Can I take a Yin Yoga training if I have arthritis?
The best course of action is to check in with your physician before signing up for a training . Many students with arthritis (and other physical concerns) have attended the trainings and found it has been suitable and often beneficial.
Do I need to take all three modules to receive a certificate?
After completing each module you can receive a certificate of completion for 50 hours of Yin training. If you complete all three modules you will have received 3- 50 hour certifications. You can take the modules in any order you like as they are stand alone trainings. The first module focuses on the basics of teaching or practicing Yin yoga, while modules 2 and 3 address our own path as teachers and humans. All the modules are based on the practice of Yin yoga and the understanding of the importance of the balance of Yin and Yang in our lives and our teaching. Those who complete 4 trainings are eligible for a 200 hour certification from us, The Jamtse School of Yin Yoga. For more details please see the Homework and Certification page of this website.
What is your relationship with Yoga Alliance
Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Credits
I am a Yoga Alliance 500E registered teacher, as well as a YCEP, which allows me to easily award CE credits for any of his trainings. If you are interested in CE credits for any course from which you have received a certificate, you can submit them to Yoga Alliance and I will get a notice from them which will allow me to verify your completion of the course and you will be automatically awarded the appropriate credits.
Yoga Alliance 200 or 500 hour registration.
The Syllabus for Modules 1 & 2 have been submitted to Yoga Alliance through some institutes that have included these trainings as part of their 500 hour trainings. Students at these schools can receive credit through the school for our module 1 & 2 trainings. Because we have chosen not to try to make the 3rd module comply with Yoga Alliances structure, we have not submitted the syllabus to them.
I believe that Yoga Alliance is full of people with good intentions, I also believe that by its structure and registration policies, it has taken much of the responsibility of finding a suitable teacher or training away from students. In spite of how Yoga Alliance registers teachers and schools, registered teachers and trainings are not all the same. Because of its registration policies it is possible at some schools for teachers with very little experience and education to begin to hold teacher trainings on their own. This is very much contrary to the traditional Yogic way of becoming a teacher. In just over two weeks of training from their first contact with yoga, students are able to register with Yoga Alliance as teachers. Within months of that, they can begin to hold their own teacher trainings Whether a school has 1 year of experience or 30, they are seen as the same by Yoga Alliance and students often feel that as long as the school or teacher is registered, it must be suitable. I believe this is a very detrimental policy for the healthy growth of yoga.
For these and other reasons, we have chosen not to register the Jamtse School with Yoga Alliance. I strongly believe that the time to try to fit into existing systems that attempt to control our personal choices needs to end. The Yin archetype itself represents this understanding.
We urge any student to look carefully at trainings and teachers experience and philosophy and to make their own choice of what works for them.
I am a Yoga Alliance 500E registered teacher, as well as a YCEP, which allows me to easily award CE credits for any of his trainings. If you are interested in CE credits for any course from which you have received a certificate, you can submit them to Yoga Alliance and I will get a notice from them which will allow me to verify your completion of the course and you will be automatically awarded the appropriate credits.
Yoga Alliance 200 or 500 hour registration.
The Syllabus for Modules 1 & 2 have been submitted to Yoga Alliance through some institutes that have included these trainings as part of their 500 hour trainings. Students at these schools can receive credit through the school for our module 1 & 2 trainings. Because we have chosen not to try to make the 3rd module comply with Yoga Alliances structure, we have not submitted the syllabus to them.
I believe that Yoga Alliance is full of people with good intentions, I also believe that by its structure and registration policies, it has taken much of the responsibility of finding a suitable teacher or training away from students. In spite of how Yoga Alliance registers teachers and schools, registered teachers and trainings are not all the same. Because of its registration policies it is possible at some schools for teachers with very little experience and education to begin to hold teacher trainings on their own. This is very much contrary to the traditional Yogic way of becoming a teacher. In just over two weeks of training from their first contact with yoga, students are able to register with Yoga Alliance as teachers. Within months of that, they can begin to hold their own teacher trainings Whether a school has 1 year of experience or 30, they are seen as the same by Yoga Alliance and students often feel that as long as the school or teacher is registered, it must be suitable. I believe this is a very detrimental policy for the healthy growth of yoga.
For these and other reasons, we have chosen not to register the Jamtse School with Yoga Alliance. I strongly believe that the time to try to fit into existing systems that attempt to control our personal choices needs to end. The Yin archetype itself represents this understanding.
We urge any student to look carefully at trainings and teachers experience and philosophy and to make their own choice of what works for them.
I am interested in taking a training, how do I find out more about cost/accommodation/registration?
Currently, all of the trainings and workshops are booked through the studios that host them. You can find links to the websites and contact person for each training on their specific page in the schedule section of this website.
What is the difference between the three modules?
The first module “Taoism, Anatomy and Sequencing” is the more technical module. It covers the basics of Yin Yoga for anyone who wants to teach Yin, or wants to understand their own practice more deeply. The second module, “Embracing the Yin Path” focuses more on our personal path as teachers or humans, through the practice of Yin Yoga, meditation and the 4 archetypes of Warrior, Healer, Teacher and Visionary. In the third training "Storytelling" we explore the path of the storyteller. Through classic stories we will look at how our own life stories can become our teaching stories, and how as teachers, parents and humans, storytelling helps us share the truth of our own experience. For more details please see the trainings and courses section of this website.
Can I still attend a training if I am pregnant?
We have had many pregnant women in trainings over the years and it’s always a blessing to have a new little soul in the circle. We ask that you check with your health professional to be sure that there are no special precautions you might need to take. There may be some postures that you’ll have to modify, but there is always a safe way to do the practice. I strongly believe that the baby is aware of the loving circle that we create together in the trainings and that the love and acceptance helps the baby feel the world as a welcoming place before her journey into this new reality.
Is there any special preparation I need to do before attending a training?
If you choose to come to the first module, there is no particular preparation. If you plan on coming to the second or third module only, then I ask that you get a copy of The Yin Yoga Kit, and familiarize yourself with the basic concepts, and do some of the practices in the book or CD
Do the trainings have to be taken in a specific order?
Although some students less familiar with Yin find it beneficial to take the trainings in order there is no requirement or particular need to do so. Each course can be done as a stand alone training and taken in any order.
Can I take Module Two without taking Module One?
Yes. Level two can be taken without having done level one first. If this is the case, we ask that students taking level two as a stand alone course read Biff's book, "Yin Yoga Kit" so that they are familiar with the basics of the practice as you practice.
Thoughts on practicing Yin with my eyes open or closed
There is no right or wrong way to practice Yin Yoga and having your eyes open or closed is for each individual practitioner to decide. However, if you find yourself keeping your eyes open to distract yourself from what’s happening inside then I would suggested that you close your eyes and try to stay with what’s happening, rather than avoid it. It can so often be the question of "am I running toward something, or away"?
Yin Yoga and Heat: thoughts on practicing in a heated room
The question of practicing in a heated room is an interesting topic and involves not only the physical aspects of the practice, but also our understanding of acceptance and striving.
On the physical side of the practice, we understand that when the muscles are hot, the stretching we get in the postures may occur more in the muscles than in the connective tissue, so it can be said that hot Yin may not affect the deep yin tissue as much as a cooler yin practice. I personally don’t feel that this is a big deal, but it is something to consider. Another physical aspect of practicing in a hot room is that there can be a higher risk of injury.
However, by far the most important way of preventing injuries in any form of Yoga is by being mindful and by not striving. The temperature in the room is less important than the attitude we bring to our practice.
From an emotional or energetic point of view, at first we might think the temperature of the room doesn’t make much difference, however, by heating a room to 105, we are introducing an idea of trying to control things, and not accepting things as they are. By controlling our environment, we are falling back into a patriarchal system of control. Instead of accepting the temperature, we try to control it. We try to control the external aspects of our lives, thinking that it will change the way we feel inside.
It’s a very different mindset when we control rather than accept. Of course there is always the question of balance. We can warm up the room to make it comfortable, and that’s necessary, but is it necessary to heat it to 105 or even 95? Our bodies create their own heat, why do we need to burn oil or use electricity to do it for us? It is a time in history when we need to stop trying to control everything and instead live in harmony with our environment.
On the physical side of the practice, we understand that when the muscles are hot, the stretching we get in the postures may occur more in the muscles than in the connective tissue, so it can be said that hot Yin may not affect the deep yin tissue as much as a cooler yin practice. I personally don’t feel that this is a big deal, but it is something to consider. Another physical aspect of practicing in a hot room is that there can be a higher risk of injury.
However, by far the most important way of preventing injuries in any form of Yoga is by being mindful and by not striving. The temperature in the room is less important than the attitude we bring to our practice.
From an emotional or energetic point of view, at first we might think the temperature of the room doesn’t make much difference, however, by heating a room to 105, we are introducing an idea of trying to control things, and not accepting things as they are. By controlling our environment, we are falling back into a patriarchal system of control. Instead of accepting the temperature, we try to control it. We try to control the external aspects of our lives, thinking that it will change the way we feel inside.
It’s a very different mindset when we control rather than accept. Of course there is always the question of balance. We can warm up the room to make it comfortable, and that’s necessary, but is it necessary to heat it to 105 or even 95? Our bodies create their own heat, why do we need to burn oil or use electricity to do it for us? It is a time in history when we need to stop trying to control everything and instead live in harmony with our environment.
Therapeutic Use and Application of Yin Yoga
I certainly feel that Yin yoga has important therapeutic benefits. There are many teachers who have been through our trainings who are using Yin postures and philosophy in their other healing modalities. Some examples are: physical therapists, thai massage therapists, Reiki therapists, Chiropractors, psychologists, psychotherapists, etc. One of the most exciting aspects of Yin’s potential as part of a therapeutic practice is the emerging understanding in psychiatry that the body needs to be part of any psychotherapy. For trauma to be faced and released, we not only have to address the stories the mind is carrying, but the stories the body carries as well.
In my experience, Yin has the potential to bring healing to the physical body by addressing the deep connective tissues, but for me what is even more exciting is the potential that Yin has to bring balance and acceptance to our lives. It’s from acceptance that equanimity and peace grow.
In my experience, Yin has the potential to bring healing to the physical body by addressing the deep connective tissues, but for me what is even more exciting is the potential that Yin has to bring balance and acceptance to our lives. It’s from acceptance that equanimity and peace grow.
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