Namita Nayyar:
You set a “break-even” goal of just 8 students for your first 200 Hour Online Yoga Teacher Training and quickly surpassed 30. What advice would you give to other aspiring online educators who are waiting for the “perfect” product or the “right” time to launch?
Cathy Madeo:
Launch when it’s hot. People were reaching out to me practically begging me to put a training online together during COVID. If I had waited, they would have found someone else, the market would have been saturated, or I would have kept putting it off. I started with no money to invest in filming my training. That’s risky, but so is spending money on a product that no one is going to buy. Sell first and then produce your product. Just make sure you deliver an outstanding product or you’ll lose trust with your customers.
Namita Nayyar:
Your deep knowledge of alignment is a cornerstone of your teaching. How did your personal journey with spinal stenosis and emergency spine surgery transform your understanding of alignment and make you more compassionate toward students who are not naturally flexible?
Cathy Madeo:
It helped me understand that as teachers, we can cue alignment, but how it looks on everybody is different based on their own anatomy and history. That gave me more compassion. Rather than forcing yourself into a pose, it’s about adapting the pose to your body.
Namita Nayyar:
You developed your signature “Activate Your Core” method out of a need to heal your own back pain. Can you explain the philosophy behind this method and how you use it to help students build strength from the inside out?
Cathy Madeo:
This method educates you on all the different core muscles, how to engage them, and teaches you exercises and drills to build your core strength. After I had my second child, I was healing from back pain and returning to my yoga practice feeling stiff and weak. I discovered that when I applied a strength training approach to the drills I was doing by practicing them in reps and sets, I was increasing my strength both in my core and in my arms and shoulders. I turned this methodology into an 8-week yoga series and watched as students’ practices and bodies transformed. This grew eventually into my online series Activate Your Core.
Namita Nayyar:
You’ve said that people are moved not by perfection but by resilience. How has your own story of overcoming physical limitations shaped your identity as a teacher and the way you connect with your students?
Cathy Madeo:
I grew my Instagram account initially from posting challenging and sensational yoga poses. But when my spine began to limit me again in 2023, I shared it on social media. I was surprised by the reaction. The first video I posted sharing my regression got 65M views. Thousands of people shared their own stories of regression. That’s when I realized people don’t need perfection; they want to feel seen. I take that into every class I teach and interaction I have with students.
Namita Nayyar:
You emphasize that the best teachers are those who have had to overcome challenges. How do you help new teachers reframe their own limitations into assets rather than obstacles in their teaching?
Cathy Madeo:
So many teachers are worried if they don’t have the perfect yoga practice, yoga body, or look a certain way, they won’t be successful. I remind them that what they see as their weakness is actually what differentiates them from other yoga teachers. It’s also what makes them human and relatable, and those things build trust with your students.
Disclaimer
The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
