How To Become A Yoga Teacher?

  The Market

Yoga itself has been around for centuries but in recent times has grown in popularity in the UK.

The combined market value of Yoga and Pilates in the UK is around £875 million as of 2018. It is also thought around 460,000 Brits take part in a yoga class each week with an estimated 10,000 Yoga teachers serving them.

In other words, Yoga is big business in the UK with expected growth of around 2% per year.

One key point to note about the market is that Yoga is unregulated in the UK which effectively means you do not legally need a qualification in order to teach Yoga in the UK.

  The Hours

Being a Yoga teacher is not a 9 to 5 job. Most yoga classes last between 45 minutes to an hour with most yoga teachers doing no more then 2 -3 classes a week on average in the UK.

This equates to around 3 hours a week teaching with perhaps another hour or two on top for travel.

A lot of yoga classes are done in the evening as well after most people have finished their 9 to 5 job.

In effect Yoga teaching for many will be part time hours.

  The Money

So how much can you earn from Yoga teaching?

Well this depends on where you are in the UK, how many hours you teach a week and whether you are an employed or self-employed yoga teacher.

According to indeed employed yoga teachers earn £25.84 per hour in the UK. With an average of 2-3 classes a week lasting say an hour you could be looking at between £51.68 to £77.52 a week being an employed teacher in the UK on a part time basis.

Self-employed earnings are slightly harder to predict as it broadly depends on how much you charge per class and how many students on average you receive per class.
However, the average cost of a 1 to 1 yoga lesson in the UK is £50 with regional variations of between £40 and £70 a lesson.

For group classes the average size of a yoga class in the UK is 15 students. Now you can expect to charge anywhere in the region of £5-£10 per lesson per student. This equates to around £75 – £150 per group class.

This of course is not pure profit you will have costs such as location, travel and marketing.

  Personal Qualities

If you have ever wondered if you would make a good Yoga teacher then other than a love for Yoga the below qualities are also key to becoming a successful Yoga teacher.

Good Communication Skills – you are going to need to be able to communicate to a class how to do each pose especially to beginners who are more likely to join a class.

Confidence – It takes confidence to be able to get up in front of a class and teach. No matter the topic.

Business Savvy (Self-Employed Route) – if you plan to set out on your own your going to need to be able to find customers and all, admin that comes with that.

Yoga Ability – to teach Yoga you first need to be at a high standard yourself. This involves consistent practise over a substantial period of time.

Listening / Patience – Not every student will get a pose right straight away. Sometimes you might have to explain a pose in a variety of ways for the student to understand it. This involves you being patient with every student regardless of their ability.

  Experience

If you have ever spoken to your Yoga instructor after a class before then chances are you will have been told they have been practising yoga for 10, 20, 30 plus years.

The reason for this is because there are dozens of types of Yoga and hundreds if not thousands of Yoga poses.

Now whilst you do not need to master every Yoga pose or type of Yoga to become a Yoga teacher, you certainly will have needed to master a fair few before you do.

The only way to get to that point is through experience and practise. Hence the 10-20 years plus most Yoga instructors have under their belt.

Whilst there is no set number of years you must have prior to becoming a yoga teacher I would say in order to have mastered enough poses to teach with 5 years is probably the minimum benchmark.

  Training and Qualifications

As previously mentioned in this guide you do not legally need a qualification to teach Yoga in the UK as it is an unregulated industry.

However, some employers might ask you for a yoga qualification prior to taking you on as a yoga instructor in their gym, fitness studio etc.

This will not always be the case, so it is up to you whether you feel it necessary to complete a qualification in Yoga teaching prior to you looking for employment as a Yoga instructor.

If you are interested in taking a Yoga teaching qualification there are three main Yoga teacher associations in the UK: The British Wheel of Yoga, Yoga Alliance UK, and the Independent Yoga Network.

Qualifications You Could Take:

• Level 3 Certificate in Teaching Yoga to Children Aged 5 to 16
• Level 3 diploma in teaching Yoga
• Level 4 diploma in teaching Yoga

There are also various online Yoga teacher training courses you can take.

Online Training Courses You Could Take:

• Training diploma Course (click here to view course)
• Kids Yoga teacher training (click here to view course)
• Become an accredited Yoga teacher (click here to view course)

 Finding employment

Once you have completed your online courses or Yoga teacher diplomas you are now able to look for Yoga instructor jobs. The best way to do this is to go to indeed and search for Yoga teacher or Yoga instructor jobs.

This will bring up a job number of local job ads for employers looking for Yoga teachers.

Alternatively, you could get on the front foot and email / ring round local venues to see if they have any vacancies. A simple Google search for local gyms, fitness or Yoga studios should bring up several possible venues.