Yogaland Podcast

I bet you can conjure it up pretty easily: The image of the calm, benevolent yoga teacher who NEVER GETS ANGRY. You might wish that you were that person. And perhaps such people exist. But the rest of us mere mortals get pissed sometimes. And sometimes getting pissed is OK and warranted. The question is, how do you take your anger and channel in ways that are positive? And how do you learn and grow from your anger? What's beneath the subtext and how do you cope? I'm happy to have Sally Kempton back on this episode to answer all of my burning, raging rage questions. This is one of my favorite episodes to date! I'd love to know if you found it helpful. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode34/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Bex Urban joins me on this episode to share her many years of navigating the challenges of putting together a successful retreat. We talk risks, rewards, coping with busted septic tanks, and more. My hope is that this episode will inspire retreat newbies -- both students and teachers. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode33/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Among her other great qualities, I like to think of Stephanie Snyder as the queen of the playlist. On this ep, she offers her intention behind including music in class, her thoughts on the tradition of sound in yoga, plus mistakes she's made over the years. BONUS: One of Steph's favorite bands, Young Moon, create the soundtrack for this episode. For more shownotes go to: yogalandpodcast.com/episode32/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Bo Forbes spent years as a practicing psychologist and is now a yoga teacher with a keen interest in neuropsychology. On this episode we talk about how to cope with empathic distress as well as the different between the brain's default mode vs. direct experience mode. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode31/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

I live in a state of duality when it comes to New Year's resolutions. On the one hand, I loathe them. I loathe the intense focus on self-improvement and self-achievement that's emblazoned across magazine covers in the month of January. And yet, I love the idea of taking a moment to pause and reflect on the previous year and to think about how I'd like to live in the coming year, This episode focuses on three resolutions that really get to the heart of what has created happiness in my life: self awareness, self-acceptance, and being more loving (in big ways and small) toward others. Hope you enjoy it and I'd love to hear what you're focusing on this year. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode30/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hello Yogaland! On this episode, we reflect on 2016 and the ways that we've grown. We talk highlights and challenges and reveal our top secret (sort of) plans for 2017! Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode29/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this episode, I reflect on one of the most important reads of the year for me -- Kelly McGonigal's book, The Upside of Stress. A psychologist and yoga teacher, Kelly's book is filled with compelling research about how the way we think about stress may be more harmful for our health than stress itself Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode28/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Before jetting off on his most recent trip to Hong Kong, I sat with Jason to answer more listener-submitted questions. This time we just happened to get questions that all centered around the lower body. So, we talk about: * How to best work with tight hamstrings? * How to best recover when your hamstring has been overstretched? * How to find stability and strengthen the low back, quadratus lomborum (QL), and sacrum after pregnancy? * What's up with hearing about yogis having hip replacements? How can you keep your hips safe in yoga? Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode27/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week I chat with Kate Holcombe of The Healing Yoga Foundation in San Francisco. Kate has an amazing story to tell -- and I asked her to tell it in the top half of the interview -- about how a life-threatening accident while studying abroad in India during college set her on the path of becoming a student of TKV Desikachar. The second half of the interview focuses on a few of the sutras that helped Kate navigate the difficulty of going through breast cancer treatment. I've never known a teacher who has as much reverence for Patanjali's Yoga Sutra as Kate does. She lights up when she talks about them and her enthusiasm is contagious. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode26/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this episode, Jason answers questions submitted by listeners: * What are your views on what it means to be a yoga student today? * What's the difference between a yoga student and a yoga consumer? * How do you deal with the yoga community where there is so much inconsistency and fakeness? * What do you think will be important for yoga teachers to focus on in the next decade? * What do you think about yoga hybrids like Yoga HIIT, Pi-Yo, etc.? * How do you and Andrea work together and find a balance between work and family time? Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode25/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week's episode is like a shot of happy for your soul. I spoke to Dana Trixie Flynn, co-founder of Laughing Lotus about her new project: Dana is working on opening a donation-based yoga studio in the seventh ward of New Orleans. If you know Dana at all, you know how much she lives, breathes, and loves music -- so this new center will have live New Orleans jazz music. In this interview with Dana, I felt how uniquely suited she is to set up this studio and to nurture her students. She is all at once gutsy, big-hearted, charismatic, empathic, and bad ass. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode24/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this episode Jason answers three of our listener questions and it just so happens that they all focus on some aspect of shoulder anatomy. We also talk about cats a lot. Here are the questions: * Why do we flex the ankle in poses like Reclined Pigeon? * Is "pull the shoulder blades down" a "bad" alignment cue? * In Plank Pose, do you push strongly through the arms and upper back? Or soften the shoulders? For practice inspiration, go to the shownotes page for links to shoulder-focused blog posts with illustrations: yogalandpodcast.com/episode23/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

You might know Rachel Brathen as "Yoga Girl" on Instagram -- she's one of the original yoga insta-stars and has 2 million followers. Two million! That's crazay! And yet, despite this quick rise to fame, Rachel is incredibly down-to-earth and not afraid to say that the superficial side of social media can suck the life out of a person from time to time. I wanted to know what makes Rachel tick, so I tried to dig into how she's become the teacher (and student) she is today. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode22/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this episode Holly Whitaker of the Home Podcast talk about how yoga and meditation can be helpful tools for recovery. Holly is a life coach and spiritual teacher, kundalini and vinyasa yoga and meditation instructor, writer, and speaker. She's also the founder of Hip Sobriety, which aims to provide a modern, holistic, accessible and desirable path to sobriety, and to remove the stigma associated with addiction (and sobriety). Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode21/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Seane Corn is an internationally celebrated yoga teacher known for her impassioned activism and inspirational style of teaching. She utilizes her national platform to bring awareness to humanitarian issues—in 2005, she was named “National Yoga Ambassador” for YouthAIDS, and in 2013 was given the Global Green International Environmental Leadership Award. Since 2007, she has been training leaders of activism through her co-founded organization Off the Mat, Into the World®. I talked to Seane about how she came to be an activist and how she mentors others to do the same. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode20/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week my guest is holistic therapist and senior Prana Vinyasa Flow teacher Coral Brown. Coral and I talked about one of her passions -- the Hindu deity stories. She's deeply knowledgeable about them and she's also down-to-earth and practical in her approach, which I appreciate. She also (when appropriate) weaves them into her one-on-one therapy practice, which I find fascinating. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode19/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We've gotten many questions recently about teacher training that we decided to do an episode that answers common questions. Doing a yoga teacher training is a huge investment -- both financially and in terms of your time. It can be a wonderfully transformative experience, but it's worth doing your research and thinking about what is going to best meet your needs. Jason and I talk about: * Whether you should stick with a local teacher or travel to do a training with a well-known teacher (his answer might surprise you). * Considerations in terms of format -- monthlong intensive? two week modules? six months of weekends? * How vital it is to continue your education even after completing a foundational 200-hour training * Are there different things to consider if you just want to deepen your practice vs. wanting to teach? * Plus, we talk about what types of information and skills an advanced 300-hour training can provide. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode18/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and

This week my guest is Ayurvedic practitioner Niika Quistgard. Niika is an internationally-recognized consultant, trainer and practitioner in Ayurveda and is the founder of AyurMama.com. For this episode, Niika offers specific self-care ideas for staying calm and grounded when we go out of balance. Whether you've never heard the words vata dosha uttered or you already know your prakruti, this episode offers enough background about Ayurveda paired with creative self care ideas and reminders that it will be helpful to everyone. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode17/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

My guest this week is Katherine Priore Ghannam. Katherine is the founder of Headstand, a nonprofit organization that teaches yoga and mindfulness to kids attending low income schools. Headstand is a program that is integrated into the school's curriculum and a large part of its focus is to help children combat "toxic stress." Here's a summary of what we talk about on the episode: * The definition of toxic stress and how it can inhibit a child's ability to learn. * Learning to see a child's behavior as their way of communicating their needs, difficulties, and emotions. * The importance of adult self-regulation when teaching children. * The changes she sees in students from the beginning of the year to the end. * How yoga and mindfulness have helped create cultures of compassion in the schools that Headstand serves. * How the job has fueled Katherine's optimism * Katherine's desire to see social/emotional learning and mindfulness integrated into schools everywhere. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode16/

On this episode I interview chef and nutritionist Rebecca Katz. Weeding through information about food can be overwhelming and even disheartening. This episode distills Rebecca's four-pillar approach to a cancer-fighting diet. And, if you take this approach, you have a shot at preventing other diseases, too (think diabetes and heart disease). On the episode we talk about: * Rebecca's background as a chef and nutritionist and how she came to write The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen * Her new online course, which brings the book to life * Anti-inflammatory foods, especially the ones we overlook like ghee! olive oil! ah-voh-cah-dohs!! * Foods that regulate blood sugar and why they work the way they do * Her recommended subs for refined sugar and why it's important to have sweet treats sometimes * Coffee. It ain't so bad. (Yahoo!) * How to reduce oxidative stress * The little tiny foods we often overlook that can powerfully regulate NfKappaB Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode15/  See acast.com/privacy fo