Hike and yoga: how to combine both for perfect training

“Isn't it big?” Laurie Hang Hutter swept through her arms on a band of green space open near the Colibris garden in the leisure area of ​​the state of Kenneth Hahn. The palm trees were sworn in the distance and gave way to a clear view of the Hollywood panel and the oriental mountains of Santa Monica.

Welcome to Hutter Fresh Yoga Studio. A small group of us had just hiked about two miles at this picturesque location, then deployed our carpets for the second part of Go back yogaA monthly event based on donations organized by Hutter which combines a trek through nature with a sweet outdoor yoga course. (The next class is February 15 at 8 a.m.; Register here.)

During the following hour, Hutter led us through a series of vinyasa flow poses followed by a Savasana closed by the eyes (installation at rest) which increased the surrounding noises of singing birds and rustling leaves in the wind. We finished with a synchronized wave of yoga poses and a short hike to Boulevard La Brea.

Hiking and yoga have been my reference exercise activities for years. But I have never tried to merge both until recently, when a minor pain on the legs and the hip has turned into a necessary part of my routines before and after hiking. It was not difficult to find Outdoor yoga events Through southern sunny California (from the roof garages to the mountain peaks), but I was surprised to also find structured events like Hutter's that combined the two activities, as well as yoga courses adjacent to the trails that facilitated the planning of a solo hike before or after the course.

“It's a perfect combination,” said Gail Judd, a volunteer yoga professor with the Irvine Ranch Conservancywhich hosts a variety of free yoga hikes each month. “You raise your heart rate, warm your body and work your muscles during hiking, then use breathing and movement to relax, stretch and restore your body through yoga.”

Yoga adds flexibility and strengthens the lower body joints such as hips, knees and ankles, which can help balance the legs and navigate in the rocky terrain, notes Elena Cheung, a yoga instructor based in Seattle and specialist in therapeutic movements.

“Yoga is a very well balanced practice with physical and mental advantages for athletes of all kinds,” she adds. “Hikers tend to see a fairly direct correlation between yoga and improving hiking performance or injury recovery.”

While Los Angeles continues to treat the unprecedented devastation of Eaton and Palisades fires, these local hiking and yoga activities can provide a respite from sadness and disbelief that many of us live. They are all likely to strengthen the meaning of the community that we want at the moment, as well as checks on common New Year resolutions like doing more exercise, reducing stress and spending time in nature. As a bonus, many of them are free or based on donations.

Fitness hikes with yoga

Registration is required for free yoga from IRVINE RANCH Conservancy hikesHeaded regularly at Bommer Canyon, at Quail Hill and other wilderness areas designated in the County of Orange. The lessons often fill up, but there is a waiting list that allows you to place if someone cancels.

A recent Friday morning trek through Bommer Canyon near UC Irvine took us above the navy layer on a ridge path with limited public access. After a moderate hike of five miles, we settled with towels and carpets under a pavilion on the renovated field of the cattle camp operated by Co. Irvine for a large part of the 20th century. The yoga instructor, Judd, likes to draw attention to the region's cowboy roots and remind participants that the site they survived was once used to inoculating, disinfecting and the cattle brand.

“I ask them to try to imagine what the cowboys would think of doing yoga there,” she said.

Stretching and gentle poses led by Judd served as an ideal recharge for our moderate hike. Just as impressive was the frame: a graceful canopy of sycamore trees, infinitely more soothing than the hot wall mirrors of a typical yoga studio, framed one side of the pavilion and helped me concentrate and maintain my stable poses.

Yoga near the beginnings

Yoga is a must at the base of Runyon Canyon Park in Hollywood since 2000. The instructor Daniel Overberger directs the donation classes Every Monday, Wednesdays and Friday morning on a fenced lawn surrounded by mature trees. (The rain sometimes cancels the class; here for updates.)

Overberger describes him as “a base class of Flow-Savasana with many warriors 1 and 2”, ending with seated poses that operate the nucleus of the body. I found myself focusing on a pair of giant palm trees while the singing birds and the conversations in mute of passers -by provided background noise. It is an only experience that attracts tourists, industry professionals, hikers and dog walkers. (An ordinary joins outside the fence while his dogs rest in the shade.)

There is no organized hike associated with the class, but thereafter, I saw several participants appreciate the popular 2.7 -thousand loop path which begins nearby. (Pro advice: allow a lot of time for parking in this dense area or this Zen atmosphere will disappear before the first Savasana.)

After Emily Phillips Brinker's Saturday Yoga Class in Griffith Park, students sometimes go hiking on the nearby observatory loop.

(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Not too far from Griffith Park (who has reopened After a brief closure in the days following the fires), the veteran instructor of yoga Emily Phillips Brinker directs the flow of Vinyasa based on donations classes Wednesday evening and Saturday morning near the Bear statue in Fern Dell Drive and Los Feliz Boulevard. The Vinyasa class is designed for all levels, and hikers or parkgoers are welcome to pass and borrow the additional carpets that it keeps at hand. “We practice under the beautiful trees while the squirrels are gambling and soak up the advantages of nature while moving our body,” explains Phillips Brinker.

Participants sometimes choose to hike on the loop of the moderate observatory to the Griffith Observatory after lessons, said Phillips Brinker. His advice: abandon the headphones and use the hike as an extension of the conscious movement that you have just finished by letting yourself take and appreciate the natural environment.

Beach yoga, ocean walks

The Santa Monica yoga studios in Laguna Beach offer regular sand courses, and free beach lessons based on Donations appear on Eventbrite and other platforms throughout the year. (Phillips Brinker brings his yoga class Griffith Park South to Hermosa Beach once a month; check here for updates.)

In December, I joined a flow class led by Soho Yoga in Hermosa Beach after walking along the edge of the ocean during a quick mile. At the start, it looked at least difficult for all my yoga hikes, but finally let me feel as energetic and calm as the others. Salt has increased my consciousness of breathing, and sand served as a soft and comfortable landing for my joints and the back. During the last Savasana, I kept my eyes open and revel in the simple fact of looking at the clouds of shape above me. Just make sure to bring additional towels and be ready to become sandy.