Intelligent Sequencing for Yoga

Everything you put in your sequence and everything you leave out of your sequence should be an intentional choice.

Before you can start putting poses together in a particular order, you must first understand where you want to go (in this case your peak pose) and the anatomy/biomechanics that are necessary to understand for your final shape. Through understanding the anatomy and biomechanics of your peak, you can intentionally prep your students to get into the shape. While many people will choose to sequence to an arm balance or inversion, a peak pose does not have to be an advanced shape. It can be any pose in your sequence that you want to break down and help your students achieve better alignment in.

Sequencing to a Peak Pose Checklist

• Identify the biomechanics of the peak pose for your sequence.

• What is the basic shape created in the body?

• How are your bones stacked and aligned?

• What is the source of stability?

• What muscles are contracted?

• What muscles are lengthened?

• What does the pose look like if you change the orientation?

• What energetic qualities are present in the pose?

• Where will you put this pose in class?

Once you have answered the questions above, use the considerations below to help you put your sequence together in an intelligent order designed for their growth.

Move From Simple to Complex

In life, as in yoga, we often want to run before we walk, handstand before we have mastered tadasana or plank. Understand where you want to go within your sequence and place poses that are simple before your more complex poses. Start with poses where you have more stability so you can work not just your primary movers but your stabilizers that play a huge role in achieving some more advanced poses.

When we work the simple poses hard then the hard poses become simple. 

• Use poses like Tadasana, Warrior I and Warrior II as blueprint poses.

• Consider changing the orientation of the pose - how does this give you more stability in a similar shape before you move into an advanced asana.

  • Handstand // Plank

  • Wheel // Floor Bow

  • Hurdlers Pose // Extended Hand to Big Toe Pose with External Rotation

• The longer you hold someone in a pose the more challenging it may become. Consider how you can use time in a particular pose to help create strength and endurance for your students.

Move from dynamic to static

When we say move from dynamic to static, we don’t recommend going straight to flow without teaching the poses first, but rather this speaks to the overall energy in class. Create space for flow and movement at the start of class to help your students be able to drop into stillness at the end. Your students will be more receptive to everything you say one they have had time to integrate into their bodies and breath. Get them moving quickly at the start then drop into stillness at the end.

Integration: To make into a whole by bringing all parts together; to unify. 

Sounds familiar, right?

How does integration apply to yoga anatomy? 

Integration involves making sure that all parts of your body are involved in the creation of the asana shape. It requires awareness, alignment and knowledge.

• Integration can help us to create stability in our joints so that we can move in and out of asanas with integrity and safety. 

• It prevents us from collapsing in “weak” areas.  

• It helps to create a sense of lightness.

• Balance becomes easier.

• More strength and flexibility is developed.

Transition Considerations

• Planes of motion: Know what planes of motion you are transitioning through. Avoid open to close hip transitions when standing on one leg. This can cause a grinding of your femur bone in your hip socket and overtime with repetition, can cause a degradation of your hip joint.

• Matching breath: Alternate inhale and exhale poses so that you can flow breath to movement with ease. Avoid double inhales/exhales in any section of class that you plan to flow.

• Stability: Ensure that you have a plan for stability in your transitions. You don’t want your students to fall over when moving from shape to shape.

• Weight transfer: When you transition from pose to pose, your weight will likely transfer. Understand what this means for the transition. You may need to slow the transition down to help move your students through safely.

• Drishti: Generally you will move where you are looking. Cue your students to gaze in the right place to help them go where you want them to go.

Accessibility / Inclusion

Consider how you can make you class accessible for ALL students. Recognize that not everyone can do an arm balance or inversion. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ever teach these poses. Create a plan to include all of your students no matter their ability level.

• Use props to support your students practice. Sometimes a prop can help students to get into a shape that otherwise would not be possible. Props are empowering - use them!

• Offer layers with an intentional '“why” so that students know if/when they should choose that shape or move forward to the advanced version.

• Have a plan but be willing to change. Should you show up and more than half your students are new, be willing to change up your plan to support who you have in the room with you rather than teaching something that is likely not accessible.

If you are interested in diving deep into sequencing, consider enrolling in a 300 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Program.