Running, for all its cardiovascular, strengthening and fitness benefits, can leave your body in an imbalance. Tight hamstrings and hip flexors, misaligned knees and rounded shoulders often plague runners.
Yoga can address these common complaints while also increasing cardiovascular fitness and mental stamina required to run long distances. Try integrating these six yoga poses into your weekly workouts.
Centering
Centering can be a useful tool for a yoga practice or even before a long run. To begin, sit quietly in a simple cross-legged position. Begin to deepen your breath, taking inhalations that fill your abdomen and then exhale, drawing your navel back to your spine. Continue the deep breaths for a few rounds.
The next time you run, take a moment to connect with your breath and your body. This-fact finding time can be essential to avoiding injury and listening to your body.
Cradle Pose
Whether you run on asphalt or a treadmill, continual pounding of your feet on hard surfaces can do a number on your knees.
To help the alignment of your knees, open your hips with cradle pose.
Sitting in a cross-legged position, cradle your right leg with both arms and gently rock it side to side, opening your hip. Repeat on your left side.
Cat and Dog Spine Flex
To open and realign your spine and pelvis, do a couple rounds of cat and dog spine flex.
Position yourself in on your hands and knees. For dog pose, inhale, lifting your tailbone and dropping your navel towards the floor, while your heart center opens. For cat pose, exhale, drawing your navel toward your spine, tucking your tailbone and rounding your back like a Halloween cat. Flow through cat and dog, noting where your back and shoulders feel tight, feeling your pelvis moving and connecting breath with movement.
Hamstring Stretch
Bring yourself down to the mat, lying flat on your back. Bend your right knee and on an exhalation squeeze that knee into your chest. Wrap a yoga strap or old men's necktie around the bottom of your foot. Hold either side of the strap. Exhale and lengthen your right leg toward the ceiling. Feel the back of your hamstring opening. Your shoulders should stay on the mat and your face should relax. Hold the hamstring stretch for six breaths.
Repeat on the opposite side. To close, bring both knees into your chest with your arms wrapped beneath the knee. Exhale and squeeze in closer. Inhale and begin to rock side-to-side, giving your lower back a massage and gentle release.
Deep Relaxation
A few moments of deep relaxation still both the mind and the body.
Lie down on your back on a yoga mat. Close your eyes, reconnect with breath and observe your body. Rest for a few minutes. When you are ready, gently wake up your body by doing wrist and ankle circles. Roll to your right side, press up gently and slowly to a seated position.
References
- "The Runner's Yoga Book"; Jean Couch; 1990
- "Yoga: The Spirit and Practice of Moving Into Stillness"; Erich Schiffmann; 1996
- "Real Men Do Yoga"; John Capouya; 2003
- Yoga Journal: Yoga for Runners
- Yoga Journal: For Beginners --- Supta Padangusthasana
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