The Rise of Aerial Fitness

Julie Morning was looking for a new workout to challenge her.

The Conway woman was a dancer and had been doing yoga for years, so when the opportunity to try aerial fitness arose, Morning accepted the challenge.

“I wanted something that was going to push me in a different direction and challenge me in a way that I had never been challenged before,” Morning said. “I’ve done endurance exercises. I’ve done half marathons. I just wanted something that was going to be completely unique and different.”

There’s a new fitness option available on the Grand Strand and it’s called aerial fitness, where people like Morning can get a non-impact, full body core and strength workout by learning how to hang in the sky on flowing fabrics. The mobile fabric rig is set up by Rachel Tipton, a personal trainer with Ultra Fit Lifestyle, inside Body & Soul Spa in Myrtle Beach.

Tipton started in aerial fitness in 2000, and when she moved closer to the area, she traveled to Charleston to get her aerial fitness workout and to get her training on how to teach the classes. She said the classes, sometimes offered in groups or one-on-one, are geared toward anyone wanting to work on strengthening, lengthening, and toning the entire body.

“People come expecting something unique and challenging,” Tipton said. “They know they’re getting upper body and they know they’re getting core, they just don’t know how much core they need. They don’t always know they’re getting some cardio, because it makes your heart pound.”

She said the classes are open to those who either are out of shape or work out regularly, and she uses movements based on yoga, ballet, Pilates, and circus.

“What people’s end result and what they’re wanting is overall toning because it’s a great strength-training workout and it doesn’t create bulky muscles,” Tipton said. “You’re creating long, lean muscles with endurance. People are hoping to achieve a long, lean body line that you can achieve in things like Pilates and bar work. This gives that same kind of look, which is different than a weight-lifting look.”

Tipton started the classes in September, and has already found students ready to advance to a taller rig she has in a bigger gymnasium.

“It takes a good mind-body connection and good mind-body kinesthetics,” Tipton said. “A good mind-body connection that says I need to hold this [area of the body] and I need to relax this [area of the body].”

“Aerial work forces you to get your posture in order, so there’s a lot of incredible conditioning exercises that get your posture in alignment. The benefits that people are getting is they are thinking more about their body alignment in their daily practices.”

Tipton said she has found the small group setting to be beneficial to many first timers.

“It is nice for those trying it to see someone else do it and witness what works for that person and also any struggles they may face, because they may have the same struggle with the fabric,” Tipton said. “So when you can actually see someone else do it, then it helps to clarify what’s right and what’s wrong and what’s going to help and what’s not.”

Morning said she anticipated her thighs, forearms, back and her core to be sore following Tipton’s class. She thought her experience in aerial yoga would make aerial fitness a bit easier, but she was “pleasantly surprised” at how Tipton’s class challenged her.

“Especially with yoga poses, it’s a matter of holding things and not necessarily getting into them. This is a matter of getting into them. There’s a lot of strength and focus that goes into it as opposed to flexibility when it comes to yoga. I really wasn’t expecting all of the strength requirements, and I also thought, ‘I’m in good shape. I can handle this,’ and I was pleasantly surprised and humbled by being able to get into a preparatory position.

“It was much more challenging than I expected.”

This story was originally published December 5, 2015 at 7:00 AM with the headline "The Rise of Aerial Fitness."