This post was originally published on Substack, find it here.
This was a question posed to me last week by a reader: “In most of the hatha/vinyasa yoga classes I take, the teachers offer new yoga sequences each week. Is that the expectation, or can I repeat my sequence?”
I believe this question is top-of-mind for many teachers right now, and like most things in life, the answer isn’t a simple “yes” or “no.” Rather, there are a few things you can take into account as you consider whether or not to repeat your sequences.
Here’s my personal experience, which up until a few years ago matched that of the reader above: Generally, when I went to studio classes, I found that teachers offered new sequences each time. This was the norm I experienced and what I came to expect as a student. When I started teaching myself, I adopted that approach.
Then, a few years ago I moved to a new city, and a new studio, and I found that the majority of the teachers there taught the same sequence for many weeks, if not months in a row.
At first, I was a little jarred by this. I had come to expect novelty, and so the repeating sequences felt almost like a cop-out to me. There was some small part of my mind that felt like, “oh, they aren’t putting in the effort.” I know that’s harsh, but that’s what my mind was saying.
Then, overtime, I started to appreciate the repeating sequences more. I started to understand the benefit of practicing the same things over and over, and watching my progress.
Now, where I stand on the matter is somewhere in between. I believe there are many reasons to repeat a yoga sequence week after week. It must be stated, of course, that many lineages of yoga are set sequences – repeating the sequence is the practice.
However, I also think there are some good reasons and considerations for changing it up. Here are some pros and cons:
Benefits of repeating yoga sequences:
Students have time to learn and understand the movements
Strength will be built in certain areas
Students will know what to expect
Students can track their progress
Teacher has the benefit of less time spent sequencing
Teacher gets to practice teaching the same sequence multiple times
Downsides to repeating yoga sequences:
Unless the sequence was created with a lot of anatomical understanding in mind, it can lead to overuse or overstretching of specific body parts
If the student doesn’t enjoy the flow, they might not join you for the next classes
Limits diversity and explorations of multiple yoga postures
So you see, there are good reasons to do it, and some reasons to avoid it.
I think there’s a way to get the best of both worlds. Here are some things you might do to take a “middle path”:
Make a time bound commitment for how long you’ll use your sequence: Tell your students that you are going to work on this sequence for the next month, or maybe three weeks. Then, honor the time you stated by changing it up after that. This means your students know what to expect. If they like the sequence, they’ll come back to work on it. If not, they’ll know to come back in a few weeks.
Make a few “set sequences” and rotate them: If you want novelty, but don’t want to sequence every single week, then you could consider making a solid set of 3-5 sequences that you rotate. You could rotate them every class, or every few weeks. One sequence could be focused on hips, another on backbends, another on shoulders, etc. This way, you shift the focus between different areas in the body.
Cut down on sequencing time by writing down your sequences and use your old stuff as inspiration: I write down all my sequences, and I flip back through to get inspiration. You don’t have to completely reinvent the wheel, as they say, but take an old sequence and ask yourself: How could I change this to make this fresh? Even one little shift or tweak is going to be exciting for people.
Ultimately, you have to do what feels best for you, and what will allow you to show up fully. I personally love sequencing. (Hence this newsletter!) But there are also certain things about my style that stay consistent; there are certain things I always do in my classes. I believe this draws your students to you and makes them stay. You don’t want to reinvent yourself each class. They like what you have to offer, they’ve gotten to know your style, so lean in.
Overtime, I’ve gotten a lot faster at sequencing. A class, which used to take me 1-2 hours to put together, I can now whip up in 20 minutes. That’s because, after many years, my mind knows what postures fit together and how to open the body in a safe way. That’s all down to time and practice. And if you’re not there yet, trust me, you will be.
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