This form of yoga uses a “hammock,” a U-shaped loop of fabric suspended from the ceiling, to enhance a yoga practice. The hammock is a tool to help your postures, says Carmen. “If you can’t do yoga, the hammock will hold you, so you can do it,” she says. “If you’re already an efficient yogi, the hammock can deepen your practice and make postures more challenging.” To learn more, I spoke with April Tucker, a Newbury Park-based trainer of yoga teachers who develops yoga programming, including aerial yoga, for various companies and nonprofits. April emphasizes the playfulness that comes from the feeling that you’re defying gravity. “The biggest benefits of aerial yoga include a sense of freedom and play in a supportive harness that allows you to float and work with gravity for decompression and tension relief.” April also advises that beginning aerial yoga students may experience some discomfort when first using the hammocks, but it doesn’t last long. “In very little time, their sensitivities lessen as they develop an awareness of body placement, weight distribution and learning to control the hammock by isolating the core so as not to go too deep into the postures too quickly. Once students move past the initial ‘ouch factor,’ they are able to experience the true joy, release, and other benefits that aerial yoga offers.” Because body weight is supported by the hammock, postures that normally could not be achieved are possible with aerial yoga. That means even those with certain physical limitations, restrictions or disabilities can practice yoga, says April. Carmen says she loves introducing aerial yoga to people with conditions like fibromyalgia or arthritis and seeing how they are able to experience movement that helps with strength and balance. “A lot of people don’t realize how much they need yoga,” she says. “Those who try aerial feel a change within five days.” I definitely felt a change right away as I worked through the poses under Carmen’s instruction. My core was immediately challenged in ways it never had been (planks are much harder!) and my spine came alive after doing exhilarating inversions that optimized alignment. I could feel the increased blood flow, especially when upside down, and my muscles felt energized and lengthened. Going through the poses was also incredibly calming as I focused on balancing and stabilizing myself and learning to trust myself and the hammock to hold me. The final pose, shavasana, made perfect use of the hammock as I lay suspended in yards of fabric cradling me from head to toe as my breathing slowed and I reveled in the peace of my aerial yoga experience.
TRY A CLASS 5 Point Yoga (kids; adult classes available upon request) 23410 Civic Center Way, Ste. E-3, Malibu www.5pointyoga.com | (310) 455-6681
Cool Hot Yoga (AntiGravity Aerial Yoga) 23681 Calabasas Road, Calabasas www.coolhotyoga.com | (818) 222-4949
The Aerial Studio (AIReal Yoga) 4476 DuPont Court, Ste. B, Ventura theaerialstudio.net | (805) 340-3412
V-Fit Studio (AIReal Yoga) 4538 Westinghouse St., Ste. B, Ventura www.vfitstudio.com | (805) 535-4277 WINTER 2017 | WWW.BEYONDTHEACORN.COM 29