One last week at the ashram: Finishing my 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training program in Rishikesh, India

The days have been long, but the month has been so, so short.

I’m officially done with my 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training (YTT) program in Rishikesh as of about a week ago, and it’s so, so bittersweet.

I’m so grateful for everything that I’ve learned and I’m so excited to finally have some time to decompress because the past month has been a lot — both physically and mentally — but I already miss this place, these people so, so much.

After our second-to-last day off at the ashram, we got back and… I took some time for myself.

I took that Thursday off of (most of) my classes* because I really needed to spend some time reflecting and recharging.

*I did attend anatomy and physiology which was great, because Dr. Amara’s pet monkey made a surprise visit.

It’s been really hard to find balance here. In order to meet Yoga Alliance’s requirements for the 300-hour certification, our days have been packed completely full.

The past few weeks have felt like a Venn diagram: 1. Community and connection, 2. Rest, sleep and self-care and 3. Solitude and introspection.

Pick two, and also the Venn diagram is continually trying to make you hook your ankles around the back of your neck and you are very sore.

I finally reached a point where I just needed a bit of a break.

The election results also didn’t help. I read something on Threads (RIP to my Twitter, which I deleted) that said “my head was ready but my heart was not,” and I think that statement accurately sums up my feelings on the subject.

I kind of underestimated how hard it would be to receive that news from back home in a place where I wasn’t really surrounded by my support system.

So, after taking most of Thursday off for myself (I journaled, cried, meditated, laid outside in the garden and talked to friends and family back home), I was back at it Friday.

I hopped back into my normal classes for a few days, which was great because I learned a lot.

One of the classes I’m finding the most valuable is our alignment and adjustment class, where we learn how to help students get deeper into postures using props and pressure.

After a few days of normal classes, I got a bit of a very welcome surprise…

…Ryan!

It’s been the plan from the beginning for Ryan to meet up with me in Rishikesh at the end of my YTT program so the two of us could spend two weeks traveling through India together before heading back to the U.S.

Ryan flew into Mumbai and — while he thought he might spend some time in the Goa area before heading up north — he decided to just head right up to Rishikesh once his flight got into India.

He hiked up to visit me at the ashram during his first day in Rishikesh, which was such a pleasant surprise!

I only had about an hour with him before I had to head to my evening classes and he had to head back to his hostel to prepare for his Himalayan trek the next day, but it really did absolutely make my week to get to spend that short period of time with him.

The timing worked out well, too, because right after Ryan left, my 300-hour cohort was heading into exam mode.

We started picking subjects and topics for our exam presentations and practicals, and started working in groups to sequence our asana classes.

During our last week of classes, we also had a cooking class with the kitchen staff at our ashram.

They demonstrated how to make some of our favorite dishes, including poha, halva and an incredible paneer curry that we all devoured in a minute flat.

Finally, it was time for our last day off at the ashram!

Several of us went to (of course) Secret Garden Cafe to start our day. I had a berry smoothie bowl this time, and it was so good.

We also ran into a few of the 200-hour students, who had graduated a few days prior and were still hanging out in town.

After breakfast, it was time for shopping. I spent my day with my friends Raneen and Angelika. The three of us spent our day (again) exploring temples, shops, markets, coffee shops and cafes.

After Secret Garden Cafe, we stopped at Coffee House for iced lattes, and then Moktan Cafe for pastries.

Then, we ventured to a temple and back down through the Tapovan shops.

After our shopping excursion, I upped my phone’s AirTel package at a telecom booth, and then the three of us met up with our friend Carly, and then the four of us took a ferry across the river to meet some more friends at Lucky Restaurant for dinner, where we all shared some curries, rice and breads.

Then, it was back to the ashram for our Thursday and Friday exams!

For my philosophy exam, I wrote an 11-page paper about the yamas, where I compared two textbooks to see how each author translated and interpreted them before presenting that paper.

For my anatomy and physiology exam, I offered examples of how several techniques we learned — asana poses, meditation practices, breathing techniques, mudra positions, etc. — worked in conjunction with the human nervous system, and demonstrated them for our class.

Then, for our asana exam, my group co-taught a 90-minute class focused on back bends and heart openers.

I taught the first 15 minutes, so I led our class in mantras, set breath and guided warm-up movements.

And, that was it! Next up: graduation!