Joseph Gray
I’m a personal trainer turned acrobat. My acrobatic journey started five years ago when I discovered just how difficult something like side star could be for someone who considered themselves to be relatively fit. This new challenge inspired me to push my limits every day to become a more confident base and flyer. Soon I found myself not just excelling at L based acro, but also gaining a sense of community. Today I thrive in environments where I can teach my passion and learn along the way.
Joseph Gray
I’m a personal trainer turned acrobat. My acrobatic journey started five years ago when I discovered just how difficult something like side star could be for someone who considered themselves to be relatively fit. This new challenge inspired me to push my limits every day to become a more confident base and flyer. Soon I found myself not just excelling at L based acro, but also gaining a sense of community. Today I thrive in environments where I can teach my passion and learn along the way.
Series
AcroYoga- First Steps!
Welcome! I'm so happy you've chosen to learn Acro with me today- there are several instructors here to learn from and I'm honored to be chosen to learn from! Having said that, I strongly believe that learning from different voices is one of the absolute best ways to discover your practice. That is how I learned and how I continue to learn. In this series you will be armed with all of the tools you need to feel like you've got the basics covered. It's easily the most important part of Acroyoga. The things you learn from the beginning will stick with you for life- so it's best to learn the right way from the start! I'd start from the beginning every time. No matter how much you feel you've gotten the basics down, keep doing them. I'd love it if you said "I'm pretty sure I've done the first module 300 times". By then you will have established a movement pattern that feels natural. From that point on you will feel confident and even impress veteran bases and flyers with your consistency. This is not to say you should watch the first episode every time, but to keep those key points in your practice.
Videos
Acroyoga Chair (Safe Exit Strategies)
Here we learn how to safely exit the chair pose in multiple directions. It's good to practice your "emergency" down ahead of the actual emergency. Please watch all the way through before attempting these exits.
Acroyoga Front Plank Part Four
We're going to add some sugars and spices to our plank position now. It's time to cook up some preps towards transitions to different poses. We start by shifting weight to fewer points of contact and getting comfortable with single leg/arm holds. Intro - 0:10 Warm up / review tips - 0:30 Base queues - 0:47 Flyer queues - 1:05 Range of motion drills - 1:19 Hands free range of motion drills - 1:44 First transition demo - 2:50 Flyer cues - 3:07 Base cues - 3:25
Acroyoga front plank part three
You're doing GREAT! If you're here you've made some significant progress. I can't express enough just how important these steps are, as little as they seem. Here are the final tips and queues towards your front plank shape. You'll have some challenges to work through... remember that it might feel like a struggle sometimes, but with patience and hard work, you'll feel comfortable in no time. Hand release practice - :38 Hip release - 1:05 Queues for flyer/base - 1:28 Safety queues - 1:57 "Gas Pedal" - 2:14 Flyer specific queues - 2:55 Common mistakes - 3:23 Emergency down - 3:47 Hands free entry - 4:09
Acroyoga front plank part two
Step two! We'll add the exciting bit here- going into the air! Don't worry if there are some shaky base legs. That will work itself out in time. We're here to make progress, not perfection. Remember that everyone is doing the best that they can and to be patient. Base queues - 0:14 Prep for lift - 1:10 Elbow bend for Lift - 1:45 Safety queues - 3:14 Flyer queues - 3:55 Plank exit - 4:37 Homework - 5:00
Acroyoga- First step!
Here it is- the very first step towards an incredible adventure in acrobatics! Learn what will be the ground level of thousands of skills. It may seem overly complicated for such a basic thing, but trust me, it's worth getting detailed now to save yourself frustration later!
Acroyoga Whale Pose
This one is most people's first insta-acro pose go to! It's simple, elegant, and easy. Don't be fooled though, it can be dangerous. In this video I explain how things can go wrong and what to do to avoid that happening.
Acroyoga- Chair
When I first started learning acro this was one of my favorites. It's fun, it's silly, and it's actually quite safe for beginners! As a base, you can really dial in the complexities of the feet, and my personal favorite benefit- it's basically giving you a sneaky flexibility boost. As the flyer, know that your feet are much much closer to the ground than your head (it can feel extra scary up there but in reality you're quite close to the floor!). Setting up for safety - :09 Placement - :44 Lifting into chair - 1:35 Flyer position - 2:05 Adjusting foot placement - 2:25 Points of contact - 3:00 Chair exit - 4:10 Base exercises - 4:55 Base safety queues - 5:18 Common mistakes - 5:53
Acroyoga- Chair With Transitions!
Welcome to your first lesson on transitions in poses! Here we will discover the complexities of listening to one another in order to facilitate movement. Key point - break things down to their simplest parts and practice in baby steps.
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