In May 2018, the world was blessed with 10 brand new amazing vinyasa yoga teachers as our group scattered around the world. We had spent 21 super intensive days together practicing, teaching and living yoga. At True North Vinyasa, we can bend over backwards (literally, we probably can) to talk about what our 200 hour Vinyasa Teacher Training is all about, but nothing beats a few quotes from the people who were actually there, in Portugal at the wonderful Buddha Retreats in Columbeira in April earlier this year. So let's hear it from the beautiful souls we had the pleasure of spending all that time with. What were their conclusions?

1. "Buddha Retreats was the perfect place with beautiful surroundings and excellent healthy food". Yes it really was. We are so happy to have found this gem of a venue. Embedded in green and lush countryside it offers seclusion, great little walks and a beautiful garden with lots of space. The vegetarian food is healthy, varied and delicious. And we get dessert every night. Our November training will also take place here.   
2. "If people want to get deeper in their own practice but not necessarily want to teach, this program may not be the choice". This is true. Compared to many of our colleagues around the world offering yoga teacher trainings, we spend a lot more time actually teaching each other and creating unique classes from scratch. We also spend a lot of time on the business of yoga and branding/marketing. Many yogis take teacher trainings as a way of deepening their knowledge and practice. If you sign up with us, you'll get all this but we will assume that your heart is set on teaching to some degree. 
3. "I reallly liked that you never said "let's take the afternoon off"". Even though bodies and brains get tired, there is really no space for a day off during our intensive yoga teacher training. We are obliged by the Yoga Alliance to make sure you get your 200 hours, and we take this seriously. Some of these hours are spent on pre-training work. Some we dedicate to self-studies on or off site. But if you do the math, you quickly realise there will be a very limited amount of time off.   
4. "This is a professional, creative and wonderful training course. I am so grateful for the experience". Experience – yes, it really is an experience beyond just a course. From our perspective, we saw people change during this short time. A student who was late for every class the first week suddenly was the first to arrive and the last to leave. A student who thought she was there only for her own practice began to see that she had a gift to share. A student who was in tears after the first sequencing task built confidence, grew into her new role and ultimately gave an incredible final class. 
5. "Experienced and fully committed teachers". Your main teachers at True North Vinyasa are Elin Jensen and Lisa Andersson Rhodiner. Combined we have 17 years of vinyasa teaching experience. During the training we stay onsite at the retreat centre, and we are fully there for our students on and off hours. In addition, we invite talented guest teachers for an added perspective and enhanced experience. 
6. "I thought I knew a lot about yoga...I was so wrong. I can NOW say that I know a lot about yoga and I have tremendous respect for the skills you have to master as a yoga teacher". Many teacher trainees come to this course with years and years of yoga practice under their belts. But once you switch into actually telling others how to lift and arm and place a foot, everything changes. Alignment, voice strength, pace, breath cueing, sequencing – it's a lot to sort out. We have the tools to help you along and three long weeks to get it right. 
7. "I am most inspired by the daily coming to the mat and the creative morning practice every day". As much as we emphasise teaching, the experience of personal growth, both on the mat and off the mat, is unavoidable. Our morning sadhanas are 2 hour classes consisting of meditation, pranayama, vinyasa practice (often with a peak pose or challenge pose that we break down into a workshop element), lots of juicy deep stretching and a long savasana followed by journaling. 

If the details above click with you, check out our upcoming Vinyasa Teacher Training in Portugal (November 5–25 2018). If it still looks like your sort of thing, contact us and let's set up a phone meeting. We'd love to know more about you! 

When you hear the calling and set out to do your first foundational 200 hour teacher training, you realize what a jungle it really is. Weekends for a year, modules, intensives. In India, in Bali, with a famous teacher, with an unknown teacher or in your hometown with your regular teacher. Prices all over the spectrum, class sizes unknown.

It's not easy, and there is no one size fits all. Here are some thoughts that might help you decide what suits your particular life situation before making that down payment.

1. YOGA ALLIANCE CERTIFIED OR NOT? As the international governing body for yoga, the Yoga Alliance has set the standard for what a properly constructed international teacher training program must contain. Ensure that the training you choose is Certified by the Yoga Alliance. There are plenty of excellent non-credited trainings out there, no doubt. But since the Yoga Alliance is the authority and the competition these days is quite fierce within the yoga teaching community, a certified 200 hour training has increasingly become a minimal requirement by many yoga studios. In addition, you will not quality for insurance – another increasingly important part of the world of teaching yoga. 

2. YEAR LONG OR INTENSIVE FORMAT? Your life situation will ultimately be the deciding factor. A weekend style training, usually set over a year, will give you a longer digestion time and allow you to keep your regular life afloat at the same time. A retreat style format will require you to check out from your life and it will be super intensive and at times overwhelming. At True North Vinyasa, we strongly believe in a retreat format training – particularly for vinyasa, where you get a chance to really develop your own practice (have you ever practiced twice a day for 3–4 weeks?). We believe in the full focus and devotion to the practice and the art of teaching others as part of your transformation into a yoga teacher. But again, a longer time period will offer other benefits. Your life, and which teacher you would like to follow on this path, will decide. 

3. TEACHING TEAM OR ONE GURU? Vinyasa is a non-method of sorts, and as a future teacher of vinyasa you will have to rely upon your own knowledge and creativity to create sequences and deliver memorable classes. There is a great value in a team of teachers. This way, you are exposed to several personal teaching styles and several fields of expertise. We suggest looking into the credentials when it comes to anatomy especially. Understanding the human body and alignment will greatly benefit your own practice as well as your skills as a vinyasa teacher. While there are many amazing teachers conducting great YTTs solo, beware of the guru style teacher, claiming to have all the answers and the only "right way" of teaching and practicing yoga. Know that yoga is ever-changing, ever-evolving and that you as a teacher trainee should question everything. 

4. KNOWN TEACHER OR COOL SOUNDING VENUE? A little secret: it's not particularly hard to put together a 200 hour yoga teacher training program. Even when certified by Yoga Alliance, it doesn't actually mean that the quality of the training is high. We know of certified trainings that reportedly consisted of far less than 200 hours, those that were taught by under-qualified teachers and those with a teacher-student ratio of 1 to 70. Unless you have a home studio or a teacher you know conducting a training, do your homework. Check the company/studio, look into who the teachers are and what their experience is, check who they trained with and what they stand for. Meet them or talk to them before signing up. Take their class or short retreat. Don't let the pretty pictures and videos fool you. Beware of making a particular venue or country a top priority. Also beware of the celebrity teacher: while that experience can be amazing in its own right (devoted followers, large groups, a touch of glamour on your resumé), you often miss out on personal feedback and attention during and after the training. For a new teacher, feedback and mentorship are essential components of growth. 

5. THE YOGA SUTRAS IN DETAIL OR SEQUENCING WORKSHOPS? Each training is required a minimum number of hours dedicated to subjects like asana, anatomy, yoga philosophy and history, etc. But each training will emphasize different areas depending on the style of program and yoga. Most directors of a teacher training will have their own passions and skills to share. All programs will (or should) have a clear focus and emphases. Study the curriculum, ask the questions. Know what you want. Are you an alignment nerd, are you spiritually focused, are you after clarity on the history of yoga or are you craving practical knowledge on teaching and running your business in yoga? Whoever you may be, there is a program for you. At True North Vinyasa, we emphasize anatomy, alignment, sequencing and hands-on skills, spending less time or self-studying philosophy, history and meditation. In addition we offer a greater segment on business, marketing and branding than most yoga teacher trainings.

Good luck with choosing a yoga teacher training that is right for you!

As a new vinyasa yoga teacher, you might already be thinking about running a retreat. You might have heard that this is a good way of making money. And of course, the idea of making money while traveling is quite nice...To organize a successful retreat involves a lot of attention to detail and decision making. Location, clients, price, retreat program and timing are just a few aspects to consider. You will probably make some mistakes, but read our take on the most common big ones, and you might just avoid some of them.

1. Don't rush into it. A lot of yoga teachers run retreats to soon. Are you ready to be a retreat leader? Have you established trust within your own yoga community? You may have to start in a small scale nearby to test your yogi's interest and build trust in your ability to deliver an amazing experience. 
2. Be super organized. Planning and running a retreat goes way beyond teaching well. You have to be exceptionally organized in order to teach well. If not, your head space will be occupied with organizational worries at the retreat and you may not teach well.
3. Do your research. Booking a venue you have never visited may work. But it's a great risk that could jeopardize the experience for your guests. Unless you have an amazingly strong recommendation from someone you trust, we recommend you to do your research. Test sleep, test eat, meet the owners, see the yoga space. Research weather, flight routes and ground transportation. 
   
4. Market your event. It will not sell itself. You probably can't rely upon your class regulars alone. Know who your ideal guest is. Make your retreat presentation stand out. Invest in the right channels of marketing, the ones that will find their way to the potential guests who will love what you offer.
   
5. Be professional. Make sure the experience is amazing on all levels for your guests. Never forget that people have invested time and money into your retreat. Stick with your program, the one they booked. Do not ever slip into vacation mode yourself. You are working, 24/7. Add extra days for yourself after the retreat has ended: this is your vacation.  
   

This article was originally posted at yogobe.se in Swedish
​By Elin Jensen and Lisa Andersson Rhodiner

1. IDENTIFY YOUR OWN INTENTION 
   Establish a five year plan for yourself, as a yoga teacher. What are your dreams? What will you offer? Who will you be? Your goal might be to own a studio, to host retreats on the Maldives, or simply to make a living teaching yoga. Identify what you need to do in order to reach your goals. 
   
   
2. THINK LONG-TERM 
   Don't rush into this. Long-lasting success in the yoga industry means strong relations, quality and trust over time. 
   
   
3. KEEP YOUR OWN PRACTICE GOING
   You went deep in your teacher training. Now you need to keep developing from your new platform. Stay curious. Take other teacher's classes. Do your home practice. Bring a notebook to every class and note anything new, good, inspiring as well as anything less impressive. 
   
   
4. BE HUMBLE
   Identify some teachers that inspire you, teachers you can learn from. Offer to assist their classes. Stay after and ask questions. Find your mentors. Yes, you can have many and you can switch.
   
   
5. TEACH FOR FREE UNDER YOUR OWN NAME 
   As a new teacher you might find yourself stuck not getting a job because you lack experience actually teaching. Its crucial that you gain experience and confidence in your new role as a teacher. Don't be afraid to offer free classes in the beginning. Maybe at your job, if you have a day job. Maybe outside in the summer or to a group of friends in your home. 
   
   
6. THINK OUTSIDE OF THE BOX 
   Are there any spa hotels or wellness centers in your area? A gym? A training center? A high school with a sports programme?A home for the elderly? Call around and offer your services. Generally these jobs don't pay well, but right now you need to gain experience. 
   
   
7. OFFER TO SUBSTITUTE 
   Studios of all sizes need a list of subs to call. Nobody wants to cancel a class, and regular staff will get sick, travel, get pregnant just like the rest of us. Make sure your name is on lots of lists. Be available when others typically travel (Christmas, Easter, summer, school breaks, national holidays). Make an agreement ahead of time that you are happy with. Never agree to teach for free at a yoga studio. You might be new, but you do have a value.
   
   
8. KEEP BEING A STUDENT 
   Go on a retreat. Take a workshop. Take an advanced training. Buy books. Take another 200 hour teacher training. Find your expertise, your thing. Excel in what you are already good at. It might be a style of yoga: yin, iyengar or vinyasa. It might be a group of people: children, overweight people or pregnant women. It might be a direction within yoga: anatomy focus, philosophy based, yoga for athletes. Let it take time and slowly fine tune your thing. 
   
   
9. BE YOURSELF
   Stay true to who you are. Teach what you know. Develop your own ways of teaching. It is you and your unique personality that will attract the right students, who will love you for being you. And they will come back. 

You know that feeling of completion and content, when you come out of a Vinyasa class that had it all. The teacher gave you a mental break, took you on a journey and left you with a story to tell. To create a class like that, try starting with this very simple Vinyasa recipe and build upon it.

1. ONE PART YUMMY WARM-UP
Make it slow at first. Whether you are teaching a morning or evening Vinyasa class, start slow and simple. This is what every body needs. Take your class into receptions of any combinations of half Sun Salutation A, complete Sun Salutation A, Classic Sun Salutation or Sun Salutation B. The Ashtanga tradition calls for repetion in sets of five, but as a Vinyasa Teacher you are free to do any combination and number of repetition. Another delicious way of approaching these classic warm-up series could be to tease and pulsate within a movement, for example lifting three times into a soft cobra pose instead of one.

2. ONE PART CLASS THEME 
A theme should have logic and intelligence in order to make sense to your students. It might an asana theme, such as forward bends, backbends or twists. It might be a theme of a more spiritual nature, such as emotional challenge, the full moon or setting a greater intention. It might be a very practical theme, like focusing on the feet, exploring the movements of the shoulder or activating the core. There are no rules when it comes to a class theme. We have themed classes around pretty out there ideas like  "Asanas with Bird names", "Resist the Dark Side" and "Planting seeds". An asana themed class is usually a good start in Vinyasa, and quite often a peak-pose progression is a good idea. Always design a well-rounded class, and don't try to jam in too much. Use the power of repetition in verbal cues as well as asana family, and move from simple to more complex.  

3. ONE PART COOL-DOWN  
Always allow time to unwind the nervous system and cool down the bodies of your students. Set them up for a soft, gentle landing. Allow the heat of the practice settle. Use classic cool-down poses like forward folds and reclined twists. Use counterposes that balance your theme and neutralise the spine and settle the nervous system. Allow at least 10 minutes for Savasana and closing of the practice. Don't be afraid to offer a gentle touch as your students settle into relaxation, and assist with blankets, essential oils and cues for calming the breath and letting go.