Yoga Archives -

Just relax – How to minimise shoulder tension while riding a bike

September 18, 2018 Nicola Stretching, Women cycling, Yoga

I’m really bad at taking my own advice, so these tips on how to minimise shoulder tension while riding a bike are for me, just as much as anybody else. I hold tension in my shoulders in other activities as well, like sitting at my desk at work and driving my car so it just builds up. In fact my shoulder muscles are hurting while I write this post, so I’ll skip to the last tip right after I finish. Let it go – Consciously let go of the tension in your arms and shoulders by focusing on that part of

The benefits of yoga for cyclists are numerous

October 10, 2017 Nicola Women cycling, Yoga

Over the past year, I’ve been lucky enough to include a weekly yoga class in my life and it’s reiterated to me, the benefits of yoga for cyclists. A couple of years ago I attended an interesting workshop with a guy called Angelo, who has developed his own variation of hatha yoga called Pedal Stroke Yoga. A few interesting points I learnt from Angelo in the workshop include: Yoga helps you create a body that is pain free Cycling keeps your body in a linear motion whereas yoga is about twisting In cycling you use your big muscles & sympathetic

Let it go – how to eliminate shoulder tension on the bike

November 15, 2016 Nicola Stretching, training, Women cycling, Yoga

One of my worst habits on the bike is to hold tension in my shoulders so here’s a few tips on how to eliminate shoulder tension on the bike. Let it go – Consciously let go of the tension in your arms and shoulders by focusing on that part of your body while you are riding. I regularly check in with myself and literally tell myself to relax my shoulders. Shrugging every 15 minutes or so and relaxing your arms really helps relieve this stress. Bend your elbows – Always ride with your elbows slightly bent and yours arms and shoulders relaxed.

Yoga and cycling – a perfect match

September 16, 2015 Nicola Bike fitting, Pedal stroke, Resistance training, Stretching, Women cycling, Yoga

A few months ago I was lucky enough to attend a workshop run by Angelo from Pedal Stroke Yoga, a variation of hatha yoga developed by Angelo to utilise the benefits of yoga especially for cyclists. I used to attend yoga classes on a regular basis so I know the benefits that yoga can bring. Unfortunately I’ve not managed to fit regular yoga into my schedule of late but I’m eager to change that in the near future. Despite my own lack of attendance at yoga classes I’m a true believer in the benefits it can bring to your life

Cyclists need to lighten up on those arms and hands

November 4, 2014 Nicola Bike fitting, Cycle groups, Stretching, training, Women cycling, Yoga

One of my worst habits on the bike, and sadly there are a few, is to hold tension in my shoulders while I’m riding. It doesn’t matter how often I tell myself to relax my shoulders, arms and hands I still find myself stiffening up in this area which leads to soreness and ongoing issues with the muscles in my upper back. So I thought it would be useful to share a few tips I’ve found on the subject which obviously apply equally to men and women. I’ll also continue to focus on these tips myself! Let it go –

Yoga is the yin and cycling is the yang

October 28, 2014 Nicola Cycle groups, Cycle racing, Stretching, Women cycling, Yoga

I was recently approached by a Sydney-based yoga/cycling enthusiast who has developed his own yoga classes just for cyclists called Pedal Stroke Yoga. As a fan of yoga I was intrigued by Angelo’s upcoming workshops so asked him a few questions about what’s behind it. How can yoga benefit cyclists? I believe that Yoga is the yin to the cycling yang. Both of these complimentary halves work together to create a ‘high performance’ version of you as a cyclist and also as a human being. My Pedal Stroke Yoga workshops are designed to put back what your cycling takes out. When