1. “YOGA BOOST SPORTS PERFORMANCE”
Dr. S. S. Hasrani
Professorin Sport Science,
Mekelle University; Mekelle-Ethiopia
and FormerPrincipalSAI LNCPE Trivandrum Kerala
(sshasrani@gmail.com +251 9145393)
3. INTRODUCTION
➢ From Vinyasa, Iyengar to Bikram and many more, Yoga proves to be a passion for
everyone on Earth.
➢ Every one anyone can benefit from practicing yoga in different time of the day.
➢ Athletes or those who exercise regularly should consider incorporating yoga practice into
their training plans for additional benefits for health and competion in sport and game.
➢ Based on number of studies on effects of yoga practices/training by the athletes to their
best benefits
➢ Here are some cited reasons why Yoga is used in training regimen of male female athletes
of different levels. They are briefly clarified in next slide.
4. BEST BENEFITS OF YOGA FOR SPORTS
PERSONS
1. CORE STRENGTH
2. BALANCE
3. FLEXIBILITY
4. MENTAL FOCUS
5. ENDURANCE
6. RECOVERY
7. INJURY PREVENTION
8. BREATHING PRACTICE
9. CROSS TRAINING
10. OTHER BENEFITS
5. 1. CORE STRENGTH
➢ A consistent yoga practice can enhance core strength and stability.
➢ Various poses target muscle groups that are often under-utilized in other
exercises, such as running, cycling, and swimming.
➢ By strengthening these neglected muscles, one can provide more support to
major muscle groups of the body.
➢ Improving the strength of both big and small muscles allows them to function
at their optimal level and enhance sport and exercise performance.
➢ Yoga practice correlates to improve static and dynamic strength
6. 2. BALANCE
➢ Balance and coordination are essential for improving exercise performance
and prevention of injuries.
➢ Flowing/smoothness through yoga poses enhances balance and
coordination, as well as concentration.
➢ By improving balance, athlete can reduce the risk of falls and improve
technique while exercising, leading to better performance overall.
➢ The static and dynamic balance can precisely contribute to better
performance among sport men &women.
➢ It is tested scientifically that yoga support static and dynamic balance
ability for sport persons as well as elevate performance.
7. 3. FLEXIBILITY
➢ In addition to poses practice that challenge strength and balance, a
complete yoga practice includes poses to increase flexibility.
➢ Joint and muscle flexibility play a key role in range of motion.
➢ A greater arc of motion allows more force to be exerted during exercise
movements like a golf swing, swimming stroke, a baseball pitch, track and
field events, acrobatics etc.
➢ The impact of yoga practice is very critical in increasing static and dynamic
flexibility.
➢ The range motion plays a vital role in increasing static and dynamic
movements variety of sport.
8. 4. MENTAL FOCUS
➢ Yoga acknowledges the importance of mental training alongside physical training.
➢ Even if meditation is not for you, yoga includes various other techniques that can help
improve mental focus for sport or exercise.
➢ For example, many yoga poses are most successful when breathing matches movement.
➢ This can be beneficial for endurance athletes like runners, cyclists, swimmers, other sport
and game athletes too.
➢ Yoga is a great addition to any exercise regimen and has many benefits for improving
exercise and sport performance.
➢ It is unique in that athletes of all ages or experience can start a regimen at their own pace –
and reap the benefits. So, step on mat for yoga practice daily to gain advantages.
9. 5.ENDURANCE
➢ Yoga can play an instrumental role in teaching us how to pace
ourselves, slow and steady.
➢ The meditative properties allow us to relax the body and mind, this can
help most sports as tense muscles tend not to react as quickly to avoid
injuries. Many studies have revealed on influence of yoga on quality
endurance development.
10. 6.RECOVERY
➢ It is a brilliant tool for both passive and active recovery.
➢ It can alleviate both physical and mental stress, help to release tension, and give body a
rest from the demands of your sport.
➢ Additionally, a consistent practice can help to boost blood circulation and lymphatic flow,
which in turn helps to speed up healing time and allows for faster recovery.
11. 7.INJURY PREVENTION
➢ As we all know injuries can bring our training
regimen to a grinding halt.
➢ Yoga can radically lessen the chance of
injury, by improving both body mechanics
and awareness.
➢ Many people actually start yoga post injury
as a part of their rehabilitation process.
➢ Paradoxically, yoga could have prevented
the injury in the first place!
➢ Consistent practice can maintain healthy
and flexible joints and muscles.
➢ Time invested in yoga should not be
considered a treat or a chore, but rather an
indispensable part of any training regimen in
sport.
➢ It is evidenced by many elite coaches all
over the world are fully paying their attention
to keep yoga and meditation as part of
their training.
12. 8.BREATHING PRACTICE
➢ Yoga teaches us that our breath can be regulated and
controlled.
➢ This has multiple health, intellectual and spiritual benefits.
➢ This is essential practice for many sports, it also allows for a
sharper focusing of the mind which can be enormously
helpful in high stress situations.
➢ Yoga and breathing practice dilutes and reduces stress of
any kind
➢ One of the goals of yogic breathing is to allow us to choose
the relaxation response over the stress response.
➢ By breathing deeply and slowing our body and minds
down we can calm any anxieties and enhance attention
and concentration.
➢ With a significant focus on the breath, yoga actually has
the ability to increase respiratory capacity, invaluable to
athletes.
➢ Beyond helping with other sports, breathing techniques can
also be a fantastic way to combat stress and anxiety.
➢ and tune out the other stresses of life.
13. 9.CROSS TRAINING
➢ It is a fantastic, low-impact way to cross
train.
➢ Cross training is essential for athletes
who practice the same sport or exercise
routine continuously.
➢The addition of new movements can
help decrease the risk of injury, alleviate
training monotony, add variety and help
recover from heavy workouts quickly for
next workout session.
➢The cross training minimizes the
monotony and mental staleness in
training and between competitions.
➢Ultimately it enables the athletes to
improve and upraise their achievement
and performance in selected
sport/game.
15. CONCLUSION
➢ There are many forms of yoga, ranging from low intensity to high intensity
and hundreds of postures that can be adapted to deliver a workout for
athletes of any sport.
➢ Personally, I started practicing yoga due to a sports related injury among
athletes and players.
➢ At the time, I saw it as a way to keep moving (and to keep well balanced!).
➢ As soon as I was able to start fully training again, I saw immediately how
yoga had directly improved my athletes performance. My all athletes
involved in daily yoga practice showed in balance, core strength, body
awareness, breathing techniques, ability to stay calm and focused had all
improved enormously.
➢ So for athletes of all levels, yoga can be an instrumental part of training and
the benefits are far reaching.
➢ Therefore, the World and Olympic, Professional coaches in most of games
and sport recommend for Yoga practice as a unit/part in daily training the
athletes of various levels.
16. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
➢ At the out Set ,let me extend my high gratitude to All Executives
and Members of KLE RLS Belagavi for assigning me to add my
knowledge and experience to make presentations and
deliberations on Yoga for sport performance.
➢ Secondly, I extend my heartful thanks to Principal Dr. V D
Yalimali and Lt. Dr. Shivanand Bulbule for having selected me as
one of the persons to deliver some yoga related information on
National Webinar on the occasion of 6th International Yoga Day.
➢ Lastly, I express my sincere thanks to all participants in today’s
National Webinar on “Yoga for All-Yoga for Life”
“We pray for God‘s Blessings”
