Yoga & Surfing at Soul Surf Yoga Retreat in Costa Rica
Hatha and Vinyasa Yoga, Morning Practices
Vinyasa means to move with the breath, which is essentially the core of a Vinyasa class. Often called flow yoga, Vinyasa Flow is a style of yoga with focus on transitions and movements with some stationary movements also connected with the breath.
Although Vinyasa is often considered a fast practice, it can also be soft and gentle. Moving with the breath can also mean slowing down your transitions with deep inhales and slow exhalations. In our Relax, Rest and Restore Retreat we will enjoying various Vinyasa and Hatha Yoga flows for Joy, Strength and Inner confidence.
“I love syncing my breath with my body, it’s a moving meditation which helps me to focus my mind and ultimately relax” – Carla.
Yin Yoga, evening classes
Yin yoga works deeply into our body with passive, longer-held poses.
It targets the deepest tissues of the body, our connective tissues – ligaments, joints, bones, the deep fascia networks of the body and the meridians. Energetically, Yin yoga improves the energy flow, enhancing the flow of chi in the organs. To be healthy, we need healthy organs as well as healthy muscles. Yin yoga also offers wonderful emotional and mental health benefits.
A Yin yoga class usually consists of a series of long-held, passive floor poses that mainly work the lower part of the body – the hips, pelvis, inner thighs, lower spine. These areas are especially rich in connective tissues. The poses are held for up to five minutes.
Surfing
Come find some of the best surfing in the world! Whether you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced surfer, you will find Costa Rica has everything you need to experience all the ocean has to offer. The waves outside of Calamocha Luxury Lodge tend to be smaller and less extreme. This creates an ideal place for those that have never surfed, or for people looking to get more beginner experience. Just up the road you will find Hermosa Beach and Santa Teresa where you can watch some of the best local surfers reaping the benefits of years of practice.
We will spend a portion of our time also learning about reading waves and the shoreline. This is one of my favorite aspects of surfing. I can sit on my phone and have a very good idea about what the surf is like in most areas of the world. I will teach you how to navigate swell and duration. We will look at reef and shore breaks. Learn to read any coastline just by watching waves break. Whether or not you stay committed to surfing, this training will give you a much more dynamic understanding of the ocean and a much deeper appreciation of how a wave is formed.
I am asked frequently why I love surfing. I grew up very adventurous. I have played most sports, I can water ski and snowboard. We grew up riding skateboards and roller blades. I appreciate the skill and challenge that surfing presents, but if I am being honest, what I really love about surfing is being a kid again. I still get that same rush every time a wave picks me up that I did when I was a young boy in California jumping into the surf. It is the exhilaration you get from being completely out of control. You are under the complete influence of that wave that can change its mind at any moment. Many times… just a spectator that nature has allowed to participate for a short moment. So, while I do enjoy the exercise that comes with surfing (you will sleep well on those nights), for me it is more than the physical activity. It is growing in a sport that requires a lifetime to master. It is about competing against myself in the most challenging way possible. The love of water. The sounds and the silence. The ocean is a beautiful and powerful force. There are rare moments where you find the perfect harmony with a wave. Balance. Pleasure. Elation. If you open yourself up to the adventure, you will be rewarded with a calm and peace that can be life altering. Find your Blue Mind.