I Swear by Yoga!!

I have run over 130 miles since January 1st!! This is a number that I am very proud of, because I really didn't know if I was going to be able to climb back up the mileage ladder, but I did it, and while some people (mostly those who like math) would say that is only 11 miles a week, I am proud to say that it IS 11 miles a week!! When you are climbing back from injury, or starting over from scratch or just starting new, each and every mile is HUGE!!

I have been challenging myself to run at least 10% more each week, and while I have been doing fairly well maintaining that goal, I am not at the point where I am pushing myself really hard. I am too afraid to go too fast, too soon. I am happy to just be running and putting in pain-free miles each week!!

As I have said in a previous post, I do base a lot of my success on my new found love for Yoga!! I have to admit that the first time I gave Yoga the praise, I wasn't sure if it was granted. I have, of course, been working really hard on my running, and getting into a good training schedule, so, I couldn't be 100% sure that it was definitely Yoga that was keeping me from feeling the pain I had when previously running.

After having to take last week off of my Yoga routine, due to a conference for work, I now know 100% that Yoga is the reason I am feeling so good!!

Before going to my conference, I was attending Yoga classes 4-5 times a week. Last week, I was able to go to class only on Monday, and did not get back to Yoga until yesterday (a full week without Yoga!). At first, I didn't think anything about it, I felt fine, but I was also not running (its hard to keep a training schedule while having a blast at a Link Crew Conference!). By Thursday I was in pain, my back and neck hurt and felt stiff, and my hip was screaming at me!!

I ran a 7k race on Saturday, and it went fairly well, but in the back of my mind, I wondered how much better it would have went if I had been practicing Yoga all week.

Ever since I have been doing Yoga, I have been able to run faster, averaging 7mph on my runs!! This is  a HUGE improvement from my beginning days!! Even at my peak performance before my injury, I was not hitting 7mph!! I was averaging more like 5.7mph or 5.8mph.

Getting back into Yoga this week has made me feel so much better!! I am going to have to figure out some way to do Yoga when I am on the road.... I have a few trips planned in the near future!!