How to Teach Somatic Yoga to Beginners

Somatic practices are increasing in popularity (yay!) and somatic yoga is no exception. 

If you’re a yoga teacher curious to bring somatic movement into your classes but unsure how… let me help. A lot of your students may not be familiar with this style of movement yet, and as a teacher you want to make sure you ease them into it. So keep reading for my best tips on teaching somatic yoga to beginners. 

What Is Somatic Yoga?

Somatic yoga is the integration of traditional yoga postures with somatic movement principles in order to enhance mind-body connection and muscle awareness. It combines yoga with an emphasis on internal physical perception and experience, focusing on sensation and feeling to increase awareness of these somatic principles: 

• Exteroception: awareness of the external environment’s impact on the body. The temperature outside, the firmness of the ground beneath your feet, or other external factors.
• Proprioception: awareness of your body’s position in space, how it moves, balances, etc.
• Interoception: awareness of internal body sensations such as heart rate, breath rate, or sensations of pain/discomfort.

Somatic practices encourage you to lead movement based on how it feels in your body. Because of the deep awareness somatic yoga fosters and the mental/physical restoration it offers; people are often drawn to somatic movement who: 

• Are managing chronic pain, such as back or neck muscle tension
• Seek to release trauma or emotional blockages stored in the body
• Are overcoming poor posture or muscular imbalances
• Want to reduce stress, anxiety, and nervous system dysregulation
• Desire improved self-awareness, relaxation, and mobility

If you’re new to this method and this list resonates with you, you may want to start adding somatic workouts to your practice.

Benefits of Somatic Yoga

When you practice somatic yoga there are many benefits to your physical and emotional well being. I know when I started incorporating somatic movement into my yoga practice I experienced big shifts. I felt better physically and my emotional programs that I’d worked on for years in talk therapy began to release. It can truly make a profound difference in your daily life.

Some of the greatest somatic yoga benefits include:

Relieves Chronic Pain

Somatic movement has shown to help those with chronic pain. Reducing the severity and occurrences of pain. It also helps improve posture, flexibility, sensory motor awareness, and muscle tone. All of which can help alleviate symptoms of chronic pain.

Increases Mind-Body Connection

The biggest of the somatic yoga benefits is it increases your mind-body connection, or mind-body awareness. It helps you recognize your internal bodily sensations, as well as thoughts and emotions better. This increases your capability to manage your responses to external stressors/stimuli.

Reduces Stress

Embodiment practices trigger your relaxation response and lower the release of stress hormones. Somatic exercises also reduce stress by changing the way you respond to the stressors in your everyday life. When you are more in tune with your body you look at the world a bit differently. The things that used to bother you and stress you out before may no longer worry you. Or at the very least, you’ll be able to recognize how you react to stressors and consciously regulate yourself or react differently.

Trauma Recovery

Somatic experiencing has shown to be an effective treatment for depression and post traumatic stress disorder. This is because you have to feel to heal. Somatic yoga encourages you to feel into areas of tension or stored trauma and gently lean into them. To feel what is happening in order for it to move through your body and let your mind heal.

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Special Considerations For Beginners

Somatic yoga is particularly helpful for beginners who are looking for a gentle, approachable entry point into movement and mindfulness. This often includes people who may feel intimidated by traditional yoga classes, or what they see on Instagram. They may even be seeking a practice tailored to their unique needs. As the bridge to intuitive movement, this makes somatic yoga a great choice.

Who Somatic Yoga Appeals To

As a yoga teacher you may still be trying to figure out your niche. If you’re wanting somatic movement to be a part of yours, keep in mind that these demographics are often drawn to somatic practices:

Older Adults: Many beginners in somatic yoga are older adults who may be dealing with mobility issues, joint stiffness, or age-related discomfort.

People Healing from Trauma: Those experiencing emotional or physical trauma are drawn to somatic yoga’s focus on safe, mindful movement and internal sensation.

Chronic Pain Sufferers: Students struggling with chronic back pain, fibromyalgia, or other conditions use somatic yoga to release tension and develop a deeper understanding of mind-body connection.

Stress and Anxiety Seekers: Beginners looking for relief from stress and anxiety often find somatic yoga’s slow, calming movements ideal for nervous system regulation.

Challenges Teachers May Face

It’s also important as a teacher to know what resistance you may encounter with students. Some challenges you may face when introducing somatic yoga to your students are:

Reluctance to Trust the Process: Some students might find it difficult to tune into subtle sensations or believe they are “doing it wrong.” You’ll want to offer constant reassurance and gentle guidance that things are happening even if they don’t feel big shifts yet. 

Physical Limitations: All bodies are unique with a wide range of physical abilities. As a teacher you should be prepared for this. Having ample props, like bolsters, blankets, and chairs may be essential to support students with limited mobility.

Emotional Responses: Somatic yoga often brings up stored emotions, and beginners may feel overwhelmed or hesitant as emotions begin to come up. It’s important to create a safe, compassionate space for your students to process their feelings.

Somatic yoga provides you, the teacher, an opportunity to meet students where they are and guide them toward healing, presence, and inner calm. It’s less about perfect alignment and more about exploring movement, sensation, and a deeper connection to one’s body.

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How To Teach Somatic Yoga To Beginners

Now for the fun part…how to actually teach somatic yoga to your students! Whether you want to simply add more somatic yoga poses to your existing sequences or teach a full movement practice around somatic principles here are some simple ways to get your beginners class started.

Start with Gentle Somatic Techniques

Begin with slow, mindful movements like pelvic tilts, body scans, and Cat-Cow stretches to help your students develop awareness of their bodies. These foundational techniques focus on small, intentional motions to release tension and build trust in the practice.

Use a Pre-Made Somatic Yoga Sequence

For beginners, structure a simple class starting with breathwork, moving into gentle floor-based somatic exercises (e.g., shoulder and neck rolls, spinal waves, or seated side bends), and conclude with restorative poses like Supine Twist or Savasana. This gradual flow prioritizes ease and comfort while introducing students to somatic principles. You can also download my somatic sequences to get you started. These are done-for-you somatic sequences your students will love!

Try one for yourself first and see: SOMATIC YOGA FLOW WITH MUSIC | Neck, Shoulders, Lower Back Pain

Center Classes Around Awareness and Exploration

Focus your somatic yoga sequences on cultivating internal awareness rather than achieving external alignment. Encourage your students to observe how movements feel and to move at their own pace. Reinforce themes like mind-body connection, releasing stored muscular tension, and promoting nervous system relaxation to help students understand somatic yoga’s healing potential.

Somatic Yoga Exercises For Beginners

Somatic yoga offers accessible, gentle movements that encourage body awareness and release tension, which is ideal for beginners. The following somatic yoga poses focus on slow, mindful motions to help newcomers in your class explore their internal sensations and ease into the practice. 

Pelvic Tilts: 

Lie on your back, gently and slowly rock the pelvis forward and back to release lower back tension.

Cat-Cow Stretch: 

On hands and knees, alternate arching and rounding the spine to improve spinal mobility and connect breath to movement. This is a great position to explore how the body feels and do more intuitive movement.

Shoulder Rolls: 

Sit comfortably and slowly roll the shoulders forward and backward to ease upper body tightness. Add in some somatic shaking with the wrists and arms to see how your students feel about this somatic movement.

Seated Side Bend: 

While seated, reach one arm overhead and stretch to the opposite side, gently opening the side body. Flow back and forth between sides.

Body Scan with Breath Awareness: 

Lie down, close your eyes, and guide your student’s awareness through each part of their physical body while focusing on the breath. 

These are great beginner-friendly exercises that help release tension, calm the nervous system, and build a foundational connection to the body. They can easily be incorporated into your existing sequences or used as a foundation to build a new one. 

Closing Thoughts

The gentle movements of somatic exercises make it a perfect practice to teach to beginners. Focusing on subtle movements and physical sensations can lead to pain relief and release built up tension. Both physical and emotional. Learn how to add somatic yoga exercises to your teaching with one of my Somatic Certifications. It’s definitely worth adding to your teaching toolkit.