St. George Health & Wellness Magazine January/February 2022

Page 76

What Can Aerial Yoga Do for You? By Kerry Ann Humphrey, OTR/L, IBCLC I exhale deeply and feel myself moving deep inside my body as I wrap my arms around the nylon straps and rest my head on my arms. I have been hanging upside down for several minutes in the yoga trapeze. Now I am taking a rest to let my body adjust to being upright again. Yoga has been part of my life for the past fifteen years, and trapeze yoga has been part of that practice for the past three. Yoga enthusiasts often indulge in yoga toys to enhance their practice, and the yoga trapeze has been just such an indulgence for me.

Why would a normal person want to do aerial yoga? I hear an assortment of different rationales: “It looks hard.” “I don’t do regular yoga.” “I am not that strong.” “I am not that flexible.” The list of reasons not to try aerial yoga seems endless and can easily discourage someone from experiencing this fun and beneficial practice. However, consider the history of aerial yoga and it’s benefits before writing off this practice. Aerial yoga, like traditional floor yoga, has a long history. In the 1970s, BKS Iyengar, the founder of his own style of yoga, was notorious for his use of yoga props and for fashioning ropes into slings that used yoga mats and blankets. Yoga props are traditionally simple devices, such as blocks, belts, or blankets, that help clients to improve their experience of the practice, but the yoga sling is a prop of another sort and can be used as an assist to clients. The physical and mental benefits of inversions are numerous. Hanging upside down is, in many ways, a method to gaining a new perspective. Research shows that inversion:

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• Increases neurotransmission. • Improves mood and focus. • Raises the level of self-confidence. • Improves energy levels and restful sleep. • Increases muscle strength, flexibility, and tension. • Aids in joint and immune health. • Reduces nerve pressure, realigns the spine, rehydrates spinal discs, and improves traction between the vertebrae. • Decreases the symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse and pelvic pain. • Improves digestion. • Increases lymphatic drainage. • Improves blood circulation.

Hanging upside down for even a brief period increases blood flow, leading to a healthy, natural glow after a workout.

A good instructor will modify an aerial yoga workout to fit the needs of each client and provide assistance on the trapeze while confidence is gained. The perception that aerial yoga is difficult needs to be dispelled. You have been adventurous enough to sign up for spin class, boot camp, Zumba dance, and plyometrics. Isn’t it time you found out how aerial fitness might benefit your wellness routine?

About the Author Matt and KerryAnn Humphrey have fifty-five years combined experience in occupational therapy (OT) practice. They met at UTMB-University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston in Galveston, Texas, and have been married for twenty-seven years. Matt and KerryAnn have three adult children. They have lived in the southern Utah area for twenty-seven years. They recently ventured into private practice in Hurricane, Utah, and are owners of Unity Health and Wellness.

To learn more about aerial yoga or to join an aerial yoga class, please call Unity Health and Wellness at (435) 703-6600 or visit 258 West State Street in Hurricane, Utah.


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Articles inside

Without Dieting

4min
page 77

a Healthy Winter

4min
pages 80-84

Dining Guide

4min
page 75

What Can Aerial Yoga Do For You?

2min
page 76

A High-Fiber Diet Is for Everyone

4min
pages 78-79

Goodness” in 2022

2min
page 74

Who We Are

2min
page 73

for Long-Term Success

4min
pages 70-71

Dixie State University Student Madalyn Forner Shares the Importance of Mental Health on College Campuses

3min
page 72

Eating Clean. What Does It Mean?

5min
pages 68-69

Celebrating a New Year: Stepping into the Unknown with Gratitude

3min
pages 64-65

Leisure Time in 2022?

2min
page 63

for Action

4min
pages 66-67

The Purposeful Creation of Family Unity Passions and Hobbies Make Us

7min
pages 58-62

Retire on Purpose

4min
pages 54-57

What’s That Smell, Fido?

2min
page 53

The Far Side of Zion

3min
pages 50-52

Lighting the New Year

3min
pages 36-37

The High Value of a Community Health Center in Southwest Utah

5min
pages 40-42

Patients Need a Health Advocate

3min
pages 38-39

A Cold Morning Walk

5min
pages 48-49

New Beginnings

5min
pages 44-45

Your Wellness Vision in Action

2min
pages 34-35

Ask Bentley

4min
pages 32-33

Formula Won: New Training, Nutrition Regimen Powers Aaron Metler to Fourth St. George Marathon Triumph

7min
pages 18-21

Letter from the President

4min
pages 12-13

Mayoral Message

2min
pages 8-9

Letter from the President

4min
pages 10-11

Understanding Dementia

2min
page 27

Group Ride or Solo

3min
pages 25-26

Letter from the Editor

2min
page 7

The Proper Pre-Round Golf Warmup

2min
pages 22-24
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