a purpose for practice.

why are we moving today?

what intention are you setting for yourself + your students to inspire a specific feeling or movement quality?

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this can be a story, quote, theme, or personal experience** that you feel inspired to share with your students.

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**a note on personal experience sharing : 

we value authenticity in teaching, but it's important that personal experiences shared in class come from a place of integration rather than active processing. please ensure that any personal stories you bring into your teaching are shared with clarity and purpose — not as a way to work through unresolved emotions in the moment. our students come for support, and they benefit most when we hold a clear and grounded space for them.

breath work : in the fast paced world we live in, people simply don't pause long enough to breathe and calm their nervous system. 

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consider four qualities of breath :

• placement - where is the breath entering the body?

• time - how long is the breath

• texture - is the breath deep or shallow, rugged or smooth?

• intensity - how deep to we take the breath in

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some suggestions :

• box breath : in 4 - hold 4 - ex 4 - hold 4

• parasympathetic breath : in 4 - ex 8 (or 3 - 6)

• dirga pranayam : three part abdomen breath - belly, ribcage, chest + throat -> reverse the exhale

• viloma : three part exhale

• brahmari : humming bee. place fingers in ears (or not) and hum on exhale

• nadi shodhana : alternate nostril

• sama vritti : equal ratio breath

• kapalabhati : skull shining breath

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every practice should have a map + be thoughtfully crafted. your warm up is not random -- it prepares the students for where they are going, so that when they reach your standing sequence and // or peak posture their body is familiar with some or many of the shapes you're asking of them. this is how we keep students moving safely and set them up for success.

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think about your peak posture or sequence and see where you could pull some elements of harder shapes to more grounded, simple shapes.

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some examples :

• eagle in sequence - eagle arms in seated warm up

• twists or half binds - thread needle, half bind option

• crow - knee to tricep taps, boat pose with knees to triceps

• wild thing - baby wild thing, or wild thing from ground up

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these may seem obvious, but they're a great way to keep your class safe + students happy!

surya namaskar creates beautiful + simple ritual to a practice. by creating a rhythm of movement and breath, you allow practitioners to get into their bodies and physically feel themselves expand + strengthen one breath at a time.

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connect and get comfortable with one of the below and cue at least two rounds before adding any variation -- come back to something familiar before getting creative, to get people into their bodies and create ritual.  ​

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classic sun salutations :

inhale - extend arms up

exhale - forward fold

in - half-lift

ex - fold

in - step back to plank

ex - chaturanga

in - cobra or upward facing dog

ex - downward facing dog

in - look forward // prepare

ex - step or hop forward

in - half-lift

ex - forward fold

in - rise to extended mountain

ex - hands to prayer OR fold to repeat

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variation 1 : (faster through plank // chaturanga)

inhale - extend arms up

exhale - forward fold

in - half-lift

ex - step or jump to plank // chaturanga

in - cobra or upward facing dog

ex - downward facing dog

in - look forward // prepare

ex - step or hop forward

in - half-lift

ex - forward fold

in - rise to extended mountain

ex - hands to prayer OR fold to repeat

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salt salutations :

begin in tadasana

inhale - arms up extended mountain

exhale - forward fold

in - right leg steps back to lunge

ex - downward facing dog

in - high plank

ex - chaturanga

in - heart opener (cobra or upward facing dog)

ex - down dog

in - right leg three-legged dog

ex - step forward lunge

in - step left foot forward and half-lift

ex - fold in utanasana

in - rise to extended mountain

ex - forward fold to repeat OR hands to prayer or by sides

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move like you, teach like you!

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but seriously, you're a teacher of salt because you have a beautiful movement + teaching practice to offer to students, so shine here (and everywhere, of course).

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a reminder that not every flow needs to be creative or different or complex, and the most authentic thing you can teach to is how you move on your own mat and in practice. 

in order to move off the mat in a more rested + relaxed state than when we began, cool down + contemplation is deeply important, especially after a vinyasa practice.

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this can be another creative flow or individual postures linked together more simply. think low to the ground, more restorative, and an opportunity to gently counter some of the shapes you've seen in the bigger flow. give people time to reflect + go inward

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examples :

• twists or forward folds after lots of back-bending 

• heart or front body openers after lots of contracted postures or twists

• breathwork or a brief seat to recenter + prepare for savasana

give at least 3 - 5 minutes for your savasana + pulling people up into a seat, so they may truly pause before transitioning into the rest of their day. every moment matters -- this does too.

dharma + breath work : 5 min

warm up : 8 min

sun salutations : 5 min

main sequence(s) : 15 min

cool down : 7  min

savasana : 5 min

dharma + breath work : 5 min

warm up : 10 min

sun salutations : 5 min

main sequence(s) : 25 min

cool down : 10  min

savasana : 5 min