Deep in the San Fernando Valley, just as the sun begins to rise and the Topanga Village mall yawns awake, there’s a quiet little studio located across from theRams‘ practice facility where you might just spot the reigning NFL MVP sweating his way through a workout.

There’s no roaring crowds. No intimidating pass rush. No spirals being thrown through the air.

JustMatthew Staffordin his yoga clothes, bending himself into a half-moon pose.

Stafford has been on record talking about how he’s incorporated yoga into his routine to lose weight in order to stay in shape during the latter years of his career, but according toESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Stafford has become a regular at her early-morning hot yoga classes in Woodland Hills.

“Matthew Stafford is there almost every day,” Shelburne told Steve Mason of “Mason and Ireland” on ESPN710 on Wednesday. “He comes solo. He wears a hoodie … He’s very good. Very flexible.”

Shelburne says Stafford is unrecognizable at the class, and if his name occasionally wasn’t written on the studio board with a casual reminder: “Come see us Matthew if you want to buy another 10 pack.” Then you would never know he was even there.

Stafford’s regular hot yoga routine makes perfect sense. At 38 years old, the All-Pro quarterback nearly lost the start of the 2025 seasonwith a herniated disk in his lower back. The old-school NFL approach would have been brute force: deadlifts, squats, leg presses, more muscle piled onto a body that has already absorbed 17 years of violence.

But with a nagging back, Stafford isn’t chasing gym goals, he’s chasing longevity and durability. Two things that yoga is perfect for.

Tom Brady and his groundbreakingTB12 methodwas one of the first in the NFL to speak highly of how yoga can help increase flexibility and pliability in the muscles. Those two things can help prolong a career over brute strength.

Stafford has shared that early in his career, he was pushing 235 pounds and dealing with shoulder injuries in Detroit. He added yoga, swimming and dog walking into his routine to help him shed the extra weight. Now he’s down closer to 215 pounds — leaner, lighter and smarter.

Source: California Post – Breaking California News, Photos & Videos