SLIDE 1
Evaluating students
❖ The “ideal” student for headstand (only a
SMALL portion of the class—if any!):
❖ mid-20s to mid-40s ❖ good strength to weight ratio ❖ fair amount of yoga experience ❖ moderately flexible ❖ no fear of inversions
In this video Evaluating a students ability to do headstand - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
In this video Evaluating a students ability to do headstand - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
In this video Evaluating a students ability to do headstand Evaluating students The ideal student for headstand (only a SMALL portion of the classif any!): mid-20s to mid-40s good strength to weight ratio fair
SLIDE 2
SLIDE 3
Teacher’s challenges
❖ Keeping all students safe ❖ Helping students to learn the skills they need ❖ Knowing what each student needs ❖ strength ❖ flexibility ❖ confidence ❖ to not do it at all
SLIDE 4
Starting them out
❖ Start everyone in the basic open-cup position
- n the crown.
❖ Come into set up position and walk feet in,
leaving toes on the ground.
❖ Stay a few breaths. ❖ Come back down and rest. ❖ Ask for feedback.
SLIDE 5
What are you looking for?
❖ awareness level ❖ student’s strength ❖ flexibility ❖ body proportions ❖ age ❖ body type ❖ personality
SLIDE 6
Awareness level
❖ Did the student move elbows out
immediately upon dropping the head into position?
❖ Did the student place the head either too
close or too far away?
❖ Solution: Repeat instructions and have
them do it again.
SLIDE 7
Lack of strength
❖ Was the student unable to stabilize the base? ❖ Was there wobbling in the torso in the
upright position?
❖ Solution: Have student repeat exercise of
walking feet in and back down.
❖ Do not continue until more core stabilization
work has been done.
SLIDE 8
Lack of flexibility
❖ Were the student’s elbows unable to stay in
position?
❖ Was the student unable to get hips straight
up over shoulders when walking the feet forward?
❖ Solution: Work with shoulder openers and
use blocks to walk feet up into position.
SLIDE 9
Difficulty with base
❖ Was student struggling to keep elbows on
floor?
❖ Was student rolling onto back of head? ❖ Solution: Adjust base by putting forearms
and hands on folded blankets. Adjust hands into closed grip.
SLIDE 10
Age considerations
❖ Older students: ❖ use shorter holds ❖ more preparation of neck muscles ❖ do another pose altogether
SLIDE 11
Age considerations
❖ Younger students: ❖ don’t let them overdo it ❖ work on building supportive muscle groups ❖ Both age groups: ❖ General conditioning will affect their ability ❖ Move them slower ❖ Start with shorter holds ❖ Give another pose entirely
SLIDE 12
Body types
❖ Kapha ❖ softer with low muscle mass or untoned
muscles
❖ tends to be less stable in core and more
wiggly when in full pose
❖ typically needs more core strengthening
SLIDE 13
Body types
❖ Pitta ❖ athletic and typically stiffer ❖ tend to be tight in hamstrings, low back,
shoulders
❖ may need blocks to get hips over
shoulders
SLIDE 14
Body types
❖ Vata ❖ willowly, less muscle mass ❖ tend to be weaker in the joints and
sometimes tight
❖ need more general strengtheners and
stretches
❖ keep holds short at first
SLIDE 15
Personality
❖ watch students’ faces ❖ read body language ❖ listen to what they say ❖ give permission to slow down, or not
do it at all
❖ allow them to just watch others;
sometimes inspiration will prevail
SLIDE 16
Now what?
❖ Depending on where student is at: ❖ have each student repeat the walking-the-
feet-in exercise
❖ then assign each to a different activity ❖ see module 4 for additional exercises
SLIDE 17