21-Day Ashtanga-Vinyasa Yoga Teacher Training Retreat in Tzununa, Guatemala

Students who complete their subsequent training are eligible to register with Yoga Alliance as Registered Yoga Teachers (RYT®).

The Doron Yoga™ Ashtanga Vinyasa 300-hour yoga teacher training program is a life-changing, growth, and transformational opportunity. The program is a special opportunity for 200-hour graduates who are looking to dive even deeper into both the physical and philosophical teachings of yoga and Buddhist traditions. As always, this training will rely on Doron’s no-nonsense, non-dogmatic approach to yogic philosophy. Brought forward with humour, dedication, and support in facing the challenges in your practice as well as your life.

Participants will gain a new perspective on their practice, and learn to become more confident teachers. Doron’s training is known for being more thorough than many of the other training courses being offered today. His passion for his teachings, attention to detail, and noteworthy accolades make him an incredibly qualified and hands-on instructor. Those of you who have already joined programs here at the centre will know the amount of love and time Doron devotes to creating an incomparable in-depth experience for his students.

Doron brings over 25 years of experience in the yoga and spiritual world. He has spent long periods in India studying all layers of yoga, long periods at Zen Centers, studied with a great deal of the leading masters, is the author of The Yoga Lifestyle, and founder of the Doron Yoga & Zen Center. He shares his varied wisdom on yoga, life, and business in practical ways that respect tradition but recognize the times you live in now and your specific necessities.

Beyond a teacher training in Guatemala, this is a personal journey for anyone engaging in a process of personal inquiry - a time for increasing self-awareness and deepening your relationship with your practice and living a healthy lifestyle, supported by a group of like-minded individuals. For those of you teaching, Doron Yoga's approach recognizes that being able to inspire others with the practice comes from the passion you truly hold for it, the depth of your understanding of it, and your ability to communicate it to your students.

This course cultivates these skills to help prepare you to contribute to the yoga community through your teaching and practice. This program will include time spent at The Doron Yoga and Zen Center. A home away from home for many students, you will be able to enjoy a stunning natural setting as the backdrop to your yoga explorations. Life here moves in accordance with the principles that Doron describes in The Yoga Lifestyle. You will try to uphold a harmonious relationship with both nature and the surrounding community.

Pre-requisites

If you are interested in completing a 200-hour teacher training with Doron Yoga prior to this advanced training. This program is open to both graduates of Doron’s training and those who did their certification elsewhere.

Practical wisdom that makes this program unique

Curriculum

This 200-hour course will be conducted at the centre. Since the Doron Yoga 200-hour is in-depth and intense, you get a second chance to digest, ask questions, observe the ways of teaching, and assist the students under Doron’s guidance. Your final 100 hours are to be completed remotely as a self-study. This will allow you to connect with other teachers and reflect on your personal relationship to teaching and your practice. The breakdown of the final 100 hours is as follows:

In addition to daily instruction in meditation, pranayama, yoga, and philosophy, you will be able to enjoy playful activities at the centre and around the surrounding lake. At the centre, they offer fire nights, massages, Temazcal (sweat lodge) ceremonies, and weekly Zen Dances. On your free days, immerse yourself in local Maya culture, try your hand at stand-up paddleboarding, or wake up early to hike a volcano.

Asana technique and teaching methods

You will cover all major poses taught in yoga classes, their alignment principles, correct breathing, drishti and transitioning, as well as, modifications, adjustments, physical risks, emotional and energetic effects, counter poses, and assists. You will cover the warm-ups, sun salutations, standing poses, balancing poses, core strengthening, arm balancing, hip openers, backbends, forward folds, inversions, twists, and savasana.

Practical yoga history and philosophy

Learn the first two chapters of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali in-depth. You will cover the spiritual psychology as well as the layers of samadhi. You will look at the different types of yoga that the Bhagavad Gita teaches, as well as how to use them in classes and life. You will look at the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, touch on Jnana yoga, practice Bhakti yoga, and look at the four noble truths of Buddhism. You will discuss and practice Zen and how to bring it into your practice and life.

Practical yoga anatomy

Learn the correct and safe alignment for all the main poses. Understand the spine movements in a variety of poses, the importance of the hips and how they affect the rest of the body, the functioning of the entire core area, and the relationship between the different body parts. Understand improved alignment for a sustainable practice.

Advanced class planning and sequencing

Learn to sequence for different level classes, from beginners to advanced. Learn to create classes according to the season, the environment, the audience, and the intention. Refine time management.

Pranayama, practice, and teaching

Dive deeper into the practice of pranayama. Learn the basics of breathing practices for yourself as well as how to teach them to others. Learn to create full pranayama practices and how to sequence them for different levels.

Subtle energy and anatomy

Understand the chakras and their practical implementations as tools for assessing your body and mind. Go deeper into the subtleties of your body, and how it relates to outer energies. Understand the koshas, chakras, nadis, vayus, and gunas.

Meditation practices

Learn advanced meditation practices and investigate how to create quick results. Explore solutions for the citta vrtti, learn how to deal with resistance, and Zen versus yoga versus Tibetan.

Ayurveda and the yoga lifestyle

Yoga beyond the mat. Learn how to set practical systems in order to keep the practice alive. Learn about tongue scraping and oil pulling and about the use of neti pot. Refine your knowledge of yourself, your body, and your mind using the Ayurvedic health system. Learn how to use this system to work with other friends and family. Create systems for them and understand how to offer them diet and lifestyle improvements.

Ethics and relating to students

Yoga ethics goes beyond sexual conduct. There are implications to how you speak to students, how to sell your classes, and how to use language and touch. Establishing priorities and boundaries. Understand your dharma and set new standards for you as a teacher.

Observation and critical thinking

Observe classes as well as other teachers in the program and learn to understand both the students as well as the teachers. Learn observation techniques in order to read bodies and know how to adjust and modify accordingly.

Demonstration and proper language

Learn how to demonstrate correctly, how to explain and teach poses while demonstrating, and how to choose the right language to make it crystal clear to the student how to achieve what you are explaining. Learn how to incorporate humor in class and do it in a non-offensive way. It is an art to explain poses in a way that the student actually gets it, and this may be one of the greatest secrets (after sequencing, humour, and hands-on) why students will follow you.

Hands-on assists and verbal cues

Learn precise hand assists, when to use them and how. Learn a variety of verbal cues, how and when to use them, and how to combine them with hands-on assistance.

Teaching practice

You are already probably teaching classes. Now you will get to share your experience teaching and get direct mentoring to understand the little differences that make or break a class. Get insight on how to improve your classes, use better language, or demonstration.

The business of yoga

You are a teacher and you need to make a living. Learn how to teach privates, how to plan and lead a retreat or a workshop, how to get classes, and how to manage online media, from websites to YouTube.

Optional topics for your thesis

Philosophy and history

Buddhist philosophy, koans, meditations and practices, The Bhagavad Gita, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Tantra philosophy as it was in the east and west. Hatha yoga origins and development.

Advanced anatomy and physiology

Anatomy of the spine and shoulder girdle, anatomy of the pelvic girdle. Anatomy and physiology of respiration. Subtle anatomy (koshas, prana, nadis, chakras), and how they apply to a yoga class. Pranayama is the practice and teaching.

Specialized teaching

Pre- and postnatal teachings, teaching seniors, and privates, and understanding how to approach special needs of students. Teaching yoga to reduce anxiety, stress, and depression.

The art of sequencing

Traditional energetics of sequencing, including koshas, nadis, chakras, doshas, and seasons. Specific sequencing for peak asanas, workshops, themes, and specific groups of students, privates, and different energetic effects. Sequencing for your dosha and Yin yoga classes.

Chanting, mantra, meditation, and other traditional yoga techniques

Bhakti yoga, tradition, and today. Meditation practices in specific traditions, techniques, and solutions for specific issues. Kriyas and other Hatha yoga practices.

The DYZC is located in Tzununa, which is surrounded by hills on Lake Atitlan with great views of the volcanoes on the other side of the lake. Hiking, swimming, and kayaking opportunities can be found around the village, which also has a dock where local lanchas (boat taxis) stop every 20 to 40 minutes to take you to explore other towns around the lake. San Marcos, the closest town over, can also be reached by foot along a dirt road. There, trainees can relax in one of the many cafes and restaurants or partake in an array of healing offerings, including shamanism, cacao ceremonies, Reiki, massage, and much more.

Among others, San Pedro, a short ride to the other side of the lake, has more of a vibrant backpacker’s vibe and is a little less expensive. At either end of your training, the nearby cities of Antigua and Quetzaltenango (commonly known as Xela) are only a few hours away and worth the visit. If you are interested in a massage, the Doron Yoga and Zen Center can arrange for a masseuse to come to the DYZC. Tibetan singing bowl chakra and physical balancing treatments and massages are available at the DYZC. All treatment costs will be at the student's expense.