Stretching:

By stretching muscles that have become short and balancing the two sides of the body, Triathletes can improve joint mechanics and reduce their risk of injury. The competition level of a triathlon is so intense that there is very little of the body that is spared. Triathletes can be prone to injury due to poor mechanics, chronic over-use and over-shortening by allowing muscles to shorten endlessly. Short tight muscles are more at risk of tearing.

Flexibility

Supple joints move better. Good flexible muscles use less oxygen when making movement compared with tight, glued muscle tissue. Put simply, efficiency increases. Hip flexors, hamstrings, calves and hip rotators must be stretched out after long endurance triathlon training.

Core:

A strong core is critical for all 3 disciplines in a triathlon. Hips must stay in neutral alignment whether swimming, cycling or running and that requires proper strengthening of his abdominals and glutes. During swimming, the core muscles will help hold a streamlined torso in front crawl. In cycling, having a stronger core will allow the transference of more power through the legs, as well as reducing the instance of injury and improving posture. During running the core needs to keep hips in neutral alignment so they do not sway side to side and cause the pelvis to tip forward which can lead to imbalance injuries.

Recovery:

The multi-plane, multidirectional movement of yoga, plus the mobility and stretching, will help the triathlete recover faster after a gruelling training session or a challenging event. It will allow him/her to flush out the build-up of metabolic waste, pump fresh blood through, untether tissues that have become stuck down and tight and re-set the resting length of his/her muscles. The triathlete will hopefully feel less fatigued and ready to train again the day after a yoga session.