I Swear By the Yoga

After 10 weeks of 90-minute yoga practices twice per week, I'm happy to report the tight glute and hamstring are feeling, well...waaaay less tight. I'm sold on the yoga because after two years of trying various remedies, most of which were half-assed on my part, the yoga has really stuck and I enjoy the practice. I'm also happy to report that since that disastrous yoga class (some of you might recall this story), I've since found a class that is, well...less yoga like. The instructor has a good sense of humor and she often makes fun of yoga "traditions". The class is full of former gymnasts, dancers, and martial artists, and I constantly feel pushed. It's like the triathlon of yoga. I'm getting very close to lifting myself up into a handstand and holding it, something these two girls in my class do quite well, to the amazement of everyone else in the class. Check out FlyingYoga in the Temescal neighborhood of Oakland. Temescal is like the east bay version of the Mission in SF.

But yoga is not just about stretching and increased flexibility, it's also great for core strength. I did my first track workout last week and my mind kept coming back to how solid and strong I felt. In the past, as the speed and intensity picked up, I sort of felt like my legs and arms were slowly breaking apart and coming out of their joints/sockets (imagine a scene in an action movie where a car or plane slowly breaks apart as it nears combustion). But last week, as the effort picked up, I just remembered thinking to myself, I feel solid. I'm sure it is a combination of both the yoga and the weight program...or maybe I just wasn't running fast or intense enough.

The theme of this week is tired, not good since I'm racing a half marathon on Sunday. I did a ride with my teammates on Saturday, and not only was it my longest ride of the season, it was the most hard effort ride of the season. And every workout since, I am reminded of that ride. But this is ironman training, which means pushing through the physical and mental states of tiredness. The half marathon is not so much a race but more like a hard effort run with a lot of other people. The run is precluded by a full week of training including a 4 hour ride, swim, and weights the day before. Reality check...checked. Setting up excuses for a slow time...checked.