5 Qigong Practices Every Yoga Teacher Needs

In this webinar replay, Christopher Grant and Daniela Hess (co-founders of Great Energy) introduce yoga teachers to foundational Qigong practices designed to deepen presence, regulate the nervous system, and elevate your impact as a teacher. Whether you’re curious about integrating energy awareness into your classes or want practical tools that help both you and your students feel more grounded, this training delivers actionable insight rooted in contemporary and ancient embodied practice.

Watch the replay and explore how Qigong serves as a bridge between meditation, body awareness, and intelligent movement. Your teaching — and your students — will benefit.

Key Takeaways

• Qigong provides near-instant nervous-system regulation that supports readiness for yoga practice.

• Qigong and yoga complement one another — one primes energy flow, the other deepens mindful embodiment.

• Adding Qigong to your teaching toolkit enhances energy, breath awareness, and presence for all students.

• Five foundational Qigong practices can be used at the start, middle, or end of a yoga class.

In This Webinar: For Yoga Instructors

Yoga teachers entering today’s landscape are looking for practices that do more than just move bodies — they want tools that regulate nervous systems, deepen meditation, and support emotional presence. In this webinar, Christopher Grant and Daniela Hess break down why Qigong is the missing link in modern yoga teaching and walk through five simple, powerful practices every teacher should know.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• Why Qigong Is the Missing Link for Modern Yoga Teachers: Qigong offers what many yoga teachers and students are missing today: near-instant nervous-system regulation. In just a few minutes, these practices help quiet overstimulation, lower stress load, and prepare both teachers and students to receive and embody the yoga class with greater presence and ease.
• The Difference Between Yoga and Qigong (and Why Both Matter): If yoga is the slow simmer of mindful postures, Qigong functions like an accessible warm-up that unlocks energy flow. This contrast makes Qigong an ideal bridge into yoga movement and an effective cool-down for restoring balance after a session.
• The Benefits of Adding Taoist Yoga + Qigong to Your Teaching: Teachers who integrate Taoist Yoga and Qigong find that students experience increased energy, softened tension, improved breath awareness, and quicker transitions into meditative states. These practices are simple to teach, adaptable for all bodies, and work beautifully in both in-person and online classes.
• Five Qigong Practices Every Yoga Teacher Should Know: Christopher and Daniela share five foundational Qigong practices selected for their simplicity, effectiveness, and applicability in yoga classes. These can be used to open class, regulate energy mid-flow, or transition into meditation or savasana.
• How Qigong Helps You Thrive as a Teacher (Not Just Your Students): Qigong supports the teacher’s own energy, resilience, and clarity. With just a 5- to 10-minute personal practice before class, teachers report feeling more grounded, centered, and confident. Since many yoga teachers are highly empathic, Qigong also helps clear the energy field both before and after teaching, supporting long-term burnout prevention and presence.

About Christopher Grant & Daniela Hess 

Christopher Grant and Daniela Hess are the co-founders of Great Energy, an online school devoted to embodied practice, conscious living, and nervous-system health.

Together, they bring more than 40 years of lived and teaching experience across Taoist Yoga, Qigong, meditation, functional movement, and energy awareness. Their work is practical, contemporary, and rooted in direct experience - especially known for translating ancient practices into tools that work for modern bodies and busy lives, both personally and in teaching.

Additional Resources 

• Great Energy Qigong resources and training information