Yoga Teacher Training

My mind was heavy with emotions as I walked through the parking lot towards the front door. It was a pleasantly warm July afternoon, with temps hovering around 90 F. As I walked into the studio, calm and peace pushed away the weight that was in my mind within a minute of arriving. I knew this was the right direction for me to be going. 

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the dilemma I had over whether or not I should pick up coaching ice skating again. I received so many wonderful pieces of advice, but one that stood out to me was from a dear friend from California. She said,

"Honestly Jenessa, my gut is saying not to do it. You're so young and so driven and so talented, I am really curious what you will put your mind to when skating is no longer part of the equation...start expanding your horizons...Good luck."

That note really caught me off guard because I thought I had been thinking about all of my options. But then I opened my heart up and dug deep. I realized that I had been wanting to get more education. After a few hours of research and many more hours of contemplation, I chose to go to yoga teacher training for my 200 hour level. Maybe that is not the path that my sweet friend had in mind, but it is definitely outside of my comfort zone and I am diving right in!

Yesterday was my first class and I fell in love with the studio and the instructor. Today I returned and turned in my application and paid my tuition and fees for one year of classes! There came a point where I didn't think I would be able to go to teacher training because every course I looked into included Sundays, and well that was just not going to work. Then this school literally seemed to appear in my Google search. It is called The Yoga School of Therapeutics and is located in Overland Park, Kansas.

Here are 3 things I love about this school:

1.  I could begin at any time I wanted. The way it works here is I buy an unlimited class pass for one year and I take as many classes as I desire.  I also attend monthly workshops by guest yoga masters, all while keeping notes and reading the required texts and then completing two exams at the end of my 200 hours.  There are probably other things as well, but that's the jist of it. 
2. It is a school focusing on the healing of people. They have classes geared towards Parkinson's disease, cancer, arthritis, pregnancy, auto-immune challenges, just to name a few. I was going down the path of the healing arts when I was in college and was pursuing physical therapy school, as well as my desire to go to massage therapy school. While both of those require a big investment in time and money, I can complete yoga school within a year. It is the perfect fit for me right now!!
3. There are many different instructors I will be studying under, instead of just one, which is typical in many other yoga teacher training programs. I like to learn from a variety of sources. 

The other amazing tender mercy is that I had the money already saved up from my PFD I earned while living in Alaska! When I received my nice check in the mail last October from the state of Alaska, Marshall advised me to put it into my savings for continuing education. I kept thinking I would use it towards massage therapy school or coaching expenses, but it was the perfect amount to begin my yoga teacher training!! Yay for saving money.

Earning my 200-level RYT certificate is going to be a wonderful, challenging, and growing experience for me. When I returned home from my 45-minute commute, I saw this email from the head instructor at the yoga school. It read,

...Your energy is wonderful! Loved reading your essay. You write well. Prepare for a grand future as teacher of yoga and healer of the hurting hearts. 

❤