113: How To Respond To Students Who Want "Correct" Alignment with Ariele Foster

Do your students often ask if they are doing a pose “right”? And when they do, how do you answer that question? It’s complicated! You may teach from the perspective that there is no universal “correct” or “ideal” or even “safe” way to practice a pose, but then how do you answer that question?

There is a reason they have this question, and as the person responsible for holding space for their practice, you want to tell them something, right?!

If you’ve been listening to The Mentor Sessions for a while, then you know I love conversations like this, and today I’ve got my friend Ariele Foster with us to unpack this idea. How do we respond to our students who want “correct” alignment?

Ariele is a doctor of physical therapy and the founder of Yoga Anatomy Academy, a no-nonsense, evidence-based resource for learning yoga anatomy and movement science. She runs an integrative physical therapy clinic in Washington DC (and via telehealth). In addition to teaching online courses and an anatomy mentorship through Yoga Anatomy Academy, she has also taught online courses for and written for Yoga Journal on hip stability and fascia release. Ariele began teaching yoga in 2001 and her grandmother was also a yoga teacher.

Listen to our previous conversations in Episode 7: Anatomy Informed Yoga and Episode 28: Hip Injuries and Yoga

In this episode you’ll hear:

the connection between alignment and anxiety
what students are really asking when they want to know if they are doing a pose correctly
how Ariele and I respond to that question (slightly differently!)

Learn More From Ariele:

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