How yoga has helped my running and other things ...

Dancer's Pose

Starbucks Skinny Peppermint Mocha

My Sunday morning yoga class has now turned into one of my favorite things about Sunday mornings. My second favorite thing is my weekly treat to a Skinny Peppermint Mocha at Starbucks. I have only been doing yoga for a couple of months now - really only for the past couple of weeks with any regularity. Today's post is about how I have seen my running improve due to, I believe, yoga.

1.  The number one and most important improvement I have found is that it takes me much less time to recover from a difficult run. I am 42. My joints and muscles are just not what they were when I was in my 20s. Last year, a long or fast run would take me a couple of days to recover from. My calves would be sore, my achilles tendon would tighten, and my heel would start to have that dreaded plantar fasciitis pain. Running on two consecutive days was out of the question. -NO MORE! My feet feel great and I have been running pain free - sometimes even two days in a row!

2. Yoga has given me a general sense of balance and stability. When I run, it seems as though my gait has gotten smoother. Running does not feel as if it takes as much effort (even though I have gotten a bit faster).

3. I have been sleeping like a baby! Don't know if I can credit yoga for that, but why not? I have been using some of the breathing techniques before I go to sleep.

4. After a long run, my arms used to be so tired. I never had much upper body strength even though I always tried to incorporate free weights into my weekly routines. I have noticed recently that my arms are toning up and I can actually do several push ups!

5. Lastly, just adding an additional activity to my weekly workout routine has kept things interesting. I have been sticking to three yoga classes a week - one of them is a general yoga class, is a Buff Yoga class which involves more strength training, and the third is a Netflix video called Yoga Crunch that I do after my Saturday run. They are classes that I really look forward to on Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday.


Note:  I am going to stop posting my daily workouts since I don't have time to do it every day. Instead, I am going to post my weekly workouts on Fridays.