When Cynthia originally arrived in Koh Tao in early 2009 to complete her SCUBA dive instructor course she fell in love with this tropical paradise island and decided to build her life here. Over the years she followed her true passion and transitioned into teaching yoga full time.
Ocean Sound Dive and Yoga was formed in 2011 when she teamed up with one of her best friends in order to fully share their love of diving and yoga with others. Fast forward to today, and it’s now a thriving dive school and yoga studio, with an amazing team of staff who are equally as passionate about diving and yoga as they are!
Ocean Sound Yoga creates a safe, supportive environment where everyone can come together to share the practice of yoga. The classes are accessible to everyone, from people trying yoga for the very first time, to yoga teachers looking to deepen their practice while they visit this tropical paradise. With classes about connection rather than competition, people practice together to support one another, create good vibes, and celebrate movement, stillness, life and breath.
Ocean Sound Yoga is the only studio in Koh Tao that offers many different class styles, they are the sole providers of workshops and in depth training. For those that want to get a head start to their day there are early morning classes (7am) on the schedule. The weekly unlimited pass gives students access to all 17 of the weekly classes for only 1000THB. There is a variety of class styles on offer, from dynamic vinyasa classes to soothing restorative, and weekend workshops on special topics (such as inversions) as well. Details of the workshops are posted on their website. For groups such as retreat groups or adventure travel groups private sessions can also be provided.
What really sets Ocean Sound Yoga apart is the inclusiveness of the classes. Going to a yoga class can be a bit intimidating if you’ve never done it before. The worries of being too stiff, or not strong enough, or not ‘good’ at it can be very real. Ocean Sound classes are for everyone - and that’s simply because yoga itself is for everyone. Their only prerequisite is for people to be willing to show up!
Alongside that, yoga teachers and people who have been practicing for a long time often feel like classes abroad only cater to people who are newer to the practice, and don’t expect to be able to challenge themselves with new styles, poses and such. Ocean Sound Yoga offers variations and options for everyone, and helps people to take their practice to the next level. They have yoga teachers who return year on year to study with them, and then pay it forward to their own students all over the world.
What matters most to Cynthia and her team is creating an atmosphere in which every single student feels good about themselves, included, and cared for. They always remind students that each of our bodies are unique - nobody’s body is exactly alike, so everyone's practices will always look different from one another. Ocean Sound provides lots of different options for people to pick and choose from so each student can adapt their practice to suit their bodies on that day. Of course, there is always help and support on offer throughout the classes! They have a great time during the practice, with a strong community feel (as well as killer playlists!) The aim is for every student to leave feeling empowered, confident, and like they are part of the Ocean Sound community.
Koh Tao is a backpacker’s heaven, and along with that can comes a pretty strong party culture. The experience offered at Ocean Sound is a really fun one, but in a high-vibe,healthy way. The instructors and students are all so welcoming and friendly that it’s easy to connect with one another, and many people form friendships that extend beyond the classes. The staff and students alike often go out for meals and beach excursions together, and many of their yogis stay connected beyond Koh Tao, forming lifelong friendships! It’s a very positive, nourishing environment.
Cynthia hopes for the studio to just keep evolving. Ocean Sound’s growth has always happened very organically; it comes from a place of authentic love for what they do, rather than the desire to expand a business. They just want to keeping serving their students as best they can, and allow the rest to happen naturally.
Koh Tao offers a wonderful place to do this, with its beautiful surroundings, beaches and palm trees all around and the hot Thai sun overhead. It’s a very small island so super easy to get around, but there’s so much on offer, from diving and yoga (of course) to beautiful hikes, great restaurants, funky beach bars, rock climbing, paddle boarding, gyms… everything you could possibly need or want! It allows you to meet so many people from all around the world; they’ve all got such different backgrounds and unique stories, but somehow have all ended up on this tiny tropical island. It’s really amazing!
Ocean Sound’s goal is to make yoga accessible to everyone. With classes about connection not competition, they practice to support one another, create good vibes, and celebrate movement, stillness, life and breath.
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