Your yoga teacher training will change your life. I know this may sound like a huge, all consuming statement that could not possibly apply to everyone – but I am sure in my sentiment.
Yoga teacher trainings should really be thought of as inward journeys. They will certainly teach you practical yoga skills like alignment and proper body awareness to help you avoid injury, but what they have to offer goes so far beyond the physical—it is amazing.
Even if you never intend to teach a day in your life, here are my top 10 reasons you should do your yoga teacher training.
1. You Will Learn New Things About Your Body
Throughout your yoga teacher training, you will be led through several ‘asana labs’ where you will get to fully dissect different postures – and how your body expresses them.
I learned SO much about my unique physiology in my yoga teacher training that gave me a million tools to take back to my regular practice. I now have a much better understanding of what my body can do, and what adjustments I should make for myself in a practice that will serve my body.
2. You Will Avoid Injury In All Life’s Activity
With your newfound body awareness, you will be so much better able to move through your life without getting hurt. You will walk more mindfully, run more mindfully, ski more mindfully and so on. You will become better able to predict the abilities of your body and thus will be able to stay strong and limber for life.
3. You Will Discover Your Strength
In your yoga teacher training, you will be tested; your will, your ability to hold postures, your ability to focus, your ability to speak in front of people will all be strengthened and stretched. You will come out of the other side of your training feeling physically stronger, but also mentally and emotionally stronger too.
4. You Will Forge New Relationships
There is nothing quite like going through the experience of a yoga teacher training – and those you meet in your training will forever hold a special place in your heart. You will understand each other in a very unique way at the end of your course, and there is a good chance that you will make friendships that last a lifetime.
5. You Will Deepen Your Asana Practice
This goes without saying – the attention to detail, the longer practice sessions and the newfound awareness of alignment will all help you to take your practice to a whole new level. There is a good chance that you will come out of your training expressing postures you never dreamed you would be able to.
6. You Will Deepen Your Spiritual Practices
The study of the Yoga Sutras, the chanting, and the meditation practices that will be brought into your life through your training will most likely help you to transform your spiritual practice. These are sacred tools that you can use in your daily life that will help you to connect to yourself in a deeper way.
No matter what your current spiritual practices are, there is a good chance they will be deepened through your training.
7. You Will Learn New Things About Your Mind
You will start to notice more of your thought patterns in asana, in meditation, in lecture, in presentation, and this information will help you tune into your mental tracts. You will gain a clearer understanding of how your mind currently works, and you will then have the information you need to help you make changes if needed.
Generally, the act of becoming aware is the most powerful tool for transformation.
8. You Will Connect With Your True Self In A Deeper Way
Through learning how your unique body works, how your unique mind works, and through your deepened spiritual practices, you will most likely walk away with a deeper sense of who you are as an individual. This will help bolster your confidence in every day life, and help you sit easier in your own skin.
9. You Will Learn The Art Of Expressing Yourself
Through the act of practice teaching, you will learn how you communicate, and how effective this communication is in the way of allowing you to express what you want to express. Through this practice you will be able to develop even better communication skills, allowing you to translate your thoughts and feelings more effectively to others.
10. You Will Gain Confidence In Your Abilities
You will fall. You will stumble. You will fumble over your words. You will learn the art of picking yourself up, laughing it off and continuing on. You will walk out of your training with a new sense of how much you can do, how far you can go, and how amazing you are—right here in this moment.
What do you think? Are you thinking of doing a teacher training? If you have gone through training, do any of these points resonate with you?
