Are you a health and wellness coach, movement practitioner or therapist who is looking for a new approach to holistic movement with your clients?

Gyrotonic training attracts people from all walks of life. I have had dancers who want to share their love of movement, elementary school teachers, professionals in other careers that want to make a career change and instructors from other modalities like Pilates, yoga, physical therapy and massage therapy that want to expand their skill range and people who just want to go through the training for their own personal development or to have equipment in their home and to work with family and friends!

If you LOVE movement, and enjoy helping others to understand how their bodies move and how to move to their fullest capacity, feel good in their bodies and in their lives, then becoming a Gyrotonic Instructor may be a great fit for you.  In this blog post, I am going to give you the simple 5 step process to become a Gyrotonic Instructor and tell you how you can get started.

To get started, before you even enter the teacher training process, you will need to have a minimum of ten sessions with a certified instructor to familiarize yourself with the introductory material and to prepare your body for the training. This will also give you the opportunity to get a good feel for the system and make sure that it is right for you!

So, what is so unique about the Gyrotonic Method?

The GYROTONIC EXPANSION SYSTEM® is made up of two methods, the GYROTONIC® Method and the GYROKINESIS® Method. This blog post will focus on the Level 1 Gyrotonic Method Training. The Gyrotonic Method is a holistic system of movement that can meet a variety of health and wellness goals to help you move without pain, develop flexible strength with minimal impact to your body and cross-train for specific sports like Golf, Tennis or Dance.

Exercises are based in three -dimensional movements that help you to align and strengthen your core and move your body as a whole with fluid, flexible strength. Movements integrate breathing principles, mobilize and decompress the spine and joints and work all the major muscle groups synergistically for a full body workout.

The Gyrotonic Method is an apparatus-based method that utilize a unique pulley tower system that offers supportive resistance to the body in all ranges of motion. The level one teacher training process is taught on the pulley tower system. Other specialized equipment like the Jumping Stretching Board, Leg Extension Unit and the Ladder, offer a variety of exercises for developing strength, flexibility, balance and coordination through fluid movement and are available as advanced training courses for Gyrotonic Level 1 Certified Instructors.

My personal practice with Gyrotonic has evolved as a Movement Therapist to working primarily with clients who are transitioning from Physical Therapy and need specific exercise modifications to help them create a new approach to movement. I bring my expertise and experience from working in a physical therapy clinic and as a movement therapist and somatic coach for 15 years to help my students empower their clients to use the Gyrotonic Method to connect to their bodies and find their home in movement.  As a Master Trainer, I teach the first three courses in the Gyrotonic Teacher Training Process.

The Gyrotonic Level 1 Teacher Training Process

The Gyrotonic Teacher training process is a combination of four courses that usually take from 9-12 months to complete. All courses must be completed with certified Gyrotonic Pre-Trainers or Master Trainers. You make take each course with a different instructor or all courses with one instructor.

Introductory Sessions

As I mentioned earlier, the first step in the Teacher Training process is to have ten introductory sessions with a certified Gyrotonic Instructor to familiarize yourself with the work and prepare your body for the training. The training is intensive and demanding and you will want to be familiar with the movement before you begin.

The Gyrotonic Pre-Training

The first course in the Gyrotonic Teacher Training program. In the Gyrotonic Pre-Training you will learn the fundamental exercises of the Gyrotonic Level One Foundation Course with a focus on individual execution of the movements and understanding of the principles. At the end of the pre-training you will be able to put together a full Gyrotonic workout to lead your self- practice routines. The Gyrotonic Pre-training is a 6 day/30-hour course that can be broken up into two, three-day segments. The pre-training is taught by Dawn Strom or another certified Pre-Trainer.  After you complete the pre-training you will have three months to enroll in and begin the next course, the Level 1 Foundation Training.

Level 1 Foundation Training

In the Gyrotonic Level 1 Foundation Course you will learn how to teach fundamental exercises of the Gyrotonic Level One Foundation Course. This course will focus on deepening your understanding and communication of Gyrotonic principles as well as introducing teaching tools and cueing. Upon completion of your Gyrotonic Foundation Course you will be able to teach an introductory session to a new client. You will then enter your Apprenticeship period where you will practice progressing clients through the level one material as well as continue to develop you own integration of the material through self- practice. The Foundation Course is taught by a Master Trainer and is a 12 day/60-hour course that can be broken up into three four-day weekend segments. After you complete and pass the Foundation course, you can continue into your apprentice period.

Apprentice Review

After you complete your Foundation Training you will have a 6-12-month apprenticeship period where you will teach a total of 60 sessions, 30 of which must be completed before your apprentice review course.

Once you have completed 30 sessions you will sign up for a 6-day/ 30 hour Apprentice Review Course with Dawn Strom or another licensed Master Trainer. During this time, you will review material and learn any material that was not covered in the foundation training. You will have time to ask questions about your teaching practice. After finishing your apprentice review, you will complete the remaining 30 hours of teaching and then you will go on to your final certification offered at a variety of locations in the USA and in Europe.

Certification

After you have passed your apprentice review and completed your hours, you may sign up for your Certification offered through Gyrotonic Headquarter at a variety of locations in the US and Europe. This is a three day course. And upon completion of the course you will be a licensed Gyrotonic Trainer.

Cost of Training

The cost of the Gyrotonic Teacher Training process is divided into a combination of course fees and studio fees.

• The course fees are determined through Gyrotonic Headquarters and are the same regardless of which Master Trainer you work
• The Studio where you take your course will also have a fee that will cover the costs of using the studio space and may also apply for travel costs of the Master Trainer teaching the course. Studio fees will vary based on
• You should check with the individual studio hosting the course for a complete list of fees. For a complete list of general course fees click HERE.

Continuing Education

Once you are a Licensed Gyrotonic Trainer, you will need to complete continuing education requirements every two years and pay a licensing fee to renew your license. For more information on continuing education requirements, click here.

How To Get Started

So now that you know a little more about The Gyrotonic Teacher Training Process, you may be wondering whether it is a good fit for you? If you are interested in joining one of my level 1 foundation trainings, click HERE to schedule a discovery session. I would love to talk with you in person and help give you the information that you need to make the best decision for your career.

To see a list of our current scheduled courses, click HERE . Please let me know if you have any questions!

I hope to see you in one of my courses!

All the best,

Dawn

GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® Specialized Master Trainer