Yoga a ’whole other sport’ for Burnet football players

JENNIFER FIERRO • STAFF WRITER

BURNET — While it’s common for the Burnet High School football team to gather on Saturday morning for a training and film study, the session Sept. 26 might have been unusual by gridiron standards.

Instead of the normal 20-minute circuit workout, instructor Brad Offutt led the Bulldogs in a yoga session that lasted about 45 minutes.

“Mr. Offutt commended our guys,” Burnet head coach Kurt Jones said. “He has a chance to work with several different schools. The kids were all respectful, they listened to him.”

“I found a great group of young men,” Offutt said. “I work with a lot of kids. I’ve been around different teams. (The Burnet) group really impressed me. As a group, they were eager to listen and eager to learn.”

The instructor called for poses that worked the entire body, he said, complete with movements designed to loosen the glutes and the hips.

At one point, Offutt said one of the players made an observation.

“This is a whole other sport,” Offutt recalled hearing. “I started laughing. He was awakening muscles he hasn’t used. They’re the ones we don’t tend to use.”

Offutt’s session focused on improving the Bulldogs’ core strength through muscles attached to the pelvis.

“Guys can get the strength poses. But you put them on the floor, they start to cry,” he added with a chuckle. “It was a great experience. I think they got a lot out of it.”

Jones said one of his coaches has been taking yoga and telling his colleagues the benefits of the discipline and inviting them to join in.

He suggested Jones consider yoga for the players on a Saturday morning after a game.

“I thought that might not be a bad idea,” Jones said.

The reason coaches call for a brief workout the day after games is to help players get rid of the acid in the body that leads to sore muscles. It also helps prevent injuries.

But Jones was quick to point out the yoga session wasn’t easier than the circuit workout.

“It’s hard, it’s challenging,” he said.

That’s because some of the poses force the athletes to stretch their mid-sections to loosen their hips. Loose hips allow them to quickly move when they must stop and turn on a dime during a contest. And for those not used to stretching that part of their bodies, it’s usually uncomfortable until they get used to it.

“I think a lot of that stuff is all beneficial,” Jones said.

Offutt agreed.

“It’s real hard to sometimes implement yoga in your body,” he said. “They took on the work. It tends to activate more muscles that we don’t use.”

The instructor said he was happy to help athletes discover there are more physical disciplines out there to help them train at a different but high level.

“I had a blast,” he said. “It was so much fun. My favorite thing is to work with somebody for the first time. I look at yoga as a gift. … I was impressed with (the Bulldogs). Every single one came up, shook my hand and said ‘thank you.'”

jfierro@thepicayune.com