East to West Yoga’s
Yoga Exercise Specialist Exam Study Guide:
Relax. The exam is mainly multiple-choice. There will be a couple matching and fill in the blank questions, so you only need to be able to recognize the correct answer. However, to avoid being overwhelmed at the last minute, I recommend studying the manual once a week for an hour each week before the exam date. Remember the purpose of the exam is to force you to internalize important information and to make it your own so that you feel confident and competent as a Yoga Exercise Specialist.
For the Written Exam you will need to know:
1. The benefits of Yoga as Exercise.
2. The Red Flags for referring a student to a medical professional.
3. Body Alignment in Yoga.
4. The “Dealing with Physical Limitations” section of the manual thoroughly.
5. You will need to know whether a posture is a forward bend, backward bend, sidebend, twist or balancing pose.
6. You will need to know the cautions for each posture.
7. You will need to know the following sanskrit names:
Triangle Pose – Trikonasana
Relaxation Pose – Savasana
Prayer Position – Namaskar
Sun Salutation – Surya Namaskar
Mountain Pose – Tadasana
Tree Pose – Vrikasana
Dancer Pose – Nataraj
Sitting Forward Bend –Pachimottasana
Lotus Pose – Padmasana
Cobra Pose – Bhujangasana
8. You will need to know the following philosophy terms:
Chakra, Kundalini, Nadi, Ashtanga, Sadhana, Hatha Yoga, Raja Yoga, Prana, Asana, Samadhi and Pranayama
9. You need to know the breathing, relaxation and meditation exercises covered in the manual.
For the Practical Exam you will need to:
Prepare a full class in writing (1hour to 1.5 hours) and teach a 15-20 minutes component of it as you practicum. You will hand in your class plan. It is not graded so you can use your own method to create it. Your teaching time will be given to you at the commencement of the course. At the end of your practicum you will receive brief constructive feedback to benefit everyone participating. You will be given the written evaluation. The passing grade for the written exam is 80% and the practical evaluation is either a pass or redo. Anyone who does not pass the examination or evaluation can redo it when ready at no additional charge.
Good luck and I look forward to seeing you at Part II of the Yoga Exercise Specialist Certification Program.