Sequencing for strength, not strain

// a way to integrate 'primal squat' into your flow

Dear Humans,

I want to love every class that I attend, but to be honest, that’s not always the case.

Usually, the thing that dampens my experience the most is when I feel like the teacher doesn’t have a good awareness of how their sequence feels within their students’ bodies.

Disclaimer: All bodies are different and all people will experience a yoga class in vastly different ways, but there are a few acts that will feel kind of bad for everyone.

For example, have you ever been in a class that is ultra-heavy on the wrists (involving many wrist weight bearing postures) but there was no wrist warm-up and by mid-class your wrists are aching? Or, you notice a teacher holds you for an awfully long time in certain standing postures—and then cues one after another—with no relief for the bend in your front knee?

In these instances, a yoga class, which can often be intense and certainly can be hard work, veers into the territory of painful, rather than strong.

We’ve all certainly done some of these things. Teaching a yoga class is hard! We have a lot to juggle and even with the best of intentions, we can forget to do a warm-up or throw in a pose that doesn’t quite fit. But part of learning and growing as a yoga teacher involves a receptivity to looking closely at our approach and questioning how it’s working.

Especially in the world of “creative sequencing” we can easily veer into the territory of throwing anything and everything into the pot, mixing it around, and coming up with something new. But that won’t always feel good for your students, and it won’t always be safe. Smart sequencing involves some experiential or intentional knowledge of how the movements feel within the body.

When I’m sequencing, I almost always try out the movements and transitions first. If something feels “tweaky,” even if I think I can get around it by moving carefully, I’ll often pull it out of my sequence. If it feels bad for you in practice, especially with all your knowledge, then it will likely feel bad for your students, too.

There’s an interesting type of debate in the yoga world right now about “slow” vs. “fast” classes. There’s an assumption that slow is easier, more accessible. But if you’ve ever held Warrior II for more than five breaths you know how challenging it is! Slow, long holds aren’t always more accessible. Sometimes they even become painful.

All of these elements come into play when thinking about sequencing and the experience of your classes: long holds are going to be hard work. And ultra-fast transitions are going to be hard to follow. There’s a balance in here. There’s a middle point that we can seek to find. But it involves some work on the teachers end to really feel your own classes and understand how they are going to translate.

Take the posture in my main flow here, revolved skandasana (some people call it horizon lunge). This posture is actually pretty intense on the wrists. I was once in a class where the teacher cued about five of these back to back, right at the start of class. It felt…bad. There are ways to get around this: wait until your students are properly warmed-up, don’t cue quite as many back to back, or offer modifications (step your front hand forward to alleviate the wrists, or stay in an easy twist instead).

It’s not that we don’t want to challenge our students, it’s more about ensuring our students are moving safely and are able to practice for many years to come.

It’s about Sthira and Sukha. Effort and ease. Not one or the other. Both.

I don’t write any of this to spook you. Especially if you’re a new teacher. Instead, I want to empower you. I want to encourage you to take a critical look at your sequences and movements and try to embody the head space of your students. How is this serving them? I am doing this for “show” or to push the boundaries, or does this actually feel good?

Is this all tracking, my friends? Let me know what you’re thinking in the comments and we can keep this conversation going.

In the flow I’m sharing today I am highlighting ‘primal squat’ which is a movement inspired by the Animal Flow style. (I’m not sure this is a universal name for this posture, so if you call it something else, let me know!). I wanted to show you in the video how I first taught the movement from table top. This was so my students could get the hang of the movement pattern before I incorporated it into my main flow. I then share with you the mini-flow I taught in class. This is all building toward the main flow, which I share with my paid subscribers below.

Yoga friends! I’m wishing you well on this second week of October. Does it feel like time is flying for anyone else?? On my end, I’m already at midterms in my grad school program, and feeling busy but inspired.

I’d love to hear from you. You’re always welcome to drop me a note. I’m here.

Until next time, be well, dear humans.

Warmly,

Izzy

Izzy Martens

author, yoga teacher, sequence enthusiast

www.yogahumans.com

What I Taught in Yoga This Week | October 9, 2024

the write-up

*I find it really helpful to introduce a new movement pattern to my students before I integrate it into the “flow,” so I taught primal squat from table top pose before I jumped into the sequences. Then, onto the mini-flow!

• bear (bent knee downdog)

• knee to elbow

• three legged dog

• primal squat

sample cues for primal squat: right knee tracks toward left elbow, left heel pivots down and left knee bends, hovering the hips over the mat. Kick right leg out to the side and lift left arm.

• three legged dog

• lizard lunge (feel it out)

• option to bind the back foot in lizard

• unwind to lizard

• malasana squat

• malasana swoops

• forward fold

• easy twist each side

• halfway lift

• step back to high plank

• lower to belly

• locust lifts x3

• high plank

• downward facing dog or vinyasa

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If you’re new here – hello!

Let me introduce myself! My name is Izzy Martens and I’m just a human who teaches yoga, writes, hangs out with her two cats, hikes around Colorado, and enjoys creating yoga sequences.

Read more about the history of this newsletter, Yoga Humans, and my ethos below.

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For my paid community, I’m now going to show you the main flow that I taught in class after the mini-flow. This flow includes primal squat and features pyramid pose in a few unique and interesting ways.