As some of us get on in age, we find ourselves thinking about healthy living, work-life balance and living in harmony with nature and all that good stuff. Some of us actually begin to do something about it, while others still are thinking and talking about it. I began my exercise plan by having personal trainers who would come to my house very early hours in the morning to guide my exercise programme. That worked for a little while, then I tried to attend a few gyms in order to use equipment that I did not have, but I found that I was not sticking to the suggested schedule for all kinds of reasons. I was sent an email for some sort of a boot camp-type programme that I decided to try out.

Some 15 pounds lighter, I ended up being a regular visitor to Shakti Mind Body Fitness because of the range of exercise offerings, and more importantly, its very convenient location between home and work, so no more excuses. At Shakti I discovered yoga, and in discussion with Shakti Directors Nora May Desnoes and Sharon McConnell the topic of wine and yoga came up. Since September was celebrated as Yoga Month up north, with many accompanying events, we decided to have a month-long series of events including one evening of light Yoga, a movie and some delicious Torres Wines.

To some, yoga and wine may not seem to have much in common. One is an ancient practice that gradually trains your body and mind to be in a constant state of peace. The other might be considered a fleeting remedy, which can temporarily raise your spirits and relieve your inhibitions. But if you take a closer look, you’ll discover that yoga and wine have far more in common than you might think. In my research on the topic, it seems that there has been a wave of wine and yoga-related workshops sweeping the USA in recent years. “Yoga teaches you how to age gracefully just like a great bottle of wine ages gracefully,” explains David Romanelli, an instructor in California who teaches yoga and wine workshops across the country.

Yoga has many meanings and is derived from the Sanskrit root “yuj”, meaning “to control”, “to yoke” or “to unite”. Other translations include “joining”, “uniting”, “union”, “conjunction”, and “means”. Yoga refers to traditional physical and mental disciplines that originated in India nearly 5000 years ago. Yoga exercises are based on the belief that the body and breath are intimately connected with the mind. By controlling the breath and holding the body in steady poses or “asanas” yoga creates harmony.

So imagine that you just completed a fulfilling yoga practice and you are fully in tune with your body, and then at the end of the practice you assume the relaxation pose, usually savasana (corpse pose). Feeling fulfilled and relaxed, you then take a sip of your favourite wine, complete with retro nasal breathing to get the full aroma and bouquet of the wine; just imagine how much better that wine will taste.

Not everyone agrees with the concept of wine and yoga. The purists truly believe that the mere fact that you have taken up yoga suggests that you are seeking the truth and enlightenment. No alcohol should pass your lips, some diehards believe. For me, take everything in moderation.

Some do Yoga for exercise, others as alternative medicine; there are those who are on their journey seeking their own enlightenment and understanding of consciousness. As the popular saying goes: ‘To each, his own’.

Looking inward

Economist Tim Jackson studies the links between lifestyle, societal values and the environment to question the primacy of economic growth. In a recently released TED Talk on the topic “Economic reality check,” Tim showed graphs from his research findings and said: “This is people expanding debt, drawing down their savings, just to stay in the game. This is a strange, rather perverse story, just to put it in very simple terms. It’s a story about us, people, being persuaded to spend money we don’t have on things we don’t need, to create impressions that won’t last on people we don’t care about”.

I placed the quotation on my Facebook page, and a high school friend and Yoga teacher Nadine McNeil responded thus: “when we know ourselves, rather than spill our energies outwards, with love and grace we pour them inwards — to manifest wholesome lives…” Sounds like a fine glass of wine to me!

Chris Reckord — is an entrepreneur and wine enthusiast. He and his wife Kerri-Anne are Chaîne des Rôtisseurs and part owners of Jamaica’s only Wine Bar — Bin26 Wine Bar in Devon House, Kingston. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com . Follow us on https://twitter.com/DeVineWines