Posted by Heather C. Lancaster | Yoga Instructor RYT200 on 7/10/2019 to
Yoga As Fitness & Lifestyle
Introducing our Summer Travel Kit, including the lightest essentials to travel with!
Join our fellow yoga instructor, Heather C. Lancaster, as she travels abroad to the Dominican Republic and shares her experience traveling with our new summer travel kit.
Hey Yogis!
I have to admit, traveling with your practice can be challenging.
This travel kit helped make it not only easier to travel with all my favorite props but also keep it casual and carry a lot with me to the beach. I carried the summer travel kit in the mat bag it comes with as my "purse" accompanying my carry-on. There was so much extra space in the bag, that I actually added more items to keep my checked bag light. They say travel light, but the lightest thing I honestly brought with me was this travel kit!
Traveling, in general, can have its stressors, which is why I not only wanted to share my experience with our new summer travel kit but also introduce ways I kept up with my practice while out of office.
AIRPORT SEQUENCE:
Stretching my IT Bands in between long flights was something I found to be absolutely necessary, especially to keep the hips open. This quick standing yoga sequence I did while waiting for a delayed flight was so rewarding and helped me avoid the airport floors while getting in a good stretch and opening up. Enjoy!
1. Standing Forward Fold (Uttanasana)
2. Half-way Lift (Ardha Uttanasana)
3. Tall Mountain (Tadasana)
4. Side stretch both sides
5. Figure Four the legs and Forward Fold
6. Dancer ( Natarajasana)
7. One-Legged Tadasana
8. Feet Together. Otherside.
9. Chair Pose, maybe even add a toe torture
10. Cat/Cows in Chair Pose
BEACH YOGA?:
The first items I brought to the beach with me were our Hot Lite Yoga Mat and our 4" New Zealand Pine Wood Yoga Block. I carried my towel, book, sunscreen, and other essentials with those two props in our Cotton Zippered Mat Bag, which had a secret inside pocket for my money and chapstick too.
The mat actually can double as a great towel for your beach chair, as the natural rubber adheres pretty well and doesn't blow off easily with the wind gust. The microfiber light green side is comfortable for the skin and absorbs water nicely for ocean dips.
When using this mat on the sand, I will say that it's necessary to smooth out the sand before laying your mat down. I initially just laid out this mat and had a hard time practicing with all the lumpy bits. Once you smooth it out though, it still adds an extra challenge for your normal practice. I would say it's best to avoid Vinyasa Flows on the sand, on any surface for that matter, only because the uneven surface can cause the rest of your alignment to be off and potentially cause injury.
You might be fine with a few flows, but consistently the sand is not a
place for Vinyasa.
Using the yoga block was actually the best way I continued to achieve some of the more challenging postures on the uneven, sandy surface!
In the hot and humid weather, completing a balancing series was the best escape for me to retreat out of my mind and into my body. It took everything I had to really concentrate on my movements transitioning on one leg between Half Moon, Airplane, Tree, and then Dancer. My ankles looked great by the end of the day!
I must admit, I've never traveled with more than a yoga towel or yoga rug, but this kit was a game-changer. After a long day on the beach, I used the strap to stretch out my hamstrings before heading to dinner. The eye pillow was great for falling asleep in a foreign place, as the pressure on your eyelids activates your parasympathetic nervous system and helps your body relax into a deeper state of calm. Everything chosen for this kit had a great purpose for my trip, and honestly did help me stay more consistent with my practice while on the road.
The best part? When I arrived back home, I threw the mat, strap, mat bag, and eye pillowcase in the washer! I hung everything to dry after, and now my travel kit is fresh and ready for another trip. Any suggestions? :)
Let me know how your experience was with our summer travel kit! I would love to learn more about other ways it might have been utilized!
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