Ep 51: Self-care for Yoga Teachers - Physical Tips

As we continue this month of quick episodes that are tailored to your health, I realize the holidays can be a lot to manage. Are you busy preparing for the holidays with friends and family? Are you planning special holiday classes or workshops? Well, while you're doing all of that, are you also taking care of yourself?

This is an easy time of year to burn yourself out, however taking care of yourself helps you become more present for yourself and your friends & family this holiday season. Besides don't you want to take these last few weeks of the year to focus on caring for yourself?

In this episode, let's talk about caring for yourself, physically. I'll share a few of the practices that help me during busy, stressful times as well as throughout the year!

And I hope that they will be helpful for you and remind you to get back to some of these same practices as well.

You deserve to care for yourself!

Transcript

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I am so excited to continue this month of quick episodes that are tailored to your health. I know this is a busy month for so many. I'm feeling it too. Have you been busy preparing for the holidays with friends and family? Are you planning special holiday classes or workshops? Well, while you're doing all of that, are you taking care of yourself? This is an easy time of year to burn yourself out, but we don't want that. I know, you know, that you must take care of yourself so that you can be present for your friends. And family this holiday season. Besides don't you want to take these last few weeks of the year to focus on caring? For yourself too. And this episode, let's talk about caring for yourself, physically. I'll share a few of the practices that help me during busy, stressful times. And I hope that there'll be helpful for you and remind you to get back to some of these same practices. I mean, I practice these throughout the year as well, but especially during the holidays.. Not only do you need to be reminded of these tips, but you deserve them. Welcome to the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast with me. I'm Monica Bright, and I've been teaching yoga and running my yoga business for over a decade. This is the podcast for you if you're a yoga teacher, you're looking for support, you love to be in conversation, and you're a lifelong student. In this podcast, I'll share with you My life as a yoga teacher, the lessons I've learned, my process for building my business, and helpful ideas, tools, strategies, and systems I use and you can use so that your business thrives. We'll cover a diverse range of topics that will help you whether you're just starting out or you've got years under your belt and you want to dive deep and set yourself up for success. I'm so glad you're here. Listen, I don't take myself too seriously, so expect to hear some laughs along the way. Now, let's do this together. Welcome back to the podcast. I am so truly thankful that you are here. Listening and getting value from these episodes. It's the reason why I'm so glad I started this podcast. To reach you and talk with you. The ability to dive into subjects on social media is so challenging, but here I have more space and time to talk about the conversations. That yoga teachers either don't have, or they need to be more widespread. Okay. Let's get into some ways that I take care of myself physically. Because teaching yoga, running your own business and being an entrepreneur. Can really do a number on your physical health. I am at my computer much more than I ever was when I was teaching in person. I've made some accommodations. I have a standing desk. I take breaks often. I have blue light glasses. And I'm intentional about taking a rest. From the computer screen. All right. These are in no particular order. And I find each of them to be just as important as the others. So if you want to get your journal or take notes on your phone, Or take notes mentally. Now's the time to just, breathe. Settle yourself. And take each of these in. All right. Number one, practice. Yoga yourself regularly. I know, you know, that you should keep up with your own practice, but that's easier said than done. I know I get it. I think about how challenging it can be to get to a class that's just for you and how it's even more challenging to turn off your teacher brain. And just enjoy a class side note. Did you realize or wore you warned in your yoga teacher training? Just how difficult it would be not to think about queues and transitions. And why did the teacher do it that way? And how you would do it instead. That's the teacher brain. And it's so hard to turn off, but being a student, being led and instructed is such a good feeling connecting to your body how you feel and the reactions you may have as a result to oppose or a sequence is also very informative. I always suggest to teachers to do this without harsh judgment. But instead with an inquisitive and curious mind, and it wouldn't even hurt sometimes to turn that off and just be. Without having to understand everything. The goal is to connect back to you. I've mentioned it before. Online studios have been my savior. I've been practicing online since probably 2011. And before that I was practicing with DVDs and VHS. And when I was really young, those workout classes that aired on PBS. Okay. I'm really dating myself here. But the point is I was finding the time that worked for me. The online classes were all prerecorded, but I could take them when I needed a class. Or when I had the time for a class. The point is I was working them into my schedule and I did that because I knew how important it was for me to practice just. For me. Number to warm up before your classes. This is really important, especially if you demo parts of your sequence in your classes, think about this. You don't warm up at all. And then you teach a class and need to demo. Let's say birds of paradise. For example, this is opposed that requires a fair amount of flexibility and range of motion in your hips and shoulders. You're. Doing your physical body, a disservice by not warming up before class. And no, just teaching in a hot room is not enough to protect you. The heat is actually pretty deceiving. And because of it, you feel as though you can push your body into deeper stretches because the room is hot and hot rooms is where I caution students and teachers the most regarding deep stretching. So make sure you warm up a bit before your classes. It doesn't have to be much just some simple movements that expose your body to all of the planes of movement, the sagittal, the transverse, and the coronal or frontal planes. Number three, incorporate strength training. As a movement educator, you know, the benefits of varying the types of workouts you do. So it would not be beneficial for you to only practice stretching. Right? You also need to incorporate strength training as well. I hope you realize that the old ideas we had about lifting weights meant that you had to bulk up and look. Unnatural. It's quite the contrary. Instead, you should be lifting lightweights and gradually increase your load, your reps and your intervals. This is going to benefit your joints and soft tissues in ways that stretching and yoga can not. Plus becoming stronger helps you yoga practice and makes you less prone to injuries. You could do something as easily as wearing ankle and wrist weights or wearing a weighted vest while on your walks, don't make it more complicated than it needs to be. Number four, maintain proper hydration. Again, it's easy to get caught up in your busy teaching schedule and forget to hydrate, but it's so necessary. Especially if you're teaching hot classes and sweating a lot. Lately I've been making this a big deal. I have two water bottles that I must finish every day, no exceptions, but I also include electrolytes at times and focus on eating fruit that has a ton of water content like watermelon. I don't take this lightly. Plus, I've been focusing a lot on skincare and self care, and I want to see the benefits of being well hydrated. How much water are you drinking now? Can you increase it or better yet? Should you be increasing your water intake? Number five. Get regular body work like massage or myofascial release. Okay. This is one of my favorites and I didn't really understand the benefits of it until I experienced it. So I was working at a studio that had a lot of connections with healthcare experts in other areas. So from time to time. They'd have them come in and the teachers could, I guess you'd say sample their services. So we did, and it was fantastic. Also, there were massage therapists who would offer yoga teachers a discount to get regular massages. And, oh my God. Did it feel amazing? It was more than the physical feeling of amazing. It was the feeling that I was caring for my body to. You use your body so much for work that you simply must take care of it. Then I went on to become certified in self myofascial release using yoga tuneup balls. Not only do the training, transformed my teaching completely from my thought pattern to what I wanted to offer to what and how I wanted students to feel. And how I could teach them to become more aware of themselves. I mean, the training was transformative, but I also learned how to massage myself. So when I couldn't get to a massage therapist, I could still reap the rewards that massages have on my body. Do you get regular massages? You should consider them. I promise. You'll be glad that you decided to commit to them. Number six prioritize sleep. Poor sleep. We'll do a number on your body from the way you look, feel, and relate to the world. You have got to get your sleep. Getting adequate sleep helps you to restore your inner. Getting adequate sleep helps to restore your energy, improve your focus and is the foundation to your overall hill. So consider how much sleep you're getting and the quality of it. And be honest with yourself as you determine what might need to change. If you're having trouble falling asleep, start a wind down routine. At least an hour before bedtime, this could include a bath. Low lights, no screen time, music or reading. And if you wake up in the middle of the night, resist the urge to pull out your phone, Try to allow yourself to fall back asleep naturally. I say this as I'm recording in the morning after only getting about four hours of sleep. I just could not fall back to sleep last night and yes, I do feel it this morning. Okay. Number seven. Learn proper demonstration techniques. Okay. Tie this in with number two, warming up before you teach, Popping into opposed to show students who are visual learners is totally understandable. I get it that some students need to see what you're teaching, especially newer students. So while you can't or you shouldn't rule out demonstrating oppose. You've got to be more deliberate about taking care of yourself because you need your body for teaching, but also you don't want to be injured in your life outside of teaching yoga. Right? So, how do you do this? If you're not a teacher that practices the whole class with your students, and there are some teachers that do. And that's perfectly fine, but if you walk around the room more, if you sit or stay at the front of your class, Or even if you teach online and you watch students from your screen, you have to find parts of your sequence to do, to help prepare your body for an advanced pose that you may demonstrate later. Can you do sun salutations? Or could you do seated forward fold? Or maybe some standing poses too, like triangle. All of these, including more will prepare you physically so that you aren't going into a pose that requires deep stretching. Cold. Trust me, you will thank yourself for doing this. Number eight stretch after class, it might feel great for you to do some movement or some stretching that feels good in your body after class, especially if you're only practicing parts of your sequence with students. Yes, your sequence should make your students feel wonderful and not needing more, but you may need something else. So don't discount that and if you need it, do it. Think about it. If you're doing a lot of standing in classes, you might consider a foot massage afterwards. I bet that will feel amazing. When I was teaching in person, full-time one of the little gifts I used to treat myself to. We're monthly massages. I found a couple of places in Chicago that offered 60 minute foot massages. And let me tell you, it felt. Like heaven. All right. Number nine. Address injuries promptly. This is huge. Please do not neglect getting a diagnosis and a treatment plan in place. To help in resolving whatever issue you might be facing. No one likes feeling pain and you certainly must not push through it or ignore it. It will only exacerbate the problem. And again, you need your body functioning well to do your job. From getting a good night's sleep to getting to class Preparing and warming up to teaching well, and having the ability to show up for yourself and your students. I get it. We all get injured from time to time, but take it seriously and understand how to recover. Chronic and persistent injuries are only going to affect your quality of life. Probably negatively. So promise me that you'll take this seriously. And finally, number 10. Take rest. Days, I cannot stress this enough. I recently ran into a teacher who is teaching 25 classes a week. I immediately felt exhausted for her. I know we are trying to make a living teaching movement, but this is not sustainable. Eventually you will feel the effects of burnout injuries, or even a lack of downtime. So that you can feel nourished by rest. You simply cannot continue at this pace. However, if this is your reality. What can you do? Try to get at least one day off during the week. If you can do too, that's even better. And if those two days off can be back to back, that's the shifts kiss. Then notice what you're doing on your rest days. Are you running errands all day or are you spending time in nature? Are you spending time with family and friends? Are you doing or thinking about something other than teaching? For some is hard to be still. I know. One of my favorite ways to rest, but still feel movement is to go to the lake. I can do all sorts of things while I'm there. I could just lay in the sun. I could read, I could people watch. I could be mesmerized by the movement of the water. I could even do a little bit of yoga or some stretching. But I try to stay off of my devices while I'm there also. I love it. And I feel rested and replenished. After a day at the lake. So what's it going to be for you? Do you have rest days now? Are they still filled with work? Do you need to prioritize rest a little bit more? How's your sleep quality. Do you need to improve it? Incorporating rest days, no matter how many classes you teach will be extremely beneficial to your longterm health and wellness. And I must add, especially if you have an injury, your body needs rest. Whether you're a new teacher or a seasoned one, I cannot stress enough how important it is to take care of yourself. Sometimes we can get in our heads and create more trouble than necessary. Uh, this month and going forward, I want you to prioritize yourself and your physical needs. I want you to take care of yourself because honestly, in the end you are all you've got. So you better take care of yourself. I hope this episode makes you think about how you're taking care of yourself. I've added a link in the show notes for you to send me a quick text message about your thoughts on this episode or any other, I won't know your phone number. It's an addition to the platform I use that allows for this new and super easy way for you to communicate with me. Once you click on it, it will take you to your messages. Don't delete the code. That's how your message will get to me. And I would love to know your thoughts on this topic. If he can't tell already, I love diving into these conversations because there are so many important discussions to be had in the teaching world. You know that my goal is for you to love the yoga teaching life. And allow it to be fulfilling and rewarding and sustainable. The ability to take care of yourself while you care for so many of your students is important too. If you love this episode, let me know, subscribe to the podcast. So you're always in the know when a new episode drops and share it with another yoga teacher who you think would love to be in on these conversations. Thank you for spreading the word about this podcast. And if you've been taking notes in your journal, as you listen to these episodes, I'm so glad you are. And I'd love to hear about it. Don't forget to download the ebook sequencing for different injuries. The link is in the show notes, and I promise you. It will help you form a foundation for teaching students with injuries. And it'll be a great resource for you to return to again and again. When you download the ebook, you'll be joining my newsletter. That's just for yoga teachers. I've got more exciting teachings coming soon. So I want to tell you all about them. The link is in the show notes below, and I would love for you to join it so we can always stay connected. All right. That's it for now. Bye. Mhm.