Are You ‘Good Enough’ to be a Yoga Instructor?

• August 17, 2021
• By Holy Yoga

Are You ‘Good Enough’ to be a Yoga Instructor?

Do you have a passion for yoga and a love for Christ, but something is holding you back from becoming an instructor? One fear that is most frequently voiced by our new students is that they are “not good enough” to teach others. The truth is that you don’t have to be able to put your foot behind your head or know every word in the Bible to be an amazing Holy Yoga instructor! We recognize these overwhelming insecurities can be debilitating and keep you from starting training, but we also know that our program more than equips you to teach right after graduation. So, we would like to focus on a couple of sources of overwhelming mindsets that may be keeping you from getting started.

The “I’m not good enough at yoga” mentality:

You can add the subcategories of: I’m not good enough at anatomy, I’m not good enough with knowing the Word, I’m not good enough…(insert your unique insecurity here). It all comes down to feeling like you simply aren’t good enough at the core. 

There is an illusion that someone “should” be in their yoga practice before they teach. This is an elitist mentality. An elitist mentality in yoga says that classes should be led by an elite. Elite is defined as superior in abilities or qualities to the rest of a group or society. This must be shut down in the conversation of yoga and particularly in Holy Yoga! We’re not saying that one should not be trained and equipped before they teach, they absolutely should. This protects you and your students. However, when someone is new, there is a period of time they spend working out the kinks in their classes. This is true for all new teachers. This is why a major emphasis is placed on safety in our training — so our teachers are trained in keeping their students safe from the very beginning. The kinks worked out in class are not safety or alignment related.

As Christians we believe God is using our lives and testimonies for His glory and our good (Romans 8:28). If a part of your story can contribute to someone else’s healing and transformation, who are you not to get out there and share what He is doing in your life? Are you waiting for your life to be less messy? Good luck with that! In fact, if your life is not messy right now, you should wonder if you are living authentically. Bill Johnson said, “You can only impart what you have.” Show up as you. Reveal your testimony, the lessons you’ve learned and the ways God has shown up for you. God feels you are exactly where He wants you, why should you feel any different?

The “I’m not strong enough” mentality:

We often hear people trying to discipline themselves into a pose that is made difficult by their body’s shape and ability. This is often an anatomical issue that would require you compromising your body to be able to do so. For example, if you have short arms it will make reaching for your legs more difficult. Not impossible, but you may need to accept that my pose may look a little different than someone who naturally has a longer humerus bone in their arm. That is totally out of your control and has nothing to do with how strong you are.

This leads to a deeper conversation in yoga that is the asana, or posture, is only ⅛ of the overall practice of yoga. In America, all emphasis when you think of yoga is placed on the physical postures. In true yoga, the postures make up a small portion, playing into a larger goal of quieting the mind for meditation. Once you fully understand that, and let go of your value being tied into the posture, you can recognize that you are fully able to guide someone else into a pose you cannot do. If you can let go of the perceived judgement you feel from others that you should be able to do the pose, true freedom reigns in your teaching!

At Holy Yoga, we believe all of this comes through intimacy with our Creator. Let go of what you and others think you should be, and join in the song He sings over you of who He created you to be. That is why our programming is so transformative. If you are not a 200 Hour trained instructor with Holy Yoga, we highly recommend the program for personal development and discipleship. It can be the number one tool that the Holy Spirit will use in your life to transform you!