Head in the Clouds

Head in the Clouds: A Guide to Yoga for Airline Travelers

A review by Jane Protzman

As a bona fide Lufthansa frequent traveler, I have survived thousands of frequent flyer miles without the benefit of this new book by City Island resident and yoga teacher Marc Kaplan. Now the next time I fly, I will carry with me Marcs how-to book, Head in the Clouds: A Guide to Yoga for Airline Travelers. The book is a real City Island collaborative effort, with photography by Ron Terner and design by Marguerite Chadwick-Juner.

Organized in the form of a workbook, this valuable book provides many suggestions on how to overcome numerous aspects of flying, whether it be fear of flying, flight preparation, exercise during the flight, overcoming jet lag, and other calming techniques using the disciplines of yoga. Marc also provides travel and related environmental tips, and if you are going nowhere this summer, the exercises and practices can be used sitting at home or in your office.

Everyone remembers the traditional inconveniences of airline travel, but now we must add to those more recent regulations that have made flying even more painful: encountering traffic jams on the way to the airport, waiting in the long boarding pass and security lines, finding space for the carry-on luggage, discovering your seat in the middle of three with no knee room, worrying about connecting flights because of flight delays, and finally, waiting for baggage and hoping that it will be there. Carrying Marcs book can help alleviate some of the stress associated with your time as an airline passenger.

A few hints to address all aspects of flying: To prevent dehydration, drink water before flying. While you are in the traffic jam or standing in the ever-present lines, practice some of the eight standing in place yoga positions. Your fellow passengers may look at you a little funny, but you will be more relaxed, and it might lead to an interesting conversation. Marc provides eighteen yoga positions that can be tried while seated, assuming the person in front of you doesnt have the seat in its extreme reclining position. He gives foot exercises and neck rolls but also some creative uses of the tray table and blanket that can help in changing ones position. And if one is on good terms with your seatmates, for a good shoulder stretch, you can try reaching your arms across your body to meet your neighbors hands doing the same. But if you are shy, you can also use the armrests. All of the yoga suggestions are presented with a photograph of Marc himself demonstrating the positions.