Yoga teacher cheatsheet
The idea of this article: I can read it 5 mins before I teach a yoga class. If I do everything it says I’ll probably have done a good job.
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A yoga teacher is not really a teacher: they are a guide. All poses are guides for your body to aim towards, but not perfectly reach if that’s not possible. Say say this as part of the intro talk.
People expect a certain vibe from a yoga teacher. You should develop your own take on that, developing a yoga teacher persona who has the benefit of your unique personality.
Anyone can do yoga for free with YouTube. Why might they come to a class? Commitment device, social, more relaxing, feedback on form, deeper poses .
Things to know before starting class:
- Physical things of class including injuries and pregnancy
- Who is comfortable with hands on adjustments
Ways to structure class:
- Build heat then cool down
- Build to peak pose then cool down
Common reasons to train: become more mobile, balanced, strong, proprioceptive, interoceptive, higher discomfort tolerance.
These develop with practice: expect progression as you would any exercise. As you progress you’ll be able to do more complicated poses. As with any exercise, you can’t get advanced without training.
Progression is often nonlinear.
Anyone can do yoga for free with YouTube. Why might they come to a class? Commitment device, social, more relaxing, feedback on form, deeper poses.
Move with the breath for more mindfulness and to deepen poses. It tends to feel much better for me, though takes practice. It requires more preparation from me to know the breaths for each movement.
Yoga is union between mind, body and spirit. For practical purposes I aim for union of body and mind, using the breath as a tool for this. As a teacher you might pick one of the three to highlight for a given class.
For each pose, things to look for in person:
- Feet, knees, hips, back, shoulders, hands, core. I find it’s easier to look at these rather than more generally checking their posture.
- Bandhas: the three locks. Mula bandha, which is more or less pelvic floor, is good to engage in nearly all active poses. Know when to disengage as well as engage.
- Drishti point: where one’s gaze is directed.
There are ways to adjust a pose, including using blocks, coming down onto the knee if lunging, other things .
There are many ways to adjust someone, to bring them closer to the position the asana aims for. Can also adjust to deepen the stretch even if their pose is perfect.
Adjustments can be physical (ideally gentle, but everyone responds differently) or verbal. As you teach, give verbal prompts, with more for beginners. There is a library of prompts I like to help poses, many of which suggest ways to hold specific body parts.
Can pick a theme for your class: I like Curiosity. Can drop in prompts on your theme during the class (eg ‘where do you feel the stretch?)
Can make a class around what you like.
Transitions are as important as the poses.
Principles: balance of muscles used (do both sides and reverse muscles), mix of ease and effort (between poses, and within a pose some muscles at ease and some efforting), alignment, active vs passive.
Watch your class and read the room:you might need to adapt.
Always leave time for savasana. 8-10 minutes is the guideline for an hour long session.
My take. Yoga is often boring for me. Perhaps because there are so many ways to do yoga. I like movement which is repeated enough that I can get lost in the sensation of movement without thinking too much. I’ve made a set I think will work for me… the proof will be in the pudding whether I stick to it.
The difference between beginners and the experienced is more obvious in yoga than some sports as beginners can do different poses, rather than doing the same thing but faster or more, as one might in running or lifting.