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While runners are some of the fittest people on the planet, many of us harbor a number of strength and flexibility issues. It's no wonder when you consider that a runner strikes the ground nearly 1,000 times in a single mile, pounding the muscles, joints, tendons and ligaments with each step. The good news is that practicing yoga as a supplement to your running regimen can improve some of the shortcomings of your run training. "Yoga and running are the Yin and Yang of fitness," says Denise Thompson, a certified yoga instructor and owner of Yogirunner . "They are not opposing forces, but complementary opposites that interact within a greater whole." Put simply, yoga can fill in where running falls short. This is particularly true in terms of strength, flexibility and mental acuity. "Unlike lifting weights, the practice of yoga engages major and minor muscle groups synergistically through a broad range of motions, and also creates space within the body by lengthening muscles and ultimately improving flexibility," Thompson says. "Poses require focus and full body engagement, creating a strong sense of balance from head to toe." Perhaps the greatest reason for a runner to include regular yoga practice in his or her training is for injury prevention. Since even the most basic poses employ the major muscle groups as well as the smaller, underworked complementary muscles, yoga can help a runner identify weak spots that need attention prior to the development of an injury.