Why Yoga and Mountain Biking?

As a Yoga teacher, when I started Mountain Biking regularly I quickly became aware of a lot more tension in my lower back, hips and leg muscles as well as noticing my wrists, neck and shoulders suffering a little. I realised that I need to spend time doing certain postures before and after a ride to stretch everything out and avoid having a painful stiff back the next day. Yoga is a great way for sports people to maintain their range of motion in the joints and avoid injury. It is a great way to balance the body after exercise. Yoga not only helps to improve flexibility but can help to build allover strength in the body. Having to stay focussing on the breath while staying calm during the practice can help our riding by giving us the ability to relax and when riding - this allows us to play with our edge of what we are capable of and to maybe push those boundaries and experience that thrill!

There is a definite similarity between the focus and exhilaration that you feel when flying down some flowing singletrack on a bike and how you feel when you have a beautiful Vinyasa Flow practice.

After a long ride its a really good idea to stretch out your muscles with some long, relaxing poses.This will not only lessen any muscle soreness and maintains flexibility it also just feels good! Aim to hold these poses for as long as you feel comfortable, don’t force anything - and remember to breath.

Supta Padangusthasana - Reclining Hand to Toe Pose

This lovely pose stretches hips, thighs, hamstrings, groins and calves - all the things that get tight from riding. It is also really good at relieving lower backache and is generally very relaxing.

The perfect pose after a long ride - you get to lie down! Get a strap, lie down on your back and bend up your right leg - wrap the strap around the ball of your right foot and holding the strap with both hands, arms straight, gradually straighten the leg up towards the ceiling - have the strap as long as it needs to be for your leg to straighten comfortably without shaking - you should be able to feel the stretch on the back of your leg but it shouldn’t be painful - let the strap be longer if you need to. Keep the shoulders relaxing back down towards the floor. Stay here and breath smoothly for at least a minute. 

Take the strap into your right hand, left hand comes to left hip, and open the leg out to the side - don’t worry about trying to get it to touch the floor - just take it to wherever it gets to.

As you inhale bring the leg back up to centre. Release the belt and repeat on the other side. The most important thing to remember while doing this pose is to Relax and Breath - you can’t rush the hamstrings into lengthening - you have to let go and allow them to lengthen in their own time.

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana - Bridge Pose (supported)

This pose opens the chest, heart and shoulders. It stretches the spine, thighs, hip flexors and the back of the neck - which is great for us mountain bikers - after all that forward bending and tightening of hip flexors as well as the slight tension in the back of the neck that can occur after a long ride of looking out for the next obstacle - this is the perfect pose to regain the balance in the body. Practiced with a block it is a restorative pose and releives fatigue and anxiety and calms the mind.

Lie down (yay!), knees bent and hip distance apart, push into the feet and lift the hips and slide the block underneath your sacrum - the place on your lower back just above your bottom. Arms rest down by the side of the hips, keep your head and neck in line. Breath smoothly and enjoy.

For a bit more of a stretch you can try walking one foot back towards the shoulders and then carefully flipping the foot so that the tops of the toes are on the floor - then slide the foot towards the shoulder as much as possible without strain. Be careful of your knee. This gives the quad muscles a really intense stretch..repeat on the other side.

When you are ready, lift the hips, remove the block and lower back down to the floor.

Adho Mukha Svanasana - Downward Facing Dog

This pose energizes and rejuvenates the whole body, its a great stretch for the hamstrings,  calves, feet and hands as well as the shoulders and spine. 

Start on all fours, hands shoulder width apart, fingers spread. Curl the toes under and as you inhale push the hips up towards the ceiling. Keep the knees bent, come onto the balls of the feet and try to send the hips up towards the sky, then start to straighten the legs and stretch the heels towards the floor - don’t worry if they don’t touch the floor!! Keep the arms working, try to widen the space between the shoulders and relax the neck. Breath...repeat a few times.

Supta Baddha Konasana - Reclining Cobblers Pose

This is a deeply relaxing pose which stretches the groin and inner thigh muscles, opens the chest, increases energy levels and is generally rather nice.

Find your strap again and sit with the soles of the feet together. Wrap the strap around your lower back - as low as possible and then bring it inside the knees and around the feet - tie it so that it is quite tight and make sure it stays low on your back.  Gradually start to lie back - if you find the strap is too tight then adjust it. You should be able to lie back and just let go and breath.

As with all physical exercise if you have any medical condition or injury please consult your doctor before trying any of these poses. Always work within your own level of ability and never practice under the influence of alcohol or drugs.