Questions and Answers

• What should I do when one side is tighter than the other?
• I teach a mixed level class. how do I keep the intermediate students interested, while still keeping it safe for the beginners?
• My family is not supportive of my yoga practice...what should I do?
• How do I find the right teacher?
• What should I look for in a teacher training program?
• Is this training geared towards local residents, or can out of towners make it work?
• What if I am pregnant or anticipating getting pregnant during this training?

“What should I do when one side is tighter than the other?”
There are many schools of thought about this. Mine is that we are non-symmetrical by nature, and this striving to have equal range of flexibility might be over-analyzed. Just be with the tight side when you are with the tight side. Be with the loose side when you are with the loose side. Don’t necessarily try to make the loose side any looser until the tight side catches up. Maybe working the tight side twice as long might help. In my experience, it usually doesn’t though. I suggest exploring your belief systems about tight and loose and symmetry.
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“I teach a mixed level class. how do I keep the intermediate students interested, while still keeping it safe for the beginners?”
This is a common concern. Ideally, we would be teaching one-on-one and these would be non-issues, but here we are. So, the best way to approach a mixed level class, is to always offer the modification, with a casual after-thought like “For this balance pose, extended big toe balance, lets just try to balance out our standing side, as if in Tadasana, and if the extended leg can straighten any amount more, that is where we are going with this pose.” Or “For triangle pose, take your block to the outside of your front foot..” because, the more intermediate student will push the block aside if he/she decides they don’t need/want it. Most often I have found that the more intermediate students will go deeper or further into the pose without my having to say it, like “For chaturanga, we will start with the knees on the ground and exhale lower, inhale lift. Lets repeat 3 more times. If you really want to challenge yourself, you could try lifting your knees, but don’t compromise the shoulders and back!” etc. Bottom line, know your asanas well, so you can introduce the modifications, and offer more challenging variations for the more courageous. Core strength poses are always great for a mixed level class because when the student gets tired, they just stop, with no risk of injury.
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“My family is not supportive of my yoga practice...what should I do?”
This is a tough one. Ideally, our families can give us enough space and permission to explore different hobbies. Usually when a family member is not supportive of yoga, they are either threatened, due to ignorance of what yoga is, or they are jealous because you are taking away time from them. In the first case, simply explaining that “yoga is a way to de-stress and become a more loving human being” will work. In the second case, yoga is about being present and breathing through all of our events in life, including relationship. Sometimes getting to the mat is not as important as being present in relationship. You will have to make that judgment call.
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“How do I find the right teacher?”
There are two answers here. The first is, “when the student is ready, the teacher appears”. What I interpret that to be is that when you are asking that question, you are failing to see how all the human relationships you have are your teachers. Until we can have love in our hearts for all beings, there is work to do, lessons to be learned. The second is in need of clarification. I usually ask “ are you looking for a guru or a certified, qualified teacher?” If you are looking for a guru, I would recommend finding someone who you are drawn to and giving it a six to twelve month trial period. Observe your teacher and see if they truly live a yogic lifestyle, or do they treat it as a hobby or decoration to put on for show. See if this teacher stimulates your appetite for the deeper wisdom of yoga. Do they help to hold up the mirror to your soul so you can improve yourself? Have you become a happier person because of them? These are important aspects to consider. If you are looking for a certified and qualified yoga teacher, I offer the same suggestions, with an additional clause: ask about their training and years of experience. Years of experience are the key here, as it takes years to begin learning the anatomy, kinesiology, physiology, energetics and psychology of the human. A yoga teacher of five years might be very good and charismatic, but a yoga teacher of fifteen can be the wisdom keeper. Finally, trust your intuition. There are no wrong teachers!
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"What should I look for in a teacher training program?"
I think you should make sure to choose a well-rounded program that focuses on several different styles of yoga so that you can allow your own type of style ot emerge. If you are sticking to one tradition, go to the lineage holder, or get as close as you can get. Also look for history, philosophy, pranayama and hands-on adjustments in a program - these are a MUST. Make sure the program has been established for a few years, as all teacher training programs need some time to work out the kinks. If possible, talk to some graduates of the program and/or the director of the program, try to take their yoga class, and see if you want to emulate their qualities of teaching. I recommend a longer, spread out program, like over 8-12 months, rather than a one month intensive. There is SO much stuff that will come up, it takes a while to process and one month isn't enough time to dive really deeply into it all. But because of scheduling, etc, luckily there are 5 day, weekend, month long and year long trainings to suit all our scheduling needs. Just shop around, ask around, you have so many options. Most of all, trust your intuition... if you have doubts, don't do it.
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Is this training geared towards local residents, or can out of towners make it work?
The majority of our students are out of towners, either driving or flying into the local airport and staying in the recommended hotels or with family/friends. We have had students from FL, SC, GA, NC, VA, WV, MD, TX, CA, NY, PN! Our website has a link with a listing of all our graduates.
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What if I am pregnant or anticipating getting pregnant during this training?
Pregnancy is a major body experience. This yoga teacher training is a major body experience. Most people cannot do both at the same time. Of all the pregnant mamas, only one has successfully completed the program at six months pregnant. There are so many changes happening to your body and emotions during pregnancy that is extremely challenging to be present with a daily asana and meditation practice, to fulfill all the requirements, average 4 hrs a day, to learn asana in a drastically changing body, well all of this is the opposite of optimum. I strongly recommend postponing teacher training until a year or two after you have given birth. Or postponing getting pregnant until after the training.
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