Aerial Yoga Teacher Training

Trilogy Sanctuary in La Jolla, California, offers a series of aerial yoga teacher training courses in San Diego for yoga teachers, movers, aerialists and dedicated practitioners who want more than a certificate. The program includes Level 1, Level 2, Low Hammock, Flips, Tricks & Dance, and Kids Aerial teacher trainings. Each can be taken on its own, or combined as the Complete Pathway, a 120-hour course spread over a year.

The curriculum draws on more than 15 years of developing aerial yoga at Trilogy Sanctuary. It brings together yoga, fitness, aerial performing arts, creative movement, and restorative, somatic and therapeutic practices. The aim is not one prescribed method. You learn the principles behind aerial yoga, so you can build intelligent, accessible classes in your own voice, whether you plan to teach or simply deepen your own practice.

What the Trainings Cover

Aerial Yoga Level 1 is the foundation, a 40-hour intensive with 30 contact hours and 10 non-contact hours. You learn to use the hammock as both a yoga prop and a movement tool, with work on alignment, gravity, inversions, strength, flexibility, creative sequencing, hands-on adjustments, inversion therapy, rigging and knot tying, and practice teaching. The manual covers more than 100 poses and variations.

Low Hammock is a 30-hour specialty training (25 contact, 5 non-contact) focused on working with the fabric close to the ground. It covers more than 75 poses and variations across restorative work, myofascial release, deep stretching, strengthening and TRX-style conditioning, plus props and support for students with common limitations and injuries.

Kids Aerial Teacher Training is a 10-hour specialty training on age-appropriate class structure, safety, games and imaginative play, with inclusive strategies for neurodivergent children and students on the autism spectrum.

Aerial Yoga Level 2 is a 25-hour advanced training (20 contact, 5 non-contact). It covers advanced inversions, peak poses, grip strength, fabric entries, aerial barre, and how to build progressions that stay safe and accessible.

Flips, Tricks & Dance is a 25-hour intermediate specialty training (20 contact, 5 non-contact) on flips, tricks, creative transitions, full aerial dance sequencing and performance skills, including practice performing.

Non-contact hours are completed through home study, observation, assisting, practice teaching, and selected Trilogy aerial classes. Out-of-town students are encouraged to stay an extra day or two afterward to finish them, and the studio can arrange completion over a long weekend if time is tight.

Your Teachers

Instruction comes from Leila Caldera, Hannahsita Smyth and Olivia Quimby (Level 1 and Level 2), Carly Mattson, Hannahsita Smyth and Lauren Dabbs (Low Hammock), and Kirsten Leslie and Rachel Seay (Flips, Tricks & Dance).

The Setting

Classes are held at Trilogy Sanctuary in La Jolla, in the open-air Sky Deck, the Earth Room, and beneath the rooftop Dome. Practice teaching happens with students from the Trilogy community.

Before You Go

Prerequisites vary by course.

- Level 1 suits experienced yoga, movement or fitness practitioners, typically with a 200-hour yoga or related certification, or at least one year of consistent aerial yoga practice.
- Level 2 requires completion of Level 1 or an equivalent training, plus experience teaching Level 1 classes.
- Flips, Tricks & Dance requires Level 1 or an equivalent and at least three years of aerial yoga experience.
- Low Hammock and Kids have their own recommended prerequisites, so contact the studio for details.

Each course includes a training manual, a certificate of completion, practice teaching opportunities, and one month of unlimited classes at Trilogy Sanctuary. The trainings are a registered YACAP program, and the hours are eligible for Yoga Alliance continuing education. Travel and lodging are not included, and non-contact hours beyond the scheduled sessions are completed separately.