i learned more than just asana
Yesterday I went to a class at Exhale in Boston. Out of respect for the teacher I am not going to mention a name or time. I will just say Teacher.
I got to class right on time and settled in. There were on three people in the class – which for New York is light, but for Boston it is probably normal in a primarily financial area at lunch time.
I taught a lot of small group classes in the beginning of my yoga teaching career. For me, it was really a chance for me to connect and learn how to help people individually within a diverse environment.
There were 2 other people in class: a slightly overweight middle aged woman. By no means was she “fat” but it was clear that postures the instructor could ease into were a bit difficult for her. The other woman was an older woman. Probably in her 60’s – who did not seem to practice often and I noticed throughout the class she would try and modify on her own. And then there was me. I was probably the only “regular” practitioner of yoga. However, lately every pose has been a challenge for me. I have been stuck with a cold for the past week and I have not been regular with my practice since my boyfriend moved to Boston, (which added on about 8 hours of crunched up sitting on a bus/week). So even though I might be the most “advanced” it did not mean I was “better,” for lack of a better word, than the other students in the class. In fact, especially lately, I have felt like the elephant in the room, the one who looks like she should be able to do all of the poses but cant.
Anyway. The point of all of this description was that the teacher didn’t ask us about us. He didn’t introduce himself, he didn’t ask me if I had an injury or anything. He didn’t ask anyone in class how long they have been practicing. I was a little surprised but I let it go.
We moved through the warm up and into some of the more challenging sequences. At this point I looked over to the older woman to my right and I saw her struggling a bit. Going from warrior one, to warrior two, to reverse warrior, to side angle, is challenging for ANYONE. I saw her trying to modify and having trouble and the inner teacher/saver wanted to run over and help her and show her how she can use blocks or come down to a knee. But obviously, I couldn’t and I didn’t.
As class continued the teacher taught just as Iyengar writes in Light on Yoga. All description and no heart. I noticed that the Teacher did not even look at us when we moved through the postures to make sure we were doing things in an aligned way. Teacher just moved on without adding any personality to the postures. It was just reaching the right leg up. Place foot through. Arms up. no heart.
This is when I began to realize that I am a good teacher.
Not only do I engage with my classes so it is more of a conversation between my teaching and their bodies, but I also am incredibly ‘on top’ of helping those who are having trouble. I walk into every class hoping that my students feel rejuvenated – not defeated.
So as class went on I kept this in mind and started to feel a little confident about my teaching. This confidence automatically translated into the way I moved in the room. I took on challenging poses and advanced when I felt ready. I held my balance better than I have been as of late, and I ended the class feeling strong.
Lately, I have not been teaching adult classes because I am planning to move. Since I would have to engage with new studios it is probably not in my best interest to make and then break a relationship. In a way, although this decision has given me time to practice more and gain inspiration but instead, I have felt crappy. I have felt like a not-real yoga instructor. I guess I fell into the swamp of “I can’t do x,y,z so therefore I suck.”
But that all changed while I was in this class. At the end of class the teacher asked me if I was a teacher. Teacher didn’t ask me what my name was, just if I was a teacher. I smiled and said yes. My thoughts fired a mile a minute. “omg it must be obvious!” “I must give it off!”
A woman in the class came up to me as well and asked me where I teach. I told her I am only teaching privates and kids right now as I am in transition to move to Boston. She seemed excited that I would be joining the Yoga Community here and wished me well.
I felt so good leaving the class and rushed to a cafe to write about my experience. It was a perfect reminder that confidence can find you anywhere. Especially when you don’t expect it.
me vs. my body
I have a pinched nerve and I am letting it turn me into a crazy person.
I 
have never really had back pain. I did when I was in highschool, but I am sure everyone did with their large backpacks and slumping seats. In my adult life I have yet to have an injury thats dibilitating and depressing until now.
I know, pinched nerve sounds like something I am over dramatizing, but I’m not. It really hurts and when the pain comes it takes over my back from the bottom of the rib cage to the tip of my spine. Any movement feels like hell when the pain comes on and more often than not, if I am working while this is happening, I am letting the pain come and coqnuer until I am numb.
This has been going on for a month and I am just getting more and more frustrated as time goes on.
For help: I have tried yoga, which helps until I work at the restaurant. Massage, which helps for the day not for the long run, chiropractor – which is too expensive for me to go to on a constant basis, and accupuncture – which I have been giving a real shot, but the pain has only moved, it hasnt decreased.
I think people with mind/body awareness, primarily yogis, are used to feeling every sensation in their bodies and knowing pain is imperminant. Were used to “tuning in” and just knowing what feels out of place and what does not. I simply know when my hips are tighter than normal, and when I am holding too much hurt or pain in my heart that it is clenching my entire upper back.
This injury made me realize that maybe the rest of the population only knows when their body hurts. I know my boyfriend is only eager to stretch when he is in dibilitating pain. The same goes for many people I know – that they only take care when they need to recover.
So how did this happen to me? I do yoga all of the time. I am in good shape. I care about my back and body. Probably the mind/body reason.
I usually go straight to the source but I did some research on this since “pinched nerve” is not in Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life.
The back also represents that which is behind you. Very often we do not see clearly that which is behind us. Back problems generally represent conflict between the urge to move forward and the inertia of an unforgiven past that holds us back. This tension very often separates us from both and pain is the result. Louse Hay suggests that backs generally represent support.
The mid back is the link between the shoulder and the lower back. It can be a weak link. As we firm up our shoulders and become willing to take on the responsibilities of Life, and we have gathered around us the financial and emotional support we need (lower back), something sneaks up and stabs us in the back. This is a blind spot. Not only can we not see it, but is very difficult to reach. The weak link crumbles. It is the saboteur or seducer that takes us off our path. Located in this area are the Tonification points (called ‘Shu’ points) for the Liver, the Stomach, and the Spleen. These organs are responsible for the transformation and transportation of Qi, and the free flow of Qi in the body. Blockages here affect the entire body and can stop you dead in your tracks. The Spleen represents Worry or Overthinking and the Liver represents Anger or base emotions. Both of these can sabotage even the best laid plans.
And that explination kind of settled it all for me.
I am in the place of moving right now. Moving physically, emotionally, locationally. Until this week when I decided on a plan with my life coach, I was stuck. I did not know what I was doing and when. I just kind of was waiting for someone to come down and give me the life I wanted. I was scared to move to a new city. I still am, but with her help she got me into designing what I want my life to look like and how I can get to that point soon.
I wasnt taking the responsibilites of life in and I wasnt letting myself transform into the me I want to be. Being in pain has jolted me out of my comfort zone in work, at home, in my sleep. I have never been so ready and hapily ready to leave NY.
Maybe I waited too long to get help- and that is why the pain is still here. Technically I did not move yet, I just devised and am living out a plan. But now, the pain only comes when I work at the restaurant…so you just have to wonder…
Most of us think too much. Bypass your intellect & act from your highest vision. — Debbie
Most of us think too much. Bypass your intellect & act from your highest vision. — Debbie Ford
speaking confidently
Lets talk about the idea of speaking with confidence. Throughout my whole life I have had a weird feeling whenever someone urged me to just feel confident. Often it seems to be applied in a very superficial way, with little real help behind it. People will say: “just be confident” or “just act as if you are already who you want to be.” But the truth is that the theory to just “act as you are already” does not work for me. It makes me feel more down, more upset, and more not there – where I want to be.
For me, being a confident yoga instructor was more about being confident in who I was as a person, than pretending or affirming I was. For me it was a path of knowing who I was and not being shy about sharing that truth with everyone. It does not mean I was once introverted and turned into an extrovert, it means, I was not saying how I felt, I was scared of everyone’s reactions. Once I began to realize that I could trust myself and I could share myself with the world, I was not afraid anymore, of anyone.
This week, I want to hear about your unconfidence.
Are you still nervous for half of the class you teach?
Are passing up opportunities to teach – and missing out on delivering your purpose?
Would like more details on how to speak with greater confidence?
Tell me where you are and I promise to help you, specifically.
is your head arguing with your soul?
This Friday I am begging for YOUR feedback. What does your head say before you walk into the room to teach? Post publicly or post anonymously. Lets see where you are.
Feedback : I FORGOT TO TAKE THEM THROUGH THE LEFT SIDE!
Last week I wrote about a possible teaching scenario and taking feedback. Half way into writing it I realized I had so much more to say than I thought I did and decided I had more to share about feedback and how to respond to feedback when you begin teaching. From now on I will be writing at least twice a week. Always on Tuesdays and Fridays.
How you respond to feedback is KEY for your success and confidence in teaching. You can either let it ruin your day and career, or you can really take it for what it is, and let it build you up to be a better teacher.
I completely invite you to post on here, to write to me personally at jlynnedaniels@gmail.com, or to write on www.facebook.com/speakyourinspiration if you are coming up against something. I will respond.
Anyway, so today, lets go back to feedback and lets explore sequencing.
So what happens if your sequence was not understandable. Maybe you did not have enough voice que’s for a certain asana and nobody was in sequence. Maybe you forgot to take the class though the left side of a sequence or missed a part.
How many times have you been in a class where the teacher messed up something?
I know I have been in many classes where the teaching guru missed a side or the class didn’t understand the teaching instructions. But in many cases we just laughed it off. Sometimes, I just did the other side on my own. That does not mean it is “right,” but it does mean the teacher is human. And that means you’re human too!
As you teach more often you will become more confident in the room. As you get more confident your focus will be less on teaching and more on how you are teaching and who you are as a teacher.
I know that it is not enough just to know that making a mistake is common. Making a mistake while teaching is a confidence blow. So what can you do to prevent these mistakes from happening?
1. If you are teaching and you are no more than three poses away from the forgotten side (for example- you do warrior 1, 2, 3 on the right side and forget warrior 2 on the left, and now you are in side angle on the right) you can simply admit your mistake (your students will be glad you caught it) and creatively and effortlessly take them through warrior 2 (or whatever pose you missed). You can simply say “I just realized we didn’t do warrior 2 on this side, before down-dog we are going to come back to warrior 2 to let our bodies feel the equilibrium.”
It might be the case that one person in class did the other side even though you did not instruct it – so in that case, just thank the student (i usually say it out loud) and then take the class through the sequence.
2. If, time wise, it is too far away from the pose to go back to it, it is your job to just let it go, make a mental note, and move on.
3. Only teach what you practice. Only teach what you practice. Only teach what you practice. Only teach what you practice. Only teach what you practice.
I can, and probably will, write a whole blog on this topic.
Only teach what you practice. really. If you are teaching an asana you don’t practice you will have a much harder time connecting students to it than if you teach something you do practice. It is the same as practicing what you preach. I don’t teach headstand in the middle of the room. Why? because I can’t do a headstand in the middle of the room. I don’t know how it feels. I am afraid if someone falls I can’t catch them. I teach it at the wall because I can do it at the wall. And I am working to advance my own practice so I can do it in the middle of the room and teach it in the middle of the room.
4. Write out the class.
This is one of the best ways to remember all of the alignment pieces you need to know in order to get someone else in a pose. I used to write out full classes – from intro meditation to savasana. My focus would always be on the body alignment, but I couldn’t help the pieces of heart that jumped right in.
For example, for mountain pose, I could just write out: “stand tall with your feet together, arms down by your sides, shoulders relaxed” but instead, when I did write it this is how it came out: “stand tall at the front of your mat with your feet together. Allow your arms to be down by your sides, fingers reaching to the floor. Tuck your tailbone slightly so you feel your bellybutton move toward your spine. Lift your heart up to the sky while keeping your shoulders soft.”
The version you write is the version that will habitually stick with you. If you read it over and something does not make sense to you then there is a good chance it will not make sense to your students. Regardless, if you are going to take the time to write out what you want to say, put your whole self into it. Let yourself be surprised by the result.
5. Just remember to take a deep breath. You are going to do fine. 
And if you are still stuck make sure you reach out to me for help.
Try out some of these strategies this week and let me know if it works for you.
I would love to hear your feedback. I would love to hear if you tried out any of these strategies.
