So my friend called me up this afternoon, knowing I had just finished my training and said that the health club she works at needed a sub for their Thursday evening yoga class. And they could provide child care. How stupid would I be to say no? So I said yes.

I have learned these things about teaching at a gym:

1. Always let the class know what kind of yoga you teach. This class apparently had been taught a vinyasa flow class at near aerobic levels for a year and a half. I was told this was beginning yoga. My bad.

2. Talk with the person in charge. While it was nice of my friend to think of me, the person in charge would have benefitted from speaking to me directly and getting the real deal rather than getting hearsay from my friend.

3. Always have a plan B. My sequence went by very quickly and I was left with lots of time to kill. Bummer.

4. Stick to your guns. This evening class really wanted to do a lot of back bending and a lot of energy lifting poses. At night. They also wanted to do poses thatif improperly aligned could cause serious problems. I refused to teach these poses, because these guys could barely stand straight. If they want to be hurt they have to take class with someone else.

Trial by fire. Yum. At least I'm on their sub list now.

Tags: yoga teaching trauma
I feel: confused
I'm listening to: Air Purifier