5 Tips for New Yoga Teachers From a 12-Year Yoga Teacher
To all the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed new yoga teachers, this blog is for you! I get it. Starting your journey into the world of teaching yoga can be extremely overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be.
From planning classes to researching yoga insurance, you may find yourself saying, “WTF!”
Well, yoga babies, don’t you panic. After teaching yoga for 12 years, I can confidently say that the following tips are exactly what I needed to hear when I first started.
Keep reading for my top 5 tips for new yoga teachers!
Breathe Together With Your Students
The breath is the foundation of yoga, which is why it is essential to breathe together with your students throughout the class. When the breathing is off, your class is off.
Begin your class by leading a cleansing breath. Instruct your students to keep a steady breath for the duration of the class (according to the lineage you’re teaching). Give gentle reminders often to encourage proper breathing.
From my experience, staying connected to the feeling of the breath for the duration of the practice is the most difficult part for your students - and kind of the whole point of yoga! If you’re breathing consciously, you’ll make it easier for them to breathe consciously.
The goal is to stay grounded and calm as you serve as an inspiration to your students.
Keep your cadence reasonable. When in doubt, inhale and exhale!
2. Use Malasana to Recover
Regardless of what level or how long you’ve been teaching, every yoga instructor is bound to stumble, lose their place, or mix up their right and left. This is no reflection of poor technique or teaching skills; we’re still human, y’all!
That’s where the malasana pose comes in. Together with your students or just by yourself at the back of the room, get into a malasana squat and clasp your hands on the crown of the head. Follow this move by directing students to a child’s pose. Take a few deep breaths together and move on!
That’s the beauty of yoga, you can always begin again.
3. Ask For Feedback
Asking for feedback from your students is how you become an awesome yoga teacher!
When it comes to receiving critiques on your teaching, it is imperative to put your ego aside.
Whether the feedback is positive or negative, accept it without comment. Simply say, “thank you,” and don’t explain yourself.
Notice if you get defensive - that’s your ego trying to come through!
For example, one of the most valuable pieces of feedback that was difficult for me to hear was how many metaphors I used in class - hah! By toning down the metaphorical and staying with the literal, I was better able to cue my students into challenging poses.
4. Plan Your Classes but Teach Intuitively
Teaching intuitively is one of the key skills to master as a yoga teacher. However, I highly urge you to plan some aspects of your classes in advance when you first get started.
A huge mistake I have seen new yoga teachers make is centering the class around a pose that is too advanced for the students that are in the room. That is a big no-no, friend! If most of your students in the class cannot perform that peak pose, they’re going to feel defeated, not inspired.
Instead, have a general theme rather than pose and trust the sequencing that comes through. This will ensure that students can participate in the class regardless of level or skill.
5. Get Insured
As a yoga teacher it is absolutely critical that you are covered in the event something goes wrong. And trust me, something will go wrong throughout your teaching career. Don’t believe me?
I’ve seen plenty of injuries from my beginner classes all the way to my advanced yogis.
I’ve seen yoga studios burn down from an instructor leaving a lit candle overnight.
I’ve seen students threaten to sue over the silliest of complaints.
This is why I’ve always had limited liability insurance and the only company I trust and recommend is beYogi! beYogi is the ultimate affordable yoga insurance coverage for yoga teachers. Not only do they offer unbelievable coverage, they will save you money! In addition, there are 450 types of insurance available which is perfect for the healer with many hats.
If you still need more information before you decide, download The Complete Guide To Yoga Insurance which includes detailed explanations about coverage and the beYogi difference.
Are you so ready to sign up and save?