Which is better, aerial yoga or “normal” yoga?
This is a question I got asked a lot when I first began offering aerial yoga, and everyone who asked it wanted a definitive answer. The media wanted to know if aerial yoga was going to become a trend they should be the first to report on. Students wanted to know if they could get a “summer body” quicker. And yoga teachers wanted to know if it would be a valuable add to their resume if they learned how to teach it.
My answer to that question of which is better might surprise you – I believe that the two modalities are equally beneficial for you. And in fact, the best way to get further on the path to yoga, is to practice both of them.
Let me explain why…
Let’s say your car runs out of gas. Another car comes along to help you get yours off to the side of the road. Which is better, push your car from behind, or pull it from in front? Assuming you have the proper equipment to do either, and there aren’t mitigating safety factors to account for, both pushing and pulling will get the job done. Now also consider this – wouldn’t it be quicker to both push the car from behind and pull the car from in front at the same time?
Traditional “floor” yoga is like pushing your car from behind. As you move through a class, you bend and twist your body from many different angles, always pushing into the earth to strive for spinal length.
Aerial yoga is like pulling your car from in front. As you move through a class, many of the positions use the hammock to support a dangling body, gravity gently pulling the spine longer as it coaxes the body towards the earth.
Both will encourage your spine to lengthen. And by practicing both, you take advantage of additional benefits unique to each type of yoga, which in turn will accelerate your progress.
We practice the yoga asanas (physical postures) for many different reasons, some for physical health and some for mental health. And, just as we don’t have to choose which of those two types of health is better, we don’t have to choose only one way to achieve them. Let’s choose all the tools available to us to gain overall, holistic health!
