Mindful Yoga Education 2021

Integrating mindfulness and compassion as healing and transformational elements in yoga practice.

50 hr training 3 weekends, non-residential training

In the first module of training we will explore the fundamentals of mindfulness practice, and how it is integrated into yoga asana and movement. This will cover the major elements involved in Mindful yoga. There will be some practice every day with an emphasis on theory and learning.

Dates:
Weekend #1: January 15-17, 2021
Weekend #2: Feb 12-14, 2021
Weekend #3: March 12-14, 2021

Place: Oslo Yoga studio

Weekend Schedule: Friday 16:00-19:00 Saturday 10:00-17:00 Sunday 10:00-17:00. + 3.5 hrs homework

Overview:

  • Weekend #1: Fundamentals of Mindfulness and Compassion 
    Mindfulness; definition, history, and science
    3 principles of mindfulness
    The Four Foundations of Mindfulness
    The Attitudes of mindfulness
    Right Effort and the Middle Way
    Loving-kindness and Compassion
  • Weekend #2: Therapeutic Elements of Mindful Yoga
    Therapeutic applications of mindfulness and yoga, overview
    The origins and nature of suffering
    Befriending the body and emotions; self-kindness
    Calming the nervous system, stress relief
    RAIN method; Recognize and Acceptance
    Meeting with difficulty and pain
    Cultivation of positive states; taking in the good
  • Weekend #3: Transforming Suffering into Wisdom
    The ultimate medicine of awareness
    Being Present; learning to Stay
    Mindful inquiry, observation and the Witness
    Skillful action; responding vs. reacting
    Making wiser and more compassionate choices
    Insight into the nature of things; dissolving illusion

50 hr training

In the second module of training we will place more emphasis on exploring how to put the theory into practice by experiencing it ourselves, and teaching it to others. There will be a review of the elements learned in module 1, with more time in the practice and how to teach different forms of Mindful yoga. We will go deeper into asana, meditation, and philosophy. If you are already a teacher from before, it will provide you with the tools for teaching Mindful yoga, or integrating mindfulness into your own yoga style.

Dates:
Weekend #1: April 16-18, 2021
Weekend #2: May 7-9, 2021
Weekend #3: June 4-6, 2021

Place: Oslo Yoga studio

Weekend Schedule: Friday 16:00-19:00 Saturday 10:00-17:00 Sunday 10:00-17:00. + 3.5 hrs homework

  • Weekend #1: Mindfulness of Body
    Asana Practice; how to practice mindfully
    Befriending the body, learning to listen
    Performance/ambition vs self-discovery/Presence
    Heating and Cooling, Tension and Release
    How to sequence and structure Mindful yoga classes
    Integrating movement as meditation
  • Weekend #2: Mindfulness of Feelings
    Integrating the breath into practice
    Bringing healing elements into practice
    How to work with emotional states, disturbing emotions
    Transforming difficult mental states
    Self-kindness and Compassion with our feelings
    Developing open-hearted presence
  • Weekend #3: Mindfulness of Mind
    Sitting meditation practice
    Focused attention and Open attention
    How to teach mindfulness meditation
    Cultivating positive mental states
    Effortless mindfulness and awakening
    Insight into our true condition

 

For diploma: Develop a 90 min. Mindful yoga routine

This is a continuing education program on how to integrate mindfulness and compassion as therapeutic and transformational elements into yoga practice. In this training, we emphasize the wisdom aspect of the yoga and mindfulness traditions, exploring how to transform suffering into greater freedom and self-awareness. The entire 100hr training runs over 6 weekends and is divided into two modules at 50 hours each, which can be taken separately.

This program is beneficial for:

  • anyone who wishes to deepen their own experience of meditation and yoga as tools for transformation, healing, or self-realization
  • yoga teachers who aim to use mindfulness and compassion elements in their classes
  • Mindfulness/ MBSR instructors or students who want to learn more about how to bring yoga into their teaching or practice.

Mindful yoga is founded in the contemplative practices of the Buddhist and yoga traditions and informed by modern research in neuroscience, psychology, and physical therapy. In the most time-proven and scientifically verified methods, Mindful yoga is an effective way to access deep relaxation and meditation states using the breath and body, understand the sources of unhealthy stress in the system, transform psychological suffering through working with the emotions, and re-program negative patterns of thinking or behavior into the freedom of making positive, conscious choices.

You will learn:

  • To embody a present-moment, heart-centered yoga practice
  • How to practice and teach mindfulness and compassion meditation
  • Mindfulness; its history, benefits, science, and methodology
  • To manage chronic stress, pain, depression, and anxiety
  • The basics of Buddhist psychology in relation to yoga asana
  • To understand the roots of psychological distress and suffering
  • How to design and sequence Mindful yoga classes or home practice
  • How to work with difficult emotions or negative habits
  • To develop loving-kindness for increased happiness and connection
  • How to achieve greater clarity, wisdom and insight