Updated October 15, 2026 05:23PM
Nerves are something that most yoga teachers experience at one point or another. That’s why longtime yoga teacher Amber Burke, graduate of two YogaWorks trainings and former leader of a teacher training program at the University of New Mexico-Taos, shares her approach to relieving pre-class jitters.
I used to be a bundle of uncontrolled anxiety before teaching a yoga class. My nerves were at their worst toward the beginning of my career, when I was auditioning for a new role or subbing for popular teachers. But even years later, when I was leading teacher trainings, I’d sometimes find myself covered in sweat, the beating of my own heart the loudest thing in the room (to my ears, at least).
Nervousness about teaching yoga is nothing to panic about. In fact, it’s incredibly common. Jitters can mean that you careabout doing a good job. Sometimes they can help keep you energized and focused. But other times they take the fun out of teaching and disrupt the experience you’re trying to provide to students.
Becoming a calmer, more confident yoga teacher is a process of trial and error, but it is possible. In fact, there are many ways to tackle stage fright.
13 Ways to Overcome Stage Fright as a Yoga Teacher
These are my go-to strategies that have helped not only me overcome teaching anxiety, but many of my teacher trainees. Experiment with any or all of these to find what works for you.
1. Make Your Classes Authentic to You
It’s natural to feel uncomfortable when you’re trying to teach something that doesn’t feel like you. If you’re planning to demonstrate a pose that you don’t practice often or explain an element of yoga philosophy or history you don’t know that well (yet), skip it.
You don’t need to perform Side Crow with split legs. You don’t need to give a lesson in Sanskrit. If chanting makes you uneasy, you don’t even need to chant. Intimidated by mirroring? Save it for later. You can always work your way toward teaching these skills, but give yourself time to do so.
2. Simplify, Simplify, Simplify
You’re probably excited to share the wisdom of yoga with your students. But trying to teach everything at once can be a majorrself:
- Am I trying to cram too much into an hour? What would happen if I shortened the sequence to allow more space?
- Am I doing too much at any given time, as in, trying to explain ahimsa while cueing Reverse Warrior and also quoting the Yoga Sutras?
- Can I give myself permission to do less?
3. Come Prepared
Preparation can do a LOT to squash nervous butterflies. Practice your sequence before teaching it—and don’t just do it or think it, say it. Orating your cues helps ensure that when you’re in front of students, you’ll have the words for each movement on the tip of your tongue.
Even better, film yourself doing it or enlist a willing friend to play your student if that helps keep you focused.
4. Focus on the Students
If it feels as though you’re center stage and everyone is judging you for that quiver in your voice when you cue Warrior 2, no wonder you’re nervous. But in reality, students have a lot to pay attention to besides you—their sensations, their breath, their minds, not to mention trying not to fall over. Chances are you’re a lot harsher on yourself about the little mistakes or things that don’t go quite as planned than they are. Remind yourself that you’re there to serve your students, not to perform, and see if you feel some of the pressure dissipate.
5. Do Vocal Warm-Ups Before Class
Sometimes feeling confident starts with sounding confident. Try chanting or singing on your commute to class. Or even do a few tongue twisters—say “She sells seashells by the seashore” ten times fast, or bring Fuzzy Wuzzy, Peter Piper, or Betty Botter to your aid. Not only might you find yourself laughing at the silly rhymes, but feeling comfortable using your voice during class can feel a whole lot easier by comparison. At least you don’t have to say another tongue twister, right?
6. Get to Know the Teaching Space
If you can familiarize yourself with the room where you’ll be teaching before class starts, do it. Maybe you take a class in the same space to see how other teachers are using the room. Or you get there a few minutes before you teach to walk around. Your anxious mind might chill out a little when the unknown elements—including where you’ll stand, where students will position themselves, and where the props are stored—become known. Also, make certain you understand the instructions for how to work the Bluetooth, lights, thermostat, and fan.
7. Pay Attention to Your Self-Talk
Most of us have an inner critic offering some unsolicited opinions about our abilities to teach yoga. For example, I hear a wicked-witch voice saying, “Who do you think you are, dearie? You have more to learn! You don’t know enough to teach!”
Personally, I find it helpful to talk back to the witchy voice by saying, “Yes, I hear you. And you’re right, I am still learning. Who isn’t? But I do know enough to teach. We can all teach from the amount of knowledge we have right now.” In other words, acknowledge that voice, stand up to it, and then let it go.
8. Bring a Grounding Object
You might have some yoga-related object that makes you feel at home and at ease. Bringing it with you to class can transfer some of those good vibes into your teaching experience. Maybe it’s a mat, a crystal, a stone, or a sound bowl. Place your object somewhere you’ll see it, and look at it during class when you need an extra dose of calm.
9. Teach Individuals
The prospect of teaching an “audience” can be scary-sounding, as if there is a monolith with many eyes staring at you. Thinking of individual students can be much less scary. Notice if it helps you feel calmer to greet students when they’re coming through the door or pass out props to them.
Through your interactions with students, you might notice that some of them seem nervous. In realizing you’re not the only one with pre-class jitters, you might find yourself automatically inhabiting a more confident role.
10. Break the Ice
Invite your students to do something silly before class so everyone can expel some nervous energy together. Try jiggling, dancing, or laughing. Or break the ice with a cheesy yoga joke. “Why did the bagel struggle in yoga class?…It couldn’t find its center.” Think of the ensuing groans as an expressive form of pranayama.
11. Ease Into It
Treat the opening of class as a moment to invite yourself and students to feel more present and grounded in the room. Perhaps you teach an opening lovingkindness meditation, or practice one in secret—send lovingkindness to your students while they’re settling in. This can foster a sense of goodwill that can help obliterate nervousness. Let the first pose be something which won’t bring all eyes to you, whether it’s a reclined posture or Child’s Pose. That gives you a little time to ease into your cues.
12. Give Yourself Some Grace
If something doesn’t go exactly as you’d hoped, it’s not the end of the world. It’s perfectly normal to allow silence, say “I don’t know,” and forget which side you’re teaching. Or to learn from a mistake and do something differently next time. Anything you learn in cringe-inducingly public fashion just lets students know that perfection isn’t required in yoga.
13. Breathe
If you need some recentering, practice along with your students and breathe with them. Whenever you remind them of their breath, take the opportunity to remember yours. After class, noting what didn’t work for you or your students and thinking about how it could go a little more smoothly next time helps make a great teacher.
