I’ve always had this unwonted curiosity about the mile-high club. It just sounds so forbidden, and who doesn’t love to break a rule every once in a while. However, with all the airline regulations these days, I would not recommend getting caught in the bathroom in an embarrassing pose.
It seemed like there had to be a better way to have fun and make a long flight more enjoyable, and that is how I discovered a completely different way to cut tension and get an amazing high while 30,000 feet above sea level—airplane yoga.
Next time you are sitting on that long flight, bored, desperately trying to inch away from the overweight seatmate invading your personal space, instead of reaching for a drink from the cocktail cart, pull out your handy pocket-size book of airplane yoga poses. A fantastic book, Airplane Yoga contains 45 yoga poses that you can do from the comfort of your airplane seat—no mat required.
If your muscles are sore from sitting or you need to calm your jitters, try a few Mile-High Head Tilts or Runway Spinal Rolls to increase your circulation and set you back on course. Seated next to that chatty person who won’t stop talking? I can’t think of a better way to get them to shut up than by doing a few airplane-friendly downward dogs. If you want to meet someone on a flight, I’m sure doing yoga on an airplane would be a great conversation starter.
On a business trip and need to clear your mind before your big meeting in New York City? Try a little Meal Tray Meditation.
This book is small and designed in the style of an airplane emergency safety card, so it can easily be tucked away in your carry on bag or briefcase.
Thank you, Bess Abrahams and Rachel Lehmann-Haupt, yoga travel goddesses, for this smart and funny yoga practice. I can’t wait to try these yoga poses on my next trip, get my yoga high, and finally become a member of the mile-high (yoga) club!
Travel Yoga: Stretches for Planes, Trains, Automobiles, and More!
On a flight I took from LAX to Korea we did airplane yoga.