Five tips for teaching your first yoga class

The Maiyura team · November 3, 2026

A yoga class stretching on mats in a bright studio — Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Ground yourself and breathe

A woman sitting cross-legged at home with her eyes closed, breathing — Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Nervous? Your students probably will be too. Instead of trying to pretend like you’re a savvy vet, take a deep breath before starting and remind yourself why you’re there: you’re excited to practice and to help them. Where a lot of new instructors go wrong is pretending that they come in with a world of experience when they don’t, which causes tightness in the body, and in the mind. Let go, breathe, and remember your students are in this together with you.

Practice, practice, and practice some more

A woman practicing warrior pose on a mat in her living room — Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

Print out your sequences beforehand, and drill them over and over again with your cues until you have them down pat. A good bar for knowing when you’re ready is if you can do your entire class from memory a few times in a row. Along with this, record yourself running through the sequences on camera. Doing this helps you understand which sections could use fine-tuning, and where the flow of your instructions could be clearer.

Fall back to child’s pose

A woman resting in child’s pose on a yellow mat — Photo by Alexandra Tran on Unsplash

If you forget a sequence and truly don’t remember what the next step is, fall back to child’s pose. This one is everyone’s favorite, helps achieve a deep stretch, and gives you time to check out your printout to remember what the next steps were. Feel free to substitute child’s pose with any other stationary, tension releasing poses like happy baby.

Teach within yourself

An instructor guiding a student into triangle pose during a class — Photo by Sukha Yogashala on Unsplash

It’s easy to think that your students expect you to be a master of your craft and for you to impress them. Remember that’s not the case at all. You, just like your students, are learning and growing alongside them. Remember the sequences that first got you into yoga, the ones that release your tension and put you at ease, and bring that energy to the students. They will respond a thousand times better to it.

Get peer feedback and slow down

Two women balancing together in dancer’s pose — Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash

Before your first class, try teaching a fellow yogi. Without any stakes, you can find areas of your routine that are too rushed. Many first time instructors tend to rush and talk faster than they think, leaving blank space they’ll later have to fill in. Keep in mind your cadence, remember to breathe, think of how much the practice means to you, and you’ll be all set for an incredible class.