Want to be the person in your community that circus artists look to for their health and body care?
Understanding the ins and outs of working with these unique athletes will help you become a valuable resource and training partner.
Learn to assess the stresses and challenges aerialists face and recognize the common movement patterns that place them at risk of injury.
Help aerialists get stronger in ways that support their practice and improve their performance.
Get your clients in the air, keep them in the air, and performing at their peak!

This continuing education course is for healthcare professionals with an interest in understanding and helping the aerial artist community. We will look at the bio-mechanics of the shoulder related to this unique population of athletes through a Movement Systems perspective. During the course we will review and analyze common movements that circus performers perform from hanging and handstands to pull ups, inversions, and skin the cats. With each we will learn to recognize compensatory patterns and risks for injury. You will learn how to enhance your connection to these patients through knowledge of basic vocabulary and observing circus artists in action.

Course Outline

Circus Artist as an Athlete and a Patient 

• Demographics of circus participants—Enhancing credibility
• Taking a history from a circus performer

Common Injuries and Contributing Factors 

• Overview of injury epidemiology in current literature and clinical experience
• Hypermobility and the circus artist

Anatomy and Biomechanics 

• The human movement system
• Anatomy and biomechanics of the shoulder girdle with a review of normal shoulder biomechanics and alignment in standing and with shoulder flexion
• Analysis of shoulder movement
• LAB analysis of shoulder movement

LUNCH

Equipment and Vocabulary 

• Observing at a circus school (if available)
• Familiarization with equipment and skills in practice

Aerial Skills Breakdown 

• Hanging shoulder biomechanics in long hang, bent arm hanging and basket position
• Brief review of hip and trunk anatomy with relationship to basic aerial positions of hollow body, C-shape, and arched body
• Grips used in aerial arts
• LAB hanging analysis
• Hanging, Climbing, Front Balance, Inversion variations, Skin the Cat
• Recognition of common movement dysfunctions with these aerial skills and how they relate to shoulder bio-mechanics and movement impairments or compensations

Treatment for Common Aerial Movement Dysfunctions 

• Break down and discussion of common movement diagnosis for circus artists
• Demonstration of analysis and evaluation techniques with circus evaluation rubric
• Exercises, cues, and patient education for correction of common movement impairments in aerial circus artists
• LAB  exercises and cuing in lab

Course Objectives

1. Participants will understand the circus artist as an athlete and how to engage and enhance credibility with this population.
2. Participants will understand the biomechanics of the shoulder when it is moving into an overhead position and with hanging.
3. Participants will learn common patterns of posture, movement, and injury in hanging athletes/aerialists.
4. Participants will be able to recognize movement dysfunctions of the scapula and humerus in a hanging athlete/ aerialist.
5. Participants will observe circus aerialists and learn about equipment, names of common skills, and learn to speak some of the language of a circus artist.
6. Participants will learn corrective exercises for common movement pattern dysfunctions in aerialists and how to cue them for patient success.

Cancellation policy: Refunds are available up to 1 month prior to the course. After that time, enrollments are transferable. Please contact emily@thecircusdoc.com with any changes.