Oh boy, we have SO MUCH to catch up on. When we last left off (I feel like I’m recapping a TV show…) I was just getting started with Yoga Teacher Training. I’m now a full-fledged certified yoga teacher, according to a piece of paper, woot woot!
When I told my parents that I wanted to spend the month of June doing yoga teacher training, they wanted to know why. I have a number of fitness certifications that I’m not technically using professionally at this time — sure my knowledge from those certifications informs the things I write about here, but I don’t actively make income as a trainer these days.
Even though I knew I didn’t want teaching yoga to be my entire livelihood, doing yoga teacher training at this point in my life just felt right. It’s something that’s been on my mind for a few years, and the fact that the timing finally worked out with my job situation felt like a message from the universe. And I don’t really believe in messages from the universe.
4-weeks and 200-hours of training later, I think the universe was right. Bear with me.
You know how when you go on vacation, you suddenly have this free time to reflect on life because you’re not stressed out by work and daily life? Yoga teacher training felt like that. Yeah, it was exhausting and demanding in it’s own way, but it also allowed me to be super reflective and figure some of my shit out. I was able to ask myself those big scary questions such as what do I want to do with my life and what will ultimately make me happy… and of course some money. Because homegirl gotta pay the bills.
I was able to ask those scary question and also didn’t feel pressured to answer them immediately. I felt like I had space to breathe, think and reflect.
So I don’t have my entire life figured out, or even a 5-year plan, but it does seem like things are starting to fall into place. More on that sooooon, I can’t spoil all the fun in one blog post!
If you’ve been thinking about yoga teacher training, here are reasons you should take a hint from Nike and just do it.
You want to be a yoga teacher.
Okay, duh. If you want to be a yoga teacher, you have to do Yoga Teacher Training. I don’t think there’s any way around it, especially not in NYC where there’s no shortage of qualified yogis. Being a yoga teacher can take many forms whether it’s being a full-time yoga teacher, working a full-time job and teaching classes on the side, or some sort of hybrid.
You want to deepen your understanding of the physical postures.
Yeah I knew how to chaturanga, in theory, but now I really know how to chaturanga, and know all the ways I’ve been doing it wrong over the past 10+ years of practicing yoga. Did you know that it’s actually a pose and not just a transition from plank to upward facing dog? Because I definitely did not…
In YTT you’ve delve into all the common postures, especially those that are seen in the sun salutation A and B.
You’re curious about the philosophy side of yoga.
I’ll be the first to admit that I feel more deeply connected to the physical side of yoga, the asanas. Yoga has become synonymous with gyms and fitness studios. In actuality, the crux of what makes yoga yoga it is not in the physical movements. It’s all about the philosophy which defines yoga as the stilling of the changing states of mind.
I’ve found that some studios integrate more yoga philosophy than others here in NYC, and that’s totally cool because it can be isolating if that’s not your cup of tea, BUT if you do want to explore yoga philosophy and the ancient texts, yoga teacher training is a great way to do that.
I loved our philosophy lectures and found the discussions to be super interesting as we dissected what it meant to be a yogi in NYC according to these ancient texts.
You’re certified in other fitness modalities but crave some hands on learning.
You might not know this, but to become a certified personal trainer all you have to do is pass a written test. A bitch of a test if you’re going the NASM route, but you still only have to be book smart to get certified.
One of the reasons I personally was drawn to yoga teacher training was because I knew it would be super hands on, something I didn’t get while studying for my personal training cert. At Yoga Vida we were required to do 10 adjustment hours outside of the classroom, and probably did upwards of 15 hours in the actual class room.
I feel like yoga teacher training filled in many of the blanks that personal training did not since it was very hands on.
You want to connect with like-minded people.
The people in my teacher training were a super diverse crowd ranging in age from 20 years old to 40+ and with totally different degrees and backgrounds. We all connected over our shared love of yoga and it was a super supportive environment.
I’m grateful for the cool, caring and eclectic crew I got to bond with over the past 4-weeks and am excited to have a new group of yogi friends in NYC.
You can’t stop thinking about it.
If you have this nagging feeling that is pulling you towards yoga teacher training, I say do it. If finances are a concern, Yoga Vida is amazing about letting you do work study to help cover the costs and I’m sure this is the case at other studios.
I’m not going to make some epic sweeping statement that yoga teacher training is life-changing, but it definitely has made an impact on me, and I’m sure it will only continue to as I digest the tons of information I learned in 4-weeks.
It was exactly what I needed, right now, and I’m super grateful I was able to finally do it after all these years.
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