50hr Therapeutic and Chair Yoga Training

Accessibility, Applicability, and Autonomy in Practice
This training is open to committed practitioners hoping to deepen in their personal practice; yoga teachers (teaching or hoping to); as well as social workers, psychologists, bodyworkers, therapeutic recreationalists, art therapists, and any other group or health workers looking to offer simple yoga tools to their communities as an add-on to their current therapeutic practices. This training was developed with each module building on the previous one, but can also be attended as individual modules. This yoga training is based in the lineage of Krishnamacharya and TKV Desikachar (viniyoga), where we consider what is appropriate practice – why, for who, and for what purpose. In this lineage we focus on the FUNCTION of practice over the FORM, which means that anyone who is breathing can do this practice. 

This training is intended to offer practitioners the space and time to deepen in their personal yoga and meditation practices within a like-minded practice community (sangha) as well as offer practical ways that simple therapeutic teachings may be formally taught or facilitated in group settings (within or outside of a yoga studio), or informally lived and shared as life practices with friends, family, and community. It is open to students of any age, ability, and mobility level (students living with injury, who are wheelchair bound, with concussions, etc).
**This training does not certify you as a yoga teacher, but can act as a complement to your current yoga teaching or other therapeutic practice.**
20hr Chair Yoga Training
Dates TBD
 
This introductory training focuses on exploring the FUNCTION versus the FORM of an āsana (yoga posture) practice, as per the tradition of TKV Desikachar’s ”viniyoga”. It also sets the groundwork for ongoing exploration of the model of Heyam (symptom identification), Hetu (causes of symptoms), Hānam (goals), and Upāyam (steps we can take to make change) in our teaching and practice. *No pre-requisites for registration in this module*
 
We begin with a review of basic anatomy and biomechanics, the Vedic Pañca Maya (the yogic understanding of human constitution), and explore how to do the same joint actions in all planes of motion (seated, standing, laying down). Students will participate in classes where we use the chair and wall as a prop, and practice teaching in small groups in two planes of motion at a time (ie: teaching a short sequence standing and seated at the same time). A small homework assignment will be presented at a 90min private session online with Kassandra between our two sessions. This time will also be used to create a small and realistic personal practice appropriate to your constitution, state of health, and needs to deepen your learning journey so that you can teach what you have practiced and embodied yourself.  
 
In the second day we will explore how to identify the needs our students might have and how they change over time – for śamanam (rest+relaxation), śodhanam (clearing the cause of issues / improving flexibility), or svatrantram (self establishment / strengthening the constitution). Students will participate in one śamanam and one śodhanam sample class, and we will spend some time discussing ethics and relationships with our students.

​Training includes a digital workbook, 90min private session, and 14 live group contact hours.
​To receive your 20hr certificate of completion (and Yoga Alliance CE hours if desired) participants will need to complete:
   • At least 13 of the 14 live contact hours
​   • The private session with Kassandra
   • A final homework assignment submitted to Kassandra over email 
   • Short feedback form
​
​10hr Yoga for Seniors Training
Dates TBD
​
This training builds on the skills developed in Module 1 (Chair Yoga) and focuses on understanding basic physiology, the four parts of the breath and their function, and how working with breathing through yoga practices can support some common physiological pathologies. *For movement teachers: YTT 200hr or base level training in your modality required, and 20hr Chair Yoga Teacher Training strongly recommended * For psychotherapists, social workers, OT’s, PT’s, group workers, massage therapists etc, no prerequisites*
 
We begin with an introduction to biopsychosocial senior and older adult needs, review large joint actions on all planes of motion, and add an exploration of the smaller joints in the body often affected by pathologies common in older age. We will discuss the four parts of the breath and their function on our subtle anatomy and physiology, and briefly explore pain and pain management from allopathic and Vedic perspectives. Students will participate in a class where we practice in a chair with arms or in a wheelchair (as is required to be used in a seniors home or long term care facility). Students will also practice teaching a short breath and movement practice in small groups.

​Training includes a digital workbook, 90min private session, and 7 live group contact hours.
​To receive your 10hr certificate of completion (and Yoga Alliance CE hours if desired) participants will need to complete:
   • At least 6.5 of the 7 live contact hours
​   • The private session with Kassandra
   • A final homework assignment submitted to Kassandra over email 
   • Short feedback form​

​20hr Yoga for Limited Mobility, Trauma, & Chronic Disease (Applied Subtle Anatomy)
Dates TBD
 
This training builds on the skills developed in Modules 1 (Chair Yoga) and 2 (Yoga for Seniors) and focuses on deepening our understanding of the human constitution from a Vedic perspective and how that parallels allopathic physiology. Expect practical applications of deeper yogic tools and teaching in “unconventional” settings. *For movement teachers: YTT 200hr or base level training in your modality required, and 20hr Chair Yoga Teacher Training strongly recommended * For psychotherapists, social workers, OT’s, PT’s, group workers, massage therapists etc, no prerequisites*
 
We begin with reviewing the yogic understandings of the Vedic Pañca Maya (human constitution), a yogic understanding of agni (metabolism & digestive fire) and the pañca prāṇa vāyu-s (5 main physiological systems), and then move towards exploring very practical tools to work on these levels with a student. Time will be spent diving into basic understandings of inflammation; of the physiological effect of breath on nervous system, heart function, and circulation; and current allopathic and yogic understandings of pain. We will also briefly look at common conditions and pathologies through the vayu + pañca maya model. Students will participate in a class for extremely limited mobility (to practice tuning into very minimal movements and how they functionally parallel larger more familiar yoga postures), and another class in Ukrainian (to see how it feels as a participant to not understand the language your teacher is speaking). Students will also practice teaching āsana (postues) with deeper tools such as prāṇāyāma (formal breathing practices), bhavana (imagery), sound (humming, vowel sounds etc) and more to a small group.

​Training includes a digital workbook, 90min private session, and 14 live group contact hours.
​To receive your 20hr certificate of completion (and Yoga Alliance CE hours if desired) ​participants will need to complete:
   • At least 13 of the 14 live contact hours
​   • The private session with Kassandra
   • A final homework assignment submitted to Kassandra over email 
   • Short feedback form
Pre-Reading
Yoga Sūtra-s translated by TKV Desikachar: https://kymyogavaisharadi.org/display/bhashya/reflections/iast 

Location and Access Info
All sessions (both group and private) will be conducted online through a Zoom Healthcare account. 
Participants will need access to a device with internet connection, and video and audio.
**Please contact me if you need support finding a device to join the training**

Supplies needed include:
• Some sort of chair
• Access to a wall or back of a door
• Your digital 
• If desired: props/supplies that you use with clients in your modality
**Only recordings of sample classes will be shared with the group, not lecture portions/discussions.**

Please email me with any access needs and I will do what I can to accommodate you to participate in this training to the best of your ability. 
Rates  (in Canadian Dollars – CAD)
Benefactor Rates  – Suggested for those with a salary, health benefits, property ownership, savings, and/or family/spousal support.
Sustainer Rates – Suggested for those with expendable income, savings, and/or family support. 
Community Rates – Suggested for those with livable income and can meet basic needs.
NOTE – If you have the means to pay market price (Sustainer rate) or higher and choose not to, remember that means others with precarious finances have less access to this work. Please let us know if these rates are still inaccessible and we can have a discussion that is beneficial for all parties.

ALL 3 MODULES TOGETHER (10% DISCOUNT)
Benefactor Rate $1100+hst 
Sustainer Rate $945+hst ​
Community Rate $805+hst 

2 DAY TRAININGS (Chair Yoga OR Chronic Disease)
Benefactor Rate $465+hst each​
Sustainer Rate $400+hst each​
Community Rate $345+hst each

1 DAY TRAINING (Yoga For Seniors)
Benefactor Rate $295+hst ​
Sustainer Rate $250+hst ​
Community Rate $205+hst ​

​Previously Run Trainings:
• "Therapeutic & Chair Yoga Teacher Training" (40hr Teacher Training) @ Union Yoga – 2020
• "Chair and Accessible Yoga" (20hr Teacher Training) @ Union Yoga – 2018, 2019
​

​Testimonials
"Kassandra's training was so much more than I could have ever expected from a Chair and Accessible Yoga training. Kassandra has not only a brilliant mind but a brilliant heart. Their depth of embodied knowledge allowed for a deep, fluid dive into yoga philosophy as it applies to accessibility and inclusivity. I left this training feeling not only like I had more to offer my students, but that I was more well-equipped to go deeper into my own practice, both on the mat and in the world. If I had to choose what I found most valuable personally, it probably would have been Kassandra’s particular way of sharing the philosophy, as well as their teachings on the vayu-s and pranayama practice. Something in the way that they taught allowed this stuff to land for me in ways it hadn't before.” 
Angelica
​
"The Chair and Accessible YTT will invite you to rediscover the fundamentals of asana practice, drawing from the extensive tradition of yoga to then adapting the asana practice to each and every person and their body. The body, your body, my body is in all a wonder and what hold us in grace to this moment. You will be held with grace under Kassandra in both developing your capacity for understanding yoga philosophy, creating a practice that speaks to more than one way of practicing asana, and to confront your privileges in being able to even access spaces for practicing yoga asana. Whether your practice is in using a chair or any other kind of structural support you will develop both a creative and sensitive lens in creating a truly inclusive practice." 
Kais Padamshi
​
“Kass’s teaching style is truly enlightening and their training would be ideal for anyone looking to deepen their practice and/or understanding of yoga. I left the training feeling completely transformed and am deeply grateful for the experience.” 
Sos E
​
“Kass is a thoughtful and knowledgeable yoga therapist and teacher and their chair yoga course is a must for any yogi wanting to develop a more accessible yoga practice.” 
AM
Giving what is appropriate is Viniyoga.
By an appropriate person, to an appropriate individual,
at an appropriate time,
in an appropriate manner. It is not casual or routine. Not by anybody to everybody.
Not anything and everything. It is unique, highly individualized and very specific. This is Viniyoga. This is life.
You can only give what is inside you. Not what you have seen or heard. Not what you have read or collected. It has no relevance. It is not appropriate. It is living in memory. Living death
​
Internalize everything–collect, hold, reflect,  practice, verify, and live–and then give as it applies to the other. This is difficult, time consuming and not economical. But every individual deserves this.
Viniyoga expects a lot of responsibility, because it provides immense opportunity for both the student and the teacher.
Because in the process, they grow together.
Viniyoga insists the teacher to have complete practical wisdom of what they teach. Viniyoga expects the teacher to silently reflect-never to judge. Viniyoga demands the teacher to have complete mastery over their senses and mind.
Teach with total involvement, full commitment and with positive outlook. Do not teach if any of these qualities are missing, it is a waste of time for both the teacher and the student. A teacher's work is only done when they find an able student to carry on their teaching: the student helps the teacher to complete their mission, their life. So, teach your students with all respect and humbleness.
Teachers and students!
Do not allow your practical wisdom to stagnate and die! The more you spread, the more it springs inside you. It is not yours; it comes to you through eternity. Happy are the birds that are free! Let thousands of lamps receive their lights from you! Let thousands of people get new lives from you! Let the mighty river of Viniyoga flow forever and ever!
​
​~Dr N Chandrasekaran