I’ll admit from the outset that I’m generally rather suspicious of yoga “niches”.
Over the years we’ve had Puppy Yoga, Goat Yoga, Beer Yoga and probably quite a few others that have thankfully passed me by. I’ve always felt that yoga works perfectly well without needing to add an animal, an alcoholic drink or some other novelty to it.
So when it comes to Aqua Yoga, you might reasonably expect me to be equally sceptical.
And initially, I probably was.
So what changed my mind?
I came to Aqua Yoga from a slightly unusual direction. I trained to teach aqua exercise classes and, while doing so, began to realise just how well some of the properties of exercising in water could work with yoga.
The more I experimented with it, the more I found there was actually something genuinely useful here.
This wasn’t simply a case of taking a normal yoga class and putting it in a swimming pool. The water changes the practice – and in some cases changes it considerably.
The water supports you
One of the most obvious differences is buoyancy.
On land, gravity is constantly pulling us downwards. In water, the body is supported, reducing the load on joints and making some movements considerably more accessible.
For someone who finds a particular movement uncomfortable on a mat, the same movement in water can feel very different.
That doesn’t mean Aqua Yoga is necessarily “easy”. Water also provides resistance, so movements that look fairly simple can require more muscular effort than expected.
The interesting thing is that we get both effects at once: support and resistance.
Balance becomes different
Balancing in water is an interesting experience.
On the one hand, the water supports you and removes some of the fear of falling. On the other, the water itself is moving, so your body is constantly making small adjustments.
That makes balance work surprisingly effective.
And if you do lose your balance, the consequences are generally rather less dramatic than falling out of Tree Pose onto a wooden studio floor.
Movement can become more accessible
Aqua Yoga can also allow people to explore ranges of movement they might be reluctant or unable to try on land.
The support of the water can make movement feel safer and more comfortable, while its resistance encourages movements to be controlled rather than rushed.
It therefore gives us another way of adapting yoga to the person rather than expecting the person to adapt to yoga.
That has always been an important part of my approach to teaching.
Comparison is harder – and that’s a good thing
One of the phrases I use regularly in my classes is:
“Don’t compare yourself – either to anyone else in the room, or to how you’ve been previously. Accept how you are today.”
It’s good advice.
Unfortunately, we’re human.
Put ten people into a yoga class and, however much we tell ourselves otherwise, there is a natural temptation to glance around. How far has that person gone? Why can they do that? I used to be able to get much further into this posture. Why can’t I today?
Aqua Yoga has an unexpected advantage here.
It’s actually quite difficult to see what everybody else is doing.
A significant part of the movement is happening underwater. You may be aware of the people around you, but you don’t get the same clear view of exactly where somebody else’s foot, knee or hip has ended up.
Some of the usual visual reference points simply disappear.
And I think that’s rather useful.
It reduces some of that background “comparison noise” and makes it easier to concentrate on what really matters: how the movement feels in your own body today.
Not yesterday. Not ten years ago. And not compared with the person next to you.
It’s still yoga
This, for me, is important.
Aqua Yoga shouldn’t simply be an aqua aerobics class with a few yoga poses added at the end.
We can still work with breath, concentration, balance, controlled movement and awareness. We can still encourage people to notice how their body feels rather than simply trying to achieve a particular shape.
Some traditional postures translate surprisingly well into water. Others need considerable adaptation. And some are best left firmly on dry land.
That’s part of what makes teaching it interesting.
Another tool for yoga teachers
I’m still not convinced that yoga needs puppies, goats or beer.
But Aqua Yoga has won me over because there is a practical reason for doing it.
It gives us another environment in which to teach and another way of making aspects of yoga available to people who may find conventional mat-based practice difficult. It can challenge balance and strength while simultaneously providing support, and it encourages us to think differently about how and why we teach particular movements.
That’s why, from 2027, we’re including a practical Aqua Yoga Teacher Training day as part of the YogaTTS 200-hour Teacher Training course.
Not because yoga needs another gimmick.
Because, somewhat annoyingly for a confirmed yoga-niche sceptic, this one actually makes sense.
Will Lavin
Senior Yoga Teacher and Teacher Trainer
