Why Every Dancer Should SUP

Through the glare of the sunlight on the waves, I couldn't quite tell what I was seeing. Was it just a buoy? A bird resting on the water? Or was it — and suddenly it moved, turning its large black head toward me. It gazed at me curiously over thick whiskers and the movement of the water. A seal was staring at me. Lying flat on my board, my paddle tucked beneath me, I stared right back.

They followed us the whole time. They watched us as we explored the bay and as we headed back to shore. At times they came closer, coming up out of the water to get a good look at us. There were at least six of them.

When we returned to shore and I had carried the massive board up the stairs, heaving it up against my side, I realized something: I had forgotten to worry about dance. And I had seen six wild seals — almost played a game with them as they followed us in the water.

At the end of the season, it can be easy to get caught up in the melodrama - how exhausted you are. What the critics said or did not say. How you'll have to go through it all over again next season. The challenge is to focus on your training, to recharge, strengthen, and improve. This involves training outside of dance, challenging your mind and body in new ways.

This week, as I am out of the city, I got the chance to try stand up paddle-boarding (SUP.)

I believe that SUP has a unique appeal to dancers' cross-training personalities. Here are the reasons why:

* Time outdoors: After many months in the studio, paddle-boarding gives you the chance to move and train outside. Recent studies have shown that getting time outdoors is extremely beneficial for mental health and well-being.

* Strength Building: SUP challenges your balance. You have to adjust to the constantly changing movement of the water. This helps enormously in improving stability.

* Sightseeing: Traveling on rivers, lakes or even the ocean (my favorite place to paddle) is a beautiful and peaceful atmosphere you get to explore while also challenging your body.

* Getting out of your comfort zone: It can be nerve-wracking to stand up on that board. You start to feel it moving underneath you, and at the very last possible second you catch yourself. But then you stand up. An enormously gratifying – and terrifying – feeling.

* Safety: Dancers usually shy away from intense outdoor sports, like skiing, for fear of injury. Paddle-boarding is remarkably safe. If you fall, you fall in the water. Also, dancers have a particularly keen sense of balance and rarely fall to begin with. Always go out with a guide if you're new to the sport, and never go out alone unless you have an inflatable PFD (personal flotation device.)

* Personal Journey: In many ways, SUP is about you. It's about the individual staying balanced atop that board. I think this can be an incredibly powerful experience, and inspiring for the dance artist in particular, because of the way dance combines physicality and mental clarity.

If you get a chance, you should try it.