"Yoga for Runners and Active People" with April Ropes at Sohum Yoga and Meditation Studio

   My first thought when I saw the title of a class at Sohum Yoga and Meditation Studio with new instructor April Ropes, called “Yoga for Runners and Active People,” was “why haven’t I taken a class like this before?!” Like many young woman in our area, I have been running several days a week relatively consistently since age twelve. While team sports have faded out of my life, and yoga has taken their place, both casual and serious running have remained constants for me. So I was thrilled to find that a Sohum instructor would specifically intend her class for students like me who love both disciplines, running and yoga.

   As April pointed out during her introduction to the class, yoga and running certainly complement one another, both mentally and physically. Personally, I find that the effects of running’s intense impact on the body can sometimes present unique demands for my yoga practice, such as the need to focus on hamstring flexibility, tight hips, sore shoulders and knees, or knotty feet. April was somehow able to read my mind, addressing exactly these needs as we moved through a restorative, one-hour practice.

   The class integrated strength and balance poses intended to complement the postures of running, such as pelvic alignment. Likewise, April smoothly connected the dots between yogic philosophy and the psychology of running—like how both runners and yogis can get “in the zone” when truly focused on their body and breathing. More than anything, the class was an opportunity to restore our bodies, thanking them for our last running, and preparing them for our next. I would certainly take April's class again and look forward to seeing its effect on my running practice. I imagine "Yoga for Runners and Active People" being a chance for active women and men to not only reap yoga's benefits for those sore muscles, but to also to encounter increased focus, mindful pain management, better endurance, more efficient breathing, and improved running posture.

   April Ropes teaches this class on Saturday mornings from 9-10 am at Sohum Yoga and Meditation Studio on Lyman St. in Westborough. April is open to potentially modifying the class meeting time based on the input of interested students, so please leave a comment if you like. You can learn more about April's bio, as well as check out the whole schedule of Sohum offerings, here on the website: http://www.sohum.org/