sailboat yoga pose

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How to Do Boat Pose (Navasana) in Yoga

Proper Form, Variations, and Common Mistakes

Ann Pizer is a writer and registered yoga instructor who teaches vinyasa/flow and prenatal yoga classes.

Sara Clark is an EYT 500-hour certified Vinyasa yoga and mindfulness teacher, lululemon Global Yoga Ambassador, model, and writer.

 Verywell / Ben Goldstein

Step-by-Step Instructions

Common mistakes, modifications and variations, safety and precautions.

Targets : Core strength

Level : Intermediate

Boat Pose ( Navasana ) was around long before the yoga world starting talking about core strength and dipping into the Pilates well for new variations on crunches and leg lifts. It remains one of the best ways to focus on your abdominal strength, which helps you do so many other yoga poses, especially gravity-defying arm balances and inversions.

Boat Pose builds abdominal and  core strength . In addition to the abdominal muscles, it works the deep hip flexors. These muscles get weak when you sit too much. It will also help you build your balance.

• Begin in a seated position with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. 
• Lift your feet off the floor. Keep your knees bent at first. Bring your shins parallel to the floor. This is half boat pose. 
• Your torso will naturally fall back, but do not let the spine round.
• Straighten your legs to a 45-degree angle if you can do so without losing the integrity of your upper body. You want to keep your torso as upright as possible so that it makes a V shape with the legs.
• Roll your shoulders back and straighten your arms roughly parallel to the floor with your palms turned up.
• Do your best to balance on the sit bones , but it's normal if you are resting slightly behind them. Focus on lifting your chest to support the balance.
• Stay for at least five breaths.
• Release your legs on an exhale. Then inhale and sit up.

Too often, students think the pose is all about straightening their legs, which they struggle to do at the expense of their straight spine and upright torso. Having straight legs when your spine is slumped and your upper body is inching toward the floor is not doing great things for you.

Focus instead on keeping a tight V between your thighs and torso. Half boat, with the legs bent at the knee, is really a good place to work on this pose. Straightening the legs can come later.

Need a Modification?

• You can hold the backs of your thighs with your hands if that helps you keep a straight spine.
• Don't be in a hurry to straighten your legs. Keeping the back straight and away from the floor is more important. However, you could use a strap looped under the soles of your feet. Grip the ends of the strap with your hands while you raise your legs and press against the strap with your flexed feet, keeping your balance.

Up for a Challenge?

• To increase core strength, try some boat crunches: Lower the legs and torso simultaneously towards the floor and hover there just before your feet and head touch the floor. Come back up in full Boat or Half Boat pose like a situp. Repeat this five or more times.
• Reach up and take your big toes in a yogi toe lock . Make sure that your shoulders stay away from your ears and that your upper arms are plugged into your shoulder sockets when you do this variation.

Traditionally, it is recommended to avoid this pose when you have a headache, diarrhea, low blood pressure, asthma, or are pregnant.

Incorporate this move and similar ones into one of these popular workouts:

• Yoga Poses to Build Core Strength
• Yoga Poses for the Psoas Hip Flexors
• Yoga Poses for Abs

By Ann Pizer, RYT Ann Pizer is a writer and registered yoga instructor who teaches vinyasa/flow and prenatal yoga classes.

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Boat Pose Made Easy

You’re not the only one to quietly curse when the teacher cues this pose. here’s how to strengthen your body so you no longer dread navasana. we swear..

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Each time I cue Navasana (Boat Pose), my students literally groan, make faces, and hesitate as if they are still deciding whether to attempt it or not. If this sounds familiar, you are not alone.

Navasana is an incredibly challenging pose. Yet when you understand what makes it difficult from an anatomical perspective, you have access to all the information you need to know what adjustments to make so the pose becomes easier (though not necessarily easy) for your body—which in turn means that you can dread it less.

See also: 38 Ways Your Practice Can Improve Your Life

Why is Boat Pose so difficult?

There are several reasons why you—and so many of us—struggle to come into or hold Boat Pose. Each of us has a unique and individual level of strength and mobility. As a result, we find different poses challenging, and in different ways.

To be able to practice Navasana, you need hamstring flexibility as well as sufficient strength in your hip flexors and core to hold your legs in the air. Your core and hip flexors work together to hold your legs lifted while stabilizing your spine in this position.

So depending on which aspect of Boat Pose you find challenging, you could have a lack of flexibility, a lack of strength, or both.

How do you know which it is? To hold a straight spine in Boat Pose requires strong hip flexors. An ability to keep your legs off the mat demands core strength. If you want to extend your legs straight, you need hamstring flexibility. (If you are unsure if any of these applies to you, you can book a private session with your yoga teacher or a physical therapist.)

See also: How to Modify Your Practice for Tight Hamstrings 

How can I make Boat Pose easier?

In yoga, it’s easy to become attached to the aesthetic of the pose. But if you don’t have the ability to hold the full expression of Boat Pose without slouching, holding your breath, or otherwise struggling, ask yourself how could you modify the pose to adapt it for your current level of strength and mobility. Rather than being concerned with how the pose looks, you want to consider how it feels in your body.

If you have restricted hamstring flexibility, lower back stiffness, or insufficient core strength, bend your knees rather than try to extend them.

You can also hold your hands behind your upper legs—whether the knees are bent or straight—to help support your body.

See also: 5 Yoga Poses That Build Strength & Flexibility

How can I build strength in Boat Pose?

Even though it might be necessary to modify Boat Pose in the moment, this will not necessarily help you build the strength to practice the pose in its full expression. Instead, look to exercises that emphasize the specific elements this pose demands—core and hip flexor strength—so that you can progress your ability to do Navasana over time.

You can do this in two ways. First, you can practice more of these specific movements in your yoga practice. Warming up with postures that move you through the joints affected–such as Cat, Cow, and Malasana Pose—can make Boat Pose somewhat easier.

Second, there are movement modalities outside of yoga that will help you build strength in these specific areas. A traditional asana practice simply does not provide this. In fact, you might struggle with Boat Pose precisely because you don’t work on your core and hip flexor strength outside of practicing Boat Pose.

When you train the body in a targeted way, it gets accustomed to the demands and builds strength. This can help you develop the strength you need to hold up your legs in Boat Pose.

Either way, over time, as the modified version of the pose that you once needed becomes easier, you can start to straighten your legs or take your hands away from your legs and extend your arms straight ahead into the full expression of Boat Pose.

See also:  5 Poses to Strengthen Your Lower Back and Core—Without Standing Up

Exercises to help improve Boat Pose

Below are a couple of targeted exercises that address the more common movement and strength challenges related to Boat Pose. These strengthening moves can also help you with other poses in your yoga practice, including Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose), the transition of stepping forward from Downward-Facing Dog to Anjaneyasana (Low Lunge) , and Bakasana (Crow Pose).

See also:  How to Build a Strong Core Without Sit-ups

Hollow Body Hold

Why this exercise helps: Hollow Body Hold builds hip flexor and core strength and teaches you how to engage your hip flexors and core to support your legs and spine in various yoga poses, as well as everyday activities such as hiking and rock climbing.

How to: Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the mat. Pull your knees to your chest and lift your head off the ground. Reach your arms down by your sides and straighten your legs. The closer that your legs are to the ground, the more challenging the movement will feel. Only lower your legs to a point where you are able to keep your back connected to the floor. To increase the challenge, simply raise your arms overhead. Hold for 10–30 seconds. Come out the way you came in by bending your knees and bringing your feet to the mat.

To make it more challenging: You can move your arms from alongside your body to alongside your ears to increase the load on your core.

Dandasana Leg Lifts

Why this exercise helps: Dandansana Leg Lifts are named after Staff Pose , in which you sit with your legs straight in front of you and your shoulders stacked over your hips. The exercise can be done with legs together or slightly apart.

How to: Sit tall with your legs extended in front of you with your feet a little wider than the mat. Place your hands behind you, fingers pointed toward the wall behind you. Inhale and as you exhale, lift one leg a few inches off the floor. Try not to round your spine. Inhale and lower your leg. Repeat on the second side. Perform up to 10 repetitions.

To make it more challenging: You can introduce more of a task-based challenge to provide visual and kinesthetic feedback by adding a block as a target to lift your leg up and over and then back again. Since Boat Pose requires that you lift your legs up to about eye level, you can progress, or gradually increase, the height of the block over time to track your progress.

Start as above but place a block along the inner edge of each foot. Inhale and as you exhale, lift one leg higher than the block. Try not to round your spine.

Inhale and lower your leg on the other side of the block. Repeat on the second side. Perform up to 10 repetitions.

Watch: Trina Altman Teaches an “Oblique Block Party”

About our contributor

Trina Altman, B.A., NCPT, received her training through STOTT PILATES ® and is an E-RYT 500, YACEP ® . She’s the creator of Yoga Deconstructed ® and Pilates Deconstructed ® , which take an interdisciplinary approach to an embodied understanding of yoga and Pilates and their relationship to modern movement science. Her work has been published in Yoga Journal, Yoga International, and Pilates Style . She guest teaches at yoga teacher training programs and leads continuing education workshops worldwide. For more information on Trina, her online classes, and her book, Yoga Deconstructed®: Movement Science Principles For Teaching , visit trinaaltman.com or follow her on Instagram at @trinaaltman .

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"That's how it is in yoga. The places where you have the most resistance are actually the places that are going to be the areas of greatest liberation." - Rodney Yee

HOW TO PRACTICE Boat Pose IN YOGA (Navasana)

Benefits, how to instructions, modifications, and common alignment mistakes for boat pose.

Boat Pose (Sanskrit name: Navasana) is a challenging core-strengthening yoga posture that engages the abdominal muscles, muscles of the back, and hip flexors. Like a small boat floating on the surface of the ocean, in Navasana you must balance on your sit bones, while raising your torso and legs. Your body must work to find stability via gentle shifts of weight. Too big a “wave” of movement and your Boat Pose will topple over!

The ability to modify to suit your level of physical conditioning makes this a pose beginning yoga students can tackle and practice at progressively increasing levels of difficulty.   

Defining the Core

The term “core” is often-overused and confused with just the abdominal muscles. In fact, the core is comprised of the structures that support the lumbo-pelvic-hip complex. That is to say, the lumbar spine, pelvic girdle, abdomen and hip joints. The deep core is the body’s center of gravity, the place in the body from which all other movement originates.

A strong, efficient core is necessary to maintain erect posture and muscular balance for the entire body. Proper development and recruitment of the core muscles is necessary for the neuromuscular system to function efficiently in movement, balance, and stability.  Some of the deeper muscles include: transversus abdominis, multifidus, diaphragm, and the muscles of the pelvic floor. Secondary muscles include the deep hip flexors and obliques. When you are doing real core work, you are addressing all of the structures of the core, not simply the abdominal muscles.

Benefits of Boat Pose

Boat Pose is a great core strengthening yoga asana that helps to tone and build stamina in the abdominal muscles, hip flexors, and spinal support muscles. While Boat Pose largely engages the abdominal muscles, the psoas and iliacus (hip flexor) muscles also play a big part, depending on the angle of the legs. The hip flexors must engage in order to hold the yoga pose’s “V” shaped position. The lower the legs are to the floor, the greater the challenge to the deep hip flexors. The erector muscles of the spine, spinal extensor muscles, and quadriceps will also be actively engaged to hold the spine erect.

If practiced with sufficient strength and stability, Navasana can also help strengthen the link between the lumbar spine, pelvis, and sacrum. Using the breath to deepen the effect will amplify the core strengthening aspect of this posture. Because Boat Pose engages the muscles that interact directly with the spine, it’s a great yoga pose to practice for improving postural support.

Getting Started

• Sit with a block between your thighs (in the narrowest position).
• Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the floor in front of you.
• Place your hands on the floor behind you and find a seated position where you are sitting perched on top of your sitting bones.
• Place your hands on the backs of your thighs, just above your knees, and use your arms to pull your chest forward through the gates of your arms.
• Lift your chest up and forward, and then lift one bent leg off the ground. Maintain the length in your spine. When you feel stable, try lifting the second bent leg off the ground.
• Stay here or release your hands and bring your arms parallel to the floor.
• Take one more breath and then release your feet back to the floor.

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Boat Pose – Navasana

Basic Seated Strengthening

Pose Summary

Boat Pose or Navasana is one of the best core strengthening postures in yoga. The trick here is to find your edge without compromising the length of the spine. The moment you notice your lower back rounding come back to a long and strong spine !

Come to seated with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Bring the arms alongside the body and the hands to rest beside your hips.

Root down through the sit bones. Grab behind the knees and lengthen the spine. Neck is aligned with the spine. 

Lean back gently and lift your feet off the earth until the shins are parallel with the earth. 

Release the backs of the knees, if this is accessible to you, and extend the arms straight out in front of you with the palms facing one another. Plug the arm bones into their sockets. Fingertips should be actively reaching forward. 

Lift the chest. Draw the shoulder blades down the back as you lengthen the space between your shoulders and your ears. Engage the belly gently.

Balance on your Sitz bones as you make sure not to dump into the low back. Keep the spine long and strong

On an exhale you have the option to straighten the legs fully to create a V shape with your body (this is only for people with very flexible hips and hamstrings).  

*Modifications:  If you are unable to straighten the legs keep the knees bent and the shins parallel to the floor.

Breath should be smooth and even flowing here. If you notice the breath getting shallow this is an indication that you should back off a bit. 

To release, exhale and gently place the feet back on the earth as you bring your hands next to the hips 

• Builds core strength 
• Tones spine and hip flexors 
• Stimulates digestive organs 
• Regulates prostate and thyroid gland 
• Promotes concentration and balance

Contraindications

• Headache, low blood pressure, diarrhea
• Heart problems or asthma should only practice half- boat 

Related Poses

Archer’s pose – akarna dhanurasana, crow pose – bakansana, bow pose – dhanurasana.

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Benefits of Boat Pose + How to Practice it Properly

Boat pose or Paripurna Navasana is an isometric core posture used in yoga and many other fitness disciplines. Not only does it target your abs to use its full strength but it also stabilizes the lower back, promotes focus towards the breath, and many other goodies for your body.

Boat pose prepares as well as strengthens your core so that you can advance in your yoga practice. If you have a yoga goal list and are working towards arm balances or inversions, you will need to learn the execution of Boat Pose with its variations and counter postures.

Benefits of Boat Pose

Paripurna Navasana is a strengthening yoga pose . It builds the core so you can have better control over your extremities in terms of the range of motion while sharing the workload of the lower back. It also reduces the risk of lumbar injury while toning your midsection, yet these positive outcomes only scratch the surface of what you can attain from this core stabilizer.

Muscular Benefits of Boat Pose

• Strengthens the abdomen
• Decreases the workload of the lumbar spine
• Allows for smoother and wider range of motion
• Prepares the body for more advanced arm balances
• Works the hamstrings and inner thighs (when one incorporates a yoga block )

Internal Benefits of Boat Pose

• Optimizes digestion
• Activates the thyroid and kidneys 
• Activates the reproductive organs in both sexes by using Mula Bandha (also known as activating our pelvic floor)

Mental Benefits of Boat Pose

• Improves focus
• Improves breath work and pranayama
• Relieves stress

How to Prepare for Boat Pose

There are several sequences and yoga poses that you’ll want to do before going into Boat Pose. Why? Prepping your core serves as a warm-up which allows for a wider range of motion. You’ll need that before going into the full strengthening pose or you might end up compensating by using your lumbar spine.

Here are a few different ways you can warm up the body and necessary muscles required for Boat Pose:

• Sun Salutations/ Surya Namaskar A
• Yogic Bicycles

Below is a simple sequence made up of poses specifically focused on strengthening the core, loosening the hamstrings, and strengthening and opening the hip flexors. This is a great place to start to prep you for Boat Pose as a beginner!

Prep Sequence for Boat Pose

Below are 4 simple poses you can practice before coming into Boat to warm and wake up the necessary muscles needed to practice the pose properly. 

Cat-Cow is a great way to warm up your spine to wake up your lower back and prepare the core for some hard work. Take your time going through the two poses slowly and feel out your body.

How to do Cat-Cow :

• Start on all fours in Tabletop with a neutral spine.
• Inhale as you drop your belly, arch your back, and tilt your gaze up towards the sky to come into Cow.
• On your exhale, pulled your belly in towards the spine as you round your back, tuck your tailbone, and curl your head in towards you as you push away from the floor with your hands to come into Cat.
• Cycle through these two poses for at least 3 rounds.

2. Downward Facing Dog

Downward Facing Dog helps you release tight hamstrings , activate your core, and open your chest, making it a great prep pose before Boat.

How to do Down Dog from Cat-Cow :

• Come back into a neutral spine from Cat-Cow. Then tuck your toes and push away from the floor with your hands as you send your hips up and back.
• Engage your arms and drop your shoulders away from your ears. Focus on engaging the core to help balance your weight.
• Pedal one leg at a time to help stretch and warm up your hamstrings.
• Stay here for 5 breaths.

3. Forearm Plank

Forearm Plank is an intense pose that focuses on the core. A lot of people find it much more intense than traditional Plank as being in your forearms intensifies the core work and also works the shoulders.

How to do Forearm Plank from Down Dog :

• From Downward Facing Dog, come up onto your tippy toes and shift your weight forward to come into Plank Pose.
• Engage your core and ensure your body is in proper alignment, being sure your tailbone is not too high into the air or that you pelvis is not sinking too much towards the floor.
• One at a time, come onto your forearms maintaining the same alignment as in Plank. Be sure not to let your ears sink towards your shoulders by pushing your forearms into the ground.
• Stay here for 5-10 breaths.

4. High Lunge

High Lunge helps you open up your hips which is very important in Boat Pose. In order to maintain proper alignment and balance your weight evenly, you need to build both strength and flexibility in the hip flexors.

How to do High Lunge from Forearm Plank :

• From Forearm Plank, come to the floor onto your knees, then bring your right leg forward in between your hands. Tuck your back toes and lift your back leg off the ground.
• Engage both legs and use your core to lift your upper body upright, extending your hands up towards the ceiling.
• Make sure your hips are square by pulling your right hip back and left hip forward. Keep the core engaged and try to sink into the front leg.
• Stay here for 5 breaths then repeat on the other side.

Or try out this simple seated warm-up we created that focuses on engaging and waking up the core (free printable included in the post!)

How to Practice Boat Pose

Once the body is warmed up and prepped for practicing this strengthening pose, it is important to understand how to execute it properly to avoid compressing the spine and straining the back.  Below is how to do Boat Pose step-by-step.

How to practice Boat Pose step-by-step :

• Start in Staff Pose, sitting with a tall spine and both feet straight out in front of you, hands at your sides flat on the ground.
• Bend your knees and bring your feet towards you so the soles rest flat on the ground. Make sure you are still keeping a tall spine!
• Gently move you hands slightly backwards by your hips and lift one leg up at a time as you lean back just enough to feel your core engage. Keep both legs bent at first and focus on finding a good balance on your sits bones while you are still able to keep a straight back. Lift your hands off the ground and bring them behind your knees.
• You can choose to stay here and bring both hands along your sides to increase the intensity, or even decide to straighten both legs to really intensify the core and hip flexor workload.
• Slowly come out of the pose by bending and lowering your legs to the ground.

Common Mistakes in Boat Pose

In order to gain the full benefits from Boat Pose and avoid strain or injury, it is important to know the common mistakes to avoid! Many students become very focused on the shape of the pose and not the foundation it’s based on, and therefore do not execute it to their needs.

Here are some of the tendencies to watch out for while practicing Boat Pose:

• Shrugging the shoulders : This normally happens when you feel you are about to fall out of the pose. When you feel this, round out your shoulder blades and engage the core.
• Collapsing the chest : This commonly occurs when people shrug their shoulders and don’t engage the core. The spine naturally begins to round and the chest collapses downward. Fix this by inhaling and pulling the shoulder blades back to touch while focusing on re-engaging the core. 

**If balance is an issue causing this, a yoga strap can come in handy, which we will go over below.

• Not engaging the abdominals : This happens when you get tired and you let your stomach hang loose. Simply re-engage the core to combat this!
• Sticking your butt out : This is the other thing that happens when you don’t engage the core. Your butt sticks out because your lower back is taking too much of the workload to keep you in the pose. Engage the core and re-align your tailbone to find that point of equilibrium.

Variations and Modifications for Boat Pose

This pose is known to be very versatile and dynamic. Working the core means we need to touch on the different layers of the abdominal muscles. By either making this posture more or less challenging it becomes easily accessible to all levels of fitness.

Challenging Variations

After you feel comfortable in Boat, feel free to try out some of these fun variations to challenge your core strength and balance. Keep in mind you can do all of these variation WITH the modifications as well!

Boat to Half Boat Pose or Half Boat to Low Boat

To intensify your core and hip flexor strength, play with your legs from Full Boat to Half Boat or alternate between Half Boat and Low Boat. Both variations challenge your balance and stability, and will give your core and hip a great workout!

Twisting Boat Pose or modified Russian Twists

This is like your intensified Russian Twist. Instead of keeping your legs bent, try keeping them straight (while maintaining proper alignment!) and slowly twisting from side to side using your core.

Squeezing a block between the shins or thighs

Squeezing a block between your legs not only helps maintain proper alignment by forcing your legs to squeeze in towards each other, but it also causes your core to engage even MORE. Feel free to try this with Half Boat as well!

How to Modify Boat Pose

If you don’t feel comfortable in Full Boat, don’t force it- when you do this you almost always will be practicing with poor alignment. Instead, use a hand prop or one of the below modifications to give you the same benefits of the pose!

Bend and hold the legs from behind

If you have tight hamstrings or hip flexors, you may find it difficult to hold your legs up in this pose. This can cause you to round your back and hunch your shoulders in order to maintain equilibrium. To avoid this, place your hands behind your legs to assist with keeping your legs lifted.

*Bonus: this will also assist in keeping your chest lifted too!

Important : Don’t let holding your legs allow your spine and core to relax! You should still be lifting through your chest and engaging the core. If you find you can’t do this with this modification, try one of the others below. 

Boat pose with knees bent (Half Boat)

Half Boat is a common modification for Boat that is also practiced in many other forms of exercise. Bending the knees helps you balance more and takes the stress off your hip flexors and hamstrings. 

Important : Just because your legs are bent, does NOT mean they should not be engaged! Still keep both legs activated and either point or flex your toes actively. 

Boat pose with feet against the wall 

Placing your feet against the wall in Full Boat can help you maintain a sense of balance and focus on engaging your core if you have weaker hip flexors.

Important : Don’t let your back round in the modification. If you find you’re unable to maintain a straight back with your legs straight, simply come into Half Boat.

Boat Pose with a strap around the feet 

Yoga straps aren’t only useful for providing length in tricky poses, they also provide support in maintaining proper alignment when you need it. Placing a strap around your feet help you better control how high your legs lift without overly stressing your abdominals. 

Important : Be careful not to let the strap pull you shoulders forward, causing your back to round. Make sure to activaly engage your core and lift through your chest throughout the pose. 

Counter Poses for Boat Pose

After practicing Boat Pose, it’s important to follow it with necessary poses to relax and stretch the muscles you actively used to create balance in your body. To make a counter sequence, we will use poses that change our bodies’ direction and stretch without strain.

1. Bound Angle

Bound Angle is a great pose to practice after Boat as it gently stretches the hip flexors and relaxes the mind and body after practicing such an intense strengthening pose.

How to do Bound Angle from Boat :

• From Boat, find a comfortable seat on the ground. If you find it hard to sit up straight, place a blanket or block underneath you.
• Bring the soles of your feet together to form a diamond shape with your legs. If you feel a good stretch here, stay. You can also choose to bring your feet in closer towards your to deepen the stretch.
• You can choose to stay upright in this stretch or fold forward to go deeper and stretch the spine as well.

You just intensely used your core in Boat and the prep poses, so it would be beneficial to use the opposing muscles as you do in Bridge. Although this pose does activate the core, it also works the glutes and legs while gently opening the chest in a relaxing way. 

How to do Bridge from Bound Angle :

• From Bound Angle, slowly roll onto your back.
• Bring your legs out in front of you with your feet planted on the floor with feet hip distance apart. Bring your hands by your sides face down.
• Gently lift just enough to shimmy your shoulder blades a bit more underneath you. 
• Take a deep breath, then on your inhale, lift your pelvis off the ground as much as you can, feeling the energy in your legs and glutes.
• Hold for 3-5 breaths then slowly come to the ground one vertebrae at a time.

Other counter poses you can practice after Boat Pose:

• Camel/ Utrasana
• Rabbit Pose/ Sasangasana
• Happy Baby/ Ananda Balasana
• Supine Spinal Twist/ Supta Matseyendrasana

Contraindications for Boat Pose

There are certain conditions and ailments that should make you extra cautious and even avoid practicing Boat Pose. Below is a list of conditions to make you cautious of the pose or take a modification as needed. 

• Knee, hip, neck or shoulder injury
• Any recent abdominal surgery
• Indigestion
• Inner ear problems
• Menstruation
• Heart problems
• Low blood pressure
• Osteoporosis

As you grow stronger this will become an easier pose for you. You will also notice that some arm balances will start being more accessible in your practice. All of this is because you worked on your foundation!

Boat pose is usually not the most glamorous pose that people boast of, yet it is an extremely important pose to practice in order to help you develop your physical practice.

Yoga is a process for your mind, body, and spirit. There is no   “move ahead two spaces” or a ladder that suddenly takes you into inversions. You have to go through everything on the board. What many people forget is that going through the entire journey is the fun part. You experience each milestone to the fullest and appreciate every step along the way.

Jennifer Yusi is an Aerial and Vinyasa yoga instructor based in Spain. Founder of Misfit Yoga, a blog that celebrates mixing up one’s yoga practice with different disciplines. Someday she hopes to own her own studio in her home country the Philippines.

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3 thoughts on “benefits of boat pose + how to practice it properly”.

So glad you found it helpful Elisabeth! Video will definitely be an upcoming project! 🙂

I would add Osteoporosis to your contraindicated list.

Hi Christine, added it just now- thank you 🙂

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How to Do Boat Pose in Yoga

Benefits of Boat Pose

Navasana deeply challenges the abdomen, spine, and hip flexors, building strength and steadiness at the body's core. It stimulates the abdominal organs, including the kidneys and intestines, which improves digestion. This pose also encourages healthy regulation of the thyroid and prostate glands, helping to maintain metabolism and relieve stress.

Often strenuous at first, this pose requires (and helps further develop) concentration and stamina. Practicing Navasana regularly will increase your ability to stay focused, internally aware, and emotionally calm.

Concentrate and you will radiate!

Do not practice Boat Pose if you are currently experiencing headaches, low blood pressure, or diarrhea. Those with heart problems and asthma should not practice the full variation of the pose, but should gradually and softly practice Half Boat Pose instead. Women who are pregnant or menstruating should also not practice Boat Pose. Those with neck injuries can practice this pose with their backs and heads supported against a wall. Always work within your own range of limits and abilities. If you have any medical concerns, talk with your doctor before practicing yoga.

Instructions

• Begin seated with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor, hands resting beside your hips. Draw your awareness inward and focus on your breath. Allow your inhalations and exhalations to be smooth, calm, and even.
• Keeping your spine straight, lean back slightly and lift your feet, bringing your shins parallel to the floor.
• Draw in your low back, lift your chest, and lengthen the front of your torso. Then, extend your arms forward, in line with your shoulders with your palms facing each other.
• Balance on your sit bones, keeping your spine straight. Take care not to let your lower back sag or chest collapse.
• Lengthen the front of your torso from your pubic bone to the top of your sternum. The lower belly (the area below your navel) should be firm and somewhat flat, but not hard or thick.
• With an exhalation, straighten your legs to a 45-degree angle from the ground, bringing your body into a "V" shape.
• Keep your breath easy, steady, and smooth. Focus your awareness within. Soften your eyes and your face. Gaze at your toes.
• Spread your shoulder blades wide and reach out through your fingers, actively engaging your hands.
• Stay in the pose for five breaths, gradually working up to one minute. To release the pose, exhale as you lower your legs and hands to the floor.

Modifications & Variations

If you'd like to deepen or lighten the pose, try these simple changes to find a variation that works best for you:

• If you are new to the pose, begin to build strength by keeping your knees bent and your hands resting on the floor behind you, with your fingertips pointing in toward your hips.
• As you gain strength, you can lift your hands and clasp your outer thighs. Eventually, you will be able to extend your arms forward and straighten your legs.
• If your hamstrings are tight, it can be difficult to straighten your legs. Keep your knees bent and work on building core strength first.
• For assistance straightening your legs, wrap a strap around the soles of both feet. Hold the strap firmly with both hands. As you inhale, lean your torso back. Exhaling, press your feet against the strap as you lift and lengthen your legs.
• If you'd like more of a challenge in Full Boat Pose, lightly clasp your hands behind your head. With an exhalation, slightly lower your legs while also lowering your back a few inches toward the floor. Inhale to lift up again into the full pose.

Practicing Boat Pose will build strength and power throughout your entire torso. Keep the following information in mind when practicing this pose:

• It's more important to keep your spine straight and the front of your torso long than it is to straighten your legs or balance without hand support. Keep your hands on the floor and knees bent until you have built up enough strength to deepen the pose while keeping proper alignment.
• The lower front of the belly should never get hard. Although it will get firm, it should not puff forward or become thick. If it does, make a modification until you have built up enough strength that it does not become hard.

Set Sail for Strength

Navasana is an empowering pose that requires dedication, practice, and a quiet mind. Just like a ship calmly making its way through a storm, Boat Pose will provide safety through balance and strength when the waves of life get rough!

• EXPLORE Random Article

How to Do the Full Boat Pose in Yoga

Last Updated: September 16, 2021 References

This article was co-authored by Ellen East . Ellen East is a certified yoga instructor and owner of Studio 4 WholeHealth in Hartwell, Georgia. She received her 200RYT certification from Yoga Alliance and has been a yoga practitioner for over 25 years. This article has been viewed 43,647 times.

Full Boat Pose (navasana in Sanskrit) is a great yoga pose for strengthening the abdominal and hip muscles. It is a challenging pose but also a beneficial one, because it builds core strength, stability, and awareness of posture. [1] X Research source There are several modifications and variations that can help you work up to the full pose over time.

Performing the Pose

• Keep your lower belly flat and firm rather than hard [5] X Research source
• Keep your shoulders in a neutral, retracted position. Don’t hunch your shoulders, but think about moving your shoulder blades back and down. [6] X Research source

Modifying the Pose

• This may be an appropriate modification during pregnancy. [7] X Research source

• This partner pose is a great way to strengthen your core and legs.

• Try alternating, slowly and with control, between Full and Low Boat Poses, without bringing either your feet or your back fully to the ground. Do this 8-10 times for an excellent, dynamic core workout. [11] X Research source

Expert Q&A

• Get advice from your yoga teacher or doctor before trying this pose while pregnant or if you have a neck injury. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
• If you feel sharp pain or sudden shortness of breath, come out of the pose. Boat Pose should be challenging and tiring, but not painful or overwhelming. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ http://www.yogamagazine.com/anatomy-of-full-boat-pose/
• ↑ http://www.yogajournal.com/pose/full-boat-pose/
• ↑ http://www.womenfitness.net/yoga_during_preg1.htm
• ↑ https://www.health.com/fitness/partner-yoga
• ↑ http://www.acefitness.org/acefit/healthy-living-article/60/3200/ace-fitness-bracket-buster-match-up-3/

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Boat pose sequence – 20 minute core yoga workout

September 11, 2020 //  by  Di Hickman //   16 Comments

Recently, I’ve been doing a lot of content around yoga pose tutorials. Common mistakes in poses, then offering a few tips and tricks to make the poses more accessible and comfortable. A few months ago I focused on boat pose. A challenge pose for the core. However, we need to put what we learned into practice with this 20 minute boat poses sequence.

This 20 minute core yoga workout is a great way to work the abs, hips and thighs while getting the soothing yoga effect. I love to blend yoga with other movement formats and this class is akin to yogalates (yoga and pilates). One of my favorite mash-ups.

You can view the video on YouTube. Maybe add it to a playlist? Above all, remember to to  subscribe to my channel . New videos are uploaded every Tuesday and Friday. However, for exclusive longer format videos sign up for  my Patreon community . Patrons also get early access to all my videos, along with other benefits.

20 minute core yoga workout

The first 5-7 minutes of this class are warm up exercises for the core. After a brief body scan there are movements for the spine. These include arch & flatten plus windshield wipers .

To warm up the abs all the crunches. Seriously, any core warm-up for the abs should include crunches. This variation adds shoulder movement for some upper body mobility.

Because boat pose is an isometric exercise, the warm up continues with some supine isometric core exercises. Marching the legs, and table top drops are great ways to warm up the abs and hip flexors.

One thing I love to do as a warm up are use the focus pose in a different relationship to gravity. To that end, the table top exercises mimic boat well. In addition, I added a reverse crunch to this routine.

Boat Pose Sequence

During the class we transition to seated, and begin moving through a seated cat cow. As a result, we smoothly begin the boat pose sequence in this 20 minute class.

Firstly, in boat pose the legs are bent. The beginners variation. Further progressing from this is alternating straight legs. Either, with or without support from the arms.

After that, we progress to the third and final version of our focus pose in this boat pose sequence. That is to say we straighten the legs and HOLD. If this variation feels too much you can choose to do either of the two previous options.

With the “work” for the abs done the cool down begins. In short, we start to do less. For this class, I decided to introduce a variation of twisted sage pose to lengthen the obliques.

Furthermore to lengthen the front body, while continuing to work the core, we do some swimmers. Lying face down and lifting alternate arm to leg. Remember, the glutes and lower back are part of your core!

So, as we continue the cool down, we push onto all fours for some cat cow After that, we recline into childs pose pausing for a few breaths. Lastly, we end this boat pose sequence seated for three deep breaths

In short, this class is a great way to combine core, and pilates exercises. Plus. you receive the relaxing and de-stressing aspects of a yoga class. Blending movement practices is something I hope to do more of in the future.

• Do you warm up before doing ab exercises
• Have you combined class formats before?
• How long are your core workouts?

Reader Interactions

Ivan Majhen

September 17, 2020 at 12:39 pm

I really like your posts and yoga exercises. It is hard to do them, but every time I read your post, it makes me to do them and push harder,

September 18, 2020 at 3:08 pm

Workout smarter not harder 😉

Nilakshi Pathak

September 14, 2020 at 9:26 am

I have been doing this yoga. It has proved to be effective for reducing my belly fight.

September 18, 2020 at 3:06 pm

Great to hear!

blair villanueva

September 14, 2020 at 4:31 am

I tried these poses while reading your blog and omg it made my legs shaking! Lol it need more exercise 🙂

hahaha yes it does make the legs shake if you aren’t used to it!

September 14, 2020 at 12:27 am

This pose is something I really find hard to do. My balance is just really so poor. Huhu! Although that is the case, I feel like I will be able to do this by practicing thoroughly that is why I will really practice it.

September 18, 2020 at 3:05 pm

Check out the other two posts about boat pose. https://www.dihickman.com/how-to-do-boat-pose-navasana/ & https://www.dihickman.com/why-cant-i-straighten-my-legs-in-boat-pose/

September 13, 2020 at 2:39 pm

This looks like a great workout! I’ve been looking at something a little different to change things up. That being said, this looks like the perfect option! I’m going to try this as my daily workout tomorrow and see how it goes. Thank you for sharing!

September 18, 2020 at 3:04 pm

Great to hear! Hope you enjoyed it!

September 13, 2020 at 2:24 pm

Awesome guide! I appreciate the details that you put into it. Me having some a sore back right now thinks I should do some stretches

What issues are you having with your back?

September 12, 2020 at 1:01 pm

it looks hard! Boat pose is never easy but helps to work mid section wonders, I always try to add it to my practice. it looks so effortless on you, I am even a little envy

September 18, 2020 at 3:03 pm

Hahaha yes boat pose is hard! My abs hurt the day after!

September 11, 2020 at 10:32 am

Hi Di, Interesting post! After reading this I’m inspire to try the pose and maybe get into yoga.

One pose a day, Hold for 5 breaths each side. Build from there!

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Imagination Sets Sail with Boat Pose

by Amanda James | Jul 18, 2016 | Asanas , Benefits of Yoga , KAY Music , Props , Videos , Yoga Activities , Yoga at Home , Yoga in Schools | 0 comments

Boat Parade : Teach poses for different kinds of boats. Start by demonstrating Boat Pose. Once everyone has tried it, add these variations (all starting from the basic Boat Pose): • Kayak : twist side-to-side, arms and legs going opposite directions, like you are paddling • Rowboat : bring arms and legs closer, then extend them longer, hovering over the floor. Repeat like you are rowing oars. • Sailboat : instead of arms reaching toward feet, lift the arms overhead like sails • Motorboat : traditional Boat Pose, but feet flutter kick like the motor • Dinghy : make the tiniest Boat Pose you can • Cruise ship : make the biggest, most spread out Boat Pose you can Once everyone has tried all the variations, add some music and play a Freeze Dance type game. While the music plays, everyone walks in a circle (or pretends to swim, surf, or float) along the mats. When the music pauses, drop to a mat and do one of the Boat Poses. Then the music plays again. Make the activity more challenging by taking away a mat every time (like Musical Chairs ) or not allowing two of the same boats to anchor next to each other.

A Yogi Went to Sea : Kidding Around Yoga took a beloved kids’ song and Yoga-fied it. As a group, try this song – it wears kids out!

Ride the Waves : It’s not always smooth sailing. Sometimes rough weather creates waves we have to float over. Starting from Boat Pose (any variation), imagine a wave approaches. As you go up and over the wave, rock back (still in Boat Pose) toward a Plow Pose with legs either in the air or over your head behind you. When you get over the wave, your boat rights itself as you roll back into Boat Pose. The challenge is to do this without using your hands or letting your feet touch the ground!

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Famous birthdays list for today, March 21, 2024 includes celebrities Rosie O'Donnell, Scott Eastwood

• Published: Mar. 21, 2024, 5:00 a.m.

Rosie O'Donnell and Scott Eastwood celebrate birthdays on March 21, 2024 AP

• Mike Rose, cleveland.com

Birthday wishes go out to Rosie O’Donnell, Scott Eastwood and all the other celebrities with birthdays today. Check out our slideshow below to see photos of famous people turning a year older on March 21st and learn an interesting fact about each of them.

Top celebrity birthdays on March 21, 2024

Timothy Dalton arrives at the Los Angeles premiere of "1923," Friday, Dec. 2, 2022, at American Legion Hollywood Post 43 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Actor Timothy Dalton turns 78

Fun fact: Was the last actor to portray Peter Townsend on ‘The Crown’

Gary Oldman, a cast member in "Slow Horses," waves as he arrives at the Season 2 premiere of the Apple+ series, Saturday, March 11, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello) Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Actor Gary Oldman turns 66

Fun fact: First feature film was ‘Remembrance’ in 1982

Nathan Lane, left, and Matthew Broderick introduce Mel Brooks during the Governors Awards on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, at the Dolby Ballroom in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello) Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP

Actor Matthew Broderick turns 62

Fun fact: Appeared as the adult version of Ralphie in ‘A Christmas Story Live!’

Rosie O'Donnell attends the Broadway opening night of "Girl From The North Country" at the Belasco Theatre on Thursday, March 5, 2020, In New York. (Photo by Greg Allen/Invision/AP) Greg Allen/Invision/AP

Comedian Rosie O’Donnell turns 62

Fun fact: Has appeared as a celebrity contestant on multiple game shows including ‘Family Feud’

Sonequa Martin-Green arrives for the world premiere of "My Dead Friend Zoe" during the South by Southwest Film Festival on Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP) Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP

Actress Sonequa Martin-Green turns 39

Fun fact: Met her husband in a play they were both performing in

Scott Eastwood poses for photographers upon arrival at the world premiere of the film 'Fast X' in Rome, Friday, May 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) AP

Actor Scott Eastwood turns 38

Fun fact: Appeared in an episode of ‘Running Wild with Bear Grylls’

More celebrities with birthdays today

Actor Kathleen Widdoes (“As the World Turns”) is 85. Singer-guitarist Keith Potger of The Seekers is 83. Actor Marie-Christine Barrault is 80. Singer-keyboardist Rose Stone of Sly and the Family Stone is 79. Singer-guitarist Ray Dorset of Mungo Jerry is 78. Singer-guitarist Rodger Hodgson (Supertramp) is 74. Bassist Conrad Lozano of Los Lobos is 73. Singer Russell Thompkins Junior of The Stylistics is 73. Comedian Brad Hall (“Saturday Night Live”) is 66. Actor Sabrina LeBeauf (“The Cosby Show”) is 66. Actor Kassie Depaiva (“Days of Our Lives”) is 63. Actor Cynthia Geary (“Northern Exposure”) is 59. Musician DJ Premier of Gang Starr is 58. Keyboardist Jonas “Joker” Berggren of Ace of Base is 57. Musician Maxim of Prodigy is 57. Guitarist Andrew Copeland of Sister Hazel is 56. Actor Laura Allen is 50. Actor Jasmin Savoy Brown (“For the People”) is 30. Actor Forrest Wheeler (“Fresh Off the Boat”) is 20.

Other popular or historical birthdays on March 21st

Joseph Fourier, physicist and mathematician

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Eddie Money, singer

with The Associated Press

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Georgia could greenlight a mine near one of the South’s last wild places

A planned titanium mine near the edge of the okefenokee national wildlife refuge has drawn fierce resistance from people worried about the fate of the largest intact blackwater swamp in north america.

FOLKSTON, Ga. — Charlene Carter’s family has spent generations in and around the Okefenokee Swamp.

Its tannin-stained waters are practically part of her blood; its hundreds of bird species her eternal soundtrack; its maze of narrow canals, haunting cypress trees and ever-present alligators the backdrop of so many memories.

Carter now manages a campground and cafe at the edge of the roughly 640-square-mile Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge , the largest intact blackwater swamp in North America. She longs for it to remain wild, pristine and protected — and counts herself among the outspoken opponents of a proposed titanium mine just outside its borders.

“I don’t care what they say,” said Carter, 39. “There’s a lot to lose.”

In this small corner of southeastern Georgia, a big fight is raging over the planned mine, which recently inched closer to approval.

The company behind the mine, Alabama-based Twin Pines Minerals, has promised that its investment will expand the local tax base and bring hundreds of good-paying jobs to an area where poverty runs deep. It insists its operations to extract titanium dioxide — widely used as a pigment in paints, sunscreens and an array of other products — will not leave a lasting scar on the land or threaten the beloved swamp.

But a broad and boisterous coalition of environmental groups, scientists, lawmakers and other citizens — not to mention the Biden administration — has opposed the mine at every turn, arguing that the proposed excavation along a mineral-rich area known as Trail Ridge is not only risky but also reckless.

“We’re not against mining,” said Bill Sapp, a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. “It’s just ludicrous to create a mine right on the edge of a national treasure like the Okefenokee.”

He said Americans should be as wary of mining near the untamed swamp “as they would any action that jeopardizes the integrity of something like Yellowstone or Yosemite or the Grand Canyon.”

The fight playing out along the Georgia-Florida border already has spanned five years. But the conflict is entering a critical stretch.

Last month, Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division issued draft permits that, if finalized, would allow the project to move forward. In its responses to more than 78,000 public comments it received last year, raising numerous concerns, the agency wrote in part that it believes the current proposal “should have a minimal impact” on the swamp.

Regulators will accept another round of public comments through April 9.

“These are defining months,” said Kim Bednarek, executive director of the nonprofit Okefenokee Swamp Park .

The organization leads educational trips and is helping the U.S. government’s bid to have the refuge deemed a UNESCO World Heritage site — a designation, supporters say, that would bring global recognition and an influx of tourism dollars.

The uproar over the mine has put this unique landscape and the communities around it under an unfamiliar microscope.

“We’re a swamp in the middle of nowhere south Georgia,” said Michael Lusk, who manages the refuge on behalf of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “But there’s been an explosion of interest. And not only locally, but nationally and internationally as well.”

‘A very uncommon swamp’

“Everything you see around us is old sea floor,” Lusk says on a clear, late winter morning as he stands at the water’s edge.

Formed by a saucer-shaped depression left behind when the ocean retreated thousands of years ago, the Okefenokee is now a shallow, sprawling, mystical bog, fed almost entirely by rainwater.

The swamp supports an astounding array of life, from black bears and red-cockaded woodpeckers to black gum trees and carnivorous plants with names such as hooded pitcher and golden trumpet . It is the headwaters for two rivers, the Suwannee and the St. Marys. And its vast peat deposits, formed by the slow decomposition of plants and 15 feet deep in places, store enormous amounts of carbon.

Its human history is also long, diverse — and complicated.

Indigenous peoples referred to it as the “ land of the trembling earth ” because of the unstable peat mats that sway and ripple when stepped on.

Over time , the tribes that once inhabited the swamp, including the Seminole and Muscogee , were driven away. The Suwannee Canal Co. purchased the property and beginning in 1891 spent years in a failed attempt to drain it for farmland. Lumber companies later took over and removed more than 400 million board feet of timber, most of it cypress.

In 1937, after the federal government purchased the land, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

In the generations since, the swamp has recovered and remained largely undisturbed.

“It is essentially as it would have been when European colonists arrived in the U.S.,” Lusk said.

Twin Pines isn’t the first company to eye Trail Ridge, an ancient sand dune that runs along the eastern edge of the swamp. It is home to significant deposits of titanium dioxide and other minerals.

In the 1990s, DuPont pursued plans to mine titanium dioxide across tens of thousands of acres in the area.

Then, as now, the federal government joined environmental groups, scientists and local residents to fight the plan.

Bruce Babbitt, interior secretary under President Bill Clinton, visited in April 1997 and declared that mining and the Okefenokee “are not compatible.”

“Titanium is a common mineral,” Babbitt said that day , “while the Okefenokee is a very uncommon swamp.”

DuPont eventually abandoned the project and donated 16,000 acres for conservation.

More than two decades later, history is — and isn’t — repeating itself.

In 2019, Twin Pines initially sought permits to mine roughly 2,400 acres near the southeastern corner of the swamp. The company later amended its requests and now is seeking permission to operate on a 582-acre site — a far smaller footprint than DuPont sought.

The company said in a statement that there is “nothing similar” between its plans and DuPont’s.

Twin Pines has vowed to mine only a small portion at a time, to dig no deeper than 50 feet, and to operate no closer than 2.9 miles from the swamp. It has said the typical job will pay $60,000, far above the local average. It has promised to “leave the land better than we found it,” including planting native pines and donating a portion for conservation.

Besides, the company argues, protecting the surrounding ecosystem is merely good business.

“Common sense should tell anyone that the company would not put the hundreds of millions of dollars it is investing at risk by failing to comply with environmental regulations,” Twin Pines said in a statement.

Such assurances have done little to ease the ongoing skepticism.

Critics fear the mine could hinder eco-tourism around the refuge, which by some estimates eclipses 800,000 annual visitors. They question whether the promised jobs will go to local residents, and whether the more than 1.4 million gallons of groundwater the project could draw daily would fundamentally alter the swamp’s hydrology. They worry that if given approval, Twin Pines would try to expand its footprint in coming years, though that would require further permitting.

The Biden administration has made its objections clear.

In a letter to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R), Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said the proposed mine “poses an unacceptable risk to the long-term hydrology” of the swamp. The Fish and Wildlife Service recently notified the state that it intends to assert federally guaranteed water rights for the refuge — an argument Twin Pines President Steve Ingle called “utterly meritless” in a statement.

Scientists such as C. Rhett Jackson, a University of Georgia hydrology professor, have questioned the company’s scientific assessments, arguing that such heavy groundwater use could triple the frequency of severe drought and wildfires on a landscape vulnerable to both.

“If you take a drought-sensitive system, and you take water out of it, you’re going to make it droughtier. It’s as simple of that,” Jackson said. “That’s bad for the swamp, for recreation, for nearby landowners. … I think it’s a terrible place to mine.”

That sentiment, while widespread, is not universal.

A bill aimed at protecting the Okefenokee from future mining expansion has stalled multiple times in Georgia’s legislature, despite bipartisan support.

The board of commissioners for Charlton County, where the mine would be located, passed a resolution expressing support for the project in 2019, even as other local governments in the region have opposed it.

Drew Jones, a Charlton County commissioner , believes too many people have been “reflexively oppositional.”

Everyone cares deeply about the Okefenokee, he said, but at the same time, the hospital in Folkston closed a decade ago, and emergency responders are understaffed. There are broken sidewalks, crumbling roads and a water treatment facility that needs modernizing.

“This community is in desperate need of economic development,” said Jones, who believes the mine could provide a meaningful boost, despite pushback from many opponents in Atlanta and Washington.

“These people go home and we all remain, and our problems remain,” he said.

As for the environmental concerns?

“Should there be tons of oversight? Absolutely. … If it’s not safe, then shut it down,” Jones said. But if state regulators determine that Twin Pines qualifies for permits, the mine should be allowed to go forward, he said.

That could well be what happens.

In August 2022, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers settled a lawsuit filed by Twin Pines, in which the agency relinquished regulatory oversight of the current proposal, leaving key decisions in Georgia’s hands.

In their most recent draft approvals, state regulators underscored that they have a responsibility to follow state surface-mining laws.

“If an application meets the requirements … a permit is issued,” the agency wrote .

‘Why take that chance?’

On a recent evening, the state held another public hearing ahead of any final permit decisions.

For three hours, nearly 100 people spoke passionately against the mine, as hundreds more listened in. Not one spoke in favor.

Josh Marks, an environmental attorney who has fought mining near the swamp for decades, had called the draft permits “a death warrant” for the Okefenokee. “A disaster waiting to happen,” he warned.

College students, grandparents, scientists, environmental activists, outdoor enthusiasts and local residents issued similar pleas, imploring state officials to halt the project.

They quoted the Bible, the Torah and University of Georgia hydrology findings. They described the Okefenokee as “majestic,” “sacred” and “precious.” They called the idea of mining anywhere near it “irresponsible,” “heartbreaking” and “shortsighted.”

One after another, they asked a version of the same question: Why risk it?

It was same question that the Rev. Antwon Nixon had posed days earlier, in a far more serene setting, as the sun sank orange and red over the Okefenokee.

Nixon, who grew up in Folkston, stared out from the bow of a small boat over the black water, its mirror-like surface reflecting the cypress and bay trees hung with Spanish moss.

Nearby, alligators warmed themselves under the Southern sun. Cricket frogs croaked. A blue heron flew low across the water. A pair of American bitterns waded through a reedy marsh, hunting for dinner.

Nixon, 47, came here on school trips as a boy but reconnected to the swamp after learning of the proposed mine several years ago at a Juneteenth celebration. Now, the Baptist preacher has emerged as one of its most ardent local opponents.

“It’s about stewardship,” he said. “We have a divine call to protect the land and maintain it.”

These days, he comes to the Okefenokee to meditate and marvel in a place of rare light and beauty. To enter the swamp is to leave the world of concrete and cars and flickering screens, and to drift through an ancient landscape unfamiliar to most Americans.

On this evening, the arguments raging around the swamp and its future felt far away. And yet, inescapable.

“Maybe they mine and nothing happens; it’s a possibility,” Nixon conceded. “But if they are wrong, if something goes catastrophically wrong …”

“Why take that chance? This place is too important to take the risk.”

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Grosse Pointe Park pharmacist sentenced for putting 300,000 doses of drugs on the street

The owner and operator of a former Grosse Pointe Park pharmacy has been sentenced to more than eight years in prison after being convicted of filling forged prescriptions for controlled substances over several years in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Hasna Bashir Iwas, 62, of New Baltimore, who owned and operated the former Beacon Pointe Pharmacy, was sentenced this week to 100 months in federal prison, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office release and court records.

She was convicted by a federal jury in November on 26 charges related to unlawful distribution of controlled substances and conspiracy to unlawfully distribute prescription drug controlled substances.

As part of her sentence, she was ordered to forfeit $781,547 — money that federal prosecutors said she received from the illegal distribution of pills from the pharmacy, according to the release and court records.

William Broman, one of Iwas' attorneys, had no comment Friday.

Iwas was sentenced Wednesday. A day later, her attorneys filed a motion asking the court to grant her bond pending appeal. After the verdict, she was remanded to the U.S. Marshals Service, which assigned her to the custody of the Livingston County Jail, according to the defense's sentencing memorandum.

In their recent bond motion, Iwas' attorneys state she was on unsecured bond for two years without incident pending her trial, poses no threat of danger to the community or flight risk, and had no prior contact with law enforcement. They added she "cannot now, and perhaps can never again, practice pharmacy."

Federal prosecutors said the crimes occurred between 2013 and 2018. Iwas regularly filled forged prescriptions, including by a local doctor, Otis Crawford. They said Crawford was charged with unlawfully writing controlled substance prescriptions and pleaded guilty, but died of natural causes before his sentencing.

300,000 doses of drugs worth millions

Prosecutors previously said Crawford and other defendants were accused in 2021 of operating a prescription drug ring in Detroit, Grosse Pointe Park, River Rouge and elsewhere.

The U.S. Attorney's Office release stated Iwas was held criminally responsible for distributing more than 300,000 doses of controlled substances with an estimated street value of $1.8 million to $3.3 million.

The prosecutor's sentencing memorandum states Iwas owned a waterfront home with a private boat well and owned a Mercedes, though it was not new. They wrote that she made the vast majority of her income from the scheme, the Crawford "pill mill" and the missing drugs.

"The true character of the defendant is revealed by her decision to support her lifestyle by fueling the street market. She endangered the lives of people desperate enough to buy pills on the street market. Her greed made her willing to profit from the misery and addiction of less fortunate people," federal prosecutors wrote.

More: Grosse Pointe Park man who used $10M opioid scheme to pay off child support gets break

In their sentencing memorandum, Iwas' attorneys said their client "was not a convicted drug felon or an admitted member of a dangerous and notorious Detroit street gang as were others in this case."

"Ms. Iwas did not live the high life of a drug kingpin, but rather cared for people and gave her time freely to her family and those who needed her assistance. She was not a saint; she made naïve mistakes in judgment, and while she was generous, she was also a darn poor judge of character," they wrote.

Contact Christina Hall: [email protected]. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @challreporter.

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Submit a letter to the editor at  freep.com/letters .

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Dutch project tells wartime stories of intrepid ‘England voyagers’

Hundreds of Engelandvaarders took various routes from occupied Netherlands to Britain to fight in second world war

They travelled over land and water, braving the North Sea, trekking across the Pyrenees or fleeing north through Sweden to reach Britain and join the fight against the Nazis.

Now a project at the Dutch national archives, opening on Thursday, is for the first time publishing the stories of 2,150 “England voyagers”. These brave Dutch men and women escaped the occupied Netherlands during the second world war and found their way to London to volunteer.

The most famous of these Engelandvaarders is documented in the Dutch hit film, book and musical Soldier of Orange , about the RAF and resistance fighter Erik Hazelhoff. He was just one of a number of people who found jobs in the British army, navy and air force or were parachuted back into Europe to work as secret agents for the British Special Operations Executive.

“They went with very different routes from the occupied Netherlands, Belgium or France to England,” said the project’s leader, Pepijn Lucker. “In the Netherlands we have the idea that they had a boat and went straight over the North Sea, but that was actually a very small percentage, less than 10%. The vast majority went via all kinds of intrepid and adventurous routes through occupied Europe .

“They were sometimes locked up in camps, they had to be smuggled over borders, they crossed the Pyrenees in the middle of the winter in groups and some of them didn’t make it … There are enormously exciting stories in this archive.”

Like all other arrivals from occupied Europe, they were first taken to the Victoria Patriotic school in London and vetted by MI5 to ensure they were not German spies. Then they were redirected to the Dutch secret service, interrogated by Dutch police, and most joined the fight or the resistance. Their stories have been pieced together from these records.

Many died, said Lucker, but at least one fighter made it back to England and volunteered again. Bob van der Stok escaped to London in 1941, became an RAF Spitfire fighter, and was captured and placed in the Stalag Luft III German prisoner of war camp in Poland. There he took part in the breakout of 80 men that inspired the film The Great Escape. He was one of the few who actually escaped, and went on to become one of the most decorated aviators in Dutch history.

About 300 Jewish men and 75 women were Engelandvaarders , one of whom, Elis Maud Brandon, is now over 100 and lives in Belgium.

The three-year research project was carried out with 70 volunteers and with the WO2NET foundation, which is publishing a route and timeline for every individual.

It is part of a broader reassessment of Dutch war history, including the collaboration and inaction documented in the National Holocaust Museum and films such as Steve McQueen’s Occupied City and the new release Verdwenen Stad (Lost City). During the war, three-quarters of the Dutch Jewish population were murdered by the Nazis.

“This is quite different from the dark story of the Holocaust, in which many people in the Netherlands played a very dubious role … with a large component of collaboration,” Lucker said. “What these people did was true resistance and they were considered the heroes of their time. And there is lots more to tell about them.”

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DeSantis is prepping for a wave of Haitian migrants. Advocates say he's grandstanding

A wooden migrant boat lies grounded on a reef alongside mangroves, at Harry Harris Park in Tavernier, Fla., last year. The U.S. Coast Guard says that since October, has it intercepted and returned about 130 migrants to Haiti . Rebecca Blackwell/AP hide caption

A wooden migrant boat lies grounded on a reef alongside mangroves, at Harry Harris Park in Tavernier, Fla., last year. The U.S. Coast Guard says that since October, has it intercepted and returned about 130 migrants to Haiti .

Officials in Florida are worried the chaos and violence in Haiti will trigger a surge in migrants attempting to come to the U.S. by boat. so far, the Coast Guard says it has not seen an increase in the number of Haitians attempting the hazardous crossing.

But Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he wants to be ready. He's sending more than 250 officers and National and State Guard troops to the southern part of the state. Some Haitian-American leaders believe it's more about politics than preparedness.

More than a half million Haitians live in Florida. For decades, the state has been a primary destination for people fleeing political turmoil and economic hardship on the island. Florida's large Haitian-American community is closely monitoring the crisis. Tessa Petit. who was born and raised in Haiti now directs the Florida Immigrant Coalition , an advocacy group. She's been in touch with people on the island and says, "Folks in Haiti are living in complete panic. Supermarkets don't have food. People are running out of food. There's no electricity. Communication is very difficult. And people are living in fear."

A glimpse of the chaos in Haiti, a country reeling with effectively no leader

DeSantis says the Guard troops he's sending, along with state law enforcement officers will help intercept any migrants who attempt to come from Haiti to the U.S. by boat and then turn them over to the Coast Guard. "Given the situation that's happening in Haiti," he says, "some brutal reports that are happening, we want to make sure we're protecting Floridians."

DeSantis was speaking at a news conference where he signed measures to crack down on undocumented immigrants in Florida. Later that day, in an interview on Fox News, he again spoke of the potential threat to Florida posed by any surge of migrants from Haiti. "We want to be prepared," he said. "I was asked today at our press conference, 'Why are you doing this when there has not actually yet been a massive influx?' I said, 'What are you supposed to do, wait for it to happen?' So, we're putting our assets in place to be able to defend the state."

The Coast Guard says it has intercepted and returned about 130 migrants to Haiti since October. And it has not seen a rise in interdictions since the recent violence began there.

Petit says she's been disappointed by the way DeSantis and other Republicans are framing a humanitarian crisis for one of the U.S.'s closest neighbors.

"The narrative now is that immigrants are the enemy," she says. "We're the criminals. We're the thieves. We're the drug dealers. It is unfortunate and sad to see that the state that has the largest Haitian community, that's how our governor is responding to it."

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he's sending law enforcement officers and Guard troops because "given the situation that's happening in Haiti, some brutal reports that are happening, we want to make sure we're protecting Floridians." Phil Sears/AP hide caption

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he's sending law enforcement officers and Guard troops because "given the situation that's happening in Haiti, some brutal reports that are happening, we want to make sure we're protecting Floridians."

Other Republican officials are also raising alarms about the threat they believe the Haitian crisis poses for Floridians. U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz and three other Republican members of Congress from Florida want President Biden to declare an "anticipated mass migration of aliens." Florida Sens. Rick Scott and Marco Rubio sent President Biden a letter stating, "Floridians and the rest of the American public will not tolerate your administration again opening the floodgates for countless, unvetted foreign nationals."

State Rep. Dotie Joseph was born in Haiti and represents a district in North Miami that's home to many from the island. She calls DeSantis' talk about "being prepared" for a wave of migrants "political grandstanding." She's one of a number of Haitian-American leaders calling on the governor to help close the pipeline of guns from Florida that's helping arm gangs on the island. A U.N. report last year found the primary source of firearms and ammunition in Haiti is the U.S., particularly Florida.

"If [DeSantis] wanted to send law enforcement to do something productive as opposed to for show," Joseph says, "then he would work with our federal partners to make sure that they're helping screen not just at our ports, but at a lot of the private places along the Miami River, where we know these things are coming from."

Goats and Soda

Haiti's chaos puts both patients and health-care workers at risk.

And if there is a surge in migration, Joseph says, the U.S. must treat Haitians humanely. She's concerned about plans outlined by a U.S. military official last week to possibly house Haitian migrants intercepted at sea at the naval station in Guantanamo, Cuba. "Seeking asylum or refugee status is not something that is criminal," Joseph says. "It's legal. And treating people like criminals with these kind of detention policies, be they at Guantanamo or elsewhere is quite frankly, unacceptable."

Even DeSantis acknowledges that a wave of migrants in boats might not materialize. In recent years, vastly more Haitians have come to the U.S. over the Southern border than by making the hazardous boat crossing to Florida.

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Electrostal History and Art Museum

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Electrostal History and Art Museum - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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