Zenning out

I dragged myself to yoga this morning at Sculpt Fusion.  I have sort of a love/hate relationship with yoga.  I do believe it’s good for me, but sometimes it seems so. . .inefficient.  Take out all those sun salutations and forced relaxation time, and you’re left with, what, 10 minutes of actual stretching?  Couldn’t I just cram that in at the end of a longer run and skip all the deep breathing crap?

I once heard an instructor comment–just as I was rolling up my mat to sneak out–that the people who always leave before savasana (the final relaxation pose at the end of class) are generally the ones who need it most.  At the time, I was just annoyed about being put on a guilt trip, but it is a perspective that I have since come to appreciate.  If you don’t have two minutes to relax, you probably need to chill out.

Likewise, off season has never been a natural embrace for me–one of the very few repercussions of “doing what you love and loving what you do”, I suppose.  But, I’ve learned over the years–sometimes the hard way–that rushing straight back into hard training does nothing to fast track improvement.

For the next two weeks, I’m taking a training savasana.  Lots of yoga, weights, and core strength, very low volume swimming, biking, and running.  All of it easy.

Enjoy your savasana.  Or, at the very least, know that it is  serving a purpose!