Yoga for Runners

Here is a great way to stretch those quads and hamstrings after a run:

1. Standing nice and tall with pretty posture - Inhale to reach your arms up taking your palms together. Tilt your head back and gaze up at your hands.
2. Exhale reaching your arms apart and fold towards the ground. Let your fingertips reach towards the earth. If they don't reach - no worries- just rest them on your legs.
3. Inhale to bring your head up in line with your spine, creating a flat back. Press your bottom back and extend your spine forward reaching through the crown of your head. You can rest your hands on your shins or fingertips on the ground.
4. Exhale bending your legs enough to place your hands on the ground and step back to downward facing dog (looks like an inverted V). Reach your bottom up towards the sky and relax your heels towards the earth.
Hold for 5-8 deep breaths.
5. Inhale to take a big step forward with the right leg. Now you're in a low runners lunge. Your right knee should be in line with the right ankle. Your back knee reaches up off the ground. Hold for 5 deep breaths.
6. Exhale and lower the left knee to the ground.
7. Inhale to bring your torso up and rest the hands on your right knee, lunging forward to feel a stretch in the left quad. Hold for 5 deep breaths. 8. Exhale your hands to the inside of the right big toe as you walk your hands forward relaxing your torso towards the ground to stretch the hip. Hold for 5 deep breaths. Don't force yourself down - use your breath to help you relax into the pose.
9. Inhale as you walk your hands back.
10. Exhale as you press your hips back and stretch your right leg forward. Flex the right foot and lengthen your body over the right leg to feel a yummy hamstring stretch. Hold for 5 deep breaths.
11. Inhale the right foot down to the ground as you tuck the back toes under (this may take a little adjusting). Come back to that low lunge.
12. Exhale as you press the right leg back for downward facing dog. Hold for 5-8 deep breaths then repeat sequence with the left leg.

Happy Running :-)

If this sequence made absolutely no sense, then come visit me and take a yoga class!

PS - That's Maisy and Remy in the photo, two dogs that are as fast as the wind!