Why I Wrote an E-Book

Why I Wrote an E-Book

I want to help educate and inform new teachers and long-term practitioners about: what it truly means to be a Yoga teacher, why the philosophy of Yoga is so important and the most powerful part of the practice, and to inspire not-so-new Yoga teachers who have felt as upset and disheartened as I have about the current Yoga landscape.

From the beginning, I knew it was a privilege to be a Yoga teacher, and this came with great responsibility.  Integrity, honor, and respect are everything.  But I’ve seen an alarming trend over the past six or seven years:  Younger generations think there is some sort of fast track to becoming a yoga teacher, when the reality is that continual study, practice, and experience is the only way to become a true Yoga teacher.  There is a growing misunderstanding between Yoga and yoga āsana (postural practice), and it’s only getting worse.

Read on to learn how identifying this trend has inspired me to share my knowledge with & train the next generation of true Yoga teachers.  Or download my free e-book, How Yoga Philosophy Can Transform Your Teaching, now.

When I Started Yoga Teacher Trainings

It’s been more than 10 years since I conducted my first yoga teacher training.  But it took a lot of pre-work, time, and effort to even get to that point:

I spent one year studying past training materials; reading books on Yoga history, philosophy, anatomy, and kinesiology; and studying āsana sequencing, philosophy, mantras & chanting, and energetic anatomy with my teachers at that time.

It took another eight months to write and RYT200 level training manual — one in which I combined teachings from my yoga lineages, while ensuing adherence to Yoga Alliance’s required standards and core curriculum elements to achieve a Registered Yoga School designation and accreditation.

This was no easy task, as Yoga Alliance has a strict curriculum with specific teacher accreditation rules, code of conduct, scope of practice guidelines, and ethical commitments.

And these were all points I took very seriously, not because Yoga Alliance told me to, but because I was trained in the old-school, traditional ways of Yoga (or at least as traditional as possible in the West).  Integrity, honor, and respect are everything.

I took a deep and meaningful vow to uphold and honor the teachings and traditions of Yoga—those passed down to me throughout many generations.  I knew it was a privilege to be a Yoga teacher, and this came with great responsibility.  More than anything, I felt beholden to uphold the traditions, standards, and integrity of my teachers and my Yoga lineages—which were far more demanding than Yoga Alliance’s.

As I conducted teacher trainings, I simultaneously continued my own education and studies. As I learned more, I updated and revised my materials.

As I grew as a teacher, so did my trainings.

The Current State of Yoga Teacher Trainings

I’ve seen an alarming trend over the past six or seven years:  Younger generations think there is some sort of fast track to becoming a yoga teacher, when the reality is that continual study, practice, and experience is the only way to become a true Yoga teacher.

There is a growing misunderstanding between Yoga and yoga āsana (postural practice), and it’s only getting worse.

Corporate and corporate-like yoga studios have been popping up all around the US and UK (especially in Miami).  They hire new yoga teachers based on appearance and social media following, not on education or experience.  The studios pay these new teachers very little but can pack the classes and charge premiums.

Since the pandemic this has become even worse.

The original mom-and-pop studios that hired a diverse group of teachers—which always included a few older, wiser, well-experienced, and deeply spiritual yoga teachers—lost their businesses and couldn’t compete with the shiny facade and cheaper prices of these new competitors.  Established, experienced Yoga teachers went out on their own.

As a result, teacher trainings are saturating the market and have become big money makers for studios. To make these trainings easy to sell to “new yogis.” they strip away the ancient teachings; teach very little Yoga philosophy or spirituality, Sanskrit, or other traditional Yoga teachings; and primarily focus on āsana by teaching three or four generic power yoga sequences and courses on “the business of yoga.”  This is not truly teaching Yoga.

The even bigger problem is that many of these trainings do not meet the standards, curriculum guidelines, and ethics of Yoga Alliance—or, more importantly, the traditions of Yoga.

I personally know of three studios in my own city that do not teach from the manuals they submitted to Yoga Alliance for accreditation.  They also do not hire accredited (or properly accredited) teachers to teach their trainings, nor do they teach the required hours of curriculum apart from āsana.

This is not only unethical but also deceitful with potential legal repercussions.

Consider this story:

Last year an RYT 200 graduate of mine reached out in a panic.  She had decided to get her RYT 300 certification during the pandemic.  At the time, I was taking a break from conducting teacher trainings, so I referred her to two different RYT 300 trainings led byaccomplished and respected teachers I knew and with whom I had either worked or studied.

Unfortunately, this student decided instead to train with a less expensive but über instagram famous “yoga” teacher.

After 18 long months (and thousands of dollars), she graduated.  About six months later, she received an email from Yoga Alliance informing her that over 100 hours of her RYT 300 training did not count because the teacher did not teaching the curriculum she had submitted to Yoga Alliance for accreditation.

Furthermore, these 100+ hours were not even considered within the “scope of practice.” For example, she was taught “breathwork,” not to be confused with prānāyāma which is an actual yogic practice.  She was taught “shadow work” which is a modern-day psychology exercise, not the yogic philosophical study of the self (svādhyaya).

Needless to say, my former student was enraged by this misleading and fraudulent training on which she wasted her money and months of her life.  The teacher never offered refunds and her accreditation with Yoga Alliance has been suspended until she provides restitution (in some form) to the students affected by fallacious training.

If they caught this teacher offering misleading and phony trainings, I can only imagine how many more thousands of trainings are doing the same thing—producing tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of undertrained, undereducated, and misguided “yoga teachers” across the world.

Looking to the Future of Yoga Teacher Trainings

I admit Yoga Alliance isn’t perfect, but we do need some form of governing body to set the standards and ethical commitments required to maintain the integrity of Yoga— especially in the West.  Yoga Alliance has really stepped up their game recently by supporting legitimate trainings, policing their standards, and enforcing continuing education for teachers.

All of these injustices (and cultural appropriation) of Yoga has left me extremely disheartened as a teacher and practitioner who has dedicated years and years of study and practice of this beautiful ancient science of life.

Yoga is not a physical exercise, it is a spiritual path and forever study.  A teacher’s duty is to always have their own teacher (not only on the mat), continue their studies, and practice their practice.  Otherwise they’re just an āsana teacher.

Which brings me to why I wrote an e-book:

I want to help educate and inform new teachers about: what it truly means to be a Yoga teacher, why the philosophy of Yoga is so important and the most powerful part of the practice, and to inspire not-so-new Yoga teachers who have felt as upset and disheartened as I have about the current Yoga landscape.   

There are still many true, brilliant, talented, and devoted Yoga teachers who carry the light (if you’ve read this far, you’re probably one of them or want to be).

My hope is that we can band together and rise up through the social media marketing clutter of this new “yoga culture” where exclusion is guised as inclusion, yoga has been repackaged and sold as a glamorous fitness lifestyle, and the number of Instagram followers a teacher has is the measure of their credibility.

So, if you have been misguided on your yogic path, or have felt frustrated with the current yoga scene, I invite you to download my free e-book:  How Yoga Philosophy Can Transform Your Teaching.

I hope it will both educate and inspire you while brightening the light along your Yoga teacher journey.

Namaste,

Kelly