My personal experience with AcroYoga in Medellín is so slim that I entered this knowing little to nothing about the practice, having only attempted it once, and now, to be honest, I’m quite mesmerized by it and spend far too much time looking at AcroYoga photos on Instagram.
To further my understanding of what it is yogis do when held in all kinds of cool positions, and what the objective of the practice is, I looked into the AcroYoga culture in the city, its gathering and its upcoming Primavera Event.
AcroYoga Medellín
The weekly AcroYoga events in Medellín have been held steadily for approximately seven years!
I spoke with Justin Caruso, one of the big-time names when it comes to AcroYoga Medellín and he told me a bit about the AcroYoga culture in the city.
Yoga, in general, is widely practiced in Medellín, in studios, theatres, outdoor events and constant one-offs in Coworking spaces and other hot-spots and it has been for a long time. It’s mainly a personal practice, made for individuals to carry out on their own mat.
However, AcroYoga is more centralized, practiced only in certain places in the city, as its more of a community. It’s a practice that brings people together to collaborate and work together to reach the same goals. Justin’s events happen every week at 3 p.m. in Ciudad del Rio and gather anywhere between 20 and 50 people who work both individually and cooperatively.
The acrobatic part of it creates confidence and breaks barriers of what’s possible with your own body. Caruso assures that the practice allows you to open yourself to others more efficiently, to reach out to the other person, both physically and spiritually, in an intimate manner that creates a real connection.
Caruso insisted the practice is much more than physical talent and acrobatics. He was adamant about the power it has to create self-love and love for others.
The AcroYoga Medellin Facebook Group has close to 3,000 members! Its posts are varied between calls to action, questions about meetups, and other how-to’s in the city.
Their weekly events are, more than classes, a “jam” session where members learn from each other and practice. Caruso says he’d rather do AcroYoga than anything else whether at a park, on a beach, or any other recreational place.
Essentially, AcroYoga brings together three vital elements: yoga, Thai massage, and acrobatics. This is where the event becomes relevant.
The Primavera Event
This event is perfect for beginners to approach AcroYoga as well as for those who are more experienced. It is separated into two 4-day workshops, a Lunar Immersion and a Solar Immersion, each with specific intents.
It’s not a first-time event (see video of last year’s event here). In fact, Tim Ferris was present at last year’s event. Along with 90+ people from over twenty countries. This time, it will follow the same procedures and overall itinerary starting April 8th and finishing on April 15th. The only difference? The very founder of AcroYoga, Jason Neemer, will attend, guiding his very first AcroYoga session in the city.
The prices are at $495 per workshop $800 for both, but Medellin Living readers receive 25% off!
The Lunar Immersion
This 4-day workshop is great for beginners like myself! It is a lunar immersion, meant to be therapeutic. It’s actually called Flying Therapeutics!
It consists of suspending in the air while traction, twist, and gravity are used to create a compression on your body that allows it to heal. In this workshop, flyers are passive, they receive a massage, allowing their body to receive all the benefits without being active.
The Solar Immersion
The second 4-day workshop requires previous experience with AcroYoga. They suggest this workshop for people who are intermediate- advanced.
This is a much more acrobatic workshop, meaning, more active. Instead of Flying Therapeutics, you have Transitions. You’ll see and exercise many handstands, headstands, forearm stands and acrobatic training for this one, where flyers actively create much more of a dance in the air.
Singing up with the special Medellin Living Promo code
Sign up by emailing: AcroYogaColombia@gmail.com with your name and the workshop you’re interested in. For more info, check out the event page on Facebook.
Use promocode Medellin Living and receive 25% your choice of workshop!
Other opportunities for AcroYoga practice can be found on their Facebook Group and every Sunday at 3 p.m. in Ciudad del Río!
All photos for this article were provided by Justin Caruso.
Thanks for sharing Ximena, hope to fly you soon!