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Benefits of Yoga for
Runners:
1. We practice yoga in bare
feet which helps to strengthen the
muscles that support the arches
encouraging improved weight bearing
and optimal structural alignment
that can reduce muscle and joint
injury risk in running activities.
2. Rhythmic breathing in yoga
practices can help improve cellular
oxygenation and promote relaxation.
When practiced during a difficult
run, rhythmic breathing can help a
runner improve focus &
concentration, possibly to overcome
fatigue and promote better running.
3. Yoga practice strengthens &
improves the endurance of the core
postural and extremity muscles
necessary for promoting optimal
upright positioning and can help
improve running efficiency.
4. A balanced yoga practice can help
to improve mobility and flexibility
to the most common restricted
muscles in a runner’s body…hip
flexors, quads, hip rotators and
hamstrings…thereby possibly playing
a role in reducing a runner’s risk
of repetitive stress injury.
5. A yoga practice promotes
mindfulness and improves a runner’s
ability to listen to their body…this
can aid in reducing injury when a
runner is in tune with their body
and able to adjust training as
necessary---light training when
there is fatigue, heavier training
when the body is able.
6. A runner who participates
regularly in a balanced yoga
practice can experience all of the
above benefits and might find that
they will be able to run healthy for
a lifetime.
Yoga Stretches to honor a runner’s
body.
Rules for stretching:
1. Breathe rhythmically with
emphasis on deepening the
exhalation.
2. Support your body with a chair or
blocks to allow the body to relax
into the stretch.
3. Hold steady at the end of your
stretch in the posture for 10-20
breaths—deepen the exhalation.
4. Move deeper into the stretch
after the fifth exhalation and
continue to hold & breathe.
5. Perform these deep stretches at
the END of your run.
6. Don’t forget to rehydrate after
running and after yoga. Take in a
nutrient dense snack within an hour
after activity for optimal muscle
recovery.
7. Cross Train with Yoga on your low
mileage or non-running days.
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Lunge |
Lunge
–drop
knee |
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Lunge
drop
knee
&
bend |
Lunge
drop
knee,
bend
&
hold
trunk
twist |
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Piriformis
Stretch |
Lunge |
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Straighten
forward
leg--Pyramid |
Straighten
forward
leg |
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