I am trying to optimize the placement of my web site on google,
www.yandara.com. Yoga teacher training, yoga certification, and yoga
schools are the keywords. There are so many web site optimizing
companies out there I don't know who to believe. So I want to get as
much info as possible and do as much as I can myself.
What are the specific ways I can get my web site on the first page of
google using the key words above.

In Italy it's going on a race to place a site first on Google for the
keyword "velocipedi equestri".
You could study these sites html code, to understand how to proceed:

http://www.sottoweb.com/velocipedi-equestri/
http://www.laurabattaglia.com/velocipedi_equestri.htm
http://www.spesadomicilio.com/

- the pages must be nor too big, nor too small
- you must repeat your keyword in the page some times, but not too many
- you must enclose your keywords on <H1> <H2> <H3> <B> <A> <U> html
tags to give more relevance
- don't use tricks like "hiding text" or "redirecting" because you get
banned from google

I use to read this site that is very good for site optimization:
http://www.webpronews.com/

Other good html tricks:

- the pages and images file names should be pertinent, for example
"joga.gif" "yoga_school.html"
- use the ALT and TITLE tags on LINKS and IMAGES

The best answers to this question come from google:

://www.google.com/webmasters/

The long and the short is that you should add content often and
regularly. Write about your keywords and use them in your articles. I
read in the book "Google Hacks" that 200-300 is a good range for each
article. Another good tip is to link to other websites and have then
link back to you.