The above extract is taken from an entertaining book called Real Men Do Yoga authored by John Capouya which I read last week. The book is an honest and refreshing insight into the physical benefits any man can derive from practising yoga on a regular basis.
An
obvious underlying message to the book is that practising yoga is not
just for the girls. The book is littered with testimonials from elite
male athletes including star NFL Running Backs, Receivers and Lineman,
Major League Baseball Pitchers, WWF Wrestlers, ATP Tennis Players and
Pro Tour Golfers who have all used yoga to great effect within their own
training programs. All these testimonials from high level athletes are
woven together with other success stories from regular guys holding down
regular jobs and still deriving great benefit from practising yoga.
As
I mention regularly on this blog, yoga has been a real game-changer in
my own training. After lifting a lot of weights through school and
university (without ever spending a second thinking about mobility) I
ended up with very limited flexibility. I was strong, but I could not
move. Over the last few years I have spent a great deal of time
addressing these flaws through dynamic joint mobility work and regular
yoga and the results have been very postive. Whilst still no yogi, my
flexibility and movement is vastly improved as is my balance and body
control. The carry-over to my strength training and sprint workouts has
been superb. More efficient movement, quicker recovery and fewer
injuries!
If
yoga sounds like something you could be interested in you could do a
lot worse than start with this book. It is perfect for the beginner,
easy to read with clear advice, instructions and illustrations (no yoga jargon or sanskrit names). The book also includes chapters on injury prevention and contains several sample workout routines of varying difficulty. It definitely has my
recommendation.
Every few weeks we create, publish and share the Gymless.com Newsletter packed full of information to help you improve your body composition, strength and fitness using bodyweight exercise. To subscribe simply enter your details below...