Nervous System & Yoga Foundations
Self-Paced Online Training
Six modules · 50-hour CPD · Lifetime access
The course launches on Tuesday, 16 JUNE 2026, with a free 90-minute live launch lecture at 19:00 UK time.
Understanding what yoga actually does and teaching it with more precision, more care, and an honest understanding of the science.
You have been teaching the nervous system for years…do you know that?
Every time a student leaves your Yin class looking more settled and softer, their parasympathetic nervous system has most probably come online. Every time someone arrives in your vinyasa class, scattered and leaves refreshed, that is a complete nervous system arc that is working for them. Every time a breath practice shifts the room, that's co-regulation and vagal tone responding to respiratory sinus arrhythmia.
The body of science that informs us what yoga actually does has become remarkably precise, and most yoga teachers have had no structured way to understand it fully.
That gap between what you are doing and what you understand yourself to be doing is what this training is about. Because every yoga class you teach is a conversation with your students’ nervous system. And how you are in class sets the tone for how your students will respond.
Our mission;
“Not by turning yoga into medicine, we are not replacing the rich history and tradition of yoga with neuroscience. But with understanding the mechanisms behind practices that have been working for so many thousands of years, and using that understanding to teach with more intention, with more care, with more genuine skill.”
~ Deeside Yoga Institute
Honesty about what is currently understood and what is not…
Polyvagal theory is taught in almost every nervous system yoga training today. It is also very actively debated in neuroscience, and most training doesn’t tell you that. We do. We teach PVT as a widely used and genuinely useful framework, and we're transparent because claims remain highly debated. We provide the language to treat it as a framework rather than a fact, and language is key.
What sets this training apart:
We name the PVT debate directly, and teach you how to hold it honestly within your own teaching
Ethics of practice and teaching is such a large part of who we are; it is woven into every module
Scope of practice and safe boundaries for all are returned to throughout
Each module has practical tasks that build directly into real-life teaching
The final practicum is a deep integration of everything you have learned. You have the option to join live sessions in June to practice, discuss what you have learnt, and, most importantly, ask questions and share your own experience.
Six modules and a complete nervous System education
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The ANS, polyvagal theory (and the debate around it), neuroception, and the three-state model as a working map. Classical yoga as a nervous system practice. The ethical principles that underpin everything: scope of practice, the yamas and niyamas as living professional ethics.
Task: written NS observation journal.
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Fascial anatomy, mechanoreceptors, and viscoelastic response. The critical distinction between yield and collapse. Sequencing yin for regulation.
Task: record yourself teaching a 20-minute Yin sequence, with a written self-review using the NS observation framework.
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Interoception, bottom-up processing, and developmental movement patterns. The ethics of somatic work: the niyamas as a framework for not interpreting, not rescuing, not projecting.
Task: record a 15-minute voice-only somatic guidance session, with a written language audit.
Three ethics case study responses.
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RSA, vagal tone, CO₂ tolerance, and the Bohr effect. Six pranayama practices with NS mechanisms and contraindications. Invitational breath language.
Task: written contraindication review, then record yourself teaching a 15-minute breath sequence with a written language assessment.
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Vinyasa as deliberate SNS activation. The five-phase NS arc. Reading the room. The ethics of intensity.
Task: record a 20-minute vinyasa sequence with arc narration, and complete a five-phase self-map of your recording.
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Designing multi-modal classes across the full NS palette. The teacher's NS as the primary teaching instrument. Ethics closing: scope, language, cultural context, and carrying this forward.
Task: 30-minute multi-modal practicum recording + 500–800-word written synthesis (reviewed personally by Gem before the certificate is issued).
Who This Training Is For
This training is suitable if you:
Are a 200-hour trained yoga teacher
Teach Yin, Restorative, or slower practices
Are interested in working with older adults or mixed-ability groups
Want ethical clarity around nervous system language
Are moving into community or accessible teaching spaces
How the self-paced course works
This course is designed to be experienced at your own pace and in your own time, with a clear structure that supports real learning. The course opens with a free 90-minute live launch lecture at 19:00 UK time.
Launches Tuesday 16 June 2026
The course opens with a free 90-minute live launch lecture at 19:00 UK time. The lecture is open to anyone; you don't need to have purchased the course to attend. We'll work through the foundations of the autonomic nervous system, polyvagal theory in plain language, and the honest landscape of what's known and what's debated. The recording is available to all course members afterwards.
That same evening, Modules 1–3 of the course became available to everyone who had joined.
Module release schedule
Module 1: Foundations: nervous system & yoga (available 16 June)
Module 2: Yin yoga & the parasympathetic body (available 16 June)
Module 3: Somatic practice & body awareness (available 16 June)
Module 4: Breath awareness & pranayama (released 16th July 2026)
Module 5: Vinyasa & sympathetic activation (released 16th July 2026)
Module 6: Integration, state-shifting & ethics (released 16th August 2026)
You'll be notified by email when each new module becomes available.
Lifetime access
Once you join, you have unlimited access to all material: videos, written materials, practice recordings, and the launch lecture recording for as long as the course exists.
What's included in the course
Six modules of teaching: lecture videos and practice videos for each
Written course materials: module workbooks, anatomy references, ethics frameworks
Five practical assignments: one per module (Modules 1–5), with optional submission
Final 30-minute practicum recording + written synthesis
Module 6, reviewed personally by Gem before the certificate is issued
The free launch lecture recording: the 16 June lecture, available to all course members afterwards
Lifetime access to all materials, including any updates
50-hour Yoga Alliance CPD certificate eligible for continuing education hours
A £95 reduction toward the live October training, should you decide to deepen the work in the group live training.
Course Fee and Registration:
£295: Lifetime access to all course materials.
Payment plan available: two instalments of £150.
A £95 reduction is available if you have completed the 10-hour Introduction to the Nervous System and Yoga
Self-paced graduates receive a £95 reduction toward the 5-day live training in October, should you decide to deepen the work in a group live setting.
Not sure yet? Come to the free launch lecture on 16 June. No commitment, just an invitation. Reserve your free seat for the launch lecture
Testimonial / graduate reflections
FAQs
Here, you’ll find answers to commonly asked questions about the course to help you feel informed and confident about your decision to join me for this Nervous System and Yoga Foundations training.
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No. You can join live or study from the recorded live trainings and pre-recorded lectures. Everything is uploaded within 24 hours of live training.
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Yes. However, you will need basic yoga experience.
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No. It teaches trauma informed best practices, informed awareness and regulation. It does not qualify you as a yoga therapist.
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Yes. You will receive a 50 Hour CPD certificate which can be registered with Yoga Alliance and counts towards CPD hours.
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Yes. You are required to complete a written reflection and a short teaching demonstration, along with a quiz at the end of each module.
Begin your study in nervous system and yoga foundations
Join the online training and build clarity in your practice and teaching.