Beginner Silk (Tissu) Class at Aerial Fitness Orange County in Costa Mesa
Welcome to the most exciting workout and fitness experience in Orange County: Aerial Fitness OC! Nestled in a quaint business complex in Costa Mesa, Aerial Fitness Orange County is fully equipped with open, vast space for learning aerial skills and fitness with silks (tissu), lyra (hoop) and trapeze for kids are young as 7 to adults. I took a Beginner Tissu class along with Kim of The Infinite Smile Project and my co-worker Taylor. Although I have seen aerialists perform before, I had no idea what to expect from the class, which is the fun part! I'm always up for a challenge, and Aerial Fitness OC owner and our instructor Doug assured us that even though working with the silks may look difficult, it isn't once you learn the basics!
What's great about the classes is that they max out at 6 students and usually average 4 students a class, which means more individual assistance with the instructor so you can really grasp the skills. All beginner classes start (after stretching) with learning how to climb the silks. Now, for some reason this seemed the most daunting task; it may be because I have this image in my head of old-school PE gym classes where you had to climb the rope, and I always thought that if I were to have to do that; I would A) not even get my feet off the ground or B) Would be half way up the rope and somehow slide down (causing rope burn with my hands) or fall off of it due to my arms having no muscle strength.
At least the hanging silks looked MUCH more inviting to climb; the trick was to use your LEGS and CORE (abdominal muscles); who knew?! Doug told me right away he had a feeling I would be able to easily climb the silks; low and behold he was right! My abdominal area is not the strongest, but believe me, Doug showed us some core exercises that really worked and strengthened those muscles; aka hanging upside down from the silks and crunching upwards and variations of that.
Although I mastered climbing, getting into certain positions like a inverted pike or split, and handstand was a little bit of struggle with controlling my legs. I tend to rush into the position so it took much centering and activating of all my muscles to achieve the skills. I even got to play around on the trapeze and do some acro moves with Doug!
Overall, it was a really fulfilling experience knowing that I could accomplish aerial skills that I thought would take much longer to achieve (also my dance training does come in handy, but it was still a full body workout and using some muscles I don't usually use much). It's easier to build endurance and stamina by working through mastering each skill on the silks; and I was sore for the next few days all in my arms and upper body.
Come take a class at Aerial Fitness Orange County:
151 Kalmus Dr, J-7 Costa Mesa, California
(949) 631-5587
Parking: Parking Lot
The studio is located behind the dance studio Dance Asylum (you walk through the main studio to get to the room where the aerial classes are held. This room can also be accessed from the other side of the building through the service doors.
The studio can be tricky to find within the business complex so be sure to clarify with the Aerial Fitness OC Staff!
There are 1 Class Drop in Rates as well as Packages, contact the studio for more information and how to register
