For The Love of Yoga

I always say that I am a runner first and a yoga practitioner second. The reason for this is partly because I started running in August 2012 and I did not take my first yoga class until March 2013. Prior to that, I had heard of yoga, but I never saw myself as someone who went to yoga classes. Yoga didn’t appeal to me and it’s probably because I didn’t understand what the practice was about.

Things changed in March 2013 when, after running three half marathons within weeks of one another, I developed IT band syndrome. The injury was so bad I couldn’t run even for a minute. I was sad that I wasn’t able to run, but I understood the importance of moving in ways that would support me once I got back to running. Why yoga though? Let’s thank Groupon for their offer of one month unlimited yoga for $59. Always practical, I figured that two or three classes would have earned me my money back, so it would not feel like a big loss if I didn’t like it. I was also inspired to try after reaching out to my aunt and asking her about yoga. She gave me the best advice ever (advice that I apply to everything today): “Give everything a try twice. First time to see if you like it and a second time to confirm whether you do.”

I had such a great experience in my first class that returning for the second and third was easy. My first ever yoga class was a power vinyasa class and I’ll never forget that class: it was an evening class, the room was heated, and music was playing. I felt like I had just gone for a ride at the end of the class; I had that much fun! The movement was quick and intense and I was a happy puddle of sweat at the end, giving me those running feels I was missing so much. Needless to say, I was hooked on the practice of yoga.

My love for yoga grew so much that, a few years later, I decided to get certified as a yoga instructor. I had an intense curiosity about the body and a joy for different movement modalities the body could experience. After getting certified, I pursued advanced certifications in yoga for athletes, Yoga For All, and Yoga Nidra. Today, I teach a variety of styles in one class alone, blending elements of different movement types to create a flow that is unique and empowering to the student. I have experienced the power of yoga within my own body, mind, and soul and have seen the power of yoga in those who come to me to guide them through the practice. Yoga for me as a runner-athlete first, has three purposes to it: activation, recovery, and relaxation. It is these three purposes that I will dive into in this week’s blog post. (Note: this blog post focuses on yoga asana or the physical practice of poses)

Activation

Yoga movement for activation is like a warm-up before a workout. When I talk about “activation'“ in a yoga practice I am talking about using the practice of yoga as a tool to prepare the body for more intense work. With activation, the focus is more on mobility, firing up muscles, and exploring a joint’s full range of motion instead of leaning into static stretching. In classes where my focus is on activation, the yoga movement will mimic the more intense movement patterns of the other movement modality. The goal is to use movement as a way to lubricate the joints and loosen the muscles so that there is more power and fluidity of movement later on. For a runner, for example, the practice might include a combination of single-leg standing and lunging poses that focus on activating stability in the feet and activating the muscles of the quads, hips, and glutes.

Recovery

Yoga for recovery is like the cool down after an intense workout. In yoga movement practices that focus on recovery, the yoga helps release tension from sore muscles so that the recovery from harder movement efforts is boosted or sped up. These practices may still have movement and flow to them, but the pacing is slower to allow for more awareness of the sensations in the body and poses may be held for longer periods of time. The goal is to bring range of motion and blood (aka circulation) back into the joints and muscles in a show of gratitude for all that your body has done for you. In classes where my focus is on recovery, the practice might have a greater emphasis on breathing and using the breath to find comfort in the discomfort of a longer holds. For a runner, for example, the practice might have longer holds targeting the hips and hamstrings, in addition to longer holds in those places, like the shoulders, that we runners forget are just as important to being strong runners as the more obvious muscles of the legs.

Relaxation

Yoga for relaxation is like a reset for the body and the mind. Yoga for relaxation is where one explores rest practices, like Yoga Nidra, that help revive and rejuvenate the person. These practices may not be intense in movement or may not even have any movement at all because the intention is to get the student to slow down, settle the nervous system, and find the space to breathe in a way that releases tension and invites in ease. In classes where my focus is on relaxation, the emphasis is on breathing, breath awareness, and setting the body up in positions of maximum comfort so that sensations in the body do not distract the student from their ability to tap into feelings of rest and relaxation. Relaxation practices are full of gentle and mindful movement that are meant to feel nourishing. The goal here is to remind the student that a rested body is a part of having a well-performing body.

The practice of yoga is a tool with many benefits and how you use it depends on what you are hoping to accomplish with it. My hope is that this post helps you understand my approach to yoga better and allows you to be a little more expansive in your thoughts about what a yoga practice can offer you.