How to Choose the Right Yoga Teacher Training Program for You: Pro’s & Con’s List
If the universe is whispering in your ear to take a yoga teacher training here’s a guide that will help you find your perfect match.
There are SO many good options to choose from and the process can be confusing, with tons of technical language and not a lot of explanation of how this process works.
In this post, we’re going to break down how to find a YTT and walk you through the step-by-step process of choosing a YTT that suits your needs (and so that you don’t end up in the WRONG program, or with endless decision fatigue!)
STEP 1: Choose a yoga board
Similar to becoming a personal trainer, health coach or life coach, there are a few registries to choose from. The largest yoga board is Yoga Alliance. If you’ve seen a yoga teacher say they are RYT 200 or E-RYT 500hr, they registered through yogaalliance.org. Yoga Alliance Professionals (the logo on the right) is another organization, although smaller, and generally more European. If you are interested in the E-RYT 500hr registry, you will need to take your certification courses from yoga schools with designations on the left. To get E-RYT 500hr (the highest designation available) you will need a RYT 200hr certification, RYT 300hr certification, and if you log the required teaching hours, then you apply for E-RYT500.
Step 2: Choose a yoga class that matches the kind of yoga you love
Each yoga school is VERY different. The most popular is Vinyasa, this is the style of yoga you see in most yoga studios. Here you will learn flows, sequencing, the foundations for advanced asanas, and a balanced yoga class. I personally teach and practice this style as well.
The next most popular is Ashtanga. I first started practicing Ashtanga yoga, then switched to Vinyasa. The benefit of Ashtanga is that it creates a lot of discipline, repetition, and a meditative practive, however I unfortunately found it to be too dogmatic. You have to find a good teacher.
If you love a really slow, more gentle practice, I would look up Hatha or Restorative. These will be more rest and recovery based classes.
Kundalini and Iyengar are less popular styles of yoga. If you’ve seen a yoga studio or yoga teacher that wears all white and a head covering, they are likely a Kundalini yogi. Kundalini yogis have their own practices and scriptures that are quite different from the rest. Iyengar also has his own, more specialized kind of school.
I love vinyasa because it has flexibility. Basically, I can make it a power vinyasa flow if I want to add more strength into it, or I can town it down into a restorative flow, or a “honey hips” flow if I want to focus on recovery. Flow style class allows you flexibility, but it is more complex than some of the other practices.
STEP 3. Choose a retreat style, weekend format, or online yoga teacher training
I have only taken yoga teacher trainings as in retreat style, since I love waking up in the morning everyday to practice meditation and yoga with the group. It’s the deepest, most transformational experience.
I have TAUGHT the weekend style format 5-6 times. I think it definitely works, especially if you do not have 2 weeks off. However, I noticed my students can get overwhelmed/ behind on the information if work or relationships pick up. Staying at home also means you keep all your habits. If you want a full transformation, a hard reset like an immersion is best.
I don’t have much experience with online YTT. It COULD be amazing with the right teacher and right student. This is definitely for self-starters. One of my YTT students had started an online YTT, but fell off the course when it was all detailed, book knowledge.
STEP 4: Choose a yoga school or lead teacher that resonates with you
At this point, you have an idea of what kind of program you’re looking for: vinyasa retreat, online yin, weekend hatha etc. Now you need to choose the exact school and lead teacher.
Your lead teacher and school program determines the CONTENT and TONE of the training. Here are some examples:
-Regular Physiology vs Functional/ Applied Anatomy
Most normal YTT’s focus on physiology: memorizing the major joints, muscles groups, whether they are distal/proximal, whether they abduct, adduct, or rotate etc. emphasizing anatomical terminology. I personally did not enjoy learning this because it’s book knowledge that doesn’t translate into either my personal practice or teaching practice. Learning that the thumb is medial to the pinky is not useful.
Some YTT’s focus almost exclusively on the energetic body such as the chakras. This ignores that understanding anatomy in a personal-training kind of way deeply transforms your practice. They may also perpetuate yoga myths such as “yoga twists detox the body” or that you should not practice yoga on your period. Ask your school program their stance on these topics.
I’ve only seen a few programs talk about functional application. For example, what should you train on a daily basis for the longevity and health of your joints and why? How does yoga affect other aspects of the body such as sleep, the brain, your DNA? How does yoga effect mental health? What is the latest research on the benefits of yoga? Ask your program whether they teach any kind of functional mobility training, longevity, mental health or science of wellness topics such as sleep, your hormones, your nervous system, etc.
-Asanas: Traditional vs Modern
Normal YTT’s teach traditional asanas and the old style of alignment. You may see things like “heel to inner arch” alignment. New teaching understands that heel to inner arch alignment was relevant for the hips of young male yogis, but that for most women, this is very unsteady and may even cause one hip to twist, trying to force the position. They may also heavily focus on headstand, when for many people headstand is unsafe. If you have been in a car accident or experienced neck whip lash bungee jumping or another extreme sport, you may have micro trauma or damage in your cervical vertabrae that you have no idea about. Practicing extensive headstands like in a traditional practice (some teachers will recommend up to 10minutes in headstand!) is certainly more dangerous than helpful.
Some YTT’s expand on the traditional yoga poses and include some functional mobility or movements picked up from the rehab/prehab world. These trainings integrate the latest research on longevity, joint mobility, and muscle length/ flexibility.
-Philosophy: Traditional vs Applied
Reading the classical books on yoga philosophy is very useful and is a standard in most yoga teacher trainings. They will go over the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and the 8 limbed path.
Some YTT’s will go further in applied yoga philosophy. These ones will help you more personally resonate with the teachings through the use of group exercises, journaling, sharing, and affirmations.
Some will also go over the different historical ages of yoga, and the relationship between yoga, buddhism, and other Eastern religions. They will also go over the current phenomenon: the modernization of Buddhism to mindfulness, yoga to postures, and what we can do to continue to be on the leading edge of the practice, while honoring yoga’s lineage and cultural context.
Tone of the teacher
How does the lead teacher view the teacher-student relationship? Is it a more traditional relationship, where the teacher is somewhat (or totally!) a guru that needs to be followed? Or a yoga teacher that acts as guide, helping the students uncover their own inner teacher?
How does the lead teacher view the aspect of play? Is fun, joy, and levity a large part of the practice? Or is it a more serious and traditional teacher?
How does the lead teacher view rest? Is it okay to lay down in meditation? Is it okay to take it easy on days you feel tired? Or would they see that as a of lack of discipline, dedication, or work ethic?
Does the lead teacher personally discuss each student’s practice and goals? Or does the lead teacher take a lot of distance, only going over the classes and leaving afterwards?
There are so many AMAZING yoga teacher training programs to pick from. What matters most is that you choose a style that fits your unique mix of goals, values and beliefs.
For those that want to become:
✅ RYT 200 hr Yoga alliance certified
✅ Love vinyasa flow, a more fast paced, fun, creative yoga class
✅ Yoga Immersion style, all-in, 2 week retreat
✅ Functional anatomy, wellness, mobility/ longevity/ modern asanas, applied philosophy, non-dogmatic student-teacher relationship, playful, follow how you feel yoga tone…
You will likely be a great fit for our program, here at LILA.
Big love,
Emily
