Coming from a sports background that often has coaches pushing you to go past your limitations, I find yoga a slightly peculiar workout. I am used to hearing, "do one more rep, see if you can go 10lbs heavier, dig deeper, a little faster, get out of your comfort zone, etc." I found myself in yoga class this week puzzled when instructors said, transition into the next posture when your body is ready, go at your own pace, if it's too much just stop, rest whenever you need to, etc." Amused, I thought, "this would never happen at track practice." I should mention that I went from crossfit to yoga on Monday, and anyone who has ever stepped foot in a crossfit gym knows that no one ever tells you to take a knee.
While I attended mostly Hatha yoga classes this week, I did go to one Vinyasa and one Ashtanga class. I learned something about Hatha these past few days that gave me a greater appreciation for the practice. Hatha means equal and opposite forces. The movements in Hatha are actually counter movements... pulling muscles simultaneously in different directions. I gained a greater understanding of what it feels like to elongate muscles in a stretch. The strain on your body, which last week I incorrectly believed to be very little, comes from this principle of counter movement. It was a lesson that I can see has application in other sports. The idea of balance, of evenly distributing your weight as you move, and of course properly stretching can work to ward off injuries.
I also enjoyed doing a little more core work in my classes this week. I usually find that yoga does not focus enough time on core work. Since most of the difficult and even moderate poses require core strength, I am not sure why it is overlooked.
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