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200-Hour JOY CERTIFICATION

The JOY of Yoga School of Integrative Learning Logo

Overview

The Joy of Yoga 200-Hour Teacher Training was created in 2006. It represents both western medical approaches and alternative methods to health and well-being, providing knowledge and insight into both the workings of the human body and the nature of mind. This program balances an understanding of the roots of yoga with innovative applications of yoga and mindfulness in contemporary culture.

The training is run by Jennifer Prugh and Noell Clark, both of whom have extensive background in running trainings, and who have devoted their lives to yoga. Jennifer and Noell bring their individual and unique areas of expertise to this program; joining science, art, philosophy, and practice seamlessly to form a well-rounded and holistic program.

This program provides the chance to deeply study a variety of modalities in the form of group classes, and will equip you with incredible skills for all aspects of life. You may take the JOY training to teach professionally, you may take the JOY training for personal development, or you may want to offer others what yoga has offered you. With any motive, you will leave this program equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to live a conscious and inspired life.

How It Works

  • The Joy of Yoga 200-Hour program consists of two phases: Foundations and Dynamics.
  • Once complete, students are eligible to register as a 200-hour certified yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance.
  • Joy of Yoga 200-Hour students receive complimentary unlimited yoga (including Mysore) for 60 days (over $400 value). When you register for Foundations, you will have a pass for the initial 30 days. When you register for Dynamics, you will have another 30 days that begins once your initial pass has expired.

Registration Requirements & Application

  1. Have a minimum of one year of consistent practice.
  2. Must be at least 18 years of age.
  3. Apply and gain acceptance in the Joy of Yoga 200-Hour program.

Graduation Requirements

  • Complete Phase 1 (Foundations) and Phase 2 (Dynamics).
    Each phase consists of two 5-day intensives (totaling four 5-day intensives).
  • During the Dynamics program:
    • Pass an anatomy test and a sanskrit test with a minimum score of 80%.
    • Teach a yoga sequence based upon the 84 postures to your peers.

Investment

  • Each 100 hour module:
    • $1,950 (Regular)
    • $1,800 (Early-bird)
    • 50% non-refundable deposit
    • Reading materials are a separate cost

Any questions? Contact JOY@BreatheTogetherYoga.com.

Application form
Reading List
FAQs

Upcoming Courses

Faculty

Jennifer Prugh, creator of Joy of Yoga School Program

Jennifer Prugh

Noel Clark

Noell Clark

Joanne Varni, one of the faculty member

Joanne Varni

Bridget Puchalsky Breathe Together Yoga

Bridget Puchalsky

Erika Palmquist Smith, one of the faculty member

Erika Palmquist-Smith

Matthew Hahn, one of the faculty member

Matt Hahn

headshot of alex blefari

Alex Blefari

photo of devi sakti smiling with the beach in the background

Devi Sakti

Required Courses

Foundations

  • First 100 hours
  • Deepen your understanding of the vast tradition of yoga.
  • Science of asana; postures and alignment
  • Western anatomy and subtle anatomy (Noell Clark and Jennifer Prugh)
  • History of yoga and yoga philosophy (Matthew Hahn)
  • Evolution, cross-pollination, and varieties of yoga
  • Breathing practices (pranayama)
  • Meditation
  • Sanskrit pronunciation

Dynamics

  • Second 100 hours
  • Explore the fundamentals of teaching safely, efficiently, and effectively.
  • History of modern yoga
  • Principles of sequencing and assisting
  • Teaching techniques: methodology and reading bodies
  • Developing your voice and utilizing language
  • Pre and post natal practice adaptations
  • Trauma informed teaching methods
  • The psychology and ethics of teaching
  • The business of yoga

Reading List

Required

  • The Untethered Soul, Michael Singer
  • Functional Anatomy of Yoga, David Keil
  • Provided After Enrollment
    • Garland of Yoga, Jennifer Prugh
    • “Roots of Yoga – Historical Overview” from Roots of Yoga by Mark Singleton & Jim Mallinson
    • “Vedas and Upanishads” from A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
    • “Setting In Motion The Wheel of the Dhamma” from Samyutta Nikaya translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi
    • “Shorter Discourse to Mālunkyāputta (Poisoned Arrow)” from Majjhima Nikaya translated by Bhikkhu Nanamoli and Bhikkhu Bodhi
    • “Karma and Coming Home 24/7/365” from The Road Home by Ethan Nictern
    • “History of Yoga” and “Subject Matter of the Yoga Sutras” from Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by Edwin Bryant

Recommended

  • The Joy of Living, Yongey Mingur Rinpoche
  • Ashtanga Yoga, David Swenson
  • Light on Yoga, BKS Iyengar
  • A Path With Heart, Jack Kornfield
  • Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Gary Kissiah
  • Provided After Enrollment
    • “Life of Shabkar – Mountain Meadow” from Life of Shabkar translated by Matthieu Ricard
    • “Harrapan World” from India: A History by James Keav

Suggested Resources

Jennifer Prugh is the founder of Breathe Together Yoga, the JOY of Yoga School of Integrative Learning and she leads four international yoga and mindfulness retreats a year. Jennifer is passionate about making wisdom from a variety of traditions accessible and embodied, through movement and breath, self-inquiry, and meditation. She has a Master’s Degree in Art and Consciousness, eight years as an associate professor of storytelling, storyboarding, and creativity, and ten years as a professional artist, all of which are woven into a passionate exploration in utilizing the instrument of the body to take up residence in an enduring state of well-being so that we can be a benefit to those around us.
Noell has been teaching yoga and movement for well over a decade. Her classes combine traditional yoga with mobility and strength-building techniques to help students find greater freedom in their bodies and longevity in their chosen sport or movement practices. Since 2012, Noell has led more than a dozen yoga teacher trainings, as well as courses in kinesiology and human anatomy. She is a lead trainer for the JOY of Yoga School of Integrative Learning and holds certifications in Yoga, Pilates, Functional Range Systems, and the ELDOA method.

Joanne’s philosophy as a yoga teacher is to help people who seek personal empowerment feel connected to their bodies, quiet their mind, stimulate a healthy nervous system, and release tension in the body caused by stress, anxiety, or trauma. Her teaching techniques use a combination of breathwork, meditation, gentle asanas, somatic yoga, medical qigong, and neurogenic tremoring.

Joanne is an E-RYT 500 and earned her certification through Jennifer Prugh’s, YA-certified JOY of Yoga teacher training and is a Level 2 TRE facilitator. Joanne teaches classes, workshops, teacher trainings, as well as runs retreats locally and internationally. She is co-founder of the Yoga for Trauma Recovery Program and teaches trauma-informed yoga at the VA Hospital in Palo Alto, Menlo Park, and San Jose, California and has voluntarily taught yoga to women incarcerated at the Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas and the Center for Survivors of Torture in San Jose.

Bridget found yoga through a long-ago bout with lower-back tension from skiing and biking. It led to a passion for teaching that influenced her career path as an acupuncturist and Ayurveda practitioner. In addition to being a yogini and healing facilitator, Bridget is a listener, herbalist, adventurer, nature lover, and environmental protector. She is a board-licensed acupuncturist, master herbalist, certified Ayurveda practitioner, L.Ac. MTCM, registered E-RYT and E-RYT 500 yoga instructor. Bridget is the director of Breathe Together Yoga’s Wellness Center and core faculty member in the JOY of Yoga teacher training. You can connect with her for private healthcare sessions, yoga classes, or seasonal wellness-based cleanses.
Erika Smith, LPCC, RYT-500, is a licensed clinical counselor who practices in the Bay Area. With over 15 years of experience in the mental health field, she specializes in using mind-body tools to help patients living with chronic pain, trauma, anxiety, and depression. For the past several years, she has worked with Breathe Together Yoga to offer training and skills to yoga teacher trainees to make their classes feel supportive and safe for anyone on a mental health journey. You can learn more about her at www.erikasmithcounseling.com.
Matthew Hahn is a member of the Boundless Freedom Project Sangha and a program facilitator for Mindful Prisons, a mindful community meeting behind the walls of San Quentin State Prison. A co-founder of the Recovery Dharma program, he teaches mostly to system-impacted and recovery communities. Starting meditation in 2005, Matthew has practiced principally within the Insight tradition, but has also studied in Burma within the Mahasi / U Pandita lineage of Theravada Buddhism. He has been personally mentored by lay teachers within the Insight tradition and was empowered with lay ordination by Venerable Pannavati and the late Venerable Pannadipa. Matthew Hahn has taught the history of yoga philosophies for BTY’s teacher training since 2016.

Alex found yoga in high school and after years of practice, her curiosity led her to Bali in 2015 to obtain her 200 hour certification. Teaching yoga inspired her to earn her doctorate in physical therapy, specializing in women’s health and pelvic floor physical therapy. Alex utilizes her studies of various meditation practices, yoga asana, and breath to facilitate healing and embodiment for others in her private PT practice and yoga group classes alike. 

Born and raised in California, now based in Hawai‘i, Devi weaves her Indian cultural roots and the ancient traditions of yoga into a style that feels both grounded and modern. Her aim is to blend the traditional and the modern, offering students tools she’s learned through both her heritage and her yoga study. Devi’s teaching style integrates yogic philosophy, pranayama, meditation, and a creative flow rooted in curiosity about how the body can flow. Devi is a 500-hour certified teacher through the Joy of Yoga program.