Stand-up paddleboard yoga is making a splash

A group of yoga students in Southold stretch into Downward Dog. But instead of doing the pose in an indoor studio on a mat, the yogis are perching over a stand-up paddleboard on Hashamomuck Pond as ospreys and swans fly overhead.

The latest trend in yoga is stand-up paddleboard yoga (or SUP yoga) and it's being taught on both shores -- from the waters of Manhasset Bay to ponds on the East End. Instructors and students say it brings a new concentration into the practice.

"It is the ultimate yoga studio," says Paula DiDonato, owner of The Giving Room, a yoga studio in Southold that gives classes at nearby Hashamomuck Pond and other local waters. "There is a beautiful softness on the board. It gives a little and something about that physicality makes it more enjoyable."

Mastering the basic use of the board on flat, calm water is not hard and is for all levels, she says, and it's a great start to a peaceful practice.

Instructor Jessica Bellofatto of

KamaDeva Yoga in East Hampton assures the group that falling in the water is fine. "It's just water," she says.

Indeed, as students move into standing poses such as the one-legged Tree or deep-lunge Warrior II, balance, alignment and equal weight become paramount to avoid ending up in the water.

"Feel the foundation," Bellofatto tells the class. "You need to be mindful that you're on the board."

Alas, some students in the session do tumble into the pond. As Bellofatto reminds them to breathe and concentrate on their movements, her 11-year-old son Jack jumps on and off her board, almost tipping her in a few times. The class closes with the Savasana (or corpse) pose. Students lie still on their backs and let their fingers dip into the cool water.

Her friend, Mattituck resident Maureen Flatley, agrees that the atypical setting makes the experience.

"I think it was taking the practice out into nature," says Flatley, 31.

A number of other yoga studios are running similar classes this summer. At Peaceful Warrior Yoga studio in Rocky Point, for example, lessons are given off Shore Road in Mount Sinai Harbor. Owner Dawn Stidd says, from a yoga perspective, practicing on the boards forces the student to be more mindful of the poses, "and it engages your core a little more."

While his home base is in Port Washington, John-Michael Kostallas' three-year-old paddleboard company, Kostal Paddle, works on the waters of both shores of Nassau County, including Manhasset Bay and the waters off Island Park.

"You're one with nature," Kostallas says of yoga on paddleboards. "You're not in a studio, and are back to the roots of where it came from."

Stand-up paddleboard yoga is happening all over Long Island. Prices are for one class with board rental. Many have discounts for multiple classes or using your own board. Class times vary, and most sessions are 90 minutes. Here's a sampling of studios where you can get started.

Classes in both Nassau and Suffolk, North Shore and South Shore

Manorhaven Beach Park, Port Washington

300 West Shore Rd., Huntington

648 New York 25A, Rocky Point

15 Lumber Lane, East Hampton

219 Three Mile Harbor Rd., East Hampton

56215 Main Rd., Southold