Carving through fresh powder against a backdrop of endless blue sky and crisp winter air—it’s a thrilling, adrenaline-pumping rush that’s familiar to anyone who has strapped boots onto a board at the top of a mountain. It’s one of the most physically demanding sports, thanks to turns that require pistonlike actions in the legs and air-catching maneuvers that have you exploring your body’s full range of motion. And then there are the crashes. Falling is an unavoidable part of the sport, and, just as in yoga’s balancing poses, there’s a certain grace in yielding when you lose your balance.
It took many painful nights and mornings, waking up in a sore, broken body, to realize how important stretching is for snowboarders and skiers. I got my first introduction to yoga when I was 12. My mom gave me a book for my birthday, and the world of moving, stretching and breathing techniques opened up for me.
On and off, I’d been practicing yoga for over 13 years now. Yoga is home. It is something I can always retreat to, but I’m not there all the time. A comfortable place, I can find anywhere in the world. Wonderful things happen and unwind on my mat and I’m really glad to share my yoga journey with others.
Snowboarding is a very demanding sport, taking a lot on our bodies. It requires endurance, flexibility, and superpowers. Nothing easy about becoming a good rider but yoga is definitely something it can help.
Today, I am sharing my favorite top morning stretches that will both, prepare my body for the fun day ahead and give it the stretch it needs so badly.
Good morning sunshine.
Cat-crow pose
Cat-Cow Pose is a great morning stretch for your back. This yoga position opens the whole spine. To get into this yoga pose you need to get down on all fours. While gazing up at the ceiling, you drop your back down toward the floor as you inhale. Then while looking down at your belly button, you arch your back up like a cat and exhale. Try to do this movement for one or two minutes.
Warrior 1 + 2
Warrior One is a standing position that signifies and stimulates strength and power. Start by standing up straight, and then step your left leg back 3 and a half to 4 feet. Bend your right knee so it’s directly above the ankle, and turn your left foot in slightly. Raise your arms directly above you, reaching strongly, and look up. This yoga pose stretches the back and the lower body.
Warrior Two is similar to Warrior One, but the arms are held out to the side with the head looking forward, and the back foot is at a 90-degree angle instead of turned in slightly. As with all yoga positions, breathing is an important part of the exercise, as a matter of fact, yoga without breathing and meditation is just a stretching exercise. You can run through a series of morning stretches in about 20 minutes or you can add periods of meditation and have a morning yoga session that lasts an hour or more.
Camel pose
Camel Pose frees the energy in your throat, chest, and heart. This yoga position is for intermediate or advanced practitioners. It’s important to remember that not everyone can do every yoga pose perfectly, but yoga can be adapted to each person’s abilities. To get into the pose, start in the kneeling position. The upper torso is gradually bent backward until the arms are extended backward, the hands are touching the soles of the feet, and the head is completely extended. Hold for 30 seconds to one minute. For a beginner’s modification, in a kneeling position, simply lean your upper body back, keeping your hands on your hips, until you feel a stretch in your legs.
Powder Power
Some yoga poses emulate the physical actions of a maneuver you’d make on a board. The following poses help strengthen muscles and increase the range of motion you need to keep your moves loose and fluid on the mountain.
The Move: Carving
It requires pistonlike actions in the quadriceps and a strong, stable core.
The Pose: Utkatasana (Chair Pose)
Opens up tight calf muscles, strengthens legs,
and teaches core stability.
The Move: Indy Grab
Requires a healthy range of motion to avoid lower back injury.
The Pose: Parivrtta Prasarita Padottanasana (Revolved Wide-Legged Standing Forward Bend)
Lengthens and strengthens obliques while lengthening the hamstrings, calves, and also back muscles.
The Move: Method Grab
It requires flexible and open quadriceps, hip flexors, chest, as well as neck muscles.
The Pose: Ardha Ustrasana (Half Camel Pose)
Lengthens the whole front body and, with practice, can increase range of motion.
Yoga can be done any time of day, but morning yoga is a great way to wake up your body and get your energy flowing. It’s impossible not to notice the change in your mind and your body after a yoga session!
Photos by: @jer.rl
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More about Alenka
“My name is Alenka and I’m a Squamish based photographer. I love using my medium to capture sports, adventures, underwater shots, adventures in the mountains and days on snow! Very simply put, I’m one stoked girl, ready to get up at 2 in the morning and hike for sunrise, go to the airport and take a random flight…you name it!
Photography, web design and digital marketing have been things I’m proud to call my job lately! Very flexible, lots of traveling and even more adventures than when I was a kid. Here, on my website I share tips on photography, spreading awareness about the zero-waste lifestyle and sustainability and crazy stories from my travels. Welcome.”
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