VIDEO: Aerial yoga takes flight

Aerial yoga, or flying yoga, is a relatively new form of yoga that has students holding poses in a hammock in the air. With their bodies off the ground, participants stretch and strengthen their muscles and skeletal systems without the weight of their bodies adding pressure to the movements.

Owner and founder of Sarasota’s CircuSoul, Kerry Tice, says aerial yoga is a great way to work the entire body while having fun.

“There’s not a system of the body aerial yoga doesn’t affect,” he says pointing out that with the support of the hammock, advanced poses such as the pigeon are more accessible to beginner students.

After an hour-long class, Tice says he sees a difference in his students. When a person is upside-down, the body’s blood pressure decreases, cardiac vascular wellness increases and the brain’s reticular activating system is affected, which helps with sleep cycles. He says students walk away less stressed, physically and mentally, and have more energy.

There are three locations in Sarasota that offer aerial yoga, and Tice says the trend is growing steadily.

“All of these health benefits are happening in the background while we’re having a great time,” Tice says.