Last weekend was the final weekend of our summer 200-hour yoga teacher training. We formatted this summer’s training differently than our winter training. Instead of eight weekends, their training was condensed to five. Their schedule was 6-9 p.m. on Thursdays and 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Friday-Sunday. Our winter training has the same schedule but we start Friday night and go all day on Saturday and Sunday.
We decided to go with the five weekend format for the summer because people have so many travel plans and our summer training usually draws college students on break. The three day weekends were intense but it all went so well.
We had 13 TTs in this training and gosh, I loved them all. They each brought such a unique element to the training. One of my favorite things about YTT is that on the first night we introduce ourselves, many of them wonder what they might possibly have in common or to learn from their fellow TTs. For example, in this training we had a 19 year high school graduate preparing to go to college, a 30 year old pregnant woman, a 49 year old mother of two and a 45 year old successful businessman. Fast forward to the end of training and they all bond so deeply and saw that no matter their age or life experience, they had so much to learn from each other.
We went out with a bang! On Sunday afternoon I spent an hour talking to them about women’s bodies and modifications for pregnant students and then another hour going over the foundations of arm balances and inversions.
I’ll write a dedicated post about this soon but if yoga teacher training is something that you’ve considered but you feel like you’re not ready or it’s not the right time or you’re scared…DO IT! Seriously, it’s a life changing experience and it DOES NOT MATTER how young/old/experienced/busy/etc that you are.
Since our summer TT is always a little smaller, we invited everyone over to our house on Sunday night for their graduation party. It was so much fun! They brought appetizers and desserts and I provided the main dish.
Arnie was so cute and stayed right in the middle of everyone the whole time.
He’s was definitely working his game to get some extra love and attention. (It worked.)
Some of our TTs brought some AMAZING wine. This was some sort of fancy 2008 Italian wine. I don’t know much about Italian wines but this was delicious.
Since our group had very diverse dietary preferences, I thought it would be fun to do build your own Buddha bowls. It also tied in nicely for a yoga party.
Here’s what I did on Sunday afternoon/evening to prep.
- Roasted chickpeas
- Roasted portobello mushrooms
- Roasted sweet onions
- Roasted sweet potatoes
- Sauteed pre-marinated chicken breasts from Whole Foods
- Baked tofu
- Baked salmon
- Made Mama Pea’s Mmmmm Sauce
- Made avocado lime sauce
- Steamed basamati rice
- Steamed quinoa
- Made cucumber ribbons
- Spiralized carrots
- Shredded red cabbage
- Chopped fresh basil
- Chopped fresh cilantro
I was in heaven putting this all together.
Here are the proteins. In the background we also had a kale salad with various toppings that another TT brought.
The avocado sauce is just a couple of avocados, lime juice, water and sea salt blended together. SO GOOD.
Here’s my bowl! I went with rice, chick peas, cucumbers, onions, salmon, massage kale, Mmmm sauce, avocado sauce, carrots and cilantro. Give me all the sauces.
I got very positive feedback on the build your own bowls. I think everyone enjoyed the freedom to customize their own bowl. Sullie enjoyed begging. 🙂
Another shot of my bowl because yum, this is heaven for me. As you all know, I love meals in bowls.
Two of our TTs were expecting so their fellow TTs surprised them with cards and vegan cupcakes. We also had a vegan strawberry pie. We enjoyed desserts as we did their graduation ceremony.
It was such a lovely evening. Teacher training changed my life so I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be a small part of this journey for others. <3
Here’s the link with all the info for our winter 2018 training if you live in the area. #justsayin 😉
What’s your favorite meal to serve while entertaining?
If you’ve completed YTT, what helped you make the decision to go for it?
If you’re considering YTT, what is holding you back?
Thanks for hosting Jen, the food was great! I’d forgotten how light rice can be even in the Summer! Can’t wait to make the pea sauce.
I loved the teacher training and would recommend it to anyone! (I am the 32 week pregnant 30 year old hehe) Thanks for everything! x Kendra
The Buddha bowls look soooo good! I always love them and need to make them more. I found it very interesting you had a pregnant woman in training. I know you went to a training focusing on pregnant yogis and I have a question for you. I’m 23 weeks pregnant and have been on and off with yoga forever. I’ve taken hot classes here and there but never committed. Since getting pregnant I have been doing a lot of you tube prenatal yoga videos, but they usually don’t feel challenging enough, or aren’t giving me quite what I’m looking for. Currently, there aren’t any prenatal yoga classes offered near where I work or live so I’ve been considering going to take a gentle vinyasa flow class at a local studio. It is a hot yoga studio, but the room is not heated for this class, it says the room will be between 75 and 80 (depending on how much it has cooled from the prior class). My dr gave me the all clear to try it, as long as I listen my body (of course). I actually know the woman who teaches it, she has 4 kids and is a nurse, so she seems like a great person to take it from, I also know that if I do become overheated, I can leave and she will understand. I’m curious your thoughts on a pregnant woman (who is far from a practiced yogi) taking a class like that weekly?
HI Jen! I quit my stressful job last month & am planning on doing teacher training at my nearest yoga studio, am going to an informational meeting on Sunday & am so excited, have been watching the training periods come & go & haven’t been able to fit it in with my previous job. Thank you so much for your inspiration!!
For my sister’s graduation party, we served BBQ pulled chicken and pork along with other sides and I think that was a pretty great party option. We could use the leftover meat on salads and sandwiches for the next few days. I absolutely LOVE the idea of DIY Buddah bowls though! I’ve never seen anyone do that. So creative and everyone can craft their own deliciousness.
xxMeah