Anusara Yoga Teacher Training Program
with Betsey Downing, Ph. D. & Jaye Martin

Garden of the Heart Yoga Center• 1501 Edgar Place, Sarasota, FL 34240 • 941-341-9781

This is the Anusara YTT from 2011, so that you can see what will be included. 

The emphasis of this program is learning to teach; it includes all alignment principles including the Universal Principles of Alignment, Loops & Spirals, and how to teach with a theme using the heart-oriented language. It is a comprehensive training for Anusara teachers to fine-tune their teaching skills and understanding, and for experienced students who want to pursue teaching. The YTT prepares participants to teach the major poses in the Anusara syllabus. Each weekend focuses on developing skill in articulating the poses with greater refinement, becoming more deliberate, succinct, and clear, with a significant amount of time devoted to practice teaching. The training includes the following topics:

• Preparations & warm-ups
  
• Effective communication and heart-oriented language
  
• Variations for injuries and different levels of experience
  
• Sequencing
  
• Common misalignments and hands-on adjustments
  
• Relaxation and basic restorative poses

The YTT program builds on the knowledge of the Anusara techniques and the philosophical underpinnings of yoga studied and refined in the Immersion Program. The Immersion included the details of the poses taught in the Anusara system, and focused on the Universal Principles of Alignment, Loops and Spirals, anatomy, pranayama and meditation, the Yoga Sutras and Bhagavad Gita, and the Tantric philosophy that underlies Anusara.

The YTT builds on the foundation of that knowledge, and includes monthly homework assignments, quizzes on Sanskrit and readings from assigned texts, and practice teaching skills. Students come away with a strong foundation in the ability to articulate pose instructions clearly and succinctly, language skills to inspire students to express their poses from the inside out, anatomy skills of seeing and adjusting poses, in addition to the practical application of yoga philosophy in teaching a class.

SCHEDULE & LOGISTICS
The course meets Fridays, 6:30-9:00pm, Saturdays 12:00-5:00pm, and Sundays 11:30-4:00pm on the following weekends:

March 18-20
April 15-17
May 13-15
June 10-12
July 15-17
Aug 19-21
Sept 16-18
Oct 14-16
Nov 11-13

Attendance at all Teacher Training weekends is expected. All missed sessions must be made up, at the student's expense, through a combination of attending other Anusara teacher training sessions, additional homework, and meeting with other YTT participants to go over missed material and get the notes.

Participants will attend 3 outside yoga classes in 3 different methods of hatha yoga, at their own expense, and submit a report of their experience. In addition, all YTT participants will apprentice for up to 12 weeks in GOH classes, with a variety of instructors over the course of the training.

Students who successfully fulfill the requirements of the YTT will receive a Certificate of Completion from Garden of the Heart Yoga Center. All classroom hours count toward Anusara certification. This training program also meets RYT-200 standards and students may contact the Yoga Alliance for registry at the RYT-200 level at the completion of the program.

REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATION
To apply for the Yoga Teacher Training Program, participants must meet the following requirements:

• Completion of a minimum of 100 hours of an Anusara Yoga Immersion Program; the Immersion Program is the first half of the Anusara Teacher Training Program
  
• Minimum regular home practice of one hour four times per week, for at least one year, and continuing throughout the program
  
• Completion of at least two Yoga 2 courses, or the equivalent
  
• Enrollment in a Yoga 2 class or higher throughout the program
  
• Desire to help students develop and unfold their potential through yoga
  
• Demonstration of a high level of studentship through words and actions

TUITION
The tuition for the Yoga Teacher Training Program is $2100 with the payment plan and $1950 if paid in full by March 18. After you have applied and been approved you may send in payment. No payment is due until you have been accepted into the program.

Tuition due dates with the payment plan:
$500 – March 18
$450 - April 15
$425 – May 13
$400 – June 10
$325 - July 15

No refunds are given after March 18 unless your space can be filled from a waiting list.

REGISTRATION
To apply for the YTT complete an Application Form and give a Recommendation Form to your primary teacher, available at the yoga center or as a download. Upon acceptance into the program you may send in $500 to secure your space, or pay the entire amount in full, to receive a $150 discount. You may pay by check, online with a credit card, or you may call the yoga center to pay over the phone. Send checks payable to Garden of the Heart Yoga to 1501 Edgar Place, Sarasota, FL 34240 or turn into the front desk. Class size is limited to 30.

INSTRUCTORS

Betsey Downing, Ph.D., E-RYT-500, has been a yoga practitioner since 1972 and a meditator since 1974. She is one of Anusara Yoga's earliest certified teachers, and has studied with John Friend as her primary teacher since 1994. Her early influences were Sivananda yoga, Joel Kramer, and then Iyengar yoga for many years. Betsey leads workshops and teacher trainings nationally, including teaching at the Omega Conferences in Miami and New York. She holds a Ph.D. in Sport Psychology from the University of Virginia, and is listed in the World's Who's Who of Women. Betsey's teaching is vibrant with her passion for yoga and special expertise in progressive teaching. Her goal is to create an opportunity for students to connect with their power and wisdom ... and to touch the sacred.

Jaye Martin RYT-200 began yoga in 1998 and is now a certified Anusara teacher. He has studied Anusara yoga with John Friend and Betsey Downing, and Ashtanga yoga with David Swenson and Vickie Sorenson. Jaye danced professionally for over 10 years with the Joffrey Ballet in New York and with the Sarasota Ballet for six seasons. He holds a BA in music and plays the clarinet with the Venice Symphony and the Sarasota Concert Band. Jaye is also an avid gardener and landscape designer.