I just completed my seventh consecutive day of practicing Yoga. All I can say is that I can’t believe it’s taken me this long into life to have discovered it. I have raved already about the state each session leaves me in – see my piece titled 1 Day of Yoga. What I have noticed after a week is the effect the sessions have on the rest of my day.
The most pronounced effect is how loose and limber I feel on my runs. I run everyday, and have been doing so for months at the time of this writing. Sometimes, I notice tightness in my legs after each run e.g. calves, quads, hamstrings, etc. Since starting this practice, however, this tightness has become rarer. Either my ability to notice it has diminished or the yoga has and an effect, I choose to believe it’s the latter. Clearly the yoga is working effectively as a means for recovery!
The other thing I have noticed is my improved posture. It’s not that I have gotten comments about it, I’d like to think that I had a decent posture prior to starting this practice. Instead, whenever I sit up on a chair or stand up, I notice I have begun to instinctively straighten up my posture. Shoulder blades together, heart out, head straight – all in the voice of the instructor whose videos I have been following no less. When I feel myself slumping towards the end of my runs, I hear the instructors voice and it motivates me to keep my back up straight and keep good running form.
As much as Yoga is a physical activity, I find the sessions have a similar effect as extended meditations. I find myself feeling a lot more relaxed and at ease regardless of what the day has on. The fact that I know I have a session later in the day puts me at ease. Whatever happens in the morning, good or bad, I know I have the opportunity to meditate on it, and that puts me in such a good place.
