In this guide, yoga teachers will learn the ins and outs of burnout while discovering helpful, healthy ways to focus on their own self-care routines. 

As a yoga teacher, you’re often helping your students battle burnout. Whether you’re helping them tap into restorative asanas or use meditation to ground themselves, you’re guiding them and giving them a chance to take hold of their own self-care routines. 

But just because you’re often leading your yoga students through the process of self-care doesn’t mean you always have your own self-care handled. In fact, yoga teachers are dangerously susceptible to burnout. And further, yoga instructors like you spend so much time invested in their students’ well-being and self-care they often let their own self-care fall to the wayside. 

If you’re feeling burned out and in need of a regular routine that allows you to bestow a little self-care, this guide is the perfect starting point.

KEY TAKEAWAYS: 

• Yoga teachers are prone to burnout due to their focus on students' well-being, often neglecting their own self-care.
• Self-care is essential for yoga teachers to maintain their passion, creativity, and health in their teaching careers.
• To best take care of your self, it's important to understand and recognize burnout so you can mitigate it. 
• Common challenges include overloaded schedules, repetitive routines, lack of personal practice, and managing external expectations.
• Establishing self-care routines, such as decompressing rituals, body care, maintaining a personal yoga practice, and building a supportive community, can help prevent burnout.
• Effective time management, setting boundaries, and limiting screen time are crucial strategies for prioritizing self-care.
• A self-care checklist includes adequate sleep, time off from teaching, regular outdoor activities, joyful movement, nutritious food, and personal enjoyment.
• Getting out of a rut by becoming a student again, studying a sister science, and being introspective can help contribute to self-care. 
• Self care is a necessity, not a luxury–yoga teachers can focus on tuning inward and being more present as part of that. 

Why is Self-Care Crucial for Yoga Teachers? 

Many yoga teachers–especially the newbies–want to tackle the world. They’ll pile on classes, squeeze in as many students as they can, and do their best to provide guidance for their students at every turn. 

In theory, this is a good gesture of generosity. In practice, it can lead to something dangerous–burnout.  

Burnout doesn’t just make you feel less than stellar; it can also lead to greater issues–both mental and physical, and even leave you questioning if teaching yoga is right for you. 

Self-care should be thought of as a necessity–not a luxury. And there are many ways you can go about that self-care. 

Without a solid self-care routine, you might end up feeling the tinge of burnout, which can manifest itself in the following ways: 

• You’ve lost the desire and excitement to teach classes 
• You feel like you don’t have any inspiration for your classes 
• The idea of planning out lessons and sequences isn’t fun or interesting anymore 
• You stop giving time and attention to your own yoga practice 
• You ultimately feel resentful of your students because they get to come to yoga classes 
• You feel drained–like you don’t have time for anything else in life 
• You’re emotionally, physically, and mentally tired of what feels like all the time 

Self-care is absolutely crucial for every human–including yoga teachers. Without a routine that allows you to pour back into yourself and nourish your mind, body, and spirit, you might end up feeling pulled in every direction. And trust us, that’s not healthy for anybody–not even a yoga teacher who usually has a great balance of their physical, mental, and emotional health.  

Common Challenges Yoga Teachers Face 

If you’re reading this and wondering if you’re battling with burnout, it can be helpful to ask yourself an easier question first: Do you feel like you’re in sort of a yoga teacher rut? 

Though every yoga teacher’s approach, style, and method is different, most do end up facing very similar challenges and issues that can lead to a lack of self-care along with a heaping dose of burnout. 

Let’s walk through a few of the most common challenges teachers like you face–make a mental note of any of these that you feel might be plaguing you. 

• Too many classes on your schedule
• Too many students in each of your classes 
• Walking through the same asanas over and over 
• Feeling unfulfilled or bored with your current training 
• Never getting enough time for your own practice
• Consistently walking students through their challenges rather than confronting yours 
• Student rejection or lower attendance numbers in your classes 
• The consistent struggle to be present with your students and run your social media marketing efforts 
• Managing your students’ external expectations 

This list isn’t comprehensive, but these challenges are common for yoga teachers, no matter what level they’re teaching at. 

And importantly, dealing with all of these regularly without creating outlets for healthy self-care can lead to burnout. 

Self-Care Routines To Combat Challenges: Suggestions for Taking Care of You 

If the idea of self-care feels daunting, it’s unlikely you’ll view it as a necessary and integral part of your daily life. How can you approach self-care without feeling overwhelmed? By creating easy-to-implement routines that provide you with time throughout each day to unwind, relax, and take care of yourself. 

If you’re looking for ideas on where to start, try these methods of self-care in your daily routine. 

Decompressing Rituals 

Set aside time each day to decompress with a ritual all your own. This could look like breathwork and meditation, a few minutes set aside to be as present as possible, a long hot bath, or even time outside in nature. 

Whatever your decompressing ritual is, give yourself the time and space you deserve to unplug, disconnect, and truly decompress. Give yourself the permission to step aside from what’s weighing on you and be present in the ritual you’ve created. 

Taking Care of Your Own Body 

Often, yoga teachers are so tied up with teaching they neglect caring for their own bodies. This doesn’t just mean ensuring you look the part–it means nourishing your soul, your mind, and your body with healthy foods, restorative sleep (and plenty of it), and movement that feels fulfilling and joyful. 

Take time each day to take an audit of how your body feels. Are you aching from being on your feet all day? Do you feel like you’ve been denying yourself nutritious food because you’re too busy to pause and eat? When was the last time you had 9 hours of sleep? 

Audit how you feel and what your body needs–then make a point to give it those things. 

Keeping Your Own Practice 

As a yoga teacher, it’s absolutely essential to keep up with your own yoga practice. Think about what you tell your students who come to your classes. When they step into the studio for an hour, that time is for them–for their mind, their body, and their soul. You need that level of self-care, too. 

Schedule time for yourself daily or weekly to have your own practice–just for you! This isn’t a chance to record for social media or teach; this is for your mind, body, and soul. You’ll learn from and about yourself, take inventory of your body and how it feels, and give yourself the chance to reduce stress, build strength, and invest in yourself. 

Building & Embracing a Yoga Community

One of the best ways to invest in self-care is to invest in a yoga community. When you find a place within a like-minded community that truly cares about you, they can be the accountability you need to avoid burnout and focus on what’s best for you.

If you’re a lone wolf, it’s easy to work overtime, run on empty, and neglect what your body and mind might need. When you have a community in your corner looking out for you, there are people on your side asking, “When’s the last time you did something for you?” 

Do As You Say 

Try this exercise. If you had a student approach you and echo concerns about burnout and not making time for self-care because they’re not sure where to start, what would you advise? Run through this exercise in your head or on paper. 

Advise that hypothetical student with your best advice. Then, flip the script–try that advice for yourself.

Whether it’s scheduling time for your own practice every day, booking a session with a new counselor, or simply taking one day out of the week off from work, these acts of radical self-care can change the way you feel. 

Time Management Tips for Yoga Teachers 

Do you avoid self-care because you simply don’t feel like you have the time for it? These tips can help you create time that’s specifically set aside for you. 

• Schedule time each week for self-care: Truly! Put it on your calendar as an appointment–that’s dedicated time for you, and it’s just as serious as the yoga class you have on your schedule. Don’t miss it! 
• Create a schedule with your yoga community: See how you can help your community and support your own self-care. Can you trade out a closing shift with another teacher so you can get more sleep? 
• Use a planner to track your time & organize your day: If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your weekly schedule, try organizing your schedule and tasks with a planner. 
• Set a hard boundary for when you’re “off work”: Part of the reason you might feel overwhelmed and burned out is because you’ve created blurry lines for when you’re on and off work. Set boundaries and stick to them! 
• Limit screen time & scrolling: Nothing wastes more time than doom scrolling on your social media apps. Try limiting screen time to help better manage your time. 

Yoga Teacher Self-Care Checklist 

If you’re ever feeling overwhelmed and burned out, refer to this checklist to see where you can make room for a little extra self-care. 

• 8+ hours of sleep + a bedtime ritual 
• At least one day a week away from the studio 
• Time weekly for your own yoga practice without any other agenda 
• Weekly time spent outdoors recharging in nature 
• Weekly time catching up with friends and family 
• Daily joyful movement that’s fun 
• Healthy, nutritious food to nourish your body
• A hard cap on the number of classes you’ll teach each week 
• Doing an activity you love 
• Setting the phone down to do something for your mind 

Ultimately, the path toward self-care is one you can take–it just takes the dedication to carve out time and count this sort of practice as necessary for your health. beYogi is here for you with advice, inspiration, and tips on how you can start investing in your own self-care while avoiding the dreaded yoga teacher burnout. 

Download This Self-Care Guide!