Teacher Training - Day 1

I spent much of Wednesday looking at the clock, counting the hours and minutes until the beginning of my first yoga teacher training class. Just before class, I sat in on Taylor's guitar lesson. He was learning how to play a couple of Green Day songs and was really getting the hang of it. Every time he missed a note, his instructor told him that no one is perfect, and since he is playing an entire song - and not just a series of notes - he should play the song through and make no apologies for a missed note. Just play on. That was in my head as I got to class, and felt the nervous tension in the room of over 40 yoga teacher wanna-bes. Soon, we were all getting comfortable, making introductions, and learning the "Integration Series" of yoga movements - a series of relaxation postures that allows a person to connect mind and body, leaving their internal chatter behind.

We were given the opportunity to "practice teach" in small groups, and I soon realized how difficult it was to communicate posture cues even when you've heard them so many times in class, given by other instructors. Transforming what you want your class to do in a way that makes complete sense and flows with the breath is not as easy as it looks. Our leader told us to cross out the word "sorry" in our minds. If we slip up, don't give the right cue, or struggle to figure out the next one, don't apologize. Just move through it. It was so much like what Taylor's guitar instructor told him, and I told Taylor this morning that I learned the very same lesson in my class. I'm excited to work through my "yoga song" and get better with each class. Next classes are on Saturday and Sunday, so stay tuend!