Introducing the new “Yoga For Recovery” videos!

Good stuff! There isn’t a precise prescription I can give you here for how many times to practice Wheel but what I will say is that it takes months and not weeks to make big improvements. And huge amounts of patience! Some time in Wheel a couple of times a week should be fine but also working on the elements of the pose independently—spinal mobility, shoulder strength and mobility, hip flexor flexibility, balance…There’s a lot to that pose!

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Hi @abicarver! Thank you so much for everything you do and especially for reading this. Here’s my little story and how you’ve changed it for good. As an amateur competitive cyclist, I’ve endured what I’ve come to define as “Monday headaches.” This has been going on for many years with lots of trials into nutrition, bike fit, different levels of fitness, etc. Back in January 2020, I joined The Sufferfest primarily to take advantage of yoga and strength routines as part of a complete rehabilitation process (i.e. with doctor’s approval) from a surgery I had in March 2019. I had a total gastrectomy (i.e. removal of entire stomach) as a result of stomach cancer that was treated with chemo before and after March’s surgery. Anyway, my point is that I introduced yoga and eventually picked up on “Neck and Upper Back Recovery” as my medicine to combat the “Monday headaches.” I’ve come to realize (I think) that these headaches are “tension” related as they usually happen after intense sessions on the weekend, specifically after “race” days. As a result of COVID-19 and cancellation of races, I haven’t been able to test my headaches on Monday after races, which is when I think I can generate the most tension, but I’m confident I am in the right track. I welcome any feedback and suggestions on similar routines I should concentrate. Thank you very much!!! Jorge

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Thanks - I did the Yoga badge earlier in the year and it felt fantastic. Looking forward to trying these out.

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Hi Abi,

Thank you for all the great yoga flow. Like many others I see and feel the difference of consistently integrating yoga in my training.

Do you have any recommendations regarding the different yoga categories offered in the sufferfest app and when to choose or not a category over another to maximise the benefits? morning, before or after training,… ( ex flexibility is more beneficial after a workout? And core before some type of workout but after …?) Maybe it does not matter but curious to get your opinion

Thank you,

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Thank you for sharing your experience. That’s excellent to hear and makes perfect sense. We have two new Recovery videos that you can add to your arsenal—one is for the neck and shoulders and the other is for the thoracic (mid back). These sequences are slow and steady, giving you the chance to breathe deeply and intensify the release. I look forward to hearing how you find them.

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That’s awesome. Let us know how you get on!

It’s a great question. Timing is crucial. Flexibility and Recovery sessions are best practiced after your ride or in the evenings, Strength and Stability in the morning or before your workout to activate key muscle groups, and Mobility before a ride to warm up or on your off-day for overall conditioning.

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Got to say that I started Yoga at the first UK lock down but found 45m to much of a commitment in one hit. I am now doing 3 - 4 every week of the Suff / Abi 15m ones, they just work for me. My knee has not felt this good in a very long time Glad there are some new ones now. Will go check them out.

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Fantastic Taz. You’ll never look back! Well, that is my hope. Let me know if you have any questions.

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Abi rocks! As I continue my life long goal to perform a reasonably recognizable Downward Dog, I look forward to all the videos and sequences.

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I have absolutely no doubt you’ll get there Barry…one day! My first teacher always told me my stance was too short and that advice that has served me well.

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Hi Abi,

Thanks again for being available for our questions.

When we identify a unbalanced between side of the same move, should we stay in this pose longer to correct it or only in time it will correct it self?

Also, I have been diagnosed with an couchalandria butt(glutes) do you have suggestions yoga workouts or poses to help fire then correctly (running and cycling) and build there strength?

Thanks

Yanick

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Great questions!

If you do notice an area of your body where one side is tighter than the other, it’s definitely ok to linger more on that side. Even though this imbalance may never be entirely corrected, it’s better to move in that direction.

Pre-Workout Activation is the best video for activating the posterior chain and my favourite poses are Bridges—lifting and lowering the glutes and squeezing at the top, Locusts—lifting and lowering and Spider Planks.

And nothing builds strength and power in the glutes better than kettlebell swings!

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I have a very weak upper body strength not helped by previously mentioned rotator cuff problem. Pleased to see that I have Upper Body Strength yoga session scheduled for Friday, I’m hoping it will help me.
I’m going to give it a try today and wondered if I don’t find it too strenuous I can do it more than once a week?
Cheers
Simon.

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Good question. This session progresses from gentle through to challenging poses for the upper body—so be careful not to take it too fast if you’re currently injured. You can certainly repeated it a couple of times a week, but modify any poses that seem too advanced for your rotator cuff. Much of yoga involves weight-bearing through the upper body, so many of the other sessions should also help. Simple poses like Plank and Side Plank will really help to re-build strength over time.

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Hi Abi, my main focus on cycling for next season will be Time Trialling but I find it hard to maintain the tuck position and find it quite painful at times. My question is, if I were to dedicate 30 minutes to do 2 of your videos per week which 2 would you recommend to help my shoulder and upper back flexibility. I will of course still continue to do some of the other videos, mainly hip and hamstring work etc. Thanks in advance.

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Ah! This is an excellent question. Customisation is so important. The 2 videos that will work perfectly together for improving mobility in your thoracic, upper back and shoulders are Scapular Stability followed by Thoracic Recovery. You could also pair Shoulder Stability with Neck And Upper Back Recovery. I’d love to hear how you get on.

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Thanks very much for your reply Abi, I’ll definitely try to incorporate both of those pairs of videos into my weekly routine. At the minute it’s a struggle to hold the TT position for 10 mile TT’s, but eventually hope to work my way up to 25 mile TT’s (1 hour approx) next season. :grinning:

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You got this!

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Hi @abicarver, great work on the videos! :+1: I’m still pretty new to the Sufferest and I didn’t have a chance to try all of them yet, at the moment I’m doing mostly Pre-Ride and Post-Workout / Stretching after Suffering routines.
By any chance could you recommend any of your routines for strengthening Achilles tendon? That’s my weak link when it comes to longer rides (200 km or more), especially when I ride alone (steady tempo with little breaks) with plenty of climbing. Pretty much that’ the only thing that stops me from doing ultra distance rides. I must admit, I did very little stretching (and no yoga) in the past :zipper_mouth_face:

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