Yoga Meets Surf: Cristina Irisarri’s Perfect Combination
Cristina Irisarri, a yoga and surf teacher from Galicia, Spain, talked to us about the amazing mix of her two passions.
Surfing before everything else
Cristina Irisarri can surf for as long as she can remember. She surfs every day in summer, spring and autumn, and every weekend in winter, after work. She has no memories where she couldn’t surf. “My dad is a surfer, so is my whole family. They taught me right from the start. I’ve been surfing since I was a kid. It’s my favorite thing” she explains.
“When you catch your very first wave, it’s such an amazing, powerful feeling. You do it with a smile. You are in deep contact with nature, you feel connected to your environment, and to yourself. Even just being in the water, floating, with no waves, it is so peaceful, glorious”.
Yoga practice, body awareness, and cancer
It’s years later, when she was in London, that she discovered yoga. In the beginning, it was just a way to keep up, stay fit, for her surfing. She liked it, the quiet peace, the connexion with her inner self.
But 5 years ago, when she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she took it to the next level.
“I started to adapt my yoga practice to my new condition. I had less mobility in my arms, and pain in my chest. I discovered a new practice, more conscious of my body. For me, it’s the moment when I started “real” yoga”.
As she got better, she started to share this with other people in the same situation. Yoga was helpful to her, in this moment of her life, and she wanted to transmit what it meant to others suffering as well.
Her new path towards her two passions
And from there, why not combine her two passions? “I wanted to connect therapeutic yoga with floating, which is a very dynamic movement”. She went to different workshops, that she loved, became a yoga teacher specialized in oncology, and started classes of her own.
“These last few years, I’ve focused on doing the yoga/surf classes only for women. Women, especially after 30, are more comfortable with being in class just between themselves. And I love it, I love the vibe it creates in the group, the connexions. I find it incredibly inspiring”.
Thanks to her partnership with Oysho sport, she can also teach free Beach Yoga classes by the ocean. “I find it very empowering, it’s a more democratic way to approach yoga, I really enjoy my time there”.
Yoga is usually more attractive to people, because more accessible. You don’t need as much for it. But surfing is still Cristina’s favorite. “The feeling, the sensation that I get when I’m surfing, it’s different than with yoga”.
For her, those are very complementary activities. “Yes, they feel and look different, but they require the same intense breathing, the same connexion, with yourself and with your surroundings. They help each other. Yoga helps me a lot with my surfing, it prepares my body, gives me more strength. And surfing also gives me advantages in my yoga practice, not just physically but in a more spiritual way.”
“I like to incorporate the freedom that surfing and the ocean give me into my yoga practice, rather than making it as restrictive as yoga can sometimes be.”
Living a simple life
Cristina always lived for the simple things in life. She lives for surfing, for the time spent with her family and friends, for the quiet walks on the beach. “All I can ask for is to continue this healthy, simple life that I have. I love teaching, traveling, being able to share my practice with other people. I just feel very lucky to be here, to make people happy”.
And to reach this peaceful happiness, this serene joy, she gives one final advice: “Be kind to others, but also with yourself. Sometimes, we forget ourselves. But you need to have a lot of love and kindness for yourself, otherwise, you won’t be able to give it to others”.
