{video} How To Change The Way You Teach Without Losing All Your Students

This is a question I haven’t really answered publicly before, although much of the work I do with the teachers who mentor with me surround topics like this. I think there is a larger body of work for me to explore here, and I need you guys to ask me more good questions to help me refine the way I teach this. In this video I answer three questions:

  • What is the best way to cue non-yoga sequences and poses?
  • How can I sneak strength work and corrective exercises into a vinyasa class?
  • And finally… How can I change the way I teach without losing all my students?

14 Responses to “{video} How To Change The Way You Teach Without Losing All Your Students”

  1. Robin

    Thank you for a great video again! I really appreciate your messages and insights.

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      Thank you, Robin! I’m grateful so much of this content resonates with you.

      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply
  2. Victoria

    Thank you so much for that. I too have a toolbox of poses and alignment principals that I always come back to, but I also have an open mind/beginners mind for new stuff to add to what I already teach. This is a wonderful suggestion to every teacher of light:)

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      I’m so proud of you, Victoria. Keep doing what you do best!

      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply
  3. lisa galizia

    I love your videos and podcasts you are a awesome teacher thank you! I personally don’t see the advantage of putting so much focus on using only verbal cues because I find too much talking in yoga takes away from the breath and focus. My opinion for what it’s worth

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      Your opinion is respected & valued, Lisa! Thank you for sharing your perspective. I’m so grateful to be connected with like-minded people.
      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply
  4. Shanti

    Thank you so much for this video Francesca! It was so good for me to hear that you are a more fluid kind of teacher. I have been with yoga teachers who are so strict in their teachings and style and will only teach from a certain lineage without any variations, even to the detriment t of their students. That is not my style. I am a student of many teachers and trained in 2 specific lineages and I was a fitness instructor/personal trainer for 15 years before coming to yoga, so my style of teaching is very eclectic. I sometimes feel like a yoga fraud because I don’t adhere to a strict style and I do interweave fitness into my “yoga” classes There is also a lot of emphasis in my community for hands on adjustments that I don’t buy in to. As a fitness instructor my students were constantly moving and I had to learn to use words to help them find safe and aligned actions in their bodies. As a yoga teacher I want my students to drop into their own bodies, find presence and learn to make adjustments that support their own needs in the moment. I only put my hands on them as indicators or to help them get a deeper stretch if that feels resonant with them. I am inspired by your message today. thank you so much!

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      You’ve touched my heart, Shanti. Thank you for all you do for your students and for sharing your journey with me. I’m so proud of you!
      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply
  5. Rosie Araujo

    Hi there, thank you so much for this video. I kept coming across your name online and started to read your blogs, watch your videos and soon to hear your podcasts. I absolutely admire and resonate so much with the way you break everything down. Slow it down. I am a new yoga teacher. Got certified about a year ago and have been working on developing a form of teaching that can impact and inspire not only the body but the mind as well. I like to slow it down as well and have a build up to something deeper. I find that many yoga teachers now a days are only concerned with asanas, sequences that are intricate and mat routines that lack the real reason why we practice anyways. Yoga brought me a passion for life, mind, body, and soul. I feel you embody that and I’m so glad I found you online. Thank you so much for sharing.

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      I’m so happy to be connected with you, Rosie! And so, so happy to read that my content resonates with you. I’m proud of you for embarking on this journey as a yoga teacher and even more proud of you for making your own impression. I can’t wait to hear where your journey takes you.
      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply
  6. Kat

    Great podcast! I very much agree… straight up asana is not good for the body. I have been teaching since 2007 and also hold a Black Belt in Kempo. I actually incorporate principles of martial arts, tai chi and qi gong into my yoga classes and my clients/students love it.

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      I love that, Kat! Your students are very lucky to have you.
      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply
  7. Mavis

    Thank you for sharing. I’ve started teaching at a gym. Most students come with injuries, hip replacements, balance issues etc. peppered jn with a coyple healthy bodies. You have given me the awareness to really analyze the way I have been teaching and will step back and rethink how and what I’ve been teaching my students. Thank you so much.

    Reply
    • Francesca Cervero

      I’m honored that this resonated with you, Mavis. You are doing incredible work and you’re students will deeply appreciate the help you give them.
      xo,
      Francesca

      Reply

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