As yoga-asana teachers, our aim isn’t just to guide people into making shapes with their body. A significant part of our goal as a teacher is to guide students into awareness. 

In asana practice, movement is the language, but depth comes through the cultivation of mind-body connection and the development of awareness. 

During the recent Yoga Teacher Training Anatomy for Yoga session, we looked at awareness from an anatomical perspective (often referred to as ‘somatics’ in a healing context, as it relates to the somatic nervous system).  ‘Somatics’ refers to the study and practice of ‘embodied’ or physical awareness; how we experience the body from within, rather than just as a mechanical structure. It’s about felt-sense, internal perception, and the integration of movement, sensation, emotion, and awareness (via the somatic component of the nervous system): 

Outer layer: Exteroception (outer world)  

Middle: Proprioception (body in space)  

Inner: Interoception (internal sensations)  

as well as 

Center: Self-awareness (the atman, conscious witness) 

Exteroception: Awareness of external stimuli such as sound, light, temperature, cues. 

• In yoga-asana class: noticing the room, the teacher’s voice, ambient sounds. 

• As a teacher: Useful for anchoring attention, especially for stressed, anxious or dissociative students. 

Off the mat: 

• Builds presence and awareness of your surroundings 

• Supports emotional regulation by anchoring attention externally 

• Improves connection through noticing tone, expression, and body language 

• Helps manage anxiety and dissociation through grounding in the senses/sensroy experience 

• Enhances sensory mindfulness and everyday appreciation 

• Increases ability to recognise and respond to environmental cues for safety 

Proprioception: Sense of body position and movement. 

• In yoga-asana class: “Where is my foot? Is my weight centered? Am I balanced?”  

• Enhances coordination, stability, and injury prevention. 

Off the mat: 

• Improves coordination and balance in daily movement 

• Supports injury prevention through better body awareness 

• Enhances posture and movement efficiency 

• Builds confidence in physical activity and mobility 

• Helps regulate nervous system through grounding in the body (what modern culture often refers to as, ‘embodied’) 
• Helps us feel more grounded in daily life tasks 

Interoception: Awareness of internal sensations (e.g. breath, heartbeat, fullness, emotion, temperature). 

• In yoga-asana class: noticing breath quality, tension, hunger and thirst, heat, or fatigue. 

• Builds emotional regulation and nervous system resilience. 

Off the mat: 

• Enhances emotional awareness and self-regulation 

• Supports early detection of stress, fatigue, or overwhelm 

• Builds resilience by helping respond to internal needs in real-time 

• Encourages mindful choices around rest, food, and movement 

• Deepens connection to intuition and inner wisdom 
• Helps prevent burnout by tuning into subtle bodily cues 

Self-awareness: Awareness from the perspective of the self/atman. Observing your own experience, thoughts, responses and reactions.  

• In yoga-asana class: noticing thoughts, observing internal dialogue, leading with the self as opposed to giving into mental whims and desires. 

• Leads to insight, discernment, and transformation, which lies at the heart of yogic practice. 

Off the mat: 

• Increases clarity around thoughts, emotions, and behaviours 

• Supports conscious decision-making and aligned action 

• Builds emotional intelligence and personal insight 

• Helps break patterns of reactivity or self-sabotage 
• Deepens connection to values, purpose, and higher truth 

Experiential practice: Practicing Mountain Pose 

• Exteroception: Listen to sounds in the room. Feel the air on your skin. 

• Proprioception: Feel your feet on the floor. Where’s your weight? Notice your posture. Slowly raise your arms as you inhale; lower them as you exhale, feeling your arms move through space. 

• Interoception: Scan your body with your awareness and breath. Where do you feel tension or ease? 

• Self-awareness: Notice your thoughts. Notice how you feel in this moment. Say to yourself, I am the silent witness - the spirit soul, seated within the body, silent witness to the minds activity. 
  

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