A funny meme I saw summed it all up for the year 2020. Giving it a review of zero stars ….…….“would NOT recommend.”
Even though it has not been the best of years, there are still many things we can be thankful for. For me, this year afforded me the time and opportunity to take my advanced 300 hour yoga teacher training (YTT) online, something I never dreamed would happen. Sure, there have always been online yoga teacher trainings out there, but until this year – the year of the COVID pandemic – to my knowledge no online teacher training was Yoga Alliance (YA) approved. A Yoga Alliance approved program means that the program meets certain standards, as set forth by the Yoga Alliance, an independent organization representing the yoga community. To many teachers and studios, YA standards are a significant measure of a yoga teacher’s level of knowledge and training in the areas of teaching methodology and techniques, yoga philosophy and ethics, and anatomy and physiology, etc.
I should note that some teachers and studio owners may not consider Yoga Alliance registration to be a necessary credential to teach yoga.
It was important to me that my 300 hour YTT be a YA approved program; therefore, I was pleasantly surprised when I learned of the Yoga Alliance’s “temporary provision” to allow YA approved teacher training programs to utilize online tools such as Zoom for the previously required onsite delivery of lectures, discussions, and teaching practicums.
As I mentioned, I didn’t plan for my 300 hour YTT to happen this way. I expected it to take about a year to complete, for there to be a full weekend a month commitment onsite at the training studio (Friday evening, Saturday, and Sunday), and the cost to be in excess of $3,000.
The online program I chose through My Vinyasa Practice (MVP) in Austin, Texas, just made sense logistically, logically, and financially (the cost being significantly less than expected).
I’ll be the first to admit, initially I was somewhat skeptical. I began doing some research, which included calling and talking to a representative at Yoga Alliance, reading MVP reviews, both on the YA website and on the MVP website, and talking on the phone with the founder and lead trainer, Michelle, at My Vinyasa Practice. At the time the YA provision was only good through September, 2020 (this has since been extended through 2021- check the YA website to confirm details), and I was worried that I wouldn’t finish the program in time to achieve my 300 hour certification. Austin, Texas is about 1,300 miles from my home so having to physically go to the studio to complete the program would have been a nightmare. I communicated my concerns to Michelle and asked several other questions about content, format, assessment, and the practical requirements of the program. The knowledge, experience, and confidence that came through in her answers put my mind completely at ease. Michelle was approachable, personable, professional, and knowledgeable. She understood my concerns and provided possible alternative options for completing the program should I have not completed it in time. That weekend, I signed up for the training and was on my way to fulfilling my dream of becoming an RYT 500!
I immediately began watching the recorded weekend Zoom meetings that I had missed. The first one I watched was with MVP teacher, Christine, on Restorative yoga.
Christine began her teaching segment with a practice, not a Restorative practice – but a practice to allow us to stretch and move and to become grounded. I found this extremely helpful and reminiscent of my 200 hour YTT when we would break from the lecture and stand, stretch, and move through a sequence. This was a time to become centered in your own space, to draw your awareness inside and set the tone for the material you were about to assimilate. A process that, for me, was – and is still extremely effective.
I was also impressed by the diversity of students and their geographical locations being from all over the world. It was so interesting to me – hearing the questions that came from such a wide variety of students- all of us having this common thread and interest in learning to be advanced yoga instructors. In some cases – depending on the topic – the lectures and trainings included the students taking their 200 hour training as well. It was equally interesting to hear the insight of these yoga teacher trainees – just beginning their yoga teacher journey.
I continued to be impressed with the teaching throughout the training, through all of my required Zoom and YouTube lectures and trainings – all of which I will continue to have access to for future reference forever!
The main online content was delivered through the Teachable online course platform. The initial introduction to the training was amazingly comprehensive. It included information about what to expect from the training, detailed training requirements and course layout, a link to a student folder containing recorded lectures, trainings and handouts, important contact information for all of the lead trainers, online office hours schedule, and how to access peer support.
I visited the Introduction tab frequently, to remind myself of the requirements, and to access the links needed for lectures – live and recorded. A copy of a downloadable training manual was also provided – which I promptly printed in order to highlight important points and make my own notes accordingly.
The actual course content consisted of eleven comprehensive sections:
Subtle Bodies
Ayurveda
Yoga Nidra
Advanced Anatomy & Physiology
Advanced Sequencing
Prenatal Yoga
Restorative Yoga
Yin Yoga
Trauma Informed Yoga
Adaptive Yoga
The Business of Yoga
Each section consisted of reading, video lectures and practices, and self reflection exercises.
The culmination was a final certification exam of which you needed to pass with a score of at least 80%.
In addition to the required online lectures, readings, practices, and final exam, 20 hours of karma (free yoga classes) practice teaching was required and needed to be recorded and submitted. Since the training was taking place during the COVID quarantine, it was acceptable to teach online through Zoom, YouTube, or any another platform that was shareable with the MVP staff.
Additionally, once the Karma classes were completed, a 7-10 paragraph essay reflecting on your experience teaching was also required. A meaningful exercise.
All of the requirements combined totaled a minimum of 300 hours (you could elect to participate in additional lectures and practices). I approached this program as an intensive training, giving it my full attention and spending 7-8 hours a day on the material. Although the training was self-paced, I completed all requirements in about 7 weeks. This may vary depending on each individuals schedule.
With the money I saved on the cost of the training, I was able to purchase a brand new Lenovo IdeaPad laptop – similar to the one linked here – which helped me tremendously! This laptop went everywhere with me inside of my home. In the kitchen I would watch lectures while preparing food and read while eating meals. Outside of home (even though we were in quarantine) if I needed to wait in the car before going into the dentist, for example, I was reading and working on my training.
I can’t say enough positive things about this online advanced teacher training. As a reminder, (and if you haven’t read my blog post: How to Plan and Teach Yoga Workshops) I come from a background in higher education – specifically, an online graduate school – and have taken and helped to develop many online courses and trainings. In my opinion, it was one of the most comprehensive and supportive yoga trainings I’ve experienced (online or onsite).
Did I miss the camaraderie of meeting with my fellow students and teachers in person? Not very much considering the current situation. I definitely did not miss the stress of driving to the studio and making it on time in traffic – or spending those long hours away from home on the scheduled weekends.
Online learning is not for everyone. You know yourself best. Consider your learning style and if online learning is something for which you are well-suited. Be sure to do your research, and make an informed decision about choosing an online yoga teacher program. I am certainly happy I did!
