Change is the spice of life. And trying something new is the heart of adventure.  Well, during my summer of (f)unemployment I am gonna try a few new things!

For my first adventure, I decided to try the Stand Up Paddleboarding craze.  It’s the fastest growing water sport and has been tremendously popular. I did some research and it sounded like it was easy to pick up, but I was still reluctant to go out on my own and just figure it out. My head was filled with images of smacking my head on the board and drowning. Deciding there was safety in numbers, I signed up for a SUP Yoga Class with Meta Yoga Studio. The website said no SUP experience required and they would teach you how to paddle. Perfect!

I showed up on a cool morning at the Dillon Reservoir, which is a humongous black-hole sized lake. It was windy and choppy! If I went in here, it was a long swim to shore and no one would ever find my body if I drowned.  Ha!  There were only two of us out learning that morning. Our instructor, Erin, asked us if we had any yoga experience. We both enthusiastically said, “Yes!” Erin said, “Great. It won’t help you out there. Yoga on a paddleboard is nothing like yoga in a studio.” Oh geez. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all, trying two new things, paddleboard yoga and SUP, at the same time.

We geared up and after what seemed like only 2 minutes of instruction from Erin, we were on our boards and on our way. When you learn to paddleboard, you start out on your knees. Your center of gravity is much lower, so not much chance of falling off! Turns out, it’s pretty easy to paddle from your knees. It’s just awkward to try to paddle straight. We’d only been paddling for a few minutes when Erin said, “You want to try to stand up?” Heck yeah! I slowly started to move, like she had shown us. Holy crap, when did this board get so tippy? I wobbled to my feet and splashed forward with my paddle. Turns out, this sport is a little harder than it looked! We made our way around the marina and I got a bit more comfortable with every stroke. This wasn’t so bad! It was really fun, in fact, and it was a beautiful and sunny day with mountains on every horizon.

We paddled around the marina to a shallower spot to start some yoga. We started out, sitting on our boards. Easy. Relaxing. You swayed with the waves and could enjoy the sun and breeze. Then we did a few poses on our hands and knees. No problem. Felt great. From here, she told us to lift our right knee and left arm. HOLY CRAP. This board is so wobbly! There’s no way. Wait… isn’t this the easiest pose ever in a yoga class? What is going on?!? I finally got the hang of this pose, when we moved to some down dogs. I will say, down dog was the best pose on a paddleboard. Looking upside down, through my legs at the snowcapped mountains and the peaceful water was awesome. You don’t get that in a yoga studio, for sure! We moved through some low lunges and other low poses on the boards. Basically anything that required me to lift a limb off the board was super challenging. 3-legged dog, lizard, lunges…. all SUPER HARD. Man, this SUP Yoga thing really takes you back to the basics. Like, first-day-of-yoga-ever basics. I wobbled and bobbed and occasionally was able to get my hands off the board. I have never felt so awkward doing yoga. I didn’t fall in though! Erin was a great coach and talked me through finding wider stances and shifting my balance to find some of the more challenging poses. I eventually got a few of them figured out. Finally, our last few poses were seated on the board or laying on the board. I was much more comfortable with the motion of the board by now and trusted that I wouldn’t just randomly pitch over into the water. It became relaxing again. The sun was a bit higher and was warming our skin. We could hear the water lapping the boats of the marina and the shore. I had a big smile on my face.

It was time to head back in. I carefully bobbled back to standing on my board and found myself paddling slightly more efficiently than I had on the way out. I was more comfortable with the motion of the water. It turns out, SUP, like rowing, is all about relaxing and learning to move with the water.   I was a little sad to come back in. I could have stayed out, playing in the water, a lot longer!

SUP Yoga was a great experience, even for a first time SUP-er. I can’t wait to go back out and paddle again. Even though it was hard, yoga poses will get better with practice.  And who doesn’t love a good challenge?  I’m so glad I went to this class and I highly recommend it! It was actually refreshing to be thrown backwards a few years in my yoga practice and to focus on just the basics of balance and breathing. I learned a lot from this experience and met a few really nice people on the way. Now I just need to figure out how to get my dog on a paddleboard!

What you need to start SUP Yoga: Rent a board, paddle and lifejacket and take a lesson! It’s pretty simple to learn. I took a lesson from Meta Yoga in Breckenridge, CO and it was only $35, including the board rental.

What to wear: Swim wear or yoga clothes are fine, as long as they are tight-fitting and quick-dry. Just in case you DO go swimming. 🙂 I wore a yoga tank and run capris with a rashguard over the top, to keep my skin protected from the sun.  Don’t worry about shoes – you’ll leave them on shore.

What to bring: Water bottle, a carabiner or float for your keys, sunglasses with chums/keepers and sunscreen.