Dustin Poirier is well-acquainted with the fierce exchanges and intense grappling within the octagon.
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Experienced in over 30 UFC battles, MMA veteran Dustin Poirier is well-acquainted with the fierce exchanges and intense grappling within the octagon. However, what truly challenges him to his limits is a fulfilling yoga session, according to Poirier himself.
“I don’t think it surprises people that I do yoga, I think it surprises the moms and older ladies in the room who are doing the poses with ease and I’m struggling and dying,” he told Insider in an interview.
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As a former interim lightweight champion, Poirier revealed that he frequently engages in morning yoga sessions before delving into the rest of his training routine. With the intention of maintaining flexibility and durability, he strives to incorporate yoga into his schedule at least once every week.
“A long muscle is a strong muscle, and that’s injury prevention as well. It helps keep my muscles and joints loose,” Poirier said.
According to Poirier, yoga offers significant benefits for enhancing flexibility, balance, and strength, particularly for the core and other muscles responsible for stabilization.
“A lot of positions are very hard. My body is strong but positioning my body in some of the weird ways that yoga puts you — I don’t know, maybe those muscles just haven’t been worked,” Poirier said.
Transitioning from the jiu-jitsu mat to the yoga mat aligns with Poirier’s overarching athlete philosophy, which revolves around a commitment to ongoing self-improvement and embracing continuous challenges.
“If somebody thinks yoga isn’t tough, go do a real yoga session,” Poirier said.
Over a decade ago, Poirier took his initial steps into the world of yoga, and from that point on, he has consistently integrated it into his schedule. Embracing the ethos of constant learning and seamlessly integrating new elements into his regimen, he embodies his “keep grinding” mindset, a key to excelling in the multifaceted discipline of mixed martial arts that has propelled him to his current achievements.
“Just keep grinding, because it’ll pay off,” he said. “It wasn’t done overnight. It’s an evolution that never stops.”
For budding athletes, whether in MMA or any other field, Poirier’s foremost guidance is to extract wisdom from every experience and consistently embrace learning.
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