[Closed] Bike Specific - Yoga or Stretching links

And lower back, glutes and lower back, I just stood up quick, oooowwww!

Ryan Leech has a yoga for cycling dvd out which is supposed to be good, I'm considering it as I need to loosen my glutes. I get the feeling it might have a bit of a spiritual side to it as well though which could make for some hilarity.

Tight hips and glutes is likely the cause.

A tight muscle is a weak muscle - do pilates instead and strengthen the muscles. The reason they're getting tight is because they're weak.

A tight muscle is a weak muscle - do pilates instead and strengthen the muscles. The reason they're getting tight is because they're weak.

??? That is what is known as mis-information - else all that massage that pro cyclists , rugger players etc have would be because they are lazy at training.

I got the Yoga for Athletes book a while back which is pretty good though fairly in depth and there is some hippy stuff to wade through. It's embarrassing realising just how inflexible you get through cycling...

@The Beard, I have that book to, I find it a little tricky to get the positioning correct and hoped a video would help a little more.

Ideally I'd be able to get to a class but they all start to early or are on tues/thurs i.e training evenings.

??? That is what is known as mis-information - else all that massage that pro cyclists , rugger players etc have would be because they are lazy at training.

^That is what is known as mis-information.

glupton1976 - Member

??? That is what is known as mis-information - else all that massage that pro cyclists , rugger players etc have would be because they are lazy at training.

^That is what is known as mis-information.

A weak muscle is likely to be a tight muscle, and a tight muscle can often be caused by a referred stress from a weak antagonist muscle - but neither of those make all tight muscles weak muscles.

I'd seriously advise getting a roller and rolling your back and legs (especially ITB) every day.
Here's a vid:

Also, my Osteo says that cycling really shortens the hamstrings, which can then affect your back - so do hamstring stretches every morning and evening. That regime has certainly sorted me out.

I did a course through my club with one of the members who's a Yoga instructor. He did a cycling only course. Really enjoyed it and do the stretches after long rides.

The biggest key is getting the positions right. A dvd or book may give you an idea of what to do but it helps to actually have a teacher correct your posture.

If it's a good, cheap, easy fix you're after - I'd recommend downloading the yoga X video from the P90X workout too. Got some good core stuff in there. It's cheesey and american but combined with some core workouts (sit ups etc), it's very good.

If it's a good, cheap, easy fix you're after - I'd recommend downloading the yoga X video from the P90X workout too. Got some good core stuff in there. It's cheesey and american but combined with some core workouts (sit ups etc), it's very good.

Only download the P90X one if you have a high boredom threshold and a lot of spare time (it's 90 minutes long and pretty dull). That said, it is one heck of a yoga session if you put a lot into it! 🙂

I tend to use Horton's 1 to 1 yoga (Fountain of Youth) instead which covers all areas and is only 45 minutes long.

The P90X one is good if you're only doing it very occasionally, but it does drag after a couple of sessions. Fountain of Youth is much more manageable on a long term, regular basis.

All IMO of course! 🙂

Thanks, I was doing my hams a lot during the CX season training, I'm still stretching hams/glutes after every session but perhaps not as much as I was, only a few times instead of x3 or more for 30secs.

Thing is you probably go hardest when racing but how many people do you see stretching in the car park post race? even a warm down rides a bit OTT...I'm not keen on starting the trend but may have to bite the bullet....

Road.cc did a a series of 25 videos called [b]"Yoga For Cyclists"[/b] - might be worth taking a look at that?

I've recently had similar thoughts then stumbled across this women's cycling website which is great. I printed off the below and do them faithfully after each ride now, makes a huge difference.

http://totalwomenscycling.com/how-to/core-training-part-1-flexibility-1086/

http://totalwomenscycling.com/how-to/yoga-for-cyclists-part-two-581/

http://totalwomenscycling.com/how-to/yoga-for-cyclists-part-3-the-hips-769/

http://totalwomenscycling.com/how-to/yoga-for-cyclists-part-4-the-legs-1018/

http://totalwomenscycling.com/how-to/cyclestrong-2-introducing-the-front-plank-6704/

Thanks!

I started to think last year less is more, why stay out and do more junk miles on the bike when I should cut it half hour short and do post ride stuff like the above instead

it might be good to do a local search for a yoga class for runners and cyclists, I found one near me and use it to unfurl the knots biking has given me to help climbing.

I have the Ryan Leech series. I think its really good. He has designed the stretches really carefully to avoid injuring a typical tight cyclist, whereas most yoga DVDs go quite intense which could injure a 'normal' person not used to yoga.

I also rate the following very highly:

Jill Miller Post-Athletic Stretch
Yoga for Cyclists (Andria Baldovin)
Yoga for Runners (by Tania, Yogaland) which is a phone app.

I tend to use one of each of those three in rotation after rides.

I've been doing Indonesian yoga for a couple of years now. Not one muscle escapes...

http://www.woma.tv/movies/3K/indonesian-yoga.html

Not cyclist specific but consider an overall power yoga system.. that way nothing gets left out and you develop flexibility AND strength...

Some thing like this

If your riding that regularly then one of the best things is a sports massage! I keep trying to persuade Mr MC but he is just stubborn and won't go. They really get rid of knots and painful bits particularly the tight hamstring behind the knee that a lot of cyclists get, that is REALLY REALLY hard to stretch yourself, you can see in the links they use a yoga belt (or towel) but most effective is to have someone there pushing it gently. I always feel wonderful after a sports massage I can move, stretch and legs feel beautiful and relaxed!

Yeah I do the towel one on the hamstrings, it does feel so much better with someone giving your heal a slight push though.

Thanks for all of these, off out for a training session now, I'll give a few a go when I get back!

Thanks, I was doing my hams a lot during the CX season training

Strengthen them - you'll have a muscle imbalance which is causing your hamstrings to be tight and weak. You can stretch them as much as you like, but until you strengthen your hamstrings etc you will see very little benefit.

Trust me, I'm a professional who works in elite sport.

Trust me, I'm a professional who works in elite sport.

Technically, I'm a professional who works in cutting edge surgery (excuse the pun), but I don't even have a first aid certificate 🙂

Dammit - busted. 😀