Imagine balancing on one leg with a foot behind your knee and both arms over your head. Now, imagine holding that pose while standing on a narrow board floating on a lake, and youll understand the art of paddleboard yoga.

A group of a dozen or so personal trainers and yoga experts from a Bristol business called Personal Training Transformations practiced yoga on stand-up paddleboards on Silver Lake in Bristol Township June 29.

This is our third year doing it. We do paddleboard training. Our theory is, you dont need to work out in a gym. Just work out and stay active said Shea Cialella, operations manager of PT Trainers.

Performing yoga on stand-up paddleboards demonstrates what people can achieve when theyve reached advanced levels of balance and core-conditioning. Its also a great way to enjoy Silver Lake, Cialella said.

The people in this county are not involved with the water like they should be, or could be. We live on the Delaware River. We have this Silver Lake that used to be bath springs, she said referring to the history of Bristol. Strangely, we dont utilize the water for all the resources that it can offer to us, Cialella said.

The stand-up paddleboard yoga classes last an hour and fifteen minutes. Its cool to watch, she said.

Typically, people fall into the water at some point because its hard to maintain balance for the entire amount of time, she said. The water is about five feet deep at the section of Silver Lake that PT Transformations uses.

More information on PT Transformations can be found at http://www.pttransformations.com.

Naomi Hall: 215-949-4203; nhall@phillyburbs.com

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Time after time, the same question pops up with yoga students: why am I not seeing results? While you should never put your body in a position that would lead to injury, you should be putting your body in certain places where it feels uncomfortable! Whether you're kicking off a yoga practise for the first time or you keep hitting personal plateaus, these tips will help you find a deeper practise.

Take the Vinyasa All of those Chaturangas may seem like torture in the beginning, but moving through vinyasa, the sequence of moves used to link poses, is necessary to create the most active yoga practice possible. Instead of seeing this transition as the enemy, think of it as a time to reboot. Whatever happened in the last pose is washed away as you flow through this transition. Going through the vinyasa (Four-Limbed Staff to Up Dog to Down Dog) strengthens the core and is perfect prep for more advanced balancing postures.

Practise More Often Once or twice a week just won't cut it. It's easy to get caught up or tough on yourself when you're not seeing the results you hoped for, but to really experience big shifts in your body, SF yogi Les Leventhal advises "to practise four times a week." He explains that the people who practise once a week always are the first ones to approach him really frustrated with their progress. If you don't have the time to hit up four 90-minute classes during the week, that's totally reasonable. Make the point to develop a strong home practise or find a DVD or an app that can complement your in-studio sessions. Keep reading for three more ways to break on through.

Pay Attention to Food The majority of yogis out there sing the praises of a plant-based diet; when your body is digesting and processing meat and/or dairy, moving through deeper twists or jumping transitions can be difficult. If going meat free isn't an option for you, start paying closer attention to your diet and when you chow down. You never want to have a big full belly when entering a class; on the flip side, if you're famished, you're not going to have the fuel you need to power through a class. Yoga teacher Kristin McGee stresses eating at least an hour before your practise. If you're really ravenous 20 or 30 minutes before class, she suggests grabbing a banana.

Come Back to Breath The very best advice to move through mental roadblocks in yoga? Come back to your breath. When your breathing pattern is strained or uneven, every pose is going to seem like an hour. Instead of tensing up when things feel rough, focus on ujjayi pranayama, breathing in and out through your nose. Once you get into the yoga groove, you'll be able to recognize the moments when you're tightening up. At these moments, breathing deep will give you a release and allow you to power through the rest of the pose. This is especially important advice if you're getting acclimated to the temperature in a Bikram yoga or a heated Vinyasa class. The heat can feel overwhelming, but your breath will keep you centered and calm.

Just Don't Bail When the going gets tough, it's easy to fall out of a difficult pose and refuse to give it another go. While taking Child's Pose is a fantastic way to reconnect with your breath, it should not be used as an easy out during the moments that you're teetering on your edge. When you feel your heart rate go up and you want to let go of the pose, focus on your breath, release any clenching in your jaw, and put a smile on your face. If you always bail from the difficult poses, you won't learn to love or appreciate your inner strength.

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