Yoga, Teaching & Social Media - 6 Unglamorous truths.

The Role of Social media in my yoga journey has continued to evolve just as I have as a student & teacher. Yoga happened to me in my mid twenties & as a fairly young and beginner practitioner my mind was blown when I came across the 'yoga world' on social media, especially on Instagram. What I mostly saw were glamorous women in complicated yoga postures, flaunting fancy-labelled yoga clothing while living fabulous lives getting massages, posts from exotic locations, talking about diet trends & all kinds of therapeutic rituals.

Before social media, I thought yoga was a pious practice restricted to India so I was even more surprised when most of the accounts that I came across were non-Indian and mostly white yoga teachers & practitioners. As an Indian, I was not only curious but I was also quite intimidated by the minimal representation from my own community. At this point, the thought of teaching hadn't even crossed my mind but just as a practitioner I wondered if the yoga world is really as glamorous & easy as portrayed on social media & I wondered what it took to have a popular social media account with thousands of followers.

Now, as a Yoga Teacher, I understand the pressure of living up to the unreal expectations set by social media to portray ourselves in a certain way. We see many teachers (I'm referring to asana teachers here) setting high benchmarks for their community and students to live up to. I'm talking about consistent practice, lifestyle, diet, social media presence, aesthetics, appearance...the whole big deal.

Truthfully though, what we rarely see is the effort that goes into it (assuming it is authentic content).

I'd like to share with you a few things that we encounter as yoga teachers which many times pose as challenges or even as growth opportunities for us. These are things that are not always visible on Instagram & yet in some way, social media has a role to play.

I've put this list together after teaching for about 3 years, through the pandemic and interacting with teachers across schools of yoga and levels of experience.

These also address a few questions that I have received from fresh YTT grads & aspiring yoga teachers. So, here is the non sugar-coated truth.

1. Having a consistent personal practice can be difficult but it is essential for yoga teachers:

While we preach consistency, we still struggle with it & yet, we also have to lead by example. Having a practice is essential because, as teachers we are taught to teach what we have experienced. Busy schedules & ever changing energy levels make accommodating a personal practice challenging at times. Most yoga teachers I know of, teach about 3-5 classes in a day + we have our 'office work' which includes emails, planning & conceptualising(classes, events, content...etc), accounting, social media, blogs + research / reading, networking...etc. Some teachers also spend time on commuting to studios or private classes. And there's also home and social commitments. Boom! I said it.

To solve this, I like to calendarise my practice & my work to hold myself accountable in many ways. Social media has proven useful for me to maintain my practice; by sharing and posting about it indirectly helps me hold myself accountable. It has also helped me build my network of yoga buddies and teachers. This was especially helpful during the pandemic when everything was online. I now have my e-sangha for moral support.

2. Class reschedules / cancellations make managing schedules additionally challenging.

I get it that 'Life happens' to everyone. Just like we like it when our teachers don't keep rescheduling or cancelling on us, it has to go both ways - the student has to be consistent and dedicated to the practice and must show up just as much as it is the teacher's responsibility to do so. Some times free slots are a gift to yoga teachers, it means more time for personal practice / learning / simply rest!

It helps to know and plan in advance.

Yoga however teaches us to be flexible so we make it happen somehow. Social media has also connected me with some amazing teachers; we've collaborated & helped each other out in many ways. Managing calendars & finding the right balance is tricky at times; we do get frustrated, we just might not show it & we have each other's backs.

3. No paid holidays / days off.

This applies to our profession, yoga practice & lifestyle.

Income is not always steady, students may cancel subscriptions / pause classes. One has to be wise with their finances & class policies; this is especially applicable for new and young teachers.

Yoga teachers have to practice to stay healthy & fit to minimise sick days. Days off from teaching could mean loss of income. We have to be conscious of our habits & what we eat as well. Not all of us have the affordability or access to domestic help or even fancy ingredients or trending diets. Especially during the pandemic, we've all had to do it by ourselves or with fewer resources. Managing all of this along with a busy schedule can be daunting at times.

Also, shooting pictures & videos at exotic locations comes at a cost of taking personal time off to travel or, we are actually traveling on work for a retreat. Both of these are hard to achieve during the pandemic or even otherwise for some.

4. Injuries are more common than you think.

You rarely see posts about injury on social media because most people don't like showing off anything that's negative. Injuries can occur while assisting or demonstrating. While we practice to stay strong and avoid getting injured, we may sometimes get injured while practicing as well.

Injuries mean additional recovery time & money spent on rehab. This adds to the busy schedule and it's woes. Injuries also mean other emotional rollercoasters to ride on and depletes us of mental energy as well. More about this in another post later.....

However, what might appear as a luxurious lifestyle on Instagram, has proven useful for healthy recovery & rehab. Self-care routines like going to the spa, or getting a massage at home, visits to the physiotherapist/chiropractor...etc. are a necessary investment for some of us. A body that is highly active needs maintenance like how you take your car to the 'Car Spa'.

Some content might be vendor sponsored, some teachers are privileged or can afford these treatments and, others lack access to this or may not be able to afford it. However, sustaining an Abhyanga practice & enjoying epsom salt soaks at home are some simple and pocket friendly self-care routines to follow.

5. The social media dilemma

Many yoga teachers will admit that social media is a necessity but the maintenance requires quite a bit of effort.

Content creation needs time, effort & patience. Most of all it uses quite a bit of energy and does not come naturally & easily to many of us. Some yoga teachers have reported struggling with imposter syndrome when we they try to do something just because it is popular or might appeal to the algorithm. Most of us do not even understand how the algorithm works.

Some people are not even comfortable posting their practice online. Neither are most Yoga teachers trained marketing or PR professionals who know how to leverage "What's Trending" while still staying in alignment with our ethos. Not everyone can afford or has access to a professional photographer, digital equipment, fancy or branded yoga clothing, a yoga studio or pretty practice space, expensive yoga mats, trips to exotic locations...and a bunch of other aesthetically pleasing things we see on the internet.

So if your yoga teacher is not on Instagram or doesn't have a great feed / high following, it doesn't define the quality of their teaching.

It could just mean that they are busy investing their time in honing their own practice & teaching-skills or gaining other knowledge which might benefit you as a student. Some extremely good teachers that I know are not active on social media or have NO online presence.

As content consumers it is important to use discernment & not hesitate to fact-check. Especially as Yoga teachers we need to have a higher sense of responsibility when it comes to the content we share & consume. However, we are human too; we make mistakes calling out left & right & confuse between body parts in class.

I once mixed up the two pelvic tilts in a post & someone pointed it out, so I corrected myself.

Sometimes we could be obviously mistaken or genuinely confused & one could help us realise this rather than judging us.

If you find the content useful and authentic, then show your appreciation by engaging with the content or sharing it and, give the author a shoutout. You never know who might find it useful. It makes the effort worthwhile too.

6. Fatigue is real.

This holds true in the modern yoga world too. Teachers sometimes have physical fatigue from the excessive demonstration which couldn't have been avoided in a particular class. Perhaps an extra class we taught or just a low energy day. It could be zoom-fatigue when we crave silence after all those verbal cues we dished out class after class. Social media itself can be exhausting for yoga teachers, keeping up with content and also generating content to keep our audience engaged.

Fatigue & burn out are different; fatigue can lead to burn out. Your yoga teacher may be stressed/fatigued at times but it may not be obvious. This is simply because as long time practitioners, most Yoga Teachers are able to recognise oncoming stress with a sense of clarity and make the right choices in terms of either hitting pause or managing it with equanimity. On rare occasions, we may not be able to control it because we are human too.

Yoga teachers are here to save you from burn out but in the process they don't want to burn out themselves. So, if your yoga teacher tells you they are taking a break, you can be sure they need it & they will return with renewed energy to your classes. I love using breaks to recharge and I also feel like it rewires my brain in a way that I am able to bring a better version of myself to the class. The energy is fresher.

Now, having said all this it does not mean that you put your yoga teacher up on a pedestal, it just means that we need to be conscious of the iceberg effect that exists on social media.

What you see is not always what you get. There is so much more to people & yoga than what you see on the internet.

In the same breath, be compassionate before passing judgment or choosing a teacher through social media.

While setting goals or comparing yourself with someone else on social media, remember that everyone's journey may look different.

If you found this article useful, give it a like and share it around. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me via messaging on my Instagram or via the contact section in my website here. For more relatable content you can Subscribe to this blog and you'll be added to the mailing list where you can stay updated on anything exciting and new that may come your way.