What to be Aware When Teaching a Posture?

How to teach a yoga posture?

When you come to teach a posture you’ll slowly see that people hear things very differently. So as a teacher it’s really important to have some variations, not only for the postures but your cues and how you use them to teach and guide students.
 

There is of course lots of other things to consider when teaching a postures

You need to think about the contraindications for particular students and therefore the modifications in terms of alignment or props you might need to offer, or in fact the complete change of posture you might have to include for them.

It’s also really important that we remember we are Yoga teachers and that we’re there to teach Yoga, not just a physical movement, but a physical movement that has a benefit and intention.

Equally prepping our students for a posture is important. When we’re planning a class having a focus or peak posture that you’re working towards is important, so when we get there we need to ensure our students are ready, otherwise all of the above will go out of the window.

Similarly; once we’ve explored something like a backbend for example, where we’re taking the spine in an unnatural direction, we should counter that pose by taking the spine back the other way for a moment. With other intense postures such as deep hip openers, it’s important at the end of the practice that we utilise gentle seated, supine, ..or any postures really that are on the mat and a gentle relaxing stretch for the hips.

Heres an example for Camel Pose…

Posture: Camel Pose / Ustrasana
Type: Backbend / Heart Opener

Intention: Boosts energy
Benefit: Stretches your abdomen, chest, shoulders, hip flexors and quadriceps.
Preparation poses: Cobra/Upward Facing Dog, Reverse Warrior, Hero
Counter poses: Staff Pose, Childs Pose, Cat Pose

Modifications:
1) Pad the knees underneath for sore knees
2) Keep the toes tucked to lift the heel a little higher for reaching back to, or use blocks for even more height.
3) Keep your hands on your low back (finger tips pointing down, elbows in) if reaching back isn’t available.

Cues and teaching points:

1) Start kneeling on your shins with your knees and feet hips distance apart.
Variation: Come on to your knees leaving a slight gap between them with your hips stacked over your ankles.

2) Option to have toes tucked or un-tucuked.
Variation: Curl the toes under, or rest the tops of the feet onto the mat.

3) Option to bring the hands to the hips, or lower back (finger tips pointing down)
Variation: Place your hands around the outside of your hips, or put the palms of your hands onto your lower back with your finger tips point down to the mat.

4) Keeping the chin dropping in and the pelvis over the knees, engage the glutes, inhale first and exhale to bend backwards, keeping the hips pressed forward and the chest lifted.
Variation: Tuck you chin in towards you chest, and hips stacked on top of your knees.

5) Option to take the hands to the heels.
Variation: Roll your shoulder up and back, a release the palms of your hands to rest on top of your heels.

6) Option to let the head release back.
Variation: Drop you head back behind you, keeping your chest lifted and hips pressed forward.

7) Press through the feet and lower legs to give more lift to the chest and length through the spine.
Variation: Push out of the lower part of your body to keep the hips pressed forward and chest shining up.

8) Inhale to come up with the head coming last.
Variation: Inhale to slowly draw the chest forward and bring the head and neck back up and stacked on top of the shoulders.

Contraindications
Stop or try modifications if you feel any tightness or pain in your lower back
Avoid releasing the head back if you have a neck injury

Want to know more?

If you’re interested in learning more in-depth information about poses and how to teach them, take a look at our 200hr teacher training syllabus where this is covered for Camel Pose and many more.