#21: Jill Campbell -- What is Acroyoga? Joys of Teaching Yoga

This week we are proud to have the opportunity to talk to one of the leading experts of Acroyoga. The most basic definition of this style of yoga is that it is a mixture of acrobatics and yoga. It is the rare “social” yoga in that the poses are generally accomplished with either one or more partners. This week’s guest has spent the last ten years learning and practicing under the watch of Acroyoga creators Jesse Goldberg and Eugene Poku and is now one of the most highly respected Acroyoga instructors in the world. Jill Campbell fell in love with the movement, art, and connection that Acro brings to her life and is on a quest to spread the goodness to as many people as possible. She travels all over the world bringing acroyoga to literally thousands of students and has now spread her influence by teaching the next generation of instructors. Jill is a caring, introspective, boundary pusher who is blazing the trail for Acroyoga practitioners worldwide. As someone who has practiced yoga pretty regularly throughout the last four years but has never participated in an Acroyoga class, I am so grateful for the opportunity to speak with Jill. I truly believe that there is a lot to gain from talking to highly qualified people in any field you are curious about and can honestly say that, as someone who knew nothing of Acroyoga (beyond that it looks really fun), Jill has inspired me to step outside my comfort zone and begin looking for classes around my area. I came at this interview as a complete curious newbie and probably asked some extremely surface level questions. Although this podcast is aimed at all levels of experience with this yoga practice, I believe that it will really be beneficial for all of us who have no clue what to expect from an Acroyoga class. Also, as a 8th grade science teacher, I was fascinated with the similarities seen for all teachers, whether it’s a peaceful yoga class or a public school class with goofy hormonal 8th graders. We really dig into what you can expect from a first time Acro experience, how becoming really passionate about something can change your life, her teaching philosophies and how it influences her teaching style, how the partner and social aspect makes Acro different from other forms of yoga, and a lot more!