Embodied & Somatic Yoga Teacher Training
Embodied and Somatic Yoga connect the mind and body through movement. This strengthens our connection with ourselves, making us more attuned, gently allowing us to feel and experience in the moment.
Caitriona’s teachings and trainings weave together a unique blend of Traditional Yoga, Embodied Movement and Somatic awareness. Through this unique combination, we build greater awareness and a deeper connection to our innate wholeness, we tap into our own intuition, learn coping skills and increase flexibility, strength and resilience of mind and body; all leading to a healthy and full life with balance, calmness and ease.
What is Embodied & Somatic Yoga?
Embodied Yoga is a somatic practice, which means ‘of the body’. To practice in an embodied way, you ‘feel’ the movements and bodily sensations, rather than following instructions on how to move and achieve set poses. This is also known as “Interoception”, a new sense we all have, and a growing field in the World of neuroscience. Developing our Interoceptive abilities plays a very important role in our well-being.
A somatic movement, generally speaking, is one which is performed consciously with the intention of focusing on the internal experience of the movement rather than the external appearance or result of the movement. Somatic movement is a form of movement practice that is designed to balance and realign the neuromuscular system of the body, decrease muscle tension, restore functional, graceful movement, and improve posture. It is safe, gentle and accessible to everyone, offering them freedom and ease in their body. The Somatic exercises are slow, mindful movements.
“Soma” is the word Somatics pioneer, Thomas Hanna coined during the 1970's to designate “the body perceived from within.” It describes a human as Soma: a unified brain-body, an integrated system of perceiver and perceived.
The Teacher training - Embodied & Somatic Yoga (50 hours)
Course Overview
This fifty hour training invites you into a slower and more spacious way of practicing and teaching. It is designed as the next step of your teacher training journey, offering a deeper layer of personal growth and embodiment.
We return to the body as a living landscape and explore our experience through the musculoskeletal system as a familiar map, where we bring together embodied anatomy, somatic movement, yoga, meditation, philosophy and free movement with somatic enquiry. We are introduced to principles of Embodied Flow and core concepts from Body-Mind Centering, including developmental patterns and an introduction to body systems. Each module offers space to sense, explore and integrate. You learn what embodiment is and how to guide others into their own experience in an open, invitational and inclusive way.
This is learning through the body and learning through relationship. A gentle return to discovery and wonder. Exploration that sparks curiosity, awakens presence and reconnects us and our students to our innate wholeness.
Course Structure
In-Person Training (6 full days)
* Weekend 1: Jan 16–18, 2026
* Weekend 2: Feb 6–8, 2026
* Time: 9.15am–6.00pm (includes lunch and breaks)
* Venue: Aras Chronain Cultural Centre, Watery Lane, Clondalkin, Dublin 22, D22 X856
Online Training (2 modules)
* Jan 22 & Jan 29, 6–8.45pm via Zoom
One-to-One Mentoring
* 1-hour session via Zoom, at a mutually agreed time
Additional content will be available via a pre-recorded online platform.
*Dates, times, and venue may be subject to change.
Course Fee: €1,150.
Booking Deposit (non refundable) €350 - required to secure your place
Balance of fees due prior to commencement date (16th Jan 2026)
3 Month Payment plan is available.
This fee includes access to all in-person and online sessions, mentoring, and pre-recorded online resources.
*Terms and conditions apply (available on website)
Accreditation
Completion of the 50 hours plus two assignments grants an Embodied and Somatic Yoga Training Certificate and counts as 50 contact CE hours with Yoga Alliance (Caitriona is a Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider YACEP).
Course Requirements
This is a CPD training course available to qualified yoga teachers with a minimum of 200 hours training.
Contact Info: Caitriona Leavey
Tel: 087 8199954
Email: caitriona@theflowteam.ie
Why Train With Us
This one of a kind training is designed and delivered by Caitriona Leavey of Clondalkin Yoga and The Flow Team Academy, a well-renowned trauma-informed facilitator combining decades of teaching, continuous training, and expertise in Embodied and Somatic Practices. It weaves together a variety of embodied approaches learned from world leaders in somatics and embodiment, offered in a fun and accessible way.
Past students have highlighted the deeper sense of awareness and self-connection gained, as well as practical tools for creating spacious, mindful teaching environments.
Course Modules
Modules are designed to guide teachers through the body and somatic experience, with each building on the previous. Sessions include embodied practice, somatic enquiry, experiential anatomy, meditation, and teaching exploration.
Each day will include a minimum 2 hour facilitated embodied practice, journalling, teaching enquiry/ workshop.
Module Highlights:
Embodying the Spine and Pelvis, Legs, Feet, Shoulders, Arms, Hands, Neck, Head including experiential and embodied anatomy and movement exploration. Yielding, Pathways of Weight, and Developmental Movement Patterns: experiential practice and somatic principles Introduction to Hanna Somatics, Introduction to Embodied Flow principles, Tantric Philosophy and it's relevance to embodied practices, Trauma-informed and embodied teaching approaches, Embodied Teaching methods, class planning, and mini teaching groups, Explore the systems of the body, embodied facilitation, voice and teaching synthesis.
Please note that course curriculum is subject to change
(online vs in person / date and actual content)
What our students say about this unique training
"I truly loved the embodied & somatic yoga teacher training. It has complemented my 200 hour training that I've have done in Aruna, and it also complements my style of teaching. The course gave me a deeper sense of my physical body, the movement into and out of asanas and poses in, on a subconscious level. It has helped me create a deeper sense of self awareness through the connection of body and mind via the practice and tools experienced on the training. The course has helped me, both personally and professionally, especially how I show up for classes and create space for others. I highly recommend the course for yoga teachers, for their classes, but also for their personal growth and I am sure you will reap the benefits of this training for yourself, obviously, both, personally and professionally."
Jean Cummins, Maya Soul Yoga
"What a wonderful journey it has been undertaking & completing this Embodied & Somatic Yoga Teacher Training with CaitrionaIt has been the most natural extension of my YTT in Hatha & Ayurveda & has supported me in deepening my awareness around the visceral need for us as humans to slow down & regulate our nervous systems through tuning into our very individual, very unique felt sense of our yoga experience. Noticing the wisdom which arises from within when practising, noticing how we truly feel within a pose or sequence & using this information to guide our practice, our movement, our breath...as opposed to propelling our bodies through a series of shapes based purely upon aesthetics.
One of the most precious learnings for me has been around yielding. Releasing that sense of needing to constantly prop myself up in life which can then lead to a need for total & complete surrender in order to recover.
Instead I've been finding the in between, the balance, the point where I have found myself softening into life, into the breath, into the movement & moving from a place of intention instead of complete survival/complete surrender.
Thank you Caitriona for this course, your guidance & for sharing your knowledge "
Sarah Donavan Yogalavie
"I have to say your course teachings has really integrated into me in past two weeks my personal shift has been profound you really have changed my teachings in my classes lately many light blub moments my classes are full of embodiment moments which I'm loving were taking our time eg doing spine movements and exploring the 5 main segements of the spine you gave me the idea and taking our time to feel, explore and enquire and connect and benefits of slowing down has been amazing and not rushing and awarness & embodiement.
Emotionally im loving the slower pace of life my brain my mind and my thoughts my nervous system is regulated. I'm Physically more present, calm and embodied.
As a Yoga Teacher my students from Chair yoga to retreats to weekly classes have such a profound change slower paces of classes, taking the time to notice and get my students to discover their own embodiement in class and breath, this is the reward.
Thank you for leading the way for me and other Yoga teachers and sharing all you knowledge I look forward to discovering so much more in Embodied and Somatic Yoga from your extra material, your course was outstanding, Thank you Jen"
Jennifer Donnolly www.yogabyjend.com
Aims of this training
Aims for you as a practitioner
To deepen your connection with your body-mind and
practice from a place of sensing rather than striving.
To meet yourself with compassion and clarity.
To grow your somatic awareness through felt, lived
anatomy.
To strengthen your ability to feel both your inner and
outer landscapes.
To experience your body from the inside out through
embodied anatomy.
To rediscover pleasure, ease and curiosity in
movement.
To explore Hanna Somatics as a pathway into deep
embodiment.
To move beyond fixed shapes into more organic,
intuitive expression.
Aims for you as a teacher
To teach from your own embodied knowing.
To understand alignment as functional and adaptive.
To shift from telling to facilitating exploration.
To use inquiry-based learning that empowers your
students.
To develop the language of guided enquiry.
To understand your role as an embodied facilitator.
To welcome somatics into your teaching space with
confidence.
To explore how voice, pacing and presence create
safety and connection.
“What teachers can do is shift their focus and orientation away from playing Simon Says and Monkey See, Monkey Do, towards creating an optimal context for people to gain access to the ever-changing kaleidoscope of sensation that is embodiment. This is a skill that can only be developed when we have a conscious teaching strategy that is committed to helping people gain entry to their own felt kinesthesia (the feeling of the body and of movement), and interoception (the sensations that arise from within our viscera).” Donna Farhi
If you can sense it & feel it you can change it.
– Thomas Hanna, Founder of Somatic Movement Education
When you pay attention to your internal feedback, you not only enhance your emotional intelligence but can learn to carry this wisdom into the world in a manner that enhances your health and relationships.
Dr. Arielle Schwartz
This training is for you if
· You feel there is more depth and possibility to experiencing a movement practice and want to explore this further
· You want to offer a space for your students to move deeper into their own experience and allow their practice to come from this place
· You want to move beyond the more teacher instructional, pure alignment style of teacher to offer a space for curiosity and exploration
This training is not for you if
· You want a quick fix/ additional qualification, (please note that this training is not a full Somatics Training, it is an introduction to Somatic based awareness and practices and a somatic approach through the lens of a yoga practice and explores how to introduce this approach to your students.)
Join me on the journey
Here’s what people are saying about
Caitriona as a Teacher Trainer
Adrienne Perry
Caitriona was my instructor on the YTI pregnancy yoga teacher training which I completed in 2019. She is an experienced teacher, I found her mix of practical examples and theory really enjoyable. Her relaxed but informed teaching style meant I felt really comfortable teaching in front of the group at an early stage, and we had so much fun learning. She gave me the confidence to teach from a place of knowledge and had lots of practical guidance for setting up my own class. I felt inspired to make a positive difference to the pregnancy and birth experience through my teaching. Catriona’s teaching training and course content was not just based on adapted yoga for pregnancy. It focused on structured prenatal yoga classes to inform and educate mums to be so they can have the best possible birth experience.
Julie Hanrahan
I had the pleasure of being taught by Caitriona in 2018 as part of the YTI Pregnancy Yoga Teacher training. Caitriona is a wealth of knowledge but more importantly, there is a genuine warmth & enthusiasm to how she shares this. You can tell that she loves what she does & her energy is infectious. I would highly recommend yogies to take the opportunity to train with Caitriona...it will nourish your mind & body
Sheila Garvey
I had the pleasure of meeting & studying Prenatal Yoga with Caitriona Leavey. She was the highlight of the Yoga Therapy Course for me and an endless source of knowledge and positivity.
Caitriona is a very open, warm and loving person. She always willingly gave her expert advice & time on the course. She continued to assist me on several occasions over the years after the course was well & truly over. I am truly grateful for this....thank you so much.
I feel blessed to have learnt from one of the best tutors in this field and to have made a beautiful connection with such a soulful being.
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