I’ve been a yoga teacher for [almost] 3 years now. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do after graduating my 200-hour yoga teacher training and I had no idea just how much it would change my life and career trajectory.
Flash forward to now: I taught 10 yoga classes this week. Including an Ariana Grande themed class 😍 I pinch myself that I get paid to blast Arianna Grande to a group of zen humans at the crack of dawn.
I am SO not the greatest yoga teacher out there. Hell, I mess up my rights and lefts in every freaking class I teach. But I’ve learned a lot over the last 3 years of teaching yoga.
Heads up to my NYC readers: I’m teaching two *FREE* yoga classes with Sweaty Betty for International Yoga Day on June 21st at 7:45AM + 9:15AM. Both classes are already sold-out but I highly recommend adding yourself to the waitlist and showing up — I know people tend to flake on free events 🙂
Also if you’re curious about my yoga teacher training experience you can read about my first week of training here and my final thoughts on the experience here.
Outfit gifted by Sweaty Betty
Tank: Breeze Crop Running Tank
Leggings: Zero Gravity 7/8 Running Leggings
Use code SBKayla25 for 25% off your Sweat Betty Purchase
✨ Lesson 1: Don’t read reviews✨
Seriously, just don’t.
When I first started teaching at Y7 I got in the habit of reading every. single. review. to see what people were saying about me and my class. Even though I had been warned not to by my manager I couldn’t help it. Well, it made me feel like utter shit about myself. And it got me to start questioning myself while I was teaching.
UGH I messed up my rights and my lefts — is everyone in this class gonna give me a bad review?
Oh that girl looks like she’s in a bad mood. Maybe she’s going to give me only a 1-star review.
Am I talking too fast? Someone said I talked too fast in their review of my class. Maybe I should slow down!?
It started to really mess me up as an instructor. I felt super self-conscious about everything I did. No bueno.
About 2 months into teaching at Y7 I laid down a strict “NO READING REVIEWS” policy for myself. And you know what happened? I started to feel SO much more confident as a yoga teacher. Yes, I still listen to feedback given to me in person both by my students and my managers. But I don’t dwell on reviews anymore.
I’ve come to realize not everyone is going to like YOU. Or your class. Maybe it’s the studio and they don’t dig the vibe — I know hot yoga to hip-hop music isn’t for everyone! And maybe it is YOU and your vibe doesn’t resonate with them — that’s okay too!
As a people pleaser this is SO hard for me. I want everyone to love me! But letting go of the need to please everyone and worry about their reviews has actually made me a better instructor.
✨ Lesson 2: Create your own opportunities ✨
Less than 1 week after finishing yoga teacher training I taught a [free] class for my good friends on the rooftop of my apartment building. I was so so so nervous. But it the stakes were also super low — my friends were the perfect captive audience.
Less than 1 month after finishing yoga teacher training I hosted a yoga + dinner event with my good friend Leslie. We went on to host about 50 more events combining yoga and food in some format and had the opportunity to partner with companies like Modells, Ariana Huffington’s Thrive, Athleta, Sweaty Betty and Goldman Sachs.
Those 50 events were my crash course in learning how to be a yoga teacher — without them I never would’ve had the opportunity to teach as a brand spanking new teacher. Not to pat myself on the back, but I’m really proud of myself for just going for it and creating these opportunities with Leslie.
As a yoga teacher it can be really really hard to get your first teaching gig. Studios want people with experience. But in order to get experience you need to teach! It’s a vicious cycle of disappointment. When I was first trying to break into the fitness industry 7 years ago as a fresh college graduate, no one wanted to hire me because I didn’t know WTF I was doing. I was a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor with no experience. I wish I had the balls back then to create my own thing for fitness like I did with Leslie for yoga.
Outfit gifted by Sweaty Betty
Tank: Breeze Crop Running Tank
Leggings: Zero Gravity 7/8 Running Leggings
Use code SBKayla25 for 25% off your Sweat Betty Purchase
✨Lesson 3: Being a good yoga teacher is about more than being bendy✨
During yoga teacher training I was the least flexible yogi in the bunch. I also was the only one without a solid arm or inversion balance practice. Everyone else would be gracefully kicking up into their headstand. Me? Not so much.
As a yoga teacher that posts things on instagram I’ve always felt self conscious that I have nothing “cool” to show off. I’m not very flexible. My dancers pose isn’t pretty. I can do tree pose and that’s about it…
At first I thought this would hinder me BIG time as a yoga teacher. But over the last 3 years I’ve learned that it doesn’t matter.
My favorite yoga teachers aren’t my favorite because they are super flexible. Nah! My favorite yoga teachers are my favorite because of how they hold space. Their ability to break down postures in a way that clicks with me. How they sequence. Their playlist. And maybe because they give good savasana adjustments 😂 Being a good yoga teacher is about SO much more than being bendy. Or my ability to hold crow pose.
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ahhh i love #3!! i feel like after taking a crap ton of yoga classes i realize that the best teachers aren’t necessarily the ones that are super fit or flexible or amazing at inversions or whatever! they’re all different and they’re all wonderful 🙂 still sad i didn’t get to take your class in NYC this time but i know it’ll happen someday soon!!
one of these visits 🙂 or maybe I’ll have to sub next time I’m in LA 😂