Over the next few weeks we’re doing something really special here on The Mentor Sessions. I’m going to introduce you to five amazing yoga teachers all of whom are engaged in active and full teaching practices in very different parts of the world!

We are doing something new today on The Mentor Sessions! I’m reading some of the Most Frequently Asked questions I get about teaching private lessons and offering you my quick and dirty answers.

Have you ever had a private client bring their partner or friend to a private lesson and wondered exactly what you should be doing? Have you ever struggled to teach private lessons to a couple who had wildly different physical and emotional needs? In today’s episode we are going to cover all that and more!

In the conversations I have with colleagues about yoga teacher trainings, the focus is almost always centered on the idea that 200 hours is not enough time to produce high quality baseline yoga teachers. I brought this question to my friend and teacher Jules Mitchell to get her opinion and very quickly our conversation veered from the serious but simple question

Trina Altman is the creator of Yoga Deconstructed® and Pilates Deconstructed®, which take an interdisciplinary approach to foster an embodied understanding of yoga and Pilates and their relationship to modern movement science. Her book, Yoga Deconstructed®: Transitioning From Rehabilitation Back Into The Yoga Studio is slated to be published by Handspring Publishing in December 2019

Dianne Bondy is a celebrated yoga teacher, social justice activist and leading voice of the Yoga For All movement. Her inclusive view of yoga asana and philosophy inspires and empowers thousands of followers around the world – regardless of their shape, size, ethnicity, or level of ability and we are so lucky to have her offering her wisdom and inspiration on The Mentor Sessions podcast today!

It is becoming increasingly common for yoga teachers to bring movements and practices from outside the traditional yoga practice into their teaching. Are you one of these teachers? Do you want to be, but feel unsure about the most skillful way to bring non-yoga movements into the practices you teach?

Have you ever had a pregnant yoga student walk into your group yoga class and immediately think, “Oh crap. I don’t know how to modify the practice for her or keep her safe without changing my whole plan!” ?

Crystal McCreary has a true teacher’s heart and if you aren’t already familiar with her work I am so excited to introduce you to her on today’s episode!  Crystal has taught yoga and mindfulness since 2007. She is committed to creating and holding safe spaces for people to connect, heal, learn, and build resilience in a world that often takes relentless hold of our bodies, minds, and hearts.

Have you ever taken (or taught!) a yoga class that was simple in sequencing but deeply powerful in its effect on you? Maybe you love teaching and practicing yoga in a simple way but you feel like you are the only one? Do you think that all your students want fancier, faster and more exciting asana classes?

Do you have hip pain? Today’s episode is all about the hip joint and hip injuries that are common in yoga practitioners. Many of you may already know this story, but I tore my hip labrum when I was 23 years old and I spent the first two years of my yoga teaching career walking with a cane and was in incredible pain.

Today on the podcast we get to learn from the wisdom of Lara Benusis, a pioneer in translating yoga into hospital environments. She was the first full time yoga instructor at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center where she developed their in-hospital and outpatient wellness offerings.

I heard my friend Anna say, “telling students to love their body is not enough....” and I responded with, “please be a guest on the podcast so we can talk about this!” I wanted to ask her, “How can yoga teachers better support their students to be in a loving relationship with their body?”

If you don’t already know my good friend Diana Zotos I am so excited for you to meet her! Diana is a physical therapist and yoga teacher. In 2006 Diana began her 7 year career at Hospital for Special Surgery in NYC, spending those years treating anyone from inpatient joint replacement patients to professional marathon runners.

I’ve got another solo episode for you today and we are going to talk about what I call, The Myth of the Ideal Private Yoga Client...

I’ll tell you all about this phenomenon, where it came from, the good intentions of the online marketing coaches who teach it, and the negative effect I see it having on the yoga world.

It’s just you and I again on the podcast today! We are going to dive deeper into a topic I have mentioned several times on this podcast: The Support/Challenge Matrix of Private Yoga Lessons.

I am so excited about today’s topic! We are going to talk about confidence and what you can do to become a more confident yoga teacher.

On today’s newest podcast episode it is just you and I! I am excited to connect with you 1x1 and answer a question I get asked all the time!

On today’s newest podcast episode it is just you and I! I am excited to connect with you 1x1 and answer a question I get asked all the time!

This is a favorite, and quite personal episode for me. Today we are talking about integrating spiritual teachings into asana classes. This is a personal favorite because this is one of the parts of my teaching that has changed most dramatically since I began teaching in 2005.