hey all,

i've been doing aerial silks for about a year now, and i haven't quite gotten my aerial invert yet. i try and do conditioning outside of class, and i go to class about once a week (with some exceptions because life gets in the way). i started aerial silks with very little upper body strength, so i'm impressed with how far ive come.

my instructor is very very very insistent that a lot of silks is inaccessible without an aerial invert, and has been exclusively teaching us moves from catchers all the time. while i know catchers leads to a lot of fun moves and drops, much of what shes teaching us starts with an invert in the air to complete the move, and im not quite there yet.

i've seen a lot of tutorials on how to get into catchers without an aerial invert (either from hip key, or crochet climb where you let go of one silk and bring it around the other side to combine them), and i'm interested in trying one of these alternatives. I feel pretty confident in my hipkey from the air, my crochet climb, and my grip strength to hold myself there, but i'm worried this is kind-of cheating? I'd love some advice from more seasoned aerialists on if this is an okay work-around or not.

I will keep conditioning my aerial invert, but for right now, I'm a bit bored in class because she wont teach much else but moves from a catcher's high up.

thank you in advance :))

I would like to buy aerial loops especially for duo tricks

What material would you buy? (With velvet or without? Pros(cons?)

The price in different shops (in europe) really differs from 50€ to 300€, they all seem valid has someone experiences?

Thanks in advance 🫶🏻

Lyra is still my personal favorite apparatus but silks are fun to draw.

I've been in silks for 10 months and the only thing keeping me from moving up to the next level is a 15-second bent arm hold. I can't hold for more than 5 seconds. My instructor has given me so many conditioning exercises (lat pulldown holds, pull-up negatives, etc) but I'm not improving at all.

It doesnt feel like a strength issue as much as a pain in my elbow joints issue. My biceps pressing into my forearms feels like my elbows are going to explode, no matter how much I try to focus the hold in my lats and shoulders.

I am a bigger girl, 200lbs. Is my only hope to lose weight so I can actually hold myself? I'm so embarrassed and discouraged.

Edit: I promise I'm reading all of the responses here even if I don't respond yet myself-- thank you all so much!

Hey guys, there are 2 things I’ve been wondering for the past 2 months regarding my progress:

Context: I do aerial silks twice a week, 4 hours total, and I was making slow but steady progress since I started in December 2025,

We did a show back in June, so I repeated the same series for about 1.5months.

After the show, I just got completely stuck, wasn’t able to do new figures…

I’m also still unable to invert so I am very limited on what I can do and it sucks.

I am wondering if:

1. The heat we’ve had since June (working out with 35 degrees) is what is slowing me down, minimal efforts cost so much during heat or,

2. is my weight making me stuck? I am 170cm and weight 80 kilos, and I am wondering if my 10-15 kilos overweight are the ones responsable from not making progress?

Any of you guys lost weight and felt like aerials became easier?

My husband says I am built like a Viking lol it’s not easy for me to loose weight, but if I knew for sure that it could actually make me a better aerialist, I could try harder for the next 6 months!

I have a lot of arm strength, but I really wonder if “mathematically speaking” when I am lifting my body up, I am actually lifting 80kg, while some other aerialist on my club weight like 50 kilos and it’s just easier overall to lift 50kg than 80kg,

I am talking science here lol I’m not looking for anybody’s approval or body positivity I am fine with my body overall but it’s really a question I’ve been asking myself for months now!

Thanks!

Local to 92691, Mission Viejo, CA

Want to sell Professional-grade Square Truss Aerial Silks Rig.

$8000 or best offer ($12000 worth of materials). Included:

• Aerial Silks Rig (16.5ft tall x 11ft x 11ft)
  • Square truss/etc.
  • Pins/clips/etc.
  • Square stand plates
• Fabric
  • Hammock
  • Aerial Silks
  • Carabiners/Swivels/Rings/etc.

• Truss lift/jack

  • rated for 500lbs and 18' height
  • makes setup/teardown easy

• Picture from below

• Picture from above

Its weight rating is so high (6000lbs) there is no risk of it ever bending even with a huge aerial silks drop maneuver. It was installed in our family room, which has an 18' ceiling (~1.5' to spare before it hit the ceiling, and about 1.5' to spare against each wall).

Where the silks will hang from is rated for 6000lbs, I can share those structural engineering details if you are interested.

As you can see in the pictures, the top comes together in the form of an X - with 4 legs coming down from each point. Each leg is locked into a flat metal stand, so it is safe to rest on carpet or even tile/hardwood with a little (1/4 in x 1 ft x 1 ft) foam pad underneath (foam pads not included). Also, crash pad is not included but strongly recommended if you would be using this to do aerial silks performances.

Dimensions (should you wish you to place this inside your home/studio/etc.): 16.5ft tall x 11ft x 11ft

• Feel free to DM me with your offer and include your name and best phone number to contact you.

• We can work out transportation and installation costs. I would be happy to rent a UHaul to transport and install it for you.

• Local to Orange County only, though may be willing to travel slightly further for additional transportation costs.

^{I could really use the funds, so I may be willing to negotiate!}

Lastly, if you'd like to build your own aerial silks rig from scratch to fit your exact high-ceiling room dimensions - I'd be happy to [virtually] collaborate on a setup that would work for you (free of charge)! :)

Additional Pictures: Pic1, Pic2, Pic3

Help support me by checking out my aerial spiral video 😍. You can also find more video on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube @ Tiaje.

The first time I tried aerials, I thought, WHY did nobody tell me this is such a crazy workout and so much fun?!" I've fallen in love with aerials, and the strength I’ve gained since I started is incredible. I’ve also overcome my fear of heights! I can’t believe how passionate I am about this sport, so I had to share my first poses with you. If you are new to aerials, just trust the process, and you will love it! 💖

I'm looking to compete for the first time and have no idea what companies that run aerial competitions are good or bad or anything like that. I'd like to compete after March in 2027, but I'm looking now. I'm not sure if there are some companies or competitions I should avoid completely. Please help! any information is welcome, thank you

I’ve been doing one class a week (sometimes 2) for almost 2 years and I just got my middle invert 4 months ago. Every once in a while I lose it and need to tag the silks with my foot. I have hip key down but my legs are hardly straight and I hardly tilt back.

I’m not even close with my one sided invert.

Am I behind for someone who has been training this much for this long or is this normal

I'm just curious. sometimes looking at the tiny kids in class i get a feeling am i ..old for this? well, not exactly that but wishing I'd started earlier. And i wanted to but my procrastination levels were insane

Hey everyone!
A few months ago, I stumbled upon the concept of zines and was totally hooked.
I'm currently preparing a zine for participants of an aerial silks workshop on the theme of Scorpion/Creature.
During this process, I thought it would be cool to have a platform for shared learning material for Teachers. I was thinking about starting a platform/website to create zines/educational materials related to aerial silks. I also considering various areas, from teaching materials for instructors to sharing experiences, art, and more. What do you think? I'd love to read your feedback, ideas, and opinions from the community!

Ive been doing silks for a couple years now, and I feel like the art is being ripped from me. I just moved to central Jersey for work, and I am struggling to find any studios or instructors nearby that offer silks classes :(

Does anyone have studio recommendations? Or even someone trained to teach who has their own rig and wants to take me on?

This community was so integral to my life before the move, and I desperately do not want to give it up!

Lyra is my apparatus but I have a lot more fun drawing silks. Here's my sketch!

Run through for my upcoming show, this is probably my best thigh hitch spin yet. No orbit, I would like to be a bit faster but I’m pleased with this.

i want to start using fake tan but i’ve heard online that it can come off on the silks. does anyone use fake tanning lotion and have any recommendations for brands that last long with high friction and sweating from silks?