Some Feedback from Students

Ben   I found yoga relaxing and the stretches allowed me to touch my toes in just 4 weeks. It also relieved stress and helped me to sleep. It gave me much more flexibility.  

Lewis   The yoga sessions were extremely enjoyable and I didn’t realize how un-flexible I really was until I took part in this. It has benefited me in that not only does it help me relax but it helps me to focus and concentrate on my breathing during racing and in everyday life. The stretches help to loosen my muscles before races and they can be completed easily at home and on the track before competitions. I would like to carry on yoga to learn more about my body and mind and ways in which I can improve my fitness.  

Kwasi   I think that yoga was good for me because it helped me take note on how I breathe whilst doing anything. Also it gave me some new ways to stretch to reduce my injuries and I think that it made me more flexible.  

James Even with only a limited number of sessions I have noticed many positive changes in my athletics because of my yoga; these being both physical and mental. Yoga has improved my overall flexibility and taken it to a whole new level. This has enabled me to increase my stride length and stay clear of injuries, which has been a problem of mine over the past few seasons. Mentally yoga had taught all of us how to stay focused both in preparation for a competition and training. This has helped my self and training partners to stay focused and concentrate on the task ahead, a tool that is essential for any athlete. Finally I have found yoga to be a great way to cross train being beneficial and also enjoyable. I have seen significant improvements in both my self and training partners since taking part in yoga and my views are shared by them all.  

Alexander I feel that we have all benefited from yoga in different ways. I personally benefited mainly in my flexibility which will help my running by lengthening my stride - consequently improving my times which has been proven by already running a PB. Yoga has also taught me how to focus on my breathing which increases my pain resilience in training and competing. A very important improvement - I have been able to get in the “zone” of a race and concentrate 100% on my race. Yoga has taught me breathing techniques and various effective stretching which I have greatly benefited from.  

David   The yoga was great. The atmosphere during the class was light and unserious - however it was still majorly productive. The whole experience was new to us so there was a lot of laughing but the instructor didn’t mind and often joined in or added to it. Because of some of the crazy practices and exercises we were asked to, a bond formed among the group, making us feel more like a team. As well as this 'mental' benefit there were numerous others which would in the long term lead to a squad of successful athletes. For exampl; in the 4 weeks I did the yoga I found I was sleeping better, giving me more energy for training. I also gained a much more positive attitude and more self confidence. In terms of physical changes, I have found my self more flexible, my core stability has improved and breathing has become stronger. This was all achieved in a short 4 weeks.

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Hi Matt, hope you enjoyed you holiday and did lots of diving.
 
Just to let you know the yoga breathing went down very well with the NLP group!  My trainer was most impressed with how I presented it and made the notes, and he has asked for a copy to circulate to the group. 
 
So I just wanted to say thank you for your assistance.
 
There was another guy who was modelling balance and they were most impressed that I could already stand on one leg with the other leg out straight without falling over!  All those tree postures have obviously stayed with me!  I also managed to do a headstand!
 
Thanks again, take care
 
Helen