At its very root, AcroYoga is a practice of trust. Another basic human need is the ability to put faith in another human being. AcroYoga merges Yoga, Yoga, Acrobatics, and Thai Massage seamlessly through communication, support, strength, and flexibility of the body and mind. Whether this is your first time hearing the term "AcroYoga" or you are a seasoned practitioner, practitioner, join us to explore the the fundamentals of movement, through dynamic transitions, transitions, creative sequencing and elaborate connections. Our intention is for you to have all the tools you need to not only understand this beautiful discipline, but most importantly, to share it with your community and spread the message of connection through this practice. It is only with people like you devoting themselves to such disciplines that these vital lineages are able to remain intact and continue evolving We are pleased to welcome you to the VanCityAcro Tribe. Tribe. Let’s get started.
INDEX
POSTURES • SPOTTING • SHAPES • FLEXIBILITY CORE • PARTNER STRETCHING • COMMUNICATION • TRIBE
This manual is designed to give you potent information in a simple and digestible manner. Please follow the written cues and the visual references for the following postures. On the the first page of every posture, you will find step-by-step written instructions on the most important body mechanics of the Acro shape. Follow them closely, from the beginning to the very end. As you know, this practice takes two to tango, so you will be given two sets of guides - one for the Base and one for the Flyer. Reference them when you need guidance. When looking at the picture diagrams, pay close attention to the body intersections represented by the circles. The arrows give you insight into the direction of the kinetic energy flowing through the body and they will also show you the exit points of said energy. The short and simple instructions will give you the most important things to keep in mind while practising a particular posture. Have fun, be safe, and let’s begin the Acro journey.
Body intersections
The name of the Acro shape you will be learning
The direction of energy through the body
Different shapes of the Base, take note of the body position
This star rating lets you know the difficulty level
End points of the directional force moving through the body
Different shapes of the Flyer, differs for every posture
FLYER
BASE
Stand with your feet about 6 inches from the Base’s hips. Place the Base’s feet onto your hipbones with the toes resting just above them. Next, connect palms with the Base with your fingers facing forward. Do not interlace the fingers.
Start lying flat on your back in the L basing position. Place your feet parallel on the Flyer’s hips with the toes just past the hipbones. The Flyer will need some support both below and above the hipbones to balance effectively.
As you feel the Base bending their knees, you will press your hips into their feet and begin to lift your legs up together. At this point, it will be important to keep your arms straight and stacked over the Base’s shoulders.
Next, connect hands with the Flyer. As a Base, you will have your hands like crab hands, with fingers out the side. It is important not to interlace fingers.
Once you are feeling very stable with the hands, you might try to go hands-free. In order for this one to balance, you will need to lift your chest higher. If you are able to release the hands, take your arms to your sides next to the hips for stability. Enjoy the ride.
Then, you will bend your knees into your chest, taking the Flyer’s weight onto your legs, Next you will straighten your legs and stack them over your hips. It is very important to find your stack. If this position is feeling very challenging, it could be that your legs are not stacked properly (refer to picture.) Find your stack and sink into stability.
Point your toes to keep your form Straight legs
Press your hips down Stack your arms above your wrists
Feet flat or slightly tilted up
Legs straight as much as you can
Strong pressure down, make sure not to pull
Stack the bone for more stability
Ground your pelvis
Press your shoulders down
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing over the Base’s shoulders, facing away. Bend your knees and lean back until you feel the Base’s feet touch your upper back. Relax into a nice backbend. If it's comfortable, take your arms overhead. Make sure you are breathing deeply for the best results during this bac k-opener.
Start by taking hold of the Flyer’s ankles, positioning your thumbs on the inside of each ankle. Next, place your feet on the Flyer’s upper back, with toes pointing out and heels touching. If you can’t reach the Flyer, ask them to bend their legs and lean back into your feet.
If you feel there's too much pressure in your back, you can keep your palms resting on your belly or off to the side. Keep in mind you can always communicate with your Base if you want more or less of a backbend.
Follow by bending your knees into your chest and then straighten your legs slightly off of stacked, feet pushing away from you. Hold your arms overhead at about a 45-degree angle.
Safety is the top priority in all postures. It is better to have a more “shallow” backbend than a deeper one that lacks proper integrity. Enjoy the posture wherever you are in it right now, knowing that we are constantly evolving through this practice.
You can add to the backbend by pointing your toes. You can lessen the backbend by pressing more into your heels. Be sure to communicate with your Flyer to find the position that is right for your unique conditions as a pa ir.
Reach your hip flexors up
Keep your legs straight
Reach back with your palms together
Straight and strong legs
Thumbs in, fingers out
Pull back
Keep your legs slightly off-centre
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing with your heels about 1 foot away from the Base’s hips. Bend your knees and lean back until you can feel the Base’s feet firmly on your bum. Once their feet are positioned on your bum, reach back and connect hands with the Base with a V-grip. Keep a strong core to avoid back-bending on the way up.
Start by placing the feet parallel with your toes just above the Flyer’s bum. Wait until there is a substantial amount of pressure on your feet before reaching for the Flyer’s hands. Connect the palms tightly using a V-grip. As the Flyer leans back, press through your heels and scoop them up, pressing their weight forward and then up to ensure safety. Make sure not to stay too long on the entry as this is a tricky posture to hold with bent legs.
On your way up, straighten and bring both legs together. Squeeze them tightly, like you’re holding a book between your knees. Push back through your arms and keep them straight in one line from your wrists to your shoulders. It is very important that you don't pull your hands, but rather, push firmly down to feel the support. Once balanced, if you and the Base feel safe, you can release your hands and place the palms to your sides. A Spotter is always recommended if there is any uncertainty. Be smart, safe, and patient through the process to promote the longevity of your practice.
Keep your arms stacked over your shoulders and make sure to give your Flyer a steady pressure upwards with your hand. Only if the shape feels steady and the Flyer is ready, start by releasing one hand, then the other. Be sure to tilt your feet so that your toes are higher than your heels. When dismounting, communicate with your Flyer. Grab their hands and reverse the entry to exit safely. Once their feet touch the floor, release the hands to avoid shoulder strains.
Look forward Straight legs
Keep the arms sealed tight to the body
Reach forward with pointed toes
Stack to keep the Flyer safe
Press palms down for stability
\
FLYER
BASE
Start in Bird position. Lift your chest up until there is very little pressure left in the hands. Release one hand at a time to come into Free Bird.
To assist the Flyer in lifting their chest, push the ball of the feet up similar to pushing a gas pedal. Once you feel the hands become weightless, release them into Free Bird.
From Free Bird, it will be very important to move more slowly. Start by bending one knee at a time and grab your own feet from the outside, with the thumbs pointing down. After grabbing both feet, you may kick them into your hands, all the while being mindful of your centre of balance, as lifting the legs too high can cause tipping. Once you arrive, enjoy the peak of this posture. When you are ready to come out, be sure to release one hand at a time and not to let the legs spring out of your hands.
From Free Bird, it is very important that you are focused on the Flyer’s centre of balance, as it becomes the job of the Base to keep the Flyer balanced. As the Flyer begins to kick into Bow, you may need to adjust the foot pressure. For example, you may find that you need to give more toe pressure or less, depending on each Flyer’s individual needs. When the Flyer is releasing their hands, have your hands up and ready to catch them in case of any forward tipping.
Kick firmly into the hands
Arms straight
Try to lift your knees up Tilt your feet up
Straight and strong legs
Keep your pelvis on the floor
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing 6 inches behind the Base’s hips with your feet in a wide stance. Squat and lift your toes with your feet turned out.
Start by bending your knees and placing the ball of your foot on the Flyer’s inner knee. It’s important that it will be just the ball of the foot, and not the entire foot, otherwise the Flyer will just slip off of your feet on the way up.
Connect hands with the Base with your fingers positioned forward. You will keep your arms straight in order to lift your upper body. Press the backs of the legs into the Base’s feet and lean forward. As you feel lift-off, you will have to sit your bum low and avoid bringing your legs back. Wrap your legs around the fronts of the Base’s shins and hook your toes behind their calves. Then, sit tall while slowly releasing hands. In the peak of the posture your arms will sit straight and relaxed, shoulders back, palms upon the knees.
Connect hands. The Base will have crab hands, with fingers out to either side. As the Base, you will keep your arms completely straight in both the entrance and exit to this posture. As the Flyer leans their weight forward you will push into your feet and begin lifting them up and over top of your hips. Keep your arms straight and your knees bent until the Flyer is sitting upright, then release the hands. Slowly straighten your legs and take your arms down beside your body for extra support.
Keep your shoulders back Arms straight and relaxed
Open your knees wide Stacking the bone
Externally rotate the legs
Press your hands down firmly
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing with your feet slightly wider than hip distance apart and about 6 inches away from your Base. Place the Base’s feet into your hip crease. Connect hands with your fingers forward.
Start lying flat on your back in the L basing position. Place your feet in the Flyer’s hip crease. Heels will be in and toes will be out. Be sure that the heels do not touch, as it will be uncomfortable for the Flyer. Connect hands like in Bird.
Next, feel for the Base’s lifting motion. As you are being lifted up, fold forward, bringing your chest toward the Base’s legs. Use your arms to stabilize this motion by slowly bending your elbows as you fold forward. You will need to keep your legs open wide and to hold a good “shelf.” This means to keep the toes reaching down towards the floor. This one is very important because if you lift your legs up, you will slide off of the Base's feet. Once you feel comfortable and stable, you may release hands.
Next, bend your knees to bring the Flyer’s weight onto your legs, then straighten and stack them above your hips. It is very important to keep the legs stacked, as much like in Folded Leaf, there is the danger of dropping the Flyer overhead. Once you feel stable through the legs, you can release the hands. First place your palms lightly on the Flyer’s shoulders. After the shaking settles and your Flyer feels comfortable, you can take your hands to the floor on either side, palms facing down.
Take the legs wide
Pike your straight legs down
Arch of the foot connects to hipbone Relax the entire upper body Straight and stacked legs Pull out to the side for a deeper stretch
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing just behind the Base’s hips. Bend forward enough that you can connect hands with the Base, with your fingers forward. As the Base bends their knees, you will need to keep your body tight and press your shins into the Base’s feet to maintain contact.
Start by placing your feet on the Flyer’s shin bones, just below the knee, with the big toe on the inside and the other toes on the outside. The heels will sit on the inside of the shin bone.
As you begin to rise, it is important to bring your knees into your chest and sit your hips down onto your heels. Be sure to keep your arms stacked so that they are directly over the Base’s shoulders. Once you are up, continue holding hands. If you feel very stable and balanced, you may release the hands and wrap your arms around your own knees. Hold either opposite wrists or elbows. If you are feeling really brave, you may even close your eyes.
Connect hands with the Flyer with crab hand placement, fingers out to each side. Next, bend your knees into your chest and give a light pull with your arms to help the Flyer up. Keep your arms stacked above your shoulders. Straighten your legs and stack your feet above your hips. Keep your hands connected until you feel very balanced and the hands start to feel light. If this happens and the Flyer feels comfortable enough to release, you may let the hands go and place your palms on the floor next to your hips.
Round the upper back Hips to the heels
Tuck your chin and breathe deep
Wrap the arms around the knees
Strong and straight legs
Rest the shoulders Hips rooted into the floor
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing just behind the Base’s hips and connect hands with fingers forward. Step one foot onto the Base’s shin just below the knee, with the big toe inside the shin and the other toes on the outside. You will have your heel to one side or the other.
Start by lying on your back with both knees pulled into your chest, arms straight and stacked over your shoulders. Connect crab hands to your Flyer’s hands.
Press through your palms to help yourself as you slowly step the second foot up. Avoid jumping as it will be much harder to stabilize. Step your second foot onto the Base’s shin in the same position as the first. It’s important that both heels are consistent with each other, either on the inside of the shin or on the outside. Keep hand connection until you feel stable enough to very slowly stand up. Make sure not to send the hips back. Stand primarily on the ball of your foot. Once standing, you may lightly squeeze your legs toward the centre.
As the Flyer steps up with one foot, you will need to give a push into the knee that they are stepping onto in order to avoid any tipping. You will also need to keep three strong points of contact to help the Flyer to step up. After you have the strong three points of contact, you may ask the Flyer to step the second foot up. Keep your hands connected until you feel a balance between both of your legs and you feel stable enough to release the hands. You may need to place your hands onto your own knees to help stabilize the position first. After the shakes stop, you may place your palms next to your hips on the floor facing down.
Chest up, look forward Arms firmly by your side
Lean forward slightly
Legs straight
Heels one line with your knees
Keep your hips grounded
Knees hip distance apart
FLYER
BASE
Stand with your toes just over the Base’s shoulders. Grab hold of the Base’s feet with thumbs on the inside arch of the feet. Press the heel of the hand into the Base’s arch and all other fingers off to the baby toe side of the foot.
Have your elbows bent right next to your ribcage. Legs will be stacked over your hips, doing your best to keep your legs as still as possible.
Put about fifty percent of your weight into the Base’s feet as you step onto the Base’s hands, one foot at a time. You may continue to hold the feet until you feel safe enough to release hands (low Foot-to-Hand.)
Stabilize as the Flyer holds your feet and steps onto your hands one foot at a time. Grip the heel of the hand to the arch of the Flyer’s foot. The peace fingers will run along the heel, the ring and baby finger will wrap along the outside, and the thumb will wrap on the inside of the foot.
Make sure to stay still and not create sudden shifts in your body weight, as your Base will have to absorb it all through their bod y. While it is their job to be prepared for this, it is the job of both parties to make the other's job as easy as possible. As with all of Acro, it takes two fully-present people to tango.
Keep your elbows planted while the Flyer practices releasing pressure from their hands. As the Flyer is standing, it will be important to squeeze your elbows into your ribcage to create more stability. If you and your Flyer feel steady, you may slowly release your legs down to the floor.
Chest up and look forward
Arms firmly to your sides
Tight bum, with a natural pelvis
Legs straight
Reach forward with your toes to keep the legs firm
Strong upward pressure with your fingers
45-degree angle with your feet
FLYER
BASE
Start by standing on either side of the Base with your inside leg slightly in front of the outside leg. Connect your palms together with your Base’s hands, positioning your fingers forward.
Place your foot closest to the Flyer on the upper inner thigh of their outside leg and place your other foot into their armpit. Be sure your outside leg is behind the Flyer's inside leg. Connect palms together with the Flyer's fingers positioned in a forward-facing grip.
Once the feet are in place, you will lean your body over the top of the Base. Be sure to press your inner thigh firmly into the Base’s foot, keep your core strong, and avoid letting your hips sink toward the floor. The key to this posture is total engagement. Press your armpit down firmly as you seal the arms tight to lock you into place. Once lifted, bring your legs together, hook your feet onto each other, and squeeze your legs inward. Once you and your Base feel stable, you may release the hands and enjoy the flight.
Shift both of your feet to be directly over your hips. Then, straighten your legs and pull your feet slightly away from centre. Opening the legs will help to spread the weight of the Flyer. Once you have lifted the Flyer and you both feel stable, you may release the hands. Be sure to avoid any forward or backward motion with your legs. Keep your legs stacked right over the hips.
Seal the arms tight
Press your armpit down firmly
Reach down with your fingers
Use your arms to stabilize
Press your inner thigh firmly into the foot
Open the legs to spread the weight
FLYER
BASE
Stand over the Base’s shoulders with your toes resting about 6 inches away from them. Connect hands with the Base in the V-grip fashion. Next, place your shoulders onto the Base’s feet, with their toes placed just past your collarbone.
Start by lying on your back with your knees bent and arms straight. Connect hands with the Flyer using the V-grip (peace fingers in to the wrist.)
Round the spine and tuck your chin into your chest. Jump and roll your hips above your shoulders using a downward push through your hands to help assist the momentum of this motion. Keep your knees into your chest until you feel more balanced and stable. Once you feel solid enough, straighten and extend your legs wide out to the sides. This is called Straddle position. Make sure to keep the legs fully engaged with toes pointed and reaching outward. Keep your elbows pulling in with a 90degree bend.
Now place your toes onto the Flyer’s collarbone. As the Flyer hops up, it will be important to keep your knees bent, with your arms locked tight and straight, to help the Flyer make their way up. Once the Flyer is up in position, be sure you have your feet stacked above your hips and your hands stacked over your shoulders. Avoid overly squeezing the Flyer’s hands, as most of the weight should be centred over the legs.
Toes reaching out Backs of the legs straight
Pull the elbows in
90-degree bend in the elbows
Use V-grip (peace fingers in to the wrist) Lock your arms tightly
FLYER
BASE
Stand one foot’s width away from your Base to transition to Side Star. Place the lower part of your hip into the Base’s foot and the palm just above the knee for support.
The key point here is for you to place your outside arch of the right foot at least four inches below the Flyer’s hipbone. That way, when their body weight is shifted, your foot will slide perfectly into the crease of the leg, where most of the body will be supported. Press your shoulders and back firmly into the ground.
Keep in mind that this move is not about speed - the jump actually makes it harder. It’s primarily a tilt and a shift of your body weight. As you feel the Base supporting your weight, start to lift the outside leg up toward the ceiling. Pour your weight into the foot. Then, slowly start to transfer the weight into your hand. As everything stays engaged, slowly start to tilt and you will notice that your bottom leg will lift naturally. Keeping the integrity of your body is crucial to the success of this posture, because any vibrations that you create, your Base will have to absorb. As you will keep coming back to through the course of your journey with it, AcroYoga is a continuous dance of balancing bodies and returning to centre along every step of the way.
Keep in mind that you’re holding all of your Flyer’s body weight, so your leg needs to be centralized for maximum support. The more you push up, the more stable you will feel. Complete engagement will get you where you need to go with this posture. Pull the Flyer’s foot down to lengthen their body weight, making it more manageable in this case. Attempt twisting only if you have full control over the posture. Otherwise, keep the leg centred and your toes facing back toward your head. If you’re feeling shaky, take the arms out to the sides in a “T”-shape, and use your palms like anchor points to give you extra stability.
Grab the big toe with your peace fingers
Flex the foot
Anchor your hand above the knee
Pull the foot down to lengthen the body weight Press your shoulders and back down
FLYER
BASE
Slowly transition into Bird. Grabbing both hands, pivot all of your weight into the left hip as you lift your right hip off of the Base’s foot. Slide your right palm onto the Base’s calf and guide your right elbow in towards your hip crease, just above the hipbone.
Slowly support your Flyer’s transition into Bird. As they shift their body weight into the right hip, pivot your right foot 45 degrees and slide a bit deeper into the hip crease so that your toes are near their bum, to give maximum support.
Keep your left hand connected with your Base until you can bring your legs together. The main focus here is to push your hip into your elbow, which will allow your legs to hinge toward the ceiling. Make sure to keep everything tight and engaged to maintain lightness through the pose.
As you absorb your Flyer's weight, bend your knee. Wait until they transfer their weight to finally straighten the leg. Once their weight is stacked and you are both feeling comfortable, you are free to start to transition into Croc.
Rotate both legs out to engage the glutes, keeping them straight and reaching out at a 45-degree angle. Reach out with the right hand to create stability. Only when you feel stable enough, start to release the left hand. Make sure it’s a slow release so that it does not jar your body. Maintain the pose for 10-15 seconds, and come back to Bird to slowly switch to the other side.
Extend your left foot out to the side for your Flyer to hook their elbow and hold your calf. This point is critical, as your Flyer is about to transition all of their body weight onto one leg. Keep the weight stacked, meaning, the leg should be into the centre and pulling towards the midline to give you maximum support. Rotate the legs out ever-soslightly and press your arm down for more stability.
Legs straight and reaching out at a 45degree angle
Rotate both legs out to engage the glutes
Reach out to create stability Place your elbow above the hip bone Pull your hand up to create traction Slight outward rotation of the legs
Press your arms down to secure yourself
FLYER
BASE
As you’ve noticed, a lot of the positions start with Bird and this posture is no different. Keeping your core engaged, hinge at the waist and place your shoulders in your Base’s hands. Once you feel solid support, release your hands and place your palms on your Base’s shins, just below the ankles. Four fingers out, thumb in for maximum support.
Bring your Flyer into Bird position. As they hinge at the waist and place their shoulders in your hands, make sure to give them lots of support with your toes. As their body weight is tilting forward, they will need extra support.
The easiest way to get into this pose is to slowly slide your quadriceps, then your knees, then your shins, down the feet, until your ankles are positioned on your Base’s feet. Once you feel the pelvis stacked, you can start to lift your legs slowly toward an upright angle. The more intermediate version of this is lifting your legs directly up from Folded Bird, and not moving your legs toward the Base’s feet. This takes a lot of coordination and control, and should be executed slowly and mindfully. Extend up through the toes, keep your legs straight, and your glutes squeezing as you pull the Base’s feet back with your hands while they reach toward the ground with their legs. Become the Candlestick.
Place the heels of your hands right on the meat of their traps, so that your fingers are close toward their scapulas. This will ensure that you keep your wrists safe and avoid compression. Have your arms extending straight with a slight outward rotation. Keeping your legs at a 45-degree angle, you will feel some resistance with the Flyer’s hands as they pull back and you push forward. This counter-balancing effect will be a key to your success in this posture. Make sure to keep shape and not move the legs forward or backward as it will affect your Flyer’s position. Once your Flyer is upright, give their arms a little bit of resistance to lengthen and stabilize the pose. To come out of the pose, let the Flyer pull your feet toward their hips and re-enter Bird.
Extend up through the toes
Keep your legs straight
Squeeze your glutes
Pull back with your hands, reach forward with your legs Push up through the heel of the hands Legs at 45 degrees
Arms straight, with a slight outward rotation
FLYER
BASE
From Folded Leaf, zip your legs together, point your toes, and very slowly place your palms just below your ankles. Keep your arms very strong, as they are going to be your anchor points, where most of the weight of your body will be supported.
Once you've supported your Flyer into Folded Leaf position, wait until they zip their legs together to internally rotate your feet, which will allow you to keep your Flyer balanced without dropping them.
Try not to arch or round too much. This posture will work seamlessly if you keep the angles in the proper positions. Once you feel the Base shifting their palms into your biceps, press and meet their pressure to keep you stable. Look at your big toes and keep breathing. Try not to hold your breath, knowing that you can contract your muscles without tensing your nervous system. This is a key skill to develop in order to be successful across many postures and disciplines. Learn it and wear it well. To come out, you’ll feel your Base tilting you over their head. Keep your arms strong, and lightly place your toes a few inches above their head. Absorb through the feet. Evenly press through the hands as you stand and exit.
Wait until their hands are on their shins to reach toward their biceps. Now this is the important part. Keep your index fingers as the primary balance point, placing them just a bit above the elbow, with the other forefingers wrapping around for extra stability. If your Flyer starts to fall forward, you can always help them regain balance by simply pushing through the index finger to catch them. Once their complete body weight is over and fully released out of your feet, keep your legs close to their back for a few seconds, just in case they fall back and you need to catch them. If they are solid and stable enough, then you can take the full pose variation and extend your legs on the floor.
Let the energy transfer from the pelvis to the shoulders
Legs straight
Shoulders in line with the arms Fingers in, thumbs out Hands press up for stability
Reach out of your toes
Plug the shoulders down into the floor
Feet press down firmly
FLYER
BASE
This posture begins by entering into Folded Leaf. Keeping your legs heavy to give your Base plenty of support, slowly start to take your hands through your Base’s legs. Bend the knees as your bring the soles of your feet together and take your palms to your ankles.
Keeping your legs out at 45 degrees, waiting until your Flyer has folded themselves completely over your legs. Once they start to reach their arms through your knees, make sure to give them plenty of room by bending.
All of this needs to happen while you keep a pike position through your legs. If they start to lift, your Base’s feet will start to slip and you will fall. Once you have contact through your palms on top of your ankles, hold lightly and try to relax the head, shoulders, and back. You will feel a gentle rock from your Base as they release your spine. Or, you could be a bit more active and tuck your chin, preparing yourself for the transition, whatever it may be. This will open you to a world of possibilities, depending on the unique convergence of you and your particular partner.
Placing your palms on their upper back, guide them toward spinal flection, a.k.a. a rounded spine. Once you feel that they have grabbed their ankles, turn your fingers out and press the heels of your hands into their mid-back, giving them a bit of pressure and then easing off for the therapeutic treatment. If you are getting ready to transition, place one hand closer to their neck with your fingers pointing toward their head and the other hand up above their lower back with fingers pointing outwards. Now, the next detail is very small, but it is the most important. The hand that's on their lower back needs to turn inwards, for you to prepare for the transition that’s coming up. This transition will be determined by the goal of this particular flow - the possibilities are endless.
Hold the ankles
Bend your legs deeply
Keep the knees into your chest
Round the upper back Move the Flyer forward Push the arms through the legs
Lean your legs toward you
FLYER
BASE
Starting where we left off with our Resting Bat position, you are going to tuck your chin and wait until the weight is transferred into your Base’s hands.
Once you have the hand position from Resting Bat, you will notice that the bottom hand closest to the neck is bent, and the top arm is straight. This will need to change. As you bend your legs, you will start to bend the straight arm and straighten the bent arm, until they are evenly bent and absorbing the majority of the weight equally.
Think of yourself like a giant sticker, not a square box. You want to push into the structure that’s supporting you every millimetre of the way. So as the hands start to give you weight, make sure to pour all of that weight back to not only stabilize yourself, but to give your Base a sense of control. Once the rotation starts to happen, keep your chin tucked and knees wide. It's important that you don’t release your head, as, being the start of your spine, it holds a very important balancing point. Keep it round and engaged. Keep your breath steady and even. Try your best not to react to the small shifts within the pose. Let the Base do the stabilizing. Like all AcroYoga, this posture depends on the synergistic coordination of the Base and Flyer in order to keep it clean and complete.
Once you are ready, you will start to twist your Flyer. The good thing is, if you’ve placed your hands properly, there is only one way you can spin. This way there is no confusion, because the other direction would only wind your arms. Rotate until your arms are completely stacked over your shoulders. Your fingers will be the stabilizers in this pose. The small shifts you feel your Flyer make you will absorb with finger strength and pressure through palms upward. This posture in particular puts a strong emphasis on the Base as the centre of strength while the Flyer moves through to the final expression.
Bend your knees
Grab your ankles
Press your back into the Base’s hands
Round your back Spread your fingers out wide
Keep reaching out for more straightening
Legs straight for maximum strength
FLYER
BASE
Progressing from Bat, maintain the pose, especially for this transition. Release the hands onto your chest. Extend both legs at the same time. It’s important that you don't do this one at a time, because the smallest shift in weight will throw you off of this pose and down onto your Base or the floor. Think like you’re moving through water, or doing Tai Chi.
The name of the game is slow and controlled. Your position doesn’t really change. But, adding extra movement will definitely test your stability and balance.
At the same time, bring the knees into your chest and extend the legs straight, keeping the ankles above the hips. Only when you feel stable, you can start to move your hands up so that you create an uneven box shape with your limbs. Pull your shoulders up while at the same time trying to push the point on your back where the hands are supporting you down. This means you will extend the muscles and fully engage. Make sure not to react to any vibrations. As with Bat posture, let your Base do most of the stabilization.
Keeping your fingers wide and spread will give you the maximum amount of support. You can think of it as having extra real estate. And we all know real estate is expensive, especially here in Vancouver… So grab as much as you can. Lift your shoulders off of the floor while imprinting your back into the ground. If you want the advanced variation, slowly replace your hands with your feet. Placing one foot, transfer the weight. Keep the pressure even through the hand and the leg until both legs are on your Flyer’s back. Using your toes for stability, slowly straighten the legs fully. Make sure everything is stacked for maximum stability.
Extend upward and point the toes
Reach through fingertips Knees straight, legs stacked
Legs extended directly over hips
Reach shoulders up
Wrists stacked over shoulders, extending through arms
Lift the shoulders to engage the pecs
FLYER
BASE
Begin the transition with Throne. Slowly lean forward to give your Base a hand and a foot. Pick which side you’re going to and make sure to communicate with your Base. When you start the transition, your right hand will be with the right hand of the Base, and your left foot will be with their left hand. An easier way to think of it is “same side limbs.”
Starting in Throne position, wait until your Flyer leans forward and presents you with their contact points. One hand will connect with theirs, same side; the other hand will connect with their foot (same side.) The beginning is very tricky, as your wrists are not stacked above your shoulders. They are instead in one line with your spine. So, be sure to prepare yourself to bear your Flyer’s weight and give lots of upward force to stabilize the wrists.
As the Base releases their feet, you will have to transfer equal weight through the two points of contact that you still have. The key factor here is for you not to drop your centre of gravity, a.k.a. your pelvis. Try to keep your hips above your knees and continuously pour pressure into your foot to allow you to centralize the weight.
Once the Flyer starts to shift most of their body weight into your hands, start to release your feet from Throne position. Rotate them until your wrists are over your shoulders. This is when you’ve reached halfway. Keep rotating in the same direction so that your wrists are stacked in the opposite way.
Once you feel your Base’s foot wrap around behind your knee, hook your shin and foot around their calf, like you would in normal Throne. Once one side is complete, make sure to finish the other to come back to the original position. Try both sides to keep you balanced as a Flyer.
Once you see an opening, place your foot behind their knee. Wait until the Flyer wraps their foot around your calf and use that leverage to rotate them back to centre. Let them hook the second foot around your second calf to complete the rotation.
Hips up in one line with the shoulder
Reach away to keep your shoulder active
Lift your knees into your chest
Press upward through the bridge of the hands
Centre your weight evenly into the hand and foot
Straight arms Externally rotate the legs to fully engage the glutes
Push up to lift the Flyer evenly
Point your toes
It is very easy to jump into this practice and get overly ambitious with certain moves and transitions, especially when we see the end result being achieved with just two people. But what happens behind the scenes is rarely glorified or advertised. And that is the importance of a third person - the Spotter. Working with a Spotter is the vital stage that every AcroYogi needs to go through. To have a safety net that will be there for you and give you the opportunity to try new things while feeling reassurance. A Spotter’s job is just as important as that of the Flyer or Base. This job has its own titles, certain things that you have to be able to do to achieve success. As funny as this is going to sound, always expect your Flyer to fall. This keeps you alert and present with what’s going on, and will give the Flyer confidence to be able to commit to moves that they have never tried. When first spotting a new transition or movement, have a hands-on approach. Give strong and sturdy pressure through the entire sequence. When you start to feel safe as a trio, start to give less and less pressure, until you are hovering - what we call “Jedi Spotting.” Ever-so-present and attentive, you are there just as a precaution. There are wrong ways to spot, and this is where you neglect the points made up above. Examples of this include being easily distracted, non-communicative, &/or uncomfortable with holding people’s body weight. Know that just like any other, spotting is a skill acquired through time. Practice often and you will become a great Spotter that will be highly sought-after.
SPOTTING
THE WRONG WAY
THERIGHT RIGHTWAY WAY THE
Now we take our practice outside of just L-basing and start to put a twist on two bodies and how they can move together. In this section of the manual, we will be exploring different shapes that utilize flexibility, strength, coordination, and power. These can be tied into a flow, a sequence, and/or performance, or simply just taught as separate components in a class or workshop. These shapes are designed to give you a different look into the practice of AcroYoga. Primarily, they serve to break us out of the traditional mold of “Base” and “Flyer.” We have included six shapes for you to play around with and explore. Keep in mind that the angles might be slightly different depending on your flexibility and strength, but the general feel of the shapes should stay the same to give you a good understanding of the balance points. Think outside the box. After you’ve completed these shapes, try to come up with your own and see how they integrate into your practice. They are meant to forge new neural pathways and give you a taste of creativity.
POSITION 1
POSITION 2
The person who’s taking the backbend should first set up into a Bridge where their shoulders and neck are on the floor, knees are bent, feet flat, and hips lifted. Once you feel a sturdy base, place your hands close to the ears like you’re going into Wheel. Press into the floor to lift your chin and firmly press the middle of your skull into the ground.
Lay down flat on the floor with your back on the ground and your chest to the sky. Once your partner has assumed their full position, grab their calves from the outside with your fingers spread wide. Pull your palms toward your chest and then press them down to give you traction and energy that you will transfer for the necessary lift.
Make sure to do this only if you have a strong headstand practice. Another option is to place your forearms to the floor like you’re doing a supported headstand so there is less pressure on your neck. Once your partner grabs your calves, lift your hips and counterbalance their weight by reaching backward with your chest, and, if you feel sturdy, with your hands while keeping the palms together. Once you’ve taken the shape, try to push your toes into the floor like you’re going to lift your heels - but keep them on the ground for maximum stability. Another tip to make this more steady: press through the big toes and engage your inner thighs, which will lessen the shakes inside of your body.
Bring the knees into the chest. Elevate your pelvis as you raise your entire spine up at a 45-degree angle coming into your shoulders. Make sure to give constant pressure with your hands, as they are your anchor in this pose. If you feel comfortable and steady and your partner is not shaking, extend one leg at a 45-degree angle. If that is easy, extend both legs to achieve the final pose. To come out, bring the knees into your chest. Keep resistance with your hands. Lower your pelvis to the floor. Slowly release the hands and return to your original position.
Reach away through your toes
Pelvis higher than your knees Reach overhead with your hands together
Strong and straight legs
Squeeze your bum
Round the upper spine and crunch the core tight Pressure through the middle of the skull
Knee over ankle
POSITION 1
POSITION 2
This transition starts in Bird. Maintaining a strong, flat shape, your partner will move their feet to your ankles. Slowly start to lift your pelvis up as you open your legs into a V-shape. Next, sit your pelvis backward to centralize the weight.
Begin in Bird with your partner. As they shift their weight into one foot, release the free leg and place your foot wide into your partner’s ankle. Repeat on the other side.
Your flexibility will determine the range that you are capable of going. Before doing this movement, make sure to warm up your Middle Splits, as you are going into a very active range that could very easily be overdone. Your hands are the training wheels for this pose. Use them heavily in the beginning. Create inward rotation and always try to pull the arms toward centre. This will give you stability in the shoulders and pecs, which will take some load off of your legs. Try to do a few sets as you go into the V and come out into a Plank position with your partner’s hands still on your ankles. Once you’ve done a few sets, come back to Bird and slowly dismount.
It is crucial that you keep your wrists over your shoulders in the beginning of the transition. Naturally, the hands will start to drift outward, which is normal, but keep constant pressure to allow your partner to have maximum stability. As your partner starts to open their legs, you will need to slide your feet a bit more toward the back of their ankles. This will allow them to drop their pelvis and centre their weight. Expect your partner to be wobbly with their arms. Give them as much support as you can, which will transfer into the stability of their legs. Don’t open too wide and make sure to communicate with your partner to keep this posture playful and safe.
Fifty percent of the weight through the arms
Strong legs and upward pressure
Strong arms from both partners
Strong legs and downward pressure
Spread the legs
Plant your elbows firmly
POSITION 1
POSITION 2
Go into a low Squat as you bring your feet and knees together. Place your hands in front of you and wait for your partner to slowly assume the position reverse of you and on top of your back.
Once your partner has assumed a stable position, begin by hoisting yourself up onto their back ever-so-slowly. Be sure to maintain a constantly oscillating perspective between your current pose and your pose in the world at large.
Once they start to give you their weight, ever-so-slightly press up and back to give them a surface that is active. Essentially, you are creating traction for them to have the capability of sitting down and keeping the shape.
Perspective is the name of the game here. This is as much a metaphorical position as it is a literal one.
Once you feel steady, start to lift your heels and press firmly into the floor, first with your palms, then transferring into your fingertips. Be very active with your toes as they are your main stability points. Once you can maintain the weight without falling, release one arm, then the other. Wrap your arms around your legs. Hold your elbows firmly with your palms. Continue to push upward to find strength in this pose. It’s all about opposition. As much as you reach up, you need to press down, and you will notice this won’t be as hard as it looks.
Assume the position on top of your partner’s back. Establish solidity with your main point of contact, your feet, on top of your partner’s sloping but firm back. Wrap your arms around the knees, tuck your chin tightly, and maintain your centre. Be sure to keep a constant pressure through your feet in order to hold your centre. This will be key to staying on top and not falling off of your partner’s back. Traction your feet down into the sloped surface and use that resistance to round the upper back and tuck the chin.
Contemplate your existence
Press through your feet to keep your centre
Tucked-in chin
Hug the knees into your chest
Sink your hips to your heels
Keep the heels up for easier balance
POSITION 1
POSITION 2
Open your legs as wide as your flexibility will allow you and start to lean your weight forward. The common misconception about this pose is that you need to keep your back round, which is incorrect. You are trying to keep your spine very long, which means you will need to reach forward.
There are a few possible ways to enter this. The easiest will be if you assume the first position and your partner goes underneath you afterwards.
Giving your lower back plenty of space, start to arch it. Tilt your pelvis forward as though it were a large bowl of soup and you were trying to spill the contents on the floor. Try to bring your belly button down onto the ground before your chest. Reach your arms forward to give you maximum length. Rotate your ankles down as you point your toes to give you more extension. Relax your head to the floor if it reaches. Engage your quadriceps (the tops of the legs) which will allow you to release the hamstrings (the backs of the legs) to their fullest length.
Lay down on your back. Take Bridge pose. Bending your legs, bring your heels close to your bum. Press down through the feet and try to traction them forward without actually moving them. This is key to your success and will allow you to use that energy coming from the floor to open up your shoulders. Once you feel a strong connection through the toes, place your hands close to the ears with your fingers pointing back toward your toes. Come up to the top of your head and if the shoulders will allow you, start to straighten your arms and push your shoulders open (preferably armpits over wrists.) For obvious reasons, make sure your partner has exited their position to ensure that you don’t squish them.
Stretch your hip flexors toward the ceiling
Open your armpits to their fullest
Knees over the ankles, make sure to not overextend Internally rotate your legs
Reach through your big toes Reach your fingers forward
POSITION 1
POSITION 2
Lay down flat on your back. Start to rock back and forth keeping the knees tucked into your chest. Once you've created a bit of momentum, roll back into your shoulders. Be mindful of your neck and support your body weight with your palms.
Wait until your partner has assumed the position before you can begin. Once they’re comfortable in their Plow pose, bring your bum close to their toes and lean your weight back into the hands, which you will place behind you.
Start to extend one leg at a time. Repeat this process ten times to warm up the back and hamstrings. Load your shoulders more as you give responsibility into the upper body and release your palms over your head close to your feet. You have to be comfortable in this position before you can bear weight. If you are not, practice it by yourself before attempting the shape. Your partner is going to start to place their hamstrings on top of your calves, and their calves on top of your hamstrings. They’ll do this very slowly so you can communicate if it’s too much. If, however, you feel fine in this pose, reach your arms toward their face and connect your hands to complete the posture.
Slowly, start to attempt to bring one leg on top of your partner’s stable position and test the waters. If they feel okay with the addition of your body pressure, then continue to add the second leg whilst keeping the pressure into your palms. This ensures that you don’t dump sudden weight and put too much strain on your partner’s neck. If everything checks out, start to put more pressure through the backs of your legs as you release one hand. Repeat with the other. When you have a solid connection, reach for your partner’s hands. Grab them firmly, and give yourself a small lean back to create a counterbalancing effect, which will keep you in the posture longer.
Point your toes Round the spine fully
More pressure through the shoulders than the neck
Pull your hands in opposite directions
Pull your shoulders back
Balance just on your sitting bones Straight lines will keep you solid
POSITION 1
The person who's doing the Hollow-Back Handstand will first have to do a regular Handstand with their partner’s help. Once you have achieved this task, you are going to place your feet onto your partner’s shoulders. This is where it becomes a little tricky. They will have to step a few feet away, and eventually sit all the way down to the floor. While all of this is happening, start to open up your chest to create a counter-balancing effect. The more they walk away and sit down, the more you need to lean back and open through your armpits. Otherwise, you will be too flat and you will fall. Keep constant pressure through your feet and push as much as you can. This will allow you to shift your weight back and keep your centre of gravity even. If you relax your toes, you will start to slide and fall, as your security in this pose is the pressure through your feet. To come out, you can either kick one leg over and back to the floor, or start to bend your elbows and very slowly tuck your chin as your spine starts to descend down to the ground.
POSITION 2
Stand by your partner’s wrists. Wait until they come into their full handstand. Grab their ankles and slowly turn around as you place their feet into your back. Slowly start to walk away from them. As you do, make sure to give backward pressure so that their feet don’t slip. Once you've created enough distance (about two feet) begin to squat down and place your bum on the floor with your legs straight in front of you. Now, this will only work if your partner has open shoulders. If they have tight shoulders, please wait until they have the range to try this pose safely. Once you assume the position of sitting down, place your hands in one line with your pelvis. Create traction by pushing your palms down firmly and lift your bum off the floor. It will naturally go backward as you round the back. At first, you will only be able to lift the pelvis and not the feet, but as you get stronger through the hip flexors, start to attempt to lift one leg and then the next.
Straight legs
Open your hips
Strong push with the feet
Lean into the feet Open your shoulders fully
Straight legs pulled into the chest Tuck the tailbone under Position shoulders over the hands
Press through your fingers
Think of your range like a set of keys. And your body, a mansion that you live in. Most of us only occupy one or two rooms in our home, without ever opening the doors to new possibilities and potential. Especially in our practice of AcroYoga, range is such a crucial component that plays into the poses that we take, the transitions that we learn, and the longevity of our practice. In the next section, we will go through some basic flexibility exercises that will allow you to unlock some of the hidden treasures that lie within. They’re meant to be held and repeated at least a minute for at least three sets. You will find that you are strong in certain areas of flexibility, but lacking in others. This will always create misbalances in your body in the form of compensation… Especially when you’re load-bearing another human being or asking someone else to support your weight. The more range you have, the more you can spread your weight, which will make you lighter and easier to maneuver as a Flyer. The more open your hamstrings and shoulders are, the less work you will do as a Base because you will be able to stack your bones, and by now, we know that bones are stronger than muscles.
FLEXIBILITY
The Snail is a particularly great stretch for those who are tight in their shoulders and in their chest, a.k.a. pecs. Start by sitting down with your legs in front of you, ankles touching. Place your hands next to your hips with your arms straight. Start to bend your legs and shift your weight forward until the feet are flat. Bring your pelvis close to your heels. After you’ve completed that, start to bend your elbows to warm up for the stretch. Repeat it ten times. Once you feel sufficiently warmed up, extend the legs straight, rotate the fingers so they are pointing away from you, and sink your body weight down. If it becomes too much for your elbows, a.k.a. hyperextension, do the first variation. You will get the same result. Move slow like a snail and you will stay safe. Slow and steady will get you farther, and we are in this for the long haul. This can translate to many other areas of our lives. To come out, repeat the steps backward. Bend your legs, rotate your fingers toward your feet, slide your bum back towards your wrists. Release the palms from the floor. Shrug the shoulders. Rotate them one way, then the other. Repeat this stretch five times.
Open the shoulders fully Reach your toes forward
Straight legs
Slide your hips away from your hands
Press your palms down into the floor
Go into a Downward Dog to begin. Keep your hands shoulder-width apart and your feet pelvis-width apart. Slide your right knee directly behind your right wrist. Slide your right ankle directly behind your left wrist. As you lower your torso down, bend the elbow slowly to absorb the weight. Straightening the back leg, begin to pour your weight forward to access the hip stretch. Everyone is different in their range of motion for this stretch. The rule of thumb is that the closer your right ankle is to your left hand, (meaning the more you increase the angle of your shin) the more you will increase the depth of the stretch. Once you’ve settled in for your personal variation, keep your hips square. Imagine there is a construction level on your lower back: keep the bubble in the middle. Pull your right hip back and down, while pressing your left hip flexor forward and down. This will ensure that you stay safe in this pose and do not take this pressure into the knees, which inherently do not have a lot of rotation - only a few degrees. If your knee starts to bug you, first check the alignment of your hips. If it continues, try to flex your right foot. If the discomfort still continues, you can decrease the angle of your shin, bringing your left heel back a few inches. Once you feel very sturdy in this pose, take your hands outside of your hips and straighten the arms as you lift your chest, puffing up your rib cage like a mating pigeon.
Lift your chest
Angle of the front leg will be dependent upon your hip range of motion
Actively flex the foot
Squeeze your bum to open the hip flexor
Relaxed knee
Toes can be tucked under as an alternative
Begin by laying down flat on your stomach. Slowly extend your right arm directly out to the side. Fingers should line up with your shoulder and your palm should face down. Look away from the arm to the opposite direction. Start to roll to your back very slowly. The hand that is free, the opposite hand, should press down firmly into the floor with the elbow bent to give you the leverage needed to achieve this stretch. As far as the legs, be cautious not to go too deep too fast. Begin by bringing the knees into your chest like you are going into fetal position. If that feels okay, straighten both legs and let the top hip be heavy toward the floor as you separate your feet, hipwidth apart. If that position is too deep for you, there is a happy medium between those two variations. This would be to bend the top leg, opening the knee slowly. You can think of your top leg like a bird’s wing. Close the wing for less depth, open it for more - thus the name. This is a beautiful stretch for your pecs and deltoids, and at the same time, it allows you to work that range of motion for your shoulders. This can help you get rid of the ever-daunting hunch that most of us who work in offices are subject to.
Optional open knee for a deeper stretch Work to stack the shoulders one over the other
Foot flat Push through the palm as needed Gentle pressure through the hand
Open the chest
Begin in a Downward Dog position. Smoothly step your right foot between your hands and place your left knee gently to the floor. If there is too much pressure behind your knee, you can always use a blanket, pillow, or mat. Once you’ve taken the position, place both hands on the right quadricep and start to lean forward and back to warm up your hip flexor and back quad. Once you feel like you’re at your lowest point, place both hands on the inside of the right foot and slowly start to bend your left leg so that your right hand can grab the foot and pull the heel toward your glutes. If you are not able to grab the foot, you can always lean back with your pelvis and open up the shoulder of the arm you are reaching to give you more space. Alternatively, if you still cannot achieve this pose, you can place your bent leg (a.k.a. shin) up against the wall and use that leverage to stretch. If you have taken the full variation, start to lean forward with your front knee and pull your back heel tighter toward your centre. Go slow and steady, and aim to feel an 8/10 as far as a stretch. Avoid going any past that. Enjoy Twisted Lunge.
Spiral the shoulder open
Grip the inside of the ankle
Straight, strong supporting arm
Knee over ankle
Avoid pressure straight onto the kneecap
Stand with your feet pelvis-width apart and begin to bend your legs as you dip your chest down toward the floor. Relax your head where your chin is tucked. Place your palms on your calves, fingers pointing down. Tuck the elbows in behind your legs. Start to give yourself small pulses to warm up into a stretch. Give your body plenty of time to adapt to be sure not to strain or injure from lack of warming up. To get the full benefit from this stretch, there is something that you will need to do, but at first it may seem confusing. Think of your spine as the letter “S”. The bottom portion has a natural curve inwards, and the upper portion has a natural curve outwards. When thought of together, this would be “rounding” the spine. Because this is a natural position for your body, we want to promote it rather than shy away from it. So when you’re in your Forward Fold, yes, you are rounding, but only through the upper back. The lower back needs to arch as you lift your sitting bones higher and stretch the backs of your legs, not strain your lower back. This is a concept that might take a little while to understand, but once you understand how to isolate your lower back, many things will start to click for you. If you can keep your chest to your legs while the knees are bent, try to go to the full extension with your legs straight, grabbing your elbows behind you. Stay for a minute. Repeat 5 times.
Arch the lower back to lift the sitting bones higher
Round your upper back
Backward pressure with the back of the knees Grab your elbows and pull in
Lean into the toes
Get out your maple syrup, we’re going to eat some pancakes. To begin, sit with your bum flat on the floor while opening your legs out 45 degrees on each side. In the previous pose, we talked about arching the spine to promote the full extension of your body in its natural curve. This Forward Fold will be no different. Your main focus is not to get your chest on the floor, but rather your belly button. So imagine you are a round cup of water. You want to spill the water forward as you tilt your pelvis, getting your belly button closer to the floor with every exhale. This will promote less reaching and rounding, a.k.a. straining, and more reaching and extending, a.k.a. stretching. If you’re not capable of taking your fingers to the floor yet, a great way to understand the pelvis rotation is just by sitting on the edge of a bolster or block. Once you can get your fingers or palms flush to the floor, start to lift your chest and reach forward. This pose definitely takes a bit of time to work into and see progressions, but within a few months, don’t be surprised if you are at least a foot lower than where you are today.
Elongate the back reaching the belly button toward the floor
Pulling the toes up
Pressing the knees down
Lengthening the legs
Press and reach your hands forward
Begin in a posture we call Sphinx. It’s very simple. You’ll lay down flat on your belly, taking the elbows underneath your shoulders while the forearms are in front of you. This will allow a bit of space under the arms to slide one hand through and begin the stretch. Let’s begin with the right arm. Slide it through to the left underneath your armpit, like you’re threading a needle. Taking the arm straight (meaning your fingers are in one line with the shoulders) try not to go too high or too low. Keep your bicep underneath your rib cage, rather than your throat, so that you have lots of space to breathe and your neck can be comfortable. Alternatively, if you like, you can place a prop underneath your forehead to give you more cervical support. Once you enter this pose, you are most likely in one of two categories. The first being that you feel a really deep stretch. In that case, breathe through it and stay for at least two minutes. The second possible scenario is that you don’t feel the stretch at all. In that case, you’ll need to stay longer and we can always take the road of active stretching. To do this we will press down the right arm, starting from the fingertips all the way down to the elbow. This will allow your muscles to contract and at the same time stretch because of the pressure they are receiving. This is a good way to create active flexibility.
Press your shoulder down toward the arm
Relax your arm as you keep it straight
Keep your legs straight
Open your palm up or down Elbow down
This pose serves for so many building blocks to our flexibility that it is crucial to our body development. When we enter toward Front Splits, we are stretching our hamstrings, creating strength in the quadriceps, and increasing the range of motion for our hip flexors. But because there are so many things involved, we need to approach this posture smartly and slowly, understanding all that is involved and how to properly engage this beautiful pose. Begin by taking a Low Lunge, which we have covered in the above section. Place a bolster underneath your pelvis so that you can place your hands to give you more support. Start to slowly slide your knee back and your front heel forward as you find your range. The bolster will be there in case you need it. Flex your front foot and relax the back of your front knee to stretch the hamstring to its full extent. To make sure you don’t overdo it, pull your front kneecap up to strengthen the quadricep. These two actions will make sure that the front leg is fully stable and in the proper position. The back leg will start to slide away until it can’t, and you will focus on internal rotation. A good trick toward this is to try to touch your back baby toe to the floor. When you rotate the foot, it affects the structure of the entire leg, especially the femur bone. This will help immensely to keep the hips square and even as you stretch for a minimum of two minutes per side.
Reach your arms back to stretch your shoulders
Point your toes
Press your hip flexor down
Back the knee down
Pull your front hip back
Try to press your baby toe down
Lay down on your back and bend your legs with the soles of the feet flat and your heels close to your butt. Begin to warm up this posture by taking Bridge pose, in which you simply lift your pelvis up and interlace your fingers underneath your back. Once you feel pretty secure with this pose, let’s move into Wheel. With both your feet and back flat, place your hands close to the ears with your fingers pointing back toward your feet. Apply firm pressure through both palms. Start to push as you lift your head and pelvis evenly, meaning at the same time. A halfway point would be placing the top of your head on the floor. From there, straightening the arms completely is your next objective. To do that, there is a bit of a secret. Press through your feet not only down into the floor, but try to push them forward, as though they were going to slide, but without actually moving. This we call traction, or kinetic energy. This energy, if accessed properly, will start to transfer through the feet, up to the knees, through the hips, to then continue its journey upward through the spine, eventually ending up in your shoulders. Keeping your hands still, use the pressure through your feet to open the shoulders backward to the wrists so that your arms are completely straight, rather than 45 degrees. The latter is a lot harder to hold because of the angle versus something that’s stacked. This tip will open your shoulders safely and quickly. To come down, bend your elbows, tuck your chin, and pull your head back toward your wrists. Once your pelvis touches the floor, you can extend the legs and relax.
Reach your hip flexors up
Open your armpits toward your wrists
Knees behind your ankles or stacked
Arms straight and strong
Press your inner arches down
Spread your fingers wide
Butterfly pose is a beautiful way to open up not only the shoulders, but your back and hips as well. Begin by placing your feet together and grabbing your ankles with your hands. Slide your bum back a few inches so that your pelvis starts to tilt toward the floor. If there is too much pressure on your ankle bones, which are on the ground, you can place something soft underneath to give you more support. Relaxing your head as you tuck the chin, give yourself a couple of nods “yes” and a couple of nods “no” to really loosen up the neck muscles. If you have a bolster nearby, you can take it across your legs and place your forehead on top, but if you have nothing, you can just let your head hang and let gravity become your best friend. Breathing is quite important in this pose, and the way you breathe is very particular. You’ll inhale into your upper back, and when you exhale, try to use your diaphragm, meaning you will pull your belly button in and up so that the ribcage is exposed. You’ll notice that you can get more depth out of this pose just by using this technique. Once you get low enough, you can slide your hands underneath your calves and grab your feet. There is another variation called Tortoise pose, which is where you take your arms through your legs, behind you, and eventually try to interlace your fingers on your lower back.
Breathe into your back
Externally rotate your legs
Open your leg bones and not your knees Pull your elbows down Feet together
Understanding your centre of gravity is probably one of the most vital skills that you will acquire, learn, and master through the work that we do in AcroYoga. In this next section, we will cover a variety of different core exercises meant to strengthen and stabilize all of the muscles that are in your centre. A lot of the Acro that happens usually takes place near the pelvis. Understanding how to centralize your weight is one of the main functions of the core. Because it is so close to your hinging point, meaning the intersection between your torso and legs, it is crucial that this point is very strong, allowing you to control your body without collapsing. We have a saying in AcroYoga: “Tight is light.” And if your centre is loose, then everything else will collapse. Follow the next few pages carefully. Read all of the specific instructions meant to keep you safe and get you strong. Everything starts and comes back to the core - another metaphor for life at large, you must cultivate a strong centre to move steadily through all that you will engage with. This foundation will make for the most ease and harmony possible in your endeavours.
CORE
Start by laying on your back and extending your arms and legs straight up toward the ceiling. Keeping your arms fully engaged - that means reaching out of your fingers - one of the most important skills that you will need to learn, and which you will hear emphasized over & over again, is to point your toes. Once the legs are straight and engaged through the quadriceps, lift your pelvis off of the floor as high as you can. Shift the shins closer toward your head and bring your straight legs out on a 45-degree angle. Once that is complete, begin to lift your shoulders completely off of the floor while tucking the chin. Be sure to engage your neck to keep it safe. This is a crucial component to the longevity of your practice. You should feel everything stitch toward the centre as all of the abs start to engage and stabilize. Once you’ve taken this position, continue to reach out past your current range. You can think about reaching your fingers to touch your toes - that is your final goal. This exercise can be done statically - hold for a minute, three times with twenty seconds rest between or actively - pulsing with your legs and arms at the same time upwards, 30 times, repeating 3 times.
Reach your legs out 45 degrees
Full extension out of the fingers Pull your kneecaps up
Lift your pelvis up
Stacking the bone for more stability
Begin by laying on your stomach and taking your elbows directly under your shoulders. Measure a shoulder-width distance between your arms by simply placing both hands on your biceps. Imagine you have a box in between your hands. Place your palms in front of you. Push through the fingers as you tuck the toes and elevate your body into a plank. With your toes tucked, reach your heels back and your head forward to create maximum length and a greater challenge for your core-stabilizing muscles. Round the upper back and try not to dump into your shoulders, ensuring that they stay safe during this exercise and that you learn how to stabilize. If this seems too simple for you, flatten your feet so that your toenails are on the floor and press firmly into the ground to keep the legs completely straight. Our goal during this exercise is to learn how to make our bodies simultaneously long and stable, as many of the postures in AcroYoga will require you to have this essential skill. Hold for at least a minute and repeat three times.
Stacking the bone for more stability
Bones in line to create strength
Traction down
Stacking the bone for more stability Straight arms support your weight
Press down
Begin by laying down on your back and lifting both knees into your chest. As you do this, tuck the chin toward the knees and curl up into a small ball with your arms extended out to the sides. Keep the shape very solid and tight, meaning the pelvis is off of the floor, the arms are fully extended, and your forehead is reaching forward. If this is challenging enough for you, stay here. If, however, you can maintain the shape without straining your neck or collapsing, begin to extend your left leg forward, pointing the toes and bringing your ankle in one line with the hip. Maintain the level of your arms in one line with the extended leg, keeping everything tight and elongated. There is, of course, the next stage, where you extend both legs and stay in a hollow shape. Make sure during this exercise that your lower back never lifts off of the floor, as you want to isolate the core muscles, not the lower back. Think of your body in two dimensions. If one side is squeezing, then the other naturally has to stretch and elongate. When we do backbends, it is the core (the front of the body) that is stretching while the back of the body is being strengthened (a.k.a. compressed.)
Knee over hip
Press down Toes reaching out
Stacking the bone for more stability
Shoulders in line with wrists Create solid foundation
This posture starts by lying on your side like you’re posing for a calendar. (Stay tuned for the VanCity Acro calendar coming up later in 2017!) Place your elbow underneath your shoulder and take your hand in front of you for support. The hardest part of this posture is keeping everything in one line. Big toes are stacked on top of each other. The ankles, the knees, the hips, the top ribcage above the bottom ribcage, and your shoulders. Once you can achieve this, start to press down through the forearm and lift your legs together up toward the ceiling. Imagine you have a piece of paper between your big toes and someone is trying to pull it out. Get so strong in your legs that they will not be able to achieve this task. Legs are firmly squeezing together like a vice-grip. Once you’ve climbed up as high as you can with your legs, take the top arm over your head and reach outward. The final stage of this is you relying on your obliques and lifting the bottom arm off of the ground, making a U-shape. The higher you lift, the stronger the obliques will get. This pose can be repeated statically or actively. Statically, keep reaching out past what you think you can hold so that you’re always seeking your plateau. Actively, keep your arms in one place and just pulse through the legs - do at least 20 pulses, repeating three times.
Straight arms create strength One ankle on top of the other
Stack the hips
Stacking the bone for more stability Press down
Like many things in life, when things get stuck and unable to move, an outside perspective is just the thing that we need. Partner stretching is a great example of someone helping you to get to a new range that you are just not capable of going to by yourself. There is a very good explanation for why, when someone gives you assistance, you are able to relax and go deeper into your range of motion. It’s simple. When you are trying to stretch yourself, consciously you are trying to relax. But what’s happening subconsciously is that you are holding on, because you are the one that’s reaching, pushing, and extending. An element of control is still there in the underlayer. However, when you get assistance from a friend or a partner, and they help you go into your range of motion, subconsciously your muscles release because you know that there is someone to take care of you. We as human beings are tribal creatures. As tribal creatures, we thrive in communities - and it is no different for your muscles. Below, you will learn a variety of partner stretches that will cover many different tight spots that most of us share. Remember to breathe and communicate with your partner through the whole experience and enjoy this new range that you will acquire together.
PARTNER STRETCHING
PARTNER 1
PARTNER 2
Once your partner lies down on the floor, ask them to lift their right leg to the ceiling. The placement of the hands is very important as you want to stretch not only their hamstrings but their hip flexors as well. Stand on the inside of your partner’s leg and place your right hand just below their right hip bone on the quadrice, and your left hand directly on their heel.
Once you lie down on the floor, present your right leg to your partner. Once they’ve adjusted themselves accordingly, make sure that the legs are straight. Our objective is to lengthen the hamstrings, so even if it’s difficult, keep trying to extend the back of the leg forward, keeping the leg fully straight.
Your partner’s flexibility will determine if you will be standing or kneeling. If they are quite strong, a.k.a. tight in their quadriceps, you will need to go into a low lunge. The placement of the hands will be the same. If they are quite flexible and they can go past 90 degrees, you will stand up as shown in the photo. Add continual pressure as your partner begins to relax and go deeper into the stretch. You can also work active flexibility, which means that they will press into your hand with their heel for ten seconds, after which they will release the pressure as you slowly extend their leg further into the stretch. This is called PNF.
You’ll notice after a few sessions the urge to bend the leg will decrease and your range will increase. Get into the good habit of pointing your toes and pressing the back of the knee down into the floor. This ensures that when you take this new range of motion into new transitions, you’ve created good habits along the way. If you’re doing PNF with your partner, press the heel of the leg that you’re stretching firmly into their hand like you’re trying to move their entire body weight. Keep pressing as they count down from ten. When you reach two, start to ease off ofthe pressure. When the counting is finished, let them give you more pressure to extend your range. You should notice a significant difference and increase in your flexibility.
“Breathe deeper to let go further”
90-degree fold
Stacking the bone for more stability Keep the arms straight
Stacking the bone for more stability
Ankle in line with knee
Straight pressure down
Keep the lower leg flat Imprint through back
Ground through shoulders
PARTNER 1
PARTNER 2
Depending upon how personal you want to get with this pose, you will choose one of three variations to help your partner stretch. The first one is placing your palms on their upper back and giving them forward and down pressure. Make sure it’s not just down, as you want to elongate their spine and create length, versus compression.
Sit down flat on the floor as you open the legs wide. The degree of the angles will determine where and what you’re stretching. If you open your legs too wide, where the ankles are in one line with your pelvis, you’ll be stretching the aductors, a.k.a. attempting Middle Splits.
The second version is where you take your forearms alongside your partner's spine and add the same forward and down pressure. The last one, in our humble opinion, is the most effective, but a bit more personal. You will place your chest onto your partner’s mid-back. Place your hands on top of their quadriceps. Lean forward to stretch out their spine, and with your hands, traction back so that you create external rotation with their legs. If you cannot reach your partner's legs because they are strong, a.k.a. stiff, place your palms on top of their shoulders and lean forward. Don’t do this for too long, but long enough that the person feels the effects of the stretch. Recommended 1-2 minutes.
When you open the legs into a V-shape, you are primarily affecting the hamstrings. Once you’ve created the shape, place your hands in front of you and start to reprogram what you think Forward-Folding consists of. What you are trying to do is arch the lower back to keep the spine neutral (the lower back has a natural curve which you want to promote) and round the upper back as you reach forward. This will ensure that you’re not straining the back muscles unnecessarily as you isolate the hamstrings, which is our main objective. Once you've completed this, try to relax as your partner gives you pressure. Keep reaching your belly button toward the floor rather than your chest.
Stacking the bone for more stability
Press down
Apply most body weight through hands
Straight legs are key
Pointed toes
Stacking the bone for more stability Extend through fingers
PARTNER 1
PARTNER 2
Once your partner lies down on their stomach, they will extend their arms straight. Only after they’ve created this shape will they bend their elbows. This is when you will stand over top of them, just behind their shoulders.
Like said in the first column, Partner 2 will lay down on the floor, extending their arms. Once they are fully straight, you will bend at the elbows, reaching your arms up at a 90degree angle. Placing your palms on your partner’s forearms, you will start to feel a gentle lift from your partner.
Place your fingers just above your partner’s elbow, wrapping your palms around their forearm. They will do the exact same thing to you as they mirror the shape of your hands. Once you have a tight hold, start to walk backward and lift your partner’s arms up until they are straight. This position will be very different for different individuals. If they are open through the shoulders, they will be able to fully extend the arms. If not, this is something you will work toward using this stretch. One way to go deeper is to press your knees into their shoulders as you traction them forward, pulling their arms back. Letting them down slowly, stop halfway, pull their arms to decompress for a few seconds, and then lower them to the floor.
As this happens, begin to straighten your arms to their full extent, whatever that means for you. Keep in mind everyone is different. You will most definitely feel this in the shoulders and primarily through the back. Make sure to breathe and allow your spine to go to its natural full range. If you start to feel it’s too much, ask your partner to back off, and/or engage your glutes to promote safe lower back extension. Conscious breathing is highly recommended because it is a direct link to your nervous system. If your nervous system is tense, your muscles will follow. But on the other hand, if your nervous system is relaxed, your body will be able to soften.
Standing tall
Stacking the bone for more stability Press down
Stacking the bone for more stability
Reaching the toes back
Keep the legs straight
Arms straight
Stacking the bone for more stability
PARTNER 1
PARTNER 2
Once your partner takes a seated position and interlaces their fingers behind their back, you will grab their wrists with your hands. To ensure that you are safely going into their range, pull their arms back and then up, continuing this linear trajectory until you feel their end range.
Sit down with your legs and back straight. Interlace your fingers behind your back and really try to squeeze your palms together as you want to avoid putting unnecessary strain in your wrists. Create two straight arms instead of three different breaking points at the wrists, elbows, shoulders. Isolation is key for proper progression in this stretch.
If their arms don’t go past 90 degrees, stay either in a Squat or Low Lunge. But if their arms do start to go past 90 degrees, you can stand up and walk forward until they've communicated to you that it is enough. The entire time you are pulling up to create space and less compression. Make sure not to go past their comfortable range as it’s easy for your body to contract and protect, a.k.a. strain the muscles. Once you’ve finished 1-2 minutes, begin to bring their arms down, knuckles toward the floor, and support them the entire way as their range has increased and they are not stable enough to support themselves. Once their hands reach the floor you can let go of their arms. Give them a 30-second trap massage. Repeat, switch.
If your knuckles go past 90-degrees you will start to feel this in your neck. So, with your back straight and your knuckles past 90 degrees, you can begin to tuck your chin and forward fold, which will allow you to go into a deeper range. As much as your partner pulls your arms up and forward, assist them by reaching out yourself to create stability in the joints. Once you finish your 1-2 minute set, you’ll feel the guidance of your partner down toward the floor. You can start to relax your arms until the knuckles touch the ground. Cross your legs, sit up tall, and receive a shoulder massage from your partner.
Press forward Sit up straight Arms in one straight line
Breath slowly
Pointed toes
Bum on heels
As much as we practice the physical art of this practice, there is a deeper layer, and this is communication. How you use your words and the manner in which you speak to people is just as important as how flexible or strong you are.If your end goal is to achieve a pose, but you ignore your partner’s needs and the potential to create a beautiful friendship along the way, you will find yourself very isolated in this practice. However, if you learn the vital skill of positive communication, you will realize that though practice you will achieve everything you want, and that how you handle yourself along the way is just as important. Everyone knows something you don’t, so the more wisely you use your words, the more understanding you will gain. Before telling someone what you want them to do, ask yourself first the simple question, “Can I do something better to fix this particular situation?” And you will notice that this attitude will be reflected almost immediately by your partner as you both work to create a reciprocal relationship, rather than a parasitic one. Using positive words to reassure and encourage your partner will give them a deeper sense of security and confidence. This will transfer directly into their practice, which will deepen their commitment, in turn allowing you both to learn more.
COMMUNICATION
THE WRONG WAY
THERIGHT RIGHTWAY WAY THE
