How Yoga helps Surfers I had the pleasure to meet Rachel Lingham, a surf and yoga instructor that taught me how yoga can complement surfing in ways that may not seem obvious at first. Looking at the two, yoga and surfing do not seem to have much in common, one is happening on a soft matt on a sturdy floor, the other happens in the ocean on a board with conditions that constantly change. Yet practicing yoga as a surfer can help you improve in almost every aspect of surfing. Rachel told me about how she started going to yoga classes in her teens but never really developed a connection to the sport until she started surfing.