🏊‍♀️🌊 Taking the plunge for Yoga for all Bodies at MindSpace 💙

I’ve always been a lover of swimming and yoga. Swimming has been something I’ve enjoyed for years in a pool, along with yoga (on a mat, not a pool!). Both these activities have always been an important part of looking after my physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.

But river swimming has always been a different story!

For a long time, I have had a real fear of swimming in open water. The thought of getting into a river just wasn’t something I felt comfortable with.

Recently, though, I decided to take the literal plunge and have my first swim in the River Nene with Julie & Liz, who are both seasoned river swimmers…… then I took another plunge with Liz, Julie , Abby and Lynne (all seasoned wild women swimmers ) & swam 500 meters !

I’m really pleased I did. It made me realise that perhaps river swimming is something I’d like to explore more! I’m now planning to get into the River Nene regularly with these river sirens, ideally once a week running up to December (maybe beyond!) and experience swimming outdoors through the different seasons.

These wonderful women from Wild Women of the Waters have been so supportive and encouraging as I’ve started this new adventure. 💙

So when the opportunity came up to do a sponsored swim with Julie to raise money for MindSpace…… the other sirens wanted to join in, so it felt like the perfect way to challenge myself again while raising money for something we all really believe in.

🧘‍♀️ Julie & MindSpace

Julie is a local yoga teacher in our town of Stamford, Lincolnshire, and she is also a Wild Woman of the Waters and seasoned river swimmer.

Julie teaches yoga for MindSpace every Thursday. The yoga class for MindSpace provides a welcoming and supportive space for people in our community, connection and opportunities to support and improve mental wellbeing.

I’m lucky enough to attend Julie’s Thursday MindSpace yoga class, and I’ve experienced first hand what a welcoming and supportive space she creates in offering this wonderful class.

Yoga has so many benefits for our mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. It can help us build strength, flexibility, balance and mobility, while also giving us the opportunity to slow down, breathe, manage stress and create some valuable time for ourselves.

And importantly, yoga really is for all bodies .

It doesn’t matter what age you are, what shape or size you are, or how flexible you are. Julie offers adaptations and different options so that people can practise in a way that works for their own body.

💙 Our £1,000 challenge

We’re doing a sponsored swim in the River Nene to raise £1,000 for MindSpace.

We wanted to make the impact of your donation really simple:

£5 could provide one person with a place at a Thursday yoga class.

So if we reach our £1,000 target, that could provide 200 yoga places for people in our local community.

That’s 200 opportunities for people to take some time for themselves, move their bodies, breathe, connect with others and support their wellbeing.

For me, this is about challenging myself to overcome something that I once found frightening, trying something new and being supported by a wonderful group of women along the way.

For Julie, it’s an opportunity to combine her love of river swimming with the yoga teaching she gives with so much love to MindSpace.

And for both of us, it’s a chance to raise money for a local charity doing something incredibly valuable for the people of Stamford.

So… wish us luck as we take the plunge! 🏊‍♀️🌊

If you can donate, we’d be incredibly grateful. Whether it’s £5, £10, £20 or whatever you can spare, every donation helps us get closer to our £1,000 target.

And if you can’t donate, sharing our fundraiser would mean just as much.

Thank you for supporting us, MindSpace and the wellbeing of our local community. 💙

Lynsey, Julie & Wild women of the waters