Tandem or Double Kayaking?

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Another day, another Groupon. 

The week of Dec 20th (obviously I am referring to the SATURDAY), I went Kayaking with a few friends in Sausalito. I found a Groupon online through SF Kayaks and Adventures. The challenge was that all kayaks were doubles. Sidebar-maybe they are called Tandem kayaks or maybe I just want to refer to it as a "tandem" because I have a soft spot for tandem bicycles since they are the only kind of bicycle I know how to ride. Either way you want to call it- double or tandem- kayaking was fun!

The best parts:

  • Seeing sea lions/seals (different ears/fins) and otters
  • Upper body workout. The instructor claimed that when done properly, kayaking is an abdominal exercise because the way you properly push the paddle into the water is done by turning your upper body rather than lifting your arms. Most beginners quickly forget the proper form and resort to kayaking instinct
  • The location- the weather is relatively predictable which makes kayaking a sport that can be done pretty much year round. We also had a change to explore the floating homes of SF that were started by artists in the 1950s- 1970s (details here)
  • Learning about the Full Moon kayaking they have a few times a month and their annual trip to Baja. Not surprisingly, you can also do the paddle board yoga in Baja (previous post on the blog here).

The worst part

  • Upper body workout- yes I mentioned above as the "best" part.  After 2.5 hours you will most likely agree it is the best and worst part.

Until next time. Stay tuned.

 

 

Namaste Surfers

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Originally: Nov 15, 2014

Paddle board yoga is one of the best non-traditional workouts.  Paddling is probably the easiest part. The harder part is staying balanced so you are not the one that falls into the water. Avoiding embarrassment is the real challenge.

My roommate and I registered for a class through onBoard SUP. I had heard of them through Classpass and was happily surprised they were included. If you register on the OnBoard Sup website each class is only $30 all inclusive. The two instructors were nice and helped us to get accustomed to standing on the boards. Although they said hardly anyone falls in, we did have someone in our group that had a quick dip in the water. 

From the description- "Paddleboard yoga" you pretty much know what you are getting yourself into. Step 1 paddle away from the dock. Step 2 pick a open spot with less boat traffic (this was easy in Sausalito) Step 3. drop the anchor. Step 4 Adho Mukha Śvānāsana, Ardha Matsyendrāsana and Dhanurāsana. 

If you are confused by Step 4 so I am. Every.Single.Time. I have done yoga for a few years, although far from an expert, I think at this point I should be able to tell the difference between the formal names. However, they all sound the same to me. I tend to agree with Fitbie on the more accurate names. I guess saying "ok now get into rotisserie chicken pose" would not be so "zen."

After we paddled out, enjoyed the view, and did some sun salutations, the other yogis and I had the opportunity to do some harder poses. Surprisingly, some poses are easier on a wobbly board then on land, while others are much more difficult than you would expect. After a few rounds and some great pictures we wrapped up the class. Like I said, pretty much what you would anticipate from the pictures.

OnBoard SUP does two unique adventure apart from the standard paddle board yoga. One is the  their Full Moon Paddle and the other is their Baja retreat. Both look like eligible future SATURDAY adventures.

Until next time. Stay tuned.