Stand-up paddleboard yoga from Yen Yoga in Traverse City is a unique Northern Michigan outdoor activity that connects participants with their bodies and the water around them. To find out more about this increasingly popular Northern Michigan sport, MyNorth’s Adrienne Roberts stopped by Yen Yoga and talked with assistant manager Tabetha Reed to find out why stand-up paddleboard yoga is the best way to challenge your mind and body.


1) Paddle boarding itself is a great core workout. The wobbly board surface combined with the movement of the water makes for an unstable surface that activates your core. Add a few yoga moves to the mix, and you’re in for one tough workout.

2) Stand-up paddleboard yoga is both a physical and mental challenge. Yoga poses will be inherently more challenging on an unstable surface and at the same time, you really have to focus mentally on staying afloat.

3) It’s a great way to get outdoors. Stand-up paddleboard yoga allows you to take advantage of Traverse City’s natural beauty and work on your practice at the same time.

4) It’s not as scary as you might think. While falling into the water might seem terrifying at first, Tabetha says it’s very common for people to fall and it can actually be fun. At the stand-up paddleboard yoga classes offered by Yen Yoga, one of the first things they teach you is the safest way to fall.

5) It’s an awesome challenge. If you’re bored of your regular workout routine (and, really, who isn’t?) this is a way to mix up your workout in the most unexpected way possible. The mix of a rush of adrenaline and the calming sounds of the water provide a unique backdrop to the challenge of balancing on an unstable surface.

Check out Yen Yoga’s stand-up paddle board classes on Saturdays from 10:30 am to 12 pm and from 3 pm to 4:30 pm. Classes are held at Bryant Park on West Grand Traverse Bay and the drop-in rate is $25.


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