Oxford yoga teacher takes to narrowboat on River Thames

People in America, Australia and from across Europe have been tuning in to Harriet McAtee’s classes, which she broadcasts from the River Thames in Oxford.

The 30-year-old Australian took over Nourish Yoga Training in April of last year, with each class involving rearranging of furniture on the 72ft long narrowboat.

Using the boat as a yoga studio comes with logistical problems, as Ms McAtee explained.

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“The narrowboat is 6ft wide and I am 6ft tall,” she said.

“When I extend my arms out I can touch the wall and the window, so I can’t extend my arms fully.

“The ceiling is 6ft3 so I can’t lift my arms up above my head.

“There’s a little bit of movie magic that happens when I’m broadcasting on Zoom to get my whole body in the frame.

Harriet McAtee has been teaching yoga from her narrowboat. Picture: Victoria Jones/ PA

“So it’s tight, but I’ve adapted and I make light of it when I’m teaching on Zoom.

“I think my students really like that I live and teach on a narrowboat, it’s a bit different.”

Those students have been watching from around the globe in the last 10 months.

The narrowboat is only 6ft wide. Picture: Victoria Jones/ PA

“We can sometimes be in a session and we’ve got nearly every time zone covered, I never thought that would happen,” Ms McAtee said.

“I ran a class end of last year and there was a student in Australia who was getting up at 3.30 in the morning.”

Originally from Brisbane, Ms McAtee has lived in the UK for five years.

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She said: “This is a time when everybody is stuck at home and it’s nice to feel like you’re doing something and connecting with people, there’s a real sense of community, which I think people really need.

“When it’s been the deepest darkest days of lockdown and motivation has been low, I touch back into how incredible the community of people that I get to work with is and that’s always a source of inspiration.

“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else other than my boat during lockdown.

“It’s such a great way to live, it’s such a good lifestyle.

“Yeah, it can be a bit cold in winter, and the mud is annoying, but to be able to look out my window onto the river and into nature is pretty incomparable.”

Harriet McAtee on her Oxford narrowboat. Picture: Victoria Jones/ PA

Ms McAtee leads Nourish Yoga Training’s team of six, which delivers classes for students and teachers to an average of 10 people a day.

She emphasised their approach to yoga draws on ‘a bit of everything’ and their focus on inclusivity allows them to work with pregnant women, those with mental health conditions or people who might find mainstream yoga challenging.

With studios closing due to the pandemic, Ms McAtee said it has been a ‘really tough’ time for her and fellow yoga teachers.

Ms McAtee is the is the founder and lead trainer at nourishyogatraining.com