Becoming a great yoga teacher is a lot like becoming great at anything else. You have to work at it and commit yourself to the path that you are on. It takes time as Patanjali says in the Yoga Sutra:
sah tu dirgha kala nairantaira satkara asevitah dridha bhumih Y.S. 1.14
“When that practice is done for a long time, without a break, and with sincere devotion, then the practice becomes a firmly rooted, stable and solid foundation.”
One of the things I firmly believe in regard to the practice and teaching of yoga is the quality of patience and being able to sustain your learning over a long period of time. One of my favorite teacher training programs I ever participated in was a 200 hour Iyengar program. We met twice a month for three years! I loved the fact that I had plenty of time to ask questions and steep myself in the teachings.
As much as we would like our strength, flexibility or our rehabilitation from an injury to happen overnight, we all know that it takes time for our body to change. As your body changes, so does your understanding about the postures change. Some changes happen faster than others and some changes are not linear; they may be plenty of setbacks on the road to progress. That was why I liked the three year program so much. My understanding of postures changed over time as my body changed. I wouldn’t have known to ask certain questions until I felt the changes in my body. I know a lot of people would balk at a three year training program, however, so I adjusted my program to take place over one calendar year. We meet every Wednesday from 12:30 to 6:00 pm. This way you get the benefit of a true immersion while having ample time for some changes to take place. (For those students who cannot commit to every Wednesday for an entire calendar year, or who want to spread the financial payments out over time, you can take individual modules and complete the training in two years!)
These Ten Building Blocks are the steps I followed on the path to becoming a good teacher. They are based on the things I wanted to know and learn, the questions I was asking. These form the foundation of the modules I offer in my 300 hour Advanced Teacher Training Program.
Foundation and General Form of the Poses – seeing Tadasana in every pose
Knowing the poses from the inside – developing your own practice
Anatomy and Physiology – Another way of learning about the poses from the inside
Sequencing – the magical art of opening the body
Voice and cueing – It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it
Philosophy/Themes – Creating a yogic experience
Therapeutics – What to do when something hurts
Meditation – Knowing yourself
Pranayama – Breath, the vital life force
Energy and Intuition – Because it is more than just physical
If you are interested in taking the next step to becoming a better yoga teacher, you can enroll in my Advanced Teacher Training Program by calling Erin Lento at 215.862.2200.
I look forward to working with you!
If you have more questions you can ask them in the comments below. And/or, you can attend the Open House I am holding next Saturday, December 10th from 1:00 to 3:00 at The Treehouse. Details can be found here.
If you are not ready to commit to the whole program, you can register for the individual modules. (That way you can experience the longer immersion that I was talking about above.)