4 minute read
Golf
Align your golf game with
ALIGNMENT YOGA
Alignment Yoga classes are designed to help our athletes learn about the anatomy and biomechanics of the body from a different perspective-through body awareness and focusing the mind. We slow the practice down to allow time and space to feel what the student's body is feeling. Just because we slow the practice down, does not mean the postures are not challenging. The practice has benefits for athletes who are new to yoga, or someone who regularly practices yoga. Alignment Yoga should not be compared to a workout, think of it as a “work in.” It is designed to balance the benefits of your training and enhance it. ◆
These are some of the benefits athletes experience from a regular yoga practice:
Increased power
When the body is properly aligned, force can be transmitted much more efficiently. This adds to the power of your movements.
Better endurance
Alignment Yoga focuses on the breath. When in touch with the breath, respiratory capacity can improve through awareness of the inhale/exhale. Improved use of the breath enhances circulation, efficiency of motion, and endurance
Injury prevention As athletes, competitive longevity and consistent progress is important. Healthy alignment protects the joints, and balances muscle groups to prevent injury that stalls progress.
Improved balance & body awareness
Blending stability with mobility is one of the hallmarks of Alignment Yoga. Improved balance creates a feeling of being more grounded and resilient. As a result, performance is enhanced, and a challenging training becomes more efficient.
Improved focus
Working to bring the mind into the present moment improves focus. We begin every Alignment Yoga class with a few minutes of meditation. With regular practice, a focused mind on the mat improves a focused mind in training and performance.
You can find our Alignment Yoga for Golfers classes on our Group Exercise class schedule located under Fitness on the BCC website. For private sessions with BCC Therapeutic Yoga Instructor Rebecca Printen, contact her at rprinten@bcc1898.com.
THAI YOGA MASSAGE AT BCC
Enjoy the benefits of relaxation, massage, yoga, and energy work in this truly unique experience connecting the body and mind through the breath. You will fully relax, let go of physical and emotional stress, and allow the practitioner to guide your body into gentle stretching followed by massage along the meridian lines in the body. You will leave feeling relaxed, restored, and rejuvenated. The Thai Practitioner presses and kneads the muscles with their hands, feet, and forearms, synchronized with the breath and fluently moves and twists your body into yoga stretches. The massage sessions are given on a memory foam mat in four positions: lying supine, side lying, lying prone, and seated. All COVID-19 guidelines will be followed during these sessions. Your comfort is the primary concern, and in general, the recipient of Thai Yoga Massage should wear loose comfortable clothing that they can stretch in. While relaxing, the client may become cooler. It is recommended to wear long sleeves, socks, and an optional blanket for comfort. 30, 60, or 90-minute sessions available in the Group Exercise Studio located on the second floor of the Five Farms clubhouse. ◆ To schedule your session, contact Marissa at mloforte@bcc1898.com.
Meet Marissa Loforte
Marissa grew up enjoying yoga, weightlifting, 15K races, and the great outdoors in upstate New York. Her upbringing led her into a passion of pairing yoga principles with exercise and sharing that passion with others. Marissa has been a personal trainer for six years, a 200RYT yoga instructor, a group exercise instructor, and a Thai Yoga massage practitioner. Philosophy: “Appreciate and learn from the harder days. Continuously chase after your goals. Accept and focus on the now— and you will succeed.” Marissa is available for personal training at Five Farms and Roland Park. She looks forward to offering group exercise classes and adding additional fitness programs.
Your Success is Our Success
I am a 50-year-old man, who would historically simply get on the treadmill, punch out 40 minutes or whatever I had time for daily, and get back to work sitting behind a desk as an attorney. At around 45, I noticed my running was falling off. More bothersome, I seemed to be constantly plagued by sore knees, back, shoulders, and hips. I knew I needed to broaden my approach to physical fitness, but I resisted making any adjustments for several years. At my 50th birthday in August, my back and shoulder problems had become too severe to simply ignore. I consulted with Janine on what type of program could possibly address my chronic aches and pains. Janine put me on a program that started with a series of stretches and exercises that open my locked body, imbalance, and poor posture from hunching over a lap top all day, and multi-tasking with an iPhone clutched between my shoulder and head (sound familiar?). After months of progress that gradually incorporated weight training and a diverse series of exercises, I feel like a different person. My cardio, golf swing, posture and sleeping are all better. Under Janine's approach, I have not had the aches and pains for months. If demographic and symptoms sound familiar, I highly recommend that you consult with Janine. My only regret is that it took me five years of running and struggling with the various pains before I got on Janine's program. I am a very appreciative, satisfied client of Janine's.
