Page 18 - Flathead Beacon // 10.7.15

INFOCUS MULTIMEDIA SERIES
BY GREG LINDSTROM
ABOVE: Mindy Cochran works out during an aerial hoops class at Levitation Nation. BELOW: Cochran instructs Hannah Mallery.
LEVITATION EDUCATION Mindy Cochran, Levitation Nation
Twisting and twirling around a hoop suspended from the ceiling, Mindy Cochran’s movements appear at once graceful and effortless as she helps instruct an aerial hoops class at Levitation Nation in Kalispell.
“It’s my passion and I cannot get my brain off of it,” said Cochran, who opened Levitation Nation in Febru- ary, offering a variety of classes such as aerial hoops, pole fitness and aerial yoga.
“I really wanted to continue to grow the acrobatic skills in myself, and eventually it became wanting to introduce it to other people in the valley,” she said.
Cochran’s niche has always been alternative fitness. She taught a hip-hop cardio dance class before becoming hooked on aerial acrobatics, which she describes as a pro- gressive type of fitness.
Her classes are suitable for beginners, but skills can be built quickly. Over time, the techniques become more dif- ficult, and also “more and more beautiful,” Cochran said.
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