Yoga Teacher Training

Course Outline

The 21st Century Yoga on the Mat Yoga Teacher Training is Divided into Four Sessions

Kickoff Meeting: September 29th
Module 1 “Postural Basics” October 6th - December 8th
Module 2 “Teaching Toolkit“ December 9th - February 19th
Module 3 “Subtlety on the Mat” February 20th - March 24th
Module 4 “Teaching Excellence” March 25th - April 28th

After our kickoff meeting on September 29th, we will begin the training, starting in October with Session One.

Module 1 : October 6th - December 8th : “Postural Basics”

This session will introduce you to the fundamentals of Postural Yoga and how it works, including state of mind and the spiritual effects of practice. Whereas Session 2 will be focused on Teaching, this session will be focused entirely on deepening your practice as we begin a study of Anatomy and Basic Yoga Philosophy. Here are a couple samples of the teaching in this session.

Yoga Insider vs Outsider & Faith

You are familiar with yoga practice. You have a solid sense of what yoga is, but there are also many areas of yoga that may seem incredibly foreign, exotic, or you just aren’t sure what is yoga and what is not. In this clip, Alex sets context for our time & place in yoga’s history as both insiders and outsiders.

A Part of our orientation is refining what we understand by “Faith”

Support and Stabilize the Joints

No matter how much your yoga practice isn’t about the fitness or musculoskeletal benefits of practice (and if that’s is what your practice is totally about), you still must contend with this body and take care of it. This means making sure that the most vulnerable parts of the body are taken care of in yoga practice. That’s the Joints.

This all around training will cover the full spectrum of yoga practice. From fitness, exercise, and anatomy, to regulating your nervous system, and deeper within explorations. Regardless of where you find yourself on the spectrum, you must first, take care of this body!

Module 1 Schedule (Oct 6 - Dec 8)

  • Online-Live Kickoff Meeting: Wednesday September 29th : 6:30pm - 9pm

  • Work at Your Own Pace (weekly):

    • 2 hr of practice technique/theory video content, on your own time

      • Live Recordings on Sunday November 28 & December 5 Optional (4pm)

    • 90 minute recorded practice, on your own time

    • 1.5 - 2 hours of reading (Anatomy), on your own time

  • Wednesdays: 6:30pm - 9:20pm

    • 6:30pm - 7:30pm : group mat practice

    • 7:30pm - 7:50pm : meditation fundamentals

    • 7:50pm - 9pm : check in, coaching, debriefing content

    • 9pm - 9:20pm : Reading Review

    • No Meeting November 24th (Thanksgiving)

Module 2 : December 9th - February 19th : “Teaching Toolkit”

This module will introduce you to the fundamentals of cueing poses as well as provide plenty of practice cueing yoga poses and other exercises. There will be some additional underlying practice theory on how to structure students' capacity to get "more than the sum of the parts" out of practice. The final weeks will focus on putting together sequences. This session gets you introduced to your teacher’s tool kit as we continue to refine your yoga mat practice. Here is a sample from this section.

The Safety Net

Teaching Yoga is complex. It takes a lot of skill and anatomical understanding to do it well. (This is why it takes a 200 hour course to learn!) That said, many yoga teachers make teaching more complicated than it needs to be. Most yoga teaching is simple and most of the time, you can teach a good class if you make sure to follow a minimum of best practices that we call “The Safety Net”.

 

Sequencing Frameworks

There are many reasons why we do not simply throw a bunch of random poses into a class. One is student safety. Another is to give a class that leaves people relaxed and reset in their nervous system by the time Savasanah rolls around. All of this is the art of sequencing.

Another key to sequencing is to set up sequences that are “more than the sum of the parts.” A good sequence helps students do things that they would not have otherwise been able to do. In order to accomplish this magic, we as teachers, must set a framework.

Module 2 Schedule (Dec 9- Feb 19)

  • No Meetings Dec 17 - Jan 4 (Holidays)

  • Sundays: 4pm - 7pm (no homework these weeks)

    • January 9th : Yin Yoga Workshop

    • January 23rd : Pranayama Workshop

    • February 6th : Restorative Yoga Workshop

  • Wednesdays: 6:30pm - 9pm weekly:

    • 6:30pm - 7:30pm : group mat practice

    • 7:30pm - 7:50pm : meditation

    • rest of evening: check in, coaching, debriefing content

  • Thursdays: 6:30pm - 8:30pm weekly:

    • Teaching Practice

  • Work at Your Own Pace (weekly):

    • 2 hours of technique video content

    • 1.5 - 2 hours of reading or other homework (voice / cueing construction or sequencing)

Module 3 : February 20th - March 24th : “Subtlety on the Mat”

Now that you have the most important basics of mat practice (posture) and the basics of teaching (cueing & sequencing), it's time to refocus in this one-month intensive of diving into more subtlety of practice on the mat and how to take your practice (and your students) to a deeper level. Here is a sample of the sort of teaching you can expect in this session. This is a practice intensive!

Domain of Infinite Distraction

With everything you have learned in techniques of practicing yoga, it may sometimes feel like you have a whole checklist of things to do. It is possible to practice “correctly”, but for practice to lose it’s magic.

Re-enchanting practice, and indeed, re-enchanting realities depends on our handling the domain of infinite distraction.

 

Module 3 Schedule (Feb 20 - March 24)

  • Sundays: 4pm - 6pm

    • Subtlety on the Mat : Presentation

  • Tuesdays: 6:30pm - 8:30pm

    • Mat Practice & Debrief

  • Wednesdays: 6:30pm - 9pm weekly:

    • 6:30pm - 7:30pm : group mat practice

    • 7:30pm - 7:50pm : meditation fundamentals

    • rest of evening: check in, coaching, debriefing content

  • Thursdays: 6:30pm - 8:30pm weekly:

    • Mat Practice & Debrief

Module 4 : March 25th - April 28th : “Teaching Excellence”

Here's where we put it all together. Now that you understand the subtlety of practice and the basic teaching tools, you are ready to put it all together and become an excellent teacher. Here is a sample from this section.

Vulnerability without Collapse

Getting your groove as a yoga teacher means getting into a flow state or what we call in yoga “Connecting to your Shakti” to be your best.

Module 4 Schedule (March 25- April 28)

  • Tuesdays: 6:30pm - 8:30pm

    • Teaching Practice

  • Wednesdays: 6:30pm - 9pm weekly:

    • 6:30pm - 7:30pm : group mat practice

    • 7:30pm - 7:50pm : meditation fundamentals

    • rest of evening: check in, coaching, debriefing content

  • Thursdays: 6:30pm - 8:30pm weekly:

    • Teaching Practice

  • Work at Your Own Pace (weekly):

    • 2 hours of video content for teaching

Accreditation & Certification

This training is planned to be delivered pursuant to Yoga Alliance's temporary provisions (which have been extended) for allowing Registered Yoga Schools (RYSs) to offer contact hours in a virtual format, subject to additional future guidance, and will meet and exceed Yoga Alliance’s Registered Yoga School 200 Hours + competencies-based model, with 200+ online classroom hours in the following categories:

  • 75 hours of techniques, training, practice (asana, pranayama, subtle body, and meditation)

  • 60 hours of professional essentials (teaching methodology, professional development, and practicum)

  • 40 hours of  anatomy and physiology (anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics)

  • 30 hours of yoga humanities (history, philosophy, and ethics)

Upon completion of this training, graduates will receive a certificate of completion for 200 hours of study with 21st Century Yoga on the Mat and can register with Yoga Alliance as an RYT-200.