Yoga warm-up for field and court sports

Setup

1. Players spread out in rows facing the coach, a full body-length apart in every direction; cones mark the spots if the group is big.
2. Mats or towels are optional on wet grass; most of this stays on the feet.
3. Run it before the sport's own running warm-up; keep every pose moving, with no long holds.
4. Anyone carrying an injury or recovering from one tells the coach first and takes the easier options.

How it runs

1. Arrive (1 min): stand in Mountain pose (Tadasana), feet hip-width; three slow breaths in and out through the nose, arms sweeping up on the inhale and down on the exhale.
2. Standing cat-cow (2 min): hands on thighs, knees soft; round the back on the exhale, open the chest on the inhale, eight rounds. Then six easy hip circles each way.
3. Half sun salutation (3 min): inhale arms up, exhale fold with bent knees, inhale halfway lift with a long back, exhale fold, inhale rise. Five rounds, one breath per move.
4. Moving low lunge (3 min): from the fold, step one foot back into a Low lunge (Anjaneyasana) with the back knee lifted; breathe in to reach the arms up, breathe out to bring hands down and step forward. Alternate legs, four each side, adding an open twist on the last two.
5. Warrior shifts (2 min): wide stance, turn into Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II) for one breath, then straighten the front leg and shift into a side lunge on the other side; flow side to side for eight shifts.
6. Into the sport (1 min): stand tall, three quick-feet bounces, then jog straight into the team's running warm-up.

Coaching points

• One movement per breath; if the breath gets rushed, the movement is too fast.
• Knees track over the middle toes in lunges and warrior shifts.
• Bend the knees as much as needed in folds; this is about moving the hips and spine, not touching the toes.
• Keep it flowing: before sport the aim is to get warm and loose, so no holds longer than a breath or two.
• Remind the group a stretch feeling is fine; sharp or pinching pain means ease off.

Common mistakes

• Holding deep stretches before sprinting; keep it dynamic.
• Back knee crashing to the ground in the lunge; lower it with control or put a towel under it.
• Bouncing at the end of the range.
• Front knee collapsing inwards in Warrior II.