And, I should address the topic of the savasana escape artists. Eventually, your verbal cues wont be needed and they’ll enjoy them unguided. Help them out by guiding them through their savasana. In fact, I dare say that it’s the most difficult part of the class for some students. It’s been my experience, after teaching nearly 5,000 hours of yoga, that beginners are often challenged by savasana. Beginners will be looking around the room and looking at you, and you will have to demonstrate quite a bit, but if you can take the training wheels off once in a while, you’ll be setting them up well for their next class and another teacher. More than 60 can seem intimidating or like a waste of time…especially if you spend 5 of it just laying there on the floor.ĭemonstrate as little as possible to cultivate that inner awareness from the beginning. It’s also a mindset – our culture is geared toward the 1-hour classes, 1-hour lunch breaks, etc. Try to keep them engaged and focused for the whole class, and you’ve done your job well. They are taking in so much new information in a physical level that its possible to lose their interest. Stick to a short 60 minute class. Beginners can only handle so much before it becomes overwhelming. Don’t over complicate, just get them in the groove of yogic breathing throughout their practice. Remind them at other appropriate times throughout the class. Less is more, and can often be more profound. If possible refer back to the nugget of wisdom later in the practice or in savasana. Spend just a few minutes on one single point and move on to the movement and awareness of movement. Pique the interest of those not so ready, and satisfy the curiosity of those interested by just giving a solid nugget. Pick just one philosophical aspect to share per class. The majority of beginners are there for the physical aspect of the practice and may not want, or be ready to hear the philosophy. You want them to feel good, and you want them to come back. So, the advice I give to my teachers in training and to anyone who asks … “Keep it simple. Try and teach to a bunch of nubes off the street and you’ve got your hands full. And it’s just easier to teach a class to people that already sort of know what they are doing. Seriously…teaching a good yoga class is no joke. Why so? Because as a new yoga teacher, you’re just getting acclimated to giving accurate verbal cues, teaching a balanced class, and staying on schedule. If I ran a studio, I would have my most seasoned teacher offering the “Basics” or “Beginner” classes. The irony of the situation is that teaching beginners is the hardest class to teach. And one of the things that I see often, is that new yoga teachers feel that since they are ‘new’ to teaching yoga, they should teach beginners. This one is inspired by a conversation I had recently with a friend and fellow teacher.
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