Have you ever started out casually taking a yoga class? You moved slowly at first but found yourself more and more excited to try out yoga poses. You have gone so far as to follow your favorite yoga teacher from studio to studio and visited the Salt Lake City Yoga Festival. Now you want to learn how to teach others yoga or take your yoga practice to the next level.
You find yourself loving yoga more and more, and you are not happy with your day job. You want to become a yoga instructor to change your lifestyle and make a new career. Great idea but do be warned that yoga instructors do not make very much money — those yogis who make their living by teaching yoga work very hard in a competitive profession. It’s important to be aware that you will have little or no health benefits, no job security, and no retirement plan.
Yoga instructors often juggle classes at multiple locations until they establish a loyal following of students. But be aware, even the most loyal of students can move away, change instructors or get too busy to follow a set yoga schedule.
Think about teaching a few classes a week and keep your day job for financial stability. Attend Yoga Fest Utah and talk to other instructors and students. If you plan to start teaching, do be realistic about the road that lies ahead.
You will need to meet specific guidelines set by the Yoga Alliance, a nationally recognized organization but not a sanctioned governing body. Yoga instructors are not required to be licensed or certified, but the Yoga Alliance’ endorsements act as informal standards for yoga training courses.
You will need to complete two areas of Yoga Alliance enrollments. One takes 200-hours, and another is a 500-hours program. First, you finish your 200-hour program which is required as the minimum training for most yoga studios. You may need to work for several years as an instructor before continuing your studies and taking the 500-hour training.
After the Yoga Alliance has sanctioned you, you can use the abbreviation RYT – Registered Yoga Teacher – when you advertise. If you have completed the 500-hour training, you can become an E-RYT (Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher.)
A great place to get instruction and further experience teaching is at the Salt Lake City Yoga Festival held in the spring. You can fill out an application to teach at the festival to teach by going to https://downtownyogafest.com/.
If you want to be more prestigious at the yoga fest in Utah, get more specialized types of yoga training. Learn Bikram, Baptiste Power Vinyasa, Iyengar, and Anusara. The fact that you even know what Bikram, Baptiste Power Vinyasa and Iyengar are is impressive. You will be a hit at the Salt Lake City Yoga Festival.