Yoga Injuries: How Athletes Stay Safe on the Mat

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A Tuesday-night class after practice. The room is warm, the teacher says “go deeper if you can”, and the linebacker on the next mat, who has never touched his toes in his life, decides that tonight he can. That’s how most yoga injuries start: not with a fall, but with a body pushed a little further than it was ready to go. Yoga is one of the gentler things an athlete can add to a week, and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) calls it generally safe for healthy people when done properly with a qualified teacher. But it isn’t risk-free. This page covers the problems that keep showing up, in high school and college athletes, pros and weekend warriors alike, and how to keep yoga working for your sport instead of against it.

This page is general information, not medical advice. If you’re hurt, see a sports medicine doctor, physical therapist (PT) or certified athletic trainer (AT). For the big picture, start at our yoga for athletes hub.

How often do people get hurt doing yoga?

Not often, but more often than you might think. A study of US emergency-department data counted 29,590 yoga-related injuries from 2001 to 2014. The trunk (back, chest, abdomen) was the most injured area (46.6%), and sprains and strains were the most common diagnosis (45%). The rate was highest in people 65 and older. NCCIH notes that serious injuries are rare and that yoga’s injury rates are lower than those of higher-impact activities. A smaller study that followed 354 people from two yoga studios for a year found that 10.7% developed new pain they put down to yoga, and more than a third of those lost practice time or had symptoms that lasted longer than 3 months.

A review of published case reports found the same poses coming up again and again in the rarer, more serious problems: headstand, shoulder stand, lotus position and forceful breathing. The authors’ advice was simple: beginners should skip those extreme practices, and anyone with a medical condition should adapt poses with their doctor and teacher.

The most common yoga injuries for athletes

Overstretching: hamstrings, hips and the “go deeper” trap

Athletes are competitive, and that’s the problem. A long forward fold or a deep split held past the point of a strong stretch can strain the hamstring where it attaches near the sit bone, or irritate the hip and groin. Two things make it worse: pulling yourself deeper with your arms, and bouncing. Signs to back off: a sharp or pinching pain rather than a dull stretch, pain right at a tendon attachment, or pain that’s still there the next morning. Very flexible athletes (dancers, gymnasts, swimmers) are not immune: when you can already move a long way, the stretch often ends up in the joint rather than the muscle, so control matters more than depth.

Wrists

Plank, chaturanga, downward dog, arm balances and handstands all put body weight through a joint that most sports don’t load that way. In a 2025 survey of 321 adults who practice handstands (yoga was the most common discipline), 56.7% reported chronic wrist pain. Practical ways to share the load: spread the fingers and press through the knuckles and fingertips, not just the heel of the hand; drop to the knees in plank; use blocks or come onto the forearms; and build up the number of arm-balance holds slowly. Athletes coming back from a wrist injury, and gymnasts, climbers and lifters whose wrists already work hard, should talk to their PT before adding a lot of weight-bearing poses.

Neck in inversions

Headstand and shoulder stand put load on the neck. In a lab study of 45 experienced practitioners, the head carried 40–48% of body weight at peak during headstand; entering with straight legs together produced lower and slower loading than kicking or tucking up. Case reports describe serious neck problems after headstands, and NCCIH lists headstands among the extreme poses to avoid when you’re new. Our view for athletes: inversions are optional, not required. Skip them if you have any neck symptoms, a history of neck injury or concussion, high blood pressure or glaucoma (NCCIH says people with glaucoma should modify poses; the case-report review says they should avoid inversions). If you do learn them, learn with a teacher, with the forearms taking most of the weight, and never with someone pushing you up.

Low back

The trunk is the most injured area in the emergency-room data. Typical culprits are deep forward folds with a rounded back and straight legs, forced twists, and deep backbends held for a long time. Bend your knees in forward folds, twist from the upper back rather than cranking on the lower back, and keep backbends to what you can control. Athletes with known back problems (a disc problem, spondylolysis in young gymnasts and football players, and so on) should get a plan from their doctor or PT first. NCCIH lists lumbar spine disease among the conditions that call for modified poses.

One fair point: for adults with chronic low back pain, yoga is among the non-drug options the American College of Physicians lists for doctors to suggest, and NCCIH summarizes a 2022 review as finding yoga slightly better than no exercise and similar to other exercise. That’s about long-term back pain under a clinician’s eye, not a reason to stretch through a fresh back injury.

Hot yoga and heat illness

NCCIH says hot yoga carries special risks from overheating and dehydration. In a study sponsored by the American Council on Exercise, 20 regular Bikram practitioners did the standard 90-minute class in a room of about 105°F and 40% humidity. Their core temperature rose to an average of 103.2°F, seven went above 103°F and one reached 104.1°F. In a San Diego State lab study, sweat rates during a 90-minute Bikram class averaged about 0.6 kg an hour in newer practitioners and 1.1 kg an hour in experienced ones. A 2025 review of 43 hot-yoga studies found heat raised body temperature and heart rate compared with non-heated yoga, and that claims of extra health benefits are not proven yet; it also noted case reports of people becoming ill after hot yoga.

• Skip the hot room if you’re ill, already dehydrated, coming off a hard practice or game in the heat, pregnant (NCCIH says pregnant women should avoid hot yoga), or have a heart condition, without talking to your doctor first.
• Drink before, during and after, and start with shorter or cooler classes. More on fluids on our yoga nutrition and hydration page.
• Stop and get out of the heat if you feel dizzy, light-headed, sick to your stomach, get a headache or muscle cramps. CDC lists heavy sweating, cold and clammy skin, a fast weak pulse, nausea, cramps, weakness, dizziness, headache and fainting as heat-exhaustion signs: move somewhere cool, loosen clothes, cool the skin and sip water, and get medical help if you vomit, it gets worse or it lasts more than an hour.
• Call 911 for confusion, collapse or a very high body temperature: CDC calls heat stroke a medical emergency. The National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) says cooling comes first, and cold-water immersion is the most effective method when trained staff are there.

How to prevent yoga injuries

• Find a qualified teacher and tell them about your injuries and your sport. NCCIH’s first tip is practicing with a qualified instructor. In the US, many teachers list a Yoga Alliance “RYT 200” credential, which means they completed a 200-hour training at a Yoga Alliance registered school; it’s a voluntary registry, not a medical license, so also ask about their experience with athletes.
• Effort of 6 or 7 out of 10, not 10. A strong stretch is fine; sharp, pinching, burning, numb or tingling is not.
• Use props. A block under the hand in a forward fold or triangle and a strap around the foot let you get the position without forcing it.
• Leave out the extremes when you’re new: headstand, lotus and forceful breathing are the ones NCCIH names.
• Don’t do intense yoga on a wrecked body. After a hard game or a big lifting day, pick a gentle or restorative class (see yoga for recovery), and check how yoga fits your week on our yoga in your training page.
• Ask first if you’re in a higher-risk group. NCCIH says pregnant women, older adults and people with health conditions should talk with their health care providers, and lists pre-existing injuries, lumbar spine disease, severe high blood pressure, balance problems and glaucoma as reasons to modify poses.

Props many athletes use

Props don’t prevent injuries on their own, but they make it easy to stay in a safe range. Many athletes keep a set of foam blocks and a strap like the Gaiam Yoga Block & Strap Combo by the mat, practice on a dense, grippy mat like the Manduka PRO so hands and feet don’t slide in planks and lunges, and bring a big bottle like the Nalgene 32 oz to hot classes. For aches outside class, our foam roller guide has more.

When to see a sports medicine doctor, PT or athletic trainer

• Right away (emergency): signs of heat stroke (confusion, collapse), sudden severe neck pain after an inversion, or numbness, tingling or weakness in the arms or legs.
• Within a day or two: a pop or sudden sharp pain in a muscle or near the sit bone, pain that stops you bearing weight on a wrist or leg, or heavy swelling.
• Soon: wrist, hip, back or neck pain that comes back every class, pain that lasts more than a few days, or pain at night or at rest.

A sports medicine physician diagnoses and decides on imaging; a physical therapist guides rehab and can tell you which poses to keep, change or drop; an athletic trainer at your school or club can often help with both prevention and the first look. Tell all of them that you do yoga: the study authors above suggest exactly that. For the injuries your main sport causes, see that sport’s injuries page, for example soccer injuries.

Yoga injuries: FAQs

What is the most common yoga injury?

Sprains and strains. In US emergency-department data from 2001 to 2014, sprains and strains made up 45% of yoga injuries and the trunk was the most injured area. NCCIH also mentions the knee and lower leg as common sites.

Is yoga safe for athletes?

For healthy people, NCCIH calls yoga generally safe when done properly with a qualified instructor. The risk goes up when athletes push for depth, try advanced poses too soon or do hot yoga without care. Tell your teacher about your sport and injuries.

Should athletes do headstands?

They don’t have to. The head can carry 40–48% of body weight in a headstand, and headstands show up often in case reports of serious yoga injuries. Skip them with any neck history, concussion history, high blood pressure or glaucoma, and only learn them from a teacher.

Is hot yoga dangerous?

It carries extra risk. In one study at about 105°F, average core temperature reached 103.2°F and one person hit 104.1°F. NCCIH warns of overheating and dehydration. Hydrate, build up slowly, skip it when you’re ill or already depleted, and stop at the first sign of dizziness or nausea.

Why do my wrists hurt in yoga?

Planks, downward dog and arm balances load the wrist in extension, which most sports don’t. Spread your fingers, press through the knuckles, take planks on the knees or forearms and build up slowly. If pain keeps coming back, see a PT or doctor.

Can I do yoga with a back injury?

Ask the person treating you first. Some poses may be fine and others not, and NCCIH lists lumbar spine disease as a reason to modify. For long-term low back pain, doctors may suggest yoga as one option, but that’s a plan to make with them.