Yoga Teaching and Learning
​at www.yogauk.com

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Hello Reader

Welcome to the February newsletter for yoga teachers.

My article this month asks:
​Does your yoga teaching still inspire you? - Reflections on the importance of inspiration and how to reclaim it when it wanes.

I look forward to seeing some of you at our next yoga teacher networking meeting on Zoom on 7th March.

I've been listening to feedback (very useful thank you!) and I've been looking into ways to make these get-togethers even more valuable to you in supporting your work as a yoga teacher. Look out for an email in the next few weeks about some exciting new developments!

Love and light,

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Keep scrolling for:

🤷🏻 Article: Does your yoga teaching still inspire you?

👉 News and resources: Yoga teacher networking dates and free Foundation Course introductory workshop for your serious students

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Article:

Does your yoga teaching still inspire you?

Why inspiration matters and how to cultivate it

Inspiration is essential for maintaining motivation in yoga teaching. It fuels your creativity in planning lessons and courses, it gives you enthusiasm that will inspire your students, and it also brings a sense of purpose.

Feeling inspired makes the work of teaching feel much lighter and more enjoyable. When you’re inspired, everything flows more easily - your class planning, the atmosphere you create, the way you connect with students and the energy you need to hold a safe and nurturing space for everyone. When you’re inspired, even class admin can become a little less irksome!
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If you’re feeling uninspired, everything takes longer. Your classes can start to become repetitive, and student practice can become habitual rather than inspiring them to explore further and grow in their practice. You might notice students becoming less attentive or not attending as frequently.

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Creating a conducive atmosphere

As the teacher, you’re the one holding the space for your students. They tune in to your voice, your manner, your attitude, your authenticity and the energy you bring into the room.

Humans are incredibly sensitive to subtle cues – even tiny changes in body language, tone of voice, or facial expression can be picked up. We might not consciously register these changes, but we feel them. Think about the moments when you have walked into a room and ‘sensed the feeling’.

When you’re inspired, you project a positive and steady presence without effort. Students then relax more easily, the room feels welcoming, and the whole atmosphere of the class feels more uplifting.
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Even when we are personally going through difficult times, rather than being inauthentic and pretending that everything in the garden is lovely, we can stay focused on our inner Self - that still point that never changes - and find teaching inspiration from there. This allows us to remain professional, positive and authentic.
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Deepening connection with students

When you're engaged, curious and inspired, you naturally become more interested in your students - their needs, their challenges, and the nuances of their practice.

This deepens connection and helps you to meet each person where they are in their practice. When they feel well met, they feel connected, safer, more relaxed, and more open to learning.

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Creativity and freshness in teaching

Feeling inspired makes it much easier to be creative. You could still be teaching the same core practices, but you can find new angles, philosophical themes, or ways of cueing.

You might explore new imagery, different progressions, or a new way of presenting a familiar sequence. Novelty can help keep students engaged and inspired, instead of becoming habitual and inattentive.
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What to do when you feel uninspired

If you’re feeling uninspired, you need to do something different to rekindle it.

Below are some practical ways to try when you need to reignite your inspiration. I have used all of these myself, and some of them regularly.

At different times we need different approaches. If one doesn’t work – try another!
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Ways to cultivate inspiration

1. Return to your personal practice

When you’re linking yoga to your own lived experience - anatomy, breath, mental attitude, approach to life - that authenticity is what makes your teaching resonant, real and inspiring for your students.

If your personal practice has drifted, isn’t nourishing you, or if it feels stale – it’s time to revisit it.

Sometimes it helps to attend classes with another teacher, either online or in person. That teacher might be more experienced, or simply different.

Every teacher offers something different from what you do - in their manner, their sequencing, their pacing, their attention to detail. Find something that feels ‘right’ for this moment.

By noticing similarities and differences, experiencing others’ teaching helps you recognise what is unique about your teaching.

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2. Continue learning

Workshops, CPD events, online courses, specialist training - any aspect of yoga that interests you and challenges you a little can bring new perspectives and new life to your teaching.

You might study areas of special interest, for example:

• Sound work
• Anatomy
• Pranayama
• The science of stress
• Yoga philosophy
• Sanskrit
• Meditation

Although these may not always directly affect your day to day teaching style, they will keep you curious and inspired.

There will also undoubtedly be interesting nuggets you can share with your students. And enthusiasm is contagious.
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Outside of yoga you could also try:

• Pilates
• Tai Chi
• Rolfing
• Feldenkrais
• Martial arts
• Dance
• Sport

Dipping into different disciplines take us out of our usual mindset and offer fresh ways of seeing the body, movement, coordination and attention.

You’re not borrowing the practices, but you’re allowing their approaches to illuminate your own.
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3. Read and reflect

Dip into yoga books, articles, and well-chosen online resources.

Revisit the yogic texts such as The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali or the Bhagavad Gita and find different translations and commentaries.
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We need to be discerning - there’s plenty of low-quality material out there, especially online - but sometimes, even a single useful paragraph or a few wise words can spark a new line of thought.

Quotations can be useful, to inspire or to be read out in class. A line from Einstein, Rumi or Mary Oliver, can link yoga with the wider world and encourage students to reflect. These ideas can also enrich your own perspective and theme planning.

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4. Meditation and mindfulness

Rather than trying to ‘clear away mental clutter’ through distraction, a regular meditation practice is an opportunity to learn how to embrace the mind-chatter or citta vrittis, put space around them, and transform turbulence into peacefulness.
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You could try:

• A regular home practice
• A guided meditation online (see ‘Insight Timer’ free option)
• A yoga or Buddhist meditation group
• ASMR (see the ‘Sleep Whispers’ podcast if you can’t sleep or feel agitated)

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Any form of focusing or relaxation practice that allows the mind to settle, creates fertile ground for inspiration to emerge.

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5. Connect with other yoga teachers

Inspiration thrives in community and interaction with others. Making time for this is important, especially for busy yoga teachers.

Reach out to local teachers, come along to one of our YogaUK yoga teacher meetings online, join a workshop or course, or reconnect with people you trained alongside. Even a short conversation can offer new ideas or simply reassure you that others face similar challenges.
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Real-time conversations, whether online or in person, offer something that social media doesn't – it creates meaningful exchanges and connection.

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6. Explore your creativity beyond yoga

Inspiration and creativity go hand in hand. Finding inspiration in yoga teaching can come from unrelated creative activities. You could try:

• Art
• Music
• Singing
• Creative writing
• Pottery
• Photography
• Crafting

Even if you don’t feel ‘good at it’, creative expression wakes up parts of the brain that directly impact your teaching. It helps you think more fluidly and stimulates the right hemisphere of the brain, allowing a more creative mindset for your class planning.

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7. Cultivate gratitude

Cultivating a gratitude mindset can be quietly powerful. When the inevitable demands and challenges of life become overwhelming we can get stuck and uninspired. A gratitude practice can offer some relief and let things flow again.
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Here are three approaches:

1. Make a list of 100 things you’re grateful for in your life.
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2. Each night before you go do sleep, write down three things that you are grateful for from the day that has just passed.
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3. Reflect in your journal on things that you appreciate about teaching yoga.

We are problem-solving creatures, wired to be acutely aware of signs of danger. A gratitude practice doesn't make life's challenges go away, but it shifts your perspective. When you feel grateful, inspiration can gently begin to re-emerge.

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A final thought

Inspiration is not static. We have all experienced how it comes and goes. I enjoy the challenge and discipline of finding inspiration as I sit down to write this article each month.

At different times in life we need different inputs - more learning, more rest, more creativity, more input from others, more time alone, or simply more time on our own yoga mat.

If you remain curious and reach out, while staying grounded and not grasping, you are allowing your inspiration to return naturally to support and bring flow to your practice and your teaching.

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News and resources

Yoga Teacher Networking meetings

These sessions are short meetings designed to connect and support us all in our yoga teaching. More info here Make a note of the dates in your diary and join the next session to share, listen, and get inspired:

• Saturday 7th March 2026 at 10-11am
• Saturday 9th May 2026 at 10-11am

Our friendly get-togethers are open to all yoga teachers and are free of charge. You'll receive an invitation by email the day before, if you are subscribed to this newsletter. (If not subscribed you can sign up here. To unsubscribe from the invitations, select Preferences at the bottom of this email.)

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Resources:

👉 BWY Foundation Course online - a deeper dive for serious yoga students alongside their weekly classes - free introductory workshop for anyone curious: Saturday 14th February 10.30-12.30pm
​Course runs Mar-Dec 2026. Email yogauk@gmail.com for a course information pack. An overview of the course can be found here.​

👉 Essential Anatomy and Physiology for Yoga Teaching online study - more information here​

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Please feel free to pass this newsletter on to any yoga teacher friends or colleagues who might be interested in any of the content. They can sign up to receive newsletters to their own inbox at www.yogauk.com
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