What to Wear to Aerial Yoga

Originally published- 10/29/2014

How do you dress for aerial yoga?

This question of what to wear to aerial yoga comes up most often after students show up to my Saturday classes at the YMCA Anthony Bowen.

A few guidelines will make your aerial yoga experience madly more pleasant before you even arrive:

Short or long sleeves (armpits covered). This way your sweat doesn’t touch the fabric and the fabric won’t chafe your skin. You’ll likely want your shirt to be tucked in so it doesn’t ride up during inversions.
Leggings (or perhaps “Meggings”, aka leggings for men), not straight / wide leg yoga pants. Capris are ok, but when you are in “ankle wrap” (one of the ways to hang in the fabric), the fabric may still rub your skin. Straight leg pants are ok, but can easily ride up and make it trickier for you to place your foot quickly and precisely.
Men, if not in pants or “meggings”, please wear fitted shorts (like bike shorts) not (just) loose ones. Thank ya muchly!
Toe Socks – the kind with sticky nubs on the bottom. Optional, but nice. They help you climb into the fabric, they keep the skin of your feet from germing up the fabric as well as other people’s feet stuff off you). In addition, the sticky quality of the bottom of these socks helps you come to a stop easily when you place your foot down on the floor. In the case of the YMCA, our aerial room is shared by TRX and kickboxing and other group fitness performed in sneakers. The socks have the added benefit of keeping your tootsies clean and clear.

I recommend avoiding the following:

Any jewelry, especially dangly earrings or chunky rings, but maybe even stud earrings — better safe than sorry!
Perfumes (they could cling to the fabric)
Loose fitting clothing
Untied long hair

Yoga mats under your aerial hammock on the ground are optional. (We have plenty on site or bring your own). They come in handy for the times in the class where you put your knees or other body parts on the floor. However, they can slip underneath of you when you are swinging around, jumping up or down.

Check out the aerial yoga photos I’ve posted to Facebook, and come out to play Saturdays from 1:15-2:15pm! Please see my class schedule for the latest on when I’m scheduled to teach / sub aerial yoga. BONUS: Your first class at the YMCA is always free :).

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Categories: Yoga