Since the pandemic, the popularity of #online #yoga classes has risen sharply. With just a simple setup u are able to reach people all over the world. In case you are wondering what it needs to teach yoga online, I will share some of my insights into setting up an online yoga class.
Platform
My choice as platform to do my online yoga classes quickly fell on #Zoom. It's user friendly and available anywhere and across all types of devices. Even though there's already plenty of information out there, I just want to share some of my experience with using Zoom.
The length of a Zoom meeting is limited to 40 minutes, however u can subscribe to a monthly plan for less than 15 USD. With this plan u are able to host an unlimited amount of people for up to 30 hours (I wonder who needs this)! The best of all, people who join your classes can do it for free.
A very useful feature in Zoom when teaching online is the mirror screen option. The mirror effect allows you to view your video as a reflection of yourself. It will not mirror your video to others in your class but it will change your view so that you are viewing yourself from your own camera. So when u bow to the left, u will see yourself bowing in the same direction as your students, no more confusion between left and right!
Lighting
When teaching online, it's very important that your students have a very clear view of yourself. Make sure your background has no distractions and gives a good contrast with yourself, ideally your background is white.
The room where I teach my online classes has a lot of natural #light so during the day I don't need additional lighting. However, when teaching in a darker room, or during the evening for example, it's important u have sufficient ligting from different angles around you to avoid any dark areas and shadows.
Sound
For the audio u should not rely on the in-built microphone in your laptop or phone. As you move during your different poses, the distance between your mouth and microphone will changy all the time, meaning your students may not alwasy be able to hear you clearly. So, I chose to use a wireless microphone for my class (see more on that in another post).
During class
Before every class I make some time for a small conversation to great each other and to check if somebody has some specific requests. However, when the class starts, I mute all participants to ensure there the class remains quiet and I am the only one that can be heard.
In case somebody has a question during class, a simply wave will get my attention!
So it's important as an instructor to alwasy keep an eye on all of my students. After a few classes, I get a good feeling on someone's abilities. I regularly take screenshots from my class to share them with my students to highlight where they did excellent or where they need to make a correction in their pose. It also allows my students to actually see for themselves what they are capble off!
After every class there's some time for feedback and reflection. Make sure u check with all your students on how they felt during class and keep them engaged for they next class!
Setting up an online yoga class is very easy and with the right tools and environment, it can be as good as a private class. With the additional comfort for the instru or student not to have to leave the comfort of your home. If u'd like to know more or try an online class yourself, just reach out or check one of my available classes here.
Namaste
Emmy