Jumping, shooting, dribbling and cutting are essential parts of a basketball player’s repertoire, but how often are we adding strength and mobility to the parts of our bodies that help pull off these specific moves? With the right yoga flexibility exercises, you can ensure that your body remains strong during game time, while excelling in all areas of play.
Is Yoga Good for Basketball Players?
Yoga is incredibly beneficial for basketball players by improving flexibility, strength, balance, and injury prevention, while offering recovery after playing. Basketball player and frequent yogi Cary Parker knows firsthand how the benefits of yoga translate to his abilities on the court: “Yoga has really helped with my mind-body connection, so I can feel more comfortable doing different movements on the court, as well as really helping with my longevity so I can play a lot longer.”
There’s nothing but benefits when you spend time on the yoga mat before you spend time on the court. Get loose and limber with our specialized yoga flow for basketball players created by Natalia, specifically created to help you elevate your performance.
Yoga Stretching Poses for Basketball
Get after your goals by stretching and mobilizing your muscles as you incorporate this tailored flow into your routine.
01 Cat Cow
Cat cow is a crucial stretch for a strong, reliable back and a sturdy core.
How to do it:
- Start on your hands and knees in tabletop position, with spine straight and gaze between your hands.
- Begin cow pose by curving your lower back, tucking your neck, and drawing in your stomach. Your gaze should be downwards, towards your belly button.
- For cat pose, remain in tabletop before arching your back, lifting your head and sit bones while allowing your belly to sink. Your gaze should be upwards.
02 Thread the Needle
Thread the needle is great to stretch out your lats, shoulders, and upper back.
How to do it:
- From tabletop position, open your chest by lifting your left hand to the sky, then threading it between your torso and right arm. Your gaze should follow your left hand, facing to the right while you rest your head and arm on the mat.
- Lift up, return to tabletop, and repeat on the other side.
03 Low Lunge with Twist
This move will allow you to feel your chest open as you breathe, while stretching your core and hip flexors.
How to do it:
- With an engaged core in high plank, inhale as you lift your right leg behind you, exhaling as you move your right foot between your hands.
- Stay grounded as you align your right knee above your right ankle.
- Bring your hands to prayer and breathe before moving your right forearm inside of your right knee towards the mat, resting it on the floor if possible.
- Twist your torso to your right side, using your left hand for stability on the mat while the right hand points towards the sky.
- Breathe as you feel this in your spine, hips, and legs.
- Lower your hands back to the mat and return to high plank before repeating the low lunge on the other side.
04 High Lunge
The high lunge pose stretches and strengthens the back, shoulders, and leg muscles.
How to do it:
- From high plank, pike your hips in the air to enter downward dog.
- Step your left leg through your arms and raise your torso to enter high lunge, with arms up and fingertips towards the sky for a solid stretch along the side body.
- Lower your arms, slide your left leg back so that you re-enter high plank, and repeat on the other side.
05 Star Pose with Shoulder Twists
Star pose and shoulder twists work in tandem to give you a solid stretch in your rotator cuffs, which are crucial for playing basketball.
How to do it:
- From high lunge, raise up and turn your body to the side of your mat with feet pointed forward in a wide stance. Extend your arms out in a T shape.
- Do a slow corkscrew motion with the arms extended to either side of the body, with hands rotating in opposite directions.
06 Triangle Pose
Triangle pose will provide you with a solid stretch in your hamstrings, hip flexors, shoulders, and arms.
How to do it:
- Pivot your front foot toward the top of your mat so that it is flat and in full contact with the mat.
- Feel stable in both legs, drawing in your lower belly and extending your arms to be parallel with the floor.
- Inhale and hinge at the waist to reach towards your left foot with your left hand, while your right arm points upwards towards the sky. Follow your right arm with your gaze.
- Relax and breathe while you rotate your ribcage to lean into the stretch.
- Keep your feet firmly planted as you raise your torso out of the stretch.
- Pivot your feet and repeat on the other side.
07 Pigeon Pose
Pigeon pose is great to maximize hip mobility while maintaining a strong, consistent core.
How to do it:
- Cartwheel your arms to the mat and pike your hips to enter downward dog.
- Lift your right leg and sweep it forward toward your hands, bringing your right knee towards your right wrist with shin facing forward and your foot as close to your left hand as is comfortable. Move your left leg back with the top of your foot lying flat on the yoga mat.
- Lengthen your spine while inhaling, then exhale while walking hands forward and lowering your upper body over your knee and towards the mat.
- Rest your forearms and forehead on the mat to maximize the stretch, and breathe in and out while releasing tension in your right hip.
- Push back through your hands, lifting your hips and moving your leg back into downward dog before repeating on the other side.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is It Better to Do Yoga Before or After Playing Basketball?
Basketball players can use yoga as a warmup or a cooldown, and you can easily incorporate it directly into your workout schedule and routine. No matter when you practice this flow, you’ll benefit from the mobility, flexibility, and grounded nature that yoga provides.
Looking for Your Perfect Rest Day Routine?
Move through these yoga stretching poses to engage your breath and body in a way that benefits your performance on the court. “Yoga can be a gateway to better understanding your breath, which will directly impact the level you play at,” says Natalia Perez-Segnini, a yoga instructor for Tone House, a premier athlete training facility in NYC. “Yoga is beneficial to basketball players because it gives the athlete an opportunity to focus on mobility, flexibility, and breath. Basketball isn’t just about power, speed, and agility. Without proper care for the joints, the tendons, and the mind, the highest level of game just can’t be achieved.”
All the moves that you make on the court (and on the yoga mat) come easier with the right gear. Make sure that optimizing your mobility is a constant practice in your fitness routine with comfortable yoga gear. Wanting to amplify your style and performance on the court? Check out our basketball shoes and apparel, and for more ways to elevate your game, try these dynamic basketball stretches, drills, and workouts that were created to level up your performance.