Beverley Yoga Instructor Jane Irving of WaveYoga has set out to allay the general misconception that yoga is too easy and a feminine form of exercise. To help, Jane has teamed up with some of the fittest and toughest men in Hull – ice hockey team – The Stingrays.
Jane says “Although I have a lot of men coming to my classes, I do hear their friends comment on it being ‘girly’ thing to do. However, as my clients find out, it is incredibly good for relaxing the mind which enables it to focus, it works ALL of the muscles and develops core stability which is essential for all forms of sport. Ice Hockey is a hugely demanding and at times dangerous, not only because of the high levels of stamina required but also because as a contact sport injuries are very common amongst players. I was very happy when the Stingrays agreed to give it a go for the first time, I couldn’t have asked for a better group to hammer home that yoga is not just for ladies.”
“Yoga has slowly increased in popularity amongst men over the last couple of years. Footballer Ryan Giggs, aged 37 claims yoga is the reason he’s still at the top of his game and Coldplay front-man Chris Martin also claims to be inspired by it. I want to show that yoga is anything but easy. During the session the room was full of painful ‘ooh’s’ and ‘aargh’s’ as the players worked themselves into some tough yogic positions, holding and stretching muscle groups that get very little attention. When the session was over the players all commented on feeling immediately fulfilled and invigorated.”
Satisfied Stingray Kurtis Dulle described the session as “Awesome,” he said “As an athlete you just assume you are doing the correct stretches but this one yoga session has proven against that. I will definitely benefit as I suffer from a bad back and yoga would ease the discomfort and strengthen the supporting muscles.”
Player/Coach Sylvain Cloutier also commented: “I really believe the team would benefit from regular yoga sessions as most injuries are caused by lack of flexibility. During a match the body is tense and ready to protect itself and all of our training takes place in the gym, with some running and obviously action on the ice. But yoga offers completely different work out and from what I experienced today seems to involve literally every muscle. The session was painful at times, although good pain but it was very relaxing too, I really feel amazing right now.”
“I’ve never tried yoga before but felt really good to be working on flexibility with the team.” enthused Christian Boucher, “I’ve been looking at getting into yoga for a while and now I’ve tried it, I would love to keep it up. Yoga is something that could really benefit the Stingrays as working on flexibility would help us to reduce injuries.”
Wave Yoga’s Jane Irving said “I’m delighted to get such great feedback from the Stingrays. I knew they would enjoy it but I am pleased they found it tough – it shows that even if you’re an athlete performing at the top of a game there are still ways to improve your fitness, core stability and general wellbeing.”
Jane currently runs a Yoga class at Molescroft Pavillion on Tuesday Mornings at 10am. Please contact Jane on 07908 711480 for more information on classes, individual sessions and corporate yoga.
