Yogaland Podcast

Jason comes back to Yogaland to answer your questions, specifically: - Is the cue 'flatten your tailbone' correct or outdated? - Why do yoga teachers tell us to flex the foot in Pigeon Pose? How does it protect the knee? - Why is sacroiliac pain such a pain in the a$$? Thank you to all of you who have sent in questions! We have a sequence on the blog for low back pain. Link on the shownotes page: yogalandpodcast.com/episode43/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Maty Ezraty is a genuine pioneer of yoga in the U.S. One of the original co-founders of YogaWorks, Maty is a true teacher's teacher. On this episode, Maty shares stories from her early days as well as how her practice has changed with age. She also shares her approach to mentoring teachers and students, which is an alchemy of communication, love, and meeting people where they are. Shownotes for this episode: yogalandpodcast.com/episode42/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this age of insta-celebrity and everyone chasing their 15 minutes of fame, it's refreshing to talk to a long-term, successful yoga teacher. Deborah Burkman is one of these people. She's been teaching for 17 years, in many settings, and loves her job. She's not famous and, at this point in her life and career, she's grateful for that. Her message to all of us: Find your purpose and come back to that. And know that who you are is enough. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode41/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Alexandria Crow grew up in a fundamentalist Christian family and her grandfather was a traveling preacher. These days she travels the country teaching yoga -- and it recently dawned on her that there are parallels between the two. Because of this, she's careful about not cultivating a guru persona -- her hope is to teach her students to use the tools that she presents to investigate on their own and think for themselves. We talk about this idea of being "transparent" as a teacher, the role of charisma in teaching yoga, and the vulnerable place that students can unconsciously find themselves in if they have a teacher who isn't clear about their role and their boundaries. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode40/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Richard Rosen is a yoga scholar and teacher who has authored five yoga books that are well worth reading. I talked to him about his most recent, "Yoga FAQ, Almost Everything You Need to Know about Yoga -- from Asanas to Yamas." This book is rich with tons of historical info and yet, Richard is refreshingly honest about how traditions change and evolve. We focus mostly on his Patanjali's Yoga Sutra -- who was Patanjali? Who was Vyasa? And why is this text a seminal part of modern Western yoga? Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode39/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, I talk to Nikki Estrada about the first two ethical guidelines in the Yoga Sutra: ahimsa (nonharming) and satya (truth). Nikki has more than 20 years teaching experience and has been leading 200 and 300-hour teaching trainings for more than 12 years. She was Director of Trainer Development for YogaWorks for more than 7 years where she supported and mentored teacher trainers. She leads intensives, immersions and workshop series in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. She contributes to Yoga International where you can find her articles and videos. Nikki is an Athleta Ambassador for embodying the Power of She, is sponsored by Zobha, has presented at Yoga Journal conferences and was voted best yoga teacher by Marin Magazine 2016. You can find shownotes for this episode at: yogalandpodcast.com/episode38/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jason takes on questions that surround yoga teaching this week including: - To use Sanskrit while teaching or not? - How to care for yourself during an injury? - How do you help individuals find their unique pose in the midst of a group class? You can find shownotes for this episode, with lots of blog posts from Jason about teaching at yogalandpodcast.com/episode38/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Q&As with Jason are back! On this episode we talk about hopping back to Plank Pose, what happens when your wrists won't cooperate in arm balances, and tips for Triangle Pose. The BIG TAKEAWAY is this: Not all poses work for all bodies. Take that in. Let it bum you out. Then listen to the episode and let that truth set you free. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode36/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On this episode, I talk to Kelsey Crowe, the co-author of the book, "There is No Good Card for This: What to Say and Do When Life is Scary, Awful, and Unfair to People You Love." The book is funny, it's written without judgment, and it's filled with helpful and achievable ideas to help us connect to and support each other when life gets tough. It's also designed by the fabulous Emily McDowell. Shownotes: yogalandpodcast.com/episode35/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

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.