Yoga retreat for the non-yogi

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For President's day weekend I took a trip to a Yoga farm with a few friends. I had no previous experience at a yoga camp and from what I know about SF yogis I thought  this could get overwhelming very quickly. Turns out we had a relaxing two days before heading back to the city. 

When doing research for yoga retreats I came to the conclusion that this is a pretty pricey hobby. Some run from $600-$2,500 for a weekend (Esalen) . Then I found Sivananda Yoga Farm which was very reasonably priced for a cabin with private bathroom and meals are included for the weekend.

As a side note, if you search on the internet for yoga retreats be sure to read some reviews and their mission. We almost attended a cult in the woods and decided to pass after reading their belief system which included extreme religious behavior and some nudity. I am grateful we did through research before committing!

The schedule was the same for each day and consisted of:

  • Early morning chant around 6am
  • Yoga 8-10am
  • Breakfast 10-11am
  • Karma Yoga (helping the community with simple chores such as cleaning the kitchen plates or sweeping)
  • Break 
  • Two hour lecture
  • Break
  • Yoga- 2 hours
  • Dinner 

I really enjoyed the food that was all vegan and some of which was grown on the farm, but be warned that there is no alcohol or caffeine. So if you need your morning cup of coffee bring your own- BYOC.

During the breaks you could read, hike, or meditate. We chose to do a short hike and lay in the hammocks. You are not obligated to  attend all the sessions, but it is highly encouraged.  We also had time to interact with the animals. You may have picked up on the "farm" part of the yoga retreat. This meant that there were llamas, goats, and other animals roaming the property. They were friendly as you can tell from the pictures. 

The weekend retreat allows you to stay three full days including all activities and meals. After two days we had a sufficient amount of  zen and were ready to head back home feeling accomplished. 

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.