Client Adds Yoga to Thrive as an Athlete
John was seeking to book private yoga sessions because he was tired of feeling frequent upper back pain. He is a health nut who loves to be active and find ways to optimize his body and live his best life. Within a week, you can find him playing tennis, lifting weights, jogging, competing in home Peloton cycling classes, and practicing yoga. It’s not uncommon to hear that he did all those activities in one day!
In efforts to solve his low back pain issue, John saw one of the top specialists who teaches clients the Mckenzie Method to help rehabilitate their body. I’m pretty impressed because since the intensive rehab training has finished, he is committed to practicing the two main rehab exercises daily.
A couple of times this year, he has been stopped with pain while performing basic daily tasks— getting on a lounge chair, sleeping, enjoying an early morning yawn & stretch, and flying in an airplane. He said he feels “bulletproof” during the periods of consistent (3x a week) yoga practice and realizes the benefits when he has these small, but painful, back pains during the week that he’s not consistent due to out of town travel.
While it is a luxury to have these private yoga sessions (three times a week, every week, every month), it also has become a necessity. The value it has added to life, in terms of work productivity and life enjoyment, keeps these private yoga sessions on the calendar and are planned months in advance.
What do we do in the yoga session?
-Variations of cobra and upward dog (as this exercise is highly recommended with the McKenzie Method) to bring movement in the spine.
–Downward dog— this pose lets him stretch overly tight calves and lets me review his body tightness. Some days I notice a difference in tightness between the right and left side of the body (and this pose lets me see that).
–High Lunge— a personal favorite because most people are tight in their hip flexors. If you’re a cyclist (he is), or you spend majority of your day sitting, then you can benefit from breathing in fresh air to the hip flexors and psoas.
–Half Moon pose— This pose is saved for Power days. Let the sweat pour down as the yogi focuses on stability, engaging the muscles surrounding the hip (gluteus maximus), and opening up the other hip. There’s a huge sense of accomplishment to experience growth and stability in this pose.
What frequency is best?
Three times a week. This helps you build mind/body connection as well as consistency of movement. With this particular person, we are practicing three times a week. I see a huge difference in clients where sessions are three times a week consistently compared to two. Some benefits: attention, variety, accountability, and consistency.
As mentioned above, I’m able to observe and modify the practice based off where I see visual tightness in my client (compared to him verbally telling me). Surprisingly, I noticed his body balance before he felt it.
Are you eager to add personalized in-home yoga sessions into your schedule? Enjoy the luxury of a program individualized for you with convenience of location and time. Contact Emily to book your introductory session.