No matter what you do – from surfing to football and wrestling – yoga will help you on your journey!

I am a 27year old with a passion for travel, yoga, surf and anything new and exciting. I have had an interesting, colourful and most of all eventful life so far and yoga became a part of it around six years ago.

Since first discovering yoga I found it to be one of the most important parts of my life and on my journey so far it has helped both my body and mind in many different ways.

The World Is My Oyster!

Six years ago at the end of a snowboard season in France and the start of my new addiction to travelling I had an accident, leaving me with a broken arm and dislocated shoulder. I took a month out to recover and then carried on with my first mini adventure to start seeing some of the world.

Addicted to Yoga!

I started in Cairns Australia and it was there that I decided to buy myself a book on yoga - Light on Yoga by BKS Iyengar. I began to teach myself some basic postures and soon enough I was practicing daily.

Combined with gentle swimming I started to gain some of the strength in my arm and shoulder. After three months of doing my own daily practice of yoga in some of the most beautiful spots in Australia and Thailand, I was hooked and I knew that as soon as I was back in the UK I would find a teacher and begin taking classes.

Itchy Feet

My love for travel had also started to grow and the itch on my feet intensified after every new adventure. Finding a yoga teacher and sticking to one teacher has always been a problem of mine as I travelled from place to place. This didn’t matter as I had already began my yoga journey doing my own self practice, so whenever I couldn’t have a teacher in my life I practiced yoga alone and enjoyed teaching other travellers along the way.

Scatty or What?

My mind has been described in the past as ‘scatty’ and as much as that part of me is definitely still slightly present, yoga has helped to bring a greater sense of balance and calmness to my mind. Since I began practicing yoga, whenever I have not had yoga in my life, my body has felt heavy, achy and stiff and my mind more scatty, un-centered and un-balanced than ever! A reason enough for me to continue doing yoga forever.

Because of my travelling I have been very lucky to practice many different styles of yoga, with different teachers in some of the most wonderful parts of the world.

From Tanzania to Australia to Barbados

I travelled to Tanzania in Africa for a few months to work in an orphanage and carried on doing my yoga practice every evening after spending the day caring for and teaching the wonderful and happy children at the orphanage. Throughout my time there I taught some simple poses to the children which brought about a lot of laughter and smiles each time. This was one of the moments I realised how much I loved sharing the art of yoga to make others feel good about themselves.

It doesn’t matter where in the world I am teaching - a group of children in Africa - a football team before a match - an after surf session on the beach - teaching my mum in the lounge. Wherever and however, I knew I wanted to teach some day.

After my time in Africa it was back to the UK for me where I was still stuck in the mindset that I had to go to university to get a degree and a sensible career to secure my future and I put my alternative life dream of becoming the eternal traveller to the back of my mind.

Nine hard months later of fighting with the thoughts in my head, trying to study, read and write essays on subjects that didn’t even interest me, I gave up the fight with myself . I made the decision to quit University and continue my adventure around the world, going back to my free spirited ways.

The next stop was Barbados and it was here that I not only got a taste for bread fruit, but I got my first taste of surfing life, which pushed me further in to the life of travelling and freedom. I carried on practicing yoga with a wonderful teacher and learnt how amazing both surf and yoga were together. I had never in my life felt as strong and healthy as I did then and I didn’t ever want to stop.

The Surfing Dream

Surfing became my new love and passion alongside yoga and after Barbados I ventured to India to get a real taste of yoga and the culture behind it all. It was here that I learnt what ‘yoga’ was really about. I immersed myself in to the history and philosophy of yoga and I even managed to find myself some waves!!!

I continued on my journey around the world travelling with my surfboard and my yoga mat to South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and Bali. Along the way I taught yoga to travelling surfers and began to create my own surf yoga specific programme.

Whatever level surfer a person is, yoga can help on many different levels from beginner surfers to pro surfers. Yoga will give a surfer strength, stamina, balance and flexibility to benefit them on their own surfing journey.

When I was in Byron Bay Australia I made the decision to take part in a 500 hour teacher training course to take the next step into becoming a qualified teacher. This gave me the confidence and knowledge to continue sharing and spreading the wonderful art of yoga.

No Longer a Passion – A Life!

I have recently spent three months in Maui Hawaii where I attended another teacher training course with an amazing and inspirational teacher - Nadia Toraman – who is wonderful, energetic and knowledgeable. Her classes were an inspiration for me to keep learning and teaching yoga for the rest of my life.

I am now back in the UK and missing Maui and the energy of the people a lot, but I am ready for the next surfing and yoga adventure ahead of me where I hope to keep learning and teaching day by day as I continue my journey with happiness in my heart and soul and continue living the dream!!!

This feature is sponsored by Aloha Spirit Yoga (alohayoga@hotmail.co.uk)