We're thrilled to welcome back beloved teacher and accessibility advocate Jivana Heyman to discuss his latest book, The Teacher's Guide to Accessible Yoga.

As one of the early pioneers of making yoga welcoming and accessible for all types of bodies through his non-profit Accessible Yoga, Jivana has inspired countless teachers to rethink their approach. His new book offers practical guidance on best practices for making classes trauma-informed and tailored to each student's needs.

Jivana stresses that rather than focusing on perfect alignment or achieving advanced poses, a good teacher uplifts students to find their own inner wisdom. We discuss simple techniques like giving options, avoiding assumptions, and letting go of judgement that make yoga spaces safer and more empowering.

Other topics include:

Balancing discipline and self-compassion in practice

Integrating meditation and pranayama into asana classes

Teaching in a way that serves both introverts and extroverts

Fostering student agency and community

Jivana also shares personal stories from his 30 years of teaching experience to illustrate how yoga can be transformative when focused on creating connection rather judging ourselves or others. His humility and kindness shine through as always!

We're giving away a copy of Jivana's illuminating book The Teacher's Guide to Accessible Yoga. Listen to the end of the episode to learn more!

Thank you for listening and for helping to spread the message of inclusive and compassionate yoga spaces!

Links:

The Teacher's guide to Accessible Yoga Book Launch: https://www.accessibleyogaschool.com/teachers-guide-to-accessible-yoga-launch

Accessible Yoga School: https://www.accessibleyogaschool.com/jivana-home-landing

Accessible Yoga Association: https://accessibleyoga.org/

Jivana on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jivanaheyman/