Reflections from my Second 300-Hour YTT

People often ask “what kind of yoga do you teach?” and I never have a quick answer. I teach many styles and have many teachers, and they all blend into the smoothie of my teaching style.

I’m a few days into a 300-hour training in Mexico with Become A Yogi. I’m here as a photographer, but more importantly, as a yogi who’s always excited to learn new perspectives.

My teaching rests on a few pillars: Yoga philosophy, Katonah Yoga, and modern Vinyasa. Lately, I’ve felt a bit disconnected from Vinyasa - it’s a beautiful practice, but it’s susceptible to becoming quite disorganized.

So I knew this training would be a good challenge for my ego. This lineage is fast-paced, rigorous, and free flowing; much different than my Katonah practice where it’s all about steady repetition of good technique. My intention was to show up with an empty cup, and what do ya know - I’m learning things.

We start our days with 20-minute silent meditations, a practice that I’m hoping to maintain after the training. Then we move into a 2 hour sweaty vinyasa practice. It’s been years since I’ve challenged myself like this on the mat. It’s healthy to find our edge, and it’s our choice what we do with that info.

I do believe yoga should be measured, formal, and repetitive; but this creates a risk of becoming rigid. It’s important to study from different styles & teachers to prevent us from becoming narrow-minded and dogmatic.

Vinyasa will always have its place because yoga is a metaphor for life, and the world is organized chaos. Sure, vinyasa can seem chaotic at times, but there’s a science to it. Over here we call it the seven doorways. And it works.

Grateful for the opportunity to refine my craft and learn new tricks. Still 9 days to go, and I’m curious to see what else unfolds.