I had heard the hype, I had heard how amazing it was, I had heard that you feel like a regular Cirque du Soleil.  So I went up to i.d. gym in Lincoln Park to try Fly Yoga and see if I could fly through the air with the greatest of ease.

I don’t know about ease but I certainly got my yoga on in a silk cocoon.

Basically, you go through your flow using the silks to help you move deeper into your postures, increase balance and flexibility.  Created by the owner of i.d. gym, Brent, Fly Yoga is a one-of-a-kind thing and  I cannot believe we have it here in Chicago!  I love yoga and to add a playful, creative spin to my practice was really exciting.  What was not so exciting was overcoming my fear of heights/suspension that is getting worse as I get older (Hey, I AM turning 26 next week).  You might say “Wait- you were only 3-4 feet above the yoga matted floor at any given moment, pull it together!”.  While this is true, I usually keep this body safely on the ground so relying on a silk blanket thing freaked me out at first.  Particularly when my head was hovering above the ground.   But once I started to trust that the silks and rock climbing hooks really could hold up to 3,000 lbs, I was amazed by what I could do!  Pigeon pose with my shin tucked under my chin? Done.  Downdog with my legs in the air?  Definitely.  Splits upside down?  You got it.

My favorite part?  Looking over at my fellow fliers and seeing us all upside down, red faced, and giggling.  Fly Yoga is fun but it was even better to do it with friends I do regular yoga (read: on the ground) with all the time.  Ya gotta mix it up, ya know?  I’m so glad we did and I can’t wait to go back!