Friday, 1/25, provided the opportunity for mat and chair yoga classes on the cruise ship Coral Princess in the Great Barrier Reef. Due to rough seas, the boat rocked even more than yesterday, resulting in a need for Dramamine. The mat class in the lounge drew one daring student. We developed foot awareness by placing our feet flat on the floor under our bent knees and breath awareness through centering breaths. The rocking of the boat enhanced the need for stability on the floor and calming breaths to relax the belly. We also enjoyed the massage effect on our backs, for now. We moved through raising and lower the tail bone, loosening of the S-I joints by internal and external rotation of the knees (windshield washer movements) and Bridge Pose variations.The Bridge Pose series consisted of the mini (raising the pelvis about two inches off of the floor), half (raising the lower back up to the base of the ribs) and full (raising the middle back up to the base of the shoulders) variations. We rolled over to Table Pose to begin the Downward Dog Series. This consisted of the Half Dog to help extend the spine and Quarter Dog to extend the muscles on the sides of the arms and chest. We shifted to Cobra Series, starting with Baby Cobra to just raise our torsos up on our belly (minimal arm engagement) and the to Half Cobra to start engaging the arms and shoulders. The use of the abdominal muscles and drawing of the shoulder blades inward reduced pressure on the shoulder joints as we raised our body upward. Modified Plank was then employed to challenge our core muscles. We arose with a full Downward Dog. Our standing balance poses were Mountain and Warrior variations, maximizing our 4 points of foot contact on the floor as the boat continued to rock.
The chair yoga class immediately after the mat class on the Coral Princess drew three students. To compliment the recent snorkeling, the Swimming Medley Series was on the program. We reviewed foot and breath awareness, and the 90 degree rules for the feet, shins, hips, spine, elbows and chin. Then we warmed up with raising and tipping our pelvis, while drawing the shoulders down and in to lengthen the upper body. The funny (?) part occurred when the teacher had to take a sea sickness break for a few minutes. Dramamine had its limits on effectiveness. We resumed with the Backstroke, Breaststroke, Butterfly and Freestyle variations. The Breaststroke and Butterfly had arm and leg components that further challenged our balance while seated (and as the boat rocked). This didn’t make up for not snorkeling, but no one suffered from any jelly fish stings either.
A brief individual lesson followed with a dentist, who had a passion for golf. We explored the Seated and Standing Golf Stretch, beginning with the “off ” (left) side to balance his usual swing (right handed). A major challenge to golfers is to develop coordination of the hips and arms as they swing the club. We broke down the swing into the pendulum movement of the hips (and individual leg support) and the elbows drawn inward to keep the arms from becoming the “tail wagging the dog”. We noticed how he become more synchronized in his swing. To be continued (on land)…..
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