Trabajando en casa: yoga virtual
Whether they’re looking for new ways to supplement their running, or have quit running altogether during these uncertain times, many runners are now looking for safe and practical ways to stay fit and healthy within their homes. Through the Working Out at Home series, we will explore different options for staying healthy—both physically and mentally— while staying indoors. Runners can also check out Coach Ben Delaney’s tips on How to Stay in Shape at Home During the Coronavirus Pandemic.
Yoga benefits runners by building strength without bulk and providing a gentle stretch to overworked muscles. Doing yoga virtually allows runners to access this workout while studios are closed. Both runners who are continuing to run while adhering to safe social distancing standards, or those like me who are giving running a pause, virtual yoga can give at home workouts a huge boost. I’d personally assumed I would never like doing yoga without an instructor there to guide me, but I discovered that I not only thoroughly enjoy it, but in some ways prefer it over an in-person class.
How Yoga Can Help
Yoga is a favorite with runners and non-runners alike for the many benefits it provides. Last summer, I attended a class at the NYRR RUNCENTER to experience those benefits for myself. Yoga is a powerful strength workout that targets key muscles for runners.
The core and lower back, both areas that are important for running but are not always directly influenced by it, are strengthened in yoga. These muscles increase your overall stability and posture, which keeps you from wasting energy while running, and allows for stronger running, especially over long distances.
Another area of the body that tends to be neglected in runners, but gets a boost from yoga, is the pelvis, which includes the hip flexors. The connecting area between the legs and the torso, these muscles not only support your body but also protect the organs in your abdominals. Neglecting them can lead to pain and injury throughout the body, but with yoga, they can get the attention they deserve.
These are just a few of the ways yoga can help your running, and stuck at home or not, working yoga into your training can have a huge positive effect.
During this time, however, what is potentially even more important is the benefit for mental health. Mental well-being is a huge component of practicing yoga. The practice draws your attention to the present, reduces muscle tension, and helps reduce overall stress and anxiety. Yoga has long been a recommended practice for those struggling with anxiety and depression, and right now can be an invaluable way to help take care of yourself.
The Benefits of Going Virtual
With studios and gyms closed, many have lost contact with their favorite yoga classes, but many yogis have turned to virtual teaching. Although there are certainly advantages to in- person classes, virtual yoga offers some benefits that may surprise you.
If you tend to be self-conscious in exercise classes like I am, virtual yoga can offer a relief from your inner critic. You can practice at exactly the level you want without comparing your efforts to those around you. If you can’t stretch as far into your pose as someone else, or a pose is a little too difficult for you and you have to sit it out, there is no outside judgment, (even if, in an in-person class, that judgment is often imagined). No one is there to witness your stumbles, losses of balance, and strange facial expressions during a challenging pose.
You can also wear whatever you want! Whether that is your normal yoga pants and tank, or a pair of sweatpants that you have been wearing for a week straight and your old high school t-shirt, whatever is most comfortable and convenient is what is best for a virtual yoga session.
Virtual yoga classes are also much more flexible to your schedule, with many apps and studios offering pre-recorded sessions you can do at home when it suits you. Between work calls in the middle of the day? At 2:00 a.m. now that your sleep schedule is all over the place? Sure.
If you want to get as close to an in-class experience as possible, shop around! Many instructors are also performing live sessions online as well.
Concerned with transition to doing virtual yoga? Here are a few tips from HSS physical therapist Cara Ann Senicola for practicing yoga at home:
- Use props! They are meant to allow us to have optimal alignment when attempting challenging poses. Pictured below are a few examples of what you can use around the house.
- Practice in front of a mirror when possible. Watching how our body moves is called biofeedback. We tend to move in ways familiar to our bodies, whether they are optimal patterns or not. A mirror can help clue us into what we are doing and allow us to correct suboptimal patterns.
- Take fundamentals classes, whether you are new to yoga or not. These classes tend to move more slowly and help us refine our poses.
- Listen to your body and take breaks! Child's pose is always a great re-set.
Find the Virtual Class for You
There are many options available for those seeking virtual yoga classes right now, with numerous yoga apps on the market, and many gyms and studios having adapted their offerings to online classes both for free and with paid options.
Want to know where to start your search? If you took classes at the NYRR RUNCENTER and would like to see a familiar face, you can check them out online!
Instructor Sarah Guffey, who teaches Stretching and Strength Yoga at the RUNCENTER, is teaching classes online for free with donations accepted. You can access her classes here.
Maddie Fontaine, who teaches meditation and stretching classes at the RUNCENTER, is also offering her online classes for free with donations accepted through Venmo. You can access her classes here.
Instructor Margaret Schwarz has been teaching yoga at the RUNCENTER for three years and is teaching classes online and once a week on her Instagram. Content is free with donations accepted through Venmo.
For more free resources, you can check out our partner HSS’s YouTube channel for helpful training videos on yoga and other exercise topics.
