Peggy Hall grew up a competitive swimmer in Southern California, even competing in long-distance ocean swims. Though she was always at home in the water, she didn’t dare try surfing until 10 years ago when she went on a 2nd date with a surfer.  She fell head over heels into the ocean and in love. A few dates later, her future husband introduced her to yoga and it was another lovefest.

Hall, creator of the Yoga for Surfers DVD series, talked to glam.com about how yoga changed her surfing and her life.

What inspired you to create Yoga for Surfers?

I was suffering from severe shoulder tendinitis and was scheduled for surgery. I looked around for a surf-specific yoga video, but there weren’t any — so I trained to become certified as a yoga instructor and created the first-ever Yoga for Surfers instructional DVD series, which has sold thousands of copies worldwide since being released in 2002.

Luckily, the yoga not only healed my shoulder but also helped improve my surfing! I felt stronger, more confident and more focused, and I was more flexible and had better balance — all things that are required for good surfing.

I wanted to show other surfers how they could benefit and decided to make the video. The first video had such a great response and surfers were asking for more, so over the next few years, we made four DVDs total. Hundreds of thousands of surfers all over the world have done Yoga for Surfers!

Also I contacted pro surfers who did yoga, and they are featured in the videos demonstrating how they stay fit for the challenging conditions of the ocean. Tom Carroll, Taylor Knox, Rochelle Ballard, Garrett McNamara and Brian Conley are surfing champions and appear in the DVDs.

Why Do Surfers need Yoga?

On a physical level, surfers want to stay strong, powerful, flexible, coordinated, agile and injury-free. It’s easy to have a lot of aches and pains from long surf sessions and be too tired to paddle out the next day, but yoga actually replenishes your energy so you can get back up and riding the very next day. You’ll be able to surfer longer with more energy and endurance!

Emotionally and mentally, a lot of surfers get intimidated by the surf conditions and the crowd. Yoga helps by creating a sense of calm energy and focused awareness so you can concentrate on your own relationship with the ocean and survive wipeouts more easily.

Finally, yoga works on a spiritual level to help you deepen your connection to nature! As surfers, we thrive on the energy of the ocean. We feel totally alive when we experience the thrill of being one with creation! Yoga helps you remain present and aware so you deepen that experience.

How is Yoga for Surfers different from other forms of yoga?

All yoga has the same goal which is "union" or connection. From that union, we experience the ultimate freedom. It’s the same in surfing: we are united with the energy of the ocean which is a magnificent expression of divine energy. When we breathe, we are connecting to the source of our breath, to the very source of our life, to the Creator of our life. I don’t think there’s a real surfer alive who doesn’t have some sort of spiritual experience every time they paddle out. Life itself is the very essence of yoga.

I created Yoga for Surfers as an eclectic blend of hatha yoga which focuses on stretching and strengthening the shoulders, back, hips and knees — the parts of the body that we use the most as surfers. I also teach specific poses to increase lung capacity and develop a sense of calm — essential when you’re in heavy ocean conditions.

What really sets Yoga for Surfers apart from other types of yoga, which can all be beneficial, is how I teach in such a way as to connect each pose to how it relates to surfing, and I use imagery to help deepen that connection. As surfers, we need to stay calm, relaxed, connected and energized and feel confident in the water. Throughout each sequence, I show how yoga and surfing are related and how to use yoga to deepen your connection to the ocean. There is also an entire section devoted to how you can do yoga on your surfboard to stay calm and focused between sets. Finally, we have pro surfers in the DVDs to demonstrate how they use it to stay fit, focused and fearless on the waves. We also have inspiring surfing footage interspersed throughout. All together, that’s what makes it different, unique and popular!

Can non-surfers do Yoga for Surfers too?

A lot of non-surfers can follow this program. I’ve heard from a lot of snowboarders, skiers, tennis players, mountain bikers, moms, students, firemen, lifeguards, even soldiers in Iraq are doing Yoga for Surfers! It’s a really beautiful way to experience yoga. I teach that yoga is not about the pose, it’s about your awareness in the pose. There is no "right/wrong" or "good/bad" in yoga — you just breathe, relax, focus and enjoy!

What is your dream vision for Yoga for Surfers?

I want to inspire as many surfers as possible to embrace yoga, at least one million or more. Surfers in nearly every country around the world are doing it. Let’s spread the word! Imagine the vibe in the lineup — and in life! I want to help people learn how to live a life that is full of energy, health and passion so they’ll be able to contribute their own gifts to this adventure called Life!

I am very excited to announce that we have an internet Yoga for Surfers TV show coming up and another line of DVDs called “Fit for Surf.”

For more information on Hall’s surf DVDs and advice, go to YogaforSurfers.com