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climbinfroiprocks
Mar 26, 2004, 3:40 AM
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Lots of people have told me that yoga is very beneficial to climbers? is this true? if so, what are some ways i can teach myself and do it at home (ie websites)? thanks
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cragmasterp
Mar 26, 2004, 3:51 AM
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Yoga is very beneficial to climbing for flexibility and strength. It will increase your ability to high step and strengthen your torso for overhangs. It is also very relaxing and a nice way to relieve stress.
I would recomend purchasing a yoga video or dvd or taking a class at your local activities center. It is easier to do by watching an instructor than by using books.
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moabbeth
Mar 26, 2004, 4:02 AM
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Yoga definitely helps. It stretches, elongates, gives you greater range of motion and fexibility. It makes you concentrate on breathing and allowing the breath to get you through difficult poses (or cruxes when on the rock :wink: ).
If there's a studio around, or your gym offers yoga, take a class. When I tried learning at home I didn't get nearly as much out of it from videos as I did when I started going to classes (my gym has them for free, the ONE good thing about 24 hour Fitness). Yoga instructors will motivate you, tell you what you're doing right/wrong and help make adjustments in your poses and tecnique. There's only so much you can do on your own with books. Classes help you take it to the next level. At least for me.
I do it 4 mornings a week. I'm a yoga freak. It's awesome.
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alorama
Mar 26, 2004, 4:17 AM
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Ditto on the classes. Finding a good instructor will help you progress faster, keep you from putting bad techniques into muscle memory, and will keep you safe. Although the techniques seem passive and harmless it is easy to tweak out the body if not watched closely from an experienced instructor. Here is a decent general info website:
http://sivasakti.com/
All the Best
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overlord
Mar 26, 2004, 4:03 PM
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yoga i really good for climbers.
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bena
Mar 26, 2004, 4:47 PM
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I definitely recommend at least a couple of classes. Only a good teacher will be able to show you (often hands on) the proper alignement.
But good videos are a good substitute. I recommend anything with Rodney Yee in...he usually has a very powerful style of yoga focused on strenth and concentration wich is good for climbing. The Yoga Journal series are excellent tapes.
Have fun and enjoy!
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leinosaur
Mar 26, 2004, 5:01 PM
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Yeah Yee!
Yoga is the best - it's self-motivating as well, because once you start your body reminds you to do it . . . feels like it needs a stretch (which it does) and then it FEELS SO GOOD when you get around to it!
Rodney Yee is very good - but he can't see when you're not getting the right angles so if you can do a class instead, that's preferable. Stretching with bad technique can sometimes be worse than not stretching . . .
T'ai chi is a chinese form - if you have access to a really good teacher (esp. trained in china) this could be very very beneficial, breathing and balance-focused, but like yoga it's just one part of a whole different (non-western) way of thinking about the body and its energy.
So Yoga will be more straightforward.
good luck - have fun!
leinosaur
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climberchic
Mar 26, 2004, 5:06 PM
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Here's a question:
Do you think yoga or pilates is more beneficial? Or are they both beneficial in different ways?
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outdoormikeg
Mar 26, 2004, 5:20 PM
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Here's another vote in favor for yoga...I started three years ago as a way to improve my flexibility for climbing and have noticed great changes not only physically but metally as well.
Make sure you take a class somewhere and if you don't like the first teacher, do yourself a favor and either find another teacher where you are going or find another studio. The teacher/student relationship is very important in yoga and finding that right teacher can make all the difference in the world...
I could go on for hours about this subject but won't. If you want a further rant about yoga, PM me and I'll be glad to send a 15 page treatise on the subject... ;-)
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chizelz
Mar 26, 2004, 5:20 PM
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In reply to: Here's a question: Do you think yoga or pilates is more beneficial? Or are they both beneficial in different ways?
or how about we throw one more into the mix....
yoga
pilates
t'ai chi
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outdoormikeg
Mar 26, 2004, 5:24 PM
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Oops forgot to address the pilates vs yoga issue...
Pilates concentrates more on developing core strength (and a bit of stretching) while yoga is more of a whole body/mind approach.
They are both just tools and it depends on what you are trying to do...both will help...
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kwmoore
Mar 26, 2004, 5:48 PM
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Yet another vote for yoga!
It great all on it's own - but its benefits to climbers can't be ignored.
Classes can be intimidating to start when you're a newbie (at least I thought so) but they are the only way to get good feedback on your form, which is oh-so critical.
As for a home starter kit: I'm not a big fan of Mr. Yee, I prefer Steve Ross. He's funny and entertaining and to make the whole experience enjoyable - PLUS you can catch if free on cable.
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leinosaur
Mar 26, 2004, 6:37 PM
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yoga or t'ai chi
for stretching, coolheadedness, AND core strength
(t'ai chi is less linear, more cyclical & rounded, per my impression)
or
pilates for core strength;
(though I don't know much about pilates)
you make the call
leinosaur
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sandstone_cowboy
Apr 13, 2004, 9:42 PM
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i have experience in kung fu and tai chi.. any of you who have tried these have any thoughts on how they compare with yoga? should i even bother taking it up? i am a little interested but since i work in a gym i already spend quite a lot of training time on the clock and am not sure if i want to add another activity to the mix .. : /
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nthusiastj
Apr 13, 2004, 9:52 PM
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I used to have a VCR tape that had yoga and pilates on it. It's cheaper and you can do it on your own schedule.
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moabbeth
Apr 13, 2004, 10:08 PM
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Karmic timing that this post was resurrected today of all days. Today my yoga instructor Andrea had some great handouts of the exact positions for the namascara A & B Sun Salutations. I know how to do them, but I grabbed a couple for my coworkers who have been wanting to get into yoga so have them on me now. Very descriptive with drawings/diagrams, easy to do at home. If anyone is interested, PM me a fax # I can send it to. No copyright on it, it's from a Yogi she studied under who put it together to be passed out into the world gratis.....so that the more people doing yoga, the happier and more relaxed the world will be :wink: .
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pyrosis
Apr 13, 2004, 10:33 PM
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>>>i have experience in kung fu and tai chi.. any of you who have tried these have any thoughts on how they compare with yoga? should i even bother taking it up?
Yes, you should "bother" taking up yoga (though it wont seem a bother once you do!) Tai chi has been for me excellent for mental and physical balance (great for runout slabs and footwork). Other martial arts have been beneficial in those ways and others as well. Yoga has similar calming mental effects to tai chi but strengthens and lengthens your muscles (especially core muscles) in a way that neither martial arts nor weight training has done for me, and its good for balance. It is also excellent antagonist muscle exercise to if you practice the more vigorous forms of yoga, such as ashtanga. Not to mention that it feels GREAT Just my $.02
Tavis
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pyrosis
Apr 13, 2004, 10:35 PM
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Also I must agree that taking a class with a good instructor is key to finding the benefits of yoga. If you just watch a video, you might think that you are performing poses correctly, but since you can't see yourself, you wont notice your own mistakes. I guess that makes $.04 now...
Tavis
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cantukeehen
Apr 16, 2004, 7:53 PM
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I am an Iyengar (Hatha) yoga instructor and have been climbing for a little while now. I took on climbing A LOT easier than most newcomers because of yoga...the balance, the breathwork, and the internal core strength it gives you. I would suggest yoga to any climbers out there! I also agree that before you get a video, go to a class so you do the poses correctly. Many climbing gyms are now offering yoga for climbers.
In fact, if any of you come to the RRG in Kentucky on Memorial Day weekend, I'll be teaching a yoga class for climbers! Come on out ya'll!
Oh and if you have any questions about yoga, I can probably help.
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climbingjunky
May 10, 2004, 5:19 AM
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I've started a yoga section in my forum, hopefully anyone interested can share their knowledge of yoga and it's application to climbing. Please feel free to stop by at www.rockclimber.ca to say hello :) .
`
Have a great day.
-CJ
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graniteavenger
May 15, 2004, 9:38 AM
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I picked up a great book called "Sleeping Bag Yoga" it is basically a short routine that you could do if travelling/camping and don't have much space (all can be done in a tent to save getting munched on by mosquito's :) ). The routine takes about a half hour to forty five minutes, and mainly stretches out your legs, back, and shoulders. If you do start doing yoga, keep at it for a while, it doesn't make big differences overnight, it was about 3 weeks until I started to notice any real improvments, but now I feel as flexible as Gumby!! :lol:
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andy_reagan
May 15, 2004, 2:03 PM
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In reply to: Karmic timing that this post was resurrected today of all days. Today my yoga instructor Andrea had some great handouts of the exact positions for the namascara A & B Sun Salutations. I know how to do them, but I grabbed a couple for my coworkers who have been wanting to get into yoga so have them on me now. Very descriptive with drawings/diagrams, easy to do at home. If anyone is interested, PM me a fax # I can send it to. No copyright on it, it's from a Yogi she studied under who put it together to be passed out into the world gratis.....so that the more people doing yoga, the happier and more relaxed the world will be :wink: .
Thats great, but really nothing can beat live instruction from a qualified teacher. But I encourage anyone who can't get actual instruction for whatever reason to seek something like what you have or a video of some sorts. Point reiterated: doing yoga at an actual studio with a good teacher will give you far better results.
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ingenious1
Jun 17, 2004, 1:07 PM
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yogajournal.com is an awesome website with tons of info and poses. if you interested in yoga you should definately check it out!
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jen_c
Jun 17, 2004, 3:06 PM
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Another good website is http://www.yogabasics.com
And I'll add my thumbs up to taking Yoga. I have been doing it for about 6 months now and definitely see an improvement in my climbing abilities.
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rck_iceclimber9
Jun 17, 2004, 3:06 PM
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i have hear that "power yoga" is really good for building flexibility, the core muscles, and balance.... it really focuses on them, and pilates i heard is pretty much the same thing as "power yoga"<<
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