Acroyoga: All About Tandem Yoga, Three & Two Person Yoga Poses

Find yoga boring? Well, let it be a time for togetherness and fitness, too! Learn all about acroyoga – the tandem yoga you need to try!

If you’re like me and you find it hard to commit to fitness, yoga and the likes, here’s your solution – acroyoga! It’s perfect ’cause you get to do it with a partner who could be your BFF, family member or significant other! Not only does this new yoga style make exercising fun, it also comes with many health benefits. Acro yoga is also an awesome way to build communication, trust and understanding between you and whoever you choose to take to your acro classes.

From acroyoga benefits to advanced and basic acro yoga poses for two and three people, check out our tandem yoga guide below!

What is Acroyoga?

Acroyoga or acro yoga is a fitness routine, which is a combination of acrobatics, yoga and sometimes, a therapeutic massage. It can be done with two or more people and is completely based on partnership, trust and fitness. This yoga routine begins with warming-up by doing asanas, followed by the two person yoga and then the massage. But not all acro yoga classes have a massage at the end. This tandem yoga also involves both static poses and movements. Whether you’re doing it with a friend, significant other or sibling, acroyoga is a great way to enhance your relationship! And spend some quality time together!

Acroyoga Benefits

From increasing strength and stamina to reducing stress and anxiety, there are a lot of benefits that come with doing tandem yoga.

– Since acroyoga involves poses where either you’re balancing yourself on top of someone or you’re balancing them over you, you’re gonna need a lot of core strength. And with practice, you’ll build muscles in your arms and legs and be stronger than ever.
– There’s also tons of stretching in two person yoga, so it helps your body become more flexible.
– Acroyoga is one of the few types of yoga where it’s almost impossible to get distracted. When you’re three feet off the ground, you can’t help but focus. This concentration can help you in your everyday life as well.
– Apart from all the physical benefits, tandem yoga will also help you build trust in your partner as well as gain it in return.
– Acroyoga is also said to help with anxiety and stress.
– If you need more motivation to go to your yoga classes, a partner can help you set a fitness routine, all the while making it fun!

Acroyoga Basics

While doing tandem yoga, you can choose to be either of the two – base or flyer. The base is the person who lies on the ground with his/her arms and legs up in the air to support the other person or flyer. And the flyer is the person being lifted off the ground by the base. No matter what role you decide to take on, you’re gonna need strength, balance and most of all, trust.

In acro yoga, there is no set order or sequence of poses so you can start pretty much anywhere. Acro yoga classes usually last for 90 minutes. It’s also advised to not try tandem yoga at home without supervision if you’re just starting out.

If you’re wondering what to wear to acro yoga lessons, it’s pretty simple. Just make sure to avoid loose clothing that would get in the way while trying to create acrobatic poses. Also keep in mind to wear clothes that are not too tight for you to move freely. Fitted sports bras or tank tops paired with yoga pants or tight capris are ideal.

Acroyoga for Beginners

If you’re a beginner, yes, tandem yoga is as hard as it looks but it gets easier with practice. Warming-up before the yoga is a must as it’ll help your body get ready for the hardcore exercise. And when you’re the base, always make sure you’re ready to catch the flyer if they fall. Also, make sure to keep in mind the stacking bones acro yoga technique, where the base keep their legs and arms as straight as possible so the bones do all the work and not the muscles. You can start by trying some easy acro yoga poses like the front plank, front bird and whale.

The front plank involves the base lying flat on their back with their legs straight up in the air, while the flyer is balanced on their feet, holding each other’s hands. The feet of the base should be in contact with the hip bones of the flyer.

The front bird or flying bird yoga pose is a hands-free version of the front plank but start out by holding hands, try to get adjusted, balance yourself and then let go.

In the whale pose, the feet and hands of the person who’s the base are at an angle and the flyer is in a diagonal position with their feet supported by the hands of the base and their shoulder blades resting on the feet of the base.

Couples Acro Yoga

What better way to bond with your loved one than trust-building, health-benefiting and super fun yoga?! Partner yoga is a great way to deepen your relationship. And if you’re the kind of person that gets bored doing yoga, having your loved one there will make it so much more fun and enjoyable!

Acroyoga Poses

Once you’ve mastered beginner acro lessons and poses, you can move on to more intricate acrobatic poses as well as acro yoga moves like the ones below.

2 People Yoga Poses

Throne Pose

Here, the feet of the person lying down acts as a throne for the flyer. The flyer sits on the base’s feet with their hands on either side as if they were sitting on a throne!

Super Yogi

This pose is similar to the front plank, except the hands of the base are not straight and the upper half of the flyer’s body is bent towards the torso of the base. And the legs of the flyer are also spread with the toes pointed.

Inverted Dancer Pose

In this acro yoga position, the flyer is in an inverted pose and not facing the base. The flyer is required to bend their body back as far as they can go and hold one of their legs from behind while the other is straight and pointed.

Acroyoga Ninja Star

The star is an acro washing machine, which means it’s a movement that starts and ends at the same position. It requires the flyer to spin around the base’s feet just like a ninja star would.

Three Person Yoga Poses

Like they say, the more the merrier! Switch up your nail spa day or movie night with your BFF’s for a fun three person yoga session!

Downward Dog

There are two bases in this pose doing the downward dog with their heads almost touching. The flyer also does the downward facing dog pose but on top of the bases.

Foot to Foot Downward Dog with Foot Hang Flyer

If you’re looking for more advanced or extreme three people yoga poses, try this acro aerobics pose. The two bases are in a handstand-like pose with their feet touching so they form an A shape. And the third person hangs in between the two with their feet held together by the feet of both the bases.

Extreme Yoga Poses for Two

If you’re still a beginner, don’t even think of trying these. They’re as extreme as they can get. However, if you’re on a more advanced level, have fun giving these advanced acro yoga poses a go with your partner. Or get your instructor’s help to practice these slowly.

Floating Paschi

In this acro yoga pose, the base is holding up the flyer using just their arms. And the flyer is upside-down and bent so that their hands can hold their legs at the ankles.

Hangle Dangle

In this pose, the base is lying flat on their back with one leg up in the air while the flyer’s body is actually dangling from the foot of the base person. One leg of the the flyer is stretched out straight horizontally and the other is bent towards the head and held in one hand at the foot.

So that was our guide to acroyoga! Have you tried tandem yoga before? Or will you be trying it out now? Tell us by tweeting @shilpa1ahuja!

Also read:
– Karma Yoga: The Path to Selflessness, Positivity & Inner Peace
– Bikram Yoga: A Complete Guide to Its Benefits, 26 Bikram Poses & FAQs
– Prana Yoga: The Benefits of Breathe Yoga & A Beginner’s Guide
– Aerial Yoga: All You Need to Know About Anti-Gravity Yoga
–Power Yoga: A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Benefits, Poses & More
–Guide to Om Yoga | Your Gateway to Meditation & Stress Busting