Yoga and Swimming - 12/1/10

Last update, I was a few classes into a two week trial period for Yoga. Since then, I've become convinced that the Yoga is helpful, in several ways. First off, there is the obvious flexibility gains, mostly in hamstrings and hips. The result of this has been an immediate improvement in how my lower back has felt. In fact, I realized I had gotten used to a certain level of discomfort and tightness in my back over the past couple years. A few sessions of Yoga and started loosening things up enough to make me conscious of the discomfort.

Another benefit I'm finding is getting used to the heat. At 105 degrees and 40% humidity, I sweat. A lot. After a few classes, I started getting used to it, and started figuring out the nuances of how to keep hydrated for this particular activity. But I feel like my body is getting more efficient at working out in hot weather - so my hope is that come the summer heat, when my performance normally suffers greatly, it won't be such a dropoff. While it gets hot in MA during the summer, it doesn't reach anything like 105 degrees and 40% humidity.

As I attend more classes, I find ways in which the postures work various muscle groups as well. Initially, my focus was just trying to do the postures with some semblance of correctness. But over time, I get a little bit better and more efficient, meaning I am using fewer muscles to accomplish the same task. I also find there are some poses that are potentially helpful in ways I didn't envision. One pose in particular, the standing head to knee pose, seems to really work the gluteus medius - which is a muscle that is typically very weak in runners, and helps with hip stability during running. In fact, multiple PT exercises were geared towards strengthening this muscle. I find that the standing head to knee pose on one side is significantly weaker than on the other side. My hope is that working the weaker side will ultimately help with hip stability, which should help with the IT band.

I've also continued swimming a couple/few times a week at the pool. At this point, I'm just doing the 36 laps (1800 yds, about 1 mile) in one straight session.

11/18
36 laps
31:59.5

11/22
36 laps
32:17

11/27
36 laps
32:09

I think what I've decided to do for the next couple months is do the Yoga 4x per week (Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday), and swimming 3x per week (Tuesday, Friday, Saturday). I found during the yoga trial that after doing it for 3-4 days straight, my motivation starts to drop - so I think doing 2x in a row is maintainable. Since the goal for swimming in the offseason is primarily maintenance with existing conditioning, doing that 3x per week should suffice - it still gives me a chance to have a shorter rep speedwork type session (if I so choose), a long distance increasing session (if I so choose), and a nice easy recovery 1 mile session (if I so choose).