Yoga for Swimming – Yoga Journal

Whether you enjoy a leisurely breaststroke or a fast front crawl, swimming gives you a great full-body workout, which is why it’s important to warm up properly before you begin and cool down when you get out of the pool. This sequence will help keep your core strong, your stroke smooth, and your body injury-free.

Before

Ocean Breath

Feel free to add Sun Salutations to your warm-up before you start. 

1. Sit comfortably with your spine upright and take a couple of long, deep breaths. 2. Inhale through your nose and exhale through the mouth. With each exhalation make a ‘hhhaaaaa’ sound as if you are trying to steam up a mirror. 3. Now continue to make the same sound as you exhale, but close your mouth so you are constricting the back of your throat to make a soft ocean sound. Practice for 2 minutes.

See also How to Cultivate More Energy Through Your Inhalations

After

See also Yoga for Swimmers

Excerpted from Stay Young With Yoga by Nicola Jane Hobbs, Published by Bloomsbury Publishing, 2020, Text copyright © Nicola Jane Hobbs, 2020, Original photography © Glen Burrows, 2020