The world Number one player in terms of rankings in tennis and the winner of a number of grand slams has attributed his success and fitness to his practice of Yoga, meditation and a vegan diet. The time of Novak Djokovic’s life that can be considered as one of bad form was used by him in practicing yoga and meditation to get back into shape physically and mentally.
Tennis like any competitive sport demands a high level of physical, mental and emotional strength from the players. Almost all players apart from playing their regular professional sport and practicing for it day and night also employ other strategies to keep themselves fit and agile for competitions that test the real mettle of a player.
Yoga has been around for ages however a very people acknowledge the benefits of yoga. From the few who acknowledge its benefits do not practice it regularly due to laziness, procrastination and constantly doubting the results they might achieve once they start working on it regularly. However a select few who make Yoga and meditation a part of their life reach the zeniths of their careers like Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.
The importance of Yoga is professional sports is quite deep rooted since most of the coaches and professional trainers swear by the benefits of Yoga. Yoga stresses upon breathing exercises a lot which increases the stamina and has a deep impact on the performance of an athlete on the ground. Deep breathing allows athletes to focus on the ground and develop longer concentrated focused spans while playing.
Yoga exercises if practices in letter and spirit in a regular manner will strengthen the core muscles of a human being. The slow focused movements help one build resistance in a much better manner as compared to machine based exercises. Core muscles are the main muscles that will help a sports person to deliver his or her best on the field. Flexibility of the body is another aspect that is improved by yoga. Flexibility is at the core of success for any sporting event. Flexibility of the body and flexibility of the mind both are sharpened by yoga and meditation.
Yoga postures are such if practiced regularly and properly will help improve the balance of the body. Generally balance exercises are overlooked by sports persons which might result in injuries and deformities at a later stage. While doing weight training aerobics or other exercises the focus is on a particular set of muscles which might get developed and strengthened however the other muscle groups that might get ignored will create problem while playing. Yoga removes this problem and helps to develop all muscles in a balanced manner.
Cross training for any sporting event has become the norm and yoga fits in quite easily and creates a balanced human body that will be able to beat anyone in a completion that the sports person is training for. Holistic practice of Yoga has helped quite a many athletes and sports people around the world. However yoga should not be confused with a group of exercises and asanas, it is a lifestyle which needs to be followed in letter and spirit then only you can expect the results which has helped create achievers around the world.
Author bio
Naomi is passionate towards learning yoga techniques and has 5 years of experience in teaching yoga. Presently she holds yoga classes in Cucamonga and pens down her thoughts on the benefits of including yoga as well as meditation in your lifestyle.