3 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Taking an Advanced Yoga Class
All yoga teachers have them. I’m talking about the students who religiously take all levels classes but view advanced classes the way I view running a marathon—me? Do that? Hard pass.
And then there are the daredevils. The students who have been to yoga a total of five times, have no idea what Eka-raja-kapotasana is, but are 100% sure they can nail it.
So who’s truly ready for an advanced class? Well, like most things in yoga, depends.
Of course I’m aware nobody likes this answer. So here’s some questions to consider before you unroll your sticky mat at your local studio’s packed 5:30p Advanced Vinyasa class:
(1) Are you getting too comfortable?
Most of Yoga’s benefits come from respectfully stepping out of our physical, mental, and emotional comfort zones. If you’re not at least a little uncomfortable, you’re probably not flexing those mindfulness muscles that Yoga is designed to train.
So next time Celestia with the moonstone necklace cues you into Downward Dog, notice how tuned in you are. If you’re drowning her out like a late-night infomercial, or could recite her cues verbatim the way any drunken midwestern sorority girl can recite Taylor Swift lyrics, your yoga practice is stalling out.
Don’t let that happen. Check out Brad with the man bun’s advanced class instead. And if even that doesn’t rock your boat, you may want to consider private instruction.
(2) Are you more focused on how you feel that how you look?
In my group classes, I often me say, “Experience is more important than image.” As a mindfulness practice, Yoga is about how you feel on the inside than how you look on the outside. Intentionality—why and how you do what you do—speaks much more to the level of your Yoga practice than your Instagram does.
Āsana, the physical postures of Yoga, can massively transform your body. But probably not in the way you think. Practicing Yoga āsana trains your mind to be more aware of being in and moving your body. It’s your minds ability to move your body more effectively, efficiently, and skillfully that transforms it.
Also, we are all unique snowflakes. Your body is different than my body. Certain postures just work better in some bodies than others. Some bodies (like gymnasts and dancers) have years of training that makes popping into Handstand no biggie. If a posture is easy for you to do it, it isn’t advancing your practice. It doesn’t matter how Cirque de Soleil-like it looks.
(3) Is your teacher (not so) subtly suggesting you’re ready?
Your teacher(s) know thing about your practice. We see how you lock out your knees in Triangle posture. We know you used to hate chanting chanting OM at the end of class but now you love it. And we know you just recently discovered that yin yoga and restorative yoga are not the same thing.
If Johannes who did his yoga teacher training in Kerala tells you one more time that your Crow posture looks strong, it’s time for you to level up. Now, I understand you may not want to takes Johannes’s advice on everything. His suggestions for a good time in Amsterdam may involve entirely too much cannabis.
But when it comes to objectively assessing your āsana practice, Johannes may be more credible than that little voice inside your head. You know the one, goes by the name ego.
But truthfully, it doesn’t really matter if Johannes thinks you’re ready for an advanced class or not. The only real way to know is to f**k around and find out.
So go for it. You may step into that advanced class and it may be scary. And awkward. And make you wish you would’ve just have stayed home with the cats. But you know what? That’s exactly what and advanced yoga class is supposed to do.
True, authentic yoga practice is about empowering yourself to face the messy, hard, and even brutal parts of this life. And over time—if the practice is working—you learn how to face all that crazy sh*t with just a little more ease.
Because let’s face it, the cats will be fine. But this world? It desperately need more mindful, courageous humans.
Hello, I’m Daniela
I’m am LA-based yoga nerd and Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT-500) who specializes in private instruction, injury prevention and management, and optimizing athletic performance. When I’m not re-reading Patañjali’s Yogasūtra on the beach, you can find me conducting qualitative reproductive justice research as a PhD student at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, belting out Shakira at karaoke night, or loudly cheering on the Chargers and Lakers.