Aerial Physique

Happy Friday friends! 💛

This week we are so excited to feature Sami who is so strong, beautiful, AND dynamic in the air! 💛

In Sami’s words:

“I started aerial when I was 7, and it’s been my passion ever since. What began as childhood love turned into coaching at 14, which led me to study and become a primary school teacher too.

Whether in the studio or the classroom, I love helping others discover what they’re capable of.
I was lucky to find aerial so young, and coaching means I get to share that with people who find it later in life. Watching that same passion click for someone else is honestly one of my favourite parts of the job.

As an adult, it’s easy to lose touch with play, and aerials has been my way of holding onto it. No matter how serious life gets, training brings that sense of fun straight back.

My style is all about strength based movement and dynamic sequences, with silks and hammock as the apparatuses I always come back to. I can’t wait to bring that energy to Thailand next March–April for my first ever silks & hammock retreat with Fly Karavek.” 💛

Technique Tip: Reverse Meat Hook Knee Climb, also known as the Split Fabric Back Flag Knee Climb (and I'm sure there are many more names out there!).

Start with the wrist lock drill before going for the full climb!

✨ Key Tips:

1️⃣ Check Your Arm Position
• Palm faces away from your body
• Actively press that arm into your lower back
• Don't let the arm become passive

2️⃣ Use the Supported Drill
• Wrap wrist locks and invert to a pike
• Hook one knee from the inside
• Pass the opposite leg through the center
• Rotate the hips and lift into a supported back flag
• Tuck your head in as you return to pike and repeat both sides

Focus on pressing the back arm into your lower back while pulling up with the top arm for support.

3️⃣ Turn the Hips Enough
This is one of the biggest sticking points.

Think:
⬆️ Up
➡️ Forward
🔄 To the front of the fabric

If your foot gets stuck behind the fabric, your hips likely haven't rotated far enough. Keep a strong knee hook and active hamstrings as you pass through.

4️⃣ Create Space
Your hips must travel far enough through that:
• The arm can truly reach your lower back
• The tail lands behind your head, not across the front of your neck

5️⃣ Hand Sequence Matters
• Hand under the hooked knee reaches first
• Then the arm behind your back releases and reaches up

A common mistake is releasing the back arm too early before the hips have fully passed through.

⚠️ Common Mistakes:
• Palm facing the wrong direction
• Passive back arm
• Not enough hip rotation
• Losing the knee hook
• Releasing the back hand too soon
• Trying the full climb before mastering the progression

💡 You may notice some bruising behind or to the side of the knee while learning this climb. This is fairly common with knee hook skills. Sharp pain, pinching, or numbness are not.

Remember, you don't earn extra points for skipping progressions! Spend as much time as needed with the wrist lock drill until the position feels secure. Your future self will thank you!

Happy Friday friends! 💛

This week we are so excited to feature Niff who dances on the trapeze with such intentional movement! Her style is truly magnetic and we can’t take our eyes off of her. 💛

In Niff’s words:

“Hi! I’m Niff Nicholls, and I’ve been studying and teaching aerial arts for over 20 years. I’m the owner and a coach at Secret Circus in Philadelphia, PA.

While I love cross-training across many apparatuses, trapeze has always held a special place in my heart. It’s the language I’ve always wanted to speak—and one I’m still discovering new ways to express.

The greatest inspiration I hope to offer my students and this community is the idea that there are always new possibilities, new pathways, and new ways of approaching our practice. Cross-training has given me a broader perspective, allowing ideas from different disciplines to cross-pollinate, deepen my understanding, and reveal unexpected connections within the craft.

At the end of July, I’ll be teaching at the Aerial Dance Festival in Boulder with Frequent Flyers, and I still have a few spots available in my 15-hour, week-long Trapeze Immersion. If you’re excited to explore movement, creativity, and the endless pathways trapeze has to offer, I’d love to share that journey with you!” 💛

New month, new moves on Aerial Physique TV! ✨

This month, we’re adding a Knee Tangle Entry to S-Wrap, plus a continuation into Taffy Windmill, a skill already on APTV.

We love adding tutorials that connect to skills already inside the app, so you can keep building your aerial vocabulary and find new pathways in the air.

Not a member yet? Join us for step-by-step aerial tutorials, monthly new releases, sequences, lesson plans and a full library of training you can return to anytime: https://www.aerialphysique.tv/

Stay tuned, something exciting begins July 6th ... our 10-Year APTV Anniversary Celebration! 🎉

🤣Which attempt is your favorite, A, B, C or D? Share below! Sound on for the full experience! 📢

We're happily accepting any tips for sitting all the way up, because this one is a journey! 🫠

Also, doing this a bunch gave us both a swollen bruise/hematoma on the inside of the hip bone area. Has that happened to anyone else, or is that just an us thing?

And we know this skill as Sexy Salto, but we’re curious, does it go by any other names?

🤸‍♀️ Technique Tip: Front Walkover Mount | Int/Adv

A fun way to get onto the silks without a traditional climb!

Keep in mind, this is one you might not get right away and that’s okay. It can take time to build the coordination and confidence for this entry. It took me a couple of years before I felt fully confident with it!

You don’t need a freestanding handstand or a full front walkover to begin working on this mount. If you can kick up with a supported shoulder, move through a split or scissor pathway and securely hook your knee onto the silk, you already have the key pieces.

1️⃣ Find your hand height
Wrap your supporting wrist around the silk. Too high or low makes the entry harder. Shoulder height is a good starting point. As you lean forward, stack your straight arm beneath your shoulder. The wrapped arm moves into internal shoulder rotation.

2️⃣ Set up your kick-up
Place your free hand directly beneath the rigging point. If it’s off-center, you’ll likely swing.

Right hand down → right leg steps forward → left leg kicks up.

3️⃣ Practice kick-ups
Floor kick-ups build confidence, shoulder stability and comfort moving forward into your hands. If they’re new, practice with a wall behind you.

A thick crash mat may feel less stable and your elbow may bend slightly, but since you may miss the knee hook at first, being well cushioned matters!

4️⃣ Pass the silk
Move through a split or scissor position. With your right hand down, your left leg must travel just beyond the silk to make room for the opposite knee to hook. A full split isn’t required.

5️⃣ Hook your knee
Once the left leg passes, hook your right knee onto the silk to arrive in an opposite knee climb.

Aim to hook the silk, not your supporting hand! Finding the right hand placement, kick power and commitment may take trial and error.

Remember: the hand on the mat matches the knee that hooks. Right hand down → left leg passes → right knee hooks.

It’s okay to stay at the kick-up stage while building confidence and control. Having someone spot you through the pathway can also help a ton! Every step counts! Happy training! ✨