Look, we’d never call ourselves fitspo, or even describe the lifestyle we lead as particularly ‘healthy,’ but darn it, if there’s a new fitness trend that pops up in Brisbane you just know we’re going to try it. That’s what we’re here for. So, when we saw that anti-gravity yoga was available to try in Brisbane we ran, not walked, to Inspire Cycle to check it out.
A little nervous, and feeling less flexible than the class probably required, but full of excitement, we walked into Inspire Cycle ready to fly. The studio is stunning; the all-white space features chilled lemongrass scented towels, beauty stations and hair tools in the bathroom and a roster of fit, energetic staff to make sure you’re ready and rearing to go for you work out.
Before you can get to the big-kid version of the class you need to complete a few prerequisite ‘beginners’ classes first (no one wants to pull a hammie!), so that’s what we did. Walking in to the room is kind of intimidating; the yoga silks hang from the air—a lot higher than we were expecting, if we’re honest—and our mega-fit and mega-flexible instructor Ruby is there ready to greet us.
First things first, Ruby makes sure the silks are at the right height for each of us, then she takes us through some warm up moves. It’s surprisingly fun and, shockingly, still relaxing AF. After our warm up it’s time to bring out the big guns; we’re going upside down, baby! The process to get upside down involves a lot of flexibility in the legs, but we did it, damn it (no, it wasn’t as graceful as it could have been, but hey, it’s the thought that counts, right?).
Once we’d gotten comfortable with working out upside down, suspended on a sheet of silk we got into the more ‘work out-y’ aspect of the class and began some more traditional yoga flows and ab work that incorporated the silks.
Once all the hard stuff is out of the way (the actual workout stuff), Ruby instructs us to lie back into our silks and relax, sort of like a giant silk hammock. Complete with chilled out music, words of affirmation and the scent of lemongrass candles, it’s pretty easy to fill wholly relaxed. As Ruby continues her words of affirmation, she gives each of us a tiny push so we can swing slowly as we practice mindfulness techniques. Actual Bliss.
The verdict? Aerial yoga is a low-impact, big result work out that we will definitely do again. And again. You feel taller, more flexible and a whole lot more yoga zen after a workout. And yes, we did do a back flip.
To try anti-gravity yoga be sure to check out Inspire Cycle on The Directory for more info.
Image credit: Inspire Cycle