WHY FIGHTERS NEED HOT YOGA!

James Vick
Jun 20, 2025By James Vick

Fighters: Here’s Why You Need Hot Yoga in Your Training Routine

What's up, fighters? Today, let’s talk about a game changer that most martial artists overlook: hot yoga. If you’ve been pounding away at your training camp, grappling, kicking, or boxing hours on end, you might have already heard that yoga can help you stay in the game longer by preventing injuries. But I’m here to show why hot yoga specifically isn’t just another fitness trend—it can become your secret weapon for performance, flexibility, and longevity in martial arts. Trust me, after eight years in the UFC and hundreds of classes, I know what I’m talking about.

“I was in the UFC for about eight years, and I did yoga every training camp, and then most of the time outside of training camp as well. I would go one day a week to hot yoga.”

Let’s break down everything you fighters need to know about hot yoga, how I made it an unskippable part of my fight prep, and how you can use it to level up both your mind and your body in the gym.

Why Fighters Need Hot Yoga

Let’s get real: Combat sports are brutal on the body. Every week, you’re hitting pads, drilling takedowns, trying to stay a step ahead in sparring. So why should a serious fighter take time to sweat it out in a silent, heated yoga studio?
Here’s why:

  • Injury Prevention: Hot yoga’s dynamic stretches and heat allow you to work on mobility and muscle health in a way that traditional gym stretching just can’t match.
  • Faster Recovery: After grappling hard or a striking-heavy session, hot yoga flushes your system, keeps your back and hips loose, and helps you recover faster.
  • Mental Focus: It’s not just the body—you get the headspace to focus and reset mentally. It’s like sharpening your blade so you’re ready to go again.


“You’re just going in there to stretch and relieve your muscles and help prevent injuries. But pick out the ones you think are best.”

My Hot Yoga Journey in the UFC

Let me pull back the curtain. When I was fighting at the highest level—eight years in the UFC—I was putting in serious training hours.

But I wasn’t just smashing mitts and clinch drilling. I made time for hot yoga, even during the toughest camps.

How did I fit it in?

  • One day per week, every single camp.
  • Switched up studios, but always went where I could find consistent routines.
  • Stayed with what worked: for me, that was often Bikram Yoga (which runs 90-minute sessions and repeats each pose twice).

Why Bikram? Because the studio was close, the classes were long, and I needed that deep work after back-to-back sessions in the gym.

“When I was intensely training and putting in five, six, seven hours a day, like hard work… I would go to Bikram yoga because it was close by and also an hour and a half long.”

My training plan—hot yoga on the rest day, right in the middle of the fight camp

How Hot Yoga Fits Into Combat Sports Training

A lot of fighters think stretching is something you handle at the END, when you’re tired or as an afterthought. Here’s the real deal: integrating hot yoga into all phases of your camp pays off whether you’re a striker, a grappler, or both.

After Striking Sessions

  • Boxing Days: After class, we would do ab work—gotta keep that core snappy.
  • Kickboxing Days: Stretching takes over at the end, and most of those stretches? Hot yoga gave them to me.

Grappling and Rolling

If you’ve rolled after a hard session, you already know how much your hips, back, and knees need TLC. If your hips are tight or you land in weird guard positions, injury risk goes up.

Hot yoga stretches made all the difference:

  • When you’re caught in half guard and your back seizes, you need more than a basic quad stretch…
  • When your hips are twisted defending an armbar or exploding for a sweep, you need flexibility that only real stretching provides.

The Stretches Every Fighter Should Steal from Hot Yoga

After years in hot yoga studios, I built my personal stretching protocol. Let me walk you through what works for martial arts:

1. Pigeon Pose

Why it’s a fighter’s friend:

  • Loosens hips for guard work, kicks, or knees.
  • Super important for avoiding those tweaks and strains you get moving around on the mat.

2. Child’s Pose

Why it’s clutch:

  • Eases lower back tightness (all that kicking and grappling adds up).
  • Gives your mind a reset too, so you hit the next drill fresh.

3. Other Poses

I could rattle off a bunch of stretch names, but honestly?
I use what works—you don’t gotta memorize Sanskrit. If a stretch helps your kicks get higher or keeps your back loose after grappling, it’s worth learning.

Other go-to stretches:

  • Hamstring stretches from hot yoga routines
  • Various twisted poses for spine health
  • Shoulder opening movements for clinch and boxing mobility


“Majority of the stretches that I show my students and have them do at the end of a kickboxing class, I all learned from hot yoga… it’s just really good for injury prevention.”

Injury Prevention: What the Science Says

You don’t have to take my word for it. Here’s why hot yoga is legit, not just for fighters, but for anyone wanting to keep their body working at its best.

Why Heat Helps

  • Warms Muscles: Warmer muscles stretch easier—less chance to pull a muscle if you’re loose and warm.
  • Increases Blood Flow: The sweat and heat keep your joints and tendons nourished while you work on flexibility.
  • Deeper Stretch: Heat allows you to push a little further (safely), building range of motion you’ll actually use in martial arts.

Injury Patterns in Fighters

Common injuries I’ve seen (and felt myself) on the mat or in the ring:

  • Hamstring pulls
  • Tweaked lower backs
  • Neck strains
  • Hip issues
  • Shoulder stiffness


Hot yoga attacks all of these by building habits and flexibility into your game. Instead of waiting to rehab an injury, prevent it by keeping your body ready.

Getting Started: How to Make Hot Yoga Work for You

Alright, you’re ready to try. How do you actually get started without wasting time or embarrassing yourself in a studio full of yoga pros?

1. Commit to Consistency

  • Don’t just go once. Give it at least a year or two—go once a week and treat it like you do striking or wrestling drills.

2. Pick the Right Moves

  • Don’t worry about mastering every pose. Steal what works and skip what doesn’t. I built my own routine by figuring out what actually made me a better fighter.

3. Customize for Fighting

  • You don’t have to do every pose “perfectly.” Focus on stretches that open your hips, protect your back, and keep your legs loose.

4. Don’t Overthink the Studio

  • It doesn’t matter if you’re not as “yoga” as that guy in the front row. You’re not there for a handstand contest; you’re there to stay healthy and in the fight.

Hot Yoga vs. Regular Yoga for Fighters

You might be wondering, “Why can’t I just do normal yoga?”

Here’s the difference:

Hot Yoga

  • Classes are in heated rooms (90-110 degrees)
  • Increased flexibility from warmth
  • More sweat = extra detox (feels great after a hard week of sparring)
  • You avoid stretching cold muscles, which is a big deal

Regular Yoga

  • Still good, especially if the room is warm or after a thorough warm-up
  • Not as intense on the sweat, but it works if you need a lighter session


“I like hot yoga because it heats you up. I mean, regular yoga is good as well if you’re… especially if it’s a decent area where it’s hot.”

Tips for Fighters New to Hot Yoga

Jumping into a new type of class can be intimidating. Here are my field-tested tips:

1. Drink More Water Than Usual

You sweat out a lot in a hot yoga class—bring a big water bottle.

2. Don’t Push to the Breaking Point

Listen to your body. It’s tempting to try to “win” yoga, but nobody cares how deep your stretch is. Focus on getting better slowly.

3. Gear Up

  • Use a mat with good grip (you’ll be dripping sweat)
  • Wear light, moisture-wicking clothes
  • Bring a towel

4. Respect the Rest

The best part for a lot of fighters is the chill time at the end. This is where injuries can heal and you get some mental clarity.

5. Focus on the Stretches That Translate to Martial Arts

Not every pose is made for fighting, but some—like pigeon pose or child’s pose—should be in your game plan.

Common Questions Fighters Have About Hot Yoga

Let’s hit some FAQs I get from students and other fighters all the time.

Q1: Do I Have to Be Flexible to Start?

No! That’s the point: hot yoga makes you flexible. No one expects you to be a pretzel on day one.

Q2: Won’t Yoga Make Me Weaker?

Another myth. If anything, holding poses in heat builds stabilizer muscle strength and gets rid of imbalances that set you up for injury.

Q3: Will I Be the Only Fighter in Class?

Maybe, but that’s not a bad thing. You learn more by watching people who are good at flexibility, even if they aren’t fighters.

Q4: What If I Sweat Too Much?

Don’t worry—everyone is sweating buckets. The heat and sweat are what help you get loose.

Q5: How Does It Help Recovery?

The heat and stretching increase blood flow, flush out inflammation, and give your body a break from all-out sparring or strength training.

Conclusion: Take Your Training to the Next Level

If you’re looking to stay healthy, fight longer, and keep leveling up in martial arts, don’t sleep on hot yoga. It’s easy to push stretching and flexibility to the side when you’re focused on fighting, but those are the things that make sure you can keep coming back strong every camp.

It kept me in the cage for eight years. The majority of stretches I teach my own students today started on a hot yoga mat. You don’t have to go all-in like a full-time yogi.
Just add one class a week, focus on what works, and watch how much better your body feels.

“Go in there, do it for a while, do it for a year or two, and take it serious… you’re just going in there to stretch and relieve your muscles and help prevent injuries.”

Bonus: Finding the Right Gym and Resources

So you want to try hot yoga. Where do you start?

1. Check Local Studios

Search “hot yoga near me” or look for studios that run Bikram or similar heated classes. Ask them if beginners are welcome—they usually are.

2. Bring a Friend from Your Gym

If you’re nervous, get a fellow fighter to try class with you. Having someone else sweating makes it more fun.

3. Use Online Resources or Books

If you’re between camps or nowhere near a studio, check out videos or grab a guide. My own book, “The Ultimate Guide: Who Your Martial Arts School Instructor Is,” can help you pick a good school or program—link in description.

4. Talk to Your Coach

A lot of gyms are getting wise to the importance of flexibility and injury prevention. See if your coach will bring in a yoga instructor for a team session.

Final Words

Fighting is about more than just technique or power—it’s about staying healthy, taking care of your body, and finding ways to recover so you can keep pushing. Hot yoga was a game changer for me, and it can be for you too. If you want me to cover any other topics, just let me know in the comments and I’ll make a video.
If you’re new to martial arts or looking for a gym, check out my book The Ultimate Guide to Choosing Your Martial Arts School and Instructor.