Workout and yoga can definitely go hand in hand. Where lifting weights strengthen and build your muscles, it does not work on mobility. So doing yoga alongside you can increase your mobility and range of motion. This will keep you fit and working in all dimensions. So if you want to look good and feel better then it is highly recommended that you do yoga with weight training workouts. Let’s get your workout shirts and pants on, take your mat and water bottle to get started. Browse to buy activewear online that inspire you to express yourself while getting your sweat on. Whether you’re going to be walking, jumping, lifting, or doing yoga, right fitness apparel will boost up your confidence.
Why should one do yoga?
Yoga can give many benefits to the people doing workouts like cardio and weight training etc. It can even strengthen and tone your body as well as increase your range of motion. Where the training and workout you are doing is making you strong, yoga will keep you flexible and improve your blood flow, balance, and improve your energy levels. This way you will have a strong, balanced body, improve your health and help with recovery from workouts by adding yoga with the workout you are doing now.
For instance, when you are working on your shoulder muscles. It sure does make your shoulders muscles strong and big, but the rotator cuff of your shoulder is being worked on. This can be a cause of shoulder injury in the future. But if you were to do exercises like some yoga poses, this risk would be reduced.
Try these poses
Regardless of the workout or whatever physical activity you are doing off the mats, once you perform the exercise on the mats it will give a benefit. These benefits will either be small or large. Just working out will have a good effect on whether or not you cheat with the diet. If you cheat, the benefits will be less or you will stay the same. But if you don’t cheat at all and workout well then the benefits will be big.
So, if you combine yoga with the workout, the benefits will be visible to the extent you do it. So to help you and give you those benefits you should obviously start doing yoga. Mostly because the workout enthusiasts that do weight training have stiff muscles all over the body from arms, chest, back, neck, to legs. With stiffness comes the probability to become injured. Yoga is a simple and easy way to release this pressure and stiffness, which brings in flexibility, agility, and strength with it. To begin with it you can start doing the following poses.
Forward upper torso bend
Standing straight on your feet like you normally stand, feet shoulder-width apart and arms hang down. Bring your arms up and get them over your head to meet. Now bend the upper torso, keeping the legs straight. This will make a 90-degree angle. You can also do it like reaching for your toes stretching.
You should feel stretch in the hamstrings. To further go with the stretch you should grip your calves and go deeper slowly. Hold up to 5 seconds and get back slowly. If you were to grab the back of your neck with both the hands then bend and pull the head down slowly, it will also release the tension in your back and neck.
Lunging low
This pose will get your hips and quad muscles relaxed. Begin by getting into a lung pose, get the knee or back leg down on the ground and place both your hands on the right knee. Now bend in the leg that is on the back towards the body and get a stretch in your quad.
Forward leg bend
Place your feet wider than shoulders and step one step forward, keeping the foot facing straight ahead. Keep the back leg straight too with your foot angled at about 4 degrees. Place your hands behind the back in an interlacing position. Bend the upper body bringing it down to the ground.
Do as deep as you can while straightening the arms behind the back without breaking the interlacing position. Hold the deepest position for a few seconds and then get back in the starting position. Try with the other leg forward. This releases the tension in the chest, shoulder, and hips so make sure you are feeling a little stretch in these muscles. It is an excellent yoga and workout for women.
Revolving triangle
Stand comfortably with feet wider than shoulders, then bend down to forward foot and turn the body sideways, reaching it with one arm while the other arm is making a straight line. Without getting back up, reach the same foot with the other arm. Then get back up slowly and repeat with another foot. Hold each position for a few seconds, ease in and out of the positions slowly.
Cow face
This pose will ease up the shoulder, chest, and hip muscles. You may begin with sitting down facing a wall keeping the back and neck straight. The legs will stack on top of each other and the feet will be on the floor. Now bend forward, bringing your face near to the ground, get back up, stretch back a little and repeat.
You can also hold the hands on the back. To do that, bring one hand down from the top over the back and reach it with the other arm going up. Touch and hold the fingers, then go up to the palms, then move on to grab the elbows. Hold each position for a few seconds before moving on to the next.
Cat pose
You may begin with sitting down while both legs bending and arms straight, balancing the body. Act like you are playing a horse with a child. Bend your back inward and get the head up, hold the position for a few seconds, then arch the back outwards and bring the head down and hold the position.
Forward bend in seated position
Keeping our back up straight and legs straight in front of you sit like this. Bend one leg so that the bottom of the foot touches the inside thighs of the other leg. Then hold the foot of the straight leg and stretch your body as your face is beside your foot. Hold the position for a while, then get back up. Either repeat this position a few times before repeating with another leg or change after every repetition.
How yoga can help you with recovery
Performance and recovery improvements
The lactic acid is produced in our body as we lift its weights, which is why we feel sore muscles. Yoga can help release this acid and let the body deal with it better. This helps speed up the recovery process and get you free of sore muscles quicker. Feeling sore on the next day of workout can ruin your day and bring the performance down.
But with yoga and workout for women you can be ready for the next workout day. The deep stretching in yoga allows release of these toxins and gets more oxygen to those muscles. Helping the body get them essential nutrients better quicker. Your body is ready and fresh, so your performance improves.
Better flexibility and range of motion
Workout you are doing right now, either it is cardio or weight training that has amazing benefits. But working on just your muscles and not on mobility and flexibility can lock up the joints which can become a hindrance at some point. With yoga with your regular workout you can improve your mobility, flexibility, and range of motion which will help you in daily life, prevent injury, and improve performance.
There are a lot of other benefits of yoga to your workout plan like balance, strength, joints and muscles, managing stress better, clearing the mind, flexibility, working on stamina with breathing techniques, and better focus etc. that could be your self care ideas. If you don’t have time daily you can do yoga on just the weekends or when you skip the gym. One of the best things about yoga is that you can do it at your bed, at home or where you want.