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join the test kitchen and become a master chef

I’m looking for 18 2 more yoga teachers leading a consistent weekly class who are interested in being my test kitchen beta testers.

The Test Kitchen is an accelerator for my forthcoming six-month mentorship membership, Mastering the Art of Yoga Sequencing. That, in turn, will be a big part of Carolina Yoga Company’s 300/500-hour yoga teacher training. This is an opportunity to get about half of your work for the 300 done while also getting support from me and the group on your teaching.

the model

In the culinary world, cooks learn some in the classroom but far more in the kitchen. A first next step out of culinary school is to stage—that is, to apprentice in a restaurant, rotating through the various stations (salad, sauce, grill, dessert) until these apprentice chefs really understand how to build a complete meal.

This Test Kitchen mentorship program follows a similar model, taking you from apprentice to confident chef capable of leading a kitchen—or opening a restaurant.

I do this by giving you done-for-you meal kits with a complete yoga curriculum for you to serve in your own classes. Then in live calls and asynchronous mentorship, I help with done-with-you tweaks to make these dishes perfect for your students. Finally, we check that you are fully comfortable and confident doing your own lesson planning as you go!

The Test Kitchen takes you from your 200YTT (or off the sidelines) and into your career. You’ll learn to cook for yourself by understanding the deep structures that go into a well-balanced lesson plan. And I’ll make sure you have all the techniques down for efficient planning of repeatable classes that sell out and keep your students coming back hungry for more.

who it’s for

Here are the archetypes the test kitchen will serve:

🧑‍🍳 The culinary school grad: fresh out of training without real-world knowledge. All book learning, this chef needs to get messy in the kitchen and learn by doing.

This is you if: you are recently out of your 200-hour YTT and just starting to teach.

🧑‍🍳 The mad genius: like Carmy from The Bear, this chef likes to invent a new, creative menu every time—and winds up creating a lot more work in the process, work that is ultimately unsustainable and doesn’t build a brand or serve the students.

This is you if: you generate a fresh, innovating sequence every single class—and it’s wearing you down.

🧑‍🍳 The fry cook: has been trained in one sequence at a franchise studio, very much like a cook at McDonald’s. They need to see the deep structures at play in sequencing and then expand their repertoire beyond what they have been repeating every shift.

This is you if: you have come up through a corporate studio and learned to teach one signature sequence (and not much more).

🧑‍🍳 The home cook: has been out of teaching but maintained their own practice. They need tips for how to scale, to serve yoga to other people, and to grow to a full restaurant.

This is you if: you’ve been sidelined as a teacher and are looking for a refresher and a path back into the classroom.

🧑‍🍳 The aspiring restaurateur: a teacher who is feeling good about their sequencing but wants affirmation and skill development to eventually open their own restaurant/studio/be a top-level teacher.

This is you if: you feel pretty good about your knowledge but want to be even better; you want to earn your 300-/500-hour certification in a high-touch small-group program like this (the full program constitutes about half of the Carolina Yoga Company 300-hour YTT).

why you need this

When you learn how to sequence your yoga lesson plans, you’ll increase client retention and your career will grow in exciting ways. Both your students and your bank account will benefit.

And if you’re moving toward a 300-/500-hour yoga teacher training, this is the perfect next step. You’ll earn 30 CEUs and get a jumpstart on your credits for the Carolina Yoga Co. 300YTT. The full six-month program will cover about half of the 300 hours.

what you’ll get in the Test Kitchen

Everything is housed online in my new virtual studio, Comfort Zone Yoga.

You’ll get a recipe box of done-for-you lesson plans, including balanced sequences and class themes, keyed to The Art of Yoga Sequencing and Teaching Yoga Beyond the Poses, so you can teach lesson plans that you know satisfy your students, without struggle on your part.

You’ll get technique tips keyed to The Professional Yoga Teacher’s Handbook. You’ll learn to clean up your cueing, refine your language, and level up your professional presentation, so you can be (almost) everyone’s favorite yoga teacher. Your new skill will keep your students returning and bringing friends, building your impact and your income.

Every other week, there will be a new featured lesson plan. NB: I don’t suggest you change your lesson plan that frequently, but we’re accelerating in the Test Kitchen, so the timeline is compressed!

I’ll break the lesson plan down in detail in the live call—like a cooking class—and we’ll find ways to customize it for the exact class formats you are teaching and the very students you serve. You’ll leave each call knowing exactly what you’ll teach in your next several classes, and exactly how you’ll teach it.

We’ll also expand each lesson, so you can repeat it with minor variations across the month. This means you’ll offer your students the consistency they need while also spicing things up just the right amount week to week.

You’ll “taste” these featured meals as a student in follow-along recorded classes, so you’ll know just how they land in students’ bodies and minds.

Then you’ll serve these lesson plan sequences to your clients and share feedback with the group and with me about how it went. You’ll benefit from everyone’s knowledge.

We’ll have three live calls to demo these lesson plans on Tuesdays, and in between I’ll provide asynchronous mentorship for you in the community platform. You’ll get answers to all your questions. I bet you can’t stump me, but if you do, we’ll work together to find the best solution to any yoga teaching problem you’ve ever had.

You’ll get a Notion database with poses, modifications, and sequences that you can use for quick and easy class planning. Think the Sequence Library on steroids! With a few clicks, you can create modular, adaptable lesson plans. Get all your planning done for a month in only a few minutes. (I am so thrilled about this element of the program—it’s my brain in sharable format!)

You’ll earn 30 Yoga Alliance CEUs—so you’ll knock out all the training you need for the year, in only six weeks.

price and perks

Your investment: $797 for the six weeks.

There’s a very big carrot for you to make this investment: when you show up to all three of the calls (or watch the replays and engage in the community), do the technique work, share feedback along the way, and provide me a case-study testimonial via a video call I record or in response to written prompts, I will invite you to the full $1497 six-month program as my free guest.

That means you’ll get the full mentorship plus the Test Kitchen accelerator for almost half price. And the Mentorship Membership will get you about halfway to earning your Carolina Yoga Company 300/500-hour yoga teaching certificate, if you choose to apply it.

time commitment

The time you spend in the kitchen is up to you!

If you are a minimalist, you can get what you need and share your feedback and questions in an hour or two each week. Remember, you’ll access dozens of done-for-you lesson plans, so you can work with these preset recipes and lead fantastic classes in very little time.

If you are a maximalist, you can spend several hours a week reviewing recipes, taking classes, asking questions, and working on your technique. Your teaching will benefit accordingly!

Our three live calls will be Tuesdays, January 14, January 28, and February 11, either at 10 a.m., noon, or 2 p.m. Eastern, depending on the time that suits most of the group. Calls will last an hour with an option to stick around for more Q&A. While it’s best if you can make the calls live, it’s not a requirement; replays will be available.

apply NOW before seats are gone

Applications are open now! I have 18 2 spots left to offer. I do expect it to fill in mid-December, so don’t delay!

I’ll accept best-fit apprentice chefs on a rolling basis. If you’re accepted, you’ll need to pay within seven days to hold your spot, and we’ll begin on Tuesday, January 14, 2025.

Questions? Write sage@sagerountree.com.