Posts Tagged ‘paul derda recreation center’
Yoga finds its place in Broomfield fitness routines
Believe it or not, fitness does have a downside.
While running, lifting weights and hitting exercise machines do wonders for the heart, muscles and overall well-being, they also can reduce flexibility and tighten up the body. but more and more patrons of Broomfield recreation centers have discovered there is a simple solution to working out the kinks. Yoga, at one time seen as a mysterious Eastern discipline, has become a missing fitness link for many.
“We’ve offered yoga since before the (Paul) Derda Recreation Center was open, and right now have around 120 people per week taking classes,” Broomfield Recreation Services fitness coordinator Veronica Muller said.
Flexibility is yoga’s most obvious benefit; the discipline has been used in India for more than 2,000 years to limber up limbs. but the ancient form of fitness is more than just spiritualized stretching.
Yoga’s main physical impacts are on strength and body awareness, with participants challenged to move and hold their bodies in ways that touch rarely used or hard-to-isolate muscle groups. Working out overlooked areas of the body is typically noticed by soreness where there has never been soreness before, but there are positive paybacks, too.
“It helps build a lot of core strength, which everyone needs,” yoga instructor Kimm Kutches said. “A lot of people notice the difference in their posture and its improvement after they enter yoga.”
Yoga goes beyond the physical and touches the mind, and, in some cases, the soul.
The mental side is inherent to the discipline, with focus on breathing and on movement aimed at centering an individual. the impact can be so great that it aids people in relieving stress and with sleeping problems. but yoga can go further than enhancing mental well-being. Savasana, the final part of workout, in which participants work on relaxation, can turn out to be one of the most moving periods of a class.
“It is a time where the mind and the body come together and it can be very emotional,” Kutches said. “I’ve had people cry because of the experiences they have during Savasana. they won’t sob or anything like that, but the way their body reacts makes them shed tears.”
Yoga has not produced a catharsis for Chuck Hastings, but in the three years the Broomfield resident has been taking classes, it has had a whole bunch of other positive effects.
Hastings initially became involved with yoga to supplement his physical therapy after a hip replacement. And the workouts lubed the ball and socket so well he continued yoga as part of his overall fitness routine.
“Flexibility has been the biggest benefit, but there have been others,” he said. “It’s been great in helping my breathing and has definitely built a lot of strength.”