Preparing for a triathlon involves carrying out one of the hardest workouts you can face and yoga can help you both physically and mentally. If you are considering combining these two activities, take a look at the many benefits of yoga for triathletes. Keep reading!
The triathlon is a demanding sport that combines the run with cycling and swimming three aerobic disciplines that require effort, perseverance, endurance and desire to excel, as well as excellent physical preparation. The yoga, meanwhile, is based on the repetition of a series of movements and postures (asana) that practiced regularly, can become the best complement to that training. From increasing one’s own mental control to helping to prevent injuries. There are many, as we indicated.
How can yoga help triathletes?
Yoga and triathlon have little in common and, perhaps precisely because of that, they complement each other so well. Many triathletes say that the practice of yoga has contributed to improving their own marks and their performance. It is worth trying and discovering how and why yoga benefits a triathlete:
Better balance and stability
Yoga combines meditation and physical exercise. It is not a sport, but there is no doubt that its postures and movements contribute to strengthening the muscles in general and, especially that of the trunk. A firm core increases the stability of the whole body, helping a triathlete to maintain the correct posture both when running and when getting on the bike or stroking through the water at full speed.
Breath control
A proper breathing technique is basic in the practice of yoga. Controlling the air that enters our lungs and “directing” it to those organs and muscles that require the most oxygen at any given time is one of its keys. In this sense, the practice of yoga benefits triathletes because it increases their lung and respiratory capacity, making them have a good level of oxygen in their blood in full effort, just when they need it most.
Developing greater flexibility
Slow, leisurely movements based on stretching … are the ones that shape a yoga session and those that can be phenomenal for an athlete who trains muscles and joints to the maximum. Yoga exercises gently increase the range of motion without straining those muscles that may be sore or stiff after running and pedaling. A triathlete, who also does yoga, will feel more agile, lighter and will gain speed running and even in the changes of discipline that triathlon implies.
Postures and movements typical of yoga such as: “the cat”, ideal to eliminate tension in the lower back, “the triangle”, perfect to stretch the muscles of the legs or “the eagle”, the best to promote shoulder mobility and arms are, without a doubt, a great help for fans of triathlon.
More complete training with less risk of injury
It is another of the great benefits of yoga for a triathlete. Yoga puts to work muscles that are not directly involved in a triathlon training but that are important when it comes to improving in each test. With it, the body gains strength and elasticity as a whole and the risk of suffering some of the most common triathlon-related injuries such as: tendinitis, knee joint problems or back and lumbar ailments, are significantly reduced.
Stress under control
Completing a triathlon not only demands power and physical endurance but also mental and at this point, yoga benefits any triathlete. The meditation that yoga involves favors concentration on the body itself and in the present moment, that is, in the exercise that is being carried out. In addition, it teaches how to handle the stress that a triathlon event can generate and to always face it in a positive way.
