yoga on rest days of lifting

89nunu · January 2014

I have been playing with the idea of integrating yoga into my weekly routine to help my mobility for a while but finally want to actually do it. I would like to add it on my rest days between my split lifting routine. But I have no clue about yoga, so I could really do with some help.

What type of yoga should I do?
I don't want anything that burns to many calories or is incredibly physically demanding cause I'm bulking and i don't want to risk slowing progress or having to eat a ton more food.

How often and how long?
Would a very short routine once a week already help? Or better 1 hour 3 times a week? I lift tue/wed/fri/sat, so yoga on sun and thu?

Has anyone got any good tips for routines?
I searched around online but as I know so very little about the matter I feel kind if lost... I got the p90x discs from a friend but heard that the yoga on there is really hard and demanding so I am unsure whether that would be for me...

Tl;dr

I want to try yoga but have no clue, I need your help.

edwardkim85 · January 2014

28/m . 245 lbs. Started yoga to improve mobility while doing crossfit(for power lifts/olympic lifts)

Do NOT do power yogas on your off days, or right after a hard workout. It's a workout itself.

As per regular yoga, you can do it on your off days.

My coach, who is a professional crossfit athlete and previous olympic strength coach(usa) told me he did Yoga 3 times/week ontop of extra mobility work. It helped every aspect of his lifts(apprently).

I did it twice/week for one month and so far I've noticed good results on shoulder mobility.

My downward dog got better but I still can't hold it for a long time... don't know how that position is for 'relaxing' lol.

mikenelson20 · January 2014

There is a yoga from Tony Hortons One on One video series that I do. It is called the Fountain of Youth. I don't know much about yoga myself so I don't know what you classify as. It is only 45 minutes long and it seems to be a half work half stretch/relax video.

Doinitin2015 · January 2014

Yoga is amazing, I started yoga about 2 years ago and fell in love with it but I myself prefer the slower yoga that also relaxes you and I can only say for myself how great it makes you feel, it is hard t explain to anyone but when you found the right instructor for you boy it is very addicting. For home videos I have been told Rodney Yee or if you go on line and look at you tube see what you can find, but I would suggest looking for a basic one that really shows you the correct posture as it is so important.....good luck!

89nunu · January 2014

Thanks for the reply!
I didn't plan on doing power yoga, the 'relaxing' body breaking stretches will be quite enough I think...

I will check out the people you mentioned and see whether I can keep up with what they do.

So should I do it once, twice, three times a week for optimal results?
And start with a short workout or go straight in for an hour?
And what terms do I have to use to find a workout? I tried yoga stretching but it just came up with lots if office related spine routines...

yogicarl · January 2014

If you are looking for a gentler form of Yoga then I would look up "Restorative" or maybe "Yin" yoga styles and why not do 30-60 minutes of it every day, not just off days as the restorative forms will help you stretch out and relax your worked out muscles after your lifting and help to lessen any DOMS you might otherwise feel.

Restorative yoga, 30 minutes, every day.

30 minutes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2hkO5olZAg
60 minutes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGLvtWYcuuE

edit: another 60 minute session:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0SurRXla4U

89nunu · January 2014

Yogicarl: thanks a million!!!

I will definitely check those out!!!

TheDarkestStar87 · January 2014

My instructor always says it's frequency that matters, not duration, so I'd say go for short but more regular sessions. If you have a smartphone/tablet, have a browse of what apps are around, there are some good ones that are relatively cheap and have videos and explanations for each of the poses and will calculate you a programme based on what you want to achieve (relaxation/streching/strength etc.) and for how long you want to do it.

toddis · January 2014

My favorite yoga:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZV7dbfiKODs

What carl said, go for yin. At the end of the day yin is just stretching with animal names though =P

yogicarl · January 2014

Yes - better to do 30 minutes every day than 60 minutes every two or three days. It's a gentle but persistent progression.

Muddy_Yogi · January 2014

Doyogawithme.com has a HUGE selection of great Hath yoga videos. I highly recommend you try them out. I do it at least 3 times a week for flexibility, strength and calming.

Huffdogg · January 2014

I've always told people to check out the Sun Salutation sequence to start with. I think it's a pretty solid starter sequence.

Fullsterkur_woman · January 2014

I do hatha yoga once a week, generally 75 minutes. I did a 45 minute vinyasa class this week though, and I kinda like that. It's not really for beginners though.

I already do half an hour of mobility/rolling work every day anyway, so I don't feel the need to do "formal" yoga practice. It's my practice; if I want to do it once a week, I can. So I guess what I'm saying, OP, is that there's no one right answer.

Leaping_Lemur · January 2014

If you're new to yoga than a class would really help, because an instructor can provide feedback on your postures. (No point doing them wrong and getting used to it.) However, if that's not feasible, or once you have, I've found dozens of free yogo workouts (mostly audio and some video) at yogadownload.com. You can search by difficulty, so I would recommend that beginner ones. Most of the free ones are 20 minutes long. Also, yoga journal has a 21 day yoga challenge. I've just started it, and they email you a link to a free video every day. But you can save them and do them whenever you want.

I've done yoga for 9 straight days now, and am really enjoying it. I do it one lift days as well, as a warmup or cool down. On yogadownload.com, there's an energizing heart flow routine with Jackie that makes a fantastic warmup before lifting, in my opinion. Really warms up the legs and upper body like you wouldn't believe.

Lesa_Sass · January 2014

I agree the sun salutations are a great place to start. I also agree with the statement it is better to do 30 minutes of yoga every day than one hour every other day.

Yoga is not just about stretching, it is about control over the mind and body. Pranayama and meditation are as important as the poses, if you have time to research and learn about those two, I highly recommend them as well.

I am fortunate to be able to take private yoga classes in India and it has changed my life in ways I can not explain, mind, body and spirit. I also have chronic back pain and it has helped tremendously.

pinkiemarie252 · January 2014

I really like the Daily Yoga apps. They have usually 15 to 20 minute programs designed for beginners to intermediates. You can start with the easy routines and work your way up. They have routines for different parts of your body and sun salutations if you want to work on a certain area. I'm not sure about IOS but it's free for Android.

elyelyse · January 2014

http://www.doyogawithme.com/yoga_classes

free video classes...I've done 5 so far and they have all been excellent. you can select level (beginner, intermediate, advanced), style (Hatha, Vinyasa, restorative, gentle, for runners, for strength etc) and by length (under 20 min, 20-40, etc).

89nunu · January 2014

Thanks guys!!

Looks like I got a lot to research

yoga on rest days of lifting

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