Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars, Skill Yoga Ambassador:
Tyler Seguin has been doing Yoga on a regular basis for years to complement his training. Yoga helps him work on his mobility and build strength. He now joins Skill Yogas as the first Ambassador to set the basis for creating new training content for athletes. “Yoga helps in many different ways. It really helps for my stretching and my hips, I’ve had tightness in my hips my whole career. I mainly use Skill Yoga to improve my mobility, but it is also great for building strength and learning specific skills. I also use yoga during the year for mental calmness, seasons get long and stressful so it definitely helps. Yoga has always been part of my training. You change your thinking, stress less and look at it as an opportunity. Long seasons and training offseason get tiresome and stressful and that’s when I look to yoga to center myself. It brings awareness in me and makes me mindful and able to be in control”
Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues Captain:
“It’s by far the toughest training, and best training, I do. I could go on and on about what it’s done for me, but if you look at injury-wise, preventing injuries, it’s a huge thing. In yoga, it’s not like you’re lifting weights and just building muscle mass. You’re working all the fibers, all the tissue. A lot of times guys get hurt playing hockey because they’re extended and don’t have that strength and flexibility, yoga is the teacher of strength and flexibility, and it activates everything. Controlling your breath is a huge benefit for me. When you do yoga classes, you’re so present in every little detail inside your body. And when I play hockey, I try to do the same thing — especially after a bad shift. I try to come back to my breath, inhale and exhale, and that brings you back into the moment. I’m like, ‘OK, I’m recovered. What am I going to do now?’
Tim Thomas, 2013-14 Dallas Stars:
“It’s helped my flexibility in the butterfly and it’s opened my hips up. It also helped me mentally in the way that I knew I had prepared as much as I could last summer.”
Jean-Sebastien Giguere 2013-14 Colorado Avalanche Goaltender:
“It’s brought me to a different level with my flexibility, endurance and knowing how to breathe and relax after allowing a goal.”