One of the most common misconceptions about yoga is that it’s an exercise exclusively for the rich. This assumption has merit, with the average yoga class costing between $15 and $25 for group sessions. Someone who wants a private session must have an extra $30 to $70 an hour to spend.
Is yoga losing its way?
A study published in the yoga journal showed that 80% of yoga practitioners in the United States have an income of $75,000 and higher, and only 3% earn $30,000 and less.
Founding Dean of the Graduate School of Holistic Studies at John F. Kennedy University in California, said that “the original context of yoga was spiritual development practices to train the body and mind to self-observe and become aware of their own nature. The purposes of yoga were to cultivate discernment, awareness, self-regulation, and higher consciousness in the individual.” The things he mentioned here should not be exclusive to wealthy people. In fact, the current state of yoga is doing the opposite of what it was originally intended for in India, with contributions from both Hinduism and Buddhism.
At its core, yoga should be a tool to connect an individual to their spirituality, surroundings, and fellow human beings, while providing additional benefits to physical and mental fitness. All of these should be accessible to everyone regardless of gender, race, and income. This was the belief of Steph Ball-Mitchell when she founded Online Yoga School.
Building a strong foundation
Unlike most online platforms teaching the practice, Online Yoga School was established long before the pandemic. Ball-Mitchell did not need to have her business threatened by the lockdown to pivot online. She has been delivering affordable and accessible yoga classes and certifications for thousands of people before it became one of the most popular exercises and ways to generate income from home.
Students can enroll in Online Yoga School for $9.99 a month as opposed to the $25 an hour in most studios. Certifying as a yoga instructor is also more affordable through Online Yoga School. They charge less than $400 for a 200-hour yoga instructor certification course instead of most instructor certification courses’ $2,000 price tag.
Ball-Mitchell wants to bring yoga back to its roots as she tells the origin of yoga training, “Yoga comes to us from India. Traditionally, students would stay at the ashram with their guru for an unspecified period to study yoga. The guru often took many years to decide that the student was ready to teach. Students would pay for their yoga teacher training in service during these times, possibly taking care of the animals or the land in exchange for the guru’s time and mentorship.”
However, since its mainstream attention in the west, yoga has been commoditized, which has made it inaccessible for some. Ball-Mitchell continues, “Yoga teacher training programs cost thousands and thousands of dollars, which meant that a prerequisite to becoming a yoga teacher was having disposable income. This created an accessibility issue for a larger percentage of the population. Marginalized communities did not have access to yoga teacher training; therefore, these communities lacked yoga classes. As a result, there were a lot of underrepresented populations in the yoga community.”
It is not enough for Ball-Mitchell and Online Yoga School to make a living from yoga. It must reach every imaginable community as it is the only way to realize its full potential.