My brain is shifting, or I am on OVERLOAD, not sure which!! The teacher training is allowing me to spend 4 days a week in an intense yoga sessions. But, what that isn’t leaving much time or energy for is running or riding! So little energy, in fact, that I feel like I’ve been run over by a truck. It’s been brought up in the training that yoga is not a cardio workout. I had thought that on the “power yoga” days or on the Ashtanga day or on days when we are doing lots of “flow” yoga, that I would be benefiting my body with a cardio workout as well. Not true, and I’m okay with that. In all honesty, I don’t really think of yoga as a workout! It’s not. It’s yoga.

{Off on a tangent} What is Ayurveda?

It’s the Science of Life. There are five elements that make up Ayurveda including earth, fire, water, air, and space. And there are three dosha’s that make up human nature (and you could be a combination of them) Vata = wind, Pitta = steam, and Kapha = mud.

In Ayurvedic terms, I am a Pitta. {Take the quiz here to find out what type you are} To balance the body in ayurvedic terms, for me, means I need to lighten up, a lot! If you are a regular here, you know I have a tendency to push all the time!! Goal oriented, driven, have the “gotta do” attitude all the time…I need yoga more than most, however, according to the Ayruvedec terms, I should be attending restorative yoga or gentle yoga- not the Level 2/3 yoga classes that I enjoy! Basically, one of the key elements of this type of medicine is that opposites cure. A walk in nature (or a run) is supposedly going to help balance the Pitta individual.

So, some benefits of running without a goal:

No Garmin. No focus on mileage or pace.

Running for Enjoyment. California is beautiful at times especially when in the hills.

There is NO STRESS. Just run. That’s it. It’s a cardio workout that I enjoy. It is low intensity but beneficial to mind and body.

Relaxing.

It can feel this good!

What benefits do you get from running/cycling/endurance activities that I forgot to mention?