Jessica wrote with a fascinating question. She’s about to start yoga teacher training but is also signed up for the Chicago Marathon. Would it be wiser, she asked, to focus her energy on the teacher training and postpone the marathon for now? I told her that it would depend on a few factors:
1. Your running background
2. Your goals for the race
3. The rigor of your YTT program
If you’re going from 0 to 26.2, I’d say to postpone, but if you have a few years’ distance running experience and have successfully (read: happily and without injury) completed a few half marathons, I think you’ll be fine.
If your goal for the race is to qualify for Boston, or even to run a specific time, I’d say to postpone, but if your goal is simply to finish (ideally, happily and without injury), I think you’ll be fine.
If your program requires attending a lot of studio classes each week, especially if they are in warm or hot studios, I’d say to postpone, but if your program allows for home practice and modifications, I think you’ll be fine.
Another consideration will be balancing your long runs with the YTT. Is it a weekend program? If so, can you do your long runs on Tuesday or Wednesday?
She’s pondering—and I’m super impressed that she wants to learn as much as she can about what her future students, athlete/yogis, go through in their training. Kudos, Jessica, and run fast!