Congratulations! Congratulations! You might be a bit confused if this is your first training. Perhaps it has been years since your last training and you are wondering if you can retain any new information. There’s also the issue of travel. You will be travelling away from family and friends to attend your training abroad. There are many things to think about!
These tips will help you navigate the unknown waters.
- There are no expectations that can be better than your best intentions
This is my number one tip for teacher trainees. Even if your friends have gone through the same training, their experience will be different. Keep your mind open and don’t have any preconceived notions about what your training will look like. The teacher training experience is very different from a retreat yoga class. If you have been to retreats in the past you will likely find the training more intense. Each day is packed full of information for your trainers! If you are frightened beforehand, and fear that your asana practice will not be good enough, then you are already on the wrong track. It’s not worth worrying about it. If there’s anything that will teach you to live in this moment and to be free from attachment, it’s this experience.
- Your teachers are there to help you
It’s easy for teachers to amaze you during training. I was. Our fearless leaders are amazing to teacher trainees. It’s easy for us to be tempted to ask silly questions. There is no such thing as a stupid question. It doesn’t matter if you are curious or struggling to understand it. Ask away! Your teacher training will be more successful if you are curious about asana alignment and yoga philosophy. This brings me to my next point.
- Write Stuff Down
Trust me, it’s not easy to remember everything! Six months later, when you teach your classes at home, you will be unable to recall the name of the guru/kriya/asana you were taught during your training.
- Do not rush your body
All of us come to teacher training with different levels of strength and physicality in our asana practice. My greatest learning from teacher training was that yoga is more than just asana practice. It’s just one of eight limbs. This means that there are SEVEN other aspects to yogic living you can cultivate during your teacher training. Don’t worry if you don’t manage sirsasana like your classmates. Use this opportunity to show compassion toward yourself while you are in training. Teacher training can be tiring. I found that I was less flexible during my training. It’s normal. It’s normal. You don’t have to fix your tight hamstrings and tight shoulders for the rest of your lives. But, you do have an opportunity to open your mind while you train. All you need is practice.
- You must be prepared for a fast-paced life
Let me end by giving you an overview of the possible changes in your life after teacher training. A yoga teacher training can help you see things that were there all along, but not as clearly. It is possible to be inspired by your yoga teacher training to let go of certain things in your life that aren’t serving you well. This could include relationships, jobs or long-held beliefs. Before I started my yoga training, a friend who is a yoga teacher told me to “buckle up and have fun” – she was absolutely right! The changes in my life were subtle, but they were significant. I now practice yoga every day and teach others. These two things have allowed me to feel more connected to people, have more richness in my life and have given me a sense peace that I did not have before. It’s a completely new way to live with yourself and the people around you. I cannot recommend it enough.