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ONEYOGAHOUSE

Mat to Marathon: How Yoga Can Elevate Your Running

By:
Fitness, Functional Fitness, Health, OYH Blog

By: Cara Hutto

As crisp fall air settles over the city, excitement for one of the world’s most iconic races is heating up: the New York City Marathon. For runners gearing up to tackle the five boroughs on race day, there’s one often-overlooked training secret that can be a game-changer: yoga.

While pounding the pavement and clocking miles are obviously key to marathon success, adding yoga to your routine can unlock a range of benefits that might be just what you need to elevate your performance. Whether you’re chasing a new personal record or simply hoping to cross the finish line, yoga offers both mental and physical tools to keep you balanced, flexible, and injury-free.

Why yoga is beneficial for runners

Increased Flexibility

Running, while an incredible cardiovascular exercise, tends to tighten muscles—especially the hips, hamstrings, and calves. Over time, these tight muscles can lead to decreased range of motion, which in turn affects your stride and increases the likelihood of injury. Yoga, with its deep stretches and controlled breathing, counteracts this tightness by promoting flexibility and increased mobility, particularly in the areas runners need it most. Incorporating yoga can help lengthen these muscles, allowing for a more fluid, efficient stride.

Enhanced recovery

The repetitive, high-impact nature of running can lead to muscle soreness and stiffness, which slows recovery time. Yoga not only stretches out those muscles but also increases blood flow to areas that need it most. The enhanced circulation helps flush out toxins and deliver much-needed oxygen and nutrients to your muscles, speeding up the recovery process.

Injury prevention

One of the most common issues runners face is overuse injuries. From shin splints to IT band syndrome, these bothersome problems can derail training and even keep you from the start line. Yoga’s focus on balance and stability, particularly in underused muscles like the core and glutes, helps to correct imbalances that can lead to injury. By creating a stable foundation in these areas, you’ll be less likely to overcompensate or strain other parts of your body when you run.

Improved mental focus

Running a marathon is as much a mental challenge as it is a physical one. The long miles can test your focus and perseverance, especially in the last few miles of a race. By incorporating mindfulness and breath control practices, runners can build mental endurance. Techniques learned on the yoga mat like focusing on your breath, staying present, and calming your nervous system can be applied on race day to help you push through those tough miles when fatigue sets in.

Strengthened core

A strong core is critical for maintaining proper running form. When your core is weak, other parts of your body—like your lower back and legs—are forced to pick up the slack, which can lead to inefficiency and injury. Yoga helps strengthen the deep abdominal muscles that support your spine and keep you upright, even as fatigue sets in during a long run.

7 best yoga poses for runners

Whether you’re training for the marathon or just trying to improve your regular running routine, yoga can be the missing piece of the puzzle. By incorporating flexibility, strength, and mindfulness into your training, you’ll not only boost your performance but also reduce your risk of injury and improve your recovery time. Try integrating these poses into your routine:

1. Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

Start on your hands and knees, with your wrists slightly forward of your shoulders and knees under your hips. Tuck your toes, lift your hips toward the ceiling, and extend your arms and legs long to form an upside down V shape. Bend your knees as needed to lengthen the spine and reach your sit bones up to the sky. Relax your head and neck, and gaze towards your navel or between your thighs. Press your palms firmly into the mat and rotate your elbows slightly outward. Lengthen your spine and hold the pose, taking deep, even breaths.

This pose stretches the hamstrings, calves, and Achilles tendons—muscles that are commonly tight in runners. It also helps elongate the spine, relieving tension in the back after a long run.

2. Pigeon Pose (Eka Pada Rajakapotasana)

From Downward-Facing Dog, bring your right knee forward and place it behind your right wrist, laying your right shin on the floor. Extend your left leg straight back behind you, with the top of your foot resting on the floor. Slowly lower your upper body toward the floor, either resting on your forearms, a block, or stretching your arms forward. Hold the pose for a few minutes, then switch legs.

Pigeon Pose is a deep hip opener, targeting the glutes and hip flexors—two areas that can get tight from repetitive running. Opening the hips can also help improve your range of motion during your run.

3. Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana)

Start in a standing position and step your right foot back into a lunge, with your left knee bent at 90 degrees and your right leg straight behind you. Lower your right knee to the ground and lengthen your tailbone straight down as you let your hips fall gently forward. Bring your hands to the floor or raise them above your head. Ground firmly into your feet, isometrically dragging the front heel and back knee towards each other. Activate the inner thighs to keep yourself stable. You can hold the pose or gently rock back and forth, then switch legs.

This pose stretches the hip flexors, quadriceps, and groin muscles. It also strengthens the glutes and helps improve balance, both of which are crucial for maintaining proper running form.

4. Reclining Hand-to-Big-Toe Pose (Supta Padangusthasana)

Lie flat on your back with your legs extended. Use a yoga strap looped around the ball of your right foot. Keeping your left leg straight on the floor, slowly lift your right leg toward the ceiling, keeping it as straight as possible. Hold the stretch for at least one minute, then switch legs.

This pose provides an intense stretch for the hamstrings, which are often tight in runners. It also helps improve flexibility in the hips and lower back.

5. Bridge Pose (Setu Bandhasana)

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart. Press your feet into the ground as you lift your hips toward the ceiling, keeping your knees in line with your hips. Clasp your hands under your back and press your arms into the floor to lift your chest higher. If you want a more restorative bridge, you can place a block underneath your sacrum (the triangular fused bony area between your lumbar spine and tailbone) for support. Allow your hips to soften and release any tension in your pelvis and lower back.

Bridge Pose strengthens the glutes, hamstrings, and lower back while opening up the chest and shoulders. This can help counteract the forward-leaning posture many runners develop.

6. Child’s Pose (Balasana)

Begin in a kneeling position, with your knees hip-width apart. From there, spread your knees apart wider than your hips, allowing your big toes to touch behind you. Slowly lower your torso down toward the mat, extending your arms out in front of you and resting your palms and forehead on the mat. You can place blocks under your hands, a folded blanket underneath your knees, or between your calves and hamstrings for support. A bolster can also be placed under your belly and chest to bring the floor up for additional support. Try to relax your entire body into the pose, allowing your chest to sink toward the floor and your hips to soften.

Child’s Pose is a restorative posture that stretches the lower back, hips, and thighs while calming the mind. It’s a perfect pose to finish a yoga session, helping to release any residual tension and promote relaxation.

7. Legs Up the Wall Pose (Viparita Karani)

Sit with one side of your body against a wall, then lie back and swing your legs up onto the wall while your torso rests on the floor. Adjust your position so that your pelvis is close to the wall and your legs are comfortably extended upward. Rest your arms by your sides, palms facing up, and close your eyes. Focus on your breath, allowing your body to relax. You can hold the pose anywhere from 5-15 minutes, then slowly bend your knees and roll to one side before sitting up.

This pose relieves tired legs, reduces stress, enhances circulation, and helps alleviate lower back pain.

ABOUT ONEYOGAHOUSE

oneyogahouse
90 Furman St
Brooklyn, NY 11201

We are a yoga, pilates, and sound meditation studio located in DUMBO (an acronym for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass), next door to the 1Hotels in Brooklyn Bridge Park. As a community that prioritizes awakening our bodies, expanding our energy, and bringing movement to life, OYH offers a space designed to uplift and empower practitioners to ground themselves, undergo transformation, ignite their energy, and evolve in their yoga journey.

Driven by a passion for community, connection, and the transformative effects of yoga and meditation, yoga teacher and entrepreneur Anna Haddad founded OYH in 2020, and in the challenging landscape of the global COVID-19 pandemic, opened the Brooklyn location in September of 2021. Over the past several years, she’s built a team of some of New York’s most exceptional instructors. With safety, sustainability, and intentionality prioritized above all else, you can anticipate a yoga experience that’s not only accessible, but also mentally stimulating and geared towards personal growth.

We offer an array of classes suitable for every practice level.

We offer a diverse range of classes suited to practitioners of all levels, from absolute beginners to advanced yogis. Our yoga teachers come from all lineages and studies, from Katonah and Iyengar, to Vinyasa and Ashtanga. Whether you’re drawn to a hot, vigorous flow, a gentle, restorative practice, or a meditative sound therapy session, there’s something for everyone. Each class is thoughtfully designed to cater to different needs and preferences, ensuring that you find the practice that resonates with you.

Our most popular specialty classes include:

THE CENTERED ONE - MAT PILATES

Our pilates classes will challenge you in exercises that chisel your abs, tone your glutes, and sculpt long, lean muscles. You will use your own body weight, yoga blocks, magic circles, and resistance bands.

THE THERAPEUTIC ONE

This class combines a gentle slow flow and restorative yin postures and closes with a deep meditation session to explore the quietude of your mind.

THE FIERY ONE - HOT YOGA

This is a heated Vinyasa flow experience that is intentional, fun, and guided by the rhythm of the breath. Expect lots of movement with a focus on functional exercises. It’s an open-level class that’s powered by radiant infrared panels and an air purification system to minimize airborne dust, pollen, and germs.

THE STUDIOUS ONE - MASTER CLASS

Taught by senior teachers, master classes are an opportunity for intermediate yogis and teachers to deepen their practice through an extended study of the asanas. You’ll incorporate more advanced postures, yoga philosophy, and anatomical education.

THE FOUNDATIONAL ONE

This class breaks down the fundamentals of key yoga postures for both people who have never taken a yoga class and practitioners who have some knowledge of the practice but would like to renew and strengthen their foundation.

THE EMBODIED ONE - SOMATICS

Explore somatic movement exercises to help re-educate the way your brain moves, holds, and senses your muscles. You’ll commence class with an extended savasana and gradually enter into yoga asanas.

THE INTERNAL ONE

In this internal strength class using the Kinstretch® Method, focus on the determinants of your movement (i.e. ligaments, tendons, and connective tissue) rather than the external organization of movement (i.e. specific yoga poses). Through self-assessment, you’ll learn about your current range of motion and exercise more control.

THE ALIGNED ONE

Similar to The Fiery ONE, expect an open-level, but room temperature, Vinyasa class woven with elements of Hatha, Iyengar, Ashtanga, or Katonah Yoga. These yoga classes are intelligently sequenced at a slower, sweeter pace to ease you into the practice, allowing time for your body to adapt to movement. You are sure to break a sweat by building heat from within.

In every class, the teacher will ease you into practice, allowing time for your body to adapt to the flow and temperature of the room. No class is exactly the same, but overall, you can expect emphasis on mindful movement, mobility, alignment, breathwork, and drishti—a focused gaze—cultivating a sense of presence and awareness on the mat. Our focus on breath allows you to deepen your practice, quiet the mind, and experience a profound sense of relaxation and inner peace. You’ll be encouraged to listen to your body, honor its limitations, and explore your edge with compassion.

SOUND MEDITATION

Sound has been used for its therapeutic qualities for centuries. Sound Meditation experiences at OYH will guide you through an experience of pranayama, vocalization, and visualization to prepare for deep listening. You will be encouraged to find a comfortable position, and with eyes closed, take in the sounds emitted from instruments such as gongs, singing bowls, varying chimes and bells, drums, etc. These instruments, intentionally sequenced, create a safe space for participants to enter a meditative state to down-regulate the nervous system and create a sense of ease and clarity.

Our holistic approach to community and wellness.

At OYH, you’re part of a supportive and inclusive community from day one. Whether you attend classes regularly or drop in occasionally, you’ll find camaraderie and encouragement from fellow practitioners and instructors alike. The studio fosters connections beyond the mat, offering workshops, events, retreats, and social gatherings to support local businesses (like brunch and oyster shucking) where you can connect with like-minded individuals and deepen your practice both on and off the mat.

Our holistic approach to wellness extends beyond movement. In addition to regular yoga and pilates classes, the studio offers workshops focused on nutrition, mindfulness, self-care, and personal development. Whether you’re interested in exploring the benefits of Ceremonial Grade Cacao, learning about the Controlled Articular Rotations (CARs) routine, or delving into pelvic floor therapy, there are ample opportunities to learn something new and nourish your body, mind, and soul.

Retreats offer immersive experiences that transcend the boundaries of the studio. ONEYOGAHOUSE retreats serve as rejuvenating getaways designed to allow participants to deepen their practice and forge new connections. Through carefully curated programs, attendees engage in daily yoga, breathwork, functional mobility, journaling, and meditation sessions, alongside modalities such as lymph work, kriyas, and vagal toning. Retreat members also enjoy chef-prepared group meals, outdoor adventures and exploration, cocktail hours, spa services, shopping and cultural trips, and more. Set in beautiful locations like Los Cabos, Mexico, Morocco, North Africa, and Montauk, New York, the retreat landscapes provide serene backdrops for self-reflection and relaxation.

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ONEYOGAHOUSE is a community of shape creators, energy expanders, and movement manifestors in the heart of Brooklyn and Montauk.

Find us at our New York studios

Locations

BROOKLYN

90 Furman Street
Brooklyn. New York 11201

MONTAUK

83 S Elmwood Ave #1b
Montauk. New York 11954

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