30 June, 2016

An intensive yoga teacher training where you live and breathe yoga for a month is a rare opportunity to disconnect with your life as it’s currently arranged and gain an outside perspective. It’s as if you’re stepping outside the box that is your so called life and then turning around to take a look from another perspective. This is a beautiful time to connect with yourself, away from the everyday distractions of work, school, the city you live in, relationships, and just life in general.   

Here are the top five ways that I feel my life has changed since completing yoga teacher training – just to give you an idea what’s in store for you:

1. You will be more mindful

Yoga and meditation teaches us to be in the present moment. This is certainly easier said than done, but escaping from your hectic day to day life to immerse yourself in the peaceful oasis of teacher training makes it easier to practice mindfulness. Starting each day with meditation and yoga will help you develop a healthy routine to carry back home with you so you can maintain peace among the chaos.

2. You will be better able to connect with those around you

One of the best parts of yoga teacher training is being surrounded by a community of like-minded individuals that are all seeking spiritual growth just like you. You will encounter an incredibly loving, open, and supportive environment that will help you just be yourself and connect with those around you. Before you know it you will feel yourself blossoming open as layers of self-doubt, uncertainty, and insecurity wash away.

3. You will be more in tune with your inner self

Taking the time to escape the noise of your everyday life will help to quiet the ramblings of your mind so you can connect with your inner self. Spending a month in a peaceful oasis to focus on yourself is such a luxury that I encourage you to take advantage of if you have the chance. I compare my yoga teacher training experience to self-therapy because it truly helped me grow and discover things about myself.

4. You will break old habits and start positive ones

They say it takes 21 days to start a habit! A month long immersive yoga teacher training takes you out of your everyday routine and gives you a chance to break old habits and work on things about yourself that perhaps you’ve been wanting to change. A month of consistent yoga, meditation, and healthy eating will work wonders for your mind, body, and soul and can be the start of something beautiful that you carry with you when you leave. For example, yoga teacher training helped me detox from coffee and sugar (the first few days were a little rough!) and develop clean eating habits that I’m still maintaining today.

5. You will let go of emotional burdens you’ve been carrying with you for years

In addition to yoga and meditation, a large part of yoga teacher training is svadhyaya – or self-study. You will be getting emotionally intimate with your teachers and peers as you dive into the feelings associated with each chakra. During your month long immersion you will have a chance to evaluate your feelings surrounding different aspects of your life and will have a chance to share with others. It’s surprising what emotions emerge from the depths of our soul when we open up. Some things have been held back for so long we don’t realize they are still there beneath the surface, affecting our everyday lives. Releasing these emotional blocks and holding patterns will free up space for growth and will allow you to move forward with freedom and confidence.

If you are considering going through yoga teacher training, I encourage you to go for it! Whether or not you are motivated to teach and share the gift of yoga with others or if you simply want to do it for you, I promise it will have a positive impact on your life. I thought about enrolling in yoga teacher training for years before I finally took the leap and only wish I would have done it sooner. It will truly change your life if you let it.   

Bio:

Linda Halabi is a writer, traveler, photographer, and avid yogi who recently completed a 200 hr yoga teacher training program with Yandara Yoga Institute in Baja California, Mexico. She hopes to inspire others to create happiness and make positive changes in their lives.