Prepping for Multiple Classes

How do you prepare yourself to teach different yoga classes during the week? I am a new yoga teacher, and right now I teach only one weekly class. But it takes me lots of time to prepare and practice for it. How do you balance different classes and different preparations?
—Rose

Read John Friend's response:

Dear Rose,

In order to teach a good yoga class—one that inspires the students, gives them key philosophical questions to contemplate, offers them significant alignment points that they can practice for years to come, and presents a sequence and pacing of the poses that is best for the level of the students in the class—it takes a lot of preparation! Of course, most classroom preparation must be done well in advance through regular asana practice and in-depth teacher trainings. At the same time, it is wise to compose a general theme and sequence of poses ahead of time for each class. Being more organized before each class makes the teaching much more effective.

To best prepare for your classes, it's very important to practice regularly. Through your own practice, you will directly understand the physical, emotional, and mental effects of each pose, which you can then confidently convey to your students. Also, many ideas for class themes that will help the students develop specific openings of body, mind, and heart will arise from your personal practice.

Overall, you have to consider each class in terms of where the students are in their abilities, experience, and understanding. Then further consider each class in relation to the students' previous classes and what you want them to progress toward in the coming weeks. Balance is the key. Each class should be balanced so the students leave refreshed and centered, and each month's session of classes should be balanced to cover a full range of poses.

John Friend, the founder of Anusara Yoga, has practiced a variety of hatha yoga styles since the early '70s. Today, he is widely considered one of the most charismatic and highly respected yoga teachers in the world. Blending an uplifting Tantric yoga philosophy with Universal Principles of Alignment, John's teaching style guides each student to fully live every moment from the heart. In 1997, John founded Anusara Yoga to promote his innovative vision. Today, Anusara Yoga is one of the most popular and fastest growing schools of hatha yoga in the world.