Lots of great things have happened in San Francisco so it was quite a daunting experience for us to go there to try to make our mark. Would we be able to compete with, and maybe outshine, the achievements of Apple, Google and Facebook? Well, no – probably not. But we were determined to give it a go!

First things first: this was our first conference in the US and we have to say that we were so warmly welcomed. The people were all so friendly – we couldn’t have wished for a better reception. For us as individuals and for YSS as a whole.

Our first encounter with American hospitality was at the famous Berkeley campus at the University of California. We talked to a few coaches there and had the opportunity to look at part of their Olympic training areas. While they said that some athletes already practised yoga, the coaches were particularly impressed with the fact that YSS techniques sit at the heart of an athlete’s training programme. It’s what we snappily call “Athlete Centred, Yoga Driven.”

We also met a few people in the sports medicine field who confirmed that there’s definitely a shift in the way that Yoga is perceived in sport. But while athletes were practicing, and yoga teachers were delivering, it’s clear that something more specialist and specific is needed. Which is exactly where we come in.

Further confirmation of yoga’s place in athletic training came on the first day of the conference by a scientist at Berkeley. She felt that YSS principles should be brought into an educational context – incorporated into the curriculum – to provide sport-specific yoga training at a grassroots level. Our timing, she thought, was spot on.

The three days of the conference were a whirlwind of activity. The place was buzzing with excitement about yoga and all its possibilities and it was great to be surrounded by so many like-minded and enthusiastic people.

We met scientists, athletes, coaches, yogis, techies and all sorts of different people – and all saying a big yes to YSS!

Hayley Winter, YSS director, says: “The bottom line is that yoga is now accepted in the mainstream. We’re hearing that both in the UK and the US there’s a genuine demand for the benefits of yoga to be taught, within an academic context, in colleges and universities. This is a massive shift and possibly one of the most radical injury prevention protocols ever.”

In all, we’d like to say a big thank you to San Francisco and to everyone at the Yoga Journal Conference. We had a fantastic time and had an experience we’ll never forget. We’ll definitely be back!

If you’d like to be a part of this exciting, and massive, change – why not apply to join us and become a Yoga Sports Coach? Our next course starts in May. More information can be found here. If you require further details, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

As keen readers of our blog will know, we’re really looking forward to taking part in the San Francisco Yoga Journal Conference. Not only is it a fantastic opportunity for us to talk about what we do at Yoga Sports Science, it’s also a great way for us to meet new friends in the world of yoga.

Our director, Hayley Winter, will be there and will be reporting back from the conference. If you’re going to be there, why not pop along to our stand and say hello? We’d love to meet you.

We’re hoping to film from the event and will upload some videos. In the meantime, here’s a video we found from last year’s event – it’s not ours, but it does a good job of giving an insight into what it’s all about:

The Conference also gives you the perfect opportunity to find out more about becoming a Yoga Sports Coach. More information here.

The San Francisco Yoga Journal Conference runs from January 12^th-16^th. See you there!

To download your copy of the 2012 Prospectus, simply click here.

And to find out how becoming a Yoga Sports Coach could make all the difference to your career and your life, click here.

From January 12th – 16th, Yoga Sports Science is exhibiting at its first US conference, the San Francisco Yoga Journal Conference. As you might imagine, we’re really excited!

Its a great time for our first visit to the US. We already have a number of American students training with us to be Yoga Sports Coaches and in the last few months we’ve noticed increasing interest in what we do from the other side of ‘the pond’.

A great opportunity to discover how you could become a Yoga Sports Coach

Our Director, Hayley Winter, is looking forward to welcoming you to our San Francisco stand. If you’re interested in becoming a Yoga Sports Coach then come and talk to us. Or click here to find out more about this exciting career opportunity.

And please come and see us if you want to know about applying Sport-Specific Yoga techniques to maximize athletic performance and minimize injury. If you’re from an academic background, we’d also be very happy to tell you more about our pioneering techniques.

Hayley will be in San Francisco from January 10th. If you’d like to have a chat with her, then get in touch to set up a meeting. Or just come along to our stand and say hello.

PS We’re delighted that our first visit is to such an iconic city as San Francisco, in a state known as one of the key hubs of modern Yoga. In fact, to find out more about California’s role in the development of Yoga, Hayley has been reading ‘The Great Oom – The Improbable Birth of Yoga in America’ by Robert Love. Recommended reading for anyone interested in Yoga!

The San Francisco Yoga Journal Conference 2012 will be held at the Hyatt Regency, 5 Embarcadero Center, San Francisco, California, USA 94111 from January 12-16th 2012.

With the end of another exciting year for Yoga Sports Science getting closer, we decided to contact some of our recent graduates to see how things are going for them. This week we talked to Level 1 Yoga Sports Coach, Paula Rastrick.

YSS: Hi Paula. What are you up to?

PR: Hi! I’m currently working in the English Premier League, as a Yoga Sports Coach for a rather famous club. It’s very exciting!

YSS: Great! How did that come about?

PR: Well, before my Yoga Sports Science training I was initially employed in Feb 2010 by the Strength and Conditioning Coach to work solely with 15 year old school boys. The coach felt the lads lacked balance and wanted a Yoga teacher to come work with them.

YSS: This was before you started training with us?

PR: Yes. At that point I’d only recently completed my Yoga Teacher Training and had limited teaching experience with willing adults, let alone a pack of adolescent boys who clearly did not want to do Yoga! In their words, “It’s for girls”!

YSS: Oh dear. That’s often the perception isn’t it? How did you overcome that initial resistance?

PR: I vividly remember the first day. I was so nervous standing in front of 12 lads. I remember wondering what on earth I was doing. Luckily I’d met YSS Director Hayley Winter when she taught anatomy and biomechanics on my Yoga Teacher Training Course. She was able to give some advice and pointers from her time working in football. Without that my career could have easily taken another direction – straight back out the door!

YSS: Yes, Hayley had been working in football for some time then. And she’d come across similar perception gaps many times. What was her advice?

PR: Invaluable! She told me to be patient and work on gaining trust and respect. My first mistake would have been to try and work them hard, and in truth they would have hated it.

YSS: So, taking Hayley’s advice on board, how did you approach it?

PR: I started slowly. Very slowly! I worked hard to build trust and respect. Trust is a massive thing in football, specifically when working with groups of players. Football in the premiership is tough, there are tough people that you meet along the way and becoming fully integrated in the football world takes time, patience, and a sense of humour! It’s about being low key but quietly confident, without arrogance. And it’s about having awareness of ‘ego’ – yours and others around you!

YSS: Indeed. So when did you decide to do the Level 1 Yoga Sports Coach course?

PR: I always knew after meeting Hayley that I’d do the YSS Course. It seemed the perfect thing. Now I’ve just graduated from the Level 1 course and am fully qualified as a Yoga Sports Coach. I completed my research using a young Goalkeeper at the club as a case study. I now plan to go on and complete Level 2, and probably even Level 3!

YSS: That’s good to hear. What benefits did you get from training with us?

PR: The YSS Course has given me so much! But I’d say the most important elements  would be the YSS rationale and understanding of how to lesson plan using that rationale. That’s invaluable. Oh, and the techniques! What the hell would I have been doing next season without all those techniques to work with? Boredom is a major factor with football players and training – you have to keep it fresh and exciting! Finally, the YSS Course has given me confidence to keep delivering exciting, innovative, and varied sessions within a safe, structured framework. Knowing I’m supported by a network of other professional coaches that I can share experiences with and continue to learn from is a great feeling.

YSS: How’s your career at the club progressing now?

PR: From that first day back in February 2010 my role within the players training regime has gradually increased. I’m now employed by the club, and run yoga sessions every day, with various groups of players starting from 14 years of age right through to the First Team! It’s challenging at times but extremely exciting. I love it!

YSS: Brilliant! Well done! We wish you good luck with it, and look forward to seeing you on the Level 2 course in the New Year. Happy Holidays!

PR: You will indeed! And the same to you!

At the end of last month we took a trip to London for The Yoga Show 2011 at Olympia. It was a beautiful day for our journey, and a great day once we got set up inside.

We had such a great time catching up with our students and graduates, and met so many interesting people interested in studying with us, we’re going to do it more often. So in the New Year we’re off to California for the San Francisco Yoga Journal Conference!

We’ll post more news about our visit Stateside soon. We’re looking forward to meeting many of our American friends from Twitter and Facebook while we’re there. In the meantime, especially for them, Happy Thanksgiving!

Perhaps it’s not so surprising when you take recent media attention around Yoga in sport – particularly football – into account. Premiership players and teams are almost falling over themselves to talk about how they use Yoga in their training. It’s really great for those of us working in the sector, and to be honest, about time too.

But it’s not all about football. Recently I’ve had the pleasure of working with Triathlete, Mike Jubb. He decided to explore how Yoga might give him the edge in competition by working with me, employing Yoga Sports Science’s unique Sports-Specific Yoga techniques.

Mike kindly agreed to talk to me about his new Yoga practice and it’s effects on his athletic performance for this piece. He had this to say:

“One thing that I’ve been doing since July is a weekly Yoga session. Now it could just be coincidence but all my good performances have occurred since I started this weekly session with Dezi. Far from the lentil-eating, incense burning, ‘look at me I’m a tree’, impression I may have previously had of people who practice Yoga, Dezi takes a more sport focussed approach to her sessions with me, and after an initial assessment to determine my ‘strengths’ (I think the list was short) and ‘development areas’ (several pages full methinks) she has put together Sport-Specific Yoga exercises focussed on developing areas to improve my sporting performance.

And I’ve got to say that at this stage I’m impressed. From a basic ‘downward dog’ that stretches areas in the back of my legs and glutes that I didn’t even know existed, to wrist stretches that have me putting my hands in positions that frankly I’m not sure they should go in, the 1hr weekly session seems to be doing me some good. I now have much more control over my Yoga movements than I had when I started, not to mention the accompanying performances I have achieved.”

As always, it’s great to see an athlete getting benefit from Sport-Specific Yoga training. And it’s wonderful to hear Mike’s preconceptions about Yoga – certainly not groundless – dispelled by the reality of his Yoga Sports Science training. Spiritual development and relaxation are important parts of Yoga, but at Yoga Sports Science we know it can achieve so much more.

Dezi

Dezi graduates as a fully fledged Yoga Sports Coach this Saturday. Congratulations to both Dezi and our other graduate Yoga Sports Coaches!

By Hayley Winter
Director, Yoga Sports Science

David Beckham’s recent announcement that he’d like to continue playing at the highest level comes as no surprise. The 36 year old footballer has been at the top of his game since the age of 17, and doesn’t see any reason why he can’t keep going. It seems his true goal may even be to lead Team GB at London 2012.

But many pundits, and even ex-footballers, think he’s finished.

The level of skepticism surrounding Beckham’s physical fitness suggests many think he wouldn’t be match fit to represent his country at the 2012 Olympics. A serious achilles injury last year adds to concerns regarding his structural fitness.

And, of course, he’s 36. To many that makes him fit for one thing: retirement.

I’ve heard this kind of thing again and again. But my experience has proved otherwise. With the right training regime, athletes can keep participating at the highest level for much longer than many think.

Extending Careers with Sport-Specific Yoga 

Several years ago I was asked by a club to provide Sport-Specific Yoga techniques to some older players in its First Squad. The club had been experiencing a high level of injuries early in the season, and wanted to put an injury prevention protocol into place to help support players over the long season ahead.

My initial intervention with the senior players was to provide both mobility and stability training, as well as help them develop respiratory strength. Although it soon became apparent that not only were the players physically benefiting from the training, but they were also developing a more positive mindset. Overall they were experiencing more agility, greater reaction times, as well as improved endurance. They even commented that they were experiencing the same level of fitness they’d enjoyed far earlier in their careers.

This is what the club’s physiotherapist, Matt Byard, had to say:

“Ipswich Town FC have benefited hugely from the formal Yoga training offered by Hayley Winter. Her very careful Yoga tuition paid a very important role in injury prevention for a very important group of players. The players will happily describe the merits of Yoga training and its role in prolonging careers. Often those players have continued Yoga as part of their training routine”

Over the years I’ve been asked to apply these Yoga Sports Science techniques at a number of different football clubs, as well as to the Football Association. In two cases. senior players who’d consistently applied Sport-Specific Yoga techniques in their training went on to win Player of the Year awards. Proof that it doesn’t matter how old you are, if you’re prepared to try a more sustainable training method it can bring long term performance gains.

And the bonus is, if this kind of training is introduced to younger players, it can help keep them structurally fit and injury free throughout their careers.

Rock ‘N’ Roll

One of the main techniques I use with players is called ‘Rock n’ Roll’. It’s one of the most effective techniques we use at Yoga Sports Science. Used as a low-level intensity technique to help mobilize the spine, it’s great for relieving lower back pain.

This is a technique that can also be used in any sport, at any age, and if you spend too much time at your computer, it’s even great for that too!

And as it’s a Monday, I thought I’d share the Rock ‘n’ Roll technique with you to help kick start the week ahead!

To start using it, just download the free podcast here, (point your cursor on the text, hold down the Ctrl key and save to your desktop). Feel free to pass it on to anyone you know who might need help in this area too.*

Do let us know how you get on with it. Drop a comment on this post, or tell us on Twitter or Facebook. You can email too, or even give me a call.

And if you see David Beckham, tell him! A bit of Rock ‘N’ Roll could help him back to his competitive best, and to continue being a great ambassador for the game of football.

*NB: Please don’t practice this technique if you have a prolapsed disc, or are uncertain as to whether this is suitable for you. Please check with either your doctor or physiotherapist. 

If you’d like to train as a Yoga Sports Coach, go here.

Our next Level 1 Yoga Sports Coach course starts on Friday 11th of November. We’ve only a small amount of places left, so if you’re thinking of enhancing your skillset and maximizing your career potential this winter, you have just a few days left to do it!

Bucking the current economic trend Sport-Specific Yoga is a serious growth area. Every day our Yoga Sports Coaches are approached by athletes wanting help to maximize performance and minimize injury. From grassroots level, to the Premier League, to athletes training for London 2012, our unique techniques are making a difference across sport.

And if you’re worried about the cost just before Christmas, don’t be.

To make training with us easier and more affordable we’ve introduced a new flexible payment plan. You can now train with us and pay with six manageable payments of £300. So now you don’t need to find a lump sum or even think about getting into debt.

The reality is there’s never been a better time to train with us. But you’ll need to be quick to secure your place. So find out how to be a Yoga Sports Coach today!

Next week one of the biggest events in the Yoga calendar breezes into London’s Olympia. The Yoga Show is three days of everything Yoga gathered under one roof. And as you would expect, Yoga Sports Science will be there to join in the fun.

It’s a great time for Sport-Specific Yoga to raise its profile in the Yoga community, and beyond. This week more stories hit the media about professional athletes, coaches, and teams benefitting from using Yoga in their training. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are plenty more professional and grassroots athletes being helped by Yoga who haven’t been featured in the media.

We know because we’re working with many of them. From those training for 2012 to Premier League teams to grassroots Powerlifters and beyond, Yoga Sports Science continues to spearhead the Sport-Specific Yoga revolution.

All this growth means there’s a fast increasing demand for qualified Sport-Specific Yoga experts. We’re getting more and more students sign up every week, as Yoga teachers, sports coaches, strength and conditioning coaches, and other training professionals realize the benefit of adding a Yoga skillset to their existing expertise.

We’ve introduced a payment plan for the first time to make our next course more accessible to this growing number of applicants. And over summer we spent time upgrading our services to ensure our new students receive the same high quality experience previous students had when we were a smaller company.

A redesigned website and improved social web presence are perhaps the most obvious examples. But much has occurred behind the scenes. Perhaps one of the most important upgrades has been the revision of the Yoga Sport Science Career Pathways Guide.

Unlike some education and training providers we believe in equipping and supporting our students’ transition from study to professional coach and business person. We want to get our graduates’ careers on the right track, right from the start. And the new guide goes a long way towards helping them do just that.

If your interested in improving your skillset and getting ahead in the growing Sport-Specific Yoga market, take a look at our Career Pathways guide. Or if you’re in London next weekend, pop along to Stand F7 at The Yoga Show and have a chat in person.

We’ll look forward to meeting you!