500 hr Yoga Teacher Training

Overview
At the heart of the Yoga Impact (YI) 500 hr YTT Training is the knowledge and experience of director and yoga therapist Nancy Candea. This advanced training has been created by distilling 30 years of personal yoga practice and 20 years of teaching yoga. Nancy works as the director of Yoga Impact, a 501(c)(3) organisation dedicated to empowering vulnerable populations with yoga skills. This has the benefit of adding a different and powerful dimension to her teaching by working with a variety of demographics and different populations. The training includes guest teacher Jonni-lyn Friel, an advanced level yoga and Pilates teacher whose knowledge and skills match her generous compassion. The YI 500 Level Yoga Teacher Training gives you the tools to work with a wider range of clientele and offers a deeper learning of working with advanced practices of asana, pranayama meditation and restorative yoga. A strong foundation will also be taught in other yoga modalities, including philosophy, biomedical foundations and teaching methodology for specialised classes and privates. This will include yoga for stress, anxiety, depression and trauma. Through this training you will build the confidence and business skills to work with a wider range of people on a deeper level, allowing trainees to specialise and find their niche in a crowded market. This month long intensive training will help to joyfully awaken you on your spiritual path, feel the support of your yoga community and reach your full potential as a yoga teacher, mobilising you to serve with a full heart.

Courses
The Yoga Impact 500 hr Yoga Teacher Training is 300 hours of curriculum taught in six course: Biomedical Foundations, Making Yoga Accessible, Mind/Body Integration, Teaching Methodology, Yoga Philosophy and The Business of Yoga. Courses include classroom hours, online hours and homework.
Course 1: Biomedical Foundations
The course provides a practical understanding of the relationship that yoga has with physical anatomy, focusing on brain anatomy, pelvic anatomy, joint anatomy, all major systems of the body and biomechanics.

Learning Objectives:
• Understand basic human anatomy and physiology, including all major systems of the body and their interrelationships, as relevant to the work of an advanced yoga teacher.
• Understand basic concepts of biomechanics and movement as they relate to the practice of yoga and the work of a yoga teacher.

Required Reading: Trail Guide To the Body by Andrew Biel
Course 2: Making Yoga Accessible
This course teaches advanced practices to incorporate into yoga lifestyle practices and to utilize in teaching yoga.

Learning Objectives:
• Learn to teach mindfulness in Asana, Pranayama and life.
• Learn to teach simple body scans.
• Learn to teach simple breathing practices and Pranayama's to calm the mind and engage the parasympathetic nervous system.
• Learn to teach simple yoga asana practices to address postural issues.
• Understand the role of postural alignment in emotional healing.
• Learn to guide clients in simple dietary concepts.
• Learn the use of simple teas and herbs that aid in digestion.
• Provide adaptive yoga, chair yoga, bed yoga.
• Teaching advanced level asana and Pranayama.
• Injury prevention in yoga classes.
• Hands-on adjustments.
• Creating guided meditations.
• Learn therapeutic aspects of restorative yoga poses and how to adapt them.
• Introduction to Ayurveda.

Required Reading: Yoga Impact 500 hour Manual
Course 3: Mind/Body Integration
This course introduces the mind/body connection, and concepts of self-awareness and self-responsibility. It creates a firm foundation of therapeutic yoga modalities and lifestyle practices that enhance this awareness. We will focus on yoga modalities relating to the Koshas; how to utilize asana, Pranayama, meditation, bhāvana, mantra and dietary concepts to facilitate physical, mental, emotional and spiritual growth for the yogi.

Learning Objectives:
• Understand the importance of taking care of the mind and how it relates to taking care of the body.
• Learn to help clients understand how their mind processes information, and help them let go of obstacles to finding focus.
• Understand how the mind is affected by the practice of the Purusārthas.
• Understand yoga perspectives on the structure, states, functioning, and conditions of the mind as expressed by Patañjali.
• Understand the yoga perspective on distracted/disturbed conditions of mind and their expressions, by referencing Patañjali’s Yoga Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita.
• Demonstrate the ability to articulate yoga philosophical understandings of the mind and include them in a therapeutic teaching relationship.
• Gain an understanding of some of the scientific research that has been done on the workings of the mind.

Required Reading: Yoga Impact 500 hour manual
Course 4: Teaching Methodology for Classes, Privates and Workshops and specialized populations
This course will teach the trainee how to build class plans for all levels of yoga students. This will include sequencing, presentation skills, theming, adapting classes, and interacting with students.
• Understand the commitment that a yoga teacher needs, to have to their own practice, in order to teach.
• Teaching advanced level asana, pranayama and meditation along with chanting and mudras
• Learn to design, implement and evaluate group programs focused on clients who are new to yoga and/or “deconditioned.” (A deconditioned client is one who is not able to do a pose like downward dog because of lack of muscle tone), and those working to practice advanced level yoga modalities.
• Learn to work with those how are challenged with stress, anxiety, depression and/or trauma
• Learn hands-on assists
• Plan group classes that improve well-being, rather than just lead clients through asanas and other yoga modalities.
• Learn how to teach to avoid common yoga injuries
• Learn to build one-on-one relationships within a group setting.
• Learn to address individual issues during class
• Learn to plan and implement workshops
• Learn to structure a private session
Course 5: Yoga Philosophy and Spirituality
This course introduces philosophical teachings of some the major writings handed down in yoga tradition. This course also fosters an understanding of the Sanskrit alphabet, proper Sanskrit pronunciation, and includes discussion of the history of yoga. Trainees will dive into the deeper understanding of how the practice of yoga modalities creates a path for spiritual growth.
• Study of Sanskrit
• In-depth study of Patanjali’s yoga sutras
• Understanding of the Vayus
• In-depth study of the Bhagavad Gita
• Familiarity with the Upanishads, Vedas and tantric studies
• In-depth Understanding of the Chakras


Required Reading: A copy of Patañjali’s Yoga Sutras, Bhagavad Gita, Vedas, Upanishads
Course 6: The Yoga of Business
In this course well will set the foundation for a becoming a productive yoga professional and conduct a healthy yoga business.
• The ethics of a yoga professional based on the yamas and niyamas.
• Developing your business growth, network and marketing plans.
• Discover your niche and learn how to work in this specialized area.
• Heart centered marketing.
• Alternative methods of income within your field.
• Learn how to avoid burnout.
Study Options
The full training is the required 300 hours by Yoga Alliance. These hours include both the in-person intensives in Greece and the home study and practicum work that is required for your certificate.
This training offers two options of in person study.

Option 1: A one month intensive in Greece. You will complete the required portion of the in person lessons, as well as be monitored closely by the teachers. You will also have the opportunity to work on your teaching skills under guidance and mentor 200 hour level students.

Advanced Level Track 1: One month intensive, complete practicums and home study.
Intensive Training Hours:
Week 1
Anatomy of the Joints and Teaching beginning level students/ chair/ mat/ restorative
Week 2
Advanced Pranayama, Philosophy and Advanced Teaching Techniques
Week 3
Designing workshops/ mentoring in 200YTT/ Whole life practitioner self study
Week 4
Teaching Workshops/ mentoring

Long distance hours:
  • 65 hours of home study and online classes (continue with Whole Life Practitioner online course, Meditation Facilitator online course, Business Practicum, Sanskrit studies, Pranayama courses)
  • 35 hours of Practicums
  • Assignments


  • Option 2: A two- week in person intensive in Greece. The remainder of the practicum work and home study is to be completed upon your return home.

    Advanced Level Track 2:An in person two-week intensive to be completed in Greece. Then complete the rest of the training and practicums long distance.
    Intensive Training Hours:Week 1Anatomy of the Joints and Teaching beginning level students/ chair/ mat/ restorativeWeek 2Philosophy and Advanced Teaching TechniquesLong distance hours:
  • 65 hours of logged yoga techniques including pranayama, meditation, asana, chanting, teaching methodology for beginning level students (classes, at home practice, Nancy’s free online classes). We will need to design a way to show that you have increased your teaching skills.
  • 100 hours of home study and online classes (Whole Life Practitioner online course, Meditation Facilitator online course, Business Practicum, pranayama practice, Sanskrit studies, Pranayama courses)
  • 35 hours of Practicums
  • Assignments
Advanced Level Track Session topics

Week 1
Biomedical Foundations - Increase your ability to teach asana safely, help clients with injury and give sophisticated cueing for asana. We will learn anatomy of the foot and ankle, knee, hips, pelvic floor, spine, rib cage, shoulders and neck.
How to make Yoga Asana, Meditation and Pranayama accessible to all - Hone your teaching methodology to include a variety of demographics. This section includes how to teach gentle yoga, chair yoga, wheelchair yoga, and restorative yoga.

Week 2
Mind/Body Integration, Yoga Philosophy - The study of yoga philosophy gives yoga teachers a time tested foundation for understanding the mind. In this course we will develop the critical thinking skills to teach yoga techniques to help in the healing process of stress, depression, anxiety and trauma.
Advanced Teaching Methodology - Become a teacher’s teacher. Learn effective techniques and queuing to teach advanced poses, to give hands-on alignment and to prevent injury.

Week 3 & 4
Advanced Teacher Practices - This week includes designing/teaching workshops and working on yoga business skills. These two weeks will cover how to build yoga classes plans that include theming, mental processing, anatomical instruction and that encourage emotional strengths for all levels of yoga students. This will include sequencing, presentation skills, adapting classes, and interacting with students. Attendees will also have time to begin some of their home study courses and will have the opportunity to mentor 200 yoga teacher trainees.
Schedule overview
(may change according to need)

6:30-7:00 Meditation and Pranayama
7:00-9:00 Asana
9:00-11:00 Breakfast and Break
11:00-13:00 Morning Session
13:00-15:30 Break
15:30-19:00 Afternoon Session
19:00-20:00 Dinner
20:00-21:00 Evening Session (as needed)
500 Level Yoga Teacher Assessments:

In order to gain certification of the 500 Level RYT training, you must be able to demonstrate the following skills and competencies:
• The ability to teach yoga modalities on at least two different levels. For example:
– Intro level and intermediate/advanced level Asana classes, and/or meditation and Pranayama.
– Intermediate level yoga classes and workshops.
• Creation of class plans, workshop outlines, and workshop handouts.
• An understanding of the history of yoga.
• An understanding of the anatomy of the joints and the major systems of the body.
• The ability to teach a safe asana practice based on awareness of anatomy and safe alignment principles.
• Teach classes, workshops and privates that include understanding of the Yamas and Niyamas.
• An understanding of how of work with students who have minor injuries, or with someone in recovery whose doctor has given them a release to exercise.
• An asana practice that maintains integrity of alignment.
• Knowledge of a variety of Pranayama's, and the ability to use them in a daily practice and teach them.
• The ability to lead meditation practices that are based in an understanding of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras.
• A basic understanding of yoga philosophy, and familiarity with its classical texts, including the Vedas, the Upanishads, Patañjali’s Yoga Sutras and the Bhagavad Gita.
• Respect for the religions and philosophies of all their clients (provided that they are non-violent), and the ability to adapt yoga teaching as needed.
• The necessary social marketing and business skills to pursue desired career goals.

500 level yoga teachers must feel very comfortable with the following teaching competencies:

• Room readiness • Personal introduction • Lesson plan prep • Helping students to feel comfortable and settled
• Appropriate level of voice (loud, soft) • Tone and quality of voice (kind, motivating, relaxing) • Rate of speech (too fast, too slow, varied) • Looking students in the eye • Speaking with authority • Ending class on time • Modeling correct posture in poses
• Provides enough time to make breathing accessible • Encourages contemplation and mindfulness
• Verbally explain asana execution appropriate to the students ability • Offered safety cues • Reminded students to breath evenly • Encouraged students • Gave instructions based on what the students were doing in class
• Left time for counter poses and relaxation • Presented a guided meditation in Savasana • Created space for students to leave class in a relaxed, but alert state of mind.
• Offered a clear theme for class. • Taught a lesson rather than just guiding an exercise sequence. • Walked around class and gave verbal individualised cues for posture. • Confidently helped clients adapt poses. • Gave appropriate hands-on adjustments. • Taught meditation techniques. • Wove theme into whole class. • Modeled correct posture. • Ended class personally relaxed and centered.
Assessments will include:
Completion of short written assignments to demonstrate understanding of material presented, written class, private and workshop plans to show understanding of teaching methodology, demonstration of techniques learned during the training, and participate in peer evaluations. Trainees will be expected to participate fully during the training, taking minimal time of for possible health issues, complete all assignments and participate in demonstrations. Trainees will be expected to conduction themselves professionally during the training, observing the Yamas and Niyamas in their daily interactions.
Registration, Investment and Dates
Schedule of training in Greece:
Arrival: June 30th, 2018
Departure: July 15th, 2018 (two week intensive) or July 28th (one month intensive)

Venue: Villa Arian, Kineta, Attiki, Greece

Investment per person:
All accommodation includes 2 meals per day.

* Track 1 (one month intensive)
Single room: 3,440 Euros
Shared double: 2,800 Euros

* Track 2 (two week intensive and online courses and mentoring)
Single room: 2,670 Euros
Shared double: 2,250 Euros

Payment Due Dates:
  • A deposit of 800 Euros is required to hold your place.
  • A full refund will be given, minus 100 Euros processing fees, before May 1st. There will be no refund after May 1st.

  • Discounts:
  • Early Bird discount 200 Euros. The 800 Euros deposit must be paid by April 1st to qualify for the early bird discount.
  • There is a Greek National discount of 500 Euros. This does not apply with the early bird discount.
  • If paid in full, there is a 10% discount. This does not apply to the early bird discount.

  • Other Expenses:Travel to and from the training site and books.
  • The site is located 1 hour train ride away from the Athens International airport.
  • Although you are encouraged to develop a yoga resource book library, you are welcome to borrow some of your required reading materials available at the training.
Greece Faculty:
  • Nancy Candea, E-RYT 500, C-IAYT
  • Jonni-lyn Friel, RYT 500, RPYT
  • Prerequisites :
  • 200 hour YTT training
  • A minimum of 100 hours of teaching yoga and/or 1 year of teaching Yoga
  • Memorisation of the major bones and muscles from the anatomy vocabulary list. Supporting Materials: The Key Muscles of Yoga: Scientific Keys, Volume I by Ray Long and Chris MacIvor
Faculty Bios
Nancy Candea

An activist in the global health revolution, Nancy is committed to practicing the best version of herself every day, and to using her talents to contribute to the uplifting of humankind. Nancy’s ongoing journey is to study and to teach how to integrate mindfulness into each of our platforms of self-care. She strives to practice loving-kindness as a means of forming deep connections and promoting personal transformation.

She is a C-IAYT, 500 E-RYT, and RCYT who teaches yoga classes, works with private clients, and conducts retreats, Yoga Teacher Trainings and Yoga Therapy Trainings in Greece, Navaho Nation, Dominican Republic, Detroit, New Jersey, Colorado, and Hawaii. She is the founder and director of Yoga Impact Institute, a residential and online yoga training school. Yoga Impact Institute is a 200-hour, 300-hour, and YACEP school registered with the Yoga Alliance. She directs Yoga Impact, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) that focuses on sharing yoga with vulnerable populations – women and children in shelters, at-risk youth, senior citizens, war veterans, and prisoners, as well as the homeless. Nancy also mentors yoga therapists and yoga teachers in their work with these populations.

Her approach to teaching yoga is the product of 32 years of her own practice, her ownership of a successful yoga studio in Hawaii for 5 years, 9 years of training yoga teachers, 3 years of training yoga therapists and 20 years of teaching. She is truly a "yogi without borders." She is the director of Calm Steps to Vibrant Actions: Yoga, Spirituality, Trauma and Social Justice Summit. Her work has been featured in the Huffington Post, Yoga Therapy Today, Boulder Magazine, and Natural Awakenings. Nancy has done yoga therapy presentations at the International Women’s Writing Guild, Global Ayurveda Conference, LLC, and Northern New Jersey Transitional Yoga Conference 2013.

www.yogaimpact.org
www.nancycandea.com

Jonni-Lyn Friel

Jonni-Lyn Friel has been teaching Yoga since 2006 and is a Jivamukti teacher. She has recently moved to Victoria,Canada from Athens ,Greece. In 2016 she founded Namaha Yoga School, a collective of teachers from around the world from different traditions who share the common belief that teaching Yoga is a path of Seva, or service. She first was exposed to Yoga as a small child in Canada through her first teachers, her parents, and joined in their practice by watching and following along. Yoga was always a self practice that took her through years of competitive swimming, University and backpacking around the world.

In 1999, she stepped into her first Yoga class and discovered the joys of having a teacher and being taught from another's experience and knowledge. In 2006 she completed her first teacher training in Athens, Greece. With a strong background in alignment and Anusara, she began to explore the world of Vinyasa and philosophy, chanting and the devotional aspects of yoga. She has started discovering the world of Ayurveda and is back in school to become an Ayurvedic Counsellor, a perfect addition to her yoga teaching knowledge.

A 500 hour RYT, she has taught numerous teacher trainings internationally, where her love is to share the Bhagavad Gita and to teach service and compassion as a way to happiness and self realization. Jonni-Lyn knows Yoga to be sacred, healing and powerful. This is how it has affected her life and spirit. Her greatest joy is to share her knowledge and pass on the teachings of her beloved teachers to others, in hope that it serves them in their lives.

shineyouryoga.com
www.namahayogaschool.com

Contact information:

Gogo Davanelou/ Nancy Candea/ Jonni-Lyn Friel
500hYTT@gmail.com
Villa Arian, Kineta, Attiki, Greece

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