Yoga Teacher Training, Day 6, Module 3

It's official...well, after some paperwork it will be completely official...but I finally completed my 200-hour certification to become a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) with the Yoga Alliance. I really can't believe I actually did it! Crazy!

Congratulations to all my classmates in training...we did it! Woo hoo!

So today's final class was all about going over what we learned about ourselves throughout this process, what we need to let go of (we each let go by writing it down and burning the paper), and what we are committing to. Dolly also took time with each of us individually to give us her feedback on our teaching yesterday, and to share her final thoughts. As usual, it was profound, emotional, and deeply gratifying. Should anyone contemplating teacher training with Dolly Stavros / Red Stone Yoga, happen across this post, I have two words: DO IT! It's an incredible experience that will forever change your view of yourself, your yoga, and of course, your teaching.

Practice today was 90 minutes, and each of us taught for seven minutes. I am so mad because Dolly taped a segment of my teaching, but for some reason, I haven't been able to pull it off my camera. This is one of the few meaningful videos I've ever shot, and I can't retrieve it! So frustrating. Can watch it on my camera, but wanted to post it as well. But I'm afraid it is not to be. Although I am disappointed about that, I at least had another victory that was caught on film (thanks, Christina!)...my first successful attempt at Flying Splits!!! I apologize for the crotch shot, but am so glad I could see it cause when you're practicing, you never really know if you've nailed or not until you have proof. And here it is:



Christina impressed us with a crazy Locust...she has the perfect yoga body...we're all envious:

Yoga Teacher Training, Day 6, Module 2

Today was the final day of our second module of yoga teacher training—I can't believe I made it through without completely killing my knees! That's awesome. Although I know practicing this week set me back in the progress I had made in healing my knees, at least they aren't worse.

God, what can I say about teacher training that would adequately capture the spirit of the class and the people in it? It's a profound experience to face your fears and actually feel progress in overcoming them. It feels incredible when you're able to nail two or three asanas you weren't previously able to achieve. It's awesome when you're able to remember more Sanskrit names, when you can chant in Sanskrit even when you can't hold a tune, when you can OM in a room full of people and not be afraid to hear only the sound of your voice.

And the people. The people! We come in as strangers and leave as friends. Real friends. There is safety, a bond, a camaraderie that lifts your heart and makes you feel like there's nothing you can't achieve. It's the most nurturing environment I've ever been in, and it's all because of one special, illuminated soul: Dolly. I tell you, when you have yoga, when you have the kind of atmosphere and spirit Dolly creates, you open up and find yourself more real, more raw than you have in years. I'm always so surprised when I find myself in tears in class (though I should be used to it by now)—but something about the energy in the room just sort of forces all these emotions in me to the surface and I physically cannot hold them back. Before we left today, Dolly gave each of us a huge hug and kiss on the cheek, and I just wept because, I told her, I knew I was going to have to go back to my life, and I didn't want to. After being in such a safe environment for six days, where you can do virtually no wrong, it's scary to think about going back home, dealing with reality, with bills and broken relationships and baggage.

As I come out of this cocoon, at least I know that I have done my best, that I am a little less afraid of teaching, that I have put myself out there and survived, and am stronger for it. And that I always have my yoga. When things get tough, I know I can get on my mat and flow and reconnect to the real me. And in the end, that is all I have that I can truly call my own.

Yoga Teacher Training, Day 6, Module 1

Today was our last day of yoga teacher training for module one. It was a bittersweet day...six 12-hour days in a row, two-hour practices daily, and not getting enough sleep definitely take their toll. Our lives outside yoga and this training have come to a screeching halt, so from that perspective, it's nice to finally have gotten through it.

But...

We've had so much fun living, eating, and breathing yoga for six straight days! We've had a blast getting to know each other throughout this endeavor. And aside from the yoga, the opportunity to spend so many hours with Dolly—a humble, gifted, and enlightened soul if there ever was—was just such a blessing. If I could clone her, I would. She would likely never accept the label, but she is a guru in her own right. She is a very, very special person, and just so cool. For me, she will always be the yogini against which all others are measured.

Balances and Inversions
Before practicing today, we studied arm balances like Crow, and inversions like Tripod Headstand. Check out this video (Dolly Floats to Crow) of Dolly demonstrating how to go straight from Downward Facing Dog to Crow—she's so steady, so controlled, it's sick. If you don't do yoga, let me just tell you this: this is hard as hell to do! Don't believe me? Try to mimic it!

You can also view photos of our class working balances and inversions.

Our Practice Today
Oh boy...this is the practice we've been dreading since we got our assignments yesterday. Dolly split up a typical 90-minute Power Vinyasa sequence into 15-minute increments focusing on warm-up, Sun Salutations, standing postures, and floorwork (none of us could teach Savasana...damn!) Each person in the class had to sequence and teach their 15-minute segment. Cay and Lauren both have some experience teaching yoga or fitness classes, so I don't think they were are freaked as Marge and me who have zero experience whatsoever. If Greg was worried, he never let on.

A 15-minute sequence?! Crap! I was up til midnight last night working on sequencing Side Angle, Revolved Side Angle, Ardha Chandrasana/Half Moon, Standing Splits, Bird of Paradise, Eagle, and all the transitions required to move people from one asana to the next. And I still ran about two minutes short, but overall, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Don't get me wrong...it was very difficult for me, and I forgot to cue breathing for the first bit of the sequence, but overall, I wasn't as nerved up as I thought I'd be. As I pointed out in the discussion after, I'm not sure I would have been able to feel nerves because my heart was already pounding, and I was already sweating bullets because I'd been participating in the practice up until I took over teaching my sequence. I honestly thought I was really going to flounder, but I managed to remember to cue the next posture by name, then give details if needed, and that helped a lot.

Despite little issues here and there, overall, I think our first practice teaching session was really very good. Physically, it was challenging and all the sequences adequately prepared us for the asanas to come. No one totally lost it it or full-on floundered. It felt awesome to see and experience our final product and to know that we all made so many strides in doing it. And when it was over, we were elated to go out for Thai food and call it a week!



Namaste!

PS: Please visit again soon. I may not blog here for the next couple of days—but I will be attending a Rolf Gates weekend workshop February 9-11, 2007, and will definitely be blogging about that. Of course, if the urge hits me I may be back before then.