On our last trip to the Outer Banks, we rented a surfboard from Farmdog Surf School. As I was browsing the list of rental items and classes, I discovered that they offer a beach yoga class. Now, I love the beach and I love yoga, so the opportunity to combine the two made perfect sense. Even though it was the earliest I’ve been up all summer (6:30 in order to be there by around 7:30), I have to say that it was a great way to start the day.
The group was fairly small. It was myself and two lovely ladies and their young daughters. Our instructor, Chelsea, was wonderful. We started off with some sun salutations and stretching near the water and then moved onto our mats, which were on top of a large tarp to keep from getting completely sand-covered.
Photo by: Chelsea of Farmdog Surf School
I don’t consider myself the most advanced of yoga students, but I’ve been taking classes for a while and feel fairly comfortable on the mat. This class was just right. I definitely recommend it for any level of yoga-doer, whether beginner or advanced. There were some nice stretching, balancing, and flexibility poses. I particularly liked pretending to be a dolphin while in dolphin pose.
I really like the photo below. One, because of the water and the surfer in the background … and two, because it looks as if the two young ladies are leading the class. Very cute, indeed.
Photo by: Chelsea of Farmdog Surf School
My favorite pose of the morning? Savasana, of course. What could be better than relaxing on the soft sand after 45 minutes of stretching? I really could have fallen asleep right there listening to the sound of the surf and sea birds.
In addition to beach yoga, Farmdog Surf School offers:
- Surf camps for kids, teens, and adults
- Surfing and SUPing lessons
- Surfboard and SUP rentals – rent for a day or a whole week
- Beach cruiser bikes and pull-behind kid trailers
- Wetsuit rentals – Autumn in the OBX is absolutely awesome (and one of my favorite times to visit), but you might want a little extra protection between you and the wind.
Farmdog also offer SUP yoga by reservation. Sessions take place in the sound. I think that will be my next adventure. If savasana is that relaxing on the sand, just imagine how wonderful it is floating on the water. In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m all about the savasana.
Farmdog Surf School is located at 2500 South Virginia Dare Trail (the Beach Road) in Nags Head, at round-about milepost 10 or so. Visit them at www.farmdogsurfschool.com for more information, rental rates and store hours.
