Yoga for Aerialists: Splits

I'm extremely excited to share with you the first installment of Yoga for Aerialists! It's a series about two of my favorite things...yoga and circus. So let's get down to it, today we're talking about splits. Specifically left and right front splits.

Even though splits can be challenging, they are often one of the first poses beginning aerial students learn. For flying trapeze, it might be the second trick you learn, for aerial silks it could be the first one you learn after you nail your double foot lock, and for lyra you may learn it on the bottom bar the very first day you ever place your hands on the apparatus. It can be intimidating, yes, but the good news is you don't need perfectly flat splits on the floor to make them look pretty up in the air. But if you'd like to work on your technique, yoga is a great option.

(Side note: one trick if you want to make your splits "sparkle," as my fly gal CC would say, hold your splits position open at catch point, slowly bringing the legs together as you make your way to poles in-hands).

Before stretching, it's important to warm up your body to prevent injury. Start your practice with a few Sun Salutations. Also, be sure to include some planks; they are a great way to create heat, fire up the core and engage the entire body. I love this sequence put together by MOVE NOURISH BELIEVE, which starts with Sun Salutation A (Surya Namaskar A) before moving on to various plank positions. This flow will not only get the blood moving, it will also condition your upper body and core. AND it also includes Dolphin pose, which is one of my favorite postures to prep the upper body and core for inversions, which are of course totally circus-y. haha

Below are a selection of postures to assist you in your front splits journey. Hold each of the poses for 15 seconds. Breath should be moving freely at all times.

Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

1. Lower to your hands and knees on the mat, placing wrists directly below the shoulders and knees directly below the hips. Finger tips should be spread and the weight should be distributed evenly across the palm.

2. Tuck your toes under, lifting the knees off the ground. Draw the hips up towards the sky and press them back away from your hands, creating a modified v-shape with the body. It's okay to walk your feet back a step and also keep a bend to the knees. It's most important to maintain a long spine and distribute the weight equally in the both hands and feet, keeping the shoulders square.

3. Relax the shoulders away from the ears, allowing the shoulder blades to slide down the back towards the tailbone.

4. Your ears should be in line with the biceps and the focal point is between the feet.

Benefits for Aerialists 

+Strengthens the arms, legs and torso

+Stretches the palms, chest, back, hamstrings, calves and feet

+Energizes the body

Runner's Lunge

1. Start in Downward Facing Dog

2. Look at the mat between your hands and step one foot up between your thumbs. Bend the front knee, aligning it directly above the ankle.

3. The wrists should be directly below the shoulders. You can rise up onto fingertips as pictured above or keep the palms flat on the ground.

4. The back leg should be long and lifted, knee pointed towards the ground and the toes tucked. Flexing the foot will help engage the leg.

5. Engage the core to lift the torso away from the front thigh, keeping a long spine.

Benefits for Aerialists 

+Strengthens the arms and legs

+Stretches the groin

Lizard lunge (Utthan Pristhasana)

1. Starting in a runner's lunge position, bring both hands to the inside of the front foot and walk the front foot out to the edge of the mat. Align the hands so that the wrists are directly below the shoulders.

2. You have the option to stay in this position or to go deeper (as pictured above), lower the back knee to the ground and untuck the back toes, resting the top of the foot on the mat. This is an intense hip and hamstring stretch so proceed with caution.

3. Press into the hands or forearms lifting the chest to avoid collapsing into the shoulders, gazing forward to keep the chest open.

4. To add additional challenge, replace the hands with the elbows, lowering down to the forearms.

Benefits for Aerialists 

+Strengthens the inner thigh muscles of the front leg

+Stretches the hip, hamstrings, quadriceps, groin, hip flexors

Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana)

1. Begin in runner's lunge position.

2. Lower the back knee to the ground and untuck the back toes so that the top of the foot rests on the mat.

3. Engage the core and the lower abdominals

4. Slowly lift the arms, reaching the fingertips towards the ceiling, aligning the biceps with the ears. Palms should face towards each other. Keep the arms active, but relax the top of shoulders away from the ears.

5. The focal point can be directly forward or slightly up towards the ceiling.

Benefits for Aerialists 

+Stretches the hip, hamstrings, quadriceps, groin
+Strengthens the shoulders, arms, core and knees
+Improves balance

Half Monkey / Half Front Splits (Ardha Hanumanasana)

1. Begin in runner's lunge position. 

2. Lower the back knee to the mat.

3. Move the hips towards the back foot, keeping them aligned so that both hip bones are facing towards the top of the mat. Keep the glutes lifted off off the back leg.

4. As the hips float back, straighten out the front leg, coming on to the heel of the front foot. It's okay to keep a bend to the front knee.

5. Flexing the foot, drawing the toes towards the front knee will help engage the leg.

6. Inhale, rising up to fingertips as you lengthen the spine. 

7. Exhale, folding down over the leg.

8. To decrease the intensity of the stretch, walk the hands closer to the torso or place them on top of blocks. To add a challenge, walk the hands beyond the foot.

Benefits for Aerialists 

+Strengthens the hamstrings
+Stretches the hip, hamstrings, calves, lower back
+Preparation for Hanumanasana

Monkey Pose / Front Splits (Hanumanasana)

1.  Starting in a lunge position, place fingertips on the floor on either side of the front leg

2.  Exhale and lean torso forward, straightening back knee as sliding leg back as moving front thigh closer to floor. Stop straightening back knee as reach limit of stretch. (low lunge position) The back leg knee should be facing towards the ground, maintain this internal/neutral rotation of the back leg.

3. The hips should be squared towards the front of the mat, resist allowing the pelvis to rotate out to the side as you move the front heel away from the torso, straightening the leg to its own degree. You can continue moving back knee away from body as well. It's okay to feel sensation in this pose but never pain or strain.

4. Actively engage the legs to maintain this alignment, resisting the urge to roll either knee out to the side. Use props (blocks/blankets) to assist in maintaining integrity of pose, placing a block on either side of the front leg to rest the hands upon and/or placing a rolled up blanket underneath the back leg.

5. Aim to stay in pose for at least :30 seconds

6. To come out of pose, slide front heel back towards body, meeting back in low lunge position

7. Step back into Downward Facing Dog between sides. It is a nice counter pose to Splits/Hanumanasana. Stay in down dog for a few breaths before switching legs.

Benefits for Aerialists

+Strengthens and tones hamstrings

+Opens hips and groin and psoas muscles

+Improves balance

Let's Flow!
Putting it all together. The poses above can easily be linked together in a sequence, just do them in the order the are listed above. Here's what it would look like:

Repeat this sequence three times. Feel free to end your practice by taking child's pose (Balasana) for a few deep breaths.

Happy Stretching!

DISCLAIMER:

I love sharing what I know and helping others enjoy yoga, however, please note, I am not a doctor and you should always consult your physician before starting an exercise program. Also, I am not with you to offer assistance or guidance so please proceed with caution, listen to your body and never force yourself into a position. Always ease yourself into a posture and at no point should you ever feel strain or pain when stretching. If something feels too intense, please back out of it. With time, patience and consistency, you'll increase your strength and mobility safely.

Yoga for Aerialists

I am introducing a new series on the blog called Yoga for Aerialists. If you already practice both, you may already understand how yoga and aerial arts seem to go hand-in-hand. I practice mainly flow-style yoga and I often find myself thinking about what postures would be a great fit for someone working on strength and mobility for aerial arts. It may not be possible to climb up 20' in the air every time we wish to condition, so searching for alternative methods of exercise is not a bad idea.

Side note: it's also worth investing in a pull up bar. I have the same one Laura mentions in her post, the Iron Gym, and I love it! It's super easy to install and can be easily removed and stowed away. Most yogis I've spoken with (myself included) were completely humbled their first time climbing up on a silk. Even if you do a ton of yoga, aerial arts will challenge you in an entirely different way. In yoga we do a bunch of pushing motions (planks, down dogs, chaturangas, arm balances) but we rarely have the opportunity to pull up the body the way we do in aerial arts. Can anyone think of any similar pulling movements we do in yoga? Please comment below, I'd love to get a dialog going on this subject.

But with that, yoga does have many benefits for aerialists, so I'll be sharing some yoga poses and short flows that can be practiced alone or in conjunction with your aerial conditioning.

I love sharing what I know and helping others enjoy yoga, however, please note, I am not a doctor and you should always consult your physician before starting an exercise program. Also, I am not with you to offer assistance or guidance so please proceed with caution, listen to your body and never force yourself into a position. Always ease yourself into a posture and at no point should you ever feel strain or pain when stretching. If something feels too intense, please back out of it. With time, patience and consistency, you'll increase your strength and mobility safely.

With that, happy stretching!

If you have a particular trick, skill or area of the body you would like to work on, just let me know in the comments below!

Follow the White Rabbit

I took this photo exactly one year ago today.

I was sitting on the beach with my trapeze partner in crime and best friend, Alex, watching the moon set as the sun rose. It was beautiful and oddly poetic, a symbol of all the changes that were on the horizon. We camped at the beach the night before to celebrate our final days together before he and a group of friends ventured off to California. My trapeze home had closed up to relocate for the summer and with it was going the people I had come to consider my close friends and my family. It was a sad time for me and I struggled for months, coping with the loss of the place that brought me so much joy. Thirty feet up in the air was my therapy and sharing our joint successes (and set backs) as a group gave me such a sense of comraderie and kinship, it was pretty tough losing it all at the same time.

So as we quietly watched the night transition to the day (and snacked on white fudge Flipz) my thoughts wandered around my life and career, feeling like I was trapped as an observer, unable to control where they were going. I had no idea how I was going to break free and make the changes I needed in order to be happy. I watched so many of my friends chase their dreams and crush their goals. And while it was so inspiring, it was also incredibly difficult not to compare my life to everyone else's. I decided at that point that I needed to stop being paralyzed by the comparison game and start acting on creating the life I wanted for myself.

I was halfway done with my yoga teacher training and I knew that I wanted to teach yoga to some capacity in the future. I was already teaching flying trapeze and needed it in my life even though my rig was closed. Yoga and trapeze changed me in the best way possible and it was time that I figured out how to continue sharing my passions with others. It was a scary thought, it can be notoriously difficult to make either a lucrative career and both come with the possibility of burn out and exhaustion, but if I never tried, I'd always wonder what if. 

So it's now one year later since that night on the beach and my life has significantly changed. Since then, I graduated teacher training and I've been leading a group of friends through their yoga practice every other Sunday. It turns out that teaching yoga energizes and inspires me in a way that I never even knew was possible. Also, since last summer, I've managed to continue flying and teaching trapeze as well. 

And now as the moon sets and the sun rises once again, I am in a much different place than I was that night on the beach. 

This time as the trapeze rig makes its way back out west, with it not only goes my trapeze family, but also myself.

I'm following the white rabbit straight to California, where I will spend a summer teaching flying trapeze. Leaving my full time job is a risky (and terrifying) move, but I have an amazingly supportive husband and together we'll make it work. It feels incredible to be going after my dreams and I'm very lucky to have Alex supporting me 100%. It's uncertain what will happen beyond the summer, but we're embracing it with open arms and an open heart. 

The moon is setting on my old life and the sun is rising on the new...I'm nervous, I'm excited and above all, I'm ready.

Read Run Write with Kahrenheit 4.01

My dear sister featured me on her blog today. If you'd like to read more about yoga, flying trapeze and my vegetarian diet, please hop on over to Read Run Write with Kahrenheit. Once you're there, stick around and read her musings on food, travel, running and life. She's lived a fascinating existence so far, having spent 5 years in Japan and most recently traveling the world as a flight attendant. Follow her as she explores Orlando's food culture and hits the bricks along the way, running shoes strapped tightly to her feet, of course! Also, be sure to check out her flying trapeze adventures! Come Fly with Me and First Flight of 2014.

Yoga Flow Christmas Tree Pose

I've recently had the pleasure of sharing yoga with a group of friends, both experienced yogis and new. It's been a really cool to share what I've learned over the past 10+ years practicing and past year learning to teach with people closest to me. This year I've missed out on quite a few nights out, birthday celebrations and bowling alley sessions to dedicate my time to becoming a yoga instructor. It wasn't easy, but I'm so happy that I now get to make up time with my friends by spending it together on our mats.

It's been almost a year since I decided to just go for it and apply to the Full Circle Yoga Teacher Training. At that time I was unsure if teaching was something I really wanted to do. (I'm shy and I'm an introvert). I knew I wanted a deeper understanding of yoga, so if anything I hoped I'd at least take away the physical and mental benefits of a yoga immersion. I also wanted to be able to share yoga with my husband, something he was unaware of at the time. haha! He now happily practices with me a few times a week, which is really special and awesome. (Something he might vehemently deny, if asked haha).

So as I sit here right now, listening to the playlist I put together for tomorrow's class, I'm so sure that teaching yoga is something I need to do to some capacity. I really hope to be able to carve out more time for teaching yoga in the future. I really wish I had more than 24 hours in a day so I could do it all! haha!

Side bar: I named tomorrow's playlist "Yoga Flow Christmas Tree Pose" due to a little holiday inspiration I included in there. Also, can you guess which pose will be part of our practice?

If anyone reading this is curious about my experience with the program or has any questions about my experience with yoga teacher training in general, feel free to leave me a comment or email me at hop.float.fly[at]gmail.com.

One nice perk of FCY Yoga Teacher Training: we started out every Sunday of YTT with a rise & shine practice in the park:

Photo Credit: Full Circle Yoga

Hop, Float and Flying in 2014

Well, as the year comes to an end (and another birthday quickly approaches), I thought why not start off this shiny new blog with a little year-in recap of Hop Float Fly fitness-related adventures. As I say every year, where the heck did it go? It's almost December and the past 11 months have flown by once again. 2014. 

After months of deliberation, I finally decided to move forward with training to become a certified yoga instructor. I was accepted into the Full Circle Yoga teacher training program with 28 other eager yogis. After our first weekend together, I knew I had made the right decision and I knew I was embarking on a life-changing journey. We spent one weekend a month together from January - September and though the long days were both physically and mentally exhausting, I always found myself leaving on Sunday feeling so happy and energized. The experience was something I have difficulty even putting into words, but I've grown so much as a person as a result of this experience and if I could go back in time, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

I posted this on Facebook in August:
We just wrapped up yoga teacher training weekend #8 of 9 at Full Circle Yoga. I will never forget this beautiful, intense and special weekend. I had the opportunity to lead my fellow yoga TT's through a 60-minute class. I was so nervous and excited to finally share what I've learned with the sweet yogis whom I've been sharing this magical journey with for the past 8 months. So much love, laughter and support amongst this amazing group of people, I cannot wait until next training weekend. We've all come so far in such a short period of time. It's an incredible reminder that nothing is impossible if we dive deep into the fabric of our own being and really believe in ourselves.





YTT graduation | photo cred: Full Circle Yoga

I've been teaching a bit on the side recently and I'm excited to continue exploring yoga and teaching yoga in the coming months.

2014 was a big for me on the flying trapeze as well. In the fall of 2013 I started working at Trapeze Federation, working board and trying to learn as much as I could about anything trapeze-related. This hobby I had picked up the year before had slowly started becoming a burning obsession. March 25th was my flyer-versary (flyer anniversary) and I ran up to the rig immediately after work to celebrate my first year of flying up in the air.

I spent the majority of the spring at the rig working on half turns, turn around swings and backend tricks. I worked my half turn tirelessly until Rob, my coach and catcher, deemed it ready for catches. We took that trick straight to catch out of lines. I had taken it down to the net so many times OOL and picked up a pretty decent face off to the net, so we were pretty confident everything would go smoothly. Even though the first two catches were misses (and I scored some nice net burn on my elbow), we ended up finally making the connection and May 10th was the day I finally caught my half turn.

Net burn shared between trapeze catcher and flyer best friends

Since then, I have gone on a few flying trapeze adventures, which have brought me to a pretty pink rig out in California (Cotton Candy Club), flying in the Cali mountains with my trapeze family from Florida, a few trips north to Jacksonville to fly with Trapeze High Florida and an unforgettable fly session with the legendary Tony Steele.

Now that Trapeze Federation is back and operating in Orlando for the new season, I'm really excited to continue expanding on everything I've learned this year. I can't even describe how incredible it feels to be back flying regularly again. During the week it's been a bit more difficult to train because of my full-time job, but I'm managing to get in at least one night practice a week, in addition to at least one weekend day. This year I also starting training on trampoline, silks and hoop more regularly. I'm hoping to continue working on those three apparatuses, in addition to flying. Tramp has been really interesting from a cross-training perspective. It's teaching me a great deal about body awareness and staying tight. A few weeks ago on the trampoline I learned how to do a suicide (probably could use a nicer name), which is basically a swan dive that stalls out into front flip. Today I had the opportunity to take it to the fly bar. After working the skill repeatedly, purposely falling towards my face from just about 5' above the trampoline bed, I felt pretty confident dropping down from the bar and executed the dismount without any hesitation on the first try. It still needs some polishing up, but I'm excited to now have another flashy way to leave the bar that isn't another backend trick.

This week coming up should be pretty great. I'm celebrating the anniversary of my birth with a couple flying practices and also with leading a yoga class at the end of the week. There will also be family dinners, friend hang sessions, puppy cuddles and husband beard-snuggles as well. And I will continue the tradition of buying a Christmas tree on my birthday too!

This year has been pretty busy and exhausting and challenging but it's setting itself up for a pretty exciting 2015. I knew this year was going to be hard, but it ended up being even more rewarding than I could have ever imagined. I'm looking forward to making the most out of the final few weeks of the year, both on my mat and in the air, as well as on the ground (and everywhere else) with the people I love. =)