March 20, 2019
The more I continue to explore mobility and the athlete, the more convinced I am that consistent mobility work is the key to moving ahead in the sport of triathlon. And the yoga mat is the perfect place to explore how your body works. Because every body is unique.
I recently read Crawl of Fame, by Julie Moss where she said yoga has been “…one of my secrets to racing well later in life.”
While discussing the training for the upcoming race season, an athlete I know mentioned feeling behind on his bike training. The difficulty was in spending time on the trainer and not having the freedom to change positions as he would outside. Fortunately, this athlete has started to incorporate yoga into his training to address the tight hip flexors that are part of his struggle.
So today, we are going to practice Lizard Pose. Lizard can be an amazing pose to play around with. A few years back Josh Summers did a Yin workshop in Boston, and he went so far as talking about all the different names each variation has!
For our purposes, we are going to keep it a little more basic. Lizard is actually hip opening prep. And for triathletes a great simulation for tucking down into aero position!
I often explain Lizard to new Yogis as a variation of a low runners lunge. A couple of key points. Start by making sure your front foot falls directly under your knee if not slightly in front of it. Second…the floor is very far away for the majority of us. Don’t be afraid to place a couple of blocks under your elbows. The sensation you will feel in your hips flexors will be more than enough…there is no need to struggle to the floor if that isn’t where your body is.
You are looking to get your back leg as long a possible. If your hips are super tight, your back knee may be bent. As you continue to work on opening your hip flexors, your back leg will gradually start to lengthen.
Ideally, your are looking at getting your body as long as possible from head to toe while keeping your back straight and hips square. Once you start to lose this, bring in the blocks and reset the pose. If you need a little more, you can start to let your front knee open to the side.
FULL DISCLOSURE! This is not a pose that is exactly associated with comfort. You will need to breathe and do a bit of self coaching to stay in it for a few minutes. But the benefits are well worth it!
Have a pose you want to see? All you need to do is ask!
Namaste, friends!
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