What Is Aerial Yoga? Benefits, Poses, and More

More and more visionaries fed on this shared idea:

• In 2003, Kerry Neal created the “Gravotonics Yoga Swing & Exercise System” in Bali.
• In 2004, Lucas Rockwood developed the Yoga Trapeze in Thailand.

Make sure you have all the equipments needed, such as:

• Aerial hammock/silk.
• Strong ceiling hooks or rigging frame.
• Crash mat for floor support.

• Easier inversions: Thanks to the hanging hammock, you can do easier inverted poses compared to traditional yoga.
• Spinal decompression: The hanging poses in aerial yoga, supported by the hammock, helps to gently elongate and decompress your spine by taking any pressure off it.
• Improves flexibility and mobility: Decompressing the spine allows for deeper stretches that can increase a yogi’s flexibility and mobility.
• Strengthens your body: The hammock supports you while also engaging your muscles for balance and movement, which strengthens your core and upper body.
• Enhances spinal alignment and posture: Decompressing the spine creates space between vertebrae to alleviate pressure, which ultimately restores its alignment and posture.
• Improves balance and coordination: The challenge of staying stable in a pose while hanging mid-air engages and strengthens your stabilizer muscles, improving your overall balance and mind-body coordination.

• Reduces stress and anxiety: The breathing techniques and unique sensation of floating in a hammock calm the nervous system, helping your mind ease stress and anxiety.
• Boosts overall mood: The playful movements involved in aerial yoga improves the release of endorphins, which are peptides produced in the brain that act as natural painkillers and stress relievers.
• Enhances body awareness and mindfulness: As aerial yoga requires deep focus to balance one’s poses, it naturally trains your mind to be more aware and mindful.

No, aerial yoga is safe when practiced correctly. But there are potential risks you should be aware of:

• Falls from improper grip or setup.
• Strain on shoulders or wrists due to improper posture.
• Dizziness from inversions.

A few action items we recommend to stay safe while doing aerial yoga:

• Use certified instructors and professional equipment setup.
• Warm up before class.
• Avoid inversions if pregnant, have glaucoma, or high blood pressure.
• Stop if you feel pain or nausea.

And here’s a quick checklist before practicing aerial yoga as a beginner:

• Wear fitted clothing (no zippers or jewelry).
• Avoid eating right before class.
• Communicate your comfort level with the instructor.

• Start by adjusting the hammock height:
  • Position it about mid-thigh height (low enough that your body can rest just above the floor).
• Sit in the hammock:
  • Stand behind it, grab the fabric, and sit in the center like a swing.
  • Shift your weight evenly into the hammock so it supports your hips and lower back.
• Lean back slowly to enter the pose:
  • Let the fabric support your spine fully.
  • Adjust until the hammock cradles your neck and head comfortably.
• Extend your legs. You can either:
  • Let them hang freely (for gentle traction in the lower back); or
  • Cross at the ankles if you feel more secure.
• Release your arms:
  • Let them rest by your sides, palms facing up.
  • Or you may stretch them overhead for a gentle upper-body opening.
• Close your eyes and relax:
  • Allow your body to surrender to the fabric’s support.
  • Focus on slow, even breathing.
• To exit:
  • Bend your knees and gently roll to one side inside the hammock.
  • Slowly sit up, holding the sides of the fabric for balance.
  • Slowly step your feet down and exit the fabric.

• Adjust the height of the hammock to about hip level.
• Prepare for the pose:
  • Stand behind the hammock.
  • Hold the fabric with both hands, about shoulder-width apart.
  • Step forward and place the front of your pelvis (hip crease) into the hammock.
• Enter the pose:
  • Lower your torso towards the floor.
  • Touch the floor by keeping your arms straight and shoulders open.
  • Step your feet back until your body forms an inverted “V” shape, with the hammock supporting you by your hip.
  • Gently press your heels toward the floor.
  • Relax your head between your arms.
• Adjust the posture:
  • Make sure your hips are lifted and supported by the fabric.
  • Hands should be shoulder-width apart, with your fingers spread wide.
  • Engage your core to protect your lower back.
  • Relax your neck and gaze toward your feet or the mat.
  • Keep your ribs drawn in and your spine long.
• Breathe deeply:
  • Inhale to lengthen your spine.
  • Exhale to gently deepen the stretch through your shoulders and hamstrings.

• Start by setting the hammock at hip height, low enough that it supports your lower back when you lean into it.
• Starting position:
  • Stand with your back to the hammock.
  • Hold the fabric with both hands and press your hips gently into it.
  • Step forward slightly so the fabric sits across your sacrum (the flat bone at the base of your spine), not your lower back.
• Entering the backbend:
  • Engage your core and press the hips into the hammock.
  • Lean back slowly, allowing the fabric to support your lower back.
  • Release your arms overhead or extend them wide like wings.
  • If you’re comfortable, drop your head back gently to deepen the stretch.
  • Keep your feet grounded and knees slightly bent to maintain stability.
• Breathe:
  • Inhale by opening your chest and lengthening the front body.
  • Exhale by relaxing into the hammock’s support, letting gravity create a gentle arch.

• Set the hammock at about the height of your knees (for support under your thighs or shins).
• Starting position:
  • Stand behind the hammock.
  • Place your hands on the mat about shoulder-width apart, like you’re setting up for a regular plank.
  • Then slide one leg at a time into the hammock, resting the fabric just below your shins (or at your ankles for a more advanced version).
• Getting into plank:
  • Walk your hands forward until your body forms a straight line from head to heels.
  • Your shoulders should be stacked over your wrists.
  • Engage your core, glutes, and thighs to stabilize yourself.
• Align your spine:
  • Avoid arching or sagging your lower back.
  • Keep your neck neutral, with eyes slightly ahead of your hands.
• Breathe:
  • Inhale deeply to lengthen your body.
  • Exhale to tighten your abs and stay steady.

• Start by adjusting two hammocks to about hip level.
• Starting position:
  • Stand at the center of the hammocks, one ahead of you and one behind you.
  • Grab both sides of the fabric in front of you and lean slightly back, keeping your arms strong.
  • Lift your left leg and hook the fabric under your thigh (so it supports you just under your glute or mid-thigh).
• Getting into the split:
  • Shift your weight into the leg supported by the hammock.
  • With control, extend your other right leg forward and up, placing it on the fabric behind you.
  • Now, you should have each leg supported by the hammock; one in front and one behind.
• Adjust your grip and balance:
  • Hold the fabric with both hands or extend your arms out for balance.
  • Keep your chest lifted and engage your core.
  • Make sure both legs are fully supported by the hammock (no hanging pressure).
  • Keep your hips squared. Avoid twisting or collapsing one side.
• Breathe:
  • Inhale to lift your chest and lengthen your spine.
  • Exhale to deepen slightly into the stretch, allowing the hammock to support your full-body weight.
• To exit the pose:
  • Bring your hands back to the fabric for support.
  • Bend both knees slightly and bring your legs together.
  • Step one foot at a time back to the floor.
  • Stand tall and take a grounding breath.

• Set the hammock at about hip level.
• Prepare for the shoulder stand:
  • Stand in front of the hammock.
  • Grab the fabric with both hands and sit into it, like sitting in a swing.
  • Slowly lean back so the hammock supports your lower back and hips.
  • Walk your feet forward until your legs are extended and your upper body reclines slightly.
• Entering the position:
  • Engage your core and begin to lift your legs upward, bringing them toward the ceiling to invert your body.
  • As your legs rise, raise your torso as well along with your legs.
  • Adjust your shoulders into the hammock, so that the hammock can support your entire inverted body by the shoulders.
  • Bring your hands to your lower back or hold the hammock’s sides for balance.
  • Adjust until your shoulders and upper arms press lightly into the mat, forming a stable base.
• Adjust your alignment and balance:
  • Make sure your hips are stacked directly above your shoulders, with your entire body inverted in a straight line.
  • Keep your core engaged and spine lengthened.
  • Relax your neck by making sure there is no pressure on the head or cervical spine.
  • Keep your toes pointed up, with your legs active and together.
• Breathe:
  • Inhale as you lengthen through your legs and lift slightly higher.
  • Exhale as you soften your shoulders and deepen your breath.
• To exit:
  • Bend your knees toward your chest.
  • Slowly lower your hips back into the hammock’s support.
  • Place your feet on the ground gently.
  • Rest in a seated or reclined position for a few breaths to neutralize your spine.

• Adjust the height of the hammock to around hip level.
• Starting position:
  • Stand in front of the hammock and place it across your pelvis or hip crease.
  • Grip the fabric firmly with both hands.
  • Walk your feet back until your body forms an angle, with the hammock supporting your hips.
• Enter an aerial plank:
  • Engage your core and glutes, and lift your legs off the floor so your body is parallel to the ground.
  • The hammock should now be under your pelvis, supporting your body weight.
• Transition into an inverted position:
  • Slowly lower your chest down and lift your legs upward so you’re inverted, with the hammock acting as a pivot point at your hips.
  • Keep your hands on the mat or grab the fabric behind you for support.
• Find your Scorpion shape:
  • Bend your knees and bring your feet toward your head, like a scorpion raising its stinger.
  • Arch your back deeply, lifting your chest and gaze slightly forward.
  • The hammock should fully support your hips, allowing your spine to curve gracefully.
• Arm and hand placement (two options):
  • Option 1 (supported) is to keep your forearms or hands on the ground for stability.
  • Option 2 (free-floating) is to extend your arms back to hold the hammock or interlace your fingers behind your head for a fuller expression.
• Breathe:
  • Inhale by lifting your chest and deepening the backbend.
  • Exhale by relaxing into the pose while keeping engagement through the core.
• To exit:
  • Slowly release the arch, bringing your legs back closer to the floor.
  • Gently unwind into an inverted plank or downward-facing position.
  • Lower your feet back to the floor with control.

• Start by setting the hammock’s height to hip level (or slightly below).
• Start position:
  • Stand in front of the hammock.
  • Grab the fabric with both hands and lean your upper back into it.
  • Begin to sit into the hammock, letting it support your lower back and hips, like sitting in a soft swing.
• Getting into inversion:
  • Engage your core and lean back, holding the sides of the fabric.
  • Bring your legs up and hook your knees around the outside edges of the hammock.
  • Once secure, let your upper body invert in a way that your head and arms are hanging freely toward the floor.
  • The hammock should now cradle your hips and lower back as your spine gently decompresses.
• Transitioning into the pose:
  • Bend your knees outward and bring the soles of your feet together (like classic Baddha Konasana).
  • Let your knees drop open naturally; gravity will help deepen the hip opening.
  • You can use your arms to either hold your ankles or feet, or extend your arms out to the sides or overhead for a more relaxed variation.
• Perfecting the alignment:
  • Make sure your hips are centered in the hammock (not slipping too high or low).
  • Keep your neck relaxed by gazing toward the floor or softly closing your eyes.
  • You may engage your inner thighs and core slightly to stay stable.
  • Make sure you’re moving slowly during the transitions; avoid any jerky movement while inverted.
• Breathe:
  • Inhale and feel the spine lengthen and chest open.
  • Exhale by letting your hips and knees relax deeper outward.
• To exit the pose:
  • Bring your knees together to neutralize the hips.
  • Engage your core and grab the hammock sides.
  • Slowly lift your torso upright.
  • Take a few deep grounding breaths before standing.

Aerial yoga is ideal for:

• Anyone seeking variety or fun in fitness.
• People with joint pain or stiffness who still want to experience yoga, as aerial yoga alleviates the pain and stiffness with a supported hammock.

We recommend avoiding aerial yoga and resorting to regular yoga if:

• Pregnant or recently had surgery.
• Have vertigo, glaucoma, or heart issues.
• Have uncontrolled high blood pressure.