Yoga Teacher Training

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200YTT ~ I'm not sure that I knew what that meant either. Apparently it's the 200 hour level of Yoga Teacher Training. I believe this is the introductory level of training where most people would start. But I could be wrong. I really don't know that much about it.

A few years back I was doing yoga at a studio in Mason, and the owner there was a gal who was a runner and triathlete. My favorite class there was "Legs Up The Wall" ~ a class where you scooch your butt up against a wall and raise your legs onto the wall. Apparently having your legs above heart level has a bunch of health benefits. My understanding is they started that particular class for runners and other active people (maybe it helps with lactic acid and recovery?!) Not sure, but I enjoyed it quite a bit.

At one point, the owner of the yoga studio offered to start 2 or 3 of us in Yoga Teacher Training. Just out of the goodness of her heart. For free. I went. Or let me say, I started. It was extremely generous of her, but I did not stay on like another gal did. The other gal attended, completed, and actually became a yoga instructor. It seemed to increase her happiness and self-fufillment in doing so. I was happy for her, yet I moved on. I was happy simply going to yoga without necessarily "learning" anything more about it.

Fast forward to the present. At the yoga studio I currently attend, this owner posted that there is an upcoming 200YTT being offered. Well, it came up for me to do this. Truly I am not clear why it came up. I was very happy leaving the previous yoga teacher training behind and don't remember ever thinking about it twice. Yet here we were again, and it was coming up for me again, more than once. When things come up for me, especially more than once, it becomes somewhat noteworthy. So it had my attention. I'm a praying girl, so I prayed about this. Yep, it's still coming up. Hmmm...

Then a little bit later, a couple weeks ago, I was talking with someone and we discussed the possibility of me taking the Yoga Teacher Training. She had a lot to say about yoga. She talked about what a spiritual practice it is, and how it is very clear that my true self is athletic (and spiritual). There is so much to us as whole human beings, mind - body - spirit, or as some would say our four components of health, including mental - emotional - physical - spiritual. Holistic health seems the healthiest health.

So in this conversation, she and I spoke of how yoga is all three components: aerobic (gets the heart rate up when you're in flow), strength (building strength through using one's own body weight) and stretch (which is vital to our health). She discussed the efficiency of incorporating all three of these aspects, aerobic, strength, and stretch, into one daily workout versus having to find the time to do all three separately.

She shared that yoga is "a branch of medicine like acupuncture in China". She also shared her understanding that "Qi Gong and Tai Chi are Chinese forms of yoga" utilized "to reduce blockage" and to "release the chi" or the "prana" or energy within us.

I never did like the "flow" part of yoga. I've always thought of it as being hard. My body does not "flow" like that very easily or naturally. I've preferred more "gentle" or "restorative" types of yoga when available. Yet after having this discussion, it made more sense to get into "flow" and get the heart rate up for heart health. It now seems worth the effort. To have my internal energy flow more efficiently and effectively, is something I would want, and now believe would be worth investing in. I can buy into "hard work" and effort when it seems worth it. Plus, to have aerobic, strength and stretch together, that definitely seems efficient and also makes sense.

So I'm now signed up. Yep. 200YTT January-March 2027 here I come! Time is requested off from work. Contract signed. Down payment made. I hope to improve my own knowledge of having proper form with yoga movements, and to reap all the benefits of this physical and spiritual practice. I'm willing to pass on my understanding to others through teaching afterwards. I'm willing to fight through the fears and awkwardness and become more of my true self. It's a bonus that others may benefit if I then teach.

P.S. for those of you that know me, note in the picture that I have the back tattoo, but don't have the full left arm sleeve yet. It came later that month I believe in August 2017.

A big shout out to the yoga studio owner, and other current yoga teachers at the studio, for their encouragement and support.

Maybe one day I'll be able to pass on encouragement and support to someone else for them to sign up for 200YTT.

In the meantime, I hope we all fight through our fears and awkwardness to pursue those things that move us towards becoming more of our true self, our best self.