ELAINE IS A PSYCHOLOGIST AND AN AERIAL YOGA INSTRUCTOR. SHE'S PASSIONATE ABOUT COMBINING KNOWLEDGE FROM PSYCHOLOGY AND AERIAL YOGA TO HELP PEOPLE TAKING CARE OF THEIR MIND AND BODY (IN A FUN WAY!)
A lot of us, including myself, practise aerial yoga because not only do we want to work out and stretch, but also to master some difficult tricks. In the process, however, we will inevitably get to some point where we couldn’t master it by ourselves. This also happens to experienced students or even teachers! Believe it or not, it takes both your physical
and mental strengths to overcome these hurdles! In this article, I will share with you some tips on mastering these tricks - and it may actually be easier than you think!
Tip #1 - Stay calm and be patient
Yes, duh. It might be too obvious to state, but it is too important to ignore! I have seen a lot of students rushing to get to the pose just for the sake of getting there. Sometimes rushing doesn’t help - it only makes things worse. Remember the time when your hammock was swinging like a swinging bed? That’s one of the signs that you are rushing. So how do we be patient? First of all, calm your mind down. You probably hear a lot of voices in your head such as “hurry up!”, “I need to catch up! The others have done it already!”, “I really want to master this pose NOW!”, “why can’t I do it?”. When we listen to these voices, we are focusing on our “inner critic”. What you CAN do, instead, is to focus on what you are doing. Focus on which muscle you are using, which muscle should you be using. If you are unsure, ask your teacher! And be patient - you will be able to do it!
Tip #2 - Find your flow
This “flow” is not the flow that you are thinking about. I am talking about the “flow” from psychology. The term was coined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (if you really want to pronounce the name, it is chick-sent-me-high). The state of “flow” is when you are in the zone, fully immersed in a feeling of energised focus, full involvement, and time flew by
without you even noticing it! So why flow? To get to the flow state, you need to be
challenged slightly out of your comfort zone, including your capabilities. So, challenge yourself slightly, but not too much!