Stand Tall, Feel Light ,Run Faster

Mar 6, 18

Stand Tall, Feel Light, Run Faster

Welcome to my first blog to ensure that you will run faster in the Barrington’s Hospital Great Limerick Run 2018

My name is Paulette Egan founder of SportsYoga.ie. I have 25 years experience in yoga and I am looking forward to sharing my knowledge with you. I will be writing blogs and sharing videos so that you can introduce yoga into your training routine. Today I am blogging on how correct posture will improve your stride and make you feel more confident and run faster! How many of you have seen other runners with poor posture. By working on your posture you will resolve many running form problems. I am very excited to be launching a new program called Breathe For Speed and I hope to have six different locations in different areas of Limerick so that you can get the base training and then follow on with my on-line training.

Runners have a tremendous amount to gain from adding yoga to their fitness regimen. A running stride involves only the lower body movement in one plane as in forward and back. Some muscles become strong while other are underused and remain weak.

Great Limerick Run

At SportsYoga.ie I recommend that you have a look at my videos but first take off your shoes and socks and be aware of the correct alignment of your feet. Are you feet pointing forward and are you arches lifted. Fallen arches can be the primary cause of leg, pelvis back and shoulder misalignment.

on March 15th I will be posting up short videos to help you to stand tall, feel light and run faster !

1. The perfect posture for running

2. Prevention of slouching shoulder and jutting chin.

3. Strong powerful legs to run faster

4. Lifting fallen arches.

5. Rock solid core

These videos are short and to the point and easy to implement into your training.

Register with Great Limerick Run today and train with the best SportsYoga.ie ! Until next week, safe training and talk to you then.

I teach my SportsYoga.ie classes in UL Sport Arena every Wednesday and my own yoga studio- The Loft Yoga Studio Clonlara, Co. Clare. Feel free to call me if you are interested in a mat!

Namaste,

Paulette Egan

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My Yoga Retreat on the Aran Islands

Mar 1, 18

My Yoga Retreat on the Aran Island

Last weekend I spent the most amazing yoga retreat on the Aran Islands. My experience started on Friday evening when I shared my boat journey with some crazy hens and stages dresses as priests and nuns heading over to the “Father Ted Fest” on Inis Mór. My first reaction was to join in the Ted Fest and forget the yoga retreat!

On arriving on Inis Mór, my hostess Monika was waiting for me and assured me that I would be miles away from the Ted Fest so that was the end of my wild weekend!

Monika was born in the Alps of northern Italy and grew up immersed in two different cultures and languages. Out of love for movement she trained and worked as Physiotherapist. She began to practice Yoga on a weekly basis, longing to have some time for herself and to reconnect to her body. Learning more about the background and depth of Yoga, it soon became her passion. She practiced and studied with teachers of different traditions from Europe, India and Tibet and completed a Sivananda Yoga teacher formation in Greece in 2004. In 2008, following a calling, she moved to Inis Mór where she lived ever since. Monika’s house is the perfect location for a yoga retreat with an entire wall of glass over looking the wild Atlantic.

Monika has created her own style of yoga which she has called Earth Sea and Sky Yoga. She runs a yoga retreat at different times of the year to coincide with the seasons and works with the lower, middle and upper chakras hence the name. “Earth” for grounding, “Sea” for the middle section of the body opening up the heart and creating space around our vital organs and finally “Sky” for clearing the mind and looking at our life in a different light.

We all lead increasingly busy lives, juggling work, family, chores and all of the other things on our seemingly endless to-do list while been bombarded by social media. Keeping this to the forefront of my mind, it didn’t take me long to settle into the earthy vibe of Inis Mór, the largest of the Aran Islands.

The islands are surrounded by crashing waves and are one of the few places in Ireland that has remained virtually unchanged for centuries. They are unspoilt,rugged and the stark beauty is breath-taking. So can you imagine been there for a weekend guided by Monika’s years of experience, fresh food and her welcoming smile to take you on your journey. I was so switched off that I did not turn my data back on until Tuesday. I learnt to live and forget about Facebook and yes, The Irish Yoga Chatterbox for the entire weekend!!

Monika runs a yoga retreat every 3 months but has a special one coming up for the Easter Weekend. If you are interested, visit her website Earth Sea Sky Yoga

However, her yoga retreat at the unbelievable rate of €190 for full board and retreat is always snapped up early and of course she has the international visitors that book in on their Wild Atlantic Way journey. You might need a few extra pair of yoga leggings for climbing over gates and walls so why not treat yourself to a flattering pair of I-SPY “Less” Yoga Leggings from our stylish range of Ireland’s first yoga brand!

I can highly recommend Monika’s retreats and believe me, I have never breathed such clear raw pure prana over-looking the Atlantic ocean.

Thank you Monika and I am looking forward to returning to Inis Mór in the near future.

Namaste,

Paulette

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Breathe For Speed Program will Launch on April 1st.

Feb 17, 18

Breathe For Speed Program will Launch on April 1st.

Breathe for Speed is a program that I will be launching to coincide with my SportsYoga on line training for athletes. Over the past seven years, I have worked endlessly to prefect my input into athletic performance. I often question myself as to how I can share my knowledge with athletes worldwide. Why is athletic training also so physical and demanding when there is another way to enhance your training…… Breathe!

Breathe For Speed is based on yoga breathing techniques which is called Pranayama. These techniques will add another dimension to training. Breathing is one of our most vital function so why is it that the majority of people do not pay attention to it. As an to athlete it is essential to connect with the way that you breathe. In yoga, pranayama is one of the essential components of the practice. We need to break it down to get a clear understanding of the word. PRANA means vital energy or life force. This is the force which exists in all things, whether animate or inanimate. However in my SportsYoga “Breathe For Speed” program, I am focusing on the AYAMA which has a different meaning. AYAMA is defined as extension or expansion of the life force and energy that surround us hence we have Pranayama!

I have incorporated the correct use of pranayama into my Breathe For Speed program which provides the method whereby the life force can be activated and regulated. This technique will train athletes to be more in tune with their bodies and can take them outside of their normal boundaries or limitations in their sport.

Before commencing on my on-line training, please ask yourself, do you want to become stronger, faster, more explosive and even more powerful? You cannot expect to be the best if you are doing the same thing as everybody else.

Thank you for reading my blog and exciting times ahead for athletes. My name is Paulette Egan and I am the founder of SportsYoga.ie. I teach classes in Limerick City and please free to join me in

UL Sport Arena Castletroy or Yoga In Limerick City . I am also the Co- founder of I-SPY Clothing which is Ireland’s first yoga brand so whatever changes that you might need to make in your preparation for Tokyo 2020 or your next 10k, I can help you to make that change.

SportsYoga.ie IRL

Namaste

Paulette

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Yoga Breathing Exercises – Pranayama

Feb 2, 18

Yoga Breathing Exercises – Pranayama

Yoga breathing exercises, also known as pranayama, are an important part of a developing yoga practice. Pranayama is one of the Eight Limbs of Yoga referenced by The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, which means that it was considered an important step in human development. In addition to supporting and deepening your yoga asana practice, learning ways to calm or invigorate the body through breathing will greatly benefit all aspects of your life. Our lives are moving at such a fast pace and with such emphases on social media, we simply need to learn to slow down and we need to start breathing again! If you’re feeling stressed, the advice to “take a deep breath” is as cliché as it comes. But even if you know that slowing your respiratory roll really can calm you down and make you feel rested and relaxed, few people know how this process actually works.

Breathing is part of the autonomic nervous system, which is comprised of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. In general, the sympathetic nervous system is responsible for governing our responses to stimuli, deciding whether they are threatening, and tripping the signals that tell the body how to react. This is sometimes described as “fight or flight” responses. I am sure that you have all heard the story about the cave man going out to hunt for game. He gets a little excited when he sees a deer, kills the deer and goes back to his family. While he was hunting or in the presence of real danger, his breath would have become fast and rapid. At this stage his sympathetic nervous system would have switched on. After, on his journey home, the parasympathetic nervous system helped the body to calm back down after the danger or stressor has passed. Yoga breathing exercises have a knock on effect on the body and mind and when learned correctly will help to calm you even in the most difficult situations.

There are thousands of yoga breathing exercises but it is important to start with breath awareness focusing on the inhalation and the exhalation in and out through the nose. This simple technique will occupy your mind and will give you something to focus on .Paying attention to the breath is also a meditation technique that can be used on or off the mat, as it has the effect of keeping us constantly in the present moment. The past and the future melt away when the mind becomes fully focused on breathing.

Over the next few weeks I hoping to post interesting blogs related to yoga breathing and the wonderful benefits of breath awareness but in the meantime, feel free to join my classes in UL Sport Arena Limerick or Limerick Strand Hotel and until next time, take care and watch this spot for my new program called “Breathe For Speed”

Regards

Paulette Egan

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SportsYoga for Better Kicking Performance

May 15, 17

SportsYoga for better kicking performance

Important games are won and lost by the accuracy and the mind-set of the penalty kicker or designated free taker. Kicking on target is a skill where there is always room for improvement,however the player must be trained to stay mentally strong and focused . Every kicker has their own technique and this was very obvious during the Rugby world cup when each kicker went through their routine before taking the kick .

Kickers will take thousands of practice shots in their sporting career but why do some miss when the hopes of the nation are resting on him .

Great athletes are able to silence their PFC under pressure and just be in their zone in a instance

It’s all in the mind……

The Pre-frontal cortex( section of the brain behind the forehead) is the part of the brain that helps us with decision making and regulating our behaviour. The PFC needs to be exercised and conditioned like every other muscle in the body to strengthen your will power. However this section of the brain is not responsible for the action of taking the actual shot. The PFC sends out messages to the part of the brain that regulates movement – the primary motor cortex and the supplementary motor area which works a little more abstractly, planning specific movements and preparation . However the Pre-frontal cortex can get distracted and this is when doubt and the “What if’s ” sets in .

At SportsYoga.ie , I develop specific programs where I combine the ancient practice of Yoga therapy and sports science to improve athletic performance. Yoga Nidra and meditation are two of the techniques that I use to improve kicking /free taking performance .

Meditation is not difficult to learn but like a sport, it’s a skill. You need to practice and over time an athlete can develop the ability to drop into a meditative state in an instance.

My program trains a player to:

Disengage from distractions,crowd and camera flashes
Sustain attention on a selected subject
View their penalty kick as a duty, not as an opportunity for person success
Use of five senses to stay grounded
Reinforce new patterns of behaviour and beliefs
Learn to be patient and not to let his emotions interfere with his kick.
Move quickly once he finds his dristi point(point of focus)
Choose the smallest target and not focus on the posts
Accept the outcome and refocus for the next kick

Regards

Paulette

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A Step In The Right Direction – Kids Yoga

Apr 14, 17

A step in the right direction – Kids Yoga

We know children take social cues from their parents so it is really important that your kids see you exercise regularly because starting this habit early could impact good health not only in childhood but in adulthood as well. Parents are busy prepping for the final leg of their training for Barrington’s Hospital Great Limerick Run You can set such a great example for your kids by taking part in sporting and fitness activities so why not introduce your children to kids yoga.

The UL Sport Children’s Run for Fun will take place on Saturday the 29th of April so while you are recovering from your run, why not let your kids run free in the wonderful grounds of UL.

This fun event is sponsored by UL Sport and is organised by Barringtons Hospital Great Limerick Run in conjunction with Limerick Sports Partnership and the HSE.

Kids Yoga can have many benefits other than enhancing physical flexibility, it can refine balance and coordination, develop focus and concentration and in the fast-moving, technology packed modern world, can give them an opportunity to be mindful and strengthen their mind-body connection. Over the Easter holidays introduce your children to kids yoga and you can have fun together. You will still gain the benefit of that extra stretch. Here are 5 poses that I would recommend and you may be surprised at how much they enjoy taking part!

Tree Pose

Stand with your feet hip width apart, lift your arms and reach out to either side, like the branches of a tree, to help you balance. Lift one foot, turning your knee out to the side, and place your foot either below the knee of the standing leg or above it. Breathing slowly in and out, bring your arms up over your head and imagine yourself growing like a tree. Slowly lower your hands to your chest, place your foot down, and repeat on the other side.

Downward Dog

Start on your hands and knees, with your toes curled under. Breathe in, and, as you breathe out, lift your hips in the air, straightening your legs and pressing your heels toward the floor. Push your palms into the floor, with your fingertips facing forward. Look between your knees. Wag your tail, bark, lift one leg or the other. Be playful!

Plank Pose

Plank pose helps in strengthening and energising the whole body. Start in downward facing dog, lower down your torso while inhaling till it becomes parallel to the ground. Keep your arms perpendicular to the ground. Only your palms and toe fingers should be on the floor. Stay in this posture for a few seconds. Lower down your body and lie down to relax.

Plow Pose

Lie down on the floor while hugging your knees into your chest. Bring your arms along your sides, with your palms pressing down into the floor. Exhale and reach your legs over your head, until your toes are close to the ground behind your head. Never turn your head for the camera as seen above — always look straight up.

Child’s Pose

Child’s pose is a nice relaxing pose to finish your yoga session. From all-fours, come back to resting on your heels, with your arms stretched out in front of you and palms flat on the ground. Gently bring your forehead to rest on the ground in front of your knees and lay your chest on your thighs. Slowly bring your arms to rest back aῬongside your body. Stay in this resting posture for several breaths.

　Now that the kiddies are chilling, it’s time to regain your own focus. At this stage SportsYoga should be an essential part of your training and I am delighted to say that you can always look your best in our stylish and flattering yoga leggings which are designed by my daughter and I to ensure your modesty in every yoga pose. Treat yourself today. Shop on line at I-SPY.ie

Namaste

Paulette

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