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Practicing some basic yoga stretches will reduce your chance of injury, improve your flexibility and prepare you for the longs days on your favorite black diamond run. The compatibility of yoga with skiing and snowboarding may raise a brow or two, since the dynamics of skiing and snowboarding seem contrary to the meditative and slow motions of yoga. Yoga is beneficial for both the snowboarder and the skier, since both require centering, balance and proper breathing.
Perhaps the biggest benefit yoga can bring to your skiing and snowboarding is injury prevention. Yoga is the perfect equalizer, since skiing and snowboarding a both lower-body intensive sports, i mbalance most obviously occurs in an overdeveloped lower body and a comparatively weaker upper body, according to Prisca Boris, Yoga for Athletes instructor in Vail, Colorado, and former pro-mogul competitor. Yoga is mainly working the core muscles, these are the muscles around the joints, you want them to be strong in order to support the joints as well as being supple and stretched so there's less pull on the joint, and yoga can help here. Strong quadriceps and opposing tighter, weaker hamstrings can place too many demands on the knee joint. Knee joints (and the lower half of the body in general) take a lot of abuse as they actively absorb terrain on a downhill run. In a skiing stance, though the bent-knee position with the hips forward helps cushion the shock of impact, the actual power comes from the gluteus, quadriceps, and back muscles. If these muscles are weak, the knees end up taking the pressure that the legs and glutes aren't bearing. Eventually, the joint fatigues. Shortened inner thigh muscles can also strain the knee joint by limiting the leg's range of motion.
If you are injured, yoga is the best rehab for gently getting back on track. More and more doctors are recommending yoga to their patients who are rehabilitating after a ligament injury especially with knee injuries. Much of standard physical therapy fails to equally develop the inner and outer, upper and lower muscles around the knee, Yoga does this. Another benefit that yoga serves for healing an injury is the increase in blood flow and nourishment that it sends to the surrounding joints and ligaments. As with most poses in yoga, the action of squeezing a body part, and then releasing it, sends lots of nutrient rich blood to the area that was affected in the posture. However, it is important to practice yoga with caution. Postures that are done incorrectly can actually injure the knee or exacerbate existing injuries. As always in yoga, it is most important to listen carefully to your body. Sometimes it helps to practice slower, gentler forms of yoga as you are healing from injuries. It might make sense to stay away from Power Yoga or fast-paced Ashtanga classes until healed.
Several Professional Athletes are using Yoga as part of their training program, including Mogul Freestyle skier Shannon Bahrke (Silver Medalist 2002 Olympics).
Yoga is one of those things that you do and you can’t ever believe how you lived without it. When I first tried yoga I was a bit skeptical but the more classes I attended the better I felt. It has changed me in ways I didn’t even think possible. I have actually gained a lot of flexibility, because before I could barely touch my toes. It has helped me a million times over after both of my knee surgeries by gaining more flexibility and motion in my joints. Yoga has also worked my muscles in an entirely new way, a total difference from just lifting weights and preparing for the ski season in the gym. It is now an integral part of my summer training and also a cool down activity during the competition season. But I think for me the most beneficial part of yoga has been helping me find my confidence and inner stillness. When I feel nervous, stressed out, or scared, I have learned how to deal with it better. I’ve spent many hours on my yoga mat trying to find out who I am and what makes me tick and it has definitely been a great experience. I recommend yoga to anyone who wants to see a transformation both on the outside and the inside, and I guarantee it will help you as much as it has helped me. - Shannon Bahrke
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