International Day of Yoga: a yogi’s guide to investing

By Staci West on 15 June 2026 in Basics

I have practised yoga on and off for more than a decade. I’ve also looked at enough investment portfolios over the past eight years working at FundCalibre to know that, strangely, the two have more in common than they probably should.

Yoga is often thought of as stretching and strength. Investing is often thought of as numbers and graphs. But both are really about something much simpler: balance; discipline, and knowing when to hold a position (and when to ease out of it).

So, in the spirit of International Day of Yoga on 21 June, let’s see what some of the most popular yoga poses would look like in fund form.

Downward-Facing Dog

Downward Dog is the pose you come back to again and again. It stretches everything, builds strength, and somehow manages to feel like both effort and rest at the same time. It’s a key foundational pose in Vinyasa practices. In other words, it’s a “core” pose. That makes it a natural fit for global equity funds, the core of many long-term portfolios.

T. Rowe Price Global Select Equity can sit in that same “foundation” role. This fund has all the hallmarks of a high-quality portfolio, with a strong risk management framework in pursuit of creating a portfolio that looks to outperform over a full market cycle. The fund has returned 67% over the past five years compared with 50% for the IA Global sector*.

Child’s pose

SVS RM Defensive Capital sits in that “protect first” mindset. It targets long-term capital growth with capital preservation at its core. It aims to deliver positive absolute returns over rolling three-year periods, in a range of market conditions, with less volatility than equity funds.

Mountain pose

Mountain pose looks simple from the outside. You’re essentially “just” standing there, but it isn’t passive. When done correctly, you’re engaging your muscles and aligning your body with a purpose – more so than when you’re normally standing. Think of it as your structural, strong base.

Murray Income Trust is exactly that: a steady UK equity core with a focus on delivering both income and capital growth over time. Now managed by Artemis since March 2026, it remains a flexible, high-conviction portfolio of UK stocks run by an experienced trio of managers.

FSSA Asia Focus fits neatly into this space. A concentrated, long-term approach to Asian equities, it requires conviction through cycles rather than constant tinkering. The fund places a particular emphasis on governance and investing in quality companies that will respect the interests of minority shareholders.

Tree pose

Tree pose is all about balance. From the outside, you should look calm and still, but in reality you’re constantly making micro-adjustments to keep that steady and strong foundation — and all on one foot!

BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Balanced sits across asset classes, aiming to smooth returns through diversification. The fund looks to achieve a balance between income and capital growth by investing in both equities and bonds.

Triangle pose

Triangle pose is another foundational pose in yoga, a sense of controlled tension with a twisting motion in the torso.

Forward Fold

Forward fold is meant to be a calming stretch. Unless, of course, you have tight hamstrings — in which case it becomes a slow negotiation with gravity. The goal, however, is often to lower the intensity (and your heart rate) by bringing you inward and releasing tension in your spine to promote relaxation.

For our purposes, I’m going to say that’s close to short-duration fixed income. Artemis Short-Duration Strategic Bond sits in that lower-volatility part of the bond universe, designed to reduce interest rate sensitivity and provide a more stable experience. It focuses on risk control and stability in uncertain markets.

What this all means

If this all feels a little unusual, that’s fair, you probably didn’t expect a yoga lesson when you came to our investment website today, but the point isn’t that investing is yoga. It’s that both reward the same thing: structure; patience and awareness of how different positions work together.

A good yoga practice isn’t made of one pose held forever. And a good portfolio isn’t built on one idea stretched too far.

It’s a flow of strength, balance, recovery and conviction repeated over time.

*Source: FE Analytics, total returns in pounds sterling, 4 June 2021 to 5 June 2026