|
The story of Hiking Yoga actually began in the Midwest, and had traveled far before it reached the tri-state area. Sports- and fitness-savvy Eric took up hiking upon graduating Kansas State University in 1994. He later began leading tours in Hawaii, Alaska and California.
�It wasn�t billed as a workout so much as a tour of the Hawaiian landscape,� says Eric. �I liked that side of it, just being outdoors somewhere gorgeous. That was before I got into yoga.�
Eric completed a teacher certification program with Buddhist Yogi and Somatic Psychologist Tai Sheridan. While working as a yoga teacher in Marin, Eric recognized hiking and yoga to be a perfect combination, like chocolate and peanut butter.
�I found these people had joint limitations as they had gotten out of condition, so I started integrating the yoga (into walks). I started taking private clients, and then started doing it with small groups.�
And so, Hiking Yoga was launched in March 2009. While leading tours there, Eric saw San Francisco as a great place to debut and within 3 years it had become a phenomenon.
�The first year was just in San Fran, with around 500 clients,� says Eric. �The first day of the second season we had 1500 customers the first day. And it just took off from there. I thought that, if it works in San Francisco, why not Berkeley, the South Bay, the Peninsula��
And all the way to New York City on April 7th, 2012. We met on 59th Street and 6th Avenue, near the Jose Marti statue. We hiked up the East side of the park, passing the duck pond (�Aflac!� I giggled). The first interval was a gentle pace, and we built up the intensity with each interval. We eventually reached the Met, and hooked a left past the Great Lawn and Turtle Pond.
�I didn�t expect (when I started) how social it would be,� says Eric. �People live such busy lives and don�t get to see their friends, so they come and they want to talk.� We did � talking to friends new and old.
And at the same time, getting a chance to see the city with new eyes, and get a little cross-training in.
�I get a lot of injured runners who are looking for something different,� says Eric. �A very small percentage of our population is built to run long-term�And I think a lot of people want that sustainability aspect, so with interval training, you can get as much cardio as you want�get the heart rate up, stop and do some yoga, get the heart rate up, etc. It�s at stations, divided into about 55 minutes of hiking and 35 minutes of yoga. Whether you�re intimidated by the cardio or the yoga, it makes it more approachable, having it broken into intervals.�
Taking our first yoga break, we dropped our gear and commenced a series of stretches. It felt odd wearing a jacket and shoes in asana, but I soon forgot all about the encumbrances�there�s nothing quite like breathing in fresh cool spring air in your Urdvha Hastasana! Noting that we would pick up the pace in the next hiking portion, Eric had us make space in the ribs and chest in order to breathe easier.
Stopping again, we faced a low black fence and placed our feet against it for a hamstring stretch. And just to get to know our fellow hikers even better, partner yoga was now on the menu. Our first foray was in Warrior Two. I stood left foot to right foot with my new Ohio friend, and we clasped wrists and pulled for a super-intense Virabhadrasana 2.
Hiking resumed, our pace quickening even as our legs began to bark (along with a few dogs we met along the way!) Finally we came to our last yoga station, a stretch of smooth rock near 83rd Street. Eric handed out small green mats, about a third of the size of a typical yoga mat. (�I will call mine�Mini-Mat!� I grinned. ) These were provided so that we could flow on the surface of the rock without getting our hands all dirty and scrapy. We did a set of planks, chaturangas, and up and down dogs (those last two proved quite a challenge in New Balance sneakers!).
Coming into Warrior Two, Eric told us to reverse our front hand to palms up position as we gazed out into the Park. Just then, we were invaded by a swarm of giggling children on an Easter Egg Hunt. �Yoga�s not gonna stop these guys!� laughed Eric.
For an encore we pressed our sneakered feet together for Navasana, pulling each other back and forth as if on a seesaw. Then we were ready for final meditation, which was aided and abetted by the cool fresh air and the sounds of nature.
According to the stats on Runkeeper.com, we had covered 3.79 miles, climbed 430 feet and burned nearly 800 calories. Was I exhausted or exhilarated after my first Hiking Yoga experience? Well, from there I went right into a Hot Yoga class at Moksha and then walked from West 10th St to West 44th, so I�ll let you decide!
To find out more, go to hikingyoga.com. Hikes are $20 and limited to 15.
--Jim Catapano
|
