What types of yoga teacher training courses are available in Switzerland?

There are an estimated 35-45 providers of yoga teacher training courses in Switzerland. In this article, I summarize the different styles and types of yoga available, what you should look out for when choosing a training course, and whether or not you will be recognized by health insurance companies afterwards.

Yoga / Vinyasa Yoga

Hatha-Yoga

Sivananda Yoga

Iyengar Yoga

Alignment Yoga

Ashtanga Yoga

Yin Yoga

Vini Yoga

Hot-Yoga / Bikram Yoga

Kundalini Yoga

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Those who want to delve deeper into yoga often decide to train as yoga teachers. The basic idea for many at the beginning is that they simply want to know more about yoga “as a whole” and want to improve and deepen their yoga practice.

This often marks the beginning of a tedious search for the right training provider. If you enter “yoga teacher training” into a search engine, you will be overwhelmed by the sheer number of offers – which initially discourages many people from actually pursuing their goal. However, if you already have a clearer idea of what you are looking for, the selection process becomes much easier.

For this reason, I would like to briefly introduce the most well-known styles and types of yoga here – hopefully this will help you find a provider that really suits you more quickly. Further down in the article, I explain what is required to be able to bill health insurance companies in Switzerland.

Flow yoga, often referred to as vinyasa yoga, is a dynamic form of yoga in which the postures (asanas) are performed fluidly and in connection with the breath. The main idea is that each movement is synchronized with the inhalation or exhalation, creating a kind of “flow of movement” – hence the name flow.

The asanas/yoga exercises flow quickly into one another, almost always accompanied by music. The style is active, dynamic, and athletic—a good workout. Breathing guides the movements. For example, stretch upward as you inhale and flow into a forward bend as you exhale. In short, flow yoga combines workout and mindful, fast movement.

The meditative aspect is rather subtle, similar to jogging, when your head clears because you have to concentrate on the movement, and differs from calm yoga. Flow yoga can train both strength and flexibility, as transitions between postures often require strength, balance, and coordination.

This style of yoga requires a good level of fitness and strength. If you are not very flexible and have a few physical weaknesses, this style is probably not right for you and you will not really get your money's worth during such a yoga teacher training course.

However, if you would like to do a Flow Yoga/Vinyasa training course, include this in your search query. For example: Flow Yoga Vinyasa Yoga Training Switzerland or in my local area, etc.

For other things to look out for when searching for a suitable training place for your yoga teacher training, read this article I wrote: What to look for in a yoga teacher training course? 9 important points.

If you want to delve deeper into this topic, get our free questionnaire about yoga teacher training courses. There you will find 21 questions and answers that you should ask yourself before deciding on a training course. This questionaire ist in German!

Hatha yoga is a traditional form of yoga and basically the umbrella term for all physically oriented yoga styles. However, not everyone is aware of this—in common parlance, hatha yoga is usually understood to be a rather slow practice in which the yoga exercises are held for longer.

Hatha yoga promotes strength, flexibility, stability, and mindfulness. The exercises are traditionally taught without yoga aids; there is usually no particular focus on alignment, and anatomical aspects tend to play a secondary role. Instead, breathing exercises (pranayama) are an important part of this style of yoga, as are traditional cleansing practices such as stomach, intestinal, or nasal cleansing.

If you are looking for such a classical training, it is best to enter “classical Hatha Yoga training Switzerland” or “Hatha Yoga training near me” in the search engine.

However, if you would like to focus more on anatomy and correct alignment in your training, Hatha Yoga alone may disappoint you. It is best to clarify this in advance directly with the training provider.

Sivananda Yoga is a classic Hatha Yoga style (see description above). It was founded by Swami Sivananda (1887–1963) and follows a standardized sequence of:

• Relaxation
• Breathing exercises
• Warm-up
• 12 basic asanas
• Relaxation

The difference between classical Hatha Yoga and Sivananda Yoga lies primarily in structure, philosophy, and practical focus, even though both are based on the same traditional foundations.

If you would like to take such a course, enter Sivananda Yoga Switzerland or my location in the search engine.

Iyengar Yoga is a further development of classical Hatha Yoga and places particular emphasis on correct alignment in the asanas in order to achieve maximum effect. The yoga style was developed by B.K.S. Iyengar (1918–2014) in India.

This style uses various yoga aids such as blocks, straps, blankets, chairs, or ropes. This allows even people with limitations or injuries to perform asanas correctly. Iyengar Yoga promotes strength, flexibility, stability, and mindfulness. The yoga exercises are held for longer. Anatomical understanding plays a certain role, but the individual characteristics of the body are often taken into account to a lesser extent – the focus is on the correct form of the asana.

Breathing exercises (pranayama) are also practiced, but usually only by advanced practitioners. Meditation and spirituality are less prominent in Iyengar Yoga.

If you would like to do such a training course, enter “Iyengar Yoga training Switzerland” or “Iyengar Yoga training near me” directly in your search.

The term “alignment yoga” is strongly associated with us—Tanja and Joey from The Yoga Place in Zurich—in Switzerland. Our style is based on Iyengar yoga, but places greater emphasis on the individual anatomy of each participant.

Correct alignment that suits you and your body, as well as the individual adaptation of yoga exercises to minimize the risk of injury and promote physical safety, are very important to us. In our earlier years, we unfortunately injured ourselves through yoga – which is why we now place particular emphasis on anatomical precision and mindfulness.

Our alignment of the asanas is less strictly based on a predetermined ideal, leaving more room for individual anatomy and avoiding misalignment of the joints. Our in-depth anatomical training is incorporated into our teaching. An asana should be perfect for your body – not primarily perfect in appearance. We train strength, flexibility, stability, and mindfulness.

Even in the basic training (200-hour Alignment Yoga Teacher Training RYT 200h), participants learn to practice pranayama safely. Meditation and spirituality are also essential components of yoga for us. For us, alignment refers on the one hand to the physical alignment of the body and on the other hand – in a figurative sense – to the inner alignment with something higher, such as the soul or our higher self. This training is also suitable for anyone who would like to develop a deeper understanding of yoga as a whole without teaching right away.

You can find out more about us and our yoga style here: The Yoga Place Zurich and here: Blog post on What is Alignment Yoga

Information about our training courses can be found here: Alignment Yoga Teacher Training at The Yoga Place Zurich - Please note, our trainings are held in German.

Ashtanga Yoga is a dynamic, physically demanding style of yoga developed by K. Pattabhi Jois in India. Ashtanga Yoga is characterized by flowing transitions between asanas, known as vinyasas. Each breath is usually associated with a movement.

The style consists of a fixed series of asanas, which are practiced in ascending order of difficulty. Ashtanga Yoga creates a workout effect similar to strength and endurance training. It is less meditative than slow Hatha styles, even though concentration on the breath and flow of movement promotes mental clarity. It trains strength, endurance, flexibility, and coordination.

If you would like to train as an Ashtanga yoga teacher, you should be strong, flexible, and athletic. Search specifically for Ashtanga Yoga Switzerland or in my area.

Yin Yoga is a gentle style of yoga that aims to stretch the connective tissues (such as ligaments, fascia, and joints) rather than focusing primarily on the muscles. The practice is characterized by long-held, passive yoga poses that are typically held for three to five minutes or even longer. The yoga exercises are usually performed while sitting or lying down, and the focus is on deepening the breath and calming the mind.

Caution is advised for people who are already very flexible, as passive yoga poses, where the joints are not supported by aids, often lead to overstretching of the ligaments and joints, making already weak structures even weaker.

Passive stretching in yoga lacks reciprocal inhibition, which can lead to injury. Reciprocal inhibition is a physiological principle that occurs in the muscles and plays an important role in movement control. It describes the mechanism by which the activation of one muscle causes the simultaneous relaxation of the antagonist muscle (i.e., the muscle that performs the opposite movement). This process is crucial for performing movements efficiently and in a controlled manner; otherwise, strains are likely to occur.

In our yoga style, Alignment Yoga (Alignment-based Hatha Yoga), we use this principle to ensure that stretching remains efficient and meaningful, and passive, regenerative yoga poses are always performed in such a way that the joints are supported by aids.

Yin Yoga trains mindfulness and flexibility.

The term was coined primarily by T.K.V. Desikachar, the son of yoga master T. Krishnamacharya. Krishnamacharya is considered the “father of modern yoga.” His two most famous yoga students were B.K.S. Iyengar, the founder of Iyengar Yoga, and Pattabhi Jois, the founder of Ashtanga Yoga.

Viniyoga is about tailoring the yoga practice to the physical condition, age, health, life situation, and goals of the practitioner. It is often taught in a therapeutic context.

However, there is a lack of focus on the correct alignment of yoga poses, which, in my opinion, is a very important component of yoga therapy.

When I completed my yoga therapy training, I was somewhat surprised at how little focus was placed on alignment in the yoga exercises. Although anatomy was an important part of the training, there was no reference to alignment in the poses.
I was very happy that I had already acquired a lot of knowledge about alignment and anatomy through my previous training in Alignment Yoga, and was then able to conclusively integrate further specialist knowledge of anatomy/pathology.

Participants in our Alignment Yoga Teacher Training courses now receive a combination of this knowledge. We combine anatomy, individual adaptation of the exercises, and correct alignment.
Vini Yoga trains strength, flexibility, stability, and mindfulness.

Hot yoga is a modern style of yoga in which the exercises are practiced in a heavily heated room (usually between 35°C and 40°C, with high humidity). The heat is intended to make the body more supple, promote blood circulation, stimulate sweating, and thus lead to a more intense physical and cleansing practice.

It is a demanding athletic style of yoga that trains flexibility, muscle strength, and endurance. However, caution is advised for those with cardiovascular problems or diseases, as the overheated room puts a lot of strain on the circulatory system. Injuries due to overstretching can also be more likely because heat distorts the sensation of stretching.

Kundalini Yoga is a form of yoga that combines physical exercises, breathing techniques, meditation, and mantras to activate and consciously direct the life energy (Kundalinī). This practice is based on ancient tantric and Vedic teachings and became particularly well known in the West through Yogi Bhajan, who brought it to the US in the late 1960s.

A classic yoga class usually begins with the singing of a mantra, followed by a set sequence of physical exercises, breathing techniques, and occasionally more mantras. This is followed by deep relaxation, which transitions into meditation. At the end, mantras are sung again.

Some people experience strong emotional or physical reactions during this process, which is considered part of the “energy process.” Traditional texts describe the awakening of kundalini as a spiritually powerful but also challenging event—which is why mindfulness is particularly important. Joey and I strongly advise against experimenting with kundalini energy recklessly. A thorough understanding is essential, and teachers should be very experienced.

In my experience, it is of course great when health insurance companies offer subsidies and these are used. But most of our yoga participants come to us because they recognize the positive benefits of alignment-based Hatha Yoga (Alignment Yoga) for themselves and trust our many years of experience in this style of yoga—not because their health insurance company pays for the courses.

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You may also be interested in the following article: Why depth is more important than variety in yoga teacher training