Running and Yoga

Runing and Iyengar Yoga. Two years ago I used to walk about 7-10 miles a day and also ran 2-3 miles on tread mill. Running and Walking are great cardio exercises but both these exercises tend to contract your muscles. Running especially can be bad on your knees. My Iyengar teacher, Nuvana Z (see www.sunsetyoga.com ) advised me to do 20-30 minutes of yoga stretches after either a cardio or weight training work out. I would do the following sequence of poses:

Modified Surya Namaskar--Tadasana, Urdhva Hastasana, Uttanasana, Ado mukha Svanasana, Plank Pose, Adho-M-S, Uttanasana, Tadasana, and then Paschim Uttansana, Janur Sirsasana, supta padangagustasana 1 and 2, and occasionally add a twist such as Marichyasana III. At the end Sirsasana on the wall and then 5 minutes of shavasana or supported badhakonasana for relaxation. Eventually I added sarvangasana, along with chair supported halasana before shavasana. I didnt start Sirsasana till one year after I started doing yoga, so I would simply do shavasana after the seated poses.