If you walked out of your 200-hour yoga teacher training feeling confused about how to sequence a yoga class, you’re not alone. Sequencing is both a skill and an art that develops over time. Eventually, you’ll establish your own framework for creating classes that feel natural and effective. But for now, you can rely on this easy-to-follow sequence outline to craft classes that flow well and serve a greater purpose beyond just leading up to a peak pose.
Considerations Before Starting to Sequence a Class
Class Length
This class plan template is designed for a 60-minute class but can be adjusted for 75-minute classes or shorter classes that you may upload to YouTube or on a membership site.
Choose a Focus
A little advice: pick a focus before you start sequencing. Otherwise, you’ll end up staring at a blank page with a million options for what to do in a class. Or take it a step further and choose a theme to guide your students through an experience that’s unique to you.
Your focus could be:
- A peak pose
- A certain area of the body (like the chest and/or shoulders)
- A chakra
- An element (water, fire, earth or air)
Utilize Foreshadowing & Repetition
I can not emphasize the importance of this enough. Foreshadowing and repeating postures will not only make the sequence easier for your students to follow but also way easier for you to teach! Overly complex sequences often lead to confusion, so repeating postures allows students to settle into their bodies instead of struggling to keep up with what’s next.
Advanced Tip: The concept of regressing or progressing a pose is when you take away intensity or add intensity to a pose. This is an idea to keep in mind when sequencing. Ask yourself: How can I regress (take intensity away) my peak pose? Then add to the regressed variation to progress the pose to its peak. Think about using the shape same but closer to the ground as regressed or farther from the ground as progress. As an example, a regressed variation of high lunge is low lunge. A progressed variation of a low lunge is high lunge.
Get on the Floor & Practice
And finally, don’t just plan sequences in your head. Get on your mat and move through them. I used to think I could just map out an entire class in my mind, but nothing replaces physically trying out a sequence to see what works and what doesn’t.
Yoga Class Plan Template
Part 1: Pranayama
Time: 5 mins
Purpose: Connect to the breath and ground.
The most important part of class is helping students connect with their breath. Without the breath, it’s not yoga! Set students up in a pose that is comfortable for 3-5 minutes so that you can focus solely on guiding them into their breath. This helps set the tone for the rest of the class and brings a sense of grounding.
Part 2: Warm-Up
Time: 10 mins
Purpose: Connect breath to movement and begin to prep the body for poses coming later in the sequence.
The warm-up is where students begin linking breath to movement and checking in with their bodies. This part of class includes poses done on the back, stomach, or seated. Some poses may be held longer to allow for opening, like a reclined twist, while others will involve gentle movement, like flowing through cat-cow. You never know how your students’ bodies are feeling when they walk into class, so this portion allows them to move slowly and become aware of any tension or tightness.
Part 3: Ground Sequence
Time: 10-15 mins
Purpose: To set the body up for standing postures.
This is where you start setting the body up for standing postures. Think of this part as the foundation for the rest of class. This section is going to foreshadow a lot. Students will explore a regressed version of what’s to come. If my standing sequence includes high lunge, I’ll always introduce low lunge first (the regressed variation of high lunge), so students have an accessible option later on. Keeping this sequence on or close to the ground allows for more control and preparation before adding weight or balancing elements.
This is also the part of class where downward facing dog and chaturanga start to make an appearance.
Pro tip: Always offer variations for transitions. Whether it’s lowering from plank on the knees or using a step-through instead of a jump to keep your class accessible for all students regardless of their experience or energy levels.
Part 4: Standing Sequence #1
Time: 10 mins (5 mins per side)
Purpose: Add intensity from the ground sequence. Option to add in balancing postures.
Now, start to bring more intensity. The first standing sequence is all about laying the groundwork. This is where you guide students into foundational standing postures and help them refine their alignment before layering on anything more complex. The pacing tends to be a little slower here as students are still getting comfortable with transitions and new movements.
Part 5: Standing Sequence #2
Time: 10 mins (5 mins per side)
Purpose: Build heat and add-on to standing sequence #1.
Now that students have familiarity with the postures, you can start adding heat! This second standing sequence builds on the first. You can either add 1-4 new postures to keep the flow going or introduce variations of poses from the previous sequence. If you taught extended side angle earlier, this is the moment where you might invite students to explore a bind. Since they already know the basic shape, it’s easier for them to focus on deepening the pose.
Advanced option: Or you can choose to create a different standing sequence with the intention to combine your first and second standing sequences together in the next part of the sequence.
Part 6: Standing Sequence #3 (Optional)
Time: 5-10 mins (3-5 mins per side)
Purpose: Match breath to movement, add-on, and/or combine the previous 2 standing sequences.
This is your peak sequence that will move the fastest, you’ll cue the least, and your students will be more on their own. You have 3 options for this standing sequence:
- Repeat your standing #2 sequence matching breath to movement.
- Add on another 2-3 poses or variations of poses previously taught in your last sequence.
- Create one long sequence by adding your standing sequence #1 and #2 together (if they were different).
Part 7: Cool Down
Time: 5-10 mins
Purpose: Bring students back to the ground and stretch.
At this point, bring the class back to the ground. A great way to simplify your sequence is to come back to some of the poses you did in the warm-up. This gives students an idea of how much their bodies have opened and allows them to turn off their thinking mind. I focus on stretching areas that were targeted earlier in the standing sequences and hold poses for longer to encourage deep release.
Part 8: Savasana & Close
Time: 5 mins
Purpose: Integrate the practice.
I don’t recommend doing a savasana less than 4 minutes. This is the most important part of a class. Sometimes you may have to adjust your class on the fly and drop part of your sequence (typically standing sequence #3) if you’re running out of time.
Spend 4-5 minutes in Savasana and 1 minute for any closing remarks. Always leave time for silence so students can be with themselves.
Adjusting for Different Class Lengths
For a 75-minute class, you can:
- +3 mins: Do a longer savasana of 7-8 minutes.
- +3 mins: Spend extra time in the warm-up.
- +6 mins: Add 2-3 postures into your ground sequence and standing sequences. That’s only an extra 90 seconds per side!
- +3 mins: Take a longer cool down.
For a shorter class (20-30 minutes), you can:
- Shorten Pranayama to 2-3 minutes.
- Keep the warm-up brief or skip it altogether.
- Focus on only one standing sequence or 2 mini standing sequences.
- Keep savasana to 2-4 minutes.
What’s next?
- Is a lack of confidence holding you back from teaching or beginning your yoga teacher career? Download my Beyond the Manual Masterclass to get realistic steps to start taking action today.
- Get one-on-one support in my private mentorship program for yoga teachers which includes me providing feedback on your sequences.
- Practice with me on YouTube for free & get sequencing ideas!
