what someone (i) who has done aerial yoga (over) 150 times brings to class
huge news, jenn nation:
this is just one studio, my "main studio". i actually started my aerial yoga journey in manhattan in 2017 where there is a great studio, it's just inconveniently located for me. also a bit pricy. anyway, the majority of these 150 classes were from between june 2023 and now. in june my job was driving me 🍌 bananas 🍌 and i knew i needed to anchor myself to something physical and away from a screen or else i was going to start a podcast.
aerial yoga helps me develop significant upper body and hip flexor strength, improve my literal balance, hang upside down like a bat a lot (which does wonders for my lower back), and offers me a couple hours a week where literally nothing is in my mind except "don't let go with that one hand or else you'll fall". in my years of classes, i have not seen a single person get injured except for one student who landed on their aluminum water bottle that was on their mat when they were doing a flip out of the silks - but she was able to walk it off and finish the class.
my studio has a $120/month unlimited pass which i use the shit out of. the teachers are great and the facilities are well-sized - it is not uncommon to find students removing or putting back on shoes in the hallway outside the manhattan studio space because of its tiny size. one thing that space has that my main studio does not have, though, are free mats. so let's talk about what i bring to class in a studio where one must rent a mat if they don't bring one.
my mat
i'm not paying $5 to rent a mat! if i rented a mat for 150 classes it would add up to 750 united states dollars!! for almost a year i was using a cheap, fugly mat i got from hell aka the wall street tj maxx. then i realized that because the mat is the single most important prop next to the silks (this is aerial yoga, not aerial circus - an important distinction imho), i should have a really good one. in may of 2024 i dropped $94 (or a month and a half of rentals) on a manduka grp adapt yoga mat. this isn't sponsored by the way - in fact, the one i got isn't even in stock (jet black, 71"). it's surprisingly hard to find a plain black yoga mat!
i got the grp because it was spoken highly of by people who go to hot yoga. i did hot yoga several years ago and hated it, by the way, so you shan't be getting a review of this mat in a hot yoga setting from me, but a pro tip of mine is to follow what the hot yoga folks are doing because they are putting their gear through the fucking ringer. anyway, the grp has performed SO well for me in the last 18 months of me using it and still looks and feels as good as new. one thing to watch out for is that it's a heavy mat - 5.5 lbs, which i felt immediately when i carried it the first time. speaking of carrying...
mat carrier
this mat was significantly bigger and heavier than my old mat, so i needed a new bag for it. i got the go play mat carrier which was 3.0 at the time, now it's 4.0 - whatever that means, i can't find a changelog. oh, and i paid $40. in the same order i got a small bottle of manduka's mat wash because i didn't want to risk ruining the mat with some secondary market cleanser before my adhd was ready to become an expert on yoga mat wash formulas (i'm still waiting for that to happen).
the bag holds the mat via two buckle straps that are easy to put on and very strong. they're also adjustable so if you like to bring your own yoga blanket or towel (my studio provides blankies) it could absolute hold both. in the storage pouch i keep miscellaneous smaller yoga necessities.
miscellaneous smaller yoga necessities
these items are pretty self explanatory
- hair ties, for my hair
- pepper spray, for my commute
- small hand towel, for my sweat
water bottle
i have to admit, i often forget to bring water, but it's okay because i often show up to class hydrated and then chug a bunch of water after i get home. if it's an intermediate class, though, i'm bringing water, because i know i'm going to be doing a lot of back flips which give me heartburn lol.
that's pretty much it. like with most physical activities, you don't need a lot of things but the things you do need you should try to invest in once you realize you're taking it seriously. go on reddit and look for gear recommendations, and keep a list of things you want but aren't quite ready to buy yet - you may come across a sale at some point. stay hydrated, and don't let go of the silk if the instructor says not to let go of the silk.
here's to (over) 150 more tension-free inversions! 🥂 (non-alcoholic)
xoxo jenn