182: Tailoring A Yoga Practice for Private Lessons UPDATED

There is no cookie-cutter approach to private yoga teaching.

The most effective private teachers learn to listen carefully, think critically, stay curious, and trust their ability to adapt. Private teaching is not about giving someone a customized version of a group class. It's about creating a collaborative practice that responds to who they are, what they need, and where they are right now.

That requires both clarity of intention and flexibility of method.

In today's episode we are looking back at one of the foundational ideas behind my work as a private yoga teacher: how to create a yoga practice that actually meets the needs of the person in front of you.

We'll walk through four key principles for tailoring a private yoga session, including building trust, questioning the idea of a well-rounded practice, understanding the intended benefit of a pose, and staying creative and flexible in your teaching.

In this episode, you'll hear:

Why teaching private yoga lessons requires a different skill set than teaching group classes

The difference between a teacher-driven group class and a student-driven private lesson

How to distinguish between what a student wants and what they may actually need

How to maintain the depth and heart of yoga while adapting the way you teach it

Why students who appear "easy" to teach may actually require more creativity and attention

How understanding the intended benefit of a pose can transform individualized teaching