Therapist Training Level 1

In Level 1 students find out what Ayurvedic Yoga Massage is and what it can do. We understand what it is that we are trying to achieve, setting the foundations for students to become exceptional practitioners who will help transform people’s lives. The Level 1 training includes:  

Course Description

1. Body mechanics: how to position your body and adjust the techniques to make sure you are working with ease, using your body weight rather than your strength. This will feel a lot nicer to your clients and protect your own body in the long term. Offering AYM feels wonderful for the therapist’s body, you warm up, breathe, move, and even stretch a little, much like an easy yoga practice (videos, and practical training in classroom)

2. Indications and contra-indications (for AYM treatments generally and for each specific technique), and safe and comfortable prone and supine lying positions for the client. Learning when and how clients’ bodies need to be supported, and what positions are appropriate for which clients will help make your treatments safe, effective and enjoyable (videos and practical training).

3. Learning how to respond to the sensations that we get from our hands/feet/other body parts that we massage with. We need to understand what the quality of the tissues that we are massaging is like, how we adjust the surface area and amount of pressure appropriately depending on the aim of the session, and which body parts we can use to provide the pressure that the client needs with ease, without straining any part of our own bodies (practical training)

4. Similarly, we learn to interpret the feedback that we get from the soft tissues when we are stretching, and the client’s feedback, to understand when and how far is beneficial to stretch (practical).

5. Clear and effective communication with the client, including how to do an effective consultation, decide the objectives of the session, and what the session will include to work towards those objectives together with the client; how to read the client’s body language during the session to assess whether the treatment is safe, comfortable and effective; and building a trusting relationship that can help foster healing (videos and practical application in classroom)

6. The pace of the massage needs to be appropriate to client needs, and we also work on paying attention to our own and the client’s energy and breathing during the session (covered in the online introduction but we mostly work on this in the practical part of the training).

7. Massage ethics (1 hour in classroom)

8. Hygiene (videos and practical application)

9. Business skills (videos, if any questions arise during the classroom hours we answer them, plus ongoing support after your training).

What we cover

The practical part of this training is usually covered in 2-3 full days, the online materials are available from 2 weeks before the start of the practical training and for one year afterwards.

• Learn an initial sequence to effectively massage the back, the most common request for massages, with the client lying face down.
• The sequence will also cover how to massage the legs, hands and feet, so you’ll feel confident to give a well rounded treatment.
• An initial introduction to the theory of massage, AYM massage and working with clients professionally. We also include business skills.
• Leave feeling confident to offer an AYM 60-90min massage.

What we offer beyond the online and practical training

With all of our trainings we offer:

• Two one-hour mentorship sessions in the two weeks after your training
• Option to join our amazing value mentorship programme via Zoom, for ongoing support in real time
• One year access to all training resources online
• One year free student membership of the Ayurvedic Yoga Massage Therapists Association
• Easy access to a supportive community of therapists. We invite you to organise treatment swaps with your peers locally (we have therapists practically everywhere in the UK and in a few locations abroad). When you receive AYM from other therapists you get embodied experience, and when you massage other AYM therapists they can give you incredibly informative feedback for your treatments. This is the best way to launch you towards being an successful therapist, with the kind of communication skills and touch that puts your clients at ease, and helps them feel amazing from the first ot the last moment of their session with you.