Daytime classes like Pilates and yoga are becoming popular elective options for athletes at Shawnee State University, providing a unique way to support students’ physical and mental health. Yoga helps athletes avoid injuries and recover more quickly by improving their flexibility, balance and mental focus. Pilates increases body awareness, stability and core strength, all of which are critical for power and control in sports. For student-athletes like Marcos Vasquez and Ezra McKee, both members of the men’s basketball team, yoga has become a critical part of their training and recovery, especially with basketball season being in full effect.
Yoga offers unique benefits for athletes. It increases mental focus, flexibility and rehabilitation. By increasing stronger joint mobility and placement, yoga has been found to lower the risk of injury. This can have a significant impact during a demanding sporting season. Yoga serves as a relaxation and a way of strengthening muscles that are often ignored in normal workouts for athletes.
Both basketball players shared that their bodies felt a lot looser and more comfortable since starting yoga this semester. Their class is scheduled at a convenient time right after practice at 5 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, allowing them to use the class to stretch out and unwind. McKee emphasized the mental benefits, describing yoga as a chance to slow down and come back down to earth after a high energy practice.
“Sometimes practice can be high energy and tiring, and being able to go to yoga right after and relax and wind down while getting some stretching in really helps during a long season, gives me time to talk to God and reflect on what’s been going on in my life,” McKee shared.
For student-athletes, yoga offers a unique opportunity to focus on their mental health, which can be very beneficial at the season’s most stressful times. McKee and Vazquez both say they are more focused and feel less stressed, which benefits them both on and off the court.
Classes like yoga and Pilates are more than just an elective or just a one-credit class; they’re both essential tools for athletes as they strive to reach peak performance. With basketball season being so long, players must have their body prepared for the long season so when March comes their body isn’t the cause of not playing well. Student-athletes at Shawnee State continue to reap the benefits from daily yoga practices. Shawnee State’s addition of wellness-focused classes could be an example of why they’re often successful.
