“Yoga kept me mentally grounded. It channeled every ounce of mental strength I had even as my body reached its absolute threshold. During training, there were moments when I was tested in every way, and yoga helped me recenter and keep going. Physically, it gave me the stability and core strength I needed for both cycling and running. After everything, I know I’ll be incorporating even more yoga into my training in the future.” - Erin M.
Hi, I'm Erin!
As a lifelong swimmer and also an avid runner, I’ve spent a fair share of my life working to become the best athlete I can and optimize my training. Now, at 28 years old, I’m married, have a son (currently 8 months postpartum), work as a registered nurse, and have started planning my next Ironman.
Training for an Ironman was no small feat. But training for one while working full-time night shifts as a nurse and managing a chronic GI condition? That’s a test of both body and mind.
I’ve always been drawn to endurance, first as a swimmer, then a runner. Back in 2021, I began training for a half marathon as I got back into running again after years of nursing school and navigating early adult life. That quickly turned into running a full marathon by 2022. After running the full marathon, a friend dared me to go further. “Why not do a full Ironman?” he said. I thought he was crazy. But a part of me was intrigued. I’ve always liked a challenge. That fall, I committed and from that point forward, there was no turning back.
From Swim to Bike to Run to Yoga Mat
I started my training in classic triathlon fashion: swimming, running, and learning how to clip into a bike for the first time. I completed my first Olympic distance triathlon in November 2022, ran another full marathon in February 2023, completed a half Ironman in St. George, Utah in May 2023, and finally successfully completed my first full Ironman in Coeur D'Alene, Idaho in June of that same year.
With Ironman training, I faced quite a few challenges: working full-time as a night shift nurse, navigating the completely new-to-me world of cycling, and contending with my chronic GI condition, battling debilitating nausea almost daily. While the training was physically intense, the hardest parts were often mental: long rides in brutal heat, the discomfort of sore muscles, and the unpredictability of my nausea. That's where yoga came in, not just as cross-training but as an anchor.
I'd practiced yoga before in my hometown in the Columbia Gorge, where I first discovered SUP yoga, but it wasn’t until Ironman training that I began to understand its full potential. Vinyasa became my go-to: strong, breath-driven flows that built balance, opened tight muscles, and challenged my core.
Yoga helped me transition in and out of aero position on the bike with greater control. It taught me to listen to my body, notice subtle imbalances, and correct them before they became injuries. Most importantly, it gave me space (both physically and emotionally) to reset.
Benefits:
- Improved flexibility and range of motion
- Enhanced core strength and balance
- Reduction in training-related injuries
- Trust in myself throughout the race that I could accomplish this
I was never perfect at it by any means, but I always worked to do my best. Yoga reminded me that perfection isn’t the goal: presence is. Breathwork and light meditation became tools I returned to often: before swims, after bricks, on rest days. These tools and my Vinyasa practice helped me improve sleep, manage stress, increase endurance, and show up with a steadier mindset each week.
Fitting Yoga Into an Ironman Training Week
My schedule was packed, but I made time for yoga usually 1–2 times a week, either:
- Before a swim (to warm up and reset mentally)
- After a brick workout* (to recover and release)
Even short sessions helped. Yoga prior to pool swims helped me warm up my muscles and refocus. Brick workouts were physically and mentally intense, but yoga helped reset my system. There were a few poses that truly got me through. Some basics I went back to again and again:
- Cobra pose: stretched and strengthened my core after hours in aero
- Warrior II: gave me strength and stability, mentally and physically
- Extended & Revolved Triangle: challenged my balance and improved mobility
- Downward Dog & Child’s Pose: my reset buttons, always there when I needed them
I’m not naturally flexible, but that didn’t matter. I modified when needed, backed off when things hurt, and stayed consistent. That’s what made the difference.
A few weeks before the race, I faced my longest ride: brutal heat, rolling hills, and 110°F in the final hours. I wanted to quit multiple times. But I remembered my yoga: breathe, stay present, don’t panic. I came back to myself, ride after ride.
Advice & Looking Back
If you're training for something big, or just pushing your limits, incorporate yoga. Not as an afterthought, but as a core part of your training. Some people think that adding more to your workout regimen can be a negative thing. However it definitely is not (at least not for me!). It won’t remove the hard parts, but it will help you meet them with strength, focus, and grace. Adding yoga didn’t make my Ironman journey harder, it made it deeper.
When I crossed that finish line in Idaho, I was exhausted, proud, and grounded. I’d never felt anything like it. I knew yoga had helped me get there: on the bike, on the run, and in the moments in between. I was so thankful for my coach and training team for encouraging me every step of the way...and helping me find yoga as a resource. Strength isn’t just miles. It’s in breath, in presence, in consistency.
As I prepare to start training again for another Ironman, this time postpartum, I know yoga will be a tool I can employ whenever I need to ground myself as an athlete and as a parent.
