5 Ways That Yoga Can Help Retired Athletes

Former athletes who retired from their sport, whether it was voluntary or involuntary, can struggle with many things.  They may feel like they lost a big part of their identity, leaving a big hole in their daily life.  They may also have a hard time finding a new exercise routine without the structure of training and a coach.  Additionally, after spending so much time training in a specific way where muscle memory has allowed the athlete to excel at their spot, they may not know how to move their body in a more natural and intuitive way.

Retired athletes may struggle with a sense of lost identity.

Enter yoga.  There is the physical practice of yoga, or asana.  The physical practice helps build and maintain strength and flexibility. But there is so much more to it.  Yoga also teaches us to be fully present and observant or our bodies as a way to discover who we really are.  It also helps us to have a clearer mind, so that we can focus on what is truly important to us.

Starting a yoga practice can help former athletes in many ways.  Here are some of the most impactful ones:

Yoga helps you learn how to move your body more intuitively

The physical practice of yoga allows you to get to know your body in a different way. Sports often require repetitive stress motions that eventually become muscle memory and the athlete doesn’t need to notice what their body is doing. This can also lead to wear and tear on the body, especially in the joints. In yoga, when you are fully present in how poses feel in your body, you start to learn how to make poses work for you and your unique anatomy.  Yoga helps those who practice learn how to be more gentle with their bodies, which is not the case with intensive training for a competitive sport.

Yoga helps athletes learn how to move their bodies more intuitively.

Yoga helps you maintain strength and improve flexibility

Retired athletes often value maintaining the physical abilities that they have spent so much time achieving.  While they may not be able to do all the things they could as a competitive athlete, keeping the strength and physical form of their bodies may be an important value. Athletes may have tight joints as a result of the types of strength and movement their sport required.  Yoga is a great way to maintain strength, as well as build it in new areas.

Yoga helps maintain strength and improve flexibility in retired athletes.

Yoga teaches you more about yourself

Moving through a yoga practice is a great way to learn how you respond to different movements and challenges.  The yoga concept of svadhyaya, or self-study, teaches you to contemplate on yourself so that you are living according to your values. As athletes transition out of their sport and evolve into the next phase of their life, the practice of self-study can help them learn their true self. Our yoga practice on the mat can be a reflection of of life practice off the mat.

Yoga encourages self-reflection and understanding of one's true self.

Yoga helps you increase your ability to be present and mindful

At the core of a yoga practice, is being fully present in the moment, noticing how each movement and breath feels in the body.  There is more and more evidence of the benefits of mindfulness on health and wellbeing.  Learning how to mindful on your yoga mat is a great place to start, so that you can learn to be mindful off your mat and in the rest of your life.

Yoga can help with old sports injuries

Some of the most common injuries that former athletes have include issues with the lower back, shoulder and hips.  There are many yoga poses that help increase strength in the muscles in these areas as well and increase range of motion and help lubricate the joints. Low back pain is a very common issue that former athletes experience as they age. Addressing this now through a regular yoga practice can prevent bigger issues later. There are several poses that stretch and strengthen the low back. Grab the free guide below to start giving your low back the attention it needs NOW.

Yoga can be a game changer for the low back pain that so many former athletes experience in sport retirement.

Transitioning to a new life after retiring from competitive sports comes with many challenges, both physical and mental.  The practice of yoga can help former athletes find a healthy and balanced relationship with their body and mind as they move in a new chapter.  And a continued yoga practice provides benefits throughout life.  Beginning and maintaining a yoga practice may help a retired athlete live their life after sports in a fulfilling and meaningful way.  Isn’t that what we all want?

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