A melting pot of stretching exercises, discover why Aerial Silks might be the best fully body workout you’ve ever tried. Read on to find out what makes Aerial Silks so special.
When my friend Christine invited me to join her Aerial Silks class, my mind conjured up flashbacks of the 2010 Grammy’s where singer songwriter Pink sang her song, ‘Glitter in the Air’ mid-air in aerial silks (a routine she is well known for when she goes on her world tours). To say I was intimidated to try this alternative work-out routine would be an understatement.
After some convincing, I joined my friend in her new found hobby and exercise program to discover how much I loved it and would recommend it to anyone and everyone to try it at least once.
AERIAL SILKS
Aerial Silks is a full-body workout from your upper body to shoulder muscles. It is a melting pot of stretching exercises: Pilates based core moves, strength training, balance and posture work, and aerial challenges (that ensure new brain to body connections).
Secured from the ceiling are two lengths of fabrics that you maneuver yourself (and your full body weight) up and down these silks as instructed by your head teacher. As you learn ways to wrap the silks around your body (or vice versa) you begin to improve your flexibility as you achieve incredible poses mid-air.
AERIAL CLASSES
Every class begins with a warm-up to help avoid injury or cramps, followed by some cardio such as running to increase the heart rate, then some gentle moving stretches, and finally working with the silks. This final stage begins with warm-up climbs, suspending mid-air, and body conditioning. When everyone in class is comfortable on the silks, the class starts to learn new more intricate moves. While also revisiting older moves to ensure everyone gets their opportunity to master the skills.
Each class is different as every instructor has their own style and preferred variation of moves that they incorporate into their classes. Some common moves that are covered in class are known as ‘foot-locks’, ‘French climbs’, and ‘candy-canes’.
HEALTH BENEFITS
FLEXIBILITY
Aerial Silks helps to increase flexibility in the body with minimal impact. The extra freedom the body has to move around when in the air increases flexibility. As you maneuver between positions, your weight is off the ground, strengthening joints and ligaments. It will also help you discover areas of stiffness in your muscles that you hadn’t realized were there even for season yogis!
MUSCLES
Aerial Silks is a great workout to strengthen muscles that may be difficult to work on otherwise. While many traditional exercises neglect upper body strength, Aerial Silks improves core, arms, legs, and grip strength with each position on the silks. For instance, turning the body upside down once on the silks is equivalent to doing 20 sit ups. After the position is achieved, the pose is held for about thirty seconds. This pause also helps increase muscle gain.
FOCUS
A good focus is beneficial in all areas of life, not just when working out. The positions your body will be in during an Aerial Silks class will be quite challenging and will require attention to control your movements. Each pose is then held for about 30 seconds. These pauses serve as anchors to hold the position and increase your focus.
STRESS RELIEF
Stress is often stored in our body as tension which builds up in our muscles and joints. Aerial Silks helps release this pressure and help improve posture. During a session, when the body is suspended in the air, the body experiences deep muscle relaxation throughout. This relieves the stored stress in the body as an abundance of oxygen floods the brain (crucial for brain function). With each pose, the spine becomes decompressed relieving more stored stress in another form.
CONCLUDING REMARKS
Aerial silk classes are one of the best mind-body activities. If you’re looking for a new challenge or an out-of-the-box workout routine, Aerial Silks may just be for you!
