Teaching Yoga and the Power of Truth: Effective Assisting

By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed

There is great power in becoming aware of the truth and speaking the truth, when appropriate. This can be especially true during a Yoga class. A balanced and comprehensive practice of Yoga postures, breathing exercises and meditative techniques can quickly clarify any areas of physical weakness or imbalance. A balanced Yoga practice can also uncover painful and confusing life experiences, which may be lingering just under conscious awareness. These experiences may not have been completely understood or resolved by a student. 

When the practice of Yoga postures or breathing exercises brings these difficult life experiences to the forefront of a student’s awareness, the student then has the opportunity to understand and “make peace” with the experience, which will help to resolve and discharge any lingering negative emotions that may be held in the body and/or in the deep recesses of the mind. In the same way, a balanced practice of postures, pranayama exercises and meditative or relaxation techniques has the ability to uncover physical areas of tension, injury, weakness, and somatization. 

As a professional Yoga instructor, one of the most important teaching skills to develop is to learn how to effectively assist your students during a class. One of the first steps to being able to assist your students safely, effectively and appropriately is to hone your awareness of how each student is practicing the asanas and breathing exercises. It is fine skills to balance teaching a group of students as a whole, while you also practice being mindfully aware of each individual student’s progress through class. 

By initially asking each student to fill out a health questionnaire, you will have a “heads up” about any physical or emotional challenges that as student is currently addressing. In addition, by moving through the room as you teach a Yoga class, you will be able to more easily spot any students who need some assistance to practice a pose in proper alignment. While you are assisting a student, you may also find that modifying a posture, so that a given pose is more accessible for a student, is also appropriate and helpful.

Another aspect of effectively assisting your students throughout the course of a class is to ask your students to feel comfortable asking for help. This can be quite uncomfortable for some students, especially if they are used to being able to do most of the postures on their own. However, as the Yoga teacher, you have the opportunity to create a non-intimidating atmosphere during class, which will help your students to feel more comfortable asking for personal assistance from you, during the practice of a personally challenging asana or pranayama technique. 

When you effectively assist your students during a Yoga class, you will help them to develop and deepen their own practice. You will also help your students to become more aware of any postural misalignment during their practice and how to correct a misalignment, so that they are performing the asanas in such a way that their spinal health is improve, not compromised! This awareness will improve student safety during a class and will also help your students to practice challenging postures and pranayama exercises correctly at home, so that they truly benefit from a well-rounded Yoga practice. 

Virginia Iversen, M.Ed, has been practicing and studying the art of Yoga for over twenty years. She lives in Woodstock, New York, where she works as a writer and an academic support specialist. She is currently accepting Yoga and health-related writing orders and may be contacted at: enchantress108@gmail.com.

© Copyright 2015 – Virginia Iversen / Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

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Teaching Grounding Yoga Classes: Supported Child’s Pose

By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed

At the present time, it is late fall in the Northeastern United States. In many of the surrounding areas, the colorful leaves of early fall have peaked and are now carpeting the earth. During this season, it is quite natural to want to eat comforting soups and stews, as well as spend time preparing for the winter ahead. The late fall is also a time of seasonal release and introspection, before the holiday season gets into full swing. 

Essentially, the late fall season lends itself to a time to pause, reflect and exhale. As we exhale, the body relaxes and we are more easily able to drop what no longer serves us, whether it is muscular tension or emotionally bracing against a painful life experience. When you are designing a creative, challenging and seasonally appropriate Yoga class for your students, keeping in the mind the cycle of the seasons will help you to create a beautifully-designed flow of postures, breathing exercises and relaxation techniques that truly nurtures your students. 

There are many different and unique ways to teach Yoga classes. If you live in a temperate area, the late fall season naturally lends itself to a series of postures and pranayama practices that are grounding and facilitate deep release. Poses such as Plank Pose, Legs Up the Wall and Dolphin Pose are all very grounding. In addition, seated forward folds are both grounding and soothing in nature. According to the Anusara system of Yoga, any posture that firmly sets and grounds the femur bones into place helps to soothe and quiet an overactive nervous system. 

* Supported Child’s Pose

One of the most quintessentially grounding Yoga postures is Child’s Pose or Balasana. When Child’s Pose is practiced in a supported fashion, it is even more deeply nourishing and soothing. Child’s Pose can be practiced in a number of ways, including in an extended modification, vinyasa-style or with the arms in front of the student or extending towards the back of the Yoga mat with the palms facing up. Salamba Balasana, or Supported Child’s Pose, can be practiced with either the use of a bolster or a rolled blanket, which approximates the same size as a Yoga bolster. 

If you would like to incorporate the practice of Supported Child’s Pose into your Yoga class, it is advisable to request that your students place a bolster or blanket next to their mats before the class begins, so that you can avoid the inevitable distraction of a number of your students getting up to get a bolster later on during the class itself. Supported Child’s Pose is usually practiced towards the end of a Yoga class as one of the finishing postures, just prior to Final Relaxation Pose or Shavasana. This soothing and nourishing posture will help to release any tension that may have accumulated in the lower back during class, and it will facilitate your students to move from the active portion of a Yoga class to the more introspective, restorative portion of a class. 

When you are ready to lead your Yoga students through the practice of Supported Child’s Pose, have them place the bolster or blanket lengthwise on their mats. Instruct your students to drape their upper torsos over the bolster or blanket with their knees comfortably separated on either side of the bolster and their toes gently touching. Ask them to rest their heads on one check on the bolster and place their arms on the side of the bolster or blanket or comfortably on the mat in front of them. If any of your Yoga students have tight lower backs or groin muscles and need more height, they can place an additional folded blanket or two on top of the original bolster or blanket. 

Finding an appropriate height for the supportive Yoga prop that each student is using is important, so that your students are able to truly relax in Salamba Balasana. Halfway through the practice of Salamba Balasana, ask your students to rest on the alternate cheek, so that the small, delicate muscles one each side of the neck are elongated in a balanced fashion. Ask your students to rest in Supported Child’s Pose for 5-10 breaths up to two to three minutes or longer, depending on the amount of time you have to dedicate to practicing this posture.

When you Yoga students have completed their practice of Supported Child’s Pose, ask them to push themselves up to a comfortable kneeling position before moving into Final Relaxation Pose. If you are short on time, you can substitute Salamba Balasana for Shavasana. If you do so, a nice way to bring the class to a close that is quite grounding is to have your students pause for a moment or two in a kneeling position, bring their hands to Namaskar in front of their hearts and chant “Aum” three times. This primordial mantra helps to ground the body and encapsulate the benefits of a well rounded, grounding Yoga class. 

Virginia Iversen, M.Ed, has been practicing and studying the art of Yoga for over twenty years. She lives in Woodstock, New York, where she works as a writer and an academic support specialist. She is currently accepting Yoga and health-related writing orders and may be contacted at: enchantress108@gmail.com.

© Copyright 2015 – Virginia Iversen / Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

Please feel free to share our posts with your friends, colleagues, and favorite social media networks.

Teaching Grounding Yoga Classes: Simplifying

By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed

If you are teaching a number of Yoga classes on a regular basis to a diversity of students, you probably notice that many of your students are just as stressed about “getting a good workout in” and practicing as many challenging postures as possible during class, just as they are about accomplishing as much as possible “off the mat” in their daily lives! This level of frenetic activity can undermine the more grounding and replenishing aspects of a well-rounded Yoga class. 

By simplifying and slowing down the sequence of Yoga postures, pranayama exercises and meditation techniques that you teach to your students during a class, you will help them to become more grounded and moderated in their practice and in their daily lives off the mat. For example, just the other day I was practicing along with an online Yoga class that was being taught by a well-known teacher, who originally presented this virtual class at a Wanderlust Festival. The class was billed as an advanced Power Yoga class that would help to even out Vata imbalances. 

The term “Vata” comes from the ancient Indian Ayurvedic system of medicine, which addresses a wide assortment of diseases and imbalances. It also offers very sage, time-tested wisdom about how to live a long, healthy and happy life, at least ideally speaking! According to Ayurveda, there are three primary body-mind types, Kapha, Pitta and Vata. The Vata body-mind individual is often very flexible, thin, prone to dry skin, and usually has a sensitive digestive system. These types of individuals tend to be type A personalities and are quite ambitious, particularly in terms of their daily goals. 

However, many of your predominately Vata students will also struggle with difficulty relaxing and slowing down enough to feel replenished after a Yoga class. They will constantly want to being in “doing” mode, rather than softly moving into simply being during Final Relaxation Pose. The teacher I referred to above was quite funny in her instructions during the advanced Power Yoga class that was aimed at ameliorating Vata imbalances, because she kept admonishing her students to refrain from continually trying to sneak in extra vinyasas between the postures! 

By asking her advanced Yoga students to slow down, hold each posture for a longer period of time and allow some breathing room between each pose, her students were able to witness their own frenetic level of energy and release that excess energy with each successive exhalation, as they moved more slowly between the poses than they would normally do in an advanced level class. In this same way, by restraining your students from practicing too many vinyasas and challenging postures during one Yoga class, you will help them to become more grounded in their bodies and minds. This will help to offset any Vata imbalances and will leave your students feeling replenished and rejuvenated for the rest of their day or evening. 

Virginia Iversen, M.Ed, has been practicing and studying the art of Yoga for over twenty years. She lives in Woodstock, New York, where she works as a writer and an academic support specialist. She is currently accepting Yoga and health-related writing orders and may be contacted at: enchantress108@gmail.com.

© Copyright 2015 – Virginia Iversen / Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

Teaching Grounding Yoga Classes: Tadasana

By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed

There are many different ways of designing and teaching an effective, fun and challenging Yoga class. As a certified teacher, you are most likely well aware of a number of different popular asana class styles, including Anusara, Ashtanga, Vinyasa and Hot Yoga, to name only a few! There are now even “Warm Yoga” classes offered for those who find the 105 degree temperature of traditional Bikram class too much to handle. As you become more adept at designing fun, creative and effective classes for your students, you will become aware of the myriad nuances and effects of a specific flow of postures, pranayama techniques and relaxation practices that you offer to your students. 

The underlying intention that informs your choice of a specific flow of postures, breathing exercises and complementary practices, such as meditation or relaxation techniques, will imbue your class with a certain energy and vibrancy. One way to sequence a Yoga class is to nurture a specific emotional state through the practice. Depending on the particular group of students whom you are teaching, the time or year or even the time of day, you may want to design a class that is energizing or relaxing. During the late fall, the lives of many Yoga students may become busier, as the holiday season fast approaches. 

During this busy time of year, teaching grounding Yoga classes will help your students to slow down, exhale and release the stress of the day. At times, many of us become so busy and so stressed out that we rarely exhale completely, which creates even more physiological stress in our bodies and minds. When you teach a slower paced Yoga class that is focused on grounding postures and calming breathing exercises, you will help your students to release the stress and tension that has accumulated throughout the course of their day. 

At the beginning of a class, it is helpful to allow 2-3 minutes for your students to take a few deep breaths and set an intention for their practice. This will help your students to become fully present for the class ahead. In addition, by beginning a grounding class with a series of foundational Yoga postures that emphasize a connection to the earth, you will help your students to slow down enough to start to dissipate unwanted anxious thoughts and deepen their breathing. When your students begin to fully inhale and exhale, the body will automatically begin to relax, which will help to calm down and balance an overactive sympathetic nervous system. 

* Tadasana or Mountain Pose

Tadasana, or Mountain Pose, is often overlooked in a class because it appears to be so simple and easily performed. However, if you are designing a sequence of postures that will help your students to become more grounded, taking a few extra minutes in Tadasana will help them to become mindfully aware of their own state of being, as they fully inhabit their bodies. This Yoga posture is aptly named, because to truly stand in a balanced fashion on one’s own two feet is akin to the solidarity and strength of a mountain. By asking your students to pause long enough in Mountain Pose to truly feel the supportive strength of the earth beneath them, your students will feel more grounded and at ease throughout the rest of their Yoga practice. 

Virginia Iversen, M.Ed, has been practicing and studying the art of Yoga for over twenty years. She lives in Woodstock, New York, where she works as a writer and an academic support specialist. She is currently accepting Yoga and health-related writing orders and may be contacted at: enchantress108@gmail.com.

© Copyright 2015 – Virginia Iversen / Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division

Teaching Yoga and the Power of Truth: Offering Modifications

By: Virginia Iversen, M.Ed

During a comprehensive teacher-training course, you will learn how to teach a wide range of students the classical postures, pranayama exercises and meditation techniques of a variety of Yoga styles. You will also learn how to modify and customize your Yoga classes, in order to address your student’s individual needs during class. One of the primary ways of customizing a particular sequence of Yoga postures is to offer students who are struggling with modified versions of the classical poses. 

One way of modifying poses is to use Yoga props, such as blocks, bolsters and straps.  Another way of modifying the postures is to offer beginning versions of more advanced postures to students who are still developing the necessary strength and flexibility to practice more advanced versions of the same poses. For instance, if a student is particularly tight in the front of the upper torso, practicing the full version of Upward Facing Dog may cause strain and discomfort. 

In this case, suggesting that this student practice Sphinx or Cobra Pose, before moving on to Upward Facing Dog, will help that student elongate the front of the torso, shoulders and neck muscles, so that in time he or she will be able to practice Upward Facing Dog without straining. Although this may make intuitive sense to you as a professional Yoga instructor, approaching your students honestly, kindly and firmly may take some finesse. You may find that a number of your students, who would benefit from a modified Yoga practice, are actually quite fit from other athletic activities. 

For example, if you do have a number of students in your Yoga classes who are physically quite fit, but who have shortened hamstrings from any number of other athletic activities, such as running on pavement, playing basketball or skiing, approaching your students in an honest and respectful manner is important. When you are offering modifications to your Yoga students, skillfully modifying a pose in an appropriate manner is imperative. In addition, honestly letting your students know if and when it is important for them to back off the full version of an asana and practice a modified version is also necessary. 

As a certified Yoga teacher, when you approach your students in an honest, courageous and kind manner, they will feel supported in their practice instead of criticized. At least, most of the time! An innocuous way to offer a stepped series of modifications, is to have a few students practice at the front of the class, who can correctly model beginning, intermediate and advanced versions of the same posture. In this way, a student will be more likely to practice the appropriate level of a pose, without feeling individually pointed out. If this is not possible, quietly and compassionately offering modified Yoga poses to your students who need a less advanced practice will help those students to build up the requisite strength and flexibility, before moving onto more advanced versions of the same postures over time. 

When you are offering modified versions of classical Yoga postures to your students, it is also important to be quite firm in your guidance. If you have a number of students in your Yoga classes who are very physically fit and active in a number of sports, being told that they would benefit from using a block or a bolster in a certain pose may not sit well with them! However, if they injure themselves during a Yoga class, they will be less likely to develop a long term relationship with this ancient form of physical postures, breathing exercises and stress relieving, meditation techniques, which have the ability to create and sustain an abiding sense of well being for a lifetime. 

With persistent, patient practice, even those Yoga students who are quite challenged by many of the basic asanas will make substantial progress on the mat. As they begin to experience the balancing and strengthening benefits of a regular practice of postures, pranayama exercises and meditation techniques, your students will learn to trust your ability to guide them in an appropriate and fearless manner through a challenging Yoga class. Over time, their growing trust in your ability to offer them a practice that is comprehensive, safe and effective will engender loyalty to you as their teacher and a deepening commitment to their own Yoga practice. 

Virginia Iversen, M.Ed, has been practicing and studying the art of Yoga for over twenty years. She lives in Woodstock, New York, where she works as a writer and an academic support specialist. She is currently accepting Yoga and health-related writing orders and may be contacted at: enchantress108@gmail.com.

© Copyright 2015 – Virginia Iversen / Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division