Hey hey readers! If you've been following my social media content, you are probably well aware that I am doing my first triathlon on September 14, 2024 in Peachtree City, GA. I am a lifelong runner and devoted yogi, so doing all three sports, back-to-back, is new and different for my body. I always wanted to do a triathlon, but I never thought I could. Honestly, I thought the bike would make it near impossible. You see, when I was about 8 years old, I fell off my bike and broke the crap out of my left elbow. It was a pretty bad break. When it happened, I wasn't ready for hills yet, but I went down a steep hill anyways, and since I mistakenly thought you were supposed to pedal when riding downhill, I completely lost control and flew off my bike. Some time later, after healing, I fell off my bike yet another time, nearly breaking my wrist. After that, I just gravitated away from bike-riding to avoid another injury. And although I have always been a strong swimmer and runner, my hesitancy to try cycling again sort of closed the metaphorical door on me doing a triathlon. But, after my marathon in Green Bay in May 2024, my intuition knew that my body, mind, and spirit were ready to do a triathlon. While I am not sure exactly what changed or why, I do know that there was a definite shift in my inner fire (known as "tapas" in yoga), and in my innate knowledge that I can accomplish any goal I want to, as long as I put the work and effort in. I think my yoga practice is the primary reason for this shift in knowing I was ready to do a triathlon.
My yoga practice has become a way of life for me over the years. I am a yogi, through and through. My yoga is just as much a part of me as my voice or my breath. My yoga practice has brought enlightenment and clarity to a lot of aspects of my life, and some of my habits and behaviors have changed as a result of my yoga practice. I didn't have a yoga practice when I first started running half/full marathons in my early 20's, and I didn't ever practice any kind of asana yoga practice, breathwork, or non-prayer forms of meditation. But now, I do all of those things in my daily life. I've had a dedicated and genuine yoga practice since 2015, and with each passing day, my practice has become more and more part of my daily life. It's actually quite remarkable to me how that happened. My diet, for instance, is something that really changed, just naturally, through my years of practicing yoga. So, I think when I finished the marathon in May, I knew that physically, I could do a triathlon, but also that I was spiritually and emotionally ready to take on triathlon training. And I think that knowledge and confidence came in large part from my yoga practice.
So, in this month's blog post, I want to share how, and in what ways, my yoga practice has informed, enhanced, and solidified my triathlon training pursuits. I really don't think I could do this training and complete the triathlon without my yoga practice. Any athlete out there, professional or recreational, please hear me - you NEED YOGA. I mean that from the bottom of my heart, mind, and spirit, and I will stand by that position for as long as there is breath in my body. More and more athletes are realizing how powerful and helpful yoga is for all aspects of their sport, not just the physical (although yoga does have a tremendous aspect on the physical part of athletic training). Yoga is unique and different for each practitioner, so the thoughts and ideas presented here are not dogma or some absolute truth. Rather, these are personal, anecdotal experiences from my own yoga practice and athletic training, and how the two have interfaced with each other. Take what you need and leave the rest.
The Triathlon Sports
A triathlon is a series of three sports - swimming, biking, and running, completed back-to-back, at varying distances, depending on the type of triathlon. The shorter triathlon distances, typically known as super sprints or sprints, involve swimming somewhere around 500 yards (i.e. just under 0.3 miles), biking around 13 miles, and running approximately a 5k distance (i.e. 3.1 miles). The longer triathlon distances (i.e. olympic, half-Ironman, and full Ironman), increase those distances up to the "mack daddy" of all triathlons - the full Ironman - consisting of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride, and a marathon run (26.2 miles), for a total distance covered from all three sports of 140.6 miles. The full Ironman is my ultimate, long-term goal, hopefully to be mastered within 3-5 years.
I have really drawn from my yoga practice quite a lot in my triathlon training. I am not sure if I could have done a triathlon back in my early running days, before I had yoga in my life. My yoga practice makes me so much more informed and aware in each sport of the triathlon. And there are elements that are consistent parts of my yoga practice that have interfused into all aspects of my triathlon training. Engaging in these three different sports (swim, bike, run) has been an absolute blast. Truly, I have learned so much and had so much fun swimming, biking, and running. I've gotten to explore so many beautiful locations - parks, neighborhoods, lakes, pools, the ocean, the beach, etc. So experiential. And my yoga practice has been right there, alongside me and within me, guiding me in each and every workout, rest day, and recovery day. So, how has my yoga informed my triathlon training process? Well, in general, the following components of my yoga practice have informed and enhanced my triathlon training experience: asana practice and study, breathwork, rolling and recovery work, mantra practice, and yoga philosophy. Read on to find out more about each area.
Asana Influence on Triathlon Training
Asana in yoga is a posture, or pose, such as tree pose or warrior 2. Asanas are the different shapes made with the body during yoga. I wrote an earlier blog about why I love asana study so much, if you want to read more about what asana means (click here). My asana practice keeps my physical body strong and stable, which is great for triathlon training, but also, since yoga is supposed to be practiced with awareness, my own body awareness during triathlon training has also improved as a result of my asana practice. This has caused me to move more safely and intuitively when engaging in all three triathlon sports. There are a myriad of specific reasons why my asana practice has enhanced my training experience for this triathlon. To name a few, though....
Overhead movements. Poses such as tall mountain and downward dog have overhead arm movements, and these are common staples in my personal practice. These overhead movements have been super helpful for preparing, training, and activating the muscles used in the overhead movements needed in swimming freestyle.
Shoulder strengthening poses. In my personal practice, I often do a lot of shoulder strengthening poses, such as plank pose, downdog, dolphin, chaturanga, and L-stand. These asanas are great for building upper body strength and endurance, both of which are heavily needed in swimming of any stroke, including the freestyle swimming I've mostly done for my training.
Hip and leg strengthening poses. Asanas such as chair pose, the various lunge postures, and bridge pose are great for building strength and endurance in the muscles of the hips and legs, which is very important for the cycling and running sports of the triathlon (and the swimming too, but definitely more needed for the bike/run portion of the race).
Spinal mobility. Mobility in the spine is super important for many daily functions. Beyond daily tasks, though, my spinal mobility practice has been hugely important for my performance in, and recovery from, each sport re: breathing mechanics and breath support, trunk control and mobility, and shoulder range of motion (click here to read more about spinal mobility). My spinal mobility practice has also been helpful for reducing the effects from the repetitive postures in all three sports, but especially cycling and running. And, my spinal mobility practice has also improved my trunk's ability to rotate open to both my left and right sides when taking a breath during swimming.
Hip mobility and stretches. I have always included various hip mobility and stretching exercises into my yoga practice to help me perform, and recover from, my long-distance running. However, with the implementation of more rigorous cycling, I have really increased how frequently and intensely I engage in hip mobility work in my personal practice, and it has been a big help in my recovery from training and the training itself.
Breathing Influence on Triathlon Training
I cannot stress enough how incredibly important my breathwork practice has been for my triathlon training. I could actually write an entire blog, or several blogs, about the importance of pranayama (aka breathing exercises) for athletic training ventures, and even just daily life itself.
I think that my breathwork practice has probably had the biggest influence on my swimming training. Of course my breathwork helps my cycling and running tremendously, but I noticed my "yoga mind" really being attentive to the breath during swim training. For one thing, my exhalation breathing exercises from my yoga practice really allow me to exhale quite deeply, and quickly, in order to be able to breathe in during swimming with little compromise to my swimming form or speed. But also, the breath pattern and mechanics used during swimming is very different than during running and cycling. In running/cycling, the breath can be smooth, long, full, and through the nose (especially once your cardiorespiratory system is trained enough to allow nasal breathing during these sports), but in swimming the breath can be quick, fast, and shallow, and often through the mouth. This quick/shallow/mouth breath can wreak havoc on the neck and shoulder muscles, so resetting my breath back to its usual deep, slow pattern as I do during my yoga practice, has been amazing for minimizing headaches and neck/shoulder pain from the shallow breath pattern in swimming.
Finally, for all three sports, training is tough and stressful to the body, and without adequate recovery, overtraining and lack of adaptation can occur. Part of my recovery practice includes deep, targeted breathwork from my yoga practice, which allows my body to recover better from the more intense workouts in triathlon training (e.g. the "two-a-day" and "three-a-day" workouts).
Rolling and Recovery Influence on Triathlon Training
I cannot stress this enough - recovery from athletic training is a non-negotiable!! If you take anything away from this post, please heed this advice. Our tissues adapt to the training stress when we recover, not when we are doing the actual workout. So, without adequate recovery - and I don't just mean sleep - tissues will not change to meet the demands from training. This means higher risk of injury, burnout, and overtraining syndrome. I have a pretty well-established recovery practice since I am a long-distance runner and need my recovery from my 20+ mile runs, but also, as a yoga practitioner and teacher, I am very mindful about ensuring adequate recovery time into my weekly wellness routine. Recovery practice is not just about sleeping, although that is hugely important and does allow for some adaptation to occur. Recovery practices include things like myofascia rolling (click here to learn more about this), restorative or gentle yoga practices, meditation, and quiet time in nature. I regularly roll my tissues with my therapy balls, but I also love some yummy, gentle restorative yoga postures to help my body heal and repair from training (click here to read more about restorative yoga). Rolling and recovery practices are very vast topics, where detailed information about each are beyond the scope of this particular blog post, but feel free to check out the above-mentioned previous blogs of mine to learn more, if interested.
Mantra Influence on Triathlon Training
Mantras are little verbal sayings that one can repeat to him/herself to solidify a mindset, calm the mind, or focus the mind. I think of mantras as anchors - they anchor the mind to some verbal phrase which then anchors the mind to the present moment. I have found mantras to be especially helpful for swimming and cycling uphill. For example, with swimming, I use a counting mantra for my strokes (e.g. "1, 2, 3, breathe"), and I use the mantra "breathe, sight, swim" when coming up for air to remind myself to first breathe, then look around, and then keep going. For uphill cycling (which I have learned is VERY challenging muscularly), I have used the mantra, "keep going, just keep going," and this helps me get to the top of the hill.
Yoga Philosophy Influence on Triathlon Training
In the historical philosophy of yoga, there are 8 limbs, or aspects to having a true yoga practice, in the traditional sense. The 8 limbs of yoga involve the yoga moral codes (i.e. yamas and niyamas) and concepts such as focus, discipline, etc. Many of these limbs have become a way of life for me, but they have also etched their way into my triathlon training. For me, the yoga limbs that have really resonated with me and made their way into my triathlon training (as well as my daily life) include the following:
Ahimsa (non-harming, non-violence). The moral code of ahimsa urges me to be kind to myself, whatever that means. This includes no self-judgments for hard training days, "off" days, or days where I didn't reach my goal. It also includes being kind to my body physically through good sleep and adequate nutrition/hydration and stress management. And being kind about taking rest/recovery days. Kindness to myself has prevented me from getting injured or feeling burnout.
Satya (truthfulness). The idea of being truthful and honest with myself is super important not just in yoga, but in my triathlon training. Being honest with myself about how a workout feels (e.g. can I push harder or should I ease off a bit?), or being honest about where I am at in my training and where I need to progress to. Honesty with myself has ensured a safe training plan that minimizes the risk of overtraining, injury, or even undertraining. Satya allows me to be a student of my body, honoring whatever might be true for me on a given day.
Tapas (discipline, passion, fire). Oh boy, is discipline needed in triathlon training! Any athletic endeavor requires tapas, or passion, but in triathlon training you are training for 3 different sports, so there is an elevated need for discipline since many days require 2-3 different workouts, rather than just one. For example, swimming at 6 am, followed by a long bike ride, and then a long day at work, just to run in the evening is not always easy. Rainy days are hard to get motivated too. But that inner fire that is cultivated in my yoga practice, helps drive me to get up, do the training workout, day in, and day out.
Svadhyaya (self-study). This moral code goes with satya (or truthfulness) because to truly study one's self, you must be honest with yourself. And studying my joints, muscles, energy, mood, sleep, etc. is imperative when training for a triathlon. The training is intense, and there is a lot of cellular and tissue changes that happen with triathlon training. The body is being asked to do 2-3 workouts a day, sometimes back-to-back, before or after work, so it is definitely not easy. Being honest with myself, and truly studying my entire being (physically, emotionally, mentally, etc.) has afforded me a much more honest, rewarding, and safe experience for this journey.
Dharana (focus/concentration) and Dhyana (meditation). The ability to be "dialed in" and focused during athletic training is a must, at least for a happy, safe training experience. The focus and concentration from my yoga practice has been game-changing for triathlon training. Training three different sports simultaneously requires a lot of focus - focus on the training plan itself, each individual workout, the body, mind, breath, and the list goes on and on. The focus cultivated in my yoga practice has allowed me to be a super mindful and aware athlete - I can sense my joints, muscles, and other tissues much more easily and clearly. I can sense when I need to push more, or back off, on a given day. Yoga has given me the gift of enhanced focus, and this is so very valuable for athletic training.
Summary
Thank you so much for reading this blog post. I wanted to share this information to show how incredibly powerful the practice of yoga is, and how much a regular yoga practice can help in one's daily life and athletic pursuits. Yoga is highly individualized, and there is no right or wrong way to do yoga. Each person's yoga practice is unique to him or her, and the insights and wisdom gained from a yoga practice are also just as unique to each practitioner. I cannot tell you what yoga can do for you - only you can determine that. I can only say that yoga is something you should definitely incorporate into your weekly routine because it can truly enhance other parts of your life - personal, professional, social, and physical.
As always, the information presented in this blog post is derived from my own study of human movement, anatomy, and yoga. If you have questions about triathlon training, yoga, or general exercise for your body, please follow up with your physician, physical therapist, or personal trainer. If you are interested in private yoga and/or personal training sessions with me, Jackie, email me at info@lotusyogisbyjackie.com for more information about my services. Also, please subscribe to my website so you can receive my monthly newsletters (scroll to the bottom of the page where you can submit your email address). This will help keep you "in-the-know" about my latest blog releases and other helpful yoga and wellness information. Thanks for reading!
~Namaste, Jackie Allen, M.S., M.Ed., CCC-SLP, RYT-200, RCYT, NASM-CPT, NASM-CES
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