MĀ Wellness
Modular 500 Hour Yoga Teacher Training
500 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Victoria BC
By adding 300 additional hours to your 200-hour designation you are eligible for a 500-hour advanced certification through the Yoga Alliance. 200+300= 500 hour RYT (registered yoga teacher.)
This program can be customized to suit each teacher’s interests and needs. There are required courses that everyone must do in order to receive the 500-hour RYT certification. The rest is a choose your own adventure!
Modular Yoga Teacher Training Program
This pathway is perfect for students that want to educate themselves within their own time frame. After enrolment, participants have three years to complete their hours. Modules are offered monthly. For the student that wants to create a more layered experience and gain more knowledge in areas like Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, Sound Healing, Prenatal Yoga, and Yoga Nidra. Pick the courses that interest you, and add up hours as time goes.
Students that have already completed a 200-hour training can be eligible for a 500-hour advanced teaching certification. 300 hours in our modular courses, over three years allows for a more leisure learning experience that is customized to how you want to teach. The following courses are required courses in order to receive certification. The rest can be added to make 300 hours, based on each student’s interest levels.
Required Courses:
30 Hours Embodied Yoga Anatomy Courses with Dr. Carrie Watkins ND
- The Science of Embodied Yoga Level 1 (in person or online)
- The Science of Embodied Breath (in person or online)
10 Hours The Bhagavad Gita Book Club with Sarada Jagganath or Katyanna Ryan (in person or online)
30 Hours Introduction to Sanskrit with Sarada Jagganath (in person or online)
30 Hours Yoga Philosophy Courses with various instructors (check current schedule for more information)
30 Hours Meditation Intensive (online or in person)
120 Hours of Focused Asana Teaching Methodology Courses
Examples:
- 75 Hour Internship Program
- 100 Hour 5 Elements Yin Yoga Teacher Training
- 40 Hour Restorative Yoga Teacher Training
- 30 Hour Trauma Informed Yoga Teacher Training
- 50 Hour Creative Sequencing for Vinyasa and Hatha
- 30 Hour Assists Course for Vinyasa and Hatha classes
- Master Teacher Training Intensives
- Pranayama Intensives
50 Hour electives of your choice.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Q) I didn’t do my 200 hour training through MĀ Wellness and Yoga, am I still eligible to do my advanced training with you?
A) Yes. As long as you did your program through a yoga alliance accredited 200 hour program, you are eligible to do 300 additional hours with MA to become a 500 hour certified RYT (registered yoga teacher.)
Q) My practice is not “advanced,” can I still do the program?
A) Absolutely! Yoga is not about your physical practice. Every time you step on your mat to practice, you are working with your own body. An advanced practice is not about headstands, it is about awareness and personal dedication.
Q) I have injuries, and I have to move slowly. Can I still do the programs?
A) Yes. Our teachers are highly trained to work with you. Being able to understand the function and foundation of a technique does not require you yourself to do it.
Q) I’m not interested in the required courses. Do I have to do them?
A) Yes. These courses are universal in helping you to be a well rounded teacher.
Q) I am looking to do the condensed 4 week module. It is 200 hours. How do I earn an additional 100 hours for certification?
A) In order to earn a 500 hour RYT certification, you must complete the required courses. This will give 85 additional hours. The extra 15 hours can be done with any module of your choice as an elective.
Q) I am facing financial barriers, is it possible to do a payment plan?
A) Yes. We can set up personal payment plans that meet individual needs.
Q) Do you offer scholarships?
A) If you are South Asian, BIPOC, or a member of the trans community, spots have been allotted for you to receive a partial scholarship in every training. Fill out the application here.
Q) What kind of support can I receive to further my teaching?
A) The internship program is perfect for students that are working to get more individual attention. Read more about the Internship program below.
Q) Do I receive a discount on classes while I am in a program?
A) Most of the programs don’t allow you to practice much outside of the teachings. However, while you are taking a program, you do receive a 50% discount off passes that are not intro passes.
Q) How do I apply through yoga alliance?
A) After program completion, you can apply your certificate into the Yoga Alliance database and the school will approve your course completion. For more information, check out https://www.yogaalliance.org/.
Current Courses
4 Week 200 Hour Advanced Vinyasa Teaching Intensive
With Katyanna Ryan and Guest Teachers
*This program offers 200 hours towards your 500-hour certification
This 200-hour module is perfect for teachers that are focused on vinyasa and Hatha teaching primarily.
Perhaps the most common comment we hear from students after they finish the 200-hour program is that they really miss having their classes evaluated. It is not too often you get a lot of feedback on your classes after you go out into the world and start teaching. For this reason, we have created a 4-week teacher training intensive that provides a lot of direct teaching opportunities, feedback, and support in refining your teaching skills.
This annual course is a perfect accelerated track for students who are looking to improve as vinyasa teachers. Students of this course must be prepared to teach and be evaluated in a safe and supportive environment.
In this learning-intensive, students come to the course prepared with ideas and sequencing structures that our instructors can work with. Daily presentations allow participants to get used to being seen.
This is a teaching boot camp of sorts where students are constantly developing their presentations with our master teachers, being supported in their ideas, and given ample opportunity to teach the daily assignments.
Students that are looking to obtain a 500-hour RYT certificate are still required to complete the following required courses outside of this training:
- 30 hour The Science of Embodied Yoga Level 1 and 2 with Dr. Carrie Watkins
- 10 hours The Bhagavad Gita Book Club with Katyanna Ryan
- 30 hour Yoga Philosophy Course with Katyanna Ryan
Find your voice, let yourself be seen, and learn to love all aspects of teaching.
Prerequisites:
Course Outline:
- Yoga Philosophy
• Bhagavad Gita, Yoga Sutras, Upanishads
• Selected mandatory readings
• 4 Journaling Prompts (weekly) - Theming, Lineage & Tradition, Seeing Students
Why, how it adds value, relating abstract concepts, weaving in philosophy.
Elements of theming: body, breath, mantra, philosophy, music, mudra, chakras / energetics
• Posture or Anatomy Based
• Philosophy or Life Lesson Based - Lineage & Tradition
-Modern culture, guru culture - Assists: How to Provide Safe Touching for Powerful Teaching
• Why touch, kinds of touch, consent culture
• The need to be seen/witnessed
• Types of seeing: eyesight, hearing, feeling
• Foundations of seeing -building ground up - Meditation, Mantra, Pranayama
Deities & associations:
Why are these essential? -The necessity of ekagrata state.
Cultivating a personal practice:
• Meditation variations – japa, laya, etc.
• Pranayama variations – kapalabhati, nadi shodona, brahmar - Teaching from your practice
• Building progressive practice – teaching to your audience - Professionalism, ethics, the business of yoga
• Professionalism
• Setting up classes and holding space
• How to get hired and get workshops approved
• Successful auditioning - Ethics
• Personal conduct: sex, alcohol, etc.
• Care for the studio as though it’s your own
• Lifestyle - Business of Yoga
• Business Immersion -Crafting your personal narrative & bio
• Photography session for headshots/action shots (5 edited images)
• Create an audition sequence with music
• Specialize & diversify - Practice and Observation
The majority of our Course will be asking students to produce their own work to solidify the teachings given throughout the course. We want to see you teach so you have the opportunity to become comfortable and we can see where you still need support.
Schedule & Investment:
Schedule:
Email us at info@mawellnessandyoga.ca
75-Hour Internship Program
Have you completed your 200-hour yoga teacher training? Are you looking to expand your skills? Further your education with the Internship program at MĀ Yoga.
Mentorship is a foundational aspect in becoming a yoga teacher and has been a part of the teaching journey for as long as these teachings have been shared. Taking a 200 hour training course is a great first step, but often leaves a gap for graduates as they step out into the world.
All of the teachers at MĀ deeply revere these practices and want to pass them down to our students with the highest respect and clarity.
The internship program is an invaluable learning opportunity that allows students that have already completed a 200-hour program a role of leadership within a 14-week 200 hour yoga teacher training. It is designed to help teachers refine their skills as yoga teachers and facilitators. With a flexible schedule and one on one support, this training opportunity is like no other.
A small group of interns (4-6) will shadow our 200 hour yoga teacher training as interns embark on their own separate learning journey.
Join Sarada Jagannath, Katyanna Ryan, and Carley de Goede in a program that will launch your teaching and give you the opportunity to work with some of the city’s most experienced and dedicated yoga teachers.
Program Includes:
Interns will meet in a group once a week for 2 hours. Group classes will be done in four modules.
- Module 1–Hands on Assist with Carley de Goede
Professional Videos of Sequences and Hands-on Adjustments: Interns can hone in more specifically on their learning through watching the videos of the series done in the program and refining their knowledge of adjustments through practice and careful instruction.
Interns will attend āsana sessions within the program and offer hands-on assistance to the current training session. The lead instructor will shadow and observe their attention to detail and proficiency in the adjustments. This check-in during an actual class is a way for interns to really observe bodies and gain real-life practical skills.
2. Module 2–Theming, Class preparation and Teaching Techniques and Katyanna Ryan
Leadership Training: As a mentor, you will help to guide new students through the process. You may meet your mentees in the studio outside of class and help them prepare for practicums and encourage them as teachers.
3. Module 3–Ayurvedic Lifestyle, Sarada Jagannath
This module helps you to create a connection to Ayurvedic wellness and learn to incorporate a dinacharya (daily routine) as well as understand the medicine in a more profound way.
4. Module 4–Mantra and Pranayama Sarada Jagannath and Katyanna Ryan
Learn to pronounce Vedic mantras correctly and use them confidently in classes. Recording are provided.
Use pranayama effectively and be clear in your teachings and personal practice.
5. Module 5–Shadowing and Teaching Katyanna Ryan
Teaching Asana and Meditation: Interns take a leadership role within the program by teaching asana and meditation classes to the trainees. The lead instructor attends classes and gives feedback.
Each intern has a small group of trainees that they will serve as mentors for. If the students are struggling the mentor is there to guide them and nourish their journey. As a mentor, you will help to guide new students through the process. You may meet your mentees in the studio outside of class and help them prepare for practicums and encourage them as teachers.
6. Module 6–Workshop Preparation and Delivery Katyanna Ryan
Bi-weekly one on one meetings(These are personal meetings and done outside of the group modules): Depending on your own personal interests and goals, each mentor will embark on a research journey into a particular topic. There will be plenty of support and collaboration with the lead instructor to develop a 2-hour long workshop on the topic. Your workshop can be done with any of the lead instructors depending on your topic. At the end of the training, the mentor will compile their efforts and deliver a workshop to the 200 hour trainees.
Schedule & Investment:
Hour Breakdown:
• Group Meeting: 28 Hours
• One on One meeting: 14 hours
• Teaching and Shadowing: 12 Hours
• Workshop Preparation/Research and Delivery: 21 Hours
• This is a 75 hour course that counts towards our 300 hour advanced certification
• A 200-hour yoga teacher training certificate is a prerequisite for this program.
Space is limited! Email katyanna@mawellnessandyoga.ca for more information.
Investment: $1750
Prerequisites:
• 200 hour yoga alliance certified course
• Teaching experience
How to Apply:
• Provide us with a short letter of recommendation from a yoga teacher or a student you have taught personally.
• All letters can be sent to katyanna@mawellnessandyoga.ca with The Header LOR-(Applicants Last name, Applicants First Name.)
Please be advised that in order to be considered for this program you need the following:
• Provide us with a short letter of recommendation from a yoga teacher or a student you have taught personally.
• All letter can be sent to katyanna@mawellnessandyoga.ca with The Header LOR-(Applicants Last name, Applicants First Name.)
500 Hour Teachers
KATYANNA RYAN (SHE/HER)
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Ten minutes later I found myself surrounded by people dressed in white, feeling light headed as the room panted, chanted, and rolled around like animals writhing in pain. My delicate adolescent psyche could barely withstand the “uncoolness” of it all. I began to ask myself if the pale look of terror I would receive from my mother when I told her I had joined a religious cult was worth it.
Two hours later I’m speedwalking to my vehicle trying to put distance between myself and what I had just encountered. I felt loopy, famished, and had just mustered all the dignity I had left “recreating” my own birth. The level of bizarre activity was something I had no intention of speaking of again and needless to say, I would not be returning.
The next day, however, I awoke with a lightness in my body and a freedom of movement through my spine that, at that point in my life, was an unparalleled sensation. To my surprise, I did go the following week, and the week after that. Before I knew it, these practices became a regular thing for me. I continued to explore other practices and I was struck by how different I continued to feel. Yoga became an invaluable companion to me through my early teens and twenties that drastically altered my life.
I became interested in teaching and apprenticed my first teacher in 2006 studying hatha yoga. I moved to India shortly after and began intense study in Ashtanga Yoga and philosophy, Chanting/Sound Yoga, and traditional Hatha with Lalit Kumar and Vinay Kumar as well as study in Ayurvedic Practices.
Inspired by Ayurveda, wellness, and movement I began to lead Ayurvedic retreats in Nicaragua for part of the year and took a position as a senior yoga instructor for the Himalaya Yoga Valley Teacher Training School in Goa and Dharamsala, India for the other part.
In 2011 I moved back to Victoria, BC to embark on the study of Chinese Medicine at Pacific Rim College and my perspective on yoga became rocked with the influence of Taoism.
In 2012 I established the Brahmanda School of Yoga. Since then, my fellow teachers and I have graduated hundreds of professionals in the practices of Yoga. The teacher training program has taught me so much about how to show up everyday, no matter what is happening, and how to hold space for people who are working hard to show up for themselves.
Opening the MĀ Institute has been a culmination of inspirations that have taken place on and off the mat. I am inspired by our ability to change forms in unpredictable ways and the grace that practicing yoga can give us in transitions. I am passionate about providing education that empowers the student and gets them to the place where they are asking the big questions about themselves. I believe in “straight talk” when it comes to learning about yoga and want to bring the teachers that are embodying the practices.
Ultimately, the fruit of the practices show up in our authenticity: in who we are, our clarity in how we approach our world, how we communicate who we are, and in our ability to love. I am struck every day by what a tremendous blessing it was to have walked through the doors of that rented church years ago with no intention at all of altering my world views. I guess you never know when a small act will veer you into a new course, and it’s exciting to now hold a space that could have similar implications for someone else.
CHANTELLE MUSSELL (SHE/HER)
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My love of yoga, meditation, and sacred sound healing began when I met MĀ’s Founder, Katyanna Ryan. My first class with her–on my birthday no less–she sang mantras, played the harmonium beautifully, and guided us in Sanskrit through each movement. I was captivated. A few short weeks later, Katyanna, B.Joel (the other owner and co-founder of MĀ), and I found ourselves in Panama on an epic yoga retreat, and the seeds of our budding partnership were planted. B.Joel and I ALSO own a pretty spectacular film production company called Lot2.Media–fun, right? I took the 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training program through Brahmanda School of Yoga and discovered a deep sense of appreciation for the performance aspect of teaching.
I have been a musician for most of my life, and co-creating our urban musical wellness sanctuary has been the greatest blessing. I teach primarily Restorative Yoga with Sacred Sound and believe deep in my bones that making music while guiding restorative classes is precisely where I am supposed to be.
SARADA PRANAV (SHE/HER)
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She went on to study extensively at the Sivanada Yoga and Vedanta Ashram, Kerala, India and at Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana in Bangalore, India and has since taught in India, the USA and Canada. She has been offering Ayurvedic Workshops for the past 8 years in India, USA and now in Canada.
Sarada also offers private Ayurvedic Consultations, teaches Ayurvedic cooking classes,workshops and Marma Kriya.
Sarada is a co-owner of MĀ Yoga and Wellness and can be found teaching yoga and various workshops as well as in the clinic as an Ayurvedic practitioner.
DR. CARRIE WATKINS (SHE/HER) ND
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NYK DANU (SHE/HER)
Nyk Danu (C-IATY, CYA-ERYT 550)
Therapuetic Yoga Teacher,Yin Yoga Teacher Trainer
Nyk believes Yoga has the power to transform lives and change the world. That if you can breathe you can do Yoga. She believes Yoga makes life better.
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Her mission to make Yoga accessible to people who don’t think they are ‘yoga people’. Nyk is an expert in teaching those who aren’t human pretzels.
As a Yoga Therapist, her specialty is helping those who have Back Pain.
Her personal practice and her Yoga classes are rooted in Buddhism, Taoism and Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Nyk has been practicing Yoga since1998. In 2003 she decided to deepen her study and took her first Yoga teacher training and has been teaching Yoga since 2004.
In 2007 Nyk fell madly in love with Yin Yoga and has been studying with her teacher Paul Grilley ever since.
In addition to numerous Therapeutic & Restorative Yoga intensives, she holds the following teacher training certificates:
– 300 hour Yoga teacher training – The Yoga College Of Canada – 500 hour advanced Yin Yoga Teaching certificate – Paul Grilley – 1000 hour Yoga Therapy Certification – Ajna Yoga College
Nyk has also completed 2,300 hours of Chinese Medicine studies and 360 hours additional Bio-medical studies at Pacific Rim College.
CARLEY DE GOEDE (SHE/HER)
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I gained so much healing from the teachers I practiced with and my doing my Teacher Training peeled back many new layers of self-acceptance, bravery and confidence that I didn’t know were there. I found my voice. Upon completion of my YTT I knew I wanted to give back and offer the healing I had received from yoga. I consider myself a lifelong student of yoga and will forever be looking to deepen my knowledge of this beautiful tradition.
My teaching takes inspiration from all the teachers I have learned from and lineages I have been lucky enough to study which include Ashtanga, Iyengar, Traditional Hatha, Trauma Sensitive, Yin and Restorative yoga. Off the mat I am a Facial Reflexologist and Chinese Medicine Face Reader, I have studied the Lymphatic System and how to build Immunity through touch and movement, these things often flow into my yoga teaching.
PILAR MUÑOZ (SHE/HER)
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Pilar teaches from a place of curiosity and humour. You are encouraged and challenged physically, mentally and emotionally to showing up fully! Pilar’s gentle and mindful guidance through postures creates safety for each and every student to intimately connect with their breath. This is the ultimate experience of life. She encourages students not to miss out on any part of their lives: the light and the dark and all the spaces in between.
She is joined on this journey by her two beautiful children who are both her teachers and allies.
Pilar’s trainings include: Modo Level 1 (2011), Yin Yoga (2014), Vinyasa Flow (2014) and Sound Healing Training (2018 and 2019.)
HARISH JAGANNATH (HE/HIM)
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To keep him engaged, his grandmother would tell him stories from the Puranas, Ramayana, and Mahabharata. Little did he know that one day he will be reciting the same stories and carry forward an ancient tradition of oral storytelling!
Fast forward 30 years—after 12 years in the US and 6 years in India as an Assistant Professor in a University—Harish recently moved to Victoria in February 2019. Now, he is revisiting all the stories he grew up with by reading and researching India’s ancient, historical and spiritual texts. Harish wants to share this journey with you and introduce you to the world of ancient wisdom and fascinating tales from the land of Bharatavarsha (what is today called India.)
TARA HEAL (SHE/HER)
Tara landed in beautiful Victoria in 2017 from a 12 year stint living in NYC, and couldn’t be happier! Her teaching has spanned NHL teams, teens, Broadway performers, to office groups offering classes that are powerful, soulful, and dynamic, while incorporating innovative, intelligent sequencing and functional alignment.
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She aims to encourage body awareness, agility, and strength, while illuminating the peace and power that comes from mindfulness. Alongside Yoga, her work as a performer has taken her to stages all over the globe, and she feels endlessly grateful to continue sharing her “why” through movement and music.
Tara fell in love with this practice in 2001. By 2008 she began formal training with Rod Stryker’s Para Yoga Vinyasa Certification (Mary Bruce and Johnna Smith), has continued with trainings, immersions and inspiration from: The Iyengar Institute, Laughing Lotus NYC, Kula Yoga NYC, Moksha/ Modo Yoga, Sivananda, Janet Stone, Carly Forest (Yin), Christine Price Clark, Ryan Leir, Natalie Rousseau, Dina Tshouluhas, Witold Fitz-Simmons, Ted Grand, Jessica Robertson and will be a student for life!
Along with music, Tara is passionate about mentoring new teachers and is honoured to share a practice that has brought so much courage, joy, and freedom into her own life, and intends to bring light and authenticity to all she does. For info on upcoming retreats, events, workshops, mentorships, and teacher trainings visit www.tarahealyoga.com
TERESA CAMPBELL (SHE/THEY)
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For over 25 years I have served communities locally and abroad as a full spectrum doula, celebrant, yoga therapist, grief doula and ritual healing guide-supporting people in thresholds and transitions, in birth, pregnancy, postpartum, holding vigil, living funerals, weddings, death, rites of passage.
I train folks to become fuller spectrum doulas and trauma inclusive-feminist yoga teachers and work to ground my practice in the values of anti-oppression, anti-racism, anti-white supremacy, liberation and intersectional feminism.
I am committed to a life long journey of doing the work necessary and using my place of privilege to support a world that is safer, more inclusive and just.
TIANNE ALLAN
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The experience was so powerfully transformative, Tianne now devotes her time to teaching yoga and offering yoga therapy. She specializes in restorative yoga and restorative yoga therapeutics.
Certified Yoga Teacher RYT500
Certified Yoga Teacher Trainer ERYT500
Registered Yoga Therapist
Advanced Restorative Yoga Certification
Yoga for Golfers ™ Certification
Certified Athletic Coach NCCP
I am profoundly grateful to my beautiful, amazing teachers, for graciously sharing their passion and deep wisdom, inspiring my teaching and my life
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