Review: My Experience with Santosha Yoga Institute
As soon as our fast ferry pulled up in to the crystal clear waters of Mushroom Bay Beach, I know that Nusa Lembongan was where I wanted to complete my Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) one day.
It was our first visit to Lembongan, just a couple of years ago. We instantly fell in love with the place, at the time we described it as a low-key, relaxed Canggu, not yet over run by too many visitors but still had great cafes, stunning beaches and incredible places to explore.
On our first visit we stayed at the Tamarind Resort which we can highly recommend if you’re looking for a more plush stay. Alternatively, there are endless options across the island all at different price points. I’d love to get around to doing a Lembongan Travel Guide post soon, however, in the meantime, pop any Q’s about the island in the comments below.
We discovered the amazing Santosha Yoga Village whilst dining at the a gorgeous little cafe called Ginger & Jamu on the shores of Jungutbatu Beach. The food at this place is delicious and nutritious, see pics below. Santosha operates its yoga institute in the shala above the cafe looking out across the turquoise water of the bay.
We visited the island again in December 2019, where I was able to explore Santosha even further and attended the public yoga classes on offer at the shala. It honestly just felt like home, I knew I was in the right spot.
After returning home in January, a month later, I decided it was time to finally book my YTT so I scheduled it in for June 2020. I was just so excited to have finally prioritised it and went ahead and booked flights too! It was finally happening!
But of course, life doesn’t always go the way you plan it, particularly when 2020 and COVID-19 is involved.
Online Learning
Upon realising that June was not going to be possible in terms of travel to Bali, I pushed back my YTT to October for when COVID would be ‘gone’. However, over time we all realised that October would still be an issue for this virus and fortunately Santosha had just launched their online learning space.
At first, I was skeptical about the online learning structure. I wasn’t sure if it would be immersive enough, not to mention the disappointment surrounding my island life retreat for 5 weeks! However, I decided that I wanted to be productive in the time that I was ‘stuck at home’ so I swapped my YTT over to the online class and commenced with the second group of online learners in May 2020.
In terms of functionality, Santosha utilised the Google Classroom platform which allowed things to flow quite streamline as well as the use of email correspondence and a designated Facebook group.
Yoga Style
One of the big questions you get asked when you say you’re a Yoga Teacher is ‘oh what style of yoga?’
There are a range of different yoga styles out there and there are a lot of people with strong opinions about which ones are true yoga styles.
Santosha yoga style can be described as Hatha Vinyasa, and focuses mainly on correct alignment, posture and a full understanding of the 8 Limbs of Yoga. Meaning that the focus is never on the final asana (or the pose), the focus should remain on the connection between movement and the breath.
Santosha operate on the principle of ‘Chitta Vriti Nirodha’ which roughly translates to calming the fluctuating mind and draws upon the teachings of Krishnamacharya (the father of modern yoga).
Content & Assessments
Santosha delivers content through a variety of means including, pre-recorded classes and lessons, prescribed readings, live workshops, mentor calls and lectures.
The content is offered within the following modules postures, pranayama, anatomy, meditation, kirtan, philosophy and the principles of Yoga including Yoga Nidra.
There were approximately 5 assessments throughout the course, these were well-supported and guided through each step of the way. The instructions were very clear and Santosha provided many opportunities to understand each requirement through live videos, email support and question forms. They scaffolded each step so that you never felt out of your depth with any assignment.
The content is designed for 5 weeks of full time study. For me, it was a challenge to complete the 5 weeks whilst maintaining any kind of work or home life, however, Santosha were flexible in how you decided to complete the course.
Self-Pacing Options
Fortunately, Santosha offered a self-pacing option. I was juggling work at the same time as completing my YTT so graduating with my original class in May 2020 wasn’t an option. I was able to continue self-pacing through my course and ended up graduating with the following class in June.
Santosha provided great communication for those that were self-pacing and just rolled me over to the next class on Google Classroom without any issues.
Teachers
The teachers facilitating this course were sensational. I particularly loved Sarah’s posture workshops, she was extremely well-versed in all the postures and provided useful feedback to assist us with developing correct form and alignment.
Sunny, the founder of Santosha, was incredible during her mentoring sessions with us. She was nurturing and caring towards all students. This warmth and love was felt even through the digital, virtual space.
Meret was another beautiful yoga teacher who took us through our daily live asana practices. She had such a gentle manner about her and was very informed and educated around Santosha’s yoga teachings.
Each teacher I engaged with in person, went above and beyond to enable me to feel included and part of the Santosha family.
Community
When I enrolled into the online course, I assumed that I would miss the connection component of studying overseas. I was really looking forward to making new friends in new places. That being said, the connection in the online groups was a lot more present than I would have predicted. There was opportunity for each of us to open up and I actually felt quite connected to the students and even the teachers. I’m still connected to a number of them via social media now. Whilst, I’m not sure if we’ll ever get to meet in real life, I can say that the community connection was quite strong for an online course. It really felt like a safe space.
Lembongan
As part of the course fees, Santosha include the opportunity to go back to the Lembongan when things open up to enjoy the teachings and full course experience, in person. Of course this is not a requirement, however, for a lot of us there is an appeal to being able to head over and finally have our island retreat!
For me, I’m still not sure if I will end up heading back over. It’s September 2020 as I write this and our domestic state borders are closed, let alone our international borders. It will be a long while before we’re allowed to travel internationally again, so whilst I never did get to complete my YTT on the island as planned, there’s always the option to go back or even complete my Level 2 certification over there!
Post-YTT
I wasn’t sure how I would feel after completing my YTT. I wasn’t sure if I would feel ‘ready’ to start teaching, however, Santosha really do set you up to teach your first class straight away. I’m already teaching virtually from my lounge room for corporate offices across Australia and using the learnings that Santosha has provided me with. It’s a great, practical course that allows you to come out ready to teach yoga.
Santosha’s YTT is registered with the Yoga Alliance which acts as a regulating body for yoga teachers and schools throughout the world. Upon completing your YTT with Santosha, you have the ability to register through the Yoga Alliance to gain your RYT 200 certification.
Are you ready?
Are you interested in studying Yoga? Start your Level 1, 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training with Santosha either online or in person today!
For $100 off your tuition fees:
Book your online OR in-person YTT with the promo code ‘FRIEND’ here
Ensure you mention my name ‘Kelly Piez’ upon booking
Questions?
Did you have any other questions about Santosha or Yoga Teacher Trainings in general? I’d love to hear from you, pop your comments below or reach out to me via Instagram.
