The truth is, a beginner yoga class can be one of the most challenging lessons to train. They can also be one of the most pleasant and rewarding classes to educate.
Here are the most beneficial steps that I’ve acquired so far for building a safe and likable newcomer place.
#1: ”Keep it simple”
While it’s necessary to set the foundation for a secure, healthy alliance, you don’t want to give newbie so many tips and clarifications that you confuse them. After all, our practical memory is limited; when you’re getting a new skill, there’s only so much that you can prepare at once.
When you’re training newcomers, it’s an excellent approach to stick with the “basic form of the posture.” This means hardly safely leading them into the usual pose shape (or a variation on that mold). From here, you might find it valuable to offer one or two extra alignment hints. Alternatively, you might not.
Fix up the posture
This means telling which way the students should face, how long their stance should be, which assistance they should apply and how they should handle them, where their hands and/or feet move, how to really get into the posture, and whether they should start on an inhale or an exhale (if it implies).
For instance, when introducing virabhadrasana II, you might tell:
Twist to face the long end of your mat, and step your feet wide isolated
Turn your back foot in lightly.
Pivot on your fore heel so that your front toes lead toward the short end of your mat.
On an exhale, twist your front knee so that it accumulates over your front heel.
On an inhale, drift your arms out to your sides to make a “T” form.
On your next exhale, turn your head to look to your front hand—only as much as feels suitable for your neck.
You’re fixing up the pose here, directing on cultivating a stable grounds, and building the form itself by accumulating the bones on top of each other. That’s it.
#2: “Create Transformations Uncomplicated”
Turns can be tricky. While stepping forward from the downward facing dog, or jumping through to a seat is relatively common in yoga classes, that doesn’t mean they’re comfortable! In fact, they can be pretty frustrating for lots of learners. To develop confidence and avoid unnecessary vexation, when you first introduce poses to new students, keep your transitions simple.
Further, when you’re transitioning to seated it’s okay to ditch the intricate choreography and merely ask students to “sit down” or “lie on your bellies.” Keep it simple.
#3: “Go Easy On (and explain!)”
Don’t expect that students will automatically know what “energy lines,” “employ Mula bandha,” or “Anjali mudra” means. Use language that non-yogis will understand, and when you present some new vocab, define it! Same works for asana styles.
No Prep Yoga Plans for yoga teachers provides all the tools you need to create a holistic yoga class in minutes.
