Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses: A Practical Workbook for Integrating Themes, Ideas, and Inspiration into Your Class

by Sage Rountree, Alexandra DeSiato, Cyndi Lee (Foreword)

Create class themes with yoga philosophy, inspirational quotes, and simple concepts to inspire and motivate students
 
Experienced yoga instructors Sage Rountree and Alexandra DeSiato give yoga teachers the tools to find their voice and tap into innate wisdom. The authors offer ready-made, detailed themes to use in classes and provide flexible templates for building a toolkit of themes for future use.  Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses offers guidance for both new and experienced teachers starting with a section on voice, authenticity, emulation, phrasing, practice, repetition, and finding inspiration. It continues with a second section that contains fifty-four complete themes that instructors can easily use in their own classes. The final section includes blank templates for instructors to create their own class themes and notes. With a unique angle and practical feel, this workbook will appeal to yoga teachers, teacher trainers, and at-home practitioners who want to move to the next level.

Genres: Nonfiction, Spirituality, Self Help, Reference, Teaching, Meditation, Audiobook

256 pages, Paperback

Published May 14, 2019

About the author

Sage Rountree is an internationally recognized authority in yoga for athletes, an endurance sports coach specializing in athletic recovery, and the co-owner of several wellness businesses. Sage is the author of ten books, including The Athlete's Guide to Yoga, Racing Wisely, Everyday Yoga, and, Lifelong Yoga and Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses, cowritten with Alexandra DeSiato. Her latest are The Professional Yoga Teacher's Handbook and The Art of Yoga Sequencing.

Sage moved from a career track in academia to one teaching yoga and training others to do the same, and to do it with clear standards and boundaries to the benefit of their students. Co-owner of the Carrboro Yoga Company, she directs its advanced studies teacher trainings, which draw students from around the world. She also co-owns Hillsborough Spa and Day Retreat. Sage has served as a faculty member at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health for over a decade, and she has offered workshops and taught at festivals both internationally and around the United States.

Sage’s in-person trainings and online courses include lessons in sequencing yoga classes, developing workshops, managing the yoga classroom, and being a professional movement teacher—the subject of her most recent book. A pioneer in yoga for athletes, she has worked with athletes at every level, from youth and amateur athletes to NBA and NFL teams, players, and coaches. In addition to writing and cowriting ten books, her work has appeared in several publications, and she has been a regular contributor to Yoga Journal and Runner’s World.

Sage lives in Carrboro/Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where she has taught the same regular weekly yoga class for twenty years.

Reviews

[Renee Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love this reference book/workbook to help me plan my classes beyond the āsana! There are so many ideas that are presented that could be configured together or with your own ideas. This would be a great book for a new teacher or one who is experienced with theming but might need some fresh inspiration. There are also song and poem references for each theme idea. The back of the book has plenty of space to write your own themes, with intentions and postures that are complimentary. I love that can do this work in one organized place! Highly recommend!

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a new teacher, this book is on the top of the stack for useful guides to help inspire my classes as I continue to find my own voice as a yoga teacher. It is written in a way that helps you weave themes throughout all parts of a class - during the opening of class, during movement, pauses and closing the class. Additionally, they provide quotes, author's, song titles and more to help support each theme as well as journaling prompts and templates to follow as you plan your class themes. Written by two incredible yoga teachers who are also gifted teacher trainers - this book came at a time that I needed it most, teaching 15 classes a week and desiring a better way to help make my classes more meaningful, balanced and unique to me. Sage and Alexandra's classes, in person and online, are fulfilling and integrative, and this book is a complement to their authenticity as yogis! Highly recommend Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses!

[Sheila Samuelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to North Atlantic Book for sending me this book to review for them!! I really enjoyed this book, it teaches alot about the different Yoga Poses and the different terms and words for it!!

If i taught a Yoga class i would definately use this book as a reference!!

Can't wait to read more by this publisher in the future!!

[Tom Weissmuller · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you believe in fairy tales, this may be the book for you. From a pragmatist, agnostic or atheist perspective,if there is a strong point to this book, it lies in the author's attempt to make it a teaching tool. One might review the book to understand the format and methods chosen by the author to aid the reader with self-guided instruction. The book was, ostensibly, offered to assist yoga instructors in crafting themes to yoga classes. I give it two stars for aiding instructors in reasoning out a way to craft themes. Students may find themes valuable to their yoga practice. Sadly, the author has chosen to emphasize themes from the world of make-believe. For the most part, this book emphasized themes involving fantastic nonsense, pretend energy fields, and wishful thinking. If you lace your yoga practice with this stuff, you might enjoy the book and find ways to better pretend that ancient mythology is real and helpful to you. Maybe it will have a placebo affect and improve your life. I hope it does.

[Books & Aerial · Rating 3 out of 5]

As much as it gave me 2-3 ideas, and certainly reminded me to review the way I teach in general, the rest of the book was - as I would describe it; "Murrican Yogi-ish". Nothing wrong with that, obviously yoga is huuuuge in USA and this book reflects the needs and expectations of this practice on the North American continent. I.e.: the reading of poetry in class, creating themes (including Halloween themed class LOL), reminding people of all things "positive" and how that impacts our daily life...and yet, life over in America and everywhere else (despite of yoga and its' philosophy being so vastly popular and ever growing) is even more dangerous, crazy, unstable mentally and politically etc etc the list goes on, it's as if all 10000 daily yoga classes only create more expectation and frustration rather than peace and acceptance.

That said, if you're someone who "lives in the moment", practices "self-love", "peace out" but "f** you" when needed - you might find this read reassuring you're on your "yogi path".

[Heather SilverOxide · Rating 4 out of 5]

A useful resource book for working yoga teachers, especially those in their first 1-2 years of teaching.
The first section of the book lays out a solid approach to planning yoga classes, and what variables to consider when developing themes. I appreciated the sections that discussed teaching with authenticity, healthy boundaries, and a personal style that fosters good student-teacher rapport.

The rest of the book provides a range of ideas for theming yoga classes. Some of these themes are broad, some are specific. There are suggestions for relevant poses, verbal cues, and phrases to open/close the class. At no point does this feel dogmatic or restrictive. The reader is encouraged to expand and adapt these ideas, and develop their own unique themes. Suggested themes focus on different aspects of the practice - poses, self-inquiry, the energetic experience, yogic philosophy, and more spiritual/intuitive experiences.

If you want to be more deliberate and consistent in how you teach, or you want to improve the quality of experience you provide to yoga students, I recommend this book.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a wonderful way to stay inspired as a yoga instructor. I would highly recommend it!

[Nicole Silveira · Rating 4 out of 5]

A handy reference & workbook for yoga teachers

[Alison Zak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me a better yoga teacher. It is a guide to authentic teaching that is personalized to your own interests, passions, skills, and offerings. And the cover art is amazing!

[Arah · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some thought-provoking and practical suggestions in here, but overall this book is not as helpful for me as I’d hoped. This may say more about where I am in my teaching career (9 years in) and yoga journey (20+ years in), than it says about the authors and book! Still, it was well-written and inspiring. I love all of Sage’s books and this collaboration with Alexandra Desiato was no exception. Bringing in more philosophy than several other titles, it helps balance out the asana-heavy body of work.

[Carolyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Common sense anecdotes written in book form.

[Knit Spirit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ce livre est très bien écrit, très clair et très très bien organisé. C'est vraiment l'ouvrage que j'aurais souhaité avoir lorsque j'ai débuté en tant que professeure de yoga. Il rassure tout en donnant des clés fort utiles pour se réapproprier son enseignement tout en puisant l'inspiration un peu partout autour de soi (et pas que dans le monde du yoga). Il se lit très bien (pas comme un roman, évidemment) et c'est tout à fait le genre d'ouvrage à ouvrir au hasard lorsqu'on manque d'idées pour son prochain cours.
Cependant, maintenant que j'enseigne le yoga depuis plusieurs années, j'en vois moins l'intérêt car, pour moi, c'est clairement LE livre pour les professeurs de yoga qui débutent. Cela ne m'empêche pas d'avoir adoré le lire, c'est juste qu'il me sera moins (peu) utile maintenant qu'il n'aurait pu l'être il y a 5 ans.
Le titre du livre indique qu'il s'adresse également aux yogis expérimentés qui ne sont pas professeurs... pourquoi pas mais j'ai comme un doute. A quoi cela sert-il d'avoir une compilation de thèmes de cours si on n'enseigne pas ? Je ne sais pas. Certes, ce sont toujours des connaissances à acquérir, c'est sûr, mais pour moi, il y a d'autre livres plus adaptés pour cela.
En bref : ce livre est fabuleux, très riche et parfait pour les professeurs débutants.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

As part of my yoga teacher training, I had to teach a 20 minute sequence with an intention. I’m not sure why figuring out movement for 20 minutes was easy, but the intention setting was so hard for me to come up with. Insert this book: a lifesaver! I appreciated the 54 themes that connect to yoga philosophy, famous quotes, and even basic ideas. I combined information from across multiple themes and developed my own from them. However, if you’re feeling really stuck you could truly copy a theme word for word. Ain’t no shame! I have a feeling I’ll reference this book for quite some time.

[Audio Athena · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was not very helpful. Most of the advice was common sense things you would have already learned in a Yoga Teacher Training, like "don't make the class about you, provide a safe space for your students".

The 54 themes they give you are so shallowly developed that I'd be embarrassed to use them on their own.

For example, for a winter solstice theme, it suggests forward folds and floor poses and to say things like "find the glimmer of light in this pose". Really?

The information provided could have been condensed to a series of social media posts instead of a printed book.

[Linnea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practical workbook that I reach for occasionally when I want to put together a new series of classes or need a little inspiration. Probably most useful for beginner teachers or those who haven't taught in awhile. Almost 50 pages are fill-in sheets and I prefer to write out classes on seperate pages, so it wasn't at all useful to me. The font is also larger than necessary in my opinion. Takes up unnecessary space.

[Marie Horning · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great tool for new teachers who have already learned to lead students physically through the poses. This book provides inspiration on how to include in our classes the part about yoga where we notice our thoughts and emotions as we move our bodies. Because yoga is not just about doing the physical poses. It's about our whole experience.

[Kristin Juurmaa · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is a really nice book for yoga teachers who are just starting with their classes. A lot of help in the end of the book with different themed class plans. Also, for people like me who have done yoga for a while but have been mostly interested in yoga anatomy and physiology, this book gives a really nice overview of yoga philosophy. Recommended!

[Tracy Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a new teacher, this book was so helpful to go through to get ideas and tips around creating a theme for class. I know I love when I go to a class and there is a theme that resonates with me, or at least clearly with the instructor. I plan to keep going back to this book and using the workbook exercises as I continue to grow in my teaching.

[Teyah Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

All yoga teachers should read this book if they are struggling to break out of the white washed, westernised, fitness, standardised model of yoga classes and wanting to incorporate yogic traditions into their teaching.

The only thing I wasn’t keen on was the use of inspiration from well known abusers within the yoga community.

[Irma Luz Roman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great book about yoga, poses and learning. And What do you as a yogi not a teacher, for four years or more and it’s a life-changing after losing my dog, I dedicated to yoga, meditation, and breath and this book explain it beautifully and this book showed you and teaches you how to do it perfect. And understand everything pose you do and explain me how to teach it.

[Elisa Tomlinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. This book was pretty good. I think it’s probably geared toward people who are just starting out as yoga teachers and overwhelmed. In that sense, the authors break ideas down into bite-sized chucks of what to say before, during, and after class to fit your theme. My problem is that I never remember during class.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great tool for yoga teachers to help incorporate themes in your classes. The various journaling exercises encourage self-reflection and growth. I strongly recommend this book for yoga instructors who are in the beginning phases of teaching.

[Jessi Waugh · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was not impressed with this one, got a few good quotes that were included, from other sources, nothing new here. I didn't like the format of the book, I found it repetitive, the wording didn't work well for me to use in class - just not a fan.

[Abby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was so practical and focused and helped me to totally restructure my yoga lessons. I loved the music suggestions, quotes, and themes. Such a wonderful resource for yoga teachers!

[Andie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My only regret is getting the audiobook instead of a hardcopy. I think I would have liked this much more if not for the way it sounds when read aloud. Reads a bit like a listicle. Will give it another try one day.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another excellent selection about teaching yoga from Sage Rountree. I couldn't swing it to see her at a workshop she did in nearby MA this fall but I bought the book and I've gotten a lot of ideas from it for teaching

[Lukrecija Zigmantaitė · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably one of those books you cannot mark as “read”. I will definitely be coming back to it to stay inspired in my classes and keep the sequences thematic based. The book is written in a simple and focused text so it is easy to read and pick the key ideas. Recommended to all yoga teachers 🙏

[Greg Gallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading "The Athletes Guide to Yoga" I got this book and I'm now designing my own yoga workouts. Seriously--it is that good. This woman works magic for athletes both young and old.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yet another reference text that can be of great help in planning a theme oriented yoga class. Another one for the shelf.

[Liz Schmittgens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book so much. Heavy on inspiration with prompts and guides to create your own themes. Highly recommend for any yoga teacher.