Thursday, January 7, 2016

Giving Yoga Another Try

I have a confession to make that I think most runners will identify with but fitness types might sneer at. I really don't like yoga.

I know it's good for me and would help improve my running, but I just get so bored! This week, though, I worked my legs pretty hard and my back, calves, and hamstrings have been knotted up. I pushed through the discomfort on my run Wednesday night (which was awesome and fast and chilly and perfect), but decided that the price I had to pay for pushing the pace was giving yoga another try.
Mile 3 was the bridge; I kept my pace peppy! I was playing around with my Apple watch and using it as a remote to take pictures after my run...What do we call this pose? Awkward lady in the park?
I googled Yoga for Runners and the first video I clicked ended up being the perfect one for me. I love the instructor's voice and the flow really focused on stretching your hamstrings and IT band and improving posture. And it was only 20 minutes! And at the end she was so soothing and all "stay in Savasana as long as you like, just lie there, just relax" and I am all about naps so I was all over that.
I liked that some of the poses were more like stretches - like the runner's lunge - instead of just poses. The instructor was easy to follow and not too over-the-top with the "feel the energy of your body and the entire world coming together" and all that jazz. So in short, maybe I can try yoga again now; maybe I didn't like it for so long because I never found an instructor I cared to listen to!

I think I usually get bored because I don't feel like yoga is a workout, but I need to wrap my head around the fact that stretching and resting are parts of any good training plan; not every workout needs to leave me sweaty and spent, right?
Guess which pose is my favorite.
So, as I aim to improve as an athlete and incorporate cross-training this year, I think I'll give yoga another try...at least once every other week to start, and I'll see where it goes from there!

Do you like yoga?
What's a popular style of fitness you don't like?

ABK

18 comments:

  1. I don't like spin classes. I've tried a couple...and yes...it's a great workout...but I just can't get into it. I'm with you on yoga as well....I know I should do it but if my heartrate doesn't climb....I just don't get the 'high' that I want. Maybe I'll try your video.

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    1. I agree, spin is a great workout but just isn't something I really ever got into. I think with yoga, if I can remind myself that recovery is part of the whole package, even if it's not a "workout", maybe I'll see the value in it!

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  2. I've never tried Yoga but Rhonda and I do pilates at the YMCA sometimes and it's a real major core workout in addition to being good stretching. Very different from instructor to instructor though, so if yoga is like that, too maybe just finding the right instructor will get you the feel you're looking for. :)

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    1. I do love pilates! I have a couple pilates videos I like to do once in awhile. They definitely leave me feeling more tired than yoga does!

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  3. I am not a an of yoga but I am a huge fan of stretching! My strength training preference is weights. I am glad you found short yoga video you like! I LOVE Zumba. I am not sure if people our age like it but I really do. It just bothers my IT band so I don't do it. :(

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    1. I've never tried Zumba...I'm interested, but I have a hard time believing it would be a REAL workout, too. Maybe I'll give it a try after A1A.

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  4. I am right there with you. I don't love yoga. I have a few stretches I do every day for my hips, but I never sit and follow videos or anything. My hamstrings were super tight this week too (I wonder if the cold has anything to do with it since both of us experienced it) so I just incorporated a few extra ham stretches.

    Thanks for sharing the video though, maybe I'll give it a shot this weekend. Since you don't like yoga either but found the video helpful maybe I'll like it too!

    PS: Good luck to your friend running her first marathon this weekend! Hope she has a great experience!

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    1. I think if I can change my mindset from "workout" to "recovery" regarding yoga, I'll be more likely to spend the time doing it. I've done this video twice now and I do notice a difference the next day!

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  5. I do like yoga, and know it makes me a better runner. But I rarely go to class (no time... costs money... etc.) so I just do short home sessions... when I do them, which is not enough these days.

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    1. I never go to classes. I don't like to spend the money. With the internet at my fingertips, it's so easy to just look up some videos at home!

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  6. I don't dislike yoga, but I just can't get motivated to do it. Every training cycle I'm all "I'm gonna get into yoga this time! Really, I am!" and then it never happens, because why go to the class when I could do strength work at home or just do...I don't know...anything else? When I'd hear "yoga" my mind basically says "rest day! Let's skip it!" With that said, the last yoga class I took back in May was actually good because it was strength-focused, so it was basically a strength training workout and it was a workout. What I liked is that it forced me to strength train in ways I wouldn't have thought of on my own. Should I go back? Yeah, sure! Am I actually going to?...Yeah, probably not. I've got enough to do. I figure if yoga were something I really wanted to do I would have done it more already.

    One fitness thing I can't get into is swimming. I want to like swimming, I really do. But I hate getting all wet and chlorine-y, and I get so bored swimming laps that I can't do it long enough to get a workout.

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    1. Yes, that's exactly it! My mind sees yoga as a rest day and thinks that just sitting around will be just as effective! But I'm going to try to be more purposeful in my recovery this year, and that means rest days need some actual recovery in them haha.

      I hate swimming too. I'm terrible at it and I hate being cold.

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  7. I've always liked yoga - but I can see why others might not. One good resource that I do use is the Yoga Studio App ( it remains as the only app I've ever paid for..) but it has classes varying in skill, style and length. I think its completely worth the 4.99 (atleast thats what it was when I bought it a few years ago...) I can't get behind Zumba. I danced for 14 years and LOVE to dance but something about that class just isn't for me!

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    1. Maybe if I end up liking the free yoga videos I see on YouTube, I'll try the app. It's hard to justify paying for it when there are so many free resources out there! I've never tried Zumba...it's intimidating!

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  8. I felt like you yoga was not a real work out. I felt like unless I sweat I was not doing anything. I realize now that you do not need to sweat to work your body. I see many people who only do yoga and they are so defined. I am not a Zumba or spin fan. I am to uncoordinated for those two.

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    1. I do wonder how people who only do yoga get so muscular. It never leaves me feeling like I've really worked out!

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  9. Whenever I have done regular yoga I have had very few injuries and I have felt strong. I just feel the exact same way as you, like it's not really a tough workout. I like workouts where I'm very sore and exhausted in the end, unfortunately those are the ones that usually get me injured LOL!

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  10. Yes, exactly! I like workouts that FEEL like workouts. But I know in the long run these easy/recovery workouts are really good for us...it's just so hard to dedicate the time to them!

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