Yoga and benefits for cycling?

[solobiker]

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?

[Miranda]

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?

[Red Rock]

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

[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.

[Flur]

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.

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.

[jennrod12]

My husband gave me the Yoga For Cyclists Roadie edition for Christmas and I've done it almost every day since then - I love it! I have a very wimpy upper body, and some upper back problems. I hurt my back in October carrying something heavy in an awkward position and hadn't been able to get it right again since then. After a few days of doing the shorted Pre-Ride Warmup routine on that DVD (it was the only one I could come close to doing), I was almost completely better.

The great thing about the routines on that DVD is how they help me stretch out muscles in my back that I didn't know could be stretched. I'm sure it's also great for my posture. I've done some yoga in the past, years ago, so I was already familiar with some of the poses. I have an appointment with my PT to go over some of them with him, and also have a recommended yoga instructor who will give me a couple of private lessons at my house to make sure I'm doing things right. But I like having the DVD because I can do it whenever I want and pick the routines or poses I want to do, etc., as opposed to taking a class (plus it's cheaper!). I know there are some poses I shouldn't do, so I can avoid them, too.

Jenn