Most likely, if you are here, you already know that you have a heart felt desire to help, to ease the pains of birth, the fear of death and all of the waves of life in between. The field of yoga therapy is emerging out of traditional ways of knowing combined with a scientific understanding of the body, an intuitive insight into what is and a refined interest in solving puzzles. While the field of research and our understanding of trauma is expanding at exponential speed we can know that a thing is effective by using it and testing it on our own practices. Our program is based in the academic process combined with real life practice. Atlas Yoga School and the 1000hr Yoga Therapist Teacher Training is based in Southern, Ontario, and can be completed in a hybrid in-person and/or live online format.

 Atlas Yoga School Yoga Therapy overview

Design and teach therapeutic yoga for groups and individuals with specific needs or health challenges.

The Professional Yoga Therapist Program is an accessible, trauma informed modular training program. As a complete professional program, students are prepared to design and teach therapeutic yoga for groups and individuals with specific needs or health challenges. Students develop knowledge and understanding of the philosophy, theory, process, and application of yoga therapy using the Atlas Yoga Therapy model, based on the Five Koshas. Modules I and II provide the essential foundation for integrating the knowledge and skills required to be a Professional Yoga Therapist.

Module III is a mentored practicum to provide clinical experience as well as personal and professional growth. Modules IV-VI are advanced courses designed to further your skills in working in complementary settings, integrating Ayurvedic principles, posture analysis, and adapting classical yoga practices for specific conditions and populations. All modules address issues of cultural appropriation, inclusiveness, accessibility, gender and equip participants with trauma informed language and methodologies.

Next Intake

There is still time to book your personal intake interview in early November - we have times available early mornings, days, evenings and/or weekends.

1. You can email us at ays@atlasstudio.com to book your personal info and/or intake session. In our initial conversation we discuss the program and your goals to see if we are a good it.

2. Then you decide if you are applying and there are certain deliverables in your application that help us to determine your individual needs.

3. If you are accepted into the program and accept an offer of admission we book our next one-on-one session and discuss your curriculum, schedule and commitments.

4. Programming Begins in November with an orientation session TBA.

5. You may require a bridging program depending on your previous training and the next bridging program begins in November, 2024.

Our yoga therapy training program is in line with the current IAYT Educational Standards.

Curriculum

Module I

• The first semester is about personal and professional development and provides an overview of the yoga therapy field and the methodology specific to the Atlas Yoga School and our Yoga Therapy Program.

• Students will gain a strong biomedical and mental health foundation, including an introduction to current scientific research on yoga therapy.

• Students learn the philosophical underpinnings of the evolution of yoga therapy in India and in the West, as well as a survey of the various tools used in yoga therapy, such as asana, pranayama, mudra, yoga nidra, guided relaxation, and imagery. This module leads students through a Seven-Kosha Model to describe all the dimensions of a particular health condition and aid students in developing a curriculum for a 10-week group series that they will be able to take and use at the end of the module.

• In-depth training in facilitating a group experience and in conscious communication is covered, as well as the ethics and best business practices of teaching yoga therapy. Lastly, students are introduced to the ways to manage their experience of personal transformation through self-development as a yoga therapist throughout the training program.

  Module II

• Continues the personal and professional development and overview of the yoga therapy field begun in Module I. Students dive deeper into anatomy, physiology, applied kinesiology, ergonomics and neuroscience.

• Students explore lifestyle-related diseases and common mental health disorders and a therapeutic approach for healing through yoga, and assessing for imbalances through the lens of the Koshas, the Doshas, the elements and alignment.

• Further familiarization and integration of biomechanics and somatic movement occurs in this module, as well as a more profound review of the principles of Ayurveda as they relate to yoga therapy.

• The development of individual sessions is a stronger focus in this module, and students learn to translate the principles and skills of the therapeutic relationship for practice in a one-on-one setting with clients. Formal and informal assessments throughout the module provide the evidence from which student and faculty may gauge the student’s learning progress.

  
  Module III

• This module is a comprehensive exploration of physical asana as it relates to the practice of yoga therapy. With instruction in concepts of motion as well as advanced study of anatomy and physiology, you learn

  • To assess for structural imbalances and design an appropriate yoga therapy session to bring balance to the body

  • Asana modifications for physical limitations and other considerations

  • How to devise a class series for diversely bodied populations and present your protocol with feedback and support from peers and faculty.

  Return home with a more in-depth understanding of asana and anatomy ready to support a variety of body types and abilities with yoga therapy and assemble asana plans that meet your clients’ individual needs and support their growth and development over time.

• This module included a distance-learning-mentored self-study course in which students prepare and deliver yoga therapy in one-on-one and group sessions. Upon registration for the module, students will be paired with a mentor—all mentors are experienced yoga therapists and graduates of an 800-Hour Professional Yoga Therapist program—who help guide the student through the module coursework via email, telephone, video conference, or in-person meetings if they live in proximity, and act as liaison and advocate between the student and Atlas Yoga School.

• The module is comprised of 219 total hours, divided between practicum delivery and practicum documentation and mentorship hours.

• As required by the International Association of Yoga Therapists, 150 hours must come from clinical delivery of yoga therapy: one-on-one and group yoga therapy sessions in real time. The remaining 69 hours of the module are comprised of documentation, including but not limited to, designing a yoga therapy group class series, creating a protocol for an individual client, assignment completion, written session reflections, and written and verbal communication with the mentor.

  
  Module IV

• This module takes its starting point from the introduction to pranayama and subtle anatomy laid out in Foundations of Yoga Therapy in modules I and II and explores pranayama and the realm of subtle anatomy with more depth and breadth.

• Students learn to navigate the nadis, chakras, and prana vayus of the body, as well as how to incorporate mudras in yoga therapy consultations.

• Students are instructed in an advanced pranayama practice as it relates to the work of a yoga therapist. Course content is woven between didactic instruction and experiential practice so that they come away with a strong understanding in body and mind of the inner workings of pranayama, mudra, and subtle anatomy and how to work with each to assist with correcting imbalances at all levels of the koshas.
  
  Module V

• In this module, students gain basic knowledge of many of the more common manifestations of disease in the West, including metabolic syndrome and diabetes, autoimmune disorders, cancer, respiratory illnesses such as asthma and COPD, and Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

• This overview, guided by medical experts, is followed by sessions devoted to the use of therapeutic yoga tools that address these conditions. Using case studies and live demonstrations, students gain a thorough understanding of the scope of practice for yoga therapy in medical settings while learning how to navigate the world of western medicine as an alternative wellness practitioner. By the end of this module, students will have designed group-series curriculum based on the learnings from the module.

• Students will present a thesis paper on a specific population and prepare and teach a 10 week series of class for this population.

• Students will work one-on-one with an individual with a specific condition for a period of 12 weeks and prepare a case study to be submitted for reviewed by the lead instructor and peers for feedback.
  
  Module VI

• This module explores the application of yoga therapy in the mental health field and how to use yoga for trauma, grief, and addiction.

• Students learn from experts and explore the application of yoga tools in applied methodology sections. Using case studies and experiential practice, students engage with the material through intellectual discourse and embodied learning. Learning progress is charted through an initial and final assessment.

• Students will prepare and teach one karma yoga project for a particular mental health condition and deliver that program for 10 weeks.

• Students will work one-on-one with an individual with a specific mental health condition for a period of 12 weeks and prepare a case study to be submitted and reviewed by the lead instructor and peers for feedback.
  

Bridging Program …

Not all yoga teacher training program are created with the same rigour. The new standards that are being discussed are going to require that you have 800hrs of programming with the school that you are doing your yoga therapy training with. In the past we were able to take more of your past training and apply the contact hours, content and reduce the cost of your training. This will be changing in the coming iteration of certifications and standards. Our way of supporting teachers who want to become therapist is to create a bridging program for them that is based on an individual assessment of their education, personal practice/sadhana and goals of the program.

In the bridging program you often find

• The Foundations of Posture Analysis

• The Foundations of Ayurvedic Constitution Analysis

• The Foundations of Teaching to Special Populations

• Sometimes there are other pieces that will help you to be successful and less stressed in the advanced trainings

• This program can be short or longer depending on what needs to be covered often 30-100hrs depending on the background of the individual applying. The personal interview is what helps us to determine the curriculum of the bridging program that is required. The Atlas YTT graduates do not need a bridging program unless your 200hr program was more than 10 years ago.

• During COVID - we offered this a zero cost - we will be offering it for 500.00 (still a great deal this January and if your tuition fees are paid in full by December 15th, 2023 we will waive the fee of the Bridging Program.

• Questions about the Bridging Program can be directed to Denise at ays@atlasstudio.com

More about Yoga Therapy and Being a Yoga Therapist

Read more about the average day in the life of a yoga therapist: