In January 2024 I took my first class at Yoga Mandali, and a year later I graduated from their Yoga Teacher Training Program. It was never my intention to go through a yoga teacher training within the first year of practicing yoga consistently, but the opportunity was too good to pass by. I never thought I was strong enough, flexible enough, or disciplined enough, but the community I found at Yoga Mandali made me feel like I could pursue anything. They gave me the tools to explore my own spiritually, connect with my breath and body, contemplate my role on this earth, and feel more connected with the world around me. Which is, in fact, the actual yoga. Without the love, support, and encouragement from my Yoga Mandali family,I would have never had the courage to sign up for this training. We are truly in this together.
Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) is not just for those who want to teach yoga. It’s for anyone who wants to deepen their practice, connect with others on the same journey, learn human anatomy, and gain valuable coping skills to deal with all of life’s hardships. By connecting the body and breath, we are able to be in the present moment, which is truly all we ever have. Yoga allows us to tune into what our bodies are telling us so that we can make better decisions and feel good doing it.
YTT is an investment in your health and future. My main reason for doing YTT was because I want to know everything there is about yoga and I want to stay healthy for as long as possible. In my opinion, and lots of yogis might agree, practicing yoga is one of the best ways we can take care of ourselves, mentally, spiritually, and physically. Yoga is so much more than the physical poses, or asanas. It involves breath work, self reflection, self study, and (trying) to live within a set of moral boundaries.
This YTT program was absolutely life changing. I never intended on teaching yoga, but after going through the training I feel compelled to share my knowledge with others. As a teacher, I want my students to explore what yoga means to them in the same way I was given space to explore as well.
Here are my three takeaways from Yoga Teacher Training:
I made meaningful connections with my peers and teachers
I deepened my own practice and understanding of yoga philosophy
I feel empowered to continue to improve my spiritual, mental, and physical health for the rest of my life
Making meaningful connections
Meeting all the other students during YTT was a breath of fresh air. I am new to Saratoga Springs, so this was a great way to meet new people who have some of the same values as me. YTT gave us the opportunity to open up and really connect with each other. Each student comes to class with different backgrounds in yoga, different life experiences, and different cultural and spiritual practices. It was amazing to see people from all walks of life come together and practice this healing art together.
Each person had something valuable to add to class, either through their insightful questions, sharing their life stories, or just being a good listener. The teachers really encouraged each of us to show up exactly as we were and to accept ourselves in this moment. The space we created was a safe, open space to show up and be true to who we are.
Deeping your personal practice
Have you ever taken a yoga class and wished you could have stopped class, raise your hand, and ask a question to the teacher? Am I doing this right? Is this alignment right? What do you mean “breathe into your back body”? What does “ujjayi” mean? YTT gives you the space and time to ask your teachers individual questions.
As someone with chronic lower back pain, I was eager to learn absolutely everything I could about proper alignment and healing my back pain. My favorite anatomy lesson was on the spine, not only because it was interesting to learn about what could be causing my pain, but because proper spine alignment is so central to every single yoga pose. I won’t get too deep into it but each yoga pose can be categorized into five spinal movements: axial extension, flexion, extension, lateral flexion, and rotation. The combination of anatomy and chakra philosophy makes learning about the spine so fascinating.
Even if you never intend to teach yoga, YTT is still such a good learning opportunity for students who want a deeper understanding as to why we do certain poses in yoga, what the benefits are, and the philosophy behind it. As a student, you gain insights into how classes are structured and this helps strengthen your overall yoga practice.
Improve your spiritual, physical, and mental health
If you practice yoga, then you know how good it is for your physical health. It’s a great way to build strength, flexibility (in both the mind and body), and improve mobility. There are an array of health benefits to practicing yoga, health benefits that I know will follow me through the rest of my life as long as I stay committed to my practice. I am just as interested in improving my mental and spiritual health as I am my physical health, and for me, yoga addresses all three.
As someone who grew up religious, I have always been drawn to spirituality but still had so many unanswered questions in my heart. Why are we here? What is my purpose in life? How can I make an impact in the world? How can there be a higher being of love when there is so much hate in the world? All big questions that I will spend this entire lifetime contemplating, but learning yoga philosophy, specifically the Bhakti lineage, has brought me so much peace and love into my life as I ponder the existence of humanity.
Through chanting, meditation, breath work, reading sacred texts, and spending time in community with my peers, I was able to cultivate a sense of belonging and understanding. No I don’t have all the answers, but now I have the tools and resources to help calm my mind when these existential questions keep me stuck in life. Reading the Yoga Sutras was a life changing moment for me. I found a spiritual guideline in these texts and ways to explain what I already felt as true in my heart.
During the training, I always looked forward to Friday nights the most. We would gather together for a delicious, homecooked meal (thank you Beth for all the vegan options!). This was our time to chat, catch up, share stories from the week, and build relationships with each other.
The studio truly became our second home during this training. We arrived at 8am on Saturday and Sundays, had multiple breaks for food/ tea, and ended the day around 4pm or 5pm feeling fulfilled and exhausted after a long day of yoga practice, philosophy, and study.
Do not take this training if you are just looking to master the headstand or crow pose (two poses that are not in my practice yet). Do not take this training if you’re looking for a quick way to get a yoga teaching certification so you can go make a lot of money as a yoga teacher.
If you are looking for the space to deepen your practice, deepen your understanding of yoga philosophy, and learn about anatomy then this training is for you.
