Yoga for Athletes: Strength, Mobility & Recovery

Discover how yoga can complement your athletic training by improving mobility, alignment, stability, and body awareness. In this workshop, certified Iyengar Yoga teacher Caitlin Smith will introduce principles of alignment and the use of various props (blocks, blankets, straps, and even chairs) to make poses more accessible while allowing athletes to work intentionally with tight, overused, or under-recruited areas of the body. This workshop is designed for athletes from any sport and requires no previous yoga experience. Week 1: Alignment & Athletic Foundations Focus: feet, ankles, knees, hips, and posture Introduction to Iyengar yoga and its alignment-based approach Understanding how alignment affects movement up the kinetic chain Standing poses emphasizing stability and balance Developing greater awareness of habitual movement patterns Introduction to props such as blocks, straps, blankets, and the wall Week 2: Mobility Without Losing Stability Focus: hips, hamstrings, quadriceps, and lower back Addressing common areas of restriction in athletes Differentiating useful mobility from simply “stretching farther” Using props to explore range of motion with control Balancing mobility with muscular support Poses that can complement running, cycling, field sports, and strength training Week 3: Upper Body, Core & Functional Strength Focus: shoulders, spine, chest, core, and balance Shoulder mobility and stability Opening the chest and counteracting repetitive athletic positions Core engagement within yoga postures Balance and proprioceptive awareness Connecting upper- and lower-body movement through the trunk Week 4: Recovery & Your Personal Yoga Toolkit Focus: recovery, restoration, breath, and individualized practice Using yoga during active recovery Supported poses that reduce muscular effort and encourage rest Breath awareness and down-regulation after training Identifying poses that address individual areas of tightness or fatigue Building a short, repeatable yoga routine athletes can use between workouts This 4 week series takes place on 1/6, 1/13, 1/27 and 2/3 Cost: $110 Register here.