Prior to YTT, I used to experience yoga classes with genuine curiosity – how would yoga teachers
sequence the series of asanas, what were their considerations? From imagining a holistic flow and
scaffolding the various poses (from easiest to most challenging), to effectively stretching, mobilising
and engaging the necessary muscles to get into a peak pose/s, before finally settling into Savasana. I
had deep admiration for the yoga teachers who created thoughtful, engaging, dynamic and energetic
flows and sequences.
Learning how to design my own yoga sequence has been most enlightening – it could be likened to
conducting an orchestra, to curating an experience, to choreographing a natural and intuitive flow of
movement. We were taught during YTT to organise our asanas in the order of standing, seated,
prone, supine, and inversion. Once we had the framework in place, it served as an integral guide
towards designing our individual sequences.
Even within each category of asanas (e.g. Standing), we had to be conscious of how the poses would
flow and transition, our body’s position and direction in relation to the mat, and to determine the parts
of the body and muscles to engage with purpose and intention. I found it useful to research all the
necessary poses, distilling the essential asanas (while always considering the objective of the
sequence), before organising them in a flow. This included choosing an accompanying music playlist
and identifying the points for Pranayama, Surya Namaskar, Vinyasa, and preparatory drills within the
sequence.
I have particularly enjoyed designing thematic sequences, for example ‘Mental Health and Wellbeing’
which responds to the overall fatigue and anxiety that has surfaced from the uncertainties of the
current pandemic, or ‘Empowerment’ which consists of grounding and powerful poses to build
self-confidence. Designing sequences towards a peak pose (e.g. Bakasana) has also been a
technical exercise and a reminder to be equally conscious of the required preparation and
engagement of the body within my personal practice. Hopefully with more experience, designing
creative, dynamic and freestyle sequences will come more intuitively to me.
Kim
200HR YTT Jul’21 Weekend