling like it's hurting my body instead of helping it.

These are all great ideas and suggestions. I used to do a Yoga tape 2-3x/week when I was running a lot. I am just wondering how often the rest of you practice yoga?

I was just looking at that yoga for roadies dvd on Terry today too. I've done pilates classes before in the past. Never yoga though.

This is an interesting thread. Reading the comments about teachers, I don't think we have anything at the gym that sounds quality enough. If they still have yoga at all.

The pilates teacher was at a different facility. I really liked her. I assume one of the differences is the core work?

I am a yoga newbie. I was just wondering how good it was for cycling and other sports. Right now I have been doing the DVD when I am healthy. Something like 1-2x per week.

Red Rock

That first class Thursday was good. It was a warm-up, intro type class, but since I had done the video that Sunday I wasn't as sore as I probably would have been. I can see how yoga would benefit me, mostly from the stretching. I get a lot of foot cramps, probably because my calves are too tight, so this would absolutely help with that. Also I'm prone to back spasms, and it felt good to bend and stretch my spine out. My wrist, however, was none too pleased with my effort that night. I'm going to ask the instructor to feel free to correct me, as I don't want to do any more damage. Overall, I'm happy with it and will stick with it for a while.

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Originally Posted by NoNo

That first class Thursday was good. It was a warm-up, intro type class, but since I had done the video that Sunday I wasn't as sore as I probably would have been. I can see how yoga would benefit me, mostly from the stretching. I get a lot of foot cramps, probably because my calves are too tight, so this would absolutely help with that. Also I'm prone to back spasms, and it felt good to bend and stretch my spine out. My wrist, however, was none too pleased with my effort that night. I'm going to ask the instructor to feel free to correct me, as I don't want to do any more damage. Overall, I'm happy with it and will stick with it for a while.

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Just in case you want to practice more at home before your next class...

In general, correct hand position when your hands are on the mat is with the fingers spread as wide as you can and the middle finger pointing forward. Turning the hand so that the index finger points forward can sometimes alleviate wrist pain. So can folding up the mat a little bit so that it is thickest under the base of your hand and thinnest under the fingers. This decreases the angle that the wrist is held at.

Also, the wrist should be at no more than a 90 degree angle from the mat (i.e. the shoulder should not go past the wrist for a beginner - there are advanced poses where it will be, but you should stay away from these for now). It's very common in poses like upward facing dog for the shoulders to come forward of the wrist, and this can cause pain also. Just something to watch out for in your practice.