I love sailing, I love yoga, and I love sharing what I learn with others.
Bringing these passions together is the opportunity of a lifetime.
Hi, my name is Kim Hess, and this is Yoga On Board.
I'm going to show you just how easy it is to incorporate a yoga practice into your sailing lifestyle.
Some of the benefits of a regular yoga practice include increased strength and flexibility,
restored energy, and harmony between the body and mind.
Yoga has enhanced my life significantly, not only by changing the way my body looks and feels,
but the way my mind perceives things, giving me the freedom to be fully alive.
As your practice deepens, you'll find that applying the principles of your practice to your life becomes second nature.
The word yoga in Sanskrit literally means to yoke or union.
By developing an asana or a physical practice, we develop a union between our bodies, our minds, and whatever higher power we believe in.
As we practice, we explore and observe our bodies, paying attention to how we feel.
Each day, we may notice how we move or feel just a little bit differently in each particular pose.
By paying attention to the details of the body and the rhythm of the breath,
we begin to notice the subtle differences and adjust accordingly.
As sailors, we already have developed a similar sense as we tap into the subtleties that determine our actions while at the helm.
Watching the ripples on the water, listening as the wind affects the sails,
feeling the pull of the current as that energy comes up through the rudder,
into the tiller, and into our bodies, telling us just how much or how little
to adjust either the point of sail or the sails themselves.
This is yoga.
Any movement or activity can become a part of your yoga practice simply through intention.
An intention guides your planned actions.
Yoga principles can be applied anywhere, by anybody, anytime.
Adapting traditional yoga postures to your space simply takes intention.
We use the physical postures as a vehicle for examination with results becoming apparent in the strength and flexibility of the body,
calmness within ourselves, as well as a feeling of connection.
Just because there's not a flat open space, or you don't have a yoga mat,
does not mean that you can't bring intention into your everyday and experience the results of a daily yoga practice.
So with that said, let's practice.
