Planning a yoga class shouldn’t feel like an exam. Yet so many yoga teachers find themselves tangled in notes, overthinking their yoga class sequence, and feeling drained before they’ve even stepped onto the mat.
This week on The Yoga Teacher Collaborative Podcast, we explored how to bring more ease, clarity, and energy into your teaching through The Art of Simple Class Planning. At the centre of this approach is my 20-Minute Sequencing Framework – a practical, repeatable tool that lets you design a meaningful yoga class plan without stress.
In this blog, you’ll find:
- Why overplanning leaves yoga teachers burnt out
- How a 20-minute structure can simplify yoga sequencing
- A step-by-step look at the framework itself
- A free downloadable version of the 20-Minute Yoga Class Planning Framework
Why Overplanning a Yoga Class Plan Doesn’t Work
When you’re cramming pages of notes before every yoga class, you’re preparing to teach from your head rather than your presence. Overplanning often leads to:
- Exhaustion before class even begins
- Rigid yoga class sequences that make it harder to respond to your students in the moment
- Anxiety about “getting it right” instead of trusting your knowledge
Teaching yoga is relational. Your students don’t need a scripted lecture – they need your grounded attention. That’s why a good yoga class plan should feel like self-care: enough structure to feel confident, but not so much that it drains you.
The 20-Minute Framework for Yoga Class Sequencing
The 20-Minute Sequencing Framework is not a formula. It’s a living structure – a container that holds your creativity while guiding you towards coherence and depth.
It allows you to plan a full yoga class sequence in under 20 minutes while keeping the essence of yoga alive. Here’s how it works for sequencing for yoga teachers:
Step 1: Choose a Yoga Class Theme for Your Sequence
Select a theme to weave throughout your yoga class plan. Options include:
- Physical/Anatomical (hips, shoulders, spine)
- Philosophical/Spiritual (yama/niyama, Bhagavad Gītā, mokṣa)
- Cosmic/Cyclical (seasons, moon phases, equinox)
- Subtle Body (cakras, guṇas, nāḍīs, kośas)
Step 2: Add a Mudrā to Your Yoga Class Plan
A mudrā acts as an anchor of remembrance, embodying your theme physically.
Step 3: Mantra or Affirmation for Your Yoga Sequence
Choose a short, repeatable mantra or affirmation that resonates with the theme and mudrā.
Step 4: Create a Movement Motif for Your Yoga Class Sequence
Introduce a recurring movement or gesture that becomes the leitmotif of your yoga class sequence – from warm-up to savāsana.
Step 5: Pick a Focal Pose for Your Yoga Sequence
Select a peak pose that distils your theme and gives the yoga sequence a clear embodiment.
Step 6–8: Supportive Shapes, Body Prep, and Technical Threads in a Yoga Class Plan
Break down the focal pose into supportive steps:
- Use 2–3 related postures sprinkled throughout the flow
- Prep key body regions with targeted shapes
- Thread one technical refinement (like breath, gaze, or bandha) across the yoga sequence
Step 9: Building the Yoga Class Arc (Your Complete Yoga Class Sequence)
Divide your yoga class plan into four time blocks:
- Centring, connection, warm-up
- Sun salutations and standing poses
- Progressions towards the focal pose
- Cooling, seated, reclining, savāsana
Step 10: Closing the Circle in Your Yoga Class Plan
Return to the mudrā, mantra, or theme to complete your yoga class sequence and offer students a final reflection.
Why the 20-Minute Yoga Class Planning Framework Works for Yoga Teachers
Teachers using this simple yoga class plan framework report feeling:
- More relaxed going into class
- Freer to connect with students
- More creative because the framework holds them without boxing them in
It’s simple, repeatable, and keeps sequencing for yoga teachers from becoming overwhelming.
Watch the Full Podcast Episode on Yoga Class Sequencing
In this podcast episode, I walk you step by step through the framework and share examples of how to apply it in your own yoga class plans.
👉You can listen to the Podcast Episode Here
Free Download: 20-Minute Yoga Class Plan Framework for Sequencing
Ready to simplify your yoga sequencing? Download your free copy of the 20-Minute Sequencing Framework and start building yoga class sequences with more ease and presence.
👉Download the Free Framework Here
RELATED: Weaving Science & Anatomy into Your Yoga Class
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Final Reflection on Sequencing for Yoga Teachers
The art of planning is not about cramming every posture and philosophy into your yoga class plan – it’s about creating just enough structure to let your teaching breathe.
Simpler planning. Less stress. More presence. That’s the art of being a yoga teacher.
