What is Acro&Yoga? Joy.

During the times in my life when I am filled with joy, I wish to share it. With a friend, my partner, or a community, taking part in the giving and receiving of life makes me whole. As vitally important as Iyengar yoga is for me, it is an individual journey. I can describe to others what I’m feeling, but I experience the practice alone.

Acro&Yoga is a community (not a style of yoga) based on AcroYoga International as co-founded by Jason Nemer and Jenny Sauer-Klein. In 2020 I have altered the name of my AcroYoga classes to Acro&Yoga. The content of my courses remain the same. The change in the name is due to the demands of Finland’s Iyengar Yoga Association.

The harmony of Acro&Yoga’s three lineages: Iyengar yoga, acrobatics, and massage, is mirrored by a community of (at least) three practitioners who work together building trust, improving communication, and promoting playfulness. When lifting someone up into the air I give my strength and I receive their trust, while a third practitioner keeps us safe and helps us fly. We all communicate creating a shared experience.

In the broader international community yogis from a variety of traditions go beyond sharing partnered handstands and healing massage techniques. While meeting practitioners from other lineages of yoga I encountered for the first time kirtan (yoga music) concerts, learned of different meditation techniques, and shared my own experiences to willing ears. My own Iyengar yoga practice is honored and respected, just as I honor and respect those who have found their own paths to happiness. In sharing our personal practices as well as experiencing Acro&Yoga together, I find this community fulfilling the original Sanskrit meaning of the word yoga: to yoke, to bring together, to unite. Unity that celebrates diversity…and finds time to play. This is Acro&Yoga.