200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training
Tucson, AZ

We meet every Wednesday night at Yoga Pod Tucson from 5pm - 9pm and every other weekend (Saturday & Sunday) at Tucson Independent Yoga from 8am - 5pm. Our first meeting is January 3rd and our last session together is April 22nd. For a full syllabus with all training dates, email Shaelyn at Shae@tucsonyogapod.com.

We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all yoga or cookie-cutter teachers.

Our 200 Hour Teacher Training is designed to build thoughtful, open-minded, well-rounded teachers. From this foundation, our program teaches students to engage critically with key concepts (rather than memorizing rules), stay curious, and learn from a variety of expert teachers and yoga modalities. Because we only have 200 hours together, the teaching curriculum focuses on how to effectively create and lead a vinyasa yoga class. That said, we believe in the strength of many yoga traditions and aim to cultivate an awareness and curiosity beyond the vinyasa tradition. Our program also emphasizes the practice of integration and the power of community. To highlight these concepts within our training, we include a four month unlimited membership in the tuition fee so students can experience the concepts we talk about beyond the training room; we cater all lunches to provide more time to connect; and we offer three BIPOC scholarships so that we can continue to bring a broader spectrum of voices to all conversations and the yoga community as a whole.

This training is ideal for anyone with a desire to dive deeper into the exploration of yoga anatomy, philosophy and various yoga modalities (including yin, restorative yoga, chanting, breathwork and meditation). More specifically, it equips students to be able to effectively sequence and lead a well-rounded vinyasa yoga class. To graduate the program, all students lead their own 50-minute vinyasa class with the support of a 500-hour trained mentor. Many students go on to teach yoga at boutique yoga studios, group fitness centers, schools, retreat centers, healthcare settings and corporate office environments.

Absolutely! There is no prerequisite for signing up, other than a love for yoga and an open and curious desire to learn. We do ask that you first apply with a scheduled phone conversation with lead teacher, Shaelyn. This ensures our program aligns with your goals and is truly the right fit for your journey.

To graduate our 200 hour program and receive your certification to submit to Yoga Alliance you’ll need to:

• Attend at least 90% of the program

• Submit approved assignments for all missed sessions

• Take an additional 30 yoga classes at Yoga Pod Tucson

• Observe 5 live classes and submit observation forms

• Teach a 50-minute vinyasa practicum class to your training group

• Pay tuition in full

Students have up to one year (until Jan 3, 2027) to complete requirements, though many prefer to receive their certificates on the graduation date.

As you explore different teacher training programs, you'll notice that many (including ours) highlight that they are approved by Yoga Alliance. Yoga Alliance is the largest nonprofit association representing the yoga community. It is also the largest worldwide governing body that approves schools whose curriculum meet their 'standards'. These standards include which topics are taught and how many hours teachers spend teaching them. When choosing a yoga training program, looking for the Yoga Alliance stamp of approval can be helpful in that it means the program is more likely to be credible compared to programs where the school has not had their training program reviewed in depth and approved.

 Yoga Pod Tucson's 200 Hour Teacher Training Program is approved by Yoga Alliance's 'elevated' criteria which means we reapplied and were approved under Yoga Alliance’s more stringent criteria. 

We understand that amidst our 200 hours together, students are still living busy lives outside of the program. That's why we've built an extra eight hours into our program to allow students to have one full weekend day or two Wednesday evenings that they can miss without the requirement to make up any work. In addition to the extra eight hours, students can miss up to 20 additional training hours (10% of the total program time) and still receive their certificate as long as they make up the hours with pre-approved work. Included in the training fee, we offer two hours of make-up work led by a 500-Hour Trained Teacher every weekend that the group is not in session. We also have videos and experiences that can be used to make up any remaining hours.

Of course not! You will be given all the tools to be able to teach a class confidently, but there is no pressure to teach. Some students have no desire to teach and find that the training expands their personal practice, builds interest and experience in new aspects of the practice and gives them the ability to practice even when they aren't in a group class environment. 

Yoga Pod Tucson requires all instructors to have at least 50 hours of logged teaching experience with Yoga Alliance before applying for a teaching position. If you are interested in teaching at Yoga Pod Tucson after completion of the training and you go on to fulfill your 50 hours of teaching experience, you will have the opportunity to demo your class to receive more mentorship and community class experience at Yoga Pod Tucson. If your community classes go well, you will receive an invitation to be on the studio substitute instructor list and eventually have a regular class, assuming your substitute role is a good fit for both you and the studio and a regular class opens up that aligns with your schedule.

Yes! We offer interest-free payment plans. A $750 non-refundable deposit is required to hold your spot, and we’ll work with you to create a payment timeline that fits your budget.

We have a list of recommended hotels and restaurants (it’s a foodie city!) and lunch is catered on Saturdays and Sundays. Reach out to me here and I’ll send you a list!