Aerial Yoga: A Gentle Introduction for Absolute for Beginner

Section: Warm-Up
Level: Absolute Beginner
Props: Hammock at hip height, yoga mat

Lesson Purpose

This grounding practice helps calm the nervous system, bring awareness to breath, and gently awaken the body before moving into deeper stretches or aerial postures. It’s ideal for first-time students to connect with their breath, build confidence, and feel safe in the hammock environment.

Welcome to your first movement practice.

Begin seated on your mat with your back gently resting against the hammock. Let the fabric support you like a trusted friend.

Close your eyes. Take a moment to arrive. Inhale slowly through your nose… and exhale gently through your mouth. Feel the ground beneath you. Feel the hammock touching your back, like a safety net.

Begin to notice your breath:
Inhale – feel your belly rise.
Exhale – soften your shoulders.

Let’s take 3 more deep breaths together:
1… Inhale calm… Exhale tension.
2… Inhale space… Exhale stress.
3… Inhale light… Exhale heaviness.

Let’s bring some loving attention to your spine — the central channel of movement, energy, and support.

We’ll begin with Spinal Rolls, then explore a hammock-supported Cat-Cow movement to awaken the entire back body.Imagine you’re peeling yourself off a wall. Smooth, slow, and juicy.
Let the hammock act like a railing — not pulling you, but giving you balance and trust.

Beginner Tips:

• Focus on moving from the pelvis and spine — not just the shoulders or head.

• Keep movements smooth and slow.

• If there's any tightness, reduce your range and breathe into the motion.

Breath Cue Sample:

Inhale — open the heart, shine the chest forward…
Exhale — round the back, draw the belly in…

In this grounded version of Aerial Chair Pose, the hammock supports your upper body as you sit back into an imaginary chair with both feet firmly planted on the mat. Holding onto the fabric at shoulder height, your arms stay extended while your hips sink low, activating the legs and core.

From here, we gently lengthen the spine with breath—inhale to lift through the crown of the head, exhale to deepen into the seat—creating space between each vertebra. This traction-like feeling helps release tension from the lower back.

To add side stretches, keep your seat low and begin to sway the upper body side to side, guiding one hand higher on the hammock while the other reaches toward the floor. This movement opens the side body, stretches the ribs, and invites breath into the waist and lower back.

It’s a playful and accessible pose that offers strength, support, and a deep sense of opening—all while staying connected to the ground.

Lesson Purpose

This pose builds lower body strength, improves hip mobility, and cultivates balance — all with the help of the hammock. The support of the fabric allows beginners to access the high lunge shape safely, with reduced pressure on the knees and joints.

In this session, we’ll explore Supported High Lunge, a foundational pose that activates the legs, opens the hips, and helps build balance and body awareness.

The hammock acts as a stabilizing partner — giving your back leg lift and lightness, while encouraging your front leg to ground and strengthen.

What It Strengthens:

• Front thigh (quadriceps), glutes, and core

• Back leg hamstrings and hip flexors (through the stretch)

• Improves ankle and knee stability

Breath Cue Suggestion:

Inhale — lift and open the chest.
Exhale — ground through the front heel and feel your legs engage.

This gentle side stretch opens the ribcage, improves posture, and releases tension in the waist, lats, and shoulders. Using the hammock offers gentle traction and balance support, making it safer and more accessible for beginners to feel a satisfying side-body opening without strain.

Beginner Tips:

• Keep both feet grounded evenly.

• If you feel unstable, reduce the depth of your side bend.

• Imagine reaching up and out, rather than collapsing sideways.

Benefits:

• Releases tightness in the waist, lats, and lower back

• Enhances ribcage mobility for deeper breathing

• Prepares the body for more dynamic flow or inversions

Aerial Dancer Pose is a graceful, standing posture that uses the hammock for balance, support, and active engagement. Holding the hammock in one hand, you reach the opposite foot back into the fabric, letting it cradle the ankle or shin.

As you gently kick the lifted leg into the hammock and extend your chest forward, the front of the body opens—creating a deep stretch through the chest, hip flexor, and thigh. At the same time, the standing leg activates to maintain balance, strengthening the ankle, glutes, and core.

This pose builds both flexibility and strength, helping improve focus, posture, and stability. The hammock adds support, making it accessible and safe even for beginners.

This practice gently stretches the hamstrings, inner thighs, and side body from a safe, supported seated position. Ideal for beginners, this helps improve flexibility without overstretching or straining the lower back. The hammock provides extra support, helping you stay upright and aligned.

Breath Cue:

Inhale — create space in the spine.
Exhale — soften deeper into the stretch.

Beginner Tips:

• Keep a small bend in the knees if the hamstrings are very tight.

• Use yoga blocks under the hands or hammock for extra lift.

• Don’t push to touch your toes — reaching halfway is perfectly fine.

Benefits:

• Gently lengthens hamstrings and inner thighs

• Improves pelvic tilt awareness and posture in forward folds

• Supports nervous system calm and deeper breathing

• Prepares legs for splits or inversions over time

Seated Reverse Tabletop strengthens the glutes, triceps, shoulders, and core, while gently opening the chest and hip flexors. Using the hammock for support makes the pose safer for beginners and helps with lifting the hips without strain.

Muscles Activated:

• Glutes, hamstrings

• Triceps and shoulders

• Core stabilizers

• Chest and hip flexors (through stretch)

?️Breath Cue:

Inhale — lift through the chest and hips.
Exhale — keep pressing down to rise upward.

Beginner Tips:

• If your wrists feel strained, try turning your fingers out slightly or place a soft pad under your hands.

• Keep your neck neutral — avoid dropping the head too far back.

• Don’t worry about height — focus on integrity and muscle engagement.

Benefits:

• Strengthens back body and arms

• Opens chest and shoulders

• Builds awareness of full-body integration

Seated Boat Pose strengthens the core, hip flexors, and spine, helping students build the muscular awareness needed for balance and aerial stability. The hammock gives support under the hips or behind the back, offering confidence and lift for those new to core engagement.

Muscles Activated:

• Deep core (transverse abdominis)

• Hip flexors

• Back extensors (for spinal support)

Breath Cue:

Inhale — lift the chest, feel tall.
Exhale — draw the belly in, hold steady and light.

Beginner Tips:

• If you feel tension in your neck, keep holding the thighs or keep feet on the floor.

• It's better to stay lifted with bent knees than to overextend.

• Use a block under the feet to practice lifting one foot at a time.

Benefits:

• Builds strong, supportive abdominal muscles

• Strengthens the spine and posture muscles

• Develops balance and stability for aerial movement

Inverted Camel Pose in aerial yoga is performed by first anchoring the pelvis in the hammock, then extending the spine into a controlled inversion, with the head dropping below the heart and the chest arching open. The feet may stay in contact with the mat (toe-tucked or flat), or lift off for a more advanced variation.

A gentle, supported inversion to release the spine and calm the mind.

The Aerial Yoga Shoulder Stand is a restorative and empowering inversion where the hips are gently lifted and supported by the hammock while the shoulders stay grounded on the mat. This pose allows beginners to safely explore the sensation of being upside down without placing pressure on the neck or spine.

In this pose, the hammock wraps securely around the sacrum or hips as the upper body stays relaxed and stable. Legs can be bent or extended upward, depending on comfort. The inversion reverses the effects of gravity on the spine, allowing space between the vertebrae and promoting circulation.

This is a wonderful entry point into aerial inversions—it strengthens trust, calms the nervous system, and invites deep awareness of breath and body.

Benefits:

• Gently decompresses the spine

• Releases tension in the lower back

• Improves blood flow and circulation

• Boosts lymphatic drainage and relaxation

• Encourages mindfulness and surrender

• Builds confidence in using the hammock for inversion

Cocoon Pose is a deeply relaxing, meditative position where your entire body is gently cradled by the hammock—like being wrapped in a soft, weightless blanket. After movement, stretching, or inversion, Cocoon Pose invites stillness, grounding, and emotional release.

To enter the pose, you sit in the center of the hammock and carefully lie back until you’re fully enclosed—head, spine, and legs all supported by the fabric. The hammock hugs your body, softens your nervous system, and provides a sense of safety and surrender.

This pose is often used at the end of an aerial yoga practice as a floating savasana, where you can close your eyes, breathe deeply, and allow the body to absorb all the benefits of your session.

? Benefits:

• Promotes deep relaxation and nervous system regulation

• Encourages mindfulness and inner stillness

• Gently decompresses the spine and joints

• Helps reduce anxiety, fatigue, and mental tension

• Provides a sense of comfort, emotional safety, and ease

Beginner Tips:

• Ensure the hammock is wide enough to wrap your whole body

• Enter slowly and keep knees slightly bent if needed

• Place a folded cloth under the head or knees for extra comfort

• Stay for 3–5 minutes or longer—use calming music if desired

• Exit gently and pause seated before standing