Since starting my yoga teacher training course, I have been paying a lot more attention to how different teachers conduct their classes. Mostly I am hoping to pick up tips and alignment cues that I can maybe weave into my own teaching. But, it turns out, I have also been picking up on a lot of things that I definitely do NOT want to incorporate into my classes.
So here's a list of my top 5 things that a yoga teacher (including me eventually) shouldn't do:
1. Agressive adjustments
This is number one because it is super-duper important to me - especially since one particular adjustment gave me a very painful injury that took months to get better. I was in a wide-legged forward bend - quite happily staying at the edge where the stretch felt strong but not uncomfortable. And then the overly-helpul teacher decided to push my chest closer to the ground - and kept going until there was an audible "pop" from within my hip socket. Not a dislocation, but a pretty nasty torn muscle at the insertion point. Ouch!
And I have heard similar stories of woe from other students - theirs may not have had such serious consequences, but they have definitely made them feel unsafe.
Not cool.
A good teacher asks before they start adjusting and don't feel the need to push their students beyond their limits. And this way, nobody gets hurt.
2. Making students feel inferior
My favourite teachers all have one thing in common - their vibe is friendly, relatable and down to earth. They have a way of making everyone in the class feel at ease by meeting them on their level - they aren't trying to create a relationship where they have a lofty status above their students.
But then there are those teachers who seem to have purposefully cultivated a superior yogi air about them - like they have all the answers and you should be extremely grateful that they are teaching you. They have a very particular idea of what a "real" yogi should be and drop little comments throughout the class that make you feel like you have a long way to go before you will ever be one. Basically, they are condescending towards their class.
Maybe it is ego. Maybe they think they are just giving the students what they want. But, as a student, feeling inferior, intimidated or just plain confused doesn't tend to make a class enjoyable or help make you a better yogi. It just makes you feel bad. Which is like the total opposite of what yoga should do!
3. Teaching yoga likes it's a workout
A common criticism of modern yoga is that it has become too much like a gym workout - that the focus is just on using the poses to create the perfect "yoga body".
Personally, I think it is ok if a yoga class is taught with a strong physical focus - whether it be through a continuously moving vinyasa flow or through a series of powerful poses designed to tone and strengthen (maybe even dropping in a few cheeky push-ups or ab exercises). Creating a strong, healthy body is one of the aims of a regular asana practice and if you get that through a vigorous or strong class, I think that is great!
But some teachers do take this too far. They race through sun salutations with the aim of increasing their students' heart-rates, but go so fast that the students can't keep up, or can only keep the pace by compromising their alignment, breathing or both. The same goes for strengthening poses that are held for a crazy-long time.
Heart-rates can be raised and bodies can be strengthened without pushing students beyond their limits. If the majority of the class is struggling to keep up, maybe it is a good idea to slow it down or come out the pose early - even if it means modifying the rest of the class a little.
4. Showing off
It always amazes me when I am in a mixed level class and out of nowhere the teacher jumps into, say Astavakrasana, without explaining how to get into the pose or breaking it down. Afterwards, ignoring the confused and bewildered faces of their students, they go back to teaching as if nothing has happened. Basically, it seems as though the only reason they have included the pose is so that they can show everyone that they can do it. Bragging is so not yoga!
Another thing that bugs me is when teachers teach students a really advanced pose that the majority of the class just aren't ready for. Throwing a more challenging pose into class is great - especially if it is taught with lots of options for all levels in the class. If the majority of the class aren't advanced or confident enough to try it out and will just end up sitting on their mats and watching on as a couple students - or worse just the instructor - attempt the pose, then it is probably best to leave it out. Or - my personal preference - teach lots of options so that everyone can have a go and maybe even discover that they are capable of doing a pose that previously seemed impossible.
5. Making ridiculous claims
Yoga has been proven to have many amazing benefits - helping with chronic pain, reducing stress, improving sleep, increasing flexibility and strength, improving moods - all legitimate claims. But sometimes teachers come out with some seriously crazy claims that I am pretty certain have not been proven in clinical trials.
One of my favourites was a teacher who claimed that a certain pose would "increase your metabolism and eventually change your DNA". Now I am not a medical professional, but that sounded pretty dubious to me!
Making dubious claims like this - things that seem to have no real scientific basis - can actually damage people's perceptions of yoga. Because when these claims are disproven or dismissed as being too fantastical, the other real benefits of yoga might get dismissed as well.
And yes, I know that there are some benefits of yoga that might not be capable of being proven by science but that you have nevertheless experienced and believe in. But you can express these without making them sound like a medical fact. Like, instead of saying that yoga will make you lose weight, maybe say that a regular yoga practice can make you more aware of what your body wants and can help you make better food choices. Sure that requires a bit of faith on the part of the student - but at least you aren't saying anything that is false.
I think that most yoga teachers have the best of intentions. And just because they might have done some of these things before doesn't mean that they are bad teachers. And yes, I am also sure that I will probably at some point fall into one or more of these traps myself.
But given that they bug me, I am sure that they bug many other students too. So I am going to at least try not to do any of them when I start teaching. And that is something, right?
So here's a list of my top 5 things that a yoga teacher (including me eventually) shouldn't do:
1. Agressive adjustments
This is number one because it is super-duper important to me - especially since one particular adjustment gave me a very painful injury that took months to get better. I was in a wide-legged forward bend - quite happily staying at the edge where the stretch felt strong but not uncomfortable. And then the overly-helpul teacher decided to push my chest closer to the ground - and kept going until there was an audible "pop" from within my hip socket. Not a dislocation, but a pretty nasty torn muscle at the insertion point. Ouch!
And I have heard similar stories of woe from other students - theirs may not have had such serious consequences, but they have definitely made them feel unsafe.
Not cool.
A good teacher asks before they start adjusting and don't feel the need to push their students beyond their limits. And this way, nobody gets hurt.
2. Making students feel inferior
My favourite teachers all have one thing in common - their vibe is friendly, relatable and down to earth. They have a way of making everyone in the class feel at ease by meeting them on their level - they aren't trying to create a relationship where they have a lofty status above their students.
But then there are those teachers who seem to have purposefully cultivated a superior yogi air about them - like they have all the answers and you should be extremely grateful that they are teaching you. They have a very particular idea of what a "real" yogi should be and drop little comments throughout the class that make you feel like you have a long way to go before you will ever be one. Basically, they are condescending towards their class.
One of the common ways that this can happen (and I really don't think the teachers intend this to make their students feel inferior) is the over-use of the sanskrit names for poses. It is great to know all the names, and amazing if you can pronounce them properly, but if you just say "down dog" instead of "adho mukha svanasana", your students are going be a lot less confused.
Maybe it is ego. Maybe they think they are just giving the students what they want. But, as a student, feeling inferior, intimidated or just plain confused doesn't tend to make a class enjoyable or help make you a better yogi. It just makes you feel bad. Which is like the total opposite of what yoga should do!
3. Teaching yoga likes it's a workout
A common criticism of modern yoga is that it has become too much like a gym workout - that the focus is just on using the poses to create the perfect "yoga body".
Personally, I think it is ok if a yoga class is taught with a strong physical focus - whether it be through a continuously moving vinyasa flow or through a series of powerful poses designed to tone and strengthen (maybe even dropping in a few cheeky push-ups or ab exercises). Creating a strong, healthy body is one of the aims of a regular asana practice and if you get that through a vigorous or strong class, I think that is great!
But some teachers do take this too far. They race through sun salutations with the aim of increasing their students' heart-rates, but go so fast that the students can't keep up, or can only keep the pace by compromising their alignment, breathing or both. The same goes for strengthening poses that are held for a crazy-long time.
Heart-rates can be raised and bodies can be strengthened without pushing students beyond their limits. If the majority of the class is struggling to keep up, maybe it is a good idea to slow it down or come out the pose early - even if it means modifying the rest of the class a little.
4. Showing off
It always amazes me when I am in a mixed level class and out of nowhere the teacher jumps into, say Astavakrasana, without explaining how to get into the pose or breaking it down. Afterwards, ignoring the confused and bewildered faces of their students, they go back to teaching as if nothing has happened. Basically, it seems as though the only reason they have included the pose is so that they can show everyone that they can do it. Bragging is so not yoga!
Another thing that bugs me is when teachers teach students a really advanced pose that the majority of the class just aren't ready for. Throwing a more challenging pose into class is great - especially if it is taught with lots of options for all levels in the class. If the majority of the class aren't advanced or confident enough to try it out and will just end up sitting on their mats and watching on as a couple students - or worse just the instructor - attempt the pose, then it is probably best to leave it out. Or - my personal preference - teach lots of options so that everyone can have a go and maybe even discover that they are capable of doing a pose that previously seemed impossible.
5. Making ridiculous claims
Yoga has been proven to have many amazing benefits - helping with chronic pain, reducing stress, improving sleep, increasing flexibility and strength, improving moods - all legitimate claims. But sometimes teachers come out with some seriously crazy claims that I am pretty certain have not been proven in clinical trials.
One of my favourites was a teacher who claimed that a certain pose would "increase your metabolism and eventually change your DNA". Now I am not a medical professional, but that sounded pretty dubious to me!
Making dubious claims like this - things that seem to have no real scientific basis - can actually damage people's perceptions of yoga. Because when these claims are disproven or dismissed as being too fantastical, the other real benefits of yoga might get dismissed as well.
And yes, I know that there are some benefits of yoga that might not be capable of being proven by science but that you have nevertheless experienced and believe in. But you can express these without making them sound like a medical fact. Like, instead of saying that yoga will make you lose weight, maybe say that a regular yoga practice can make you more aware of what your body wants and can help you make better food choices. Sure that requires a bit of faith on the part of the student - but at least you aren't saying anything that is false.
I think that most yoga teachers have the best of intentions. And just because they might have done some of these things before doesn't mean that they are bad teachers. And yes, I am also sure that I will probably at some point fall into one or more of these traps myself.
But given that they bug me, I am sure that they bug many other students too. So I am going to at least try not to do any of them when I start teaching. And that is something, right?
