What To Look For In A Good Yoga Teacher

A great yoga teacher should primarily be someone who inspires you to practice and to better yourself. Yoga is ultimately concerning bringing peace to yourself and the teacher's teachings should encourage this in you.

A good yoga teacher ought to be someone with a lot of enthusiasm for yoga, that is someone who enjoys not only practising and learning yoga themselves, but additionally someone who enjoys teaching yoga too.

The ultimate goal of yoga is to bring peace into oneself and to transfer this sense of peace to others. Of course yoga is a path. In our human world we can only make an effort to be peaceful. However the goal should be there. Hence a good yoga teacher should be one whose goal it is to become peaceful and also one who has an understanding of what peace or shanti actually is. The ancient Indian scriptures talk a lot with regards to 'shanti' or peace. Shanti according to the scriptures is the original nature of the soul. There are also a lot of teachings that speak about the seventh chakra as being a place where peace can be experienced. Also the teachings of 'ahimsa' or nonviolence talk about peaceful conduct. A good yoga teacher should have a good understanding of this.

A good yoga teacher should be aware of the much deeper teachings of yoga which are in the scriptures. There are scriptures such as the Bhagavad Gita that talk about 'yoga' or the concept of union and also about 'atma' or the soul and philosophy. There are also books such as 'Hatha Yoga Pradipika' that mention diet, 'asana' or posture practice and so forth. A good yoga teacher should have a good understanding of all parts of yoga.

Furthermore a good yoga teacher should have a good understanding that yoga is not just asana or physical practice but is something further. The teacher should be one who always encourages you to focus your awareness on your breath in order to bring you into a condition of meditation. The good should always be aware of the ashtanga or eight limbs of yoga which include rules for interpersonal and moral conduct, meditation, breath control and so forth. The good teacher, however , should still have an understanding of asana as well as anatomy in order to correct the physical posture. The eight limbs of yoga do include asana or actual physical practice too.

The teacher should understand that yoga is about health. As yoga has developed many people have become aware of the benefits of yoga practice (including those of meditation) and the good teacher should understand and teach this. Following a sattvic or pure diet is an important step in yoga. It is useful when following a pure diet to eat organic foods which contain no pesticides and are grown in a manner designed to keep the soil fertile and the products full of nutrients. The good instructor should guide you with good diet and good health. Check out YogaBasics' guide to beginner yoga here.

The good teacher encourages you not to be competitive but to work on yourself. She or he understands that everyone is different, has different genetics and that everyone comes to yoga with their own needs. A sign of a great teacher is that he or she tells you not to look at others during the class. This helps you focus on yourself and your own advancement and this should ideally what the good teacher leads you towards.

The good teacher gives good adjustments but will not push you too much. He or she rather encourages you, helps you to see your potential and guides you towards a point associated with peace within yourself.

The good teacher has a strong desire to help you with your journey and to guide you towards peace.

The great teacher likes all aspects of yoga. This includes chanting, breathing techniques, meditation, philosophy. He or she sees all the benefits of the various branches of yoga and helps you with those that appeal to you.

Above all the good yoga teacher is someone you are able to bond with and form a relationship with. He or she should be someone who you can relate to, someone who is on the same route as you and someone who encourages you to follow your path.

The good teacher applies principles of yoga to his or her everyday life and helps you and guides you to do the same. A few years ago I studied yoga in Rishikesh in Indian and I told my philosophy teacher that I could be relaxed during my yoga class but when I was not learning I can easily be affected by the distractions of the world around and that I could easily become stressed. I asked him how I could manage this and he answered 'always focus on the breath when you feel that distractions are arising in the mind during daily activity - this will bring you back towards a point of inner stillness'. I have done this ever since and have discovered that it works. What is more is that I have realised that a good teacher of yoga is one who applies yoga in order to his or her daily life.

Who Should Become a Yoga Teacher?

Recently, there has been a fuss over who has a right to become a Yoga teacher; but let's look at some of the variables to consider in case you desire to teach Yoga. Consider the following questions, "from both sides of the Yoga certification debate. "

Do you have the correct Yoga lineage? This is interesting because - what exactly is the correct Yoga lineage? There are so many styles of Yoga and many sub-styles of those Yoga exercise styles. In general, you should know who your Yoga teachers were and possibly, who their teachers were.

However , Yoga journeyed outside of India in a variety of ways. Although there have been many famous Indian Gurus, who helped Yoga flourish worldwide, the actual British carried Yoga abroad, as well. There are competent Yoga teachers, who trace their Yoga lineage back to Englishmen, who served in India.

Some of the first non-Indian Yoga teachers did not have extensive Yoga training under the advice of a Guru, but a few did. Consider this idea: If you know nothing about Yoga, but I know a little something - I could show you what little I know. This happens with any form of shared knowledge, and the person who knows a little more about Yoga exercises, becomes a Yoga teacher.

Granted, we are considering the beginning of Yoga's worldwide proliferation, but now we have 21st century Pilates teacher certification in a fast-changing world - with a variety of styles and approaches to overall health.

There are many new forms of Hatha Yoga being created and evolving at this moment. If you have a traditional Yoga lineage, that's wonderful, but times change, and thus does Yoga.

I can remember when some traditional Yoga teachers did not believe in the Yoga teacher certification procedure. For example: The master Yoga teacher did not have a Yoga teacher's diploma, and would not fill one out for his or her long-time students, who worked as "substitute Yoga teachers, " in the ashram.

Some of these substitutes had over 20 years of experience in Yoga practice, and taught classes when the master teacher was on vacation, but the master Meditation teacher would still not certify them.

Meanwhile some Yoga certifications were obtained, over a weekend Yoga instructor training intensive, by people who just needed a quick Yoga certification for a health club.

So , who has a right to become a Health teacher? Anybody, I guess, but Yoga certification bodies should stick to the 200 study hour minimum standard for teachers of their Yoga teacher training programs.  beginners yoga videos online free

Yoga teacher interns should have at least two years of steady practice, under the instruction of a Yoga teacher, before entering the Yoga teacher certification process. Correspondence and distance learning, for Yoga educators, should also conform to the 200-hour minimum standard.

Yoga Teacher Retention Tips

How can Yoga teachers make new college students realize the value of long-term training? Is it just luck, or where you are located, that draws appreciative Yoga students? Is there a means for teaching Yoga to new students, without scaring them off? Let's look at many solutions to keep the interest of the established Yoga students and those new Yoga students, who just walked in the door.

When a new student gets there to learn Yoga, he, or she, may not have any previous Yoga experience. When teaching Yoga to brand new students, it is wise to see it from their viewpoint. Everything is new, including your staff, your system, and your method of teaching Physical exercise. It is up to the Yoga teacher to make of all these components "user friendly. "

Here are some tips for you, your staff, and also the way your facility is run. Remember that these guidelines also apply to your existing Yoga students too. In no way take them for granted and your Yoga students will stay with you "through thick and thin. " Always show appreciation for your existing Yoga students.

Always give Yoga students your complete attention and make sure your teaching method for Yoga is the greatest it can be. If you are feeling ill, or are in pain, you may have to let a substitute Yoga teacher, teach your Yoga course, in your place. All of us want to teach our own Yoga classes, but the quality of your teaching should always be the best it can perhaps be.

Do not get caught up in "penny pinching. " Some Yoga teachers become adversarial about fees for every small thing. If you teach Yoga for a living, charge a fee that you can live with. Do not "short change" yourself, but steer clear of the perception of a "money hungry" salesperson. Do not hire pushy sales people either. Your Yoga teaching service depends on an expert image that is seamless, compassionate, truthful, and a pleasure to work with.

Make sure you can deliver on all of your promises. Never discuss Yoga as a cure. This implies that we cure our students of ailments. Yoga definitely does help with many ailments, but when you create guarantees, you leave yourself open for "legal grief. " A promise is a guarantee, and can potentially set you out of the Yoga business permanently.

When you teach Yoga, stick to the facts, and know the exact sources of research, before making a press release. Most Yoga teachers do not have a medical degree, so avoid medical opinions, unless you are a medical doctor. A wise Doing yoga teacher would tell his, or her, Yoga students to seek medical advice from a physician. Yoga students must also look into the value of a second opinion from a qualified medical professional.

Make sure your staff, and the person who answers the phone, are very friendly. If it is not the case, find replacements. A rude receptionist will scare off existing, and new, Yoga students. Your receptionist is the "keeper of the gateway" to learning Yoga from you, and gives the first impression of what you are all about. You will never obtain a second chance to make a first impression.

Lastly, always return phone calls. At our North Providence wellness center, we continuously get calls from new, and eager, Yoga students who called another Yoga teacher first.

However , the very first call was not answered, and then, we get the second call. I cannot complain about this, it works to the advantage of my staff, however, not answering phone calls, at any Yoga studio, gives all Yoga teachers a bad image.

If you follow these basic recommendations, you will keep more of your existing Yoga students. New Yoga students will want to repeat a good experience, so you do not have to preach them about the value of long-term Yoga practice. They will eventually see it for themselves and will come to appreciate your teaching technique.