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When yoga is good, it can be mind-bendingly, sigh-inducingly, soul-startlingly good. We’re talking in an almost alchemical way. But when it’s not quite good—or even anything shy of alchemical—it can be downright disappointing.
Curious to understand more about students’ experiences with yoga, longtime teacher Juliana Larochelle recently asked her followers on Instagram if they’d had an experience in class that dissuaded them from returning and practicing with that teacher again. Ever.
“I find it really important as a teacher, and as someone who trains other teachers, to always remain open and curious,” explains Larochelle. “There are other ways of thinking that aren’t my own. It’s okay that we’re all different.”
Her post, which appeared as part of an ongoing discussion series in which she poses a question that prompts real talk in the comments, drew close to 1000 comments. When her query caught our attention and we shared it on Yoga Journal’s IG, it drew the same sort of thunderous response.
Many of the concerns expressed in those comments relate to personal preference, such as the teacher talking nonstop, blasting hip-hop or country music, or describing a pose as “juicy.” Everyone has legitimate preferences and it’s entirely at your discretion if you choose to refrain from returning if class isn’t your vibe.
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Although a class not being what you expected doesn’t necessarily mean it was bad or that it merits a negative review. Maybe, as yoga philosophy suggests, it’s a lesson in acceptance. In other words, yoga teachers are human and student expectations are high. And, as Larochelle explains, we each have different things we prefer to experience in yoga.
But some of the teacher behavior cited in the comments was akin to blatant disrespect masquerading as teaching. And that is the sort of thing that should never be someone’s experience of yoga. “I don’t want to focus on the negative,” says Larochelle. “But asking the question holds space for those people who’ve experienced something in the comments to know ‘that’s not okay.'”
The highlight reel of comments that follows is intended as a PSA both to students and teachers. Students, trust your instincts as you ascertain the difference between behaviors that are quirky and those that are unacceptable. You can tell a teacher “no,” you can quietly walk out of class, you can let management know what took place, and, as so many of you have done, you can opt not to return.
Teachers, for the small numbers who recognize your behavior in the below, know that no matter what behavior has been demonstrated by your teachers, there are limits on what’s acceptable. The perceived power dynamic and public setting may make it challenging for students to say something in the moment you crash their boundaries. They may instead perceive no recourse other than not to return. There’s a lot here to consider as you take on the role of teacher—some of which we think shouldn’t need to be stated. But we will anyway.
42 Things That Made Someone Not Return to Yoga Class
1. Snapped photos of students during class and posted them on social media
2. Drank out of my water bottle
3. Talked about politics
4. Played loud country music
5. Overshared about a toxic personal situation
6. Initiated a hands-on adjustment without asking for consent
7. Told me it’s not time to drink water and made me put my water bottle down
8. Talked nonstop
9. Made everyone watch me do a pose as an example of what not to do
10. Asked “Are you sure you’re in the right class? This is advanced.”
11. Commented on a student’s weight
12. Chatted only with a group of students and only assisted them. I was so uncomfortable. I felt like I was crashing their friends’ night.
13. Busted out with, “Okay, everyone find a partner…”
14. Chastised a student for using a block and aggressively took it away
15. Ran past the scheduled end time of class by 20 minutes
16. Made me say hi to the people sitting next to me. (Not of fan of extroverted classes hahahaha.)
17. Yelled at me to stop letting the hot air out when I came back into the hot yoga room after needing to step out for a break. (I was feeling lightheaded.)
18. Used the word “juicy” to describe a pose too many times.
19. Played sad and depressing break-up songs or extremely angry hip-hop music.
20. Called me out for taking things slow and coming into loads of Child’s Poses. (I had just been back to classes after giving birth and everything in my body felt weird, my balance was out and I was very happy just to be back on the mat. She really pissed me off for not respecting my pace.)
21. Sit on my back when I was already smooshed flat in a wide-legged straddle fold. Pretty sure he tore my hamstring. (As one commenter said, “Keep your f*cking hands off my body.”)
22. Laughed when I couldn’t do Chaturanga
23. Burned incense
24. Called out the pose names but didn’t actually teach. (Supposed to be for all levels but the instructor was calling out the name only in Sanskrit.)
25. Led a hella unsafe class
26. Told me she wouldn’t teach only one student
27. Asserted that yoga can replace medication
28. Dedicated the entire practice to a body part. (A teacher once said, “Today we’re going to do a lot of shoulders.” I’m a hair dresser. I do a lot of shoulders every day so that class killed me.)
29. Commented on my body in front of the entire class
30. Told us to invite in the “spirit” of someone. (I’m here for yoga, not a seance!)
31. Rambled on about how “enlightened” they are
32. Told me there was no modification for a pose so I just stood there
33. Shared overly controlling and specific cues
34. Stopped teaching and said to do the sequence on our own
35. Promoted veganism
36. Judged me for getting out of a pose before he wanted
37. Failed to warm the body properly before going right into vinyasas
38. Mentioned “god” at least three times. She kept mentioning “let go and let god.”
39. Pronounced the word “exhale in a certain way. (It’s used quite a bit during class, you know!)
40. Referred to Happy Baby Pose as “Happy Husband Pose”
41. Gossiped about students or other teachers after class
42. Skipped Savasana