Yoga for Trail Trekkers

by Virginia Haddad

First, get thee to a qualified instructor to learn how to properly perform yoga stretches, twists, balances and breathing techniques. Once the basics are down, there is no place more ideal to practice this most ancient of fitness forms than in the outback parlor of Mother Nature herself.

Benefits

• Avert cramps and stiffness

Hikers are prone to very tight hamstrings. Avoid that as well as stiff joints and muscle cramps after a long adventure by integrating a period of yoga before and after your day’s hike. You’ll sleep much better and rise more refreshed.

• Total fitness

Hiking by itself will leave you with an underdeveloped upper body. Yoga can round out your personal fitness because every section of the body gets equal treatment.

• Improve balance

Many yoga postures involve balancing on one leg. With practice, this can help you scale boulders and tiptoe over streambed rocks without twisting ankles or keeling over.

• Increased stamina

Many who take up yoga speak of gaining energy. This is fundamentally due to the emphasis on breathing techniques that bring more oxygen to the cells and through repeated flowing movements that better the circulation.

• Deeper enjoyment

You’ll experience nature on a unique level as a yogi. Most of yoga’s poses are named after organica: the tree pose, eagle, mountain, etc. We contemplate these wonders as we hold the poses. Not only does this bring about a deeper appreciation of them when encountered in nature, but because we become a hare, folded leaf, or swaying palm through our thoughts and body position, the unfolding sense of interconnectedness with nature can be felt very powerful. Like the man who told me he removes his shoes before entering his house as an acknowledgement of the sanctity of his home, yoga also prompts us to respond with awe and attentiveness when entering nature’s domicile.

Even if you’re always the first one at the party to knock over the limbo stick, you can still do yoga every bit as beneficially to your mind and body as a circus contortionist. It’s as simple as stretching to your knees if you can’t reach your ankles. If you’re wobbly, anchor a hand on a tree for the one-legged poses until your balance develops. Twist to a three o’clock position instead of five if that is where your ‘point of gentle tension’ lies. Move smoothly, breath deeply and deliberately, hold stretches at least fifteen seconds, and you’ll feel your body getting looser the more you practice. However, you’ll never be eligible for a gold medal. Yoga is not about competing with others or even yourself. It’s about union, which is how the Sanskrit word yoga translates.

Take me back to the Trail Training page!