Tips for Your First Hot Yoga Class

First off, I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday yesterday! I received quite a few questions about hot yoga so I thought it would be a good idea to do a post that covers what to expect in your first hot yoga class. Please let me know if I'm mistaken about something or if you have anything to add. I am not an expert, this is just based on my experience :)

QUICK TIPS
What to expect: First, I want to say that every instructor and every studio is different. At the studio where I went class started off with in child's pose. After moving to a standing position the instructor asked us to set an intention for our practice that day and then we chanted three times. Then we moved into the flow for the majority of the class. Towards the end we did some more obscure poses as well as inversions and balancing poses. And of course savasana to close off class. [For all the newbies consists of laying on the floor on your back. You are supposed to relax and focus on your breath during this time. Often the lights are turned off and it is completely silent]. And of course, it is hot yoga so expect the room to be toasty. For bikram yoga the temperature is set to 105 degrees but for hot vinyasa yoga [which is what I went to] the room is around 95.

Do not underestimate the heat and take as many rest poses as is necessary. Don't be afraid to exit the room if it's too much, says Abby [physical therapy student and marathoner]

Acclimate by going to shorter hot classes first, hydrate well that day and during class, breathe, it's ok to rest, says Erin [ironman and yogi]

Don't be intimidated: There will be people of all experience levels in any given class. Yoga is a very personal practice and not meant to be a competition. That said, it can still be really intimidating to walk in your first day and see people with fancy mats, clad in Lululemon doing headstands. Everybody is a beginner at some point and most of the time people are so focused on their own practice that they don't even notice what you are doing. If offered, start with a beginner class and let the instructor know you are a beginner.

THE ATTIRE
Suit up: Between the hot room and doing all those sun salutations you are sure to work up a sweat. Moisture wicking clothing is ideal so you stay cool and dry. One important thing is that you don't wear socks or shoes while doing yoga so footwear doesn't matter.

Girls: Most girls wear crops or tights and a fitted tank that's more tight than loose. You don't want a lot of extra fabric. While wearing something you feel confident in can only help your practice, there is no need to go out and buy anything crazy expensive, especially for your first class. Erin also advises wearing a headband to help keep the sweat out of your eyes.

Guys: I can't speak from experience here but the guys I saw in class wore basketball-type shorts with fitted shorts underneath and went shirtless. Any guys reading, feel free to jump in here!

WHAT TO BRING
Towel: I've said it before and I will say it again, you are going to sweat! A small hand towel is great to have to wipe your face or your hands off with. While I love a good sweat, I don't particularly like my face to be super sweaty. And when your hands are so sweaty that they are slipping on your mat it's time to dry them off.

Water bottle: You are definitely going to want a big bottle of water nearby! Swigging water is encouraged to stay hydrated. Don't worry about breaking pose to get a drink. There are no breaks in yoga so when you need some water just grab your bottle and drink up.

Mat [if you have one]: A mat is needed to practice yoga but don't fret if you don't have one! Most studios have mats you can borrow for free or rent for really cheap. Something I recently discovered is that there is more than one type of yoga mat. I have a traditional rubber mat that I really like. There is something called a towel mat that is made specifically for hot yoga that a lot of the more experienced yogis had. While my typical rubber mat worked fine for most of my hot classes, in one class that was particularly crowded I kept slipping and sliding all over the place. If you have a rubber mat you can either just use that or you can purchase a yoga towel to put over your mat to help prevent slipping.

BEFORE YOU ARRIVE
Eats: If your class is first thing in the morning I would personally recommend skipping breakfast until after. If you want some calories in you choose something really light and if you need to eat a meal, try to eat it 2-3 hours beforehand.

Hydration: Unlike eating, I recommend drinking a good amount in the hours leading up to class. Because of the heated room you are going to be sweating a lot and the last thing you want is to be dehydrated and dizzy during class. Chugging a bunch of water immediately beforehand isn't recommended but rather drink to your thirst. If you've had a lot to drink, go to the bathroom before class so you don't have to disrupt class.

Arrive 15 minutes before class begins, especially if it's your first time. This will allow you to get your mat all set up and ask any questions you may have.

IN CLASS: Again, I've only been to one hot yoga studio so others may be different. I can't emphasize enough that each instructor has their own style so if you don't like your first class try another one with another instructor. Most instructors will do a mix of doing yoga with the students and walking around checking on everyone's form. Some only walk around. Something to be aware of is that the instructor will correct your form is you are doing something incorrectly. For example, I have trouble relaxing my shoulders so the instructor will frequently come over and press down just a little on my shoulders. If you are uncomfortable with being adjusted just let the instructor know but generally speaking it will not hurt and is very normal.

AFTER CLASS
Eat: It's a good idea to eat within an hour of following class or sooner if you skipped breakfast. Try to eat a high protein meal to refill muscle stores. I've always heard that food tastes better after yoga class, so eat up!

Hydrate: Just like before and during, it's really important to drink following a hot yoga class so you stay hydrated and can keep coming back for more.

Any tips you want to add? Have you done hot yoga before? Do you want to try it?

My Week of Hot Yoga

Last week I was lucky enough to attend a hot vinyasa yoga class with a friend of mine as part of the studio's bring a friend week. I ended up going to 5 classes throughout the week.When I arrived Monday morning I didn't know that it was a hot yoga class but figured what the heck and tried anyway. I've done yoga before but not like this. I normally go to the classes offered at the local YMCA over the summer which are primarily stretching based classes. I have taken a few vinyasa classes on campus so I knew a little of what I was getting myself into.

The studio was super cute and colorful which was a nice change from the YMCA. Within a few minutes of walking into the room I was already sweating and starting to get pretty nervous. Monday's class was the closest to cardio I've ever come in a yoga class. I was barely in one pose before moving to the next. The first 30ish minutes of the class were spent doing sun salutation variations, meaning on Tuesday my arms were completely dead. The class was far more challenging than I was anticipating but I actually really loved it.

As expected, my arms felt like bricks on Tuesday. I was a little nervous about going to Wednesday's class given how sore I still was but I wanted to take advantage of the free class. For maybe the first half my arms were pretty useless but somewhere along the way they stopped being sore. Wednesday's class wasn't as fast paced but still pretty quick. I was expecting to be sore on Thursday but surprisingly wasn't.

The rest of the classes went really well with not much to note so I thought I'd mention a few things I discovered during the week I spent 8 hours doing yoga.

Every instructor is different. I went to 6 classes and each class had a different instructor. While the layout of each class was the same so much was different. The speed of the flow, poses, inversions, and even the way they tell you what to do is different. While Monday's class was fairly fast for me, I found after taking some slower classes that I actually really liked the speed. By moving so quickly I didn't have any time to think. At the end of class I was shocked that for just about the entire 75 minutes all I thought about was that class and what I was doing.

I had trouble zoning out during savasana. Normally I am able to quiet my mind and end up in a sleep-like state. It could be that I have a lot on my mind given everything that's happened but I just couldn't get to that place. I did welcome the few minutes of complete silence though.

We don't unplug enough. I am constantly glued to my computer or my phone for one reason or another. Sometimes it's necessary (for school) but mostly I like to read articles and interact on social media. I'm not saying I'm going to give up technology but I do think there is some value in taking some time each day to be completely unplugged. Even running doesn't make me feel unplugged because I bring my phone with me for safety reasons. No matter how much I want to I cannot check my phone during the middle of yoga class. I feel disconnected but in a good way. Like I am taking the time to completely focus on myself with no distractions. It's actually a really good feeling. You should try it.

My triceps, shoulders and feet were the most sore. The few times I've done vinyasa yoga I was sore for 1-2 days afterwards and normally my legs are the most sore. After Monday's class my triceps and shoulders were on fire. Like my arms got tired carrying my textbooks tired. I knew I was out of shape, especially strength-wise but I was really surprised how sore I was. Something else I was not expecting was that my feet were getting sore/tired during some of the balancing poses. On Friday we did a sequence where we started in eagle, went into airplane and then into half moon. By the time we got to half moon my feet were burning. I guess this means I need to strengthen my feet more?

A cold eye towel during savasana is amazing. This was my first time experiencing this and I think it was because it was during a hot yoga class but as we were finishing our last poses the instructor placed a cold damp washcloth next to your mat. It was meant to be an eye towel but some people put it on their foreheads, neck or chest. I can't tell you how good it felt after being hot ans sweaty for 75 minutes.

Focusing on the Bigger Picture

After running New York I spent some time thinking about what I wanted to focus on in 2014. I knew I didn't want to run another fall marathon so I could turn all my attention to triathlons over the summer but my plans for the spring were up in the air. Initially I wanted to run a spring half and try to PR. When I started mapping things out I started to feel stressed. My knee was still bothering me but if I wanted to try to PR I would have to start building a base soon. Looking at everything I felt overwhelmed and that should have been my first sign not to do a spring half. I liked the idea of taking it easy in the spring and building a really solid base for triathlon training but I felt guilty about it. I'm not really sure why but I felt this pressure to run a spring half.

I haven't run in two and a half weeks and I am completely okay with that. I've been going to a hot vinyasa yoga class this week (post to come!) but that's about all I've been doing on the exercise front. Since I haven't run, I have no idea how my knee is doing. I haven't been foam rolling, stretching or doing my exercises so I probably haven't made too much progress. I am picking these things back up this week though.

I mentioned in my last post that I entered the lottery for the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler. Well I got in! I will be doing this race with my mom, my cousin, and his wife. Even though there isn't too much difference between running a half and a 10 miler I feel so much pressure lifted off of me having this as my main goal for the spring. I ran one 10 miler last spring and I definitely think I can PR but to be honest that isn't that important to me. Yes I like to race, and yes I'm going to run to the best of ability that day but I'm also going to be more relaxed with my training.

I just listened to an interview with Kara Goucher where she talked about being injured for so much of 2013. She says she was in such a hurry to get ready for the next race that she was training at a level her body wasn't ready for. This really clicked with me. I have some big goals for 2014 but I won't be able to achieve them if I don't let my body heal 100%. I don't like being injured but I need to think more long term.

For now I'm going to fill my weeks with fun cross training to enjoy the off season. I do want to start running again but I don't want to worry about not running fast enough or far enough. I'm going to do whatever I can now to get my body ready for what I want it to do come August and September. Right now the only running I want to do is trail running so that's what I'm going to do. I don't want to pay attention to anything other than how beautiful the snow covered trails are.

My NYCM Training Plan

It is weird to be writing a post now about NYC Marathon training since almost everyone has already been training for well over a month now. Technically I have too, I just wasn't calling it marathon training. I guess it was pre-training. Anyway, I'm not here to give you a detailed day-to-day training plan because if you've been reading my blog for even a few days you have probably figured out I suck at sticking to what the plan says. I generally decide what workouts I want to do each week and then schedule accordingly. I do have my long runs pre-scheduled but they are subject to change should there be any setbacks with my training.

Running four days a week
I have run more and I have run less and neither seem to work for me. Four days is my happy medium that will allow me to improve my running without risking injury (too much). I will run five times a week if I am crunched for time and need to shorten a run, as long as my weekly mileage does not increase. Of my scheduled four runs I will do a long run, a track run, and two easy or recovery runs. I want to be as flexible as possible and will either do my recovery run after my track run or after my long run, just depends of how I am feeling that week.

Cross training
Over the summer when I was training for a triathlon is when I saw the most improvement with my running. I think swimming and biking over extra days of running will keep my body happy and injury free, and will help with the monotony of running all the time. As of now I am planning on swimming once a week and riding my bike on the trainer 1-2 times a week. I don't know the source but I have always heard that cycling has a direct correlation to improvement in running, which is another reason why I want to continue cycling. Other reasons for incorporating cross training include low impact exercise and maintaining a base for triathlon season next year.

Yoga and strength training
I started strength training a little over a month ago and can already see some major improvement in my leg muscles. Of course I want to tone up and look good but I also want to give my legs and body the strength it needs to run 26.2 miles. In addition to lifting twice a week I am going to go to yoga once a week. My legs actually crave a yoga class after a hard run now. Luckily my school has a few free yoga classes available throughout the week.

Rest, recovery & everything else
I am well aware of the stress that marathon training puts on the body and know how important proper recovery is. If I don't get an average of 8 hours of sleep a night I can hardly function. But sleep isn't the only part of recovery. I am going to take one full rest day a week to do absolutely nothing. I think I need this more mentally than physically but either way it is important. I have also noticed lately that eating enough protein, potassium, and salt are critical for me. If I am not on track nutritionally I feel sluggish and weak, which is not how I want to feel during marathon training. I will also be spending a decent amount of time doing injury prevention, including foam rolling, compression socks and sleeves, stretching after runs, and ice baths after hard runs.

Why I'm Incorporating Yoga & Strength Training Into Triathlon Training

Since posting my approach to training for my second triathlon I have been asked why I am including yoga and strength training into my plan. Why not just swim, bike, run? Let me explain.

Yoga

The yoga class that I go to on Tuesday & Thursday morning's is a stretching based yoga. At the end of class we do some strength based poses but for the most part it is all stretching all the time. It is well known that runners need to stretch after working out but I find it difficult to actually take the time to stretch. I would rather take a shower and eat a big sandwich than stretch. Yoga incorporates stretches that I wouldn't normally think to do and the instructor in always finding ways for us to increase the stretch when we need it. Stretching helps maintain our range of motion, which helps us get faster and develop more power.

Additionally, yoga helps build balance which helps prevent injuries. Many athletes have imbalances and doing balance balance exercises can really with these. Balance also increases your mobility and flexibility, which as mentioned above helps us get faster and develop more power. Yoga also helps quiet my mind. I don't have to push myself while doing yoga but rather can relax and enjoy just being. Yoga certainly isn't for everyone but I have noticed a difference in my running, my recovery, and my mindset since starting.

Strength Training

I have only been to the gym to lift a few times but I know how beneficial it is. The first time I dabbled in lifting was a few years ago when I was still swimming competitively. I was coming off of an injury and needed to start strength training in order to stabilize my shoulders and rebuild the muscle I had lost from having surgery. I was amazed at how much stronger I felt in the water after only a few days. It is important when doing strength training to focus on the big muscle groups because those are the ones that get used the most both in training and in every day life. It is also important to strengthen the stabilizer muscles to help prevent injury.

Strength training can help increase speed and endurance in running and hill climbing on the bike. I am a weak cyclist and even weaker hill climber so strengthening my legs and core is a must if a want to see improvements. The great thing about strength training is that it benefits swimming, biking, and running. You use you legs in all three sports and even if you don't realize it you are also using your arms and core.

A Healthy Diet & Yoga

I'm not really sure why, but I have had so much energy this week. I have also been in a great mood all week. I'm going to credit both of these things to eating healthier. I have been trying to pay more attention to what I eat and when I eat it. And I think it is really paying off.

My kitchen is full of all sorts of veggies and other healthy foods. I have been making sure to eat three balanced meals a day plus a few snacks to hold me over. I have also been drinking a ton of water. Being fueled properly feels pretty amazing!

After Tuesday's break through run I decided to make Wednesday a rest day. My legs were pretty tired and I didn't want to push them too hard considering I'm running my spring half marathon next weekend (eek!). With the beautiful weather we have been having plus not running yesterday I was itching to go for a run all day today. Even though I would have liked to spend more time outside enjoying the weather, I did two shakeout miles. My legs felt terribly slow and heavy during the first mile and loosened up during the second mile. I was loving every minute of this super easy run.

I made it back to my apartment with just enough time to grab a snack before going to free yoga at my school. Normally Thursday night yoga is Pilates based and taught by a student but today it was P90X yoga. I have never done P90X yoga but boy was I excited to try it.

I was pretty nervous to hear that it was 90 minutes long, but ready to stretch out these tight legs of mine. I really enjoyed the video although a lot of the moves were pretty repetitive. By the end of the 90 minutes my whole body felt so relaxed. I am hoping to go to yoga twice next week before race day so my legs are refreshed and ready to run.

What are your weekend plans? Any races this weekend?

About My RR USA Half Training Plan

Even though training for the Rock N' Roll USA Half Marathon officially started a few weeks ago, I still wanted to do a post about my training. I didn't stick to a training plan while training for Baltimore and it showed. When I was training for Baltimore I was only concerned with finishing. I didn't really care about what my time would be or what paces I should be training at. While I don't want to put a lot of pressure on myself for this race, I still want to PR in a big way. I really truly believe that I can crush my current PR with some actual training.

I really enjoyed having the ability to look back on the things I did, and didn't do, while training for Baltimore. When I was writing my training plan for this race I wanted to incorporate a lot of cross training. First, I get injured very easily and I really don't want to get injured. Second, I want to also use this time to build a solid base for triathlon training. I also had to really take my class schedule into account. Some days I have class earlier than others and I can only get to the pool on certain days.

So here it is:

• Monday: speed run AM/ long bike PM
• Tuesday: swim & strength AM/ medium bike PM
• Wednesday: tempo run & short bike PM
• Thursday: swim & strength AM/ long run PM
• Friday: rest
• Saturday: rest
• Sunday: easy run & short bike

I decided to stick to four runs a week because any more and my IT band becomes very angry. As for what types of runs, I chose to do a long run, an easy run, a tempo run and a speed run. Originally I wanted to do two easy runs but I opted for only one easy run since four runs a week isn't really that many. I thought doing two hard runs a week would help build strength and increase speed. My main goal for my runs during this training cycle is to hit all of my long runs. I am aiming for between 8-12 miles. I didn't do runs that long last time it really hurt me in the end.

I also decided on biking four days a week. I am not an experienced cyclist and need to work on this leg the most. I don't have many guidelines for my rides, it is all about spending time in the saddle and getting used to being back on the bike. I have a longish ride planned for Monday nights and I want to do some interval work since I am such a slow cyclist but other than that my rides will probably be at a pretty easy pace and used for recovery.

I knew I wanted to do a few days of swimming a week so that I would be able to take advantage of my experience in the pool come tri season. Since I have two scheduled swims a week I want to do one as a recovery and technique swim and the other as a speed workout. Swimming will be the least important part of my training though. Swimming is what I am best at and I know that I can still do well in a tri with minimal time in the pool. 

The part I am most excited about is actually strength training. I only lifted weight while swimming during my last year but I saw an insane amount of improvement. Not to mention how much strength training helps prevent injuries. I will focus on upper body one day and lower body on the other day. And I won't be able to start strength training until I go back to school at the end of January.

Not written into my schedule is yoga and Insanity. I want to try to go to yoga once a week but I don't know what the spring schedule is yet. I wanted to be able to do Insanity regularly but I just don't have enough time. In the end I decided on using Insanity as cross training if I miss a run. For example, if I am unable to do my tempo run for some reason I will do an Insanity workout instead.

The Benefits of Yoga

When I started school one of the first things I did was take advantage of the free yoga classes offered on campus. I had only done yoga a few times but really loved it. I was excited to find out that 6 classes were offered throughout the week and that I was able to attend 4 of them. With each yoga class I go to I fall even more in love with it.

I am a very energetic person and consequently I have a rather difficult slowing down and destressing. Yoga is perfect for me because it is a workout but so much more at the same time. I have met friends through going to yoga every week and have really started to embrace the yoga lifestyle. I have been trying to meditate for a few minutes every morning when I wake up and every night before I go to sleep.

Yoga has helped stretch out my tight runner's body and also increase my stability through balance poses. More importantly, yoga has been teaching me how to relax no matter how stressed out I am. I always leave class feeling so refreshed and ready to tackle anything.

Yoga is also a great way to get in a different type of workout that works muscles in my body that aren't normally worked. It is easy on my body and my body responds well to it because of that. My hips have never felt better and my abs are really tightening up, all thanks to yoga.

Do you guys do yoga? How often? Why do you like it?