Class Review - Yoga for Lifting

10th January

If you’re an office worker and a Gymbox member, you probably live life a bit like I do – very early morning starts, sat at the desk all day, on the phones and texting on your mobile. I bet you’re a bit stiff in the neck, in the back, and the hip flexors are quite tight. I bet you often think: “you know, I should do more stretching, maybe a bit of yoga”. But when it comes down to the next gym session, and it’s a choice between chest, legs or yoga, we all know what it’s going to be. Because every day is international chest day, right?

But then Gymbox, in their wisdom, know this. So they have brought us Yoga for Lifters. I’ve done a bit of yoga in my time to try and ease up those stiff joints, but it never quite hit the right spots. I always felt as though the class wasn’t quite right for me. However, it turns out I love Yoga for Lifters. It’s designed specifically to help strengthen the key parts of your lifting, which needs help and to mobilise those areas that are causing you issues. For me, it’s the upper back and the hip flexors. And we hit them nicely.

The session mixes Vinyasa yoga with more specific, weight lifting movements to achieve improved mobility, and better lifting. Beginning with a basic sun salutation, it moves into amended yoga poses which use a neutral spine to replicate weight lifting muscle activation. This means a greater focus on a stronger core, and maintaining yoga poses in what I would describe as a strength position, rather than a stretching position. Suffice to say, it burns!

The test for me after was, do I feel better for it, and can I feel the areas that needed to be targeted? The answer was unequivocally yes. I felt it between my shoulders blades, in my hip flexors and hamstrings. These are the exact places where I have issues, which the instructor also believes are the main issues for 90% of the lifting community.

Yoga for Lifters launches in January and I’ll be making it a regular addition to my training. Oh, and if you do come, prepare to sweat and prepare for your muscle to burn. It is Yoga for Lifters after all. You didn’t think it would be easy, did you?

Improve your range of movement and mobility at the following clubs:

Holborn, Tuesday @ 12:15pm
Bank, Tuesday @ 12:30pm
Westfield Stratford, Tuesday @ 6:15pm
Westfield London, Wednesday @ 5:45pm
Farringdon, Thursday @ 12:00pm
Covent Garden, Thursday @ 1:00pm
Victoria, Friday @ 6:15pm

Or book here

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