ThumbSUP Yoga has a new website

New web design, content, layout and illustrations. 

The new look feels appropriate for the business today. I hope it's helpful in summarizing ThumbSUP Yoga current offerings and fielding some F.A.Q.s.

The logo was a "do-dad" but now it holds greater meaning. It's two boards at the ready, stacked on the rack or crossing in the sea. Or the reflection of one board to view the significance of a pair. Colossal fins are in supply to straighten and stabilize a sunrise to sunset journey. 

Welcome to the new site.

I appreciate your feedback, thoughts and suggestions. 

Exhale Summer

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at the beach

This is the third summer of teaching yoga under the pavilion at the town's beach. Along this coast, the winter was rough. Snow was abundant and heavy, like a dark cloak of sleep. And while restful in a state of mere endurance, I am excited to be teaching classes again outside. The sun is shining down and the water is enticing. At this open air space, the warm breeze of jubilation feels as limitless as the sky. 

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Making Plans for a Thumbs up Summer

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musings on a sup board: on point

Once and awhile, like today, for instance, I feel like I've drifted from median. Seen from the outside or taken on paper, everything appears hunky dory. All the ducks are in order and I am present and accounted for. Yet I feel off-axle. Today, it's the whelm of a sentimental thought. I am reeling in headspace.

Often, when I teach SUP, after we've completed dryland, launched and the class is standing with ease, I'll suggest students lose their balance a little. With your feet wide on the board, press down on one foot then the other to
create a rock. Go on now.

As the board shifts from side to side, the body instinctively kicks in. The core firms and the toes might grip. The knees bend to reduce the center of gravity and the quads may hammer for control. It can be scary! Rocking fro from the momentum of rocking to. As the board leans one way, the opposite foot leads the charge to regain balance. It's active and unsettling when the foundation starts to shake.

Like a good roller coaster, the down-swing feels indeterminate as the climb is cresting. But in its essence the contra sway of a sup board is on par with its brethren. A properly fitted board in length, width and composition will promote buoyancy and all else being equal, there will be no more than a comparable opposite reaction to the sway. I believe it is Newton's Second Law of motion that says so.

I'll usually suggest that students feel the edges of the movement because 1. it will help when we play with yoga later and 2. because buried beneath the worries of falling and the busy work of the body brashly trying to steer the ship, there is a sensation of liquid balance. Once the toes ease and the legs stop trying to be the boss, there is an understanding of great ease and an intimate relationship regained with nature.

The opposite of the freeze frame, or "stuck" gymnastic dismount. On a SUP board, we are reminded that there is a litany of balance. It's a spectrum of points on the rock with a rolodex of symmetry. Sometimes cresting, sometimes waning. It's a constant give and take but a smooth undercurrent is supporting a sound board and equanimity is all the while current.

The board wants to right itself, but will you let it?

Wild & wonderful

I hear that the license plates on the cars in West Virginia say: Wild and Wonderful. Well, I think that is just wild and wonderful. I am so looking forward to teaching SUP Yoga at the Wanderlust festival in Snowshoe, WV. http://wanderlust.com/festivals/snowshoe/experience/

THUMBS UP FACEBOOK

I created a Facebook business page. (It only took me 7 months from the moment I started until when I clicked publish.) If you are interested in staying up, on things more up-to-date, join me on fb at http://www.facebook/thumbsupyoga

Yoga Playdate

In the hustle and bustle of the holidays, my dear friend Donna and I treated ourselves to a day together playing in New York City. It seemed impossible and I worried about timing, but we slapped the To Do List to the backburner, wrestled the clock for an opening and brushed aside doubt. And I am so glad that we did. (That's me, beaming on the right.) The highlight of the day, which I still label a treasure of a gift bestowed, was a spirited, beat bumping yoga class at Laughing Lotus taught by the saucy and sweet, Dana Trixie Flynn.

I don't recall the exact theme. And I couldn't tell you how many times I nodded along, in expression of solidarity of all those themes expressed. I remember my body, how the thoughts landed in conjunction with the words and how I felt a synergy. Yoga can be soft and slow, quiet and solo and it could be an electric. I love that range and I love an occasional circuit breaker party.

This is Donna, showcasing her Be Bold themed prowess. (Look where she just happens to be pointing). Don't you just love that wall?? It's in Laughing Lotus' "dance hall" room. Disco ball included!

Lesson remembered: always leave a little space, for possibility. You're invited to the party. RSVP yes sometimes.

What other classes should I take in NYC? #yogatrapolis

Something Different

Once the bulk of the snowman wrapping paper have left with the recyclables and even the trimmings seem to have lost their luster from too much merriment and impalement from the scurry. After the icing has aged to a coat a crackling cookie with its compadres left caking the fibers of the rug. And the hung stockings pfft, once more depleted, used and discarded for the treats that they held. At this point the carols seem taunting, and so does that cookie. It was a good Christmas. It's time now to move on. Prickly, commando needles tell me so, as they bomb past rubbed clay ornaments to fort along the floor.

I like it here. The interlude. It's quiet and the family is well fed. I burrow into my space of the well-worn fibers of the brown, friendly sofa. I drag up to cheek the best, plush blanket built for four or wound twice for one. My body, beneath the plush, synthetic fibers relaxes until sleep, which has been so eluding lately, closes in. And I drift lightly into its warm embrace. Dreams come easily, but are not easy to discern. I come to barely and confirm a resignation with these words: "aw, you sunk my battleship."

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Retreat to the bitter end

White sand beaches, crystal clear waters, sunshine and warmth - just two months away. Will you join me? 

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Portrait of a Yogi

To me, yoga means a voyage into the depths of connection. It begins with an untethering from the embankment and catches wake of the magnificence of nature. As featured in Robert Sturman's piece, Portrait of a Yogi: A Photographic Exploration of the Power of Yoga to Unite People Across Cultural and Physical Divides in Al Jazeera. All photographs by Robert Sturman.

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Would of. Could of. Should of.

The forecast was for rain. The temperatures were unseasonably low. And the wind was fierce. I booked a session with Robert Sturman Studio on Thursday, October 23rd to capture SUP Yoga on my home turf, the Long Island Sound. All signs pointed to cancel the shoot. I have a low threshold for cold. I mulled this over at 530AM as any glimmer of sun was spanked by black clouds. Warm coffee in hand I looked to the sky. Would I regret not trying?

This ride was to mark the season close of my New England paddling in 2014 and I had plans to make the occasion a ceremony. There was a lot to celebrate on the SUP front this year and it deserved a proper send off.

Dark clouds, cold air and rain is nature's reminder of a spectrum - a spectrum of weather and a spectrum of choice. Within the throws of darkness there may be a solidary speck of light, and that illumination may be a beacon, on the path of growth and discovery. The chop of the sea here, a rarity in our neck of the woods, that foaming bright white reminds me of that. And I bow to its representation of the power of the sea and the depth of my love for the sport of SUP.  

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Spiked Seltzer - Sag Harbor, NY

Have you heard of Spiked Seltzer? It's a gluten free, low carb, all natural alcoholic beverage developed thoughtfully and spreading rapidly because of its clean nature and refreshing taste. There is a mermaid on the bottle of this crystal clear drink with a trident (hello water warrior) spearing the fruit infused. To me, its essence is fierce in sparkle.

I was thrilled to strap the board on the car and teach SUP Yoga for Spiked Seltzer's event at Sag Harbor Sailing. The days stayed warm, the harbor was stunning under the crisp September sky and the wind was mellow enough for everyone to play with poses. We laughed (a lot), tried something new on board and best of all, were greeted at the end of class with a cold, delicious beverage outstretched. The inner mermaid in me was positively beaming.

Do you have an outing that could use some THUMBSUPYOGA? Let me know! 

SUP + Supper

In the Summer of 2014, I teamed up with Jamie Sydney, a graduate from the French Culinary Institute and owner of A Dinner Party Chef (http://www.chefjs.com/), to offer SUP Yoga in conjunction with a seaside supper.

It is our finding that time on the water invigorates the senses and creates an inevitable appetite for more time by the shore. The move from sea to land with like-minded Adventurers is seamless as tableside discussion turns from the SUP experience to the delights of exploring summer. Jamie prepares seasonal dishes creatively. There is a freshness with each morsel that evokes the preciousness of the summer sun melting in the sky.

Follow on facebook to hear about the many more SUP & Supper dates to come..

Please contact me to discuss SUP & Supper options for your personal event - birthday celebration, corporate function or private party. It's SUPer fun! Seize this opportunity while you can.