When it comes to activities that promote health and wellness, yoga ranks as one of the most popular, and with good reason. The mind-body intervention (MBI) has been found to have numerous health benefits that extend beyond keeping physically fit. For example, research done by the Department of Physiology of the Government Medical College of Nagpur found that participants over the age of 40 who practiced yoga for five years were found to have lower blood pressure and pulse rates when compared to those who didn't. Yoga has also been found to relieve anxiety, decrease stress, improve heart health, and reduce chronic pain.

In a piece on Daydreaming in Paradise about 'The Spiritual Benefits of Yoga', Jane Adamson describes how the practice is a form of self-care. Yoga is especially important for athletes who are prone to injury and strain, as it provides them with a way to stay fit and ease back into their active lifestyles without overextending their bodies. While it's possible for athletes to find other ways to recover, yoga is a gentle form of exercise that injured athletes can do alongside their regular physical therapy. To illustrate the point, here are five yoga poses athletes can do for injury recovery.

Yoga Pose 1: Supta Padangustathasana

For people who are suffering from lower back pain or tight hamstrings, yoga has a variety of different poses that will help your body heal and grow.  Among these is Supta Padangustathasana, also known as the Reclining Hand-to-Big-Toe Pose. This pose gently stretches out your lower back muscles and hamstrings, and can easily be modified for those recovering from injury.  For beginners, you can opt to do this pose with your bottom-leg heel pressed up against the wall, and with a block positioned just outside the hip of your raised leg. The block will help support your thigh, which in turn will help you soften your inner groin, reducing strain on your muscles.

Yoga Pose 2: Sucirandhrasana

Sucirandhrasana is also known as the Eye of the Needle Pose, and is a gentler variation on the Pigeon Pose. Unlike the Pigeon Pose, it's done while lying on your back, which enables you to control the intensity. It stretches the muscles around the hips, lower back, and hamstrings. This pose is especially beneficial for recovering runners, as their hamstrings can often be tight. Practicing this pose enables better mobility and flexibility, preventing muscle tearing or other injuries from worsening.

Yoga Pose 3: Uttanasana

Knee injuries can be one of the most devastating injuries to an athlete in their prime, and recovery can take a long time. In our article on 'Knee Pain and Patellar Tracking Problems: Causes and Preventions', we discuss how patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) can be avoided through keeping your quads supple, hip abductors strong, and maintaining proper strength and length relationships between muscle groups. In addition to hip strengthening, it's important to add mobility exercises.  Uttanasana or Standing Forward Bend Pose, as well as Childs Pose or Balasana (see image) can relieve the stiffness of your spine and hips along the posterior chain.

Yoga Pose 4: Supta Gomukhasana

Supta Gomukhasana or Reclined Cow Face Pose is one of the best methods to relieve sciatica, a pain that branches from the lower back throughout the hips and buttocks. While sciatica typically only affects one side of the body, it can be especially painful without treatment. Supta Gomukhasana gently releases tension all throughout the body, especially in your outer hips and gluteal muscles.

Yoga Pose 5: Gomukhasana

The Gomukhasana or Cow Face Pose is excellent for athletes who want to strengthen their back muscles, as this pose helps open the back and decrease shoulder stiffnesss. If you experience tightness in your shoulders or are unable to clasp your hands behind your back, it can be easily modified by holding onto a strap to link your two hands. Gomukhasana relaxes and increases the range of motion in the shoulder joints and hips, which are sites in the body that usually hold tension.

Piece specially written for wavetoolstherapy.com

Piece by: JBeasley