Hands on Adjustments in Yoga
The primary purpose of hands on adjustments is to support your students in safety and stability in their yoga poses. Secondarily, we can also use assists to help our students deepen into their practice.
Research shows that physical touch is extremely powerful and holds many benefits. Physical touch creates a deep connection between individuals. It stimulates the vagus nerve which will activate a parasympathetic nervous system response and calm the body. Physical touch can also boost the immune system and lower blood pressure.
There are several types of assists you can use to help your students move safely through a yoga class these include:
Physical: a physical assist involves physically touching your students. An example of a physical hands on assist would be a downward facing dog assist. In this assist, the teacher should take a Warrior I stance and place the heels of their palms to the sacral area of their student and help them guide their hips both up and back.
Directional: a directional assist involves light or no touch. Typically a directional assist is subtle and super effective. An example of a directional assist might be for the teacher to point to the spot on their mat where they want the student to move their foot in Crescent Lunge if the stance is too short.
Verbal: a verbal assist involves no touch. Rather, the teacher uses their cues to personally and specifically ask a student to adjust their pose. For example, “Matt, soften your shoulders.” then follows up with a celebration to acknowledge the adjustment, “way to go - that’s it!”
Demo: in a demo assist, the teacher simply do the pose in proper alignment adjacent or in front of a student so they can mirror the alignment in their own bodies.
Prop: props can provide excellent support for your students. If you notice a student collapsing in Triangle pose, hand them a block to place beneath their bottom hand in order to help them lift their torso to maintain a cylinder shape of their core and avoid crunching their side body.
Self Assist: a self assist is great for students who have not opted in to hands on touch OR for when multiple people in class need the same adjustment. For a self assist, the teacher will explain (and demo) how students can adjust their own bodies. For example, in Warrior I the teacher may say, “everyone bring your hands to your hips and draw them to face the front of your space.”
Your Stance as the Teacher
It is extremely important to be aware of your stance as you give hands on adjustments both for your safety and for the safety of your students.
Avoid locking out your joints.
Keep both heels grounded to the earth beneath your feet.
Choose from either a deep squat or warrior I stance depending on the pose you are adjusting.
Hand position - avoid creepy fingers, keep barbie/mitten hands
The Approach
When approaching a student to give a hands on adjustment, consider the following:
Ask for permission and allow an opt out at any point during class.
If you are approaching from a direction where your student cannot see you, make some noise so your student knows that they will be touched.
Create stability in your body first before putting your hands on anyone.
Ease into pressure, go from 1-5-1.
Pay attention to your students bodies and breath. Notice if there is resistance.
If you assist on one side, assist on the second side so your students feel balanced.
Stay with them for the duration of the pose.
When to Avoid Assists
If you don’t have a plan or intention.
You aren’t sure how to help them in the pose.
You have a crush on your student - they will feel this energy from you.
You have negative energy present - it will transfer to them.
You don’t have the time to fully give the assist. Avoid drive by assists. Be sure you have the time to stay with them through the duration of the assist.
Be mindful of your body position, avoid contact that puts you in a position that could make someone feel uncomfortable. This might change person to person based on body size/type.
Want to learn more about how to safely give hands on adjustments, join our upcoming 300 Hour Teacher Training Cohort!
