As a longtime yoga teacher I have experienced and taught many styles and have witnessed firsthand the pigeonholing language that frequents the yoga world. Also having been a business owner of 3 studios am very aware how the “yoga language” often reflects their competitive business model.
I have been teaching mindfulness based, functional fitness yoga for the last 16 years with the premise that no one can fail at yoga. There is no pass or fail, no perfection, no finishing point; all there ever is, is practice. I use simple language in guiding participants to understand A: how their body can express a given posture and B: how much they can lean into the challenges they encounter in their body without crossing the line into pain yet also embracing a “productive level of discomfort” that they instinctively hear their body saying yes to.
This has everything to do with mindfulness and nothing to do with ego which either comes from within or from teaching prompts. I like to think of this as meditation with movement.
Whenever possible, I like to describe options and modifications in terms of “this option prioritizes stability so you can focus on the stretch” v “this option challenges your balance while you stretch” for example. I’m lucky enough to teach at a studio with only all levels classes, which requires us teachers to be mindful of our words!
I am a yoga teacher of nearly 20 years and very much agree. A pet peeve is when classes labeled all level or beginner/ beginner friendly flow through sun salutations without instruction, and people with limited strength and mobility get injured. It is hard to get students to leave their egos at the door and listen to their bodies without playing the comparison game -- that as much as the poses is a skill that often develops over time, so as teachers we need to do our best to protect those still cultivating awareness.
I have so far only taught in Finland, and mostly also in course formats so I get the same people throughout the course, which helps cause at the beginning I tell them what my “teaching philosophy”: if something feels really wrong or just isn’t working, there’s always an alternative we can explore. I select poses with a particular aim in mind - stretch X, strengthen Y - and not for the sake of the pose so we can always look for other ways of achieving that aim. That’s how I learned to teach in my YTT and that inclusivity and making sure every kind of body is looked after was one of my favourite parts! And every time a student flags me and tells me they want to try something else I’m always so thrilled - 1) I’m so glad I seem to have succeeded in getting that message across, and 2) I’m so happy they’re actually taking up the opportunity! Part of this I think is cultural, I feel like Finns are less shy about this kind of thing, and also the performative, comparative aspect that I’ve seen in some other places in yoga hasn’t arrived here as much yet (starting to appear though, which is also a bummer).
I agree. Some people are never going to get their bodies into some poses. Why do they need to? If what they're doing satisfies their goal of yoga, that's what it's about. I have one student who is hyper mobile and sometimes I am in awe of how her body moves. But, she's one participant. Others in the same class are much less mobile, but they get the same enjoyment and benefit for their bodies. As I like to remind people, yoga is not a competition. At least, not in my classes.
Great points in this article! I have never liked the labeling of asana as beginner, intermediate or advanced either. That sort of classification misses the point of yoga entirely. I too have been practicing and teaching yoga for 15 years and my hamstrings are as tight as guitar strings. That’s just me..and I sit with that. Thanks for posting. 💚🙏🌳
Thank you for the insightful article.
As a longtime yoga teacher I have experienced and taught many styles and have witnessed firsthand the pigeonholing language that frequents the yoga world. Also having been a business owner of 3 studios am very aware how the “yoga language” often reflects their competitive business model.
I have been teaching mindfulness based, functional fitness yoga for the last 16 years with the premise that no one can fail at yoga. There is no pass or fail, no perfection, no finishing point; all there ever is, is practice. I use simple language in guiding participants to understand A: how their body can express a given posture and B: how much they can lean into the challenges they encounter in their body without crossing the line into pain yet also embracing a “productive level of discomfort” that they instinctively hear their body saying yes to.
This has everything to do with mindfulness and nothing to do with ego which either comes from within or from teaching prompts. I like to think of this as meditation with movement.
Kindly,
Henri Ferguson 🙏
beautifully said. Thank you!
Whenever possible, I like to describe options and modifications in terms of “this option prioritizes stability so you can focus on the stretch” v “this option challenges your balance while you stretch” for example. I’m lucky enough to teach at a studio with only all levels classes, which requires us teachers to be mindful of our words!
Sounds like that studio is moving in the right direction and I like your options!
I am a yoga teacher of nearly 20 years and very much agree. A pet peeve is when classes labeled all level or beginner/ beginner friendly flow through sun salutations without instruction, and people with limited strength and mobility get injured. It is hard to get students to leave their egos at the door and listen to their bodies without playing the comparison game -- that as much as the poses is a skill that often develops over time, so as teachers we need to do our best to protect those still cultivating awareness.
yes! I so appreciate this! That's exactly what good teaching does.
🙏💕
"With that logic, just about everyone in Cirque du Soleil should be enlightened by now." lol.
just to be honest, it’s one of my much older jokes. Clearly, I need new material.
I have so far only taught in Finland, and mostly also in course formats so I get the same people throughout the course, which helps cause at the beginning I tell them what my “teaching philosophy”: if something feels really wrong or just isn’t working, there’s always an alternative we can explore. I select poses with a particular aim in mind - stretch X, strengthen Y - and not for the sake of the pose so we can always look for other ways of achieving that aim. That’s how I learned to teach in my YTT and that inclusivity and making sure every kind of body is looked after was one of my favourite parts! And every time a student flags me and tells me they want to try something else I’m always so thrilled - 1) I’m so glad I seem to have succeeded in getting that message across, and 2) I’m so happy they’re actually taking up the opportunity! Part of this I think is cultural, I feel like Finns are less shy about this kind of thing, and also the performative, comparative aspect that I’ve seen in some other places in yoga hasn’t arrived here as much yet (starting to appear though, which is also a bummer).
I agree. Some people are never going to get their bodies into some poses. Why do they need to? If what they're doing satisfies their goal of yoga, that's what it's about. I have one student who is hyper mobile and sometimes I am in awe of how her body moves. But, she's one participant. Others in the same class are much less mobile, but they get the same enjoyment and benefit for their bodies. As I like to remind people, yoga is not a competition. At least, not in my classes.
Great points in this article! I have never liked the labeling of asana as beginner, intermediate or advanced either. That sort of classification misses the point of yoga entirely. I too have been practicing and teaching yoga for 15 years and my hamstrings are as tight as guitar strings. That’s just me..and I sit with that. Thanks for posting. 💚🙏🌳
Thank you. the world needs more teachers like you, guitar strings and all!