A Review from a MyYogaTeacher Member

We were just so excited to see Nikki's review of myYogaTeacher that we asked if we could also share it here. We are LOVING her excitement and enthusiasm for finding HER TEACHER!

Guest post by Nikki Miller

When the student is ready, the teacher will appear attributed to Buddha Siddhartha Guatama Shakyamuni

Maybe you've heard that one? You’re ready to up your yoga game, but where is your teacher?

They’re in your living room.

I mean, not right now (don’t freak out). But they can be in your living room, if you’re ready for one-on-one online yoga instruction, in private, in your home - with a real live yoga teacher trained in India.

Confession: I wasn’t ready. How would that even work? #skeptical

I only tried myYogaTeacher because of three words: Free Trial Period. At least it would motivate me to get on my yoga mat and skip that last hour of Netflix binging.

Fully ready to bail the moment the app got confusing or annoying (nobody has time for a half-baked app), I signed up and the app proved seamless. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves—we haven’t even gotten to the yoga yet!

Me and Pranjal!

I set up my yoga mat in living room and a real, live yoga teacher met me online through the two-way camera on my laptop. Pretty cool… but how could she instruct me through a camera? Still skeptical. Still ready to bail.

She asked about my goals and how my body was feeling (I happened to be recovering from a shoulder injury) and then she tailored the practice to my specific needs that day.

When we got to my Nemesis Pose (the one I always struggle with) she proactively offered modifications — and I actually felt at ease in the pose. Yoga. Epiphany.

Along the way I asked ALL the questions: Can we go back to the last pose? Can we slow down (or speed up) a bit? Can you tell me more about [insert every question I’ve ever had about yoga poses]?

Afterwards they sent me a recording of the session. (Confession: I had absolutely no intention of watching it! I’ve seen myself in the mirror at the studio. Hard pass). But I caved, and the replay revealed how my body came in and out of poses and where I was misaligned until performing the modifications.

My understanding advanced more than it had in months.

I had found my yoga teacher.

Not everything was smooth sailing, though:

1) Setting up the audio harshed my zen. In order to get your entire yoga mat on the screen, you have to place your laptop/device pretty far away, but then it can be difficult to hear through the speakers. In the end, I opted to use my mobile phone for the audio—which worked fine but became distracting while navigating around the mat.

One teacher spoke with a pronounced accent that I struggled to understand. I’d rather say more “OM” and less “Can you repeat that please?”

I tried other teachers over time, and while you learn something from every teacher, not all were the right fit for me. It’s similar to finding your yoga studio home: you’ll know it when you find it.

Sharing physical space and community with other yogis at the studio will always be an important part of my yoga experience. And if I’m desperate I might mimic a pre-recorded yoga class again. But myYogaTeacher is now a critical arm of my yoga practice.

It’s where my experience is expertly tailored to my unique needs. It’s where I can ask questions and receive immediate feedback. It’s where my practice truly advances.

It’s where I found my teacher.

And all from my living room. (Confession: Sometimes still in my pajamas.)