How to Teach a Yoga Class: A Beginner’s Guide to Confident and Effective Teaching
Becca is the author of Teaching Yoga: Creative Cueing for Safer Mixed Level Classes. She taught yoga and yoga teacher training for many years while owning a yoga studio. Now, she teaches in OKC and creates resources for yoga students and teachers.
You’ve completed your yoga teacher training and learned about philosophy, anatomy, and asana—but now, you’re faced with the big question: “How do I lead my first class?”
You are not alone if you are feeling overwhelmed or unsure. I hear from many new teachers who find themselves in this same position. It takes time to become a confident yoga teacher. The first step is to face the challenge of teaching your first few classes.
Teaching yoga is a skill that improves with practice. Although the experience of becoming a yoga teacher is different for everyone, most people begin to feel more comfortable in the role after teaching for around a year. Over the last twenty years, I have learned something new each year and continue to improve my skills.
In this post, I’ll cover the basics of how to teach a yoga class and offer some tips to help you get started. My intention is to encourage you to believe in yourself and have the confidence to teach more classes. Our communities need us, and yours needs you to teach!
Breaking Down the Components of a Great Yoga Class
Since most of us teach mixed-level classes with beginners present, I will focus on basic class components and poses in this post. Our goal is that at the end of class, our students feel relaxed, grounded, and maybe even energized.
Below is a basic outline for a class with a description of each class section. The times I listed next to each section are for the standard 50 to 60-minute yoga class taught at many recreation centers. Feel free to adjust these times depending on the class length required and how well the students tolerate the pace.
1. Welcome and Centering (5 minutes)
Purpose: Create a calm, welcoming atmosphere where students can settle into their practice.
What to Include:
I always start by introducing myself (unless no one new is present) and thanking everyone for coming.
It is traditional to start a yoga class seated, but since people often sit all day, I often have them start lying on their backs. The key is for them to find a comfortable position.
Immediately bring their attention to the breath, cueing long, smooth inhales and exhales. There are many possibilities for breath awareness exercises.
One option is to start with belly breathing, then a few breaths into the ribcage, and finally, a few breaths into the chest.
Ask the students to stretch their arms out on the floor into a T position and breathe into their chests to open up their front bodies and shoulders.
Optional: Some teacher like to offer intentions or themes with their classes. If you feel comfortable doing so, this is a great time to introduce this. If it feels forced, then leave it for now. It’s best to be your authentic self when you start teaching.
2. Warm-Up (10–15 minutes)
Purpose: Gently awaken the body, warm up major joints, and continue focusing on the breath.
Remind students to listen to their bodies and take their time trying the poses. How long the warm-up lasts will depend on the age and experience of the group. For mixed-level groups with beginners, include a longer warm-up with poses in the supine (on the back), hands and knees, and standing positions. It’s best to avoid too much work seated since it is likely that most participants already sit too much in daily life.
What to Include:
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Move the spine in all five directions: elongation, forward fold, backbend, side stretch, and twist. Suggestion: All of these movements may be practiced in Cat/Cow variations.
Circle through joints: hips, shoulders, wrists, and ankles.
Suggested warm-up movements and poses:
Supine: Wind-relieving, supine side stretches, hip circles, shoulder circles, Windshield Wipers, Pilates-style Breathing Bridges. Happy Baby, gentle Reclined Twists
Hands and knees: Cat-Cow, Bird Dog, Thread the Needle.
Begin linking movement and breath, such as coordinating inhales and exhales in Cat-Cow.
3. Standing Sequences (25–30 minutes)
Purpose: Build strength, flexibility, and focus through a balanced sequence of poses.
What to Include:
Teach what you know. Choose sequences you practice regularly—this will build your confidence and authenticity.
Start with foundational standing poses such as Warrior I, Warrior II, Side Angle, Chair, Goddess, Triangle, and High Lunge.
Progress to more challenging poses once students are warmed up and ready. In mixed-level classes with beginners, more challenging poses include Half Moon, Revolved Triangle, Warrior III, and Revolved Side Angle. Balancing is also a huge challenge for beginners. Some poses to consider are Tree, Modified Dancer, and Big Toe Hold.
You may include Sun Salutations throughout your sequences or as a transition between the right side and left side of sequences (i.e., practice standing sequences with the right foot forward, then move through a Sun Salutation at the end, and finally return to the same sequence but with the left foot forward.)
Emphasize breath-movement coordination as you lead the class, like, "Inhale as you reach your arms up, exhale as you fold forward."
Offer modifications such as blocks under the hands or shorter stances so that everyone can participate.
4. Floor Sequence (10–15 minutes)
Purpose: With students warmed up, shift the focus to mobility, strength, or deeper stretches.
After a standing flow, coming to the floor and including different explorations in our classes is a fun option. We can offer a floor sequence seated, side lying, or prone (on the belly). In a fitness environment, another option is to offer a core sequence that includes supine work.
Options to Include:
Backbends: Flow through variations of Locust, Sphinx, Bow, and Bridge
Side-Lying Series: Work the core in a Pilates-inspired side-lying flow, including the Side-Lying Tree, Infinite Pose (Anantosana), Side-Lying Star, and Side-Lying Dancer. In a fitness environment, include other Pilates side-lying exercises.
Hip Openers/Stretches: Start with some seated poses such as Cobbler, Seated Wide Angle, and Cow, and then move to Pigeon variations.
Shoulder Challenges: With a more active group, work on Side Planks, Forearm Plank, and Dolphin.
Deep Stretches: Start with a few seated stretches such as Easy Pose, Cobbler, and Head to Knee, and then work on shoulder stretches with a strap.
Core Work: When offering a fusion class is appropriate, make this section all about the core. Mix in classic floor pilates, Stomach-Turning pose, and forearm Plank holds.
Twists: Work on seated twists, starting with twisting in Cobbler or Easy pose and then moving into deeper work in Rishi Twist. To finish the sequence, come to the floor and practice reclined twists.
5. Shavasana (5–10 minutes each)
Cool-Down: Usually, I start to wind down my class in the previous section to prepare for Shavasana. However, depending on what you include in your floor series, it may be nice to add some supine stretches right before Shavasana. Traditional poses here include Happy Baby, Reclined Twists, Reclined Cobbler, Wind Relieving
Shavasana: Lead students through some gentle breathing, and then give them time to fully relax.
Should You Teach from Your Mat or Walk Around?
Some teacher trainings focus entirely on learning to teach off the mat, but I find that some new yoga teachers taught in this way struggle to build their own flows and classes. All they learned was to memorize a script or parrot their teacher. If this was your experience, and you are struggling, then go back to teaching from your mat for a while and build up some experience and confidence. Learning to teach off the mat is a more advanced teaching skill, and it isn’t about memorizing a script. It takes quite a few years of practice to pull off authentically. Let’s go over this whole debate, some teaching options, and why it's nice to work towards teaching at least some of the class off the mat.
Teaching On/Off the Mat Pros/Cons
When we teach on the mat, we practice along with the students. They may enjoy the shared energy created by this, and if they are beginners, they may require visual cues. The students are more likely to experience our authentic voice as we cue from our mat. The downside is that we also can’t completely see all the students and may not notice alignment issues. We can’t give as much feedback to students from the mat.
When we teach off the mat, we walk around as we teach. Students may enjoy our verbal or physical (with permission) adjustments and feedback. We can easily observe if our cueing is working or if we need to change course. Although giving feedback is a great tool, it takes time to learn how to teach a class off the mat and adjust students without de-railing the flow of the class. Also, some students do not want to be touched, and others do not want to be corrected in front of others. Depending on the student, adjustments and corrections are often better done in a private setting.
In reality, both options have their place, and it’s okay to start with whatever feels the most comfortable for you. In my teaching, I utilize both options. I demonstrate key poses on my mat, and then I step off my mat and walk around, too. At the beginning of class, I position my mat so I can see most of the class.
When I first started attending yoga workshops years ago, I practiced with some famous teachers who taught entirely off the mat. It was impressive to watch. However, I also enjoyed the times the teacher would practice with us, and we all felt like we were in the flow together. In summary, ignore the critics who insist that off the mat is the only way to teach!
When and How to Teach Off the Mat
What worked best for me was gradually leaving my mat. Once you feel confident with cueing and class structure, you can experiment with stepping off the mat and see how you feel.
When Off-the-Mat Teaching Works Best
When teaching experienced students who are more comfortable with verbal cues.
In smaller classes where individual attention is more manageable.
When working with students who are familiar with the sequence or poses.
Tips for Getting Started
Start small: Demonstrate a pose briefly, then walk around the room during holds.
Try teaching Sun Salutations from memory first; it is an easily memorized sequence.
Next, work on memorizing a few shorter standing sequences.
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Key Considerations When Learning How to Teach a Yoga Class to Beginners
Demonstrate all the poses. Beginning teachers often end up teaching beginning students. If you’ve taught beginning students, you already know that they watch the teacher closely, and if you try to walk away from your mat, some of them will follow you! (It's okay to giggle inside; it’s sometimes funny.) Many people are visual learners and must see the teacher demonstrate the poses.
Clarity is the key. When demonstrating poses, give simple cues. Prioritize clear verbal cues over any physical adjustments. Beginners need to learn the basics of where to place their feet first.
Provide encouragement and positive energy. Beginners need help getting started. Many people will quit after just a few months. The more connections you can create with your students, the more likely they will return. Listen to people before and after class for hints about what they really need and want from their yoga class.
Be Authentic and Engaging, and Have Fun!
Learning how to teach a yoga class without feeling the nerves takes time. Show up to teach with a smile and greet the students warmly. Start simply, focus on clarity, and teach what you know. As a new teacher, it is absolutely fine for you to teach on the mat as you build experience and confidence. Delivering a strong, authentic class from the mat is better than feeling scattered and losing the flow trying to walk around. In the beginning, you will sound like your own teachers, which is normal! Slowly work on creating your own words for what you are experiencing in your practice. You will make mistakes. We all make mistakes, so smile and keep going! If you can’t remember what you will teach next and start to panic, then ask all the students to take Downward Dog or Pose of the Child. They can’t see you in these poses, so take a deep breath and find your bearings! Teaching yoga is a journey—start where you are, and you’ll continue to grow and flourish with time and experience. ♢
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