:: March/April 2003 Volume 2/Number 2

Running Into Yoga

Yoga is a time-honored tool for integrating the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of life. The benefits of the practice have found their way into diverse areas, including the work place and sports. What's lesser known, however, are the ways that a yoga practice might in turn benefit from the influence of other activities, specifically, running.

By Ryan Allen

A sect of Buddhist monks residing on Japan's Mount Hiei, often referred to as the Marathon Monks, has a unique approach towards obtaining spiritual enlightenment. Over a span of seven years, a gyoja (spiritual athlete) completes an arduous 1,000-day challenge that builds to a final 100-day stretch during which he runs 52.2 miles a day - twice the length of a marathon.

Throughout, he exists on a vegetarian diet and minute sleep (literally learning to 'sleep on the run' by resting certain parts of his body at varying intervals). He wears only a white robe, hat, woven sandals and a rope tied around his waist with a knife sheathed in the chord of the rope. The last two objects serve the samurai-like purpose of reminding the gyoja that should he not complete the tasks of his seven-year mission (including intense meditation and a death-defying fast), he is to hang himself with the rope or disembowel himself with the knife. Since 1885, 46 gyojas have successfully completed this daunting challenge and fortunately there have been no cases of 'failure' since the 19th Century.

Typically, the hazards that might accompany a quest for enlightenment pose less threatening consequences. Some turn to meditation, prayer, nature, falling in love - the paths are as varied as those who walk them or, in some cases, run.

Running has created a reputation for itself as an injury-inducing activity. The repetitive impact of feet pounding on surface has been known to cause compression in the joints of the ankles, knees, hips and lower back. Imbalances between the major muscles utilized are also largely responsible for undesirable conditions like shin splints and Iliotibial Band Syndrome (a.k.a. runner's knee). Over time, running often takes its toll on the tendons and connective tissue and can compromise the immune system, especially in those who over-train - ironically many professional, elite athletes fall into this category and tend to get sick more frequently than those who are less active. With hopes of counteracting and preventing these types of adverse effects, increasing numbers of runners in Los Angeles are opening up to yoga.

 

Crossing Over with Yoga

I.S.I. (International Sportsmedicine Institute) in West Los Angeles serves as a training ground for many world-class athletes. Brigita Langerholc, who placed 4th in her 800-meter event in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, has incorporated yoga into her training on and off over the past six years. 'As an athlete, I knew about stretching, but when I started doing yoga I realized there was so much more to do.' Although it has improved her flexibility, she places more value on her yoga practice as a relaxation technique and for heightening awareness of her breath when running.

Photo by Bernice Guevarra.

Dr. Christopher Vincent is one of Langerholc's trainers and a resident physician at I.S.I., specializing in sports medicine. Distance runners, says Dr. Vincent, tend toward tightness in the chest, shoulders and upper neck, as well as weaknesses in the hips and feet. The strengthening influence that yoga has on the feet can be very valuable to runners. When an I.S.I. yoga instructor is informed that a student is a runner, the instructor will pay close attention to the student's feet to make certain they are aligned and working in all the postures. Dr. Vincent also cites yoga as way to help runners with core strengthening since running forces athletes to work the major muscles, while the stabilizers (tendons, ligaments and minor muscles) are often neglected. Through yoga, balance and coordination are developed.

Dottie Candler is one of the yoga instructors who works with runners at I.S.I. She was one of the first teachers to be certified in Bikram-style yoga and a senior instructor at Bikram's studio in Los Angeles before she began studying and working with Ana Forrest. Candler's classes exhibit the influences of these two stylized teachers, working to strengthen as well as stretch, with much attention paid to developing core strength through abdominal work.
Candler places runners in Warrior poses to strengthen and open the hips, and works to lengthen the hamstrings with adho mukha svanasana (downward-facing dog). In her classes, she focuses on adjustments specifically intended for runners, such as to lift the big toe of the front foot in virabhadrasana I or II (Warrior I or II), in order to take some of the pressure off of the bent knee. Candler laments that not everyone she works with understands that yoga is about breath, strength and balancing, rather than merely organized stretching.

A pranayama practice helps increase lung capacity, which will in turn benefit athletes while performing. Although runners are now instructed to breathe through their noses (in the past they were coached to mouth-breathe), the reality of the situation usually forces them to use their mouth while performing, then a combination of inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth while cooling down. Inhaling through the nose helps regain control of the breath, while exhaling through the mouth facilitates getting out the CO2 more forcefully - this allows the body to concentrate on recovery rather than waste products resulting from CO2 build up. A yoga practice prescribes just such techniques: nostril breathing during the practice and techniques such as shitali breath (curling the tongue and breathing in and out) for cooling the body.

Photo by Bernice Guevarra.

Many runners and tri-athletes in Los Angeles are also attracted to Y.A.S. (Yoga & Spinning) in Venice because of the aspect of cross-training with yoga. Kimberly Fowler, who owns and runs the studio, is a former professional tri-athlete who turned to yoga to deal with a hip injury and tight hamstrings and psoas. She says that yoga helps many athletes notice imbalances in their bodies that they can then work on to even out. Y.A.S.'s yoga classes take runners through hip openers, since stretching the hip flexor will enable them to lift the knee higher and increase their speed. Fowler instructs students when forward bending in order to give relief to compressed lower backs and in abdominal work to develop core strength. And svasana proves beneficial by calming down and helping to balance their systems. Fowler advises runners to do yoga at least three times a week, as well as hold postures such as eka pada rajakapotasana (pigeon) preparation and forward bends for an extended period of time when at home, while watching TV, etc.

This March, more than 20,000 Los Angelians will take flight in the LA Marathon. L.A. Leggers is one of the area's premier marathon-training groups, giving individual runners an opportunity to train within a structured environment and supportive community. It also offers members a weekly yoga class, Yoga for Marathoners, taught by Heidi Skvarna. The focus that a yoga practice engenders can be a coveted tool when running distances. Skvarna encourages students to set an intention for class, which they can also use when they run, and to seek the positive rather than focusing on pain and discomfort. And by bringing their attention to the breath, Skvarna provides them a method for staying connected to their yoga practice, running, work, daily life, and being relaxed when in stressful situations.

 

Running, Yoga & Ayurveda

Dr. John Douillard is a former professional athlete and Ironman who presently practices Ayurvedic and chiropractic sports medicine. His approach to fitness is largely based on ancient Ayurvedic texts, such as Sushruta Samhita, which prescribe a 5,000-year-old exercise program that focuses on breath, comfort and mind-body integration - dynamic activity coexisting with silence. In Douillard's opinion, yoga is the most effective way to incite this integration. When running, the result can be what is often referred to as 'being in the Zone' or 'runner's high.' In this state, the brain exhibits an alpha wave pattern that is also often present during meditation. Douillard's method strives to induce this euphoric feeling each time one runs, rather than being at the whim of random grace.

Douillard proposes recreating the characteristics of this exercise high - qualities like effortlessness and a sense of comfort - at the beginning of the workout, then maintaining them throughout. He recommends warming up with surya namaskar (sun salutations) in order to set the breath rate and cultivate mind-body coordination. With only 30 minutes of sun salutations, the runner is able to establish a steady nostril-breathing pattern as well as warm up the muscles; this way the initial 30 minutes of the run isn't spent finding the breath. And by finishing with more sun salutations, it's possible to train oneself to take the alpha state into daily life.

Photo by Bernice Guevarra.

Another aspect of Ayurveda that Douillard applies is working with individual mind-body types (vata, pitta and kapha) in order to develop an exercise program most appropriate for the individual and keep the process fun and injury-free. For instance, those who are primarily vata types have a tendency to over-train and consequentially injure themselves. Those with a pitta constitution can be highly competitive and tend to focus on the goal rather than the process, whereas kapha types might lack motivation. The overall aim is to keep the process enjoyable for the individual regardless of the outcome.

 

Is Running Yoga?

Because of the injuries attributed to running and its tendency to contract muscles, many teachers hold the opinion that yoga is great for running, but running is not so good for yoga. Some yoga instructors go so far as to advise students to give up running altogether.

Matthew Reyes does not agree with the anti-running point of view. Reyes is a teacher at Maha Yoga in Brentwood, as well as a mentor for LA Leggers' fastest pace group (7.5 minute mile). He also teaches tennis, plays softball two nights a week and occasionally lifts weights for upper body strength. For him, yoga is a slice of the pie, but so are the numerous other activities that bring him joy and fitness. He says that yoga is the most meditative, though, and feels that it will help keep him mentally and physically fit in the long run so that he does not have to give up any of the slices.

Reyes encourages runners to balance their time devoted to running with time spent doing yoga (even if it's only 60:40), and sees many rewards in combining the conditioning of running with the opening of yoga. Running cultivates cardiovascular strength; yoga cultivates the capability to control the heart, mainly through breath. And the practice of sustaining the breath while in difficult postures can be even more challenging when applied to running.

Photo by Bernice Guevarra.

In regards to the 'judgment' that is often projected onto runners, Reyes says, 'It depends on the goal. If the goal in yoga is to put the feet behind the head, then running won't help.' Reyes' goal is to be the strongest, most peaceful and balanced person he can be - being enlightened as a whole being. He wonders why so many yogis, who are in the business of being flexible, are being so inflexible and close-minded when it comes to running.

This invokes the question, Is running yoga? Los Angeles yoga instructor Shiva Rea does not consider running separate from her yoga practice. She runs in the mountains near Malibu a few times a week, reaping the rewards of a cardiovascular workout that in turn increases her stamina and circulation. Coinciding with her pranayama practice, the heightened breath rate that running induces helps to purify her lungs, while also serving as a focal point and monitor. Rea refers to it as her 'pilgrim's training,' in that it fosters the stamina and strength for the pilgrimage of life. But perhaps the most important runoff is the joy it brings her and the opportunity to be outside, communing with the elements.

Being serious about a yoga practice means taking it off the mat and into all areas of life. In the case of the Marathon Monks, there's a high likelihood that the wear and tear of their treacherous seven-year trial render their bodies wanting nothing more than to sit and meditate. While yogis harp on runners for their injuries, yoga-induced injuries are becoming increasingly prevalent and competition is often to blame. Runners and yoga practitioners alike can learn from focusing on the breath and finding joy in the process rather than being distracted by someone on another mat or a runner a few strides ahead.

'The wise man lets go of all
Results, whether good or bad,
And is focused on the action alone.
Yoga is skill in actions.'
- Bhagavad Gita

References:
Body, Mind & Sport by John Douillard
Three Rivers Press, 2001

The Runner's Yoga Book by Jean Couch
Rodmell Press, 1990

Ryan Allen is a writer/editor living in Los Angeles. She has been practicing yoga for six years.