One of our favorite articles about Unnata Yoga appeared all the way back in 2006, in the healthy lifestyle website Lime.com!
We loved the fun ice cream yoga analogies the author conjured up, but were super happy that he didn’t miss the deeper point; that Unnata Yoga “remains true to yoga principles and focuses on finding inner peace.” And 13 years later that’s still 100% true.
We’ve recreated the article for easy reading — check it out below!
Aerial Yoga: Grounding with Gravity
by Paul Freibott on June 8, 2006
Sometimes it seems that yoga’s the vanilla ice cream of the body/mind/spirit crowd—people can’t help themselves from sprinkling on their favorite toppings and swirling extras into the basic flavor. How else to perceive AcroYoga, Yogilates, and Cy-Yo, if not as the yogic versions of fudge ripple?
Yes, in Mysore, eyes would surely roll at comparing yoga to a frozen dessert, but in the U.S., yoga can be a delicious starting point for creativity. Just ask Aerial Yoga instructor Michelle Dortignac, who merged her background in dance, her training in the aerial circus art of tissu or “silks,” and her study of yoga at none less than the legendary Dharma Yoga Center in New York. The result: a hybrid form that remains true to yoga principles and focuses on finding inner peace.
How does one feel grounded, without actually being on the ground? “Gravity always works, and it always works in one direction,” Dortignac explains on her website. Students “have no choice but to learn proper alignment.” Aerial Yoga classes take place half on the floor, half “very close to the floor,” with the support of a soft cloth trapeze. Gravity’s effects surely make letting go easier—provided that cloth is tightly secured. According to Dortignac, Aerial Yoga not only helps students understand alignment, but also strengthens core muscles, increases spinal flexibility, avoids back strain, strengthens shoulders and increases shoulder flexibility, and “increases the amount of fun in your life!” Unlike the seemingly similar AcroYoga, which requires a comfortable inversion practice before starting, Aerial Yoga welcomes beginners.
My advice to vanilla yoga purists? Consider it an acquired taste, and take heart. At least it’s not the instant raspberry chai latte version of yoga.
Durante mis primeras prácticas de yoga escuchaba decir a mis maestros que Savasana era la postura más difícil y para mis adentros siempre pensaba: ¡venga ya! ¡que os he visto hacer el Escorpión! Pero la realidad era que cada vez que tenía que entrar en esta postura, tanto al principio como al final de la sesión de yoga, mi mente estaba más activa que nunca y era muy difícil encontrar ese estado de Savasana del que los maestros hablaban… o ¡me dormía! En cualquier caso, no conseguía mantener la conciencia de mi cuerpo y mente completamente relajados en esa entrega preciosa al presente.
Karma is an interesting word in today’s society, in that it can have two meanings:
Recently, Michelle was interviewed by Erika Belanger of the On and Off Your Mat podcasts. In this interview, Michelle dives deep into what brought her to aerial yoga, how it has changed over the years, as well as some benefits and safety precautions.
In general, aerialists are told that combining aerial and pregnancy is a risky combo. Pregnancy is always at the top of the list of contraindications for class. But, there is very little information online (at the time of this publication) about exactly what is risky and what is not. The few blog posts by aerial acrobats describing their own experiences of training through their own pregnancies are anecdotal and mostly refer to acrobatics and not aerial yoga.