Yoga is a great way to balance both your body and mind. It can also complement other workouts, such as running. We’ve put together our five favorite yoga poses for runners. These poses are great to do either before or after your run to help with recovery and injury prevention.
1. Downward Facing Dog
This is an all-around great yoga pose for runners. It stretches the hamstrings, strengthens the legs, stretches the shoulders and strengthens the arms. To do the pose:
Start on all fours, hands shoulder width apart, fingers spread wide and feet hip width apart. Lift your hips up and back, press your chest back and ground your heels toward the floor.
If you’re tight in your hamstrings, bend your knees and lift your heels to prevent your back from rounding.
If your calves are really tight, you can do walking dog – which is bending one knee and lifting your heel, alternating the legs.
(see also: Modifications to Keep your Joints Safe in Down Dog)
2. Kneeling lunge with thigh stretch
This yoga pose stretches your quad muscle and hip flexors. To do the pose, step your right foot in between your hands, lower your left knee down and bring your upper body upright.
Tuck your tailbone in and engage your abdominals. Once you feel stable, grab the back of your ankle and bring your foot in toward your butt to find a quad stretch. Switch sides.
3. Crescent lunge
This yoga pose for runners stretches your hip flexors and shoulder muscles as well as strengthens your legs. To do the pose, step your right foot forward and lift your back knee off the ground. Bring your hands to your hips. Tuck your tailbone under and keep your abdominals engaged.
If you feel comfortable with your balance, lift your arms over head.
4. Triangle pose
This yoga poses is a great stretch for your inner thighs, the side of your trunk, upper abdominals, shoulders and your rib cage.
To do the pose, point your front leg toward the front of your mat and the back foot toward the back of your mat. Hinging from the hips, bring your hand to a the floor or a block.
Practice your breathing techniques here to stretch through the intercoastals of the ribs as well!
5. Standing Gentleman’s Pose
This is a great pose to improve your balance as well as stretch your hip rotators and piriformis.
To do the pose, lift one leg and cross your ankle over your thigh, just above the knee. From there, bend the standing leg. Use support if you need it for balance.
Want more information on what yoga poses would be best for you?
We offer Medical Therapeutic Yoga at Rebalance as one of our treatment methods. Click here to schedule a complimentary phone consultation with one of our physical therapists to find out if medical therapeutic yoga and physical therapy can enhance your running.
