The unearthed world of Kink Yoga.
WHEN hard-core fetish involving whips, straight jackets and leather chaps meets the downward dog and child’s pose — it’s probably not a combination that springs to mind when you sit down for your daily dose yoga.
But for a small group of people in Sydney, combining all of the above is how they meditate — and reach a realm of relaxation and mindfulness that usually comes with an hour or two of ‘traditional’ yoga.
It’s called Kink Yoga — and involves a Downward-facing Dog like you’ve never seen before.
Mistress Anna with her kinksters practising yoga. Picture: SBS/The Feed.Source:Supplied
Mistress Anna and her “kinksters” opened the doors for The Feed on SBS, and allowed journalist Patrick Abboud into their secret world of ‘Kink Yoga’.
Mr Abboud has never been into kink, bondage or any form of S & M — but he is into yoga.
So much so, that he decided to give this relatively unknown workout a try — and find out how two polar opposites could come together and create a single form of mediation.
Mistress Anna helping her cross-dressing participant into the Downward Dog pose. Picture: SBS/The Feed.Source:Supplied
Anna, who is a yoga instructor, personal trainer and professional Dominatrix, lead the class of around 10 participants through different movements and poses, before launching in to their desired fetish.
“Everything in the class is action,” Mr Abboud told news.com.au.
“People are being flogged, whipped and tied up. They hold a pose while their kink stuff is played out.
“There was a man into Furry Play, a cross-dresser ‘Irena’ in his 50s, another man in late 20s who dressed as a puppy and even someone into food play (sploshing), where it’s smeared all over the body.
“Any kink gets played out during the yoga class.”
Dan the Tradie is tied down during the yoga class. Picture: SBS/The Feed.Source:Supplied
While it may sound like a group of people with fetishes getting together to act out their kinks, the start of the class is like any standard yoga meet.
“Basically, the participants walk in and the room looks like a standard yoga class,” Mr Abboud said.
“People are in their active wear, they roll out their mats and the meditation begins.
“We start with a prayer pose, and it just feels like a normal yoga class — but then it gets more and more kink focused.
“And while I’m not into fetish or bondage, I had to allow Mistress Anna to tie me up and whip me.”
Cross Dresser Irena is into sploshing, so gets fed during the yoga class with cake. Picture: SBS/The Feed.Source:Supplied
Calling ‘mercy’ if it all gets to much, Mistress Anna walks around the room in a latex bodysuit while holding a riding crop, and is perhaps the most intimidating yoga instructor you’d come across.
But the Sydney-based dominatrix, personal trainer and yoga instructor admits that coming together to combine yoga and kinks allows people who may be “scared, nervous or ashamed” of their fetish to meditate in a safe place.
“So whether it’s sploshing, pony play or puppy play, shibari rope, they can cross dress or do yoga in the nude as well as getting fit and healthy,” she said.
Dan the Tradie has his nipple clamped.Source:SBS
Smearing or throwing food onto the slave or the sub, Mistress Anna picks up a cake and wipes the icing over her hands and allows select participants to lick the food off her fingers.
In another corner of the dim-lit room, Dan the tradie has clamps pressed onto his nipples for pleasure while he lies flat on the floor.
“Dan enjoys being tied by a female mistress and being in service to me,” Mistress Anna said.
“The better he is at flexibility and core strength, the more suspension and heavier bondage he can take.”
Dan, who says the yoga class is a place where he can work out in an environment that’s accepts him for who he is, as well as feeling safe — is what brings him back to see Mistress Anna on a weekly basis.
But Mr Abboud, while appreciating the alteration to his yoga regimen through whips and ropes, felt the pain factor meant he couldn’t relax like he would in a typical class.
“For a lot of people in the, kink yoga allows for endorphins to be released — and feel amazing at the end.
“It’s a safe space for them to live out their fetishes, feel good and have the same experiences others would have in a normal yoga class.”
This is the first time ‘Irena’ has come out to the world as a Cross Dresser.Source:SBS
Irena, who has been Cross Dressing most of his life, said the class provided a safe environment for him to act out his fetish.
The documentary was the first time he came out publicly about his kink.
“My fetish, service sub-maid, likes to cross-dress,” Irena said.
“With a little bit of pain. This is the first time I’ve publicly acknowledged what I do, and my parents and brothers and sisters don’t know what’s going on.
“Everyone wants to be accepted,” Mistress Anna added.
“We’re bringing kinky yoga into the public eye so people understand us better.
“We’re not freaks, we just like doing things a bit differently. We are all people underneath our kink.”
Irena getting covered in cake while at the Kinky Yoga class.Source:SBS
When Irena isn’t, well, Irena — he’s “just an ordinary bloke”.
“I’ve got a regular job, I have beers at the pub with my mates.
“I don’t want to hide it all my life. We’re all different, don’t knock it until you try it.”
Leather man John, who is currently in treatment for cancer, says the classes bring him pleasure from the pain of chemotherapy. Picture: SBS/The Feed.Source:SBS
But while yogies out there may not see this as a traditional form of the ancient practice, Mistress Anna says ‘Kink Yoga’ helps to transform the body and be able to handle different variants of bondage.
“Kink Yoga has helped John through his illness by using the breathing technique as a relaxant,” she said.
“I feel like I’m empowering [participants] and opening doors for them to take a step on becoming more of who they are, and not worry about being judged by other people.
Mistress Anna hopes her Kink Yoga classes allows her participants to take a step on becoming more of who they are.Source:SBS
“Kink and bondage requires really deep breathing to handle the pain,” Mr Abboud added.
“That’s the crossover. A lot of the class is about being able to hold the poses for longer and take more pain. This is really meditative for people into kink, and while it wasn’t for me — people who are into kinks, a form of meditation clearly comes into play.”
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