Cross Training One of the best things a runner can do to improve his performance is cross training. Runners often fall into the trap of focusing their training just in the running spectrum, forgetting that there are other muscles that need to be worked on. Cross training is about dedicating other days of the week to do work-outs different from running. This practice helps developing a more balanced body, prevents injuries and enhances the running experience. One of the most popular cross training practices is yoga, being hot yoga runners favourite. After a 90 minute hot yoga class, you have the same intense adrenaline feeling of a long run. Hot yoga is hard and strenuous, but helps your body recovering and leaves it ready for a run. Running pushes the legs’ muscles to an extreme workout. To avoid injuries they have to be stretched. We all stretch after we finish running but this is usually not enough. Our legs need a powerful, intense stretch that reaches the deepest fibers of our muscles. I started practicing hot yoga more than a year ago. I decided to do it because I was tired of the constant injuries I was having. My hot yoga practice has changed my running dramatically: injuries are virtually gone and the recovery time between runs is faster. There are different hot yoga studios, the most popular one being Bikram. I go to a studio that uses infra-red heat and changes the poses every class. The required attire for a hot yoga class is basic to survive it: tank top, shorts, towel, water and a special yoga mat. I first took my old yoga matt and a beach towel. The problem with the towel is that you get tangled in it while changing poses. Then I bought a special hot yoga towel that has silicone grips in the bottom, helping it stay in place on you mat. The problem with this one is that it does not have a good grip for your feet and they slip while doing certain poses, causing a possible overstretch that you want to avoid. Finally, I found the perfect hot yoga mat. Of course it is made by Lulu Lemon, the yoga experts. The mat is made out of a very absorbent, antibacterial rubber. With this mat you don’t need to use a towel on top of it (besides your little towel to sweep off your sweat). No matter how much you sweat (believe me it is a lot!) it is absorbed immediately, never affecting the grip of your feet. The mat stays dry the whole time. There are not slips, tangles or “puddles” that can affect your practice. My animal lover note: our mission as humans is to always evolve, to look for a better way to do things. Why is it that we keep doing practices that are cruel and unconscious on one side, while we still believe we are the greatest thing on earth, on the other? Do you want to change? Be a conscious consumer. Buy products that are not animal tested. Look for the labels. Inform yourself. Look online. Research. Learn. Evolve.