On and Off Your Mat Yoga Podcast

Signing off. Not Goodbye, but See You Later

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Big annoncement: This is the last episode of the On and Off Your Mat Podcast… for now anyways.

With this episode, I want to thank every single one of you for being part of this incredible journey. I do a little recap, tell you why I’m hitting pause, what’s next, and what you can do from here.

Be notified when my new podcast comes out and stay in touch: join my email list

For how to work with me, my most popular free resources, my favorite episode list and everything else mentioned, find the full show notes here.

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Chronic Pain and Empowered Healing for HSPs, with Dr. Tawny Kross

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

Do you struggle with chronic pain that feels like a never-ending battle? In this powerful conversation, I sit down with Dr. Tawny Kross, a doctor of physical therapy and pain specialist. Tawny believes passionately in our brain and body's innate ability to heal, and she's here to share her knowledge as a pain and wellness coach.

We dive deep into what chronic pain really is, how to have a productive relationship with your pain, and how to support healing without simply numbing the discomfort. Tawny also shares powerful questions and reflections to help you understand your pain without getting overwhelmed. If you're ready to find relief and reclaim your life, let's jump in.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/267

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Feeling Stuck or Sluggish, How to Thrive as a Sensitive in Kapha Season

Mon, 17 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

As a highly sensitive person, it's easy to feel weighed down during kapha season, a time when the energy around us is heavy, slow, and damp. I've been there too, wondering what was wrong with me and why I felt so sluggish.

Discover practical tools to help you release stagnation, boost your energy, and feel more like yourself again. We'll discuss the importance of building ojas, your vital essence, and how to use the principle of opposites to restore balance.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/266

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PREMIUM | Kapha Balancing Movement Practice

Mon, 10 Mar 2025 06:00:00 GMT

If you wish you were more energized, vibrant and flowing through life with ease, this practice is for you.

Kapha season is the time of year when the energy around us tends to get heavier, slower, and wetter as late winter shifts into spring. The elements of earth and water mix together to create mud. This energy will affect your mind, body, energy and spirit, and today's practice will bring balance and harmony back in your system by cultivating movement, lightness and heat.

I've used this practice with clients who experience:

✨ low energy

✨ weighed down or stuck

✨ lack of motivation or interest

✨ congestion in the body or weight gain

✨ emotionally heavy or attached to the past

✨ holding on to things that doesn't serve them

And it’s one of my go-to practices for clients who want to create more harmony and balance in their system while staying connected inward and with nature.

This 30 minutes somatic practice is part of our premium podcast subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can get a free trial. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

Your podcast premium membership (as low as $5/month) allows me to continue to create and produce this podcast. I choose to keep this add-free for a better listening experience, so there are no revenue and the membership keeps this podcast alive. If you love On and Off Your Mat and want it to continue, support the show here and have access to this somatic practice and so much more.

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Understanding Your Attachment Style, with Jennily Diaz

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 05:00:00 GMT

I sit down with Jennily Diaz, a relationship coach and fellow HSP, to dive deep into the world of attachment theory. She is a registered yoga teacher and an integrative health practitioner, certified in integrated attachment theory. Jennily shares her own journey of healing her anxious attachment style and transforming her relationship dynamic with her partner.

Discover how your early childhood experiences shape your adult relationships, the four main attachment styles, and why HSPs tend to lean towards certain styles. Most importantly, learn practical tools and strategies to reprogram your brain, meet your own needs, and cultivate the secure, loving connections you deserve.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/264

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Tantra and Ayurveda from a Feminine Perspective, with Katie Silcox

Mon, 24 Feb 2025 06:00:00 GMT

I sit down with Katie Silcox, MA to explore a new way to approach healing through the lens of Tantra and Ayurveda. Katie is a New York Times bestselling author and the founder of the Shakti School, a premier online certification school for women-centered holistic wellness. She holds a master's degree in Ayurvedic medicine and is pursuing depth study in Jungian psychology. Her platform focuses on the convergence of ancient holistic medicine, functional medicine science, and heart-centered spirituality.

Katie shares simple, down-to-earth tools to expand your capacity to be, to receive, to transform and to grow. Get ready to gain a new perspective on healing and your emotions.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/263

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Sedona Magic Retreat, with Cara Edwards

Mon, 10 Feb 2025 06:00:00 GMT

I sit down with my dear friend and co-retreat leader Cara Edwards to discuss our upcoming Sedona Magic Retreat. Cara has been leading transformative retreats that help others reconnect with themselves and the healing power of nature since 2018. Her retreats weave together her 15 years of experience as a yoga teacher, her passion for the outdoors and herbalism, and her love for creating nurturing spaces.

We explore the meaning behind "Sedona Magic" and share our intentions for helping you alchemize heavy emotions, reclaim your authentic self, and embody your highest potential. Cara and I also discuss the power of Sedona's vortexes, the transformative ceremonies and practices we have planned, and why we believe this retreat will be a catalyst for deep healing and growth. If you're ready to step into a space of magic and empowerment, then keep listening.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/262

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PREMIUM | Reharmonizing Movement Practice

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 06:00:00 GMT

If you ever feel out of sync with yourself and the world, this practice is for you.

Thi Reharmonizing Spanda practice is designed to release overwhelm, recalibrate your energy, and rediscover your natural harmony. Through guided movement, breath, and somatic awareness, this practice offers a pathway to reconnect with your body, process pent-up tension, and step back into your authentic flow.

I've used this practice with clients who feel:

✨ overwhelm

✨ disconnected

✨ emotionally or energetically stuck

✨ emotionally burnout from attuning to others' needs or absorbing their energy

✨ tend towards people-pleasing, overworking, or living in survival mode

✨ the need to push their feelings aside to “get through” the day

And it's something I also give as homework to clients, so if you’re thinking about 1-1 coaching, this is a great building block practice.

Harmonizing movement practices are designed to naturally support your nervous system by helping it to come back to the present moment and regulate itself, laying down the foundation for deeper alchemy work. With this practice, you’ll reconnect with your body's innate rhythms, release pent-up tension, recalibrate your inner harmony and flow and deepen your self-trust and self-acceptance.

This 20 minutes somatic practice is part of our premium podcast subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can get a free trial. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sensitivity, Nervous System, and Your Breath, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 27 Jan 2025 06:00:00 GMT

Today, we're diving into the connection between sensitivity, the nervous system, and your breath through the lens of highly sensitive people (HSPs). You'll discover how your sensitivity is intricately linked to your nervous system and why your breath is the key to finding greater calm, clarity and balance in your life.

We'll explore common challenges HSPs face, like overwhelm, emotional reactivity, and feeling perpetually on edge. More importantly, you'll learn how tuning into your body's cues and cultivating a relationship with your breath can help you shift from survival mode into thriving. By the end of this episode, I hope you'll see that your sensitivity isn't a flaw, but a gift that, when coupled with the right tools, can allow you to embrace your unique powers and navigate the world with greater ease.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/260

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Building Programs for a More Sustainable and Impactful Business as a Yoga or a Coach, with Joanna Sapir

Mon, 20 Jan 2025 06:00:00 GMT

In this episode, I sit down with Joanna Sapir, a business strategist for holistic practitioners, to explore how implementing repeatable systems and processes can help you build a more sustainable and impactful business.

We dive into the key departments every business needs, and how identifying your strengths and weaknesses in each area can help you focus your efforts. Joanna also explains why creating structured programs and client journeys, rather than just selling one-off sessions, is crucial for achieving consistent income, reducing cancellations, and getting better results for your clients. If you're ready to take your yoga teaching or coaching business to the next level, this episode is packed with actionable insights and strategies you can start implementing today.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/259

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Age Like a Yogi, with Victoria Moran

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 05:00:00 GMT

I sit down with Victoria Moran, a renowned author and yoga teacher, to explore how yoga philosophy and Ayurveda can completely transform the way we think about getting older. Victoria has written extensively on wellbeing and spirituality, with her latest book Age Like a Yogi diving deep into cultivating a radiant "third act" of life. As a lifelong yogi herself, she shares profound insights on the bigger picture of aging - one that goes beyond wrinkles and joint pain to the very heart of our spiritual journey.

If you're ready to shift your perspective on aging and embrace the possibilities of your later years, this episode is for you. Victoria offers practical tips for staying vibrant in body, mind and soul, plus a generous dose of wisdom to inspire a more expansive vision of your life.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/258

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PREMIUM | Psychogenic Tremor Practice

Mon, 06 Jan 2025 06:00:21 GMT

If you ever feel like stress or tension is stuck in your body and you just can’t shake it off, this practice is for you.

The Psychogenic Tremor practice is designed to gently release built-up tension, ease stress, and create a sense of calm and grounding. Through guided somatic movements that activate your body’s natural shaking response, this practice helps you reset your nervous system, let go of what you’ve been holding onto, and feel lighter and more at ease.

I've used this practice with clients who feel:

✨ chronically tense or "on edge"

✨ overwhelmed by emotions or life circumstances

✨ physically tight or stiff from stress

✨ energetically drained but unable to relax

✨ stuck in cycles of overthinking or emotional reactivity

✨ burdened by stress they’ve carried for years

And it’s one of my go-to practices for clients who want to feel more in control of their emotional and physical well-being.

Psychogenic tremoring is a powerful somatic practice that taps into your body’s innate ability to release stress. By gently activating a natural shaking mechanism, this practice allows your nervous system to offload excess energy and return to a state of calm. With this practice, you’ll release tension, reset your nervous system, feel more present, and restore a sense of ease and balance in your body.

This 15 minutes somatic practice is part of our premium podcast subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can get a free trial. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Self-Care When Prioritizing Yourself Is Hard, with Elyse Wagner

Mon, 30 Dec 2024 06:00:03 GMT

Elyse Wagner has dedicated her life to transforming the world's approach to health and well-being. With a foundation in functional medicine, health psychology, and holistic nutrition, she empowers coaches and individuals to create lasting, positive change. Her own transformative health journey led her to co-found the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy and now she continues to spread well-being education through her impactful programs.

We dive into the specific challenges Highly Sensitive People face when it comes to self-care and how to overcome the guilt that often arises when we start putting ourselves first. Elyse shares practical tips for identifying your needs, setting boundaries, and creating sustainable well-being practices.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/256

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Therapeutic Yin Yoga for HSPs, with Nyk Danu

Mon, 16 Dec 2024 06:00:57 GMT

Our guest, Nyk Danu, shares her journey with yin yoga and how it has become a refuge for her as an HSP. Nyk is a certified yoga therapist, yin yoga teacher trainer, and yoga business mentor who specializes in teaching therapeutic yoga to students who don't feel at home in mainstream yoga circles. She combines her extensive training in yoga therapy, yin yoga, and traditional Chinese medicine to create a unique approach that prioritizes the nervous system and accessibility.

If you've tried yin yoga before but found it uncomfortable or challenging, either because of the long holds, the quiet space, or the thoughts and sensations that arose, this episode is here to provide valuable insights and tips to help you deepen your practice. Nyk shares how therapeutic yin yoga can help HSPs build reserves, move energy, and find a soothing balm for their overstimulated selves.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/255

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feel It to Heal It (Part 5-Shame), with Erika Belanger

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 06:00:43 GMT

By learning to feel your shame more fully, you'll be able to be yourself more authentically and access more joy in your life. Hiding your emotional self unintentionally disconnects you from who you are and turns down the volume on all your emotions. But everything changes when you give yourself permission to feel, and discover that it's not as scary as you think.

I share the process I use with coaching clients to help them shift out of shame and into a place of presence. Learn what shame really is, how it affects HSPs differently, and why creating safety and regulation in your nervous system is key to healing from shame.

Click here for the 1:1 Somatic coaching application or click here to join the waitlist for my Feel It to Heal It mini course.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/254

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PREMIUM | My Clients’ Favorite Gratitude Practice

Mon, 02 Dec 2024 06:00:55 GMT

If you love gratitude practices, this might be a new very powerful way to connect to this emotion, and If you’re highly sensitive and you’ve struggled to connect authentically to gratitude practices in the past, this practice if for you

This is my client’s favorite way to connect to gratitude and truly experience it in their body. You can also use this format with any positive high-vibration emotion you want to experience more fully in your life.

If you are trying to experience gratitude without involving the body, your efforts to change how you truly feel often stay at the surface level and the shift either doesn't happen or it doesn't last.

To truly change a belief, habit, or how we feel, we need a genuine connection between our emotions and body. This is because our thoughts and behaviors are often tied to physical responses stored in the body from past experiences. Real change happens when we engage both mind and body, and this is what we are doing in this practice.

This practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can get a free trial. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Healing Through Neuroscience and Consciousness with Kristin Windsor

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 06:00:57 GMT

In this powerful episode, Kristin Windsor shares her incredible journey of self-healing and the unique approach she developed along the way. As a teacher and mentor, Kristin leads people to return home to their innate wholeness by reunifying mind, body, and soul. After independently healing over 100 health battles, 20 years of complex trauma, and 7 years of amnesia, Kristin integrated her wisdom into a groundbreaking method that combines neuroscience, consciousness, and infinite love.

We dive into the role of neuroscience and consciousness in the healing process. Kristin explains how to make more sense of our experiences and behaviors, and how to create lasting change by understanding that everything in life comes down to navigating life to get the love we need and crave.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/252

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How My Client Pascale Went from Overwhelmed and Exhausted to Feeling Resourced, Anchored and Empowered

Mon, 18 Nov 2024 06:00:30 GMT

In this special episode, I sit down with my client Pascale Etienne, a high school teacher and plant whisperer, to celebrate her incredible transformation through one-on-one somatic coaching. Pascale openly shares her journey from feeling engulfed by her emotions, to developing the tools to harness sensitivity as a superpower.

If you want see the process for getting out of overwhelm and exhaustion as a sensitive person, this episode is for you. Discover the power of somatic practices, self-compassion, and giving yourself permission to feel your feelings. Pascale's experience will inspire you to invest in yourself, embrace the discomfort of doing the inner work, and cultivate a loving relationship with your emotions.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/251

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Fall Bringing You Down? How to Thrive as a Sensitive in Vata Season

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 06:00:29 GMT

Do you feel more anxious, scattered, or physically cold and dry as fall sets in? If so, you're not alone. As a highly sensitive person, I feel the shift from summer to fall intensely, and I've noticed it in my clients too. Everyone seems more tired and anxious right now.

Explore why fall feels like a challenging transition from the perspective of Ayurveda. I discuss the elements that create the essence of autumn in your mind, body, and energy. Learn to recognize characteristics of a Vata constitution and discover practical tools to bring more balance, groundedness, and warmth into your life.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/250

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PREMIUM | Releasing Pent-up Energy You Picked up from Other People During Holidays

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 05:00:24 GMT

If you suddenly feel drained, weighed down, sad, or anxious without knowing why after a family gathering, if you experience unexpected aches, tightness, or tiredness during holiday get-togethers, or you find yourself overthinking other people’s problems or wondering how to help everyone around you, or even if you sense the needs and moods of everyone and try to accommodate without them asking... today’s practice is for you.

Whether it’s family dinners, office parties, or cozy moments with friends, the holidays can make it even harder to tell where others’ energy stops and yours begins.

I’ve used this practice with clients who find it hard to spend the day people-ing, especially with family to

✨ bring them to the present moment

✨ get grounded

✨ let go of pent-up energy

✨ process emotions out of your body

✨ self-soothe

✨ bring back a sense of control over their body and emotions

✨ and create an energetic boundary around them

This practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can get a free trial. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feel It to Heal It (Part 4 - Overwhelm ), with Erika Belanger

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 05:00:40 GMT

The first step in overcoming overwhelm is to understand what it is and how it feels in your body. By learning to recognize overwhelm, you can start to regulate your nervous system and manage stress more effectively. Join me to dive deep into the physical sensations of overwhelm and explore how to process this intense emotion in a healthy way.

In this episode, I share the exact process I use with coaching clients to help them overcome overwhelm. As a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP), you may be more prone to overwhelm than the average person. You’ll learn why overwhelm is a common experience for HSPs, and why it doesn't have to control your life.

Click here for the 1:1 Somatic coaching application or click here to join the waitlist for my Feel It to Heal It mini course.

For everything else, get full show notes here: https://erikabelanger.com/246

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Simple Touch Meditation

Mon, 07 Oct 2024 05:00:19 GMT

If you experience a lot of worry or anxiety, or you’re always replaying in your head what happened, or always thinking about what needs to be done or what might happen in the future today’s practice is for you.

A lot of my coaching client find TOUCH to be a really resourcing sense to turn to when orienting, creating inner safety, or widening their capacity for processing uncomfortable emotions and deal with challenges, so I thought I would share one of my favorite, super simple touch meditation practice.

I’ve used this with clients to

✨ bring them to the present moment

✨ reconnect to their body and sensations

✨ get out of anxiety, overwhelm and hyper-vigilance

✨ regulate their nervous system

✨ bring back a sense of control over their body and emotions

✨ and even rewire old beliefs like “I’m not enough”

This practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can get a free trial. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Confident Class Planning, with Shanna Farnsworth

Mon, 23 Sep 2024 05:00:30 GMT

Today, I sit down with Shanna Farnsworth to explore practical strategies for confident class planning. Shanna’s journey as a yoga teacher began 15 years ago in a New York City church basement. Since then, she has honed her skills in intelligent sequencing and mentored hundreds of yoga teachers. Her goal is to help teachers feel prepared and confident when leading classes, fostering meaningful connections with their students.

Discover Shanna’s tried-and-true methods for crafting sequences that are both creative and purposeful. She offers insights on breaking down poses, using props effectively, and creating a cohesive class experience that fosters meaningful connections with your students.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/244

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Feel It to Heal It (Part 3 - Sadness), with Erika Belanger

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 05:00:36 GMT

If you feel sluggish, drained of energy, and experience a lingering sense of emptiness or a hollow ache in your heart, today’s episode is for you. As Highly Sensitive People (HSP), we often wish we didn’t feel so deeply, so we tend to repress our emotions, leading to outbursts of tears. This makes it difficult to identify whether we’re actually feeling sad, angry, disappointed, ashamed, and so on.

Tune in this week to discover how to feel your sadness so you can heal it. I discuss how truly feeling your sadness allows you to show up more fiercely and fully as yourself, enabling you to access more joy in your life. Learn practical strategies you can use right now when sadness hits, allowing you to express your sadness in ways that truly serve you.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/243

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Falling in Love with Your Breathing (Part 2), with Andy Sabatier

Mon, 09 Sep 2024 05:00:22 GMT

Dr. Andy Sabatier, a physiotherapist passionate about the mechanics of breathing, joins us. After training at Stanford Hospital's Cardiac ICU and serving as the primary ICU physical therapist for a hospital system in Oregon, Andy has dedicated himself to eliminating confusion and harmful practices around breathing. We continue the conversation on breathing that we started a few weeks ago with Alison Starr.

In this episode, Andy explains the difference between functional and dysfunctional breathing, the anatomy of the breathing muscles, and simple practices to optimize your breathing. You'll walk away with a fascinating new perspective on this essential bodily function we often take for granted.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/242

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PREMIUM | High Vibes Practice

Mon, 02 Sep 2024 05:00:31 GMT

If you want to raise your frequency to uplift your mood and energy, improve your emotional and mental well-being, connect more deeply with your higher self, intuition, or a sense of universal consciousness, or even align yourself with the energies of abundance, love, and success for example so you can manifest more of what you desire, today’s practice is for you.

Visualization is a powerful tool for raising your vibration because it engages the mind, emotions, and energy in a focused way that aligns you with higher frequencies and allows you to be very gentle.

This practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

When you leave a review for the podcast on iTunes you can have access to the membership for free, including today’s class as a thank you for helping others to find the podcast and on their healing journey. DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast or email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) me a screenshot of your review and we'll get you set up.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month).

2. You can now also have access to almost 600 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

With our podcast premium membership, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Falling in Love with Your Breathing (Part 1), with Alison Starr

Mon, 26 Aug 2024 05:00:44 GMT

Alison Starr, founder of Kanda Yoga School and creator of the 20 Minute Miracles app, joins us to explore how developing a relationship with your breath can transform your yoga practice and your life.

Alison shares her journey of discovering functional breathing and how it helped her overcome chronic pain and instability. She explains the difference between functional and dysfunctional breathing patterns and how many common cues in yoga and fitness can actually restrict the natural movement of the diaphragm. Learn simple techniques to calm your nervous system, increase your inner awareness, and find more ease and presence both on and off the mat.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/240

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Embodying the Sacred Feminine and Becoming Your Own Temple with Kori Hahn

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 05:00:38 GMT

Kori Hahn is an author, yoga and meditation teacher, surfer, and devoted mother. Her adventures took her from the frozen landscape of Alaska to the warm waves of Sri Lanka, where she founded the Santosha Society, a community dedicated to travel, surfing, and soulful living. She's helped hundreds of women explore Ayurveda, yoga, meditation, and soul growth, and she's here to discuss today's topic through the lens of her new book: A Temple of Her Own.

Discover how to embody the Sacred Feminine and learn how embodying these feminine archetypes can help you through the different seasons of your life. Kori goes through the goddesses in her book and gives us the profound lessons we can learn through each one about romance, pain, creativity, abundance, wealth, and more.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/239

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stand Out as a Yoga Teacher Through Storytelling and Theme-Weaving, with MaKenzie Fly

Mon, 12 Aug 2024 05:00:09 GMT

MaKenzie Fly is a podcast host, retreat leader, and yoga teacher trainer living in Las Vegas. She helps yoga teachers get to their next level by developing more magnetism, attracting and retaining students through better sequencing, theme-weaving, and storytelling, and eventually becoming yogi-preneurs and building sustainable businesses as yoga teachers.

Discover how to stand out as a yoga teacher by mastering the skills of theme-weaving and storytelling in your classes and in your business. MaKenzie shares why all of us are capable of telling a beautiful story through our yoga classes, and you'll get practical tips for implementing theme-weaving for the benefit of your students.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/238

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Jaw Release Practice

Mon, 05 Aug 2024 05:00:11 GMT

If you have regular headaches, pain in your face, neck or shoulders, ear problems, teeth sensitivity, clicking or popping in your jaw, you might have chronic jaw pain or even TMJ and this practice is for you.

Learning how to improve your posture and your breath and how to process emotions like anger and anxiety can help prevent pain, and learning how to release and massage your jaw can help you deal with the symptoms.

This somatic practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month).

2. You can now also have access to almost 600 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From Corporate Autopilot to Rediscovering Your Purpose, with Celeste Unali

Mon, 29 Jul 2024 05:00:27 GMT

For today's episode, I sat down with Celeste Unali, a yoga and meditation teacher and women's mindset coach based in Australia. After a decade of working her way up the corporate ladder and experiencing plenty of success in the workplace, Celeste found herself feeling more uninspired and disconnected than ever. A deep journey of self-development led her to yoga, where she unexpectedly fell in love with the magic of mindfulness and watched as it unfolded in her life, driving deeper connection, purpose, and peace within herself and her relationships.

Celeste and I discuss why you might need yoga as a high achiever, what to do if slowing down feels uncomfortable to you, and how the practice might be the key to giving you clarity on how to find more purpose, meaning, and joy in your life.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/236

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Getting to the Root Cause of Your Anxiety, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 22 Jul 2024 05:00:31 GMT

Instead of putting band-aids on your anxiety, forcing yourself to calm down, or ignoring what you're feeling altogether, it's time to take a deeper look at your brain. You can leverage the power of your brain to start creating change directly, instead of only treating the symptoms of your anxiety. This work is transformational, and it starts here.

Tune in this week to finally get to the root cause of your anxiety. I share how to start uncovering what in your life is really causing your anxiety, and you'll learn a powerful protocol for gaining a deeper understanding of your brain and harnessing its power to holistically address your anxiety for long-lasting change.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/235

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Calling in More Money Through Excitement, Creativity, and Accountability, with Elizabeth Ralph

Mon, 15 Jul 2024 05:00:59 GMT

For today's episode, I'm joined by Elizabeth Ralph, a high-level wealth strategist and intuitive investor who retired at the age of 39 to teach others how to reach financial freedom through non-traditional methods.

Discover the pillars of changing your relationship with money and calling in more money in your life. Elizabeth shares how to harness the beautiful energy of money and connect with this tool instead of resisting it, the importance of thinking about money creatively instead of emotionally, why wealth is a circle, and how to create money neutrality so you can call in wealth at the quantum level.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/234

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PREMIUM | Heart Womb Breath Meditation

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 05:00:59 GMT

If you want to reconnect with your feminine energy, support yourself lovingly in menstruation or cultivate more inner harmony when you’re feeling emotional, this practice is for you.

Whether you have a physical womb or not, you can work with these centers of energy to create sexual healing, self-love and self-care.

Learning how to come home to yourself in this way can also be supportive on a fertility journey or during pregnancy.

This breath-based meditation is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month).

2. You can now also have access to almost 600 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feel It to Heal It (Part 2: Anxiety), with Erika Belanger

Mon, 01 Jul 2024 05:00:23 GMT

When coaching my clients, I use a practical and succinct process that helps them process their emotions and traumas so they can heal the past, leverage their sensitivity, and transform their whole lives. You might be scared of the feeling of anxiety right now, but trying to avoid the intensity of your anxiety is limiting your entire emotional experience.

Discover how to give space to your anxiety so you can learn to manage it effectively. I share why managing anxiety isn't about trying to calm down, and you'll learn how to truly feel your anxiety to stop the cycle of emotional shutdown and reactivity, transforming your relationship with anxiety.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/232

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Becoming a Leader That People Love and Respect, with Pavini Moray

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 05:00:04 GMT

If you want to make a real impact in the world, you need to step into your leader self. To discuss how to do this, I'm joined by Pavini Moray, an author with over 30 years of experience as an educator, activist, somatic coach, and serial entrepreneur holding a Ph.D. in somatic psychology.

Pavini supports humans and organizations in developing thriving relationships, and their perspective on leadership will truly change your life. Tune in this week to discover what it takes to become a leader that people love and respect and what it means to be a leader who holds their power ethically.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/231

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Expanding Your Clairabilities to Deepen Your Relationship to Consciousness, with Heather Ivany

Mon, 17 Jun 2024 05:00:35 GMT

If you're spiritually curious, you've probably heard of the four intuitive indicators called the Clairs: being Clairvoyant, Claircognizant, Clairsentient, or Clairaudient. To explore these indicators, I sat down with Heather Ivany, a holistic practitioner and teacher of yoga, meditation, prayer and akashic reading. Heather helps others lean into their spiritual energy and connect to their intuition, which involves understanding their unique way of connecting to the Clairs.

We discuss what the Clairabilities are, how we can recognize them, and how they connect to consciousness, the physical, and ethereal worlds. You'll also learn the skill set required to connect with and improve your Clairabilities in pursuit of your deeper purpose.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/230

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PREMIUM | A Somatic Practice to Feel Anger

Mon, 10 Jun 2024 05:00:15 GMT

If you hate when you do get angry and try your best to avoid this uncomfortable emotion, today’s practice is for you.

Learn how to feel anger and process it in a way that feels safe and doesn’t hurt yourself or anyone else. When you stop avoiding this emotion, you won’t have to be sarcastic in disagreement, if uncomfortable with conflict, to control everything (including of your emotions), to shutdown when you’re upset, to feel resentful when people don’t do what you expect… or to numb difficult emotions.

Today somatic practice goes with my free workbook on how to feel your emotions and our episode 227 : Feel it to heal it and is an example of how to move the energy of anger out of your body, so next time you feel angry, you’ll know exactly what to do instead of repressing, numbing or overreacting, and I promise, you’ll be left wide-eyed wondering how you are just learning this now.

This somatic practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month).

2. You can now also have access to almost 600 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Feminine Way of Doing Business, with Layla El Khadri

Mon, 03 Jun 2024 05:00:53 GMT

Layla El Khadri knows how to get you to access your awe-inspiring magnetism. She has over a decade of experience guiding women to express their absolute highest potential and embody their magic. Through her business, Layla helps her clients tap into their feminine power, find their unique gifts, and turn them into mission-driven businesses that make a positive impact in the world.

Discover how to embody the feminine way of doing business. Layla is sharing how to start finding your voice, inner power, pleasure, inspiration, and creativity so you can build a mission-driven business and live a life of passion and purpose.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/228

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Feel It to Heal It (Part 1: Anger), with Erika Belanger

Mon, 27 May 2024 05:00:16 GMT

I'm sure you've been told to feel your feelings before, but have you ever been told how? There's a process I use with my coaching clients to help them feel and process their emotions and trauma, so they can heal the past, leverage their sensitivity, and transform their lives, and I'm sharing it right here on today's show.

Discover how to feel more fearlessly, be yourself more fully, and access more joy in your life. Learn why healing means truly feeling your emotions, and I show you a step-by-step process to stop getting lost in escapism when uncomfortable emotions are present, and instead show up for yourself with care, nurturance, and love.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/227 or go directly to Get on the waitlist for my mini-course: Feel It to Heal It!

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Using Your Dreams to Process Your Emotions with Meli, The Dreaming Yogi

Mon, 13 May 2024 05:00:38 GMT

Meli is a dream interpreter who helps sleep-deprived and stressed individuals uncover the root cause of their anxiety through dream work. She helps people address suppressed emotions while providing them with the tools to release these emotions with a process she calls cosmic dream alchemy.

Gain a foundation in what your dreams mean, and what you can do with the messages you receive afterward. Meli shares her three steps to alchemize and process your emotions through the subconscious mind with dream work, and she even walks us through a whole process, as an example, using one of my own dreams so you can see it in real time.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/226

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PREMIUM | Body Yantra

Mon, 06 May 2024 05:00:01 GMT

If you experience chronic stress, regularly feel tension in your body or discomfort in your joints, this episode if for you.

Today we are learning a body yanta. Body yantras are powerful proprioceptive practices, where your nervous system gets to map out where you are in space to move away from chronic holding patterns. This practice allows the NS to realign the bone structure of the body to induce more relaxation.

This micro-movement meditation is a harmonizing practice that organically helps you reprogram the way your skeletal system as been responding to your perceptions, internal stories and traumas.

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Breath: Eastern Philosophy and Nervous System Science, with Dylan Werner

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 05:00:06 GMT

Dylan Werner is a renowned yoga instructor and author known for his expertise in breathwork meditation, hand balancing, and movement. He founded Myofascial Integrated Alignment and Myofascial Integrated Stretching, which are asana-based systems that combine scientific principles with movement to improve overall health and posture.

Discover why we breathe, how to breathe, and the way the breath is capable of influencing us emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Dylan shares pranayama exercises, and you’ll learn how to sequence your pranayama, just as you would sequence an asana practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/224

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From Punk to Monk: A Journey of Self-Discovery and Transformation, with Raghunath

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 05:00:19 GMT

My guest this week stepped out of mainstream society as a punk artist, and later in life as a monk, to find truth, joy, and purpose in answering life’s big questions of self-discovery and transformation. I sat down with Raghunath, earlier known as Ray Cappo. Raghunath has been on a spiritual quest his whole life. He practices and teaches Bhakti yoga, and he’s a spiritual storyteller. Raghunath hosts the podcast Wisdom of the Sages and is the author of the book From Punk to Monk: A Memoir.

Start your journey of remembering who you are and what truly matters. Raghunath and I discuss why nothing outside of you can bring wholeness and capital 'L' Love into your life, and Raghunath shares how he believes we can make the most of our lives and find our purpose one small act at a time.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/223

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chronic Fatigue and Creating the Conditions for Healing, with Tiffany Cagwin

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 05:00:00 GMT

My guest this week is Tiffany Cagwin, a certified functional diagnostic nutrition practitioner, a board-certified holistic health practitioner, and a yoga teacher. Chronic fatigue is hindering your body from healing itself, but Tiffany believes that we can create conditions for sustained energy, healing, and thriving in our lives, and she’s showing us how.

Discover how to overcome your chronic fatigue and create the conditions that help your body heal. Tiffany shares the difference between chronic fatigue and general tiredness, she shows us the choices we can make to start regaining energy, and you’ll learn how to get your body back to a place where it can do the job of healing itself.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/222

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are You a High Achiever or a Perfectionist? With Rachel Dorneanu

Mon, 08 Apr 2024 05:00:06 GMT

For today’s show, I’m joined by Rachel Dorneanu LPC NCC. Rachel is an individual and premarital couples’ psychotherapist. She works with people aged 16 and up, specializing in anxiety, boundaries, Highly Sensitive People, perfectionism, and sex therapy.

Get some clarity around whether you’re a perfectionist, or you’re just a high-achieving person. We discuss why perfectionism is prevalent in sensitive people, the different types of perfectionism, and you’ll learn some practical tools to reduce and eventually overcome your perfectionistic tendencies, including how to deal with conflict better.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/221

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PREMIUM | Vagal Toning

Mon, 01 Apr 2024 05:00:03 GMT

If you’re going through loss, whether it's the death of a loved one, a divorce, the loss of a job, the crashing of a dream…yoga can help you give your grief the dedicated time and space required to move through your thoughts and feelings. With this practice for grief, you’ll learn to use movement, breath, and sound to release pain and suffering.

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Join Recharge, Reconnect and Reset –The Retreat. This in-person immersion is like getting 3 months of coaching with me packed in 7 days. I can’t wait to share all my favorite mind-body-spirit and nervous system and self-care practices, to help you drop the hustle lifestyle, melt your stress and anxiety away, and transform your life from the inside out. If you are a sensitive soul or a yogi and you are ready to put yourself first, cater to your needs without guilt, and learn how you can return to your life feeling rejuvenated and equipped to make it last, this is going to be life-changing for you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Understanding Grief to Navigate It More Easily, with Sweta Vikram

Mon, 25 Mar 2024 05:00:56 GMT

Sweta Vikram is a dedicated doctor of Ayurveda, a globally renowned speaker, and an acclaimed author of 14 bestselling books. The goal of Sweta’s work is to alleviate stress and elevate the quality of her clients’ lives, specializing in addressing disordered sleep, anxiety, digestion, appetite, and mood. Sweta’s Ayurveda-based approach gives us a unique perspective on grief, and she's here to help us understand the grief experience.

Learn how grief is seen through the lens of Ayurveda and learn about the six (not five) stages of grief. We’re discussing why we naturally want to turn away from grief and how we can instead start navigating grief with more grace for ourselves.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/219

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Living in Accord with the Yamas and Niyamas, with David McGrath

Mon, 18 Mar 2024 05:00:50 GMT

I’m joined by David McGrath, a Kriya yoga therapist and author of the book The Yogi’s Way: Living in Accord with the Yamas and Niyamas. David is dedicated to sharing the philosophical and psychological principles and practices of yoga, with a focus on promoting the holistic capacity of yoga to provide insight into what it means to be human and how we can appreciate and live in tune with the nature of life.

Discover how living in accordance with the Yamas and Niyamas will transform your life, both on and off your mat. David is sharing his extensive work in understanding the principles of yoga philosophy and showing us how the Yamas and Niyamas give us what David calls a framework for living.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/218

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Healing as a Whole-Body Experience, with Jonathan FitzGordon

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 05:00:33 GMT

Jonathan FitzGordon is the creator of the Rejuvenation Movement Method, which was born from his own pain and healing journey. He aims to help people age gracefully and live pain-free lives. Jonathan has been practicing yoga since 1995, teaching since 2000, and training teachers since 2005.

Discover what healing as a whole-body experience looks like and how it can change your life forever as a highly sensitive or hypermobile person. We’re talking about everything from posture, walking patterns, and nervous system regulation, and you’ll learn how to start getting out of pain for good using a whole-body approach.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/217

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Breath for Anxiety and Fear

Mon, 04 Mar 2024 06:00:15 GMT

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Befriending All Parts of Yourself as a Therapeutic Tool, with Magdalena Krohn

Mon, 26 Feb 2024 06:00:02 GMT

Magdalena Krohn is a yoga teacher and mentor for highly sensitive people (HSP). Using the tools of yoga, embodiment, and Internal Family Systems (IFS), she helps HSPs feel seen, validated, empowered, and connected. Magdalena’s mission is to change the narrative around sensitivity by celebrating it and uplifting all those who consider themselves sensitive.

Discover a tool that will help you build your self-awareness around the different parts of yourself and how these parts collectively make you who you are. Learn how your parts affect your behavior and how you can create distance between these parts of you, so you can find empowerment and self-healing by embracing and understanding all of it.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/215

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Skills of True Confidence, with Alex Kennedy

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 06:00:59 GMT

Alex Kennedy is a confidence coach and shuffle dance teacher who’s here to help you ignite your fire of inner confidence. Through coaching, she assists high achievers in showing up as their raw, authentic selves, building self-trust, and navigating challenges more gracefully. She believes we need to stop hiding our inner weirdness from the world, and she’s here to show us how.

Discover how empowering it is to stop living life for others and start trailblazing a unique path. Alex is sharing what true confidence really is, why we lack confidence, and how to build the skill of true, authentic confidence.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/214

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Getting Out of Emotional Overwhelm, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 06:00:23 GMT

Do you label feeling emotions as something scary and end up shoving them into your emotional closet? If you’re ready to make peace with your sensitivity and learn how to fearlessly experience emotions without becoming overwhelmed, this episode is for you.

I delve into what emotional overwhelm is, why it’s common in highly sensitive people, and why we label emotions as scary. I explain four different reasons that can lead us to labeling emotions as something to fear and share how to stop this pattern once and for all. Discover how to overcome the shame of being emotional and learn how embracing your sensitivity can give you access to more joy, love, and happiness in your life.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/213

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Visualization to Create An Inner Sense of Safety

Mon, 05 Feb 2024 06:00:00 GMT

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Opening to All That Life Brings, or Skillfully Closing Yourself, with Nate Klemp

Mon, 29 Jan 2024 06:00:21 GMT

For today’s conversation, I sat down with Nate Klemp PhD. Nate is a writer, philosopher, and entrepreneur. He’s the author of the upcoming book Open: Living with an Expansive Mind in a Distracted World, and he’s here to help us open up to all that life brings, or skillfully close ourselves off where necessary.

Discover how to open your mind to create expansion, possibility, and to shift your focus so you can experience challenging thoughts, emotions, and sensations in new, amazing ways. Learn simple practices to intentionally and skillfully open yourself up and close yourself off when necessary.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/211

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Your Nervous System Through the Lens of Yoga, with Eddie Stern

Mon, 22 Jan 2024 06:00:54 GMT

Even if you have a basic understanding of your nervous system, alongside a basic understanding of yoga philosophy, they may occupy two different areas of your brain. So today, I’m inviting you to merge them together and take your Western scientific knowledge of the nervous system and correlate it to your knowledge of Eastern philosophy, yoga, and ayurveda.

To discuss the intersection between yoga and the nervous system, I’m joined by Eddie Stern. Eddie is a yoga teacher, author, and researcher who is responsible for a wealth of evidence-based research in the healing capacities of yoga. Tune in this week to discover how to view your nervous system through the lens of yoga.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/210

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How to Keep Up with Yoga in Moments of Chaos, with Brett Larkin

Mon, 15 Jan 2024 06:00:47 GMT

Brett Larkin is the founder of Uplifted Yoga and the author of the book, Yoga Life: Habits, Poses, and Breathwork to Channel Joy Amidst the Chaos. Her online yoga teacher trainings have set the standards for quality online certification since 2015, and she has a thriving YouTube channel and podcast sharing how to actively design your life using yoga’s ancient wisdom.

Tune in this week as we look at yoga and self-care as a science of energy management, so you can replace the habits that are wasting your energy and depleting your lifeforce. Learn about personalized yoga habits that can help you feel happier, even in moments of chaos, and we’re discussing how you can steer your yoga practice to meet yourself wherever you are in that moment.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/209

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga Practice for Grief

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 06:00:59 GMT

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are You Slowing Down? Or Are You in Functional Freeze? With Diana May

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 06:00:09 GMT

Diana May is a dedicated yoga teacher and lifelong learner with the goal of supporting people in loving their bodies as they are in the present moment. Her practice infuses anatomy, alignment, and mindfulness through the lens of the nervous system. She believes that yoga is a way to observe both physical and psychological patterns and choose a new way forward.

Whether you’re in a state of functional freeze, or you want to help others understand their nervous system, tune in this week to discover how we find ourselves in functional freeze and Diana May’s tips for thawing from this state of freeze.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/207

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Money Magic and Conscious Wealth, with Andrea Donnelly

Mon, 18 Dec 2023 06:00:31 GMT

This week, I sat down with Andrea Donnelly, a spiritual advisor, quantum sound and energy healer, and the CEO of We Are Here 2 Remember. She specializes in energy work, akashic records, flower essence, herbal medicine, sound healing, and works with high-achievers to quantum heal trauma, unlock new psychic abilities, integrate peace, and ultimately guide them toward their true destiny.

If you want to use money to align more fully with your soul’s mission and purpose, tune in this week. Andrea is sharing how she combines woo with data to create money magic and conscious wealth for her clients. Learn how to operate from a place of resilience as you navigate your money journey.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/206

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everything You Need to Know Before Going on a Yoga Retreat, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 11 Dec 2023 06:00:36 GMT

Have you been dreaming of taking a yoga retreat? Maybe you’ve been looking for a way to hit the reset button on your body and soul, melting away your stress, and transforming your life from the inside out. If so, today’s episode is the resource you need, detailing everything you need to know before going on a yoga retreat.

Tune in this week to discover everything you need to know before going on a yoga retreat. Learn what to expect from this experience, and what you should consider before you commit to any retreat. I’m sharing my experience of my first yoga retreat, and I’m helping you consider your worries about the commitment and investment of going on a yoga retreat.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/205

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | 1:2 Ratio Breath Practice for Relaxation

Mon, 04 Dec 2023 06:00:52 GMT

If it's hard for you to sit down to practice Pranayama, being guided through might be the solution. If your feeling stressed, anxious, emotionally overwhelmed, overworked or stuck in overthinking, this breath pattern will help you cultivate more peace, calmness, and spaciousness in your mind. With this breath practice for relaxation you'll learn to use the breath as a portal for the nervous system. The 1:2 ratio will help you activate the nervous system and shift towards ventral vagal or general parasympathetic relaxation response.

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Yoga Bill, with Rep. Jeremy Gray

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 06:00:28 GMT

Jeremy Gray is an African-American politician, yogi, entrepreneur, author, philanthropist, and former professional athlete. He is currently serving as an Alabama State Representative and is running for Congress. He has sponsored legislation to allow yoga into Alabama public schools through the Yoga Bill, as well as publishing a yoga book aimed at children.

Learn how yoga was banned and subsequently legalized in public schools in Alabama. State Representative Jeremy Gray is discussing the serious misconceptions that led to yoga being banned in Alabama’s schools, sharing how he spent three years educating people about what yoga really is, and he’s discussing how yoga can have a huge positive impact on children everywhere.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/203

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga for Lupus and Autoimmune Diseases, with Amanda Chay

Mon, 20 Nov 2023 06:00:19 GMT

Whether or not you have an autoimmune disease like lupus yourself, you likely know somebody who does. To talk in depth about yoga for lupus and autoimmune diseases, I sat down with Amanda Chay. She is the author of The Girlfriend’s Guide to Lupus, a self-help book for women who are feeling scared and alone with their lupus diagnosis. Amanda helps people put their health first, and since her own diagnosis, she’s dedicated her work to helping other women with lupus.

If you’re ready to learn how to make yoga part of your holistic approach to health and wellness, tune in this week. We’re discussing why autoimmune diseases are difficult to diagnose, some of the signs a person has an autoimmune disease, and how yoga can ease the symptoms and improve the lives of people who have an autoimmune diagnosis.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/202

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Overthinking (And How Can I Stop?), with Erika Belanger

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 06:00:47 GMT

Stress impacts every area of our lives. Overthinking shows up in our decision-making, impacting our mental health and even ruining our relationships. It’s time to go deep into understanding how stress and overthinking shows up especially if you’re a highly sensitive person, and what you can do to ease the internal pressure you’re experiencing.

Discover why you overthink and how it’s impacting your daily life. I’m showing you how to decrease your stress so you can improve your mental health, enhance your decision making, and soothe your nervous system. Learn how to improve your self-awareness so you can address the sources of your anxiety and bring yourself back to safety.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/201

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Celebrations, Gifts, and Nervous System Basics Series

Mon, 06 Nov 2023 06:00:16 GMT

HAPPY 200! Thank you so much for your support over these last years!

EPISODES MENTIONED

100- The Best, the Popular Vote, and the Underrated.

Non-Performative Yoga™ and the Divine Feminine, with Abiola Akanni

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 05:00:19 GMT

If you’ve always felt like yoga was less about doing and more about being, or if you’ve been curious about how to embody the divine feminine more, listen in. To discuss these topics, I sat down with Abiola Akanni, a leader in the field of yoga. She has cultivated non-performative spaces that encourage individuals to use the practices of yoga and mindfulness to enhance their lives and bodies. Abiola is also an emotional intelligence coach, supporting high-achieving Women of Color navigating their experience of high-functioning anxiety.

If you’re ready to start practicing yoga beyond the poses and disrupt the western-world’s performative approach to yoga, tune in this week. Abiola is sharing how to start practicing yoga in a way that feels more freeing and aligned with your values while weaving in the concept of embodying the divine feminine along the way.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/199

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Healing Your Aura to Manifest Your Fullest Potential, with Cru Von Holtzendorff-Fehling

Mon, 23 Oct 2023 05:00:24 GMT

If you want to know more about your aura, energy field, or the quantum realm and how all of these things connect to transformation and healing, today’s episode is the exact resource you need. I’m sitting down with Cru Von Holtzendorff-Fehling, an internationally renowned coach and energy healer who was gifted from birth with the ability to read and heal people’s trauma, auras, and energy fields.

Cru has helped countless individuals worldwide over more than two decades, showing them the true blockages in their lives, and how to start resolving them. Tune in this week to tap into the unseen and start healing your aura to manifest your fullest potential. We’re discussing what the aura is, the role it plays in our lives, and the energetic intervention it takes to change your life by working with the quantum realm.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/198

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Yoga for Grief, with Paul Denniston

Mon, 16 Oct 2023 05:00:54 GMT

If you’re going through a hard time with loss, or if you’d like to help someone else who’s currently in the thick of grief, today’s episode is for you. I’m sitting down with Paul Denniston, the founder of Grief Yoga and the author of Healing Through Yoga: Transform Loss Into Empowerment. He’s here to help us transform trauma and connect to the resilient, loving warrior within.

Discover how to use movement, breath, and sound to release pain and suffering. We’re discussing how to connect with empowerment and love during times of grief, why grief isn’t just the loss of a loved one, and how to give your grief the dedicated time and space required to move through your brain and body.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/197

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Meditation for Self-Compassion

Mon, 09 Oct 2023 05:00:23 GMT

Are you feeling so stressed that stopping completely to relax and rest makes you feel even more agitated? If when you stop completely, your mind spirals into everything you could/should be doing instead, today’s episode is for you. With this active rest practice, you’ll learn to cultivate the energy of rest and to give your mind, body, and soul a way to slow down and cultivate peacefulness without being still physically.

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yogic Principles of Transformation for Life and Recovery, with Brian Hyman

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 05:00:48 GMT

The principles of recovery and yoga sometimes intersect. And yoga has helped countless people on their journey with addiction, so to discuss this interesting topic, I’m sitting down with Brian Hyman.

Tune in this week to discover the yogic principles of transformation for life and recovery. We’re discussing how to find more happiness, regardless of what you accomplish or fail to accomplish in life, the specific yogic practices that are essential on the path of transformation, and why now is the best time to get started finding your purpose.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/195

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Binge Eating: Why Does It Make Sense? With Ali Shapiro

Mon, 25 Sep 2023 05:00:08 GMT

If you’re an emotional eater or find yourself binging when tired, overwhelmed, or when your needs aren’t being met, you’re not alone. Understanding why binge eating makes sense will be the first step for you to move forward and heal this pattern in your life. For today’s episode, I sat down with Ali Shapiro, the host of the top-ranked podcast Insatiable. She’s a holistic nutritionist and integrated health coach, and she’s a rebel with a serious cause.

If you’re ready to repair your self-trust when it comes to food and binge eating, tune in this week to discover the tools to help you get there. We’re discussing why binge eating as a protection mechanism makes perfect sense, why habit hacking and stacking isn’t the answer, and how to take new steps in feeling safer and more grounded.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/194

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Feeling Your Feelings, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 05:00:31 GMT

Have you ever felt taken over by your emotions, only to brush them off? Maybe you feel like you’re just going through life without really connecting with other people and their emotions? Well, it’s time to start feeling your feelings, both for the benefit of your relationship with yourself and your relationships with the people around you.

Discover how to start feeling your feelings. I’m sharing why we tend to avoid acknowledging our feelings when it matters most and my three-step process for beginning to feel your emotions more deeply, as well as providing some extra tips if this feels totally impossible for you right now.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/193

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PREMIUM | Mindful Movement Practice

Mon, 11 Sep 2023 06:00:31 GMT

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Building a Successful YouTube Channel as a Yoga Teacher, with Kassandra Reinhardt

Mon, 28 Aug 2023 05:00:52 GMT

Kassandra Reinhardt is the creator of the beyond-popular YouTube channel Yoga with Kassandra. She’s a yin and vinyasa yoga teacher, YouTuber, and author. Her YouTube channel has grown to over two million subscribers and she has over 190 million views, creating an amazing resource anyone can enjoy.

Discover why YouTube is an amazing space for yoga teachers, and how to make your channel a sustainable success. We’re discussing how to enjoy the process, regardless of your success, why now is the best time to get started, and Kassandra is sharing her advice for anyone considering taking their yoga online.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/191

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fascia: The Missing Piece to Your Physical Wellness, with Anna Rahe

Mon, 21 Aug 2023 05:00:58 GMT

If you’re curious about the body and always want to learn new ways to improve your wellness, or if you’ve been dealing with pain that you can’t seem to get rid of, today's episode is for you. I’m sitting down with Anna Rahe, the creator of the revolutionary new science-based solution to health and wellness called GST Body, using motion to model, recover, and restore function, health, and vitality in the human body.

Discover why the fascia is the secret to addressing every aspect of your physical wellness, allowing you to become your own healing practitioner. Anna is giving us a breakdown of what fascia is, how it works in our bodies, and sharing her practice for how we can become aware of and start to support the fascia to profoundly improve our physical wellness.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/190

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The Power of Music, Mantra, and Meditation, with Masood Ali Khan

Mon, 14 Aug 2023 05:00:06 GMT

If music makes you feel deeply, impacting your mood, focus, your yoga, and your meditation practice, you’ll love today’s guest. Masood Ali Khan has been practicing yoga for over 25 years and is a certified teacher in Heather Lyle’s Vocal Yoga Method, incorporating yoga with vocal exercises to strengthen your sounding vessel, AKA your whole body. He’s here to tell us about a system he’s created called Connection to Creation.

Discover the power of combining music, mantra, and meditation to harness universal energy in support of wellness and vitality. We’re discussing the power of rhythm and using sound to carry your intention when you can’t find the spoken words, and Masood's sharing his tips for starting to bring vibration and sound to your own healing practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/189

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Active Rest Practice

Mon, 07 Aug 2023 05:00:39 GMT

This 30-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Akashic Records: Accessing the Universal Database of Your Soul, with Joanna Haines

Mon, 24 Jul 2023 05:00:11 GMT

If you're fascinated by the realm of metaphysics and spiritual knowledge, curious about how you can start using divination tools to get guidance, or have profound questions about the purpose and meaning of life, today's episode with Akashic mentor Joanna Haines is for you. She works closely with clients that are ready to expand into their highest timeline by recognizing and reconnecting with their most authentic and precious expression, which is their energetic blueprint.

Discover how Akashic Records give you the information you need to connect with your truest self. Joanna is breaking down what Akashic Records are, how she brings her clients' unique records to their consciousness, and how she uses them to inform, heal, or clear as necessary.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/187

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Clearing the Way for Your True Self, with Anne Van de Water

Mon, 17 Jul 2023 05:00:03 GMT

If you long to align more authentically with who you are at your core so you can connect and live as your true self, this episode is for you. Anne Van de Water is a life and business coach, a health and wellness teacher, and a spiritual guide. She is the founder and creator of True Self Mastery Coaching and Wellness where she supports huge-hearted changemakers in clearing subconscious limiting patterns.

Discover how to reconnect with your truest, deepest, and highest self. Anne is discussing the art and practice of living well as your true self, aligned with your full potential as a human being while taking 100% responsibility for everything you create in the world.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/186

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ayurveda for HSPs, with Samantha Attard

Mon, 10 Jul 2023 05:00:23 GMT

Are you a yogi that goes, goes, goes, and then burns out? Do you get overwhelmed and then become avoidant, all the while knowing that you could really use a little support to understand yourself better and show up more confidently? These are signs you are a highly sensitive person (HSP) and this episode is all about the benefits of ayurveda for HSPs.

I’m sitting down with Samantha Attard, an ayurvedic health counsellor and nutrition Ph.D. She is the founder of Spiro Collective, offering holistic wellness counselling and programs for busy humans who want to improve their health. Samantha is sharing how ayurveda recognizes, understands, and helps you work with your sensitivity.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/185

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PREMIUM | Mindful Breath for Relaxation

Mon, 03 Jul 2023 05:00:35 GMT

Do you spend long hours sitting at a desk or at the computer? With a buddy and a demanding schedule? Feeling stressed, anxious, and in need of a little support to decompress in the evening? With this evening yoga practice to unwind and relax, you’ll relieve tension, clear your mind, and practice a little self-care for a better night's sleep.

This 15-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is Self-Care So Important for HSPs? With Erika Belanger

Mon, 26 Jun 2023 05:00:12 GMT

If you’re going through life merely surviving, regularly feeling overwhelmed, stressed, or a little bit like you’re living your life running on a hamster wheel, today’s episode is for you. I’m discussing why self-care is an important practice for highly sensitive people (HSPs), and showing you what you can do to add more self-care into your everyday routine.

I know you already feel like you don’t have time for yourself, and adding self-care practices to your schedule seems like just another extra thing to do. But by the end of today’s show, you’ll see how easy self-care can be, and how it impacts your mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/183

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exploring the Shiva Sutras, with Harshada David Wagner

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 05:00:22 GMT

I know you’ve heard of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, maybe even the Bhagavad Gita, but what about other traditional yogic and philosophical texts? If you’re curious about ancient wisdom and you want to expand your spiritual practice and consciousness, I invite you to listen in and start exploring the Shiva Sutras.

I'm talking with Harshada David Wagner, a master meditation teacher, author, artist, dad, and wisdom teacher with more than 25 years of experience. His teachings come from decades of helping people learn to live more soul-centered lives. We’re discussing the power of mantra, and Harshada’s advice for using the Shiva Sutras to deepen your spiritual practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/182

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Using Your Dreams for Personal Growth and Healing, with Kari Hohne

Mon, 12 Jun 2023 05:00:03 GMT

If you have a natural curiosity about your dreams and you wish you could learn from them, today’s episode is for you. I’m joined by Kari Hohne, a dream analyst, author, artist, and expert on the Eastern and Western archetypes that inspire our dreams and oracles.

Discover what’s really going on when you’re dreaming and how to use your dreams as a profound learning experience. Kari is sharing practical tips for exploring your dreams, showing us why our dreams are a mirror of our wider experience of life and the key to personal growth. She’s also analyzing one of my dreams to demonstrate how her process works.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/181

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Evening Yoga to Unwind and Relax

Mon, 05 Jun 2023 05:00:45 GMT

This 15-minute yoga class is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Setting Boundaries for Protection and Connection, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 29 May 2023 05:00:48 GMT

Are you experiencing feelings of resentment, frustration, or emotional exhaustion in your relationships? Do you find yourself saying yes to things you don’t really want to do while your needs and desires are being put on the backburner, or disregarded altogether? If this sounds familiar, you’re probably lacking some boundaries.

Tune in this week to discuss what boundaries are, what they’re not, and why they’re so important. I’m sharing how to identify situations in your life that require boundaries, how to know when your boundaries are being crossed, as well as giving you actionable tips and my step-by-step process for setting and communicating boundaries without too much discomfort in the process.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/179

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Building Unshakable Confidence, with Katelyn Englert

Mon, 22 May 2023 05:00:53 GMT

Are you lacking a little confidence? Maybe you catch yourself in self-doubt, fear of failure, or loops of negative self-talk. If this sounds familiar, today’s episode is for you. We’re exploring what it means to be confident and why, even when we seem to have it all, we can still feel dissatisfied and lack confidence.

Katelyn Englert is a licensed social worker, confidence coach, coffee lover, and momma of three beautiful children. She works with individuals to start healing from addiction, trauma, low self-worth, and mind-body disconnect, helping people step into their confidence and own who they are through a variety of practices. Discover the secrets to building unshakable confidence.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/178

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Human Design 101, with Emma Dunwoody

Mon, 08 May 2023 05:00:39 GMT

Do you want to understand yourself on a deeper level? Are you struggling to manage your energy and find balance in your life? If so, you won't want to miss today's episode. We're delving into the world of Human Design with Emma Dunwoody, a Master Coach and human behavioral specialist.

In this episode, we cover everything you need to know about Human Design, including how it works, how to read your own chart, and how to integrate this valuable knowledge into your daily life. Whether you're new to Human Design or just curious, you'll gain a wealth of insights that will transform your personal development, education, and business forever.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/177

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Walking Meditation

Mon, 01 May 2023 05:00:45 GMT

Is sitting or silent meditation not the ideal practice for you? You might find it easier to dive into a movement meditation so you can experience movement in the body at a slow pace and cultivate mindfulness without having to be completely still. With this walking meditation practice, you’ll be able to shift out stress and benefits of meditation without the pain.

This short calming meditation practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Accessing Your Inner Wisdom, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 24 Apr 2023 05:00:58 GMT

Would you describe yourself as indecisive? In today's episode, we explore the topic of indecisiveness and how it can hinder our ability to make aligned decisions.

As someone who considers trusting their instincts a superpower, I'm excited to share my insights on this topic with you. Join me as we explore what inner wisdom truly means, its significance, common obstacles you may encounter along the way, and effective ways to overcome them. Tune in to start your journey towards accessing your inner wisdom today.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/175

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How to Maintain a Personal Practice, with Kalyani Hauswirth-Jain

Mon, 17 Apr 2023 05:00:17 GMT

As a teacher, finding time for our own personal practice can be a difficult task. However, it is crucial to maintain a sense of connection within our bodies, as it provides support for our well-being.

In this episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Kalyani Hauswirth-Jain about the importance of maintaining a personal practice and cultivating self-discovery. She shares her wisdom and insights, highlighting how practicing yoga can be a gift to oneself. Tune in as we explore a range of skills and techniques to help cultivate your yoga movement practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/174

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Living Your Life to the Fullest, with Aneta Ardelian Kuzma

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 05:00:23 GMT

Are you lacking passion or purpose? If you’ve noticed yourself feeling stuck; unable to move forward and grow, this episode is for you. My guest this week is guiding us through how to create more fulfillment, joy, and even more meaningful relationships, so you can truly start living your life to the fullest.

Aneta Ardelian Kuzma shares how we lose the joy in our lives and end up living the length of our life without enjoying the full width of our existence. She’s giving us her tips for aligning our choices with where we want to go and showing up for ourselves every step of the way

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/173

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PREMIUM | Parasympathetic Breath

Mon, 03 Apr 2023 05:00:53 GMT

Are you feeling stressed or anxious but also like you don't have much time? The breath is the quickest way to shift into the rest and digest mode of your nervous system aka the parasympathetic branch. With this 10-minute practice, you’ll be able to shift out stress and reset your system.

This short calming breath practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

Join the Sensitivity Reset: Releasing Overwhelm for a Happier Life here.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Magic of Surrender, with Kute Blackson

Mon, 27 Mar 2023 05:00:26 GMT

Do you struggle with surrender? I know I did for a long time. Surrendering is difficult and scary, and you may think it makes you weak, passive, or a quitter. However, in truth, if you’re willing to let go of your resistance, and stay honest and curious, you’ll see your life go from ordinary to extraordinary.

I sat down with beloved inspirational speaker, author, and transformational teacher, Kute Blackson, to discuss this. Discover some of the misconceptions our culture has around surrender, what it really is, and how to use the power of surrender to remove the limitations from your life while being available for your purpose to reveal itself.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/171

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga for Depression, with Chris McDonald

Mon, 20 Mar 2023 05:00:01 GMT

If you struggle with depression or even the occasional depressive mood, listen in. My guest is a therapist who approaches depression holistically by including yoga in her toolbox. We’re discussing depression in general, and how you can use the practice to support yourself through hard times.

Chris McDonald is a holistic licensed therapist and runs an online practice called Path to Hope Counselling. She's sharing how she incorporates yoga into her therapeutic practices to support her clients’ nervous systems and release positive neurochemicals, and how you can use yoga in your own toolbox.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/170

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

4 Steps to Overcome Overwhelm, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 13 Mar 2023 05:00:51 GMT

Are you feeling like you have too much on your plate? Are your stress levels through the roof, or are you just feeling defeated? If you’re struggling to keep up with the demands of life and the intensity of your inner world and need some practical tips to overcome overwhelm, then today’s episode is for you.

This week I help you regain control and find peace in the midst of internal and external chaos. I’m discussing how to know when you’re in overwhelm, the limitations of the generally-offered strategies for dealing with overwhelm, and I’m giving you the specific four-step process to overcome overwhelm.

Join the waitlist for The Sensitivity Reset: Releasing Overwhelm for a Happier Life

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/169

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga for Overwhelm

Mon, 06 Mar 2023 06:00:30 GMT

Are you tired but can’t sleep? Maybe you’re irritable and you could cry at the drop of a hat. So much to do but no energy or motivation to do any of it? That my friend sounds like overwhelm. And today I have just the perfect practice for you.

This short and calming yoga practice is part of our premium subscription, to get access to it, become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this yoga class of overwhelm.

2. You can now also have access to almost 400 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Balancing Your Hormones for Better Wellness, with Carrie Kostiner

Mon, 27 Feb 2023 06:00:29 GMT

If you’ve ever experienced symptoms like weight fluctuation, fertility challenges, painful periods, or digestive issues, your hormones might be out of balance. Hormone imbalance can have a snowball effect on every area of your health, but my guest has a wealth of experience to share on this topic that might make a huge difference.

Carrie Kostiner is a yoga teacher and integrative wellness coach who helps women optimize their health through food and movement. Tune in to discover the power of hormones and the magic that the body is capable of. Carrie is sharing how a hormone imbalance impacts your health, and her tips for balancing your hormones for better wellness.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/167

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Business Strategies for Yoga Teachers, with Gwendoline Ferreira

Mon, 20 Feb 2023 06:00:14 GMT

If you’re a yoga teacher who wants to expand your income and your impact, today’s episode is exactly what you need. You might be only teaching drop-in yoga classes right now, but my guest this week is here to show you how you can move into a more sustainable and profitable business model instead.

Gwendoline Ferreira is a business and marketing strategist for yoga teachers with dozens of online courses, hundreds of successful students, and transformational online yoga masterminds that serve students all over the world. We’re discussing how you can narrow your online offerings and serve your clients in the best way possible.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/166

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Five Ways to Slow Down and Be More Mindful, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 13 Feb 2023 06:00:49 GMT

Do you live a fast-paced life and struggle to lower your stress levels? Do you tend to multitask and get distracted easily? Are you more emotionally reactive than you would like, or are you simply looking to improve your overall well-being? If you said yes to any of these questions, you could likely use some slowing down and mindfulness in your life, so today’s episode is for you.

Learn the difference between slowing down and mindfulness, the benefits of these practices, and how to become more mindful, create peace and space in your life, and cultivate gratitude. I also share my tips to make mindfulness a regular practice and how to center yourself when you’re feeling like things are a little chaotic again.

Listen to the full episode here: www.erikabelanger.com/165

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Mindfulness Meditation

Mon, 06 Feb 2023 06:00:33 GMT

Do you feel like you're constantly running on a hamster wheel? If you ever wonder how to take a break or how to stop feeling like you always have to be 'doing' something? Today’s episode is for you. It's not always easy to slow down, but mindfulness meditation is a great place to start.

This new year also coincides with the 5th anniversary of the podcast and for the occasion, we changed the cover art! I’m so excited to hear what you have to say. To celebrate, we are also offering a month for free on the premium membership. Use the coupon FREETRIAL to create your account for free.

Since this video practice is part of our premium subscription, you’ll have access to it for free, and you’ll be able to explore everything we have on there. You’ll find 30 min yoga classes, meditations, led pranayamas, philosophical chats, workbooks to go our episodes, and more. Find it here.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Different Paths of Awakening, with Ali Levine

Mon, 30 Jan 2023 06:00:54 GMT

Have you experienced a spiritual Awakening or Awakenings? My guest this week is Ali Levine, host of the podcast Awakening with Ali. She is an intuitive stylist, a breathwork practitioner, and a transformation expert who helps conscious women breathe, embody, surrender, and transform.

Join us for a conversation about awakening, how to understand that it’s happening, and the tools that can help you get through the experience. We also talk about the relationship between ourselves and colors, how to make a conscious choice to question things and change, and how breathwork yoga can be an incredible tool.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/163

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

F the Shoulds. Do the Wants, with Tricia Huffman

Mon, 23 Jan 2023 06:00:09 GMT

If you've kind of lost track of who you are or what you want or why you want it, today's episode is for you. I’m excited for you to hear from today’s guest as we discuss how what we should do might actually be unhealthiest for us.

Tricia Huffman specializes in working with people in the public eye to keep them in integrity with who they want to be while also enjoying the life that they're living right now. Tricia and I talk about how to understand what you want instead of focusing on what you think you should do and the importance of compassion for yourself.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/162

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are You Really Too Sensitive? with Erika Belanger

Mon, 16 Jan 2023 06:00:42 GMT

Have you ever felt too much, and not enough at the same time? If you’ve ever been referred to as “too sensitive,” then today’s episode is for you. It will just be you and I, and I can’t wait to deep dive into sensitivity with you.

This week, I talk about what it means to be highly sensitive, the signs that you might be a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP), some possible pitfalls to your sensitivity, and the strengths you’ll find in being sensitive. We’ll also look at how to support your sensitivity so that you can stop believing that it is a problem in your life.

Know exactly how sensitive you are and receive tools tailored to your needs according to your answers! Take the quiz: How sensitive are you?

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/161

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Breath Practice for Overthinking and Overwhelm

Mon, 02 Jan 2023 06:00:15 GMT

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Reducing Your Stress by Breaking Up with Your Patterns, with Veronique Ory

Mon, 26 Dec 2022 07:00:46 GMT

If you are ready to start the new year and want to show up on your mat more regularly, move with more freedom, or get out of your head and into your body to destress and improve your life all around, then today’s episode is for you.

Veronique Ory is a registered yoga teacher whose passion for storytelling and creative movement inspires her students to carry their yoga practice on and off the mat. Veronique and I go deep into moving the way that moves you, the importance of just showing up, and why you should break up with the “shoulds.”

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/159

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Becoming Your You-est You, with Julie Reisler

Mon, 19 Dec 2022 06:00:01 GMT

If you feel like you’re not good enough, you people please, or you experience shame and fear on a regular basis, you might not be living your life as your fullest self. If you are craving more self-love, deeper connections, and you’re ready to stop pretending, today’s episode is for you.

Julie Reisler is an author, speaker, founder, and an interior designer for your soul who has mentored hundreds of coaches and entrepreneurs. Join us for a conversation about how to observe yourself with compassion and how to turn fear into faith. Julie’s insight will push you to make sure you’re living as the you-est you.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/158

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Five Signs That You Are Living in Survival Mode, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 12 Dec 2022 06:00:51 GMT

Growing and moving forward requires that we meet our own needs, but if you’re not meeting them, then you won’t be going anywhere. So if you have been wanting to prioritize your growth but have been struggling to do so, then this episode is for you.

Sometimes we can discover we are living in survival mode and not know how we’ve gotten there. Or we can tell that something is wrong but we’re just not sure what it is. This week, you and I will spend some time together looking at how to tell if you’re in survival mode and what you need to do to get yourself out of it.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/157

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Restorative Yoga with a Chair

Mon, 05 Dec 2022 06:00:06 GMT

Loving our restorative classes? Did you know you can request premium episodes? This was a member's request. We already have a restorative class at the wall, and one that prepares you for bed. Today, we’ll use a chair to relax and practice slowing down.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it click here, and become a premium podcast member. Get access for free by writing a review on iTunes. Send a screenshot of the review with your email at erika.belanger@gmail.com or in a DM @onandoffyourmatpodcast.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Seva, or the Yoga of Selfless Service, with Bobbi Paidel

Mon, 28 Nov 2022 08:00:19 GMT

If you are a yogi, you are probably on the path of self-realization. There are many pieces to that puzzle, and service is a very important one. My guest today, Bobbi Paidel, is a yoga teacher, practitioner, and seeker with more than 18 years of deep studies in contemplation of the human experience.

Bobbi has devoted her life to living and sharing the spiritual principles of yoga and oneness. She joins me for a discussion on Seva Yoga and why service is so important. We even talk about concrete actions you can take today to start making change if service isn’t already a prominent component of your life.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/155

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Developing Your Psychic and Medium Abilities, with Dominique Rochart

Mon, 21 Nov 2022 08:00:51 GMT

Have you ever wondered if you were a little psychic, or if there was a way you could learn to be? If you’ve asked yourself those questions or if you’re curious about the spirit world and what is possible out there, today’s episode is for you.

Dominique Rochart is a shamanic energy healer, medicine woman, and psychic development teacher and coach with over 12 years of experience. We sat down to talk about the role psychic and medium abilities play in healing from trauma, and what tools you should use to protect yourself as you begin to explore your abilities.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/154

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Being Purposeful with Social Media as a Yoga Teacher, with Gabi Metz

Mon, 14 Nov 2022 08:00:01 GMT

Have you been wanting to get students or clients through social media, but you’ve been struggling to turn online connections into paying customers? Maybe you want to build community around you, but you’ve been finding it difficult to do so on social media? If this sounds like you, you’re going to love today’s guest.

Gabi Metz is a copywriter, digital marketer, and a yoga teacher. She saw an opportunity to help other yoga teachers grow their businesses using social media, particularly Instagram, and began helping studios during the pandemic. Join us for a conversation all about setting yourself up for success through Instagram marketing.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/153

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Learning to Identify Your Nervous System States

Mon, 07 Nov 2022 08:00:18 GMT

Have you ever felt intimidated by meditation? Or ever find yourself unsure of what to do or how to do it? I gotta you covered. I’ll walk you through a beginner meditation so you can learn to do it on your own, or have a guided one to support you as you build confidence.

Did you know you can request premium episodes? This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Key to Feeling Safe, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 07:00:55 GMT

If you experience fear, worry, or anxiety on a regular basis, you’re the kind to wait for the other shoe to drop, or you either try to control the world (and the people) around you or you hide parts of yourself, then today’s episode is for you. If you’ve experienced any of these feelings, it might be because you don’t feel safe.

Join me as I talk about the difference between safety and feeling safe, why it matters, why we don’t feel safe, and the key to feeling safe. This is not an episode on how to be more safe, it is an episode on how to feel more safe.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/151

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga for Bendy People, with Libby Hinsley

Mon, 24 Oct 2022 07:00:57 GMT

Are you bendy? Does your practice sometimes leave you in pain, feeling anxious or having trouble sleeping after? If you can relate to these questions, then today’s episode is for you. My guest and I will discuss hypermobility syndromes, chronic pain, and how yoga can both help and harm bodies who deal with these issues.

Libby Hinsley is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and a Certified Yoga Therapist specializing in the treatment of chronic pain, hypermobility syndromes, and yoga-related injuries. We're discussing why hypermobility can make yoga more difficult and how teachers can give the power back to their students during yoga practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/150

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Moving From Darkness to Light, with Lisa Annese

Mon, 17 Oct 2022 07:00:13 GMT

Have you been through some hard times recently? Are you finding yourself ready to embrace challenges as lessons and forever change the narrative of your life?

Lisa Annese is a dedicated practitioner and teacher of Kundalini yoga and meditation, a sound healer, a spiritual guide, owner of The Divine Sound, a yoga and sound healing studio, and author of the book I Am Light. Our conversation will help you bring out the Light you already have inside of you, regardless of what you’ve been through.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/149

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anatomy, Alignment, and Technique in Asana, with Matt Giordiano

Mon, 10 Oct 2022 07:00:18 GMT

Are you inquisitive about your body? If you’d love to know more about how it works and eventually have a sense of self-mastery, today’s episode is for you. And, if you’re a yoga teacher, get ready—today’s guest is a great teacher’s teacher.

Matt Giordiano is the creator and founder of the Chromatic Yoga School, which was born out of the desire to support yoga teachers in their skill set development. Join us for a conversation about how anatomy influences technique, the importance of starting with the basics, and how self-awareness can change your yoga practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/148

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga for Better Posture

Mon, 03 Oct 2022 07:00:19 GMT

Did you know you can request premium episodes? This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and Somatics to Heal the Wounds of Sexual Trauma, with Kaitlyn Rose Holsapple

Mon, 26 Sep 2022 07:00:18 GMT

If, like me, you came to yoga with a need to reconnect to your body and the practices helped you move forward in life, you’ll find the story of today’s guest inspiring. Kaitlyn Rose Holsapple, or Kaity, is a Somatic Yoga Therapist who focuses on helping her clients connect with their innate, somatic wisdom in the body.

As a survivor of sexual trauma, Kaity understands the shadow realm of trauma through her own experience and she has held space for countless individuals to heal in her work. She's sharing tools you can start using today to begin building your own somatic yoga practice and help yourself get back into your body.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/146

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Avoiding Entrepreneurial Poverty, with Racheal Cook

Mon, 19 Sep 2022 07:00:19 GMT

Have you been hustling and grinding to grow your business but find yourself depleted or not quite as happy as you thought you’d be? If so, today’s episode is for you. I sat down with business growth strategist Racheal Cook to discuss what success can and should look like, and how to avoid burnout and entrepreneurial poverty.

Join Racheal and I for a discussion about being a female entrepreneur, creating clarity around a definition for success, and how to attract and nurture your audience. Racheal shares some of her tips and tricks for great marketing and reaching your potential, no matter what business you’re running.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/145

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Intersection Between Yoga, Sex, and Death, with Susan Marrufo

Mon, 12 Sep 2022 07:00:44 GMT

Have you ever considered yoga as a conscious guide on how to live? What about as a way to explore your sexuality, or how to die? Today’s guest and I cover these otherwise taboo subjects and dive into how learning to let go and cultivate intimacy can be at the base of it all.

Susan Marrufo has been a yoga certified instructor since 2009 and is the founder of the Samarasa Center. Join Susan and I for a discussion about self-inquiry and healing our trauma, how to recover from sexual trauma and/or abuse, and how death, sex and self-inquiry are intertwined.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/144

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Meditation for Beginners

Mon, 05 Sep 2022 07:00:38 GMT

Did you know you can request premium episodes? This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Your Emotions and Your Nervous System, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 29 Aug 2022 07:00:39 GMT

Did you know that your ability to understand, deal with, and effectively use your emotional energy is vital to your wellbeing, health, and happiness levels? Join me for a discussion on how to better understand your emotions and the role they play in your nervous system.

As part of my solo series on the nervous system, this week we’ll cover the parts of your brain most often influenced by your emotions, why everything starts with awareness, and how to create more self-regulation practices (in life and in yoga).

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/142

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Using Ritual as Remedy, with Mara Branscombe

Mon, 22 Aug 2022 07:00:37 GMT

Join Mara and me for a discussion about rituals and how they can help us amplify joy, peace, and calm in our lives. We’ll discuss different types of rituals, how rituals can support you, and how everything from love to abundance to the elements and the moon can be part of your rituals.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/141

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Healing Your Back with Yoga, with Lillah Schwartz

Mon, 15 Aug 2022 07:00:03 GMT

Are you experiencing back pain, even when you’re doing yoga (or maybe because you’re doing yoga)? You’re not alone - 80% of adults experience back pain. And while it can be frustrating when your yoga practice makes your back worse, today’s guest can help you solve the puzzle of your body.

Lillah Schwartz is a C-IYAT, E-RYT 500, author, and yoga teacher trainer who is also certified as a back care specialist. We're discussing how yoga impacts back pain, why breath is so important for healing your back, and how to listen to your body so that you’re setting your practice up for success.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/140

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Orienting

Mon, 08 Aug 2022 07:00:49 GMT

Did you know you can request premium episodes? One of our members has requested help with her balance. I’ve used this request to base my monthly hatha classes theme and created 12 1h long classes, then put together all my favorite tips in this 30 minute video I’m sharing with you on the premium podcast platform.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and Stress Around the World, with Lily Allen-Duenas

Mon, 25 Jul 2022 07:00:15 GMT

Did you know that different countries practice yoga differently? Not only that, they approach mental health and stress pretty differently as well. My guest Lily Allen-Duenas has been studying and teaching yoga all over the world, so we sat down to talk about her experience and what she’s learned along the way.

Lily is an international yoga teacher, meditation guide, and holistic health and wellness coach. She has so much to share about approaches to yoga, and she's also sharing her personal experience of dealing with stress as well as giving us practical tips for addressing physical or mental stress.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/138

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Practicing Self-Care According to Your Sign, with Ashley Sondergaard

Mon, 18 Jul 2022 07:00:37 GMT

Did you know that your birth chart actually contains very important clues on what kind of self-care you need? And that everybody has different things that they need? I didn’t know this until I sat down with this week’s guest, Ashley Sondergaard.

Listen in this week and hear how to practice self-care according to your sign. Ashley shares more about birth charts and how they work, what you need to know about astrology and birth charts before you look into how you can implement them into your life, and what she would say to anybody who is skeptical about astrology.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/137

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learning to Meditate and Sticking to Your Practice, with Kelly Smith

Mon, 11 Jul 2022 07:00:46 GMT

Do you struggle to show up regularly in your meditation practice? Maybe you feel like you’re always making excuses to skip, or you’re only doing it because you think you should do it? If this sounds like a familiar story, or even if you’re new to the practice of meditation and you want to get started, today’s episode is for you.

I sat down with Kelly Smith, a globally celebrated yoga and meditation teacher who believes there is no one-size-fits-all approach to yoga and meditation. Kelly is sharing the reasons why you may have found it difficult in the past to stick with a meditation practice, and how to make your meditation practice serve you.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/136

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga for Better Balance

Mon, 04 Jul 2022 07:00:30 GMT

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Balance for Athletes and Yogis, with Sage Rountree

Mon, 27 Jun 2022 07:00:23 GMT

Do you ever feel out of balance? Maybe your priorities right now feel a little off, or perhaps you even feel physically shaky or unstable on your feet. Wherever you fall on this spectrum, today’s episode is for you because I’m sitting down with Sage Rountree to discuss balance, both on and off your mat.

Sage is an endurance sports coach and a pioneer in incorporating yoga for athletes. We’re discussing how to decide what would bring more balance to your practice, either for yourself or your students, and how to create a sequence that brings a little more physical, mental, and spiritual balance into your life.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/134

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Living a Deep Life, with Dan & Elise from Momentum Strength & Wellness

Mon, 20 Jun 2022 07:00:45 GMT

Do you ever crave a life with more connection, joy, and purpose? Well, our guests today sure do, and they continuously act in alignment with their motto: to live a deep life.

I’m sitting down with Dan and Elise from Momentum Strength & Wellness. Elise is a certified nutritionist and Dan is a personal trainer and certified holistic lifestyle coach. Together, they have dedicated their life to the study, exploration and application of all things wellness. They're sharing how to take a deep look at everything you think you know, and how their outlook has transformed since they started looking below the surface and digging for what’s true for them.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/133

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nervous System-Informed Trauma Sensitive Yoga, with Joann Lutz

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 07:00:46 GMT

Have you ever wondered how the nervous system can inform your practice or teaching of yoga? This week, Licensed Psychotherapist and Certified Yoga Therapist and Instructor Joann Lutz is here to share how you can use all of this nervous system knowledge to teach while staying aware of people’s potential traumas.

In this episode, Joann and I discuss the profound effect yoga had on her personally in her early life, the differences between therapeutic yoga as opposed to yoga for spiritual or physical development, and how to use the nervous system and trauma sensitivity in your yoga teaching or practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/132

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Ho’oponopono Meditation

Mon, 06 Jun 2022 07:00:44 GMT

Did you know you can request premium episodes? One of our members has requested a weight loss sequence, a sequence that will make you sweat! So I got you covered with this 30 min class.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and the Sciatic Nerve, with Alison Mclean

Mon, 30 May 2022 07:00:16 GMT

Have you ever had sciatica, or worked with someone who does? Maybe you had sciatica and tried to continue your yoga practice, or you turned to yoga for relief, but you never had any success with it? Either way, today’s episode is for you.

I’m sitting down with Alison Mclean, a massage therapist, yoga teacher, and physical therapist who is passionate about anatomy. We’re discussing how sciatic nerve issues arise, why it’s so painful, and how you can incorporate a personalized yoga practice for yourself or your clients that focuses on healing unique sciatic nerve pain.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/130

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chakras: A Holistic Approach to Your Wellbeing, with Morgan Starr Riestis

Mon, 23 May 2022 07:00:50 GMT

Did you know that chakras are an elegant roadmap to balancing your body, mind, and spirit? I sat down with Morgan Starr-Riestis, a therapist who is passionate about helping people transform their lives through accessible holistic wellness practices, to discuss how we can use our chakras to look deeply at our symptoms of imbalance.

Tune in this week to discover some new tools and insights for creating a holistic approach to wellness through a deeper understanding of your chakras.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/129

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tools to Regulate Your Nervous System, with Erika Balanger

Mon, 16 May 2022 07:00:11 GMT

Are you starting to recognize and identify your stress responses, the different branches of your nervous system, and you’re ready to start taking action in moving your body from one state to another?

Tune in this week for a comprehensive list of suggestions for how to regulate your nervous system. Listen with curiosity and, by the end of this episode, you’ll have a list of tools and strategies that you can start experimenting with when your nervous system takes over because of insecurity or stress.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/128

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga for Healthy Aging, with Baxter Bell

Mon, 09 May 2022 07:00:05 GMT

If you are on a journey to feel your best for as long as possible, this episode is for you. I’m sitting down with Baxter Bell, a family doctor, medical acupuncturist, author, yoga teacher, and a licensed yoga therapist.

Baxter has deep insights into experiential anatomy, yoga technique, and yoga mythology, and he’s here to share how to use yoga as a life-changing tool for healthy aging. Learn the science behind why yoga is an amazing tool for healthy aging, and how you can start introducing yoga into your routine, no matter how old you are.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/127

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Hot and Sweaty Flow

Mon, 02 May 2022 07:00:13 GMT

Did you know you can request premium episodes? One of our members has requested a weight loss sequence, a sequence that will make you sweat! So I got you covered with this 30 min class.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Contemplative Approach to Your Yoga Practice, with Rebecca Polack

Mon, 25 Apr 2022 07:00:09 GMT

Are you craving to go deeper in your practice and your understanding of yoga philosophy? If so, today’s episode is for you because I’m sitting down with someone who lives at the intersection of yoga and philosophy: Rebecca Polack.

Rebecca has been a yoga teacher for over 20 years and also holds a Doctorate Degree in Philosophy and Religion, with a concentration in yoga studies. She's sharing what she’s learned through her philosophical and practical research on the power of getting creative as you work to understand what texts like the Yoga Sutras mean to you and your practice.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/125

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga As a Tool for Growth, with Amber Hagberg

Mon, 18 Apr 2022 07:00:16 GMT

Do you struggle to put yourself at the top of your list? To commit to and invest in your personal growth?

My guest today is Amber Hagberg, international yoga teacher and life and business coach, and she's sharing why it’s so important for us as yoga teachers to prioritize our own personal growth and development. We discuss helping our students thrive, stress management and reduction, and how yoga teachers can learn to stand out.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/124

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Inclusivity, Accessibility, and Community in Yoga, with Robin Lacambra

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 07:00:32 GMT

Do you see yoga as social justice in itself? When you think of the meaning of yoga, does that directly invoke inclusivity and accessibility?

I sat down with Robin Lacambra from GOODBODYFEEL to explore how to bring inclusivity, accessibility, and community into your yogic practice. We’re discussing why community and collective healing is the bridge between the inner and outer world, the power of embodiment, and how to set and pursue collective goals that mutually benefit – and are supported by – others.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/123

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | 3 Breath Practices for Your Mood

Mon, 04 Apr 2022 07:00:07 GMT

Are you busy and would like really quick practices to calm anxiety, to raise your energy, or to calm yourself and relax? Breath practices are the way to go… and this premium video episode is for you. In 3 short separate videos, we’ll work on the 4-7-8 technique for anxiety, on the 8-Stroke Breath for Energy, and on the ratio of 1-2 for relaxation.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nervous System 101, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 28 Mar 2022 07:00:25 GMT

Did you know that the nervous system is basically controlling everything that happens in your body?

Tune in this week to get a little nerdy about your nervous system. We’re discussing the science behind your nervous system, its structure, how it’s trying to help you, and how you can leverage your thoughts, allowing you to work with your nervous system to change your experience of stress and create a sense of true safety.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/121

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga for Your Mood, with Amy Weintraub

Mon, 21 Mar 2022 07:00:11 GMT

Do you suffer from anxiety or depressive moods from time to time? Do you wish you had more tools to shift your energy while still meeting yourself where you are? Yoga can be a transformative resource for shifting your energy, and my guest today happens to be an expert on this topic.

In this episode, bestselling author, Amy Weintraub, shares the ways practicing yoga transformed the way she manages her mood swings and how yoga teachers can facilitate this healing for our students. We discuss Amy’s impressive career, how a daily practice can help you connect with what is true beneath the mood, and the power of allowing yourself to feel your feelings. If you’ve been looking for natural ways to address your low or anxious moods, yoga could be an option, and this episode will share why.

Get full show notes and more information here: https://erikabelanger.com/120

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Yoga Teacher Entrepreneur, with Jackie Murphy

Mon, 14 Mar 2022 15:06:18 GMT

Are you a new yoga teacher? Maybe you got into teaching to help others because you loved yoga, but you’ve never really seen yourself as an entrepreneur… I know that was my case for a long time. If it's been your case too, today's episode is for you.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Read my takeaways here.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE.

What does it mean to you to have a successful career in the yoga industry?
What are some common beliefs you see in teachers that stop them from becoming successful and profitable?
If you are contracting to a yoga studio, are you still an entrepreneur? How so?
What are some essential business skills a yoga teacher needs to learn?
How can we get better at talking about our offers?
What mistakes do teachers do when they start becoming more business-minded?
How do get clear on our offer?
Once we have started and are becoming profitable. What is the next step to scale and level up?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

A decade before she was the host of the Yoga Boss podcast, Jackie learned the hard way that being a talented yoga teacher wasn’t enough to build a lifelong profitable business. Using her 10 years of experience teaching, opening studios, and leading teacher trainings, Jackie now helps yoga teachers become profitable CEOs by offering them the most effective marketing, sales, and business foundation strategy in the industry. Through her Profitable Yoga Boss program, Jackie is changing the yoga industry by putting more money in the hands of the people whose feet actually touch the mat.

Her Website: www.jackiegmurphy.com

Instagram: instagram.com/jackieg.murphy

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM |Triangular Meditation

Mon, 07 Mar 2022 12:00:18 GMT

Are you still learning meditation and want to experience different styles? Do you want to learn to connect to the more subtle aspects of yourself like your energetic body? If so, today's episode is for you.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Understanding Your Stress, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 21 Feb 2022 12:00:42 GMT

Are you part of the 50% of people who report their stress increased dramatically in the last few years? Has the world pandemic and its new demands taken a toll on your life and wellbeing? If so, today’s episode is for you.

For today’s episode, I do not have a guest, I’m taking the spotlight. Check out my other solo episodes:

Episode #73: Yoga, chronic pain, and mental health.

Episode #77: Setting Goals and Moving Forward

Episode #87: 5 reasons you procrastinate

Episode #93: A 3 step guide to being more yourself

Since stress is such a big topic and affects so many people, I’m planning on doing a series. It’s also a very big part of my yoga teachings already, at the core of my coaching, so I have a lot to say on the subject.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Sign up for coaching on this

👉🏻 My 5 biggest takeaways

TOPICS I COVERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Why we need to learn about our stress
What stress is
Our perception and thoughts on our circumstances
Tools to become more aware of out thoughts
Our lack of safety
Our nervous system response to stress
The first step in addressing our stress

ABOUT ME

Her radiant spirit and engaging sense of humor create light-hearted practices focused on awareness, intentional movement, and self-care. She empowers her students and clients to awaken to themselves, become embodied, and build the life of their dreams.

Website : www.erikabelanger.com

IG :@erika.belanger & @onandoffyourmatpodcast

Tell me what you struggle with, go on, tell me, I’ll create content just for you

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Your beliefs or your Samskaras and Vasanas

Mon, 14 Feb 2022 14:38:10 GMT

Have you ever caught yourself reacting in what felt a totally automatic way… and ever wondered where that reaction came from?

Today I sat down with Bonnie Wallace to talk about the yoga philosophy concept of Samskara or psychological imprints to answer this question…

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 The tool she talked about.

👉🏻 My 5 biggest takeaways from this episode.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

Can you tell us what Samskaras and Vasanas are?
What are the different types of Samskara?
How do they affect us and our lives?
Can we change/erase “negative” samskaras? Can we create new “positive” ones?
What does that process look like?
What is your personal favorite practice when it comes to beliefs/samskaras?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Bonnie G. Wallace is a Certified Ayurvedic Health Counselor, Ayurvedic Yoga Specialist (RYT-500), Holistic Chef, and Herbalist. As a graduate from the largest

Ayurvedic College in the Western world, Bonnie has over 1,300 hours of education from the California College of Ayurveda and the Himalayan Institute. Her

specialty is working with the overachiever -the one who does it all to help heal their gut health, burnout, depression, and anxiety.

For nutrition and lifestyle counseling, Bonnie Wallace's multi-faceted programs result in radical and sustainable transformation- using a combination of therapeutic

tantric yoga techniques, Life-Pattern counseling (uncover and reframe beliefs that keep us in self-sabotaging cycles), customized nutrition plans, herbal medicines,

specialty lab testing, and sensory therapies. Bonnie especially enjoys working with her team of Ayurvedic and Functional Medicine practitioners, meeting regularly to optimize treatment plans for all her clients.

Her expertise in nutrition and lifestyle counseling is led not only by scrupulous education but refined intuition and an affinity for understanding the human

condition. This approach opens doorways in individuals that they forgot were there, while her gentle yet passionate guidance holds space and inspiration for

individuals to do the necessary personal work in these journeys.

Bonnie works exclusively with individuals 1:1 in order to ensure each person has her utmost attention and is getting exactly what they need. She works virtually, making this work accessible to people around the world. She caters retreats and special events with beautiful, nutritious food, educational workshops and health consultations.

You can find Bonnie freediving, making friends with animals, and traveling when she is not working with her clients or cooking.

Connect with her for resources and inspiration on Instagram @bonnie.gene

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga for Sensitive Knees

Mon, 07 Feb 2022 16:14:48 GMT

If you have sensitive knees and poses on all 4 or lunges that bother you, if you know the muscles around your knees are weak or they tend to compensate for your tight hips, this class is for you.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, get access to it here, and become a premium podcast member.

On the membership platform, you'll find:

1. Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this class for sensitive knees.

2. You can now also have access to almost 300 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When your outer space reflects your inner space

Mon, 31 Jan 2022 12:00:28 GMT

Have you ever noticed how a cluttered space might affect your mind, your focus, or your overwhelm? How about your physical health?

Today I sat down with Sherry Steine to talk about Feng Shui and how it actually is yoga for your home and how our wellbeing is affected by our environment.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Read my takeaways from this episode.

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member of the podcast: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

How does our outer space affect our inner space?
What is Feng Shui?
Can you give examples of blockages in our bodies that might be reflected in our home or vice versa?
Do you have recommendations to make our yoga space as harmonious as possible?
What are your go-to practices and tools to create inner balance and harmony?
Can you give examples of blockages in our bodies that might be reflected in our home?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Sherry Steine has been a Certified Feng Shui Consultant since 2004. She studied with Feng Shui Master Dr. Larry Sang, Feng Shui Scholar Dr. Nancy Canestaro, and Noted Feng Shui Consultant and author Hope Karan Gerecht. As a Registered Yoga Teacher Sherry has studied Chinese Medicine and Yoga, Yin Asana and Biomechanics, Trauma-Informed/Sensitive Yoga, Yoga for Seniors, and Restorative Yoga.

Sherry integrates her practice as primarily a Yin, Restorative, and Trauma-Informed Yoga Teacher as a Certified Feng Shui Consultant, author, interior environment coach, essential oil alchemist, and Reiki practitioner through her business SBW Aligned Expressions. Sherry works to provide Feng Shui, Yoga, and Essential Oil solutions for those who want to improve their holistic wellness outcomes.

Sherry is also a podcaster for her new podcast Aligned Expressions and an Author of two Books, Feel Good Spaces: A Guide to Decorating Your Home for the Body, Mind, and Spirit and Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots: 21 Rituals to Transform Your Life and Interior Space.

Sherry has worked with numerous clientele from military officers, small businesses, to national and international yoga teachers providing Feng Shui consultations workshops and training since 2006. Sherry is currently studying for her YTT 300 teacher training to be completed in late 2022.

Website: https://www.sbwaligned.com

Sacred Spaces Podcast: https://anchor.fm/sacredspaces

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sbwaligned/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SBWAligned

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emotional Intelligence and Shadow Work

Mon, 10 Jan 2022 16:21:34 GMT

Have you been hearing a lot about emotional intelligence? Have been afraid to dive into shadow work? But you are looking to live a more happy, aligned, and connected life? If so, this episode is for you.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Read my takeaways from this episode.

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member of the podcast: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

Can you explain what is emotional intelligence?
What are some tools that you use to deal with our emotions in a positive productive way?
What is shadow work and why is that important work?
How do you relate emotional intelligence work and shadow work to your yoga practice?
How does your yoga practice support you in this work?
How does doing our shadow work can help us show up more fully in the world for social justice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Sianna (she/her) is committed to being Love-In-Action here on earth to serve. This has taken many forms over the last three decades, including being a yoga teacher, storyteller, holistic bodyworker, crafter of herbal medicine, and guide for women in the way of a priestess.As the visionary of the Rasa Yoga Collective, Mythic Yoga Flow®, and RITUAL, Sianna shares her voice in the way of community and collaboration.

She is a gifted storyteller and awakens the imagination through the language of the soul. Dedicated to social justice activism, anti-racism, unpacking her own white privilege, shadow work, mantra, ritual, Tantric yoga philosophy, and Celtic studies.

Sianna brings a genuine presence to every offering with humility, devotion, and deep care for the collective. In addition, she has extensive training in bodywork, functional anatomy, wildcrafting, emotional intelligence, and earth-based wisdom. She leads Rasa Yoga teacher training courses online, alchemical arts for sacred sisterhood online, and is the co-host of the Fearless Heart Activation series with her beloved, Masood Ali Khan, to inspire courageous conversations and brave space for real transformation in these times.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

FREE PREMIUM | Yoga Sutras 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3

Wed, 05 Jan 2022 01:57:42 GMT

If you want to learn the 3 steps of transformation according to the yoga sutras, called Kriya Yoga or what is yoga in action, how using these steps will help you attain a deep meditative state, a state of oneness and pure bliss, or understanding the obstacles that are in the way, this episode is for you.

This episode is part of our premium subscription, but to celebrate the new year and our anniversary, you can have access to it and our whole library for free for 1 month. To get access to it, visit https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger, select the premium podcast tier and use the coupon code NEWYEAR2022.

With Ribbon is an awesome platform and I’m excited for you to discover it for free.

1. Your podcast premium membership whereas a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like talk on the yoga sutras.

2. You can also have access to over 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership, with new ones added every week.

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer or any special event!

Now coming back to our premium membership for a second, since you’re here on the podcast, know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

Ok! That’s it for now, go to https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to get your access to our premium membership for free visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or Stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Using Aromatherapy to Enhance Your Yoga Practice

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 12:00:00 GMT

Have you been curious about aromatherapy and have wanted to include essential oils in your practice or yoga or meditation? If so, this episode is for you.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Read my 5 biggest takeaways here.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

What is aromatherapy?
Why use aromatherapy? What are some benefits?
What are your favorite smells for meditation?
Lavender is such a popular one, if you don't like it, what would you replace it with?
Can you explain how essential oils affect the brain?
Are there any contraindications to essential oils?
What do you say the skeptics?
How can we choose a quality oil? What should we look for?
What are your personal favorites? What are the first oils you would recommend people to start with?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Laura is a trained yoga teacher and owns a yoga studio in West Sussex where the Spritz Wellness brand was born. Spritz Wellness was one of our sponsors for our 100th episode giveaway. Laura splits her time between London and her beach house and the inspiration for the Spritz Wellness products comes from a combination of yoga, nature, and the sea. She uses aromatherapy as one way to be grounded and find calm in a very busy world.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Slow Practice Before Bed

Mon, 13 Dec 2021 16:25:24 GMT

This episode is part of our premium subscription. To get access to it, visit https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

With Ribbon is an awesome platform where you'll find

1. Your podcast premium membership whereas a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like today’s class to help wind down before bed

2. You can also have access to over 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership, with new ones added every week.

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer or any special event!

Know that as you become a Premium member, for as low as $5/month, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Inner Work, with The Yoga Couple

Mon, 29 Nov 2021 12:00:50 GMT

Are you on a journey of personal growth? Looking to be happier? Wondering how to be on that path with a partner? If so, this episode is for you.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 My 5 biggest takeaways from this episode.

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

QUESTIONS THEY ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

What is the inner work? What does actualizing that mean or look like?
What impacts our happiness? What is the source of our dissatisfaction?
How do we start to shift our inner dialogue?
Why does chasing what we want does not ultimately bring happiness?
How do we stay in the present moment and stop chasing happiness?
Can we go over the level of consciousness?
How can we do this work with a partner?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Mat & Ash are best known as The Yoga Couple to their 500K+ online community. The influential couple is internationally recognized for their holistic healing work, authentic yoga teachings, and as the creators of The Inner Work method. Mat and Ash boldly give a voice to taboo topics such as pornography addiction and the importance of women’s menstrual cycle awareness and as Top 10 Amazon bestselling authors of The Inner Work, hosts of The Inner Work podcast, and cast members on the first season of Battle of The Fittest Couple on Paramount Network, they have made it their mission to bridge the gap between Western Psychology and Eastern Philosophy. Currently, they reside in Hawaii where they host healing retreats, yoga teacher training, and offer one-on-one life counseling specializing in The Inner Work teachings. Their methods focus on understanding the varying levels of human consciousness and the power to self-heal any aspect of the human condition including relationship issues, overcoming addictions, inner child healing, and trauma recovery.

LINKS

Tik Tok | Website | Instagram | YouTube

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Yoga Biomechanics and Asanas, with Jules Mitchell

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 17:24:19 GMT

Have you been practicing what you've been taught but don’t always understand why you’ve been told to do or avoid certain things in asanas? Or Are you teaching yoga and feeling stuck in your cues? Well, biomechanics might be the answer to your questions.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Read my 5 biggest takeaways from this episode.

👉🏻 Retreat info: erikabelanger.com/yoga-retreat-mexico.

👉🏻 Book a call: https://erikabelanger.com/contact

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Donate to help build the yoga retreat with Go-Fund-Me Campaign. Use the same link to share!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Jules Mitchell MS, CMT, ERYT500 is a Las Vegas based yoga teacher, educator, and massage therapist. Her unique approach blends the tradition of yoga with her extensive study in biomechanics to help teachers develop their craft and empower them with education. Jules’s methods intend to achieve ease in movement through deliberate effort, thus her teachings integrate numerous modalities, balancing the somatic aspects of yoga with the most current exercise science. Bringing the most useful and applicable pieces of that science into the yoga community is her passion. She regularly contributes to teacher training programs and leads workshops and courses worldwide. Her book, Yoga Biomechanics: Stretching Redefined, is now available through Handspring Publishing. As adjunct faculty at ASU, she serves as a yoga consultant on various research studies measuring the effects of yoga therapy on special populations. Her most influential teachers include Greg Lehman (Reconciling Biomechanics with Pain Science), Leeann Carey (Yapana Yoga), Gil Hedley (Integral Anatomy), John Casey (yoga philosophy and Sanskrit), and the many dedicated scientists who collect, analyze and publish data so we may continue to ask more questions, even when it invokes a discerning analysis of popular opinions.

Her website: www.julesmitchell.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Meditation to connect to and release emotions

Mon, 08 Nov 2021 11:00:26 GMT

Do you struggle from time to time to feel, connect to emotions like anger, grief, sadness, and release those emotions? If so here's a meditation to help you practice to do just that. This episode is part of our premium subscription. To get access to it you need to visit our podcast premium membership area.

Ok! That’s it for now, go onto https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to get your Meditation to connect to and release emotions, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Overcoming codependency, perfectionism, and people-pleasing , with Victoria Albina

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 16:26:47 GMT

Tools and somatic practices for your health.

Do you tend to be codependent in your relationships, a perfectionist at work, or a people-pleaser amongst your friends? Have you noticed how these patterns affect your health and your wellbeing? In today’s episode, we’ll talk about this and give you some tools and somatic practices to start addressing this.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENT:

👉🏻 My 5 biggest takeaways from this episode.

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Retreat info: erikabelanger.com/yoga-retreat-mexico.

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Donate to help build the yoga retreat with Go-Fund-Me Campaign. Use the same link to share!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Victoria Albina (she/her) is a Certified Life Coach, UCSF-trained Family Nurse Practitioner, and Breathwork Meditation Guide with a passion for helping women realize that they are their own best healers, so they can break free from codependency, perfectionism, and people-pleasing and reclaim their joy.

She is the host of the Feminist Wellness Podcast, holds a Masters's degree in Public Health from Boston University School of Public Health and a BA in Latin American Studies from Oberlin College. Victoria has been working in health & wellness for over 20 years and lives on occupied Munsee Lenape territory in New York’s Hudson Valley.

Her Website (download her meditation and grounding practice for free)
Instagram: @victoriaalbinawellness
Podcast: Feminist Wellness
Facebook
LinkedIn

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

I know you use healing modalities and somatic therapy like yoga, ecstatic dance, and breathwork. Why did you get interested in these modalities?
How can being codependent, perfectionist and people-pleaser affect our health?
What are some of the somatic manifestations people can experience?
How can we do expressive journaling if it's a practice that usually brings us deeper into focusing on the negative?
How do we start shifting out of codependency, perfectionism, and people-pleasing?
What’s the importance of connecting to our intuition, and learning to trust it in all this?

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Finding the Gifts in Trauma, with Keira Poulsen

Mon, 11 Oct 2021 09:00:42 GMT

Have you experienced trauma and struggled to move through it so you can get on the other side and find the gifts in the experience? I know I have. If that’s your case too, this episode is for you.

👉🏻 My 5 biggest takeaways from this episode.

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Retreat info: erikabelanger.com/yoga-retreat-mexico.

👉🏻 Book a call: https://erikabelanger.com/contact

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Donate to support someone in need so they can attend a yoga retreat with Go-Fund-Me Campaign. Use the same link to share!

👉🏻 Free Sacred Space Training with Keira: Coupon code ERIKA

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

How do you define trauma?
What is your life brought you to help people through trauma.
How can we move through trauma?
Any tips for people who think there’s no way they can live through the pain, the darkness?
How can we use our experience to create, share and have an impact on the world?
How does it look like to connect with your divine self?
How can we show up in our business with the healing work of our trauma as the fuel behind us?
How do you show up in your purpose if you are feeling overwhelmed with the pain?
What are the things we can do daily to support our healing and supporting our impact?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Keira Poulsen is a mother to 5 children, an intuitive spiritual entrepreneurship coach, 2 x author, and CEO of Freedom House Publishing Co.

Keira helps women who feel inspired to make a huge impact in the world write transformative books of light. She teaches them how to receive their book with spiritual tools that allow for the creation of the book to come through in under 2 months’ time.

Keira then helps them create successful businesses of light, derived from the message of their book. It is her deepest belief that women who are receiving powerful messages of truth from the Divine are here to share these messages through published books and create powerful and successful businesses of light that will impact humanity for the better! "

Free Sacred Space Training with Keira: Coupon code ERIKA

Instagram: @keirapoulsen

More about her offerings: https://msha.ke/keirapoulsen/#links

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | My Favorite Nervous System Hacks

Mon, 04 Oct 2021 09:43:11 GMT

Last month I polled our premium members and they voted on a video where I would teach my favorite ns hacks. So if you’re stressed and looking for tools to feel more relaxed, this episode is for you. It is part of our premium subscription. Find it here.

With Ribbon is awesome and you’ll find on this new platform

1. Your podcast premium membership whereas a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like today’s NS video

2. You can also have access to over 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership, with new ones added every week.

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer or any special event like my upcoming yoga retreat in Mexico.

Everything is now in the same place!

Now coming back to our premium membership for a second, since you’re here on the podcast, know that as you become a Premium member, for as low as $5/month, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

Ok! That’s it for now, go onto https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to get your Nervous System Hack Video, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How to Stop Outsourcing Your Spiritual Life, with Lopa van der Mersch

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 10:00:29 GMT

Have you ever put a teacher a little far up on a pedestal or giving away your power when it comes to your spiritual practice? If so, today’s episode is for you. Our guest did just that, she's sharing her story and the lessons she learned on the way.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Lopa van der Mersch. Lopa is a lifelong health seeker and founder & CEO of Rasa Koffee, a coffee alternative made of adaptogenic herbs. She spent years studying esoteric spiritual practices (& found herself in two cults!); has had a whole slew of health challenges that have had her seeking alternative therapies from Ayurveda to Functional Medicine to Shamanism for over a decade. Today, we sat down to talk about embracing nuance dogma and why we shouldn’t outsource our spiritual sovereignty.

Listen to the episode here:

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Discernment is the best tool to get clear on whether a teacher has your highest interest at heart or not. See if the teacher is pushing you in a way that is generative for you or because they are getting something out of it. Some red flags: it's not ok to study with another teacher, you don't have a full sense of freedom, they hold your devotion as something they need and is owed to them, they think they only hold the truth, not open to being questioned, don't encourage you to have your own experience.

2- To balance faith and discernment rest in your own experience. Be open to what comes, connect to your body and your heart, and then be willing to question it.

3- Spiritual sovereignty starts with having a strong sense of self. Self-knowledge and self-trust are the base. Stay open to your teacher's opinion, but don't put them on a pedestal in a way that what they say has more value than what we think and feel.

4- To start to take charge of your spirituality, with self-knowledge, you need to practice self-acceptance. As you cultivate a healthy sense of your needs, you start setting and upholding boundaries. Over time, you build more self-trust and own your voice more fully.

5- We have so much input from the outside that we can start to question who we are. Our experiences are there to teach us and to give us parts of ourselves we need to see, to open to, to heal, or to develop.

EPISODE ANNOUNCEMENTS:

👉🏻 Subscribe, rate, and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

👉🏻 Take a screenshot of the episode when you listen and share one of your takeaways on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

👉🏻 Retreat info: erikabelanger.com/yoga-retreat-mexico.

👉🏻 Book a call: https://erikabelanger.com/contact

👉🏻 Become a Premium Member: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

👉🏻 Apply for the yoga retreat scholarship.

👉🏻 Donate to help build the yoga retreat with Go-Fund-Me Campaign. Use the same link to share!

👉🏻 Coupon code ONOFF for 20% Rasa Coffee.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED IN THIS EPISODE

How can we enter into a relationship of teacher-student instead of guru-disciple?
How do you describe dogma?
How can we practice critical thinking while also welcoming faith? And not throw out the baby with the bathwater and turn our back on spirituality or become overly cynical?
How do we keep our spiritual sovereignty and still work with a teacher?
What are the steps or some actions we can take to take charge of our spirituality? Reclaim our sovereignty if we tend to give it away a little too much?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Lopa van der Mersch is many things: Serial entrepreneur. Mother of two. Sustainability advocate. TEDx speaker. Recovering cult member. Three years ago, she added a new chapter: Founder and CEO of Rasa, the adaptogenic coffee alternatives revolutionizing people’s relationship to energy.

2015 was what Lopa now calls “her own personal 2020” — she left a cult, had emergency surgery while pregnant, lost a family member, and had a traumatic birth. Beaten down and exhausted, she needed a source of energy that could sustain her without burnout, crashes, or jitters.

What she needed didn’t exist, so she worked with a clinical herbalist and Rasa was born: adaptogen-rich blends that nourish & energize while providing enough rich, roasty flavor to convert even the most devoted coffee fanatic.

What started with a mom elbow-deep in herbs in her kitchen is now a movement, with triple-digit YoY growth and over 100K customers worldwide.

Rase Coffee: wearerasa.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Clean Mind, Clean Body with Tara Stiles

Mon, 20 Sep 2021 15:19:08 GMT

Are you someone that is busy, looking to get it all done, but you want to feel better in the process? If that’s you, today's episode is for you.

I sat down with Tara Stiles. Tara is a wellness expert, bestselling author, and the founder of Strala Yoga which is a combination of yoga, tai chi, and Traditional Chinese and Japanese Medicine. Tara’s bestselling books have been featured in The New York Times, Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, Esquire, and Shape. Tara’s work has been used in a case study by Harvard University, she is a sought-after speaker on topics of entrepreneurship, health, and wellbeing, and she has lectured at venues that include Harvard and New York University. Tara works with The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, an initiative with the American Heart Association and the Clinton Foundation that combats childhood obesity. Today, we sat down to talk Her newest book, Clean Mind, Clean Body: A 28 Day Plan for Physical, Mental and Spiritual Self-Care.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

Take a screenshot of you listening to the episode and share your takeaway with me and our community on Instagram. Tag @onandoffyourmatpodcast and #onandoffyourmatpodcast in your story of post. I can't wait to read and share them.

1. Tai Chi principles can inspire the way you move in yoga. It teaches you softness. Softness is the quality that makes anything possible. You can do move if you're not rigid. Let the breath begins, the body follows.

2. physical mobility links to the emotional connection; it allows you to see how everything is in conversation with everything else.

3. Spiritual self-care is any practice that helps you reinforce positive beliefs about yourself and continue to grow into a better person.

4. Focus on feeling-based goals instead of achievement-based goals. Notice how you feel and make changes based on how you want to feel.

5. When you listen to yourself and get sensitized to your signals, you learn to connect what feels good to what is truly supportive for you. Get to know how good it feels to be good to yourself.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

We recently transitioned our Premium Membership to this new platform: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger. As a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content. We added a new library of almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership. Finally, you can sign up for any live-stream class I offer! Everything yoga-class-related is now in the same place! If you’re new to With Ribbon, here’s a walkthrough video I recorded to help you find your way around.

Know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is one of the away I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

I’ll be leading an Eco-Luxury Yoga Retreat in Mexico, in November 2021. I heard you, you’ve been craving to immerse yourself in yoga, nature, and community again so you can feel renewed and re-enliven. Many of us are suffering from zoom fatigue. So I’m offering you to hit the beach and the reset button so you can let go of this last year. You’ll find all the info for that retreat at erikabelanger.com/yoga-retreat-mexico.

In parallel, I have launched a Go-Fund-Me campaign. I know yoga retreats are an investment and I know how hard the last year has been. Yoga retreats were in my personal growth, so I wanted to give back. I’m raising money while investing alongside the community to make the experience of a yoga retreat available to students who wouldn’t be able to participate otherwise. If you’re able to donate anything you could transform someone’s life. And if you’re in need you can apply for the scholarship. And either way, I’d love for you to share it with the people you love and on social media. That’s a simple way you can directly impact others’ lives in a positive way. Find the Go-Fund-Me Campaign here.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Why did you write a detox / self-care book? Did something in your own life prompted you to write this book or did you see a need around you?

how did you choose the practices in the book?

Can you explain the qualities of tai chi that we could bring in any movement practice we do and in our lives in general?

Why did you consciously start with the mind and spirit before addressing the body?

What does it mean to clean our minds?

Can you give examples of practices to clean our minds or keep them clean?

How do we move from a clean mind to spiritual self-care?

How do we take care of our bodies with food while staying truly connected to what we need?

What is the role of mindset in exercise and movement? How could we approach yoga differently?

MORE ABOUT OUR GUEST

Tara Stiles is a wellness expert, bestselling author, and the founder of Strala Yoga. The Strala approach combines yoga, tai chi, and Traditional Chinese and Japanese Medicine to help people release stress, heal, let go of negative habits, and move more easily through everyday challenges. Tara’s bestselling books, which have been translated and published in multiple languages, include Strala Yoga, Make Your Own Rules Diet, Yoga Cures, and Slim Calm Sexy Yoga, and she has been featured in The New York Times, Vogue, Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, Esquire, and Shape. Tara’s work has been used in a case study by Harvard University, she is a sought-after speaker on topics of entrepreneurship, health, and wellbeing, and she has lectured at venues that include Harvard and New York University. Tara works with The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, an initiative with the American Heart Association and the Clinton Foundation that combats childhood obesity, in order to bring Strala classes to more than 30,000 schools around the United States. She also supports the BOKS program, which delivers Strala classes and wellbeing resources to educators across North America. Her newest book, Clean Mind, Clean Body: A 28 Day Plan for Physical, Mental and Spiritual Self-Care(Dey Street Books), was released December 2020.

Strala Home: https://stralahome.com/

Link to her book: https://www.tarastiles.com/boo

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Morning Flow for a Relaxed Day

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 10:00:18 GMT

The 30 min Morning Flow called Roll out of Bed in the membership is the most popular video I’ve ever posted.

Members have asked me to do a variation on it, so here we are. I think we all need right now, on top of moving our body and our energy, to set ourselves up for a calm and grounded day. To learn tools for relaxation on the mat that we can carry in our lives off the mat.

This new episode Morning Flow for a Relaxed Day is part of our premium subscription. To get access to it, visit https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

With Ribbon is awesome and where you'll find

Your premium podcast episodes ($5/month). Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this 30 Minutes Morning Flow for a Relaxed Day.
You can now also have access to more than 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership ($25/month).
You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer or live class packages!

Everything is now in the same place!

Ok! That’s it for now, go to https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to get your Morning Flow for a Relaxed Day, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or Stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Celebrating 100 Episodes: The Best, the Popular Vote and the Underrated.

Mon, 30 Aug 2021 10:00:13 GMT

Yes! We made it to 100! This podcast has been a labor of love for the last 3 years. I’ve had the immense pleasure to chat with some of the most accomplished yoga teachers, wellness experts, and spiritual teachers in the west so they can share their work and best-kept secrets with you. Some were genuinely excited to come on, others I had to slightly harass and I’ve reached out to many more who never even made it on. I want to take a moment to say thank you to all our guests so far, for giving freely their time, sharing their expertise, and being so open and generous with the process…

For today’s episode, we are celebrating, by first, doing a recap of the episodes that were the most listened to in the last 3 years. We’ll also go over the episode that you guys voted for to enter our celebration giveaway and I want to underline a couple of episodes that I think were underrated but that were special to me and that should have made it to the top of the chart in my opinion.

100TH EPISODE GIVEAWAY

If you voted for your favorite episode, thank you so much!

Our randomly selected winner for our 100th episode giveaway is Flo Dupuy from the US. Congratulations!!!

Our winner voted for Ep58 Restorative Yoga and the Importance of Slowing Down, with Judith Hanson Lasater. Their takeaway was “Some people’s cholesterol levels dropped up to 50 points in one hour of yoga practice. Cholesterol is a measure of stress. The sequence is not the key part, it’s more taking the weight of stress off. It is so powerful.”

I want to say a huge thank you to all our sponsors for this giveaway. You are winning a 100$ gift card from Athleta, a yoga mat from Liform, an Eco Yoga Bolster and Acupressure Mat and Pillow set from Ajna WellBeing, a Roll Model Starter Kit, and a class pass for one of Jill Miller union-fit classes, one month on my membership, an eye pillow from Spritz wellness London, and the book Move, Connect, Play from Jason Nemer.

TOP 5 MOST LISTENED EPISODES

Here are our top 5 most listened-to episodes of the last 3 years!

EPISODE VOTED FOR IN OUR GIVEAWAY

During the episode, I mentioned the 3 episodes that were the most voted for. Here they are:

#93: A 3 Step Guide to Being More Yourself, with Erika Belanger.

Meiling voted for #93 and shared: The moment I heard this episode, I was super confused about my path and my decisions, and I remember being in the car alone, looking for a sign and I wrote yoga podcast on Spotify, and On and Off Your Mat came out and I don’t know what, but something made me choose this episode. I went to a lake with my journal and started to write all the questions with their answers, and Felt so relieved. Thank you so much for guiding me. My takeaway is “Stay focused on yourself, what you want and what you can control.”

#87: 5 Reasons you Procrastinate, with Erika Belanger.

Emily voted for #87 and said “Listening to the episode made me feel like Erika was living life alongside me! She shared best practices without imparting shame and gave me actionable steps to take that didn’t require much effort.”

#92: Your Nervous System and Digestion, with Rachel Everett.

Cristina voted for this episode and said: I’ve always had gut and digestive issues, this episode allowed me to connect the dots and understand why I’ve struggled so much.

Many more episodes were voted for here an incomplete list:

#90: Beginning Again, a Way to Practice and to Live, with Peter Walters

“I love the vibe. It’s chill and makes me feel really comfortable.”

#77: Setting Goals and Moving Forward with Erika Belanger

“It has helped me finally learn to set goals and actually complete them for once! You broke everything down into manageable pieces for me and I don’t know something just clicked and I wrote it all down and viola!”

#89: Creating a Sustainable and Loving Approach to Yoga, with Brea Johnson

“I have had some health struggles this year that have made me have to adapt my yoga practice to really fit my needs. It’s hard not being able to just follow any yoga flow, but works like this podcast are helping me”

#74: Yoga, Chronic Pain, and Mental Health, with Erika Belanger

“Having a daughter with chronic pain made this episode a must listen and I got great reassurance around managing pain within yoga.”

#54: Meditation 101, with Bex Urban

“Bex talks about meditation and yoga in a really unique and all-encompassing way. Her view is that for some people, yoga can be perfecting crow pose; for others, it can simply be learning to breathe better. Her words gave me the mindset and space to reshape my views. I began to realize that sometimes my yoga practice can be just me on my mat focusing on my breath rather than any set posture. That yoga is what you make, it every time you take to your mat. How liberating! Thank you Bex.”

#80: Awakening and Healing Your Womb with Diana Beaulieu.

“This episode so touched me. I really related to everything that was being said. Erika’s questions always bring out the best in episodes.”

THE UNDERRATED EPISODES

These 2 episodes have a special place in my heart…

#64: Sanctuary Meditation and Yoga Nidra with Rod Stryker.

#34: Real Love, Mindfulness and Loving-Kindness with Sharon Salzberg.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

I’ll be leading an Eco-Luxury Yoga Retreat in Mexico, in November 2021. I heard you, you’ve been craving to immerse yourself in yoga, nature, and community again so you can feel renewed and re-enliven. Many of us are suffering from zoom fatigue. So I’m offering you to hit the beach and the reset button so you can let go of this last year. You’ll find all the info for that retreat at erikabelanger.com/yoga-retreat-mexico.

In parallel, I have launched a Go-Fund-Me campaign. I know yoga retreats are an investment and I know how hard the last year has been. Yoga retreats were in my personal growth, so I wanted to give back. I’m raising money while investing alongside the community to make the experience of a yoga retreat available to students who wouldn’t be able to participate otherwise. If you’re able to donate anything you could transform someone’s life. And if you’re in need you can apply for the scholarship. And either way, I’d love for you to share it with the people you love and on social media. That’s a simple way you can directly impact others’ lives in a positive way. Find the Go-Fund-Me Campaign here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Accessible Approach to Self-Care, with Mado Hesselink

Mon, 23 Aug 2021 09:00:34 GMT

Have you ever felt like self-care wasn’t for you, or at least the way it's sold by the beauty industry? If you’re looking for a way to take care of yourself so you can be more present in your life, thrive, and be able to give and be of service, this episode is for you.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Mado Hesselink. Mado helps yoga teachers integrate their heart-centered mission with practical business & teaching strategies so that they can make both a living AND an impact. As a business owner and parent, Mado has learned that self-care is an essential skill for staying sane in this crazy world. Putting self-care into action through a personal practice is one of the core themes of Mado's podcast, the Yoga Teacher Resource. Through the podcast, online courses, and her membership The Impact Club, Mado supports yoga teachers to find their voice, live their values, and build a sustainable business.

Listen to the full episode here

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

100TH EPISODE GIVEAWAY (Enter before Aug 27th 11:59 EST)

We are at episode 99, so getting close to our 100th episode. For the occasion, we have an incredible bundle of gifts for you! From yoga props to clothes, to classes, and so much more. We have joined forces with brands we love to celebrate the occasion: Athleta, Liforme, Ajna WellBeing, Yoga Tune Up, Spritz’s Wellness London, and some guests from older episodes for some books, including Jason Nemer from our episode on Acro-Yoga. To participate in our giveaway you have to vote for your favorite episode and you can do so here.

About our sponsors:

Athleta. They make yoga and fitness clothes, athleisure and so much more. Their mission is to ignite a community of active, healthy, confident women and girls who empower each other to reach their limitless potential. Instead of using fitness models, they have diverse women athletes of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds in their ad campaigns. They are a B Corp focused on fair trade practices, sustainable materials, and production. So Athleta has generously offered to give a $100 gift card for our giveaway.
Ajna Wellbeing is a sister-run company committed to creating holistic lifestyle and wellness products that are eco-friendly, sustainable, and beautifully designed. Their mission is to create a holistic health movement based on a mindful and intuitive way of being, healing, and thriving. Which is where the name stands for. They are gifting you an Ajna Wellbeing’s Eco Yoga Bolster which is handstitched from recycled materials into this eco-suede-luxurious bolster. But that’s not all. They are also adding an Eco-Lite Acupressure Mat & Pillow Set. This therapeutic acupressure kit harnesses your body’s natural healing powers. It’s also made from eco-friendly, non-toxic, plant-based materials, making it just as good for the Earth as it is for you so you can create a simple and effective way to find a moment of calm in your hectic day.
I personally am giving a free membership to my live online yoga classes and class library for 1 month (worth $100)
Our guest Jason Nemer from Episode 22 – Acro Yoga is giving a copy of its new book Move, Connect, Play.
Spritz Wellness London is giving you a beautiful eye pillow! Spritz Wellness embodies a balanced lifestyle of wellness, yoga, exercise and living with purpose. All eye pillows, eye masks, atmosphere mists and yoga mat sprays are lovingly crafted in the UK with all-natural ingredients. All products are made of glass with very minimal packaging can be reused or recycled. They are committed to keep the oceans clean and a portion of proceeds from products sold are donated to Surfers Against Sewage. They also regularly partake in beach cleans to keep the coastlines of Britain clean and safe.
Liforme‘s mission is to support and encourage the practice of Yoga while bringing the values of Yoga to the business and beyond; and to unite a global community of people around their common goal to ‘Live For More’. They believe in giving back to their community and the planet as much as possible by being eco-friendly, ethical, and socially-just is in everything they do. And that includes supporting many charitable causes. They have recently surpassed $500 000 in donations. Today, they are giving you one of their Truly Revolutionary Liforme Yoga Mats. The ultimate grip for your practice, featuring their unique and original alignment system. Truly Planet Friendly – biodegradable, non-toxic and PVC-free. Good for you, good for the planet.
Tune Up Fitness is a health and wellness company that offers products and embodied education focused on helping people alleviate physical pain and stress, improve athletic performance and move better in their body. They are a leader in Self-Care Fitness, sometimes “Regenerative Fitness”, “Conscious Fitness” or “Prehab & Recovery.” They have 2 fitness formats, Yoga Tune Up® and The Roll Model® Method. And have more than 500 certified teachers around the globe including me. They are giving you a Roll Model Starter Kit and a class pass for one of Jill Miller's classes on union.fit. This starter kit includes 1 pair of Roll Model® Therapy Balls in Tote (, 1 pair of Therapy Ball PLUS in Tote, 1 ALPHA Ball and air-filled Coregeous® Ball, all packed in a mesh shoulder carry tote.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Self-care is beyond self-preservation, it's what allows you the space to move from surviving to thriving. Self-Care does not equal beauty practices and services. It's available to all. Its goal is to give you the tools and resources you need to have the impact you feel inspired to make.

2- The most important way to practice self-care is to be in a deeper relationship with your nervous system to recognize when you are edging towards depletion, so you can put extra strategies in place before you are burned out. These strategies can include yoga, physical activities, breath, meditation, diet, sleep, and more.

3- Boundaries are another way to practice self-care: recognizing what you can say yes to, sustainably, and learning to offer an honest no when it's not sustainable for you. Get in the habit of saying I'll get back to you, so you can truly feel into it.

4- Organization is another tool that will help you manage your life, schedule, and energy input and output. It will show you a clear picture of where and how you need to create spaciousness in your life.

5- Find the choices you have available to you within your current circumstances and make the choice that supports you to show up the best way you can.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Self-Care is a buzzword. Why do you think we still need to have this conversation… to continue to talk about it?
What is self-care for you?
In contrast, what is promoted as self-care, that might not really be it?
What are some examples of self-care practices that would be available to all?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

After teaching yoga for ten years, Mado met her fairy godmother business coach. She appeared in her life just long enough to plant the seeds that good business and good yoga can co-exist. Now, Mado helps yoga teachers integrate their heart-centered mission with practical business & teaching strategies so that they can make both a living AND an impact.

As a business owner and parent, Mado has learned that self-care is an essential skill for staying sane in this crazy world. Putting self-care into action through a personal practice is one of the core themes of Mado's podcast, the Yoga Teacher Resource. Through the podcast, online courses, and her membership The Impact Club, Mado supports yoga teachers to find their voice, live their values, and build a sustainable business.

If you want to find out more about her approach, the best place to start is the podcast.

Mado on IG - @yoga.teacher.resource

Website - https://teachingyoga.net/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Discovering your Spiritual Self, with Dawn James

Mon, 16 Aug 2021 12:00:32 GMT

How do you feel today? If your answer is that you feel anxious, hurt, depressed, frustrated, and so on, then you probably have some spiritual disconnect. The more joyful, and satisfied we feel, the more aware we usually are of my deep connection to Spirit.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Dawn James. Dawn is a Conscious Living teacher, International Best Selling Author, and the founder of Publish and Promote, an organization mentoring new and aspiring authors to share their stories and find their audience. After experiencing a spiritual awakening, she dedicated her life to providing education, inspiration, and support related to understanding and enhancing vibrational frequency for overall health and well-being while living in alignment: mind, body, heart, soul & spirit. Today we sat down to talk about how to discover and connect to our spiritual self.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

100TH EPISODE GIVEAWAY

We are at episode 96, so getting close to our 100th episode. For the occasion, we have an incredible bundle of gifts for you! From yoga props to clothes, to classes, and so much more. We have joined forces with brands we love to celebrate the occasion: Athleta, Liforme, Ajna WellBeing, Yoga Tune Up, Spritz's Wellness London, and some guests from older episodes for some books, including Jason Nemer from our episode on Acro-Yoga. To participate in our giveaway you have to vote for your favorite episode and you can do so here.

About our sponsors:

Athleta. They make yoga and fitness clothes, athleisure and so much more. Their mission is to ignite a community of active, healthy, confident women and girls who empower each other to reach their limitless potential. Instead of using fitness models, they have diverse women athletes of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds in their ad campaigns. They are a B Corp focused on fair trade practices, sustainable materials, and production. So Athleta has generously offered to give a $100 gift card for our giveaway.
Ajna Wellbeing is a sister-run company committed to creating holistic lifestyle and wellness products that are eco-friendly, sustainable, and beautifully designed. Their mission is to create a holistic health movement based on a mindful and intuitive way of being, healing, and thriving. Which is where the name stands for. They are gifting you an Ajna Wellbeing’s Eco Yoga Bolster which is handstitched from recycled materials into this eco-suede-luxurious bolster. But that’s not all. They are also adding an Eco-Lite Acupressure Mat & Pillow Set. This therapeutic acupressure kit harnesses your body’s natural healing powers. It’s also made from eco-friendly, non-toxic, plant-based materials, making it just as good for the Earth as it is for you so you can create a simple and effective way to find a moment of calm in your hectic day.
I personally am giving a free membership to my live online yoga classes and class library for 1 month (worth $100)
Our guest Jason Nemer from Episode 22 - Acro Yoga is giving a copy of its new book Move, Connect, Play.
Spritz Wellness London is giving you a beautiful eye pillow! Spritz Wellness embodies a balanced lifestyle of wellness, yoga, exercise, and living with purpose. All eye pillows, eye masks, atmosphere mists, and yoga mat sprays are lovingly crafted in the UK with all-natural ingredients. All products are made of glass with very minimal packaging can be reused or recycled. They are committed to keeping the oceans clean and a portion of proceeds from products sold are donated to Surfers Against Sewage. They also regularly partake in beach cleans to keep the coastlines of Britain clean and safe.
Liforme's mission is to support and encourage the practice of Yoga while bringing the values of Yoga to the business and beyond; and to unite a global community of people around their common goal to ‘Live For More’. They believe in giving back to their community and the planet as much as possible by being eco-friendly, ethical, and socially-just is in everything they do. And that includes supporting many charitable causes. They have recently surpassed $500 000 in donations. Today, they are giving you one of their Truly Revolutionary Liforme Yoga Mats. The ultimate grip for your practice, featuring their unique and original alignment system. Truly Planet Friendly - biodegradable, non-toxic, and PVC-free. Good for you, good for the planet.
Check our next episodes to hear about the other sponsor!

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- We showed as an empty bowl and as we grew up, we started filling the bowl with rules, expectations, and beliefs. Before you know it, this bowl is so full, we can't see who we are anymore. The process of getting back to the core of who you are is to start emptying the bowl. Some people need a trauma, others have a restlessness and go on a quest for answers, others receive invitations from mentors and teachers.

2- All you need is within you. You are not lacking anything. We have all the answers. We have an immense capacity to learn, we have innate intelligence and wisdom. That's why journaling can be so powerful. It's a tool to tap into the answers you have within. When you invite yourself to look at yourself, you have an opportunity to shift, adjust, and transform. There's no way to improve yourself if you're not paying attention to where you are. When journaling, create a space where you will be uninterrupted, you are not distracted, start with open-ended questions. Invite yourself to reflect on your day. start paying attention to how you navigated your day and what kind of impressions you left on others today, pay attention to your daily you.

3- When we hold on to pain and trauma we are actually creating inner turmoil in our being. When you carry pain you behave differently than when you release pain. That's why we need to pay attention to our behaviors and choices. They are the symptoms of the pain we are holding. Acknowledge an event that happened, understand it to reframe your relationship to it, find the lesson and see if you learned it, then open yourself to let it go. Letting it go will create more space in your being for love and joy.

4-The higher you raise your vibration, the higher you can get to a place of observing yourself and your experiences without getting into shame, blame, or anger. So you are not triggered by emotions. It's easier for emotions to move through you if you are holding a positive energy field to deal with it. You have to be ready energetically before you can deal with it emotionally. To elevate your vibration, check in with your heart and your gut, pause, breathe deeply, open yourself and release stress and tension. When you feel light, your vibration is higher, you might smile more.

5- Joy is your soul talking to you. Make room in your day for things that you enjoy and that make you smile. Get into the habit of finding ways to be joyful. It's a huge part of truly being who we are.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your spiritual awakening journey?
How did it change you?
How do we enter our journey of self-discovery including the recognition of our spiritual self?
How do we create a journaling container to be able to go deep in our reflections?
Do we need to let go of judgment to truly start emotional healing?
How does it look/feel to raise your vibration? How can we know if we are in a lower vs higher vibrational state?
What is the concept of all you need is within you?
If we do have limiting beliefs that get into our way, how do we start to get rid of them, or at least challenge them?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Dawn James became a Conscious Living teacher, after experiencing a spiritual phenomenon called Samadhi. She has since dedicated her life to providing education, inspiration, and support related to understanding and enhancing vibrational frequency for overall health and well-being, personally and globally. Her tell-all autobiography UNVEILED is an international bestseller. She teaches others how to live in alignment mind, body, heart, soul. spirit with her powerful online course at http://spiritual-journaling.ca

To learn more about Dawn, visit her website: DAWN JAMES

In 2010 she founded Publish and Promote to teach new and aspiring authors to do what she did; share their story and connect to their best audience! Learn more at PUBLISH & PROMOTE

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga Sutras 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3. What is yoga, its goal, and why

Mon, 02 Aug 2021 09:00:26 GMT

Have you been interested in diving a little deeper into your yoga practice, but at the same have been intimidated by the philosophical texts? Today we are doing an introduction to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali which are one of the foundational texts of yoga philosophy and practice. There are 100s of translations and commentaries or the original text and they were written over 2000 years ago, so no wonder it could be intimidating.

The sutras are made of 195 or 196 aphorisms (depending on the source). They are divided into 4 chapters or books called pada.

The first pada, which is where you’ll find the sutras we are exploring today describes yoga, its goal, and why we want to focus on that.

This episode is part of our premium subscription. To get access to it, visit the membership platform. Note that we have recently transitioned our premium content from Patreon to the platform With Ribbon.

With Ribbon is awesome and you’ll now find on this new platform

Your podcast premium membership where just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like today’s episode on the sutras 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3.
You can now have access to almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership, with new ones added every week.
You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer or special event including my upcoming yoga retreat. Everything is now in the same place!

100TH EPISODE GIVEAWAY

We are at episode 97, so getting close to our 100th episode. For the occasion, we have an incredible bundle of gifts for you! From yoga props to clothes, to classes, and so much more. We have joined forces with brands we love to celebrate the occasion: Athleta, Liform, Ajna WellBeing, Yoga Tune Up, Spritzs Wellness London, and some guests from older episodes for some books, including Jason Nemer from our episode on Acro-Yoga. To participate in our giveaway you have to vote for your favorite episode and you can do so here.

About our sponsors:

Athleta. They make yoga and fitness clothes, athleisure and so much more. Their mission is to ignite a community of active, healthy, confident women and girls who empower each other to reach their limitless potential. Instead of using fitness models, they have diverse women athletes of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds in their ad campaigns. They are a B Corp focused on fair trade practices, sustainable materials, and production. So Athleta has generously offered to give a $100 gift card for our giveaway.
Ajna Wellbeing is a sister-run company committed to creating holistic lifestyle and wellness products that are eco-friendly, sustainable, and beautifully designed. Their mission is to create a holistic health movement based on a mindful and intuitive way of being, healing, and thriving. Which is where the name stands for. They are gifting you an Ajna Wellbeing's Eco Yoga Bolster which is handstitched from recycled materials into this eco-suede-luxurious bolster. But that's not all. They are also adding an Eco-Lite Acupressure Mat & Pillow Set. This therapeutic acupressure kit harnesses your body’s natural healing powers. It’s also made from eco-friendly, non-toxic, plant-based materials, making it just as good for the Earth as it is for you so you can create a simple and effective way to find a moment of calm in your hectic day.
I personally am giving a free membership to my live online yoga classes and class library for 1 month (worth $100),
Our guest Jason Nemer from episode 22 - Acro Yoga is giving a copy from it’s new book Move, Connect, Play
Spritz Wellness London is giving you a beautiful eye pillow
Check our next episodes to hear about the other sponsor!

That's it for now! Go onto https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to get your premium episode on the sutras 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast, and go enter our giveaway right now and vote for your favorite episode.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Crystals and Gemstones 101

Mon, 26 Jul 2021 09:00:03 GMT

Do you love crystals as I do? If you’d like to learn more about them, how to care for them and how to use them, this episode is for you.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Pam Urbas and Andy Duchovnay. Pam is a Yin Yoga Teacher and Andy is an environmental advocate. Together, they are Spiritual Artists, Rockhounds, Sound Healers, and owners of The Indigo Sanctuary, an online source of hand-crafted and Reiki-infused products for yoga, home sanctuary, sound healing, gemstone healing, and meditation. They are lovers of nature and collect their gemstones and crystals themselves and their travels. They cut, shape, polish and incorporate them into spiritual artwork and malas. With that particular background, I thought it would be very interesting to sit down with them and talk about gemstones and crystals.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

We just transitioned our Premium Membership to this new platform: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger. As a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content. We added a new library of almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership. Finally, you can sign up for any live-stream class I offer! Everything yoga-class-related is now in the same place! If you’re new to With Ribbon, here’s a walkthrough video I recorded to help you find your way around.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

100TH EPISODE GIVEAWAY

We are at episode 96, so getting close to our 100th episode. For the occasion, we have an incredible bundle of gifts for you! From yoga props to clothes, to classes, and so much more. We have joined forces with brands we love to celebrate the occasion: Athleta, Liform, Ajna WellBeing, Yoga Tune Up, Spritzs Wellness London, and some guests from older episodes for some books, including Jason Nemer from our episode on Acro-Yoga. To participate in our giveaway you have to vote for your favorite episode and you can do so here.

About our sponsors:

Athleta. They make yoga and fitness clothes, athleisure and so much more. Their mission is to ignite a community of active, healthy, confident women and girls who empower each other to reach their limitless potential. Instead of using fitness models, they have diverse women athletes of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds in their ad campaigns. They are a B Corp focused on fair trade practices, sustainable materials, and production. So Athleta has generously offered to give a $100 gift card for our giveaway.
Ajna Wellbeing is a sister-run company committed to creating holistic lifestyle and wellness products that are eco-friendly, sustainable, and beautifully designed. Their mission is to create a holistic health movement based on a mindful and intuitive way of being, healing, and thriving. Which is where the name stands for. They are gifting you an Ajna Wellbeing's Eco Yoga Bolster which is handstitched from recycled materials into this eco-suede-luxurious bolster. But that's not all. They are also adding an Eco-Lite Acupressure Mat & Pillow Set. This therapeutic acupressure kit harnesses your body’s natural healing powers. It’s also made from eco-friendly, non-toxic, plant-based materials, making it just as good for the Earth as it is for you so you can create a simple and effective way to find a moment of calm in your hectic day.
Check our next episodes to hear about the other sponsors!

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- We are all made of energy and are all vibrations. So are the gemstones. We, as humans can entrain our energy with the ones around us. The determination of the healing aspect of each stone has come from intuition and experimentation. And these findings have been validated through different cultures over time.

2- For empaths, it's important to clear any new stones and to clear them every time you use them or wear them. In all cases though, trust yourself with what you need and follow their intuition on it.

3- Sage, sound healing, moonlight, and saltwater are all good ways to clear stones.

4- When picking a stone, take a few deep breaths, hold the stone, notice what it's "saying" to you, how do you feel, if it aligns with what you're looking for or in need of.

5- As a practice, you can clear the stones, hold them, use affirmations with them, meditate with them, wear them on you, use them in home decor, on an altar, and in beauty routines. You can also place them in plants. Create a relationship with a stone. Add them to any healing or personal practices.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

What is the difference between gemstones and crystals?
What makes certain stones healing? Or what gives them particular properties?
Do gemstones also carry energy from the rockhounds and all the people that have handled them before they got to you?
Once we get new gemstones, how do we prepare them before using them?
What are the rituals we can use to clear stones?
What are some of the most common gemstones and their known effects?
The color of the chakras and the gemstones doesn’t always align, why is that?
Can you give an example of practice so we can use the gemstones?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Pam and Andy are Spiritual Artists, Rockhounds, Sound Healers, and Entrepreneurs and are the creators of The Indigo Sanctuary, an online source of hand-crafted, Reiki-infused, yoga, home sanctuary, sound healing, gemstone healing, and meditation products.

Pam is a Yoga Teacher, who focuses her practice on Yin Yoga. She has taught yoga in homeless shelters, nursing homes, senior centers, as well as in studios and gyms. Yin Yoga is a meditative practice that focuses on long holds of seated or reclined poses that work to unwind the body's deeper layers of fascia. Each pose is usually held for 3-5 minutes.

Andy is an environmental advocate, having worked for the EPA for 30 years. Before then, he represented organic food producers and was involved with the US Organic Food Production Law of 1990.

They are both certified Nepali Sound Healers trained by Grand Master Shree in Kathmandu, Nepal. Pam and Andy have conducted Yin Yoga and Yoga Nidra and singing bowl sound bath programs and conducted chakra balancing sessions throughout the Philadelphia area.

They are lovers of nature and collect gemstones in their travels across the US. They cut, shape and polish these gemstones in their home lapidary studio and incorporate them into spiritual artwork and malas.

Pam and Andy travel extensively through Nepal and continue to work collaboratively with their business partners Jaki and Tulsi in Nepal. Pam and Andy believe in giving back, and they have established a scholarship program, which pays the tuition for two young girls in Nepal.

Website: www.theindigosanctuary.com (Coupon code 10% on their website: SpiritualArtist10)

Facebook: TheIndigoSanctuary

Instagram: @theindigosanctuary

Youtube

email:theindigosanctuary@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Public Speaking for Yoga Teachers and Others

Mon, 12 Jul 2021 09:00:51 GMT

Do you struggle to speak and shin while you teach? No matter how much training you have as a yoga teacher, public speaking can be very challenging. If you’re not a teacher, some of the skills you learn on the mat can also help you in your next work meeting. We all have spaces where we need to tap into our presence so our message comes through.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Sylvain Hache, Aka Sly for you anglophones out there. He is an ex-chronic stutterer that morphed into an award-winning, international-touring musician who has been interviewed on live TV & Radio in multiple countries, in 2 languages. He has been coaching and training people to ‘’End-Stage Fright & Master Public Speaking, Anywhere From a Zoom Call to Carnegie Hall’’ using Rockstar Presence Principles that he distilled from over 500 shows in 35 cities around the world. Since he’s also a yogi, I wanted to sit down with him and talk about public speaking for yoga teachers.

Listen to the full episode here:

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

100TH EPISODE GIVEAWAY

We are at episode 95, so getting close to our 100th episode. For the occasion, we have an incredible bundle of gifts for you! From yoga props to clothes, to classes, and so much more. We have joined forces with brands we love to celebrate the occasion: Athleta, Liform, Ajna WellBeing, Yoga Tune Up, Sprits Wellness London, and some guests from older episodes for some books, including Jason Nemer from our episode on Acro-Yoga. To participate in our giveaway you have to vote for your favorite episode and you can do so here.

Every episode until then, I’ll present to you one of our sponsors. We are starting today with one that has supported me as a yoga teacher for a very long time and this podcast right from the beginning: It’s the clothing brand Athleta. They make yoga and fitness clothes, athleisure and so much more. Their mission is to ignite a community of active, healthy, confident women and girls who empower each other to reach their limitless potential. Instead of using fitness models, they have diverse women athletes of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds in their ad campaigns. They are a B Corp focused on fair trade practices, sustainable materials, and production. So Athleta has generously offered to give a $100 gift card for our giveaway.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- You don't need to know everything. You just need to be a few steps ahead of your students. Don't think your teaching to yourself or other teachers, remember that most of your student just need self-awareness, to get into the present moment, to relax, to quiet down their minds. Things that are a given for you, where you are in your journey are new to a lot of other people. Get in a value-giving mindset. Be there to give. It will take some of the pressure off.

2- Saying you're nervous can be helpful. It takes away the power behind the uncomfortable emotion. That way, you don't have to fake anything. It might help you connect on an authentic level with your students. You can also try a technique called image streaming.

3- Don't speak about things you haven't emotionally processed properly yet.

4- You need to also distinguish between a real mistake that holds consequences and something consequence less like a slip of the tongue. When you do such a mistake, you can point it out, laugh it off and keep going. Oftentimes, other people didn't even notice. When it's something really big, you might need to stop, officially correct what you said, and potentially apologize.

5- You can't 100% trust your own heightened judgment of what is happening in real-time. A way to prevent making too many mistakes or getting too much in your head about the perceived mistake you're making is to stay anchored in the present.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

What is public speaking and why is it something we should care about as yoga teachers even if it's not really covered in TT?
How do we become less self-conscious? Get rid of self-doubt or our unconscious patterns that get in the way?
How do we embody authority or power, presence, and aliveness?
What do you think about announcing to your class that you are nervous?
What can we do when we forget what we were saying or make a mistake to keep our composure?
How can we use our own yoga practice to set our internal presence in a way that reflects an external presence of calm and leadership?

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Sylvain Hache aka Sly is an ex-chronic stutterer that morphed into an award-winning, international-touring musician who has been interviewed on live TV & Radio in multiple countries, in 2 languages.

He has been coaching and training people since the age of 16 and now helps you ‘’End-Stage Fright & Master Public Speaking, Anywhere From a Zoom Call to Carnegie Hall’’ using Rockstar Presence Principles he distilled from over 500 shows in 35 cities and 5 countries on 2 continents.

His website: www.RockstarPresenceSecrets.com

''The Imposter Syndrome Crusher Course''

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Face Yoga

Mon, 28 Jun 2021 13:35:03 GMT

Have you heard of face yoga? It's a mix of stretches, massages, and acupressure. It’s something you can do quickly without any prop that helps with relaxation, releasing tension in the face and neck, toning your vagus nerve, activating your parasympathetic response, all while helping the production of collagen, making your skin glow, and reduce fine line.

This episode is part of our premium subscription and was requested by a member. To get access to it, visit https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger. Note that we have recently transitioned our premium content from Patreon to the platform With Ribbon.

With Ribbon is awesome and you’ll now find on this new platform

1.Your podcast premium membership where just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like today’s Face Yoga Practice

2. You can now have access to almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership, with new ones added every week.

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class or event I offer, including our upcoming yoga retreat.

Go to https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to get your face yoga practice, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A 3 Step Guide to Being More Yourself, with Erika Belanger

Tue, 22 Jun 2021 13:47:58 GMT

Have you ever been told, It'll be fine, just be yourself, and wondered what that really meant or even looked like anymore? Feeling, as if you lost sight of who you were at some point and you became disconnected from that person.

For today’s episode, it’s just me, I’m taking the spotlight again and we’ll talk about this. You can check my other solo episodes: #87: 5 reasons why you procrastinate, #77: Setting Goals and Moving Forward, #73: Yoga, Chronic Pain, and Mental Health.

There’s a section on my website, where you can tell me what you struggle with, what you need support with or help around. I’ve decided to use that as the inspiration to create my solo episode and other content. Since the last episode, I’ve received a few requests, including the one inspiring today’s episode. The listener said they struggled with being themselves, and I thought this was a very important challenge to address. Since it’s something I have dealt with, I feel like I could easily talk from experience. Another challenge I addressed recently was stepping on the mat regularly when we practice alone. I wrote a blog post about this called “How do I stay motivated to show up on the mat when I practice alone or with a video?” which was the person’s question.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Much of our stress, angst, and frustration is caused by being disconnected from who we are, or out of alignment with you we are, what we need or want. In contrast, being true to yourself is one the most direct way to find more happiness, fulfillment and to experience more success in your lives.

2- We lose ourselves from a reaction to something traumatic or gradually in childhood, due to our desire to fit in, please, and be loved by family members, authority figures, and in our education system.

3- Being more ourselves is a 3 step process: Get to know yourself better, embrace yourself and show up as yourself.

4- For you to be yourself, you have to be aware of who that is. Once you know who you are, if you’re deeply ashamed of it, that’s not gonna help. You need to embrace, accept and love that person. Then, every time you do something for yourself, that you enjoy or that you need, you reinforce your connection with yourself; you solidify that relationship.

5- Use meditation, reflection, and journaling to start your self-knowledge journey. Find a worksheet here.

TOPICS I COVERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

What it means to lose ourselves
Consequences it can have in your life
Why and how it happens
How to reconnect to ourselves: the 3 steps
Tools to get to know yourself better
Challenges you might face with self-discovery
Tools to embrace, accept and love yourself
Tools to start showing up as yourself
The importance of putting yourself first

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

Know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is one of the a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

RETREAT / GO FUND ME

ABOUT ME

Website : www.erikabelanger.com

IG :@erika.belanger & @onandoffyourmatpodcast

Coming up: Finally Beat Procrastination, How to gain control back over your life, and harness your fullest potential Waitlist Sign Up!

Tell me what you struggle with, go on, tell me, I’ll create content just for you!

Find this episode's worksheet here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Your Nervous System and Digestion, with Rachel Everett

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 13:46:46 GMT

Have you ever noticed some digestive perturbation when something happens and you're extremely stressed? I remember my first day as a high school substitute teacher… I won't get into the details but knowing that a high level of stress can affect our digestion, what about our very common chronic low, medium levels of stress? Or what about anxiety?

For today’s episode, I sat down with Rachel Everett. Rachel is a Registered Dietitian with a virtual private practice focused on helping women find lasting relief from IBS symptoms. She specializes in using a holistic approach that includes diet, lifestyle, and functional lab testing to identify and address the root cause of symptoms. Her proven framework has helped many women beat the bloat for good, regain trust with their bodies, and build confidence with food! We sat down today to talk about the impact of the nervous system on our digestion and how things like yoga, meditation, and myofascial release can directly improve our digestion.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

Our bowel habits are still taboo, so people can go a very long time without seeking help, considering their symptoms to be normal. Urgency, less than 1 bowel movement a day, not feeling empty after a bowel movement, bloating after eating and smelly gas are all red flags. Use a food, mood, and symptoms journal to track what's happening and get a clearer idea.
Chronic stress is the most common underlying root issue of all our digestive symptoms. Treating the symptoms is only a short-term solution.
The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for sending a signal to release saliva, stomach acids, digestive enzymes, bile and also to stimulate motility in the gut. If your body is busy taking care of the stressful perceived threats, it will shot down your digestion to redirect the energy in a more "efficient" way. The issue is that we still need to digest even when we are chronically stressed, so we need to address our stress to improve our digestion.
General lifestyle adjustments to improve your digestion include slowing down, yoga (or another low-intensity movement practice), meditation, journaling, and deep breathing) Create consistency is key. Right before a meal, take a moment to take a few deep breaths, be mindful engaging all your senses while you eat, and chew thoroughly.
The vagus nerve is the light switch for the parasympathetic nervous system. Stimulating the vagus nerve on a daily basis with deep breathing exercises, gargling, humming, loud singing, meditation, gagging, prayer, gratitude, contrast shower, and vagus nerve exercises will help you feel more grounded, emotionally more self-regulated, and digest more efficiently.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Can you explain what IBS and SIBO are?
What are common digestive symptoms we might have and we might not consider them to be symptoms of anything, but that are in fact red flags?
How can people observe, be a scientist about what’s going on?
Why look at something like your nervous system when it comes to treating digestive issues?
How does the nervous system work with the digestive system?
What are some general lifestyle things we can do to reduce our stress and in turn improve our digestion?
What is the vagus nerve? Why should we care about it when it comes to digestion particularly?
How can we improve our digestive symptoms by activating/stimulating the vagus nerve?
What would a positive change in our vagal function look like in our digestion?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY.

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

Know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is one of the a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS: RETREAT / GO FUND ME + GIVEAWAY

I have a gift for you! Remember Julie from episode 83? Her new book The Transformation Journey was just released and she generously offered to give you guys a copy! Thank you so much if you left a review for the podcast and entered our giveaway. The winner is the iTunes user Arlie K. Arlie said: “This is *the* podcast for devoted yogis and novice practitioners alike! Erika and her guests make me feel completely at home here - bowled over by brilliant advice and nourishing conversations. Heart.” Thank you so much for your review, email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com on DM on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast, and I’ll send you your book!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Rachel is a Registered Dietitian with a virtual private practice focused on helping women find lasting relief from IBS symptoms. She specializes in using a holistic approach that includes diet, lifestyle, and functional lab testing to identify and address the root cause of symptoms. Her proven framework has helped many women beat the bloat for good, regain trust with their bodies, and build confidence with food!

Website: www.racheleverettrd.com

IG handle: @ibs.nutritionist

Free SIBO Training

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Forgiveness Meditation

Mon, 31 May 2021 16:47:03 GMT

This episode is part of our premium subscription. To get access to it, visit the membership platform here and find the forgiveness medition here. Note that we have recently transitioned our premium content from Patreon to the platform With Ribbon.

You’ll now find on this new platform:

1.Your podcast premium membership where just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like today’s Forgiveness Meditation.

2. You can now have access to almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership, with new ones added every week.

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Everything is now in the same place!

Now coming back to our premium membership for a second, know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

LAST announcement! I have a gift for you! Remember Julie from episode 83? Her new book The Transformation Journey was just released and she generously offered to give you guys a copy! So all you have to do to enter our giveaway is leave a review for the podcast, anywhere you listen. Take a screenshot of it and send it to me by email at erika.belanger@gmail.com or in my DM on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast. That way, I’ll have your contact info if you win! I’ll announce the winner in our next episode!

Ok! That’s it for now, go onto https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or Stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Thank you guys, until next time!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Beginning Again, a Way to Practice and to Live, with Peter Walters

Mon, 24 May 2021 11:23:39 GMT

Have you ever started something new and secretly expected you’d do it perfectly the first time? Or after doing it just a few times, you’d be a master at it? I think we all have at some point or another, and chances are, we were then disappointed.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Peter Walters. Peter is a yoga teacher and student of life with a motto to always begin again. Focusing on learning and growing in order to move skillfully and joyfully through life. He uses yoga as a vehicle to share presence, joy, community, and awakening practices. You can find him exploring the world and leading retreats, teaching at festivals, on the Headspace app, and in a Zoom room near you. We sat down today to talk about the idea of beginning again and how that zen practice can impact us on and off the mat.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

Beginning again is choosing to constantly hit a reset button, become present and look at what is happening. It's a persistent re-arrival, no matter what comes up in your life or your mind. It becomes diligence, the discipline of presence, and of reigning the thoughts in. If your intention is to be awake and attentive to every moment in front of you and to see those moments as holy, that can awaken your life, change your perspective to make the mundane magical.
Breath awareness is a way to begin again on the mat. You can also use Drishti or Mantra to help reign yourself back from compulsive uncontrolled thinking. Anything that will pull your mind, body, heart, spirit back together in that one moment will help you begin again.
Off the mat, you can focus on really listening, being present with the other while they talk instead of planning your response.
We can use the idea of beginning again when we teach to share our own studentship as we teach and stay in the path of continuous learning and growth. One way to do it is they continue to train with teachers that speak to your heart, to use stillness and silence and practice what you teach. You can create rituals that feel helpful to arrive again. You can limit your energy output to keep the quality of your teachings and the joy of doing them high. you can set an intention, be clear on why and what you want to teach and continue to seek opportunities to grow in your life in general by getting out of your comfort zone regularly.
There are so many opportunities for joy in the subtle moments in between everything we do and experience. Gratitude and appreciation for what it is, is also key to tapping into the joy around you. What you do on the mat informs your energy for the day and what you do in the day, informs how you show up on the mat.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Your motto is Begin again. What does that mean for you and why is it important?
How does it look on the mat? Off the mat?
How does beginning again as a teacher looks like? Does it help you stay a student first?
How can we honor the privilege of teaching and stay dedicated to lifelong learning?
How did the situation with Covid this year allow you to begin again in a way/learn something new? What is one of the blessings that you can see in your life?
How do we show up with more joy in practice?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY.

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

Know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is one of the a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS: RETREAT / GO FUND ME + GIVEAWAY

I have a gift for you! Remember Julie from episode 83? Her new book The Transformation Journey was just released and she generously offered to give you guys a copy! So all you have to do to enter our giveaway is leave a review for the podcast, anywhere you listen. Take a screenshot of it and send it to me by email at erika.belanger@gmail.com or in my DM on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast. That way, I’ll have your contact info if you win! I’ll announce the winner on our next episode!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Peter Walters is a student of life. He uses yoga as a vehicle to share presence, joy, community, and awakening practices. You can find him exploring the world and leading retreats, teaching at festivals, on the Headspace app, and in a Zoom room near you sharing live online and recorded practices. Come along!

Website: www.peteryoga.com

IG: @peterwaltersyoga

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Creating a Sustainable and Loving Approach to Yoga, with Brea Johnson

Mon, 17 May 2021 09:00:03 GMT

Have you ever done a yoga pose and kinda regretted it afterward? Or maybe you pushed just a little too far in a pose you practice regularly? Or maybe you’ve harshly criticized yourself while practicing? Alright, maybe all 3. Either way, this episode is for you.

For today’s episode, I sat down with Brea Johnson. Brea has been teaching yoga and movement since 2003. As a teacher, mentor, and community builder with a focus on a sustainable approach to yoga, she is known for providing a safe foundation of healthy movement while remaining focused on the heart of the yogic teachings. Brea is also the founder of Heart + Bones Yoga, a global online community and teacher training courses base. I wanted to sit down with her and talk about the idea of a sustainable and loving approach to yoga, especially in a time where so many of us practice and teach online.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Physical poses are a small part of yoga. If you distill it down, yoga is about getting to know yourself, about allowing your healing to become a service for others.

2- Creating sustainability is investing time, awareness, intention, and purpose in what we are doing now to support our future selves. Moving well now so we can move and feel well in another 20 years.

3- The 4 pillars of sustainable practice: Boundaries, Variety & Diversity, Frequency, Restore & Support.

4- Know and trust your body. It's powerful and resilient. It's smart and wise. If you tune in and listen to your body it will tell you about what it needs, about your appropriate range of motion, your movement red flags, what we need to balance. Your yoga practice is a tool to learn that.

5- What offers us love changes all the time and is limitless. The way you talk to yourself on the mat, a heart-to-heart conversation with a loved one, doing something uncomfortable that helps you grow, etc. It's different for everybody. Give yourselves permission to find it, allow it to be a creative spark in your life, and to change your mind as you evolve.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Why Hearts + Bones?
What was that pain point you saw in yoga you were trying to address?
What is yoga for you and what do you try to achieve when you teach?
What does it mean to have a sustainable approach to yoga?
What are the pillars of a sustainable practice?
What’s one thing every yogi should know about their bones, joints, and muscles?
Do you think that this idea of sustainability is a way to practice self-care and self-love?
How can we bring more loving practices on the mat?
You say: "Yoga can make us better humans…" I want to hear more about this.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY.

If you haven’t already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen. Find out how here.

We just transitioned our Premium Membership to this new platform: www.withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger. As a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content. We added a new library of almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership. For the launch, I’m offering 7 days for free, so you should really check it out! Finally, you can sign up for any live-stream class I offer! Everything yoga-class-related is now in the same place! If you're new to With Ribbon, here's a walkthrough video I recorded to help you find your way around.

Know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is one of the way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS: RETREAT + GO FUND ME

In parallel, I have launched a Go-Fund-Me campaign. I know yoga retreats are an investment and I know how hard the last year has been. Yoga retreats were in my personal growth, so I wanted to give back. I'm raising money while investing alongside the community to make the experience of a yoga retreat available to students who wouldn't be able to participate otherwise. If you’re able to donate anything you could transform someone’s life. And if you’re in need you can apply for the scholarship. And either way, I’d love for you to share it with the people you love and on social media. That’s a simple way you can directly impact others' lives in a positive way. Find the Go-Fund-Me Campaign here.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Brea Johnson has been teaching yoga and movement since 2003. A teacher, mentor and community builder with a focus on a functional and sustainable approach to yoga, she is known for providing a safe foundation of healthy movement while remaining focused on the heart of the yogic teachings. Brea is the founder of Heart + Bones Yoga, a global online yoga studio and international yoga teacher training courses. As the popularity of yoga increases along with yoga-related injuries, this approach has made her a sought-after teacher in the yoga and movement communities.

Her website: www.heartandbonesyoga.com

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PREMIUM | Roll Out of Bed Flow

Mon, 03 May 2021 09:00:20 GMT

This episode is part of our premium subscription. To get access to it now, visit https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger.

We just transitioned to this new platform. Here, you’ll find a few things.

1. You can become a premium member of the podcast. Just like before, as a member, you can get a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this 30 Minutes Morning Flow.

2. You can now have access to almost 200 recorded full-length yoga classes in a Netflix-Style Membership. For the launch, I’m offering 7 days for free, so you should really check it out!

3. You can sign up for any live-stream class I offer!

Everything is now in the same place! If you're new to With Ribbon, here's a walkthrough video I recorded to help you find your way around.

Coming back to our premium membership for a second, know that as you become a Premium Member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast while I choose to keep it ad-free.

Ok! That’s it for now, go onto https://withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger, visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Thank you guys, until next time!

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5 Reasons Why You Procrastinate, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 09:54:43 GMT

Is “I don’t have time” a go-to excuse in your life? Maybe you're not that person who took advantage of extra free time during COVID to clean out the garage or finally get in shape or write a book they’ve been talking about for years. If that sounds like you, today's episode is for you.

For this episode, it’s just me, I’m taking the spotlight again. You can check my other solo episode: #77: Setting Goals and Moving Forward (great complement to today's episode) and #73: Yoga, Chronic Pain, and Mental Health.

Coming back to our subject of today, there’s a section on my website, where you can tell me what you struggle with, go on, tell me! I’ve decided to use that as the inspiration to create my solo episode and other content. The one thing that has consistently come up since my new website is live, is procrastination or a variant of it like time management or motivation.

Today’s episode is a teaser for an amazing course I have put together to help you stop procrastinating called Finally Beat Procrastination, How to gain control back over your life and harness your fullest potential. It’s not available just yet, but sign up for the waitlist and you’ll be the first to know when it’s ready and you’ll also receive in the meantime other free content to help you start to take steps in the right direction.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Procrastination is not a time management issue, it's an emotional regulation problem.

2- We procrastinate because of our lack of awareness and understanding of ourselves, of what we need, and our patterned coping mechanisms, because there's friction between for future Self and present Self, the task is unappealing, our fear and beliefs, and/or our lack of strategies.

3- We don't have a better coping mechanism for challenging emotions and negative moods, so we let our avoidance of pain give us direction, create prioritization, stop us from creating plans, goals, and structures.

4- There's a very strong force in our life that pushes us to confirm our perceived identity, so we will do things that align with how we describe ourselves and use this to avoid taking responsibility for our choices and actions.

5- 80% of your result comes from your mindset, 20% from your strategies.

TOPICS I COVERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

The consequences of procrastination on your life.
What is procrastination?
How your lack of awareness and understanding of yourselves and of what you desire is feeding your need for procrastination.
The root cause of procrastination.
The role of our desire to avoid pain and lack of an emotional coping mechanism.
The friction between our present and future self.
Our faulty rewards/consequence systems.
The meaning we give to our experience and how it affects our motivation.
The importance of getting clear about why you want to do something.
How our fears and beliefs about ourselves stop us from starting.
The role of mindsets and strategies for success.
The 1-minute rule.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you haven't already done so, please subscribe, rate and review this podcast anywhere you listen.

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This podcast is a way I contribute to the community, and this membership is a way you can too. It allows you to share everything yoga offers with the world by supporting me in the creation and production of this podcast.

If you’d like to make a difference, visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. I thank you in advance.

ABOUT ME

Erika is a yoga teacher, the host, and producer of the On & Off Your Mat Podcast, and a transformational life coach. Being a teacher is part of who she is, and she uses yoga, podcasting, and life coaching as different entry points all aiming to help her students and clients build a happier, healthier, and more peaceful life. Her radiant spirit and engaging sense of humor create light-hearted practices focused on awareness, intentional movement, and self-care. She empowers her students and clients to awaken to themselves, become embodied, and build the life of their dreams.

Website : www.erikabelanger.com

IG :@erika.belanger & @onandoffyourmatpodcast

Finally Beat Procrastination, How to gain control back over your life, and harness your fullest potential Waitlist Sign Up!

Tell me what you struggle with, go on, tell me, I'll create content just for you!

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Strength Training for Yoga, with Jenni Rawlings and Travis Pollen

Mon, 12 Apr 2021 10:00:56 GMT

Do you think yoga is a complete practice that gives your body everything it needs? More and more, it seems that science movement experts suggest differently…

For today’s episode I sat down with Jenni Rawlings and Travis Pollen to talk about the place of strength training for yogis.

Jenni has completed a wealth of training and learning in the fields of yoga, anatomy, and movement science. She writes regularly for Yoga International and for her own body geek-focused yoga website, where she also offers science-based yoga classes and continuing education courses for yogis. Travis is an author, personal trainer, and PhD in Health & Rehabilitation Sciences. His research focuses on core stability, movement screening, training load, and injury risk appraisal. He also holds a master’s degree in Biomechanics and Movement Science along with an American record in Paralympic swimming. Together, they joined forces to write the book Strenght Training for Yoga, so today we got together to talk about that.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

We can repeat the same movement again and again and hope we'll get stronger at it or we can learn about anatomy and biomechanics to then take educated decision around changing load, orientation to gravity, use props, changing leverage, progressing movement in a way to build strength systematically.
Load is a force applied to the body in order to stimulate it to respond and adapt to grow stronger. By applying force or creating resistance, and repeating with enough frequency, over time we can improve and increase strength. In yoga, the only load is our body weight.
The issue with strength training in yoga is that we only have our body weight for the load, so it's impossible to progress it. There can also be a lack of variability and inputs to the body (ex. shoulder pulling) and a lack of opportunity to meet failure.
To improve your strength for a particular pose, look at what the joints are doing, what muscles are participating, what actions are you trying to do, and then look at strength training exercises that replicate the same type of actions with the same muscles, in a similar range of motion. Use different planes of motions to translate back to the asanas.
No movement is inherently right or wrong. There are no universal ways to teach all bodies to do one pose.

QUESTIONS THEY ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Why did you guys decide to join forces to write this book? On this particular subject?
What is movement science and why should students, if not at least teachers, learn more about it?
What is load? What’s the issue with load in yoga?
Can you give an example of movement patterns that are not represented enough in yoga and how we could introduce them in our strength training?
What would be some advantages/benefits of improving our strength when it comes to our yoga practice?
How do we align the right strength training exercise with a particular yoga pose?
What are the basic tools people can invest in to work out at home?
Jenni, one of the concepts you center your teachings around is the idea that no movement is inherently right or wrong. Can you tell us a little bit more about that?
Travis, on your side, one of the missions you have in your work is to close the gap between rehabilitation and performance. Would you have any tips for us today about injury prevention?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY. JOIN OUR COMMUNITY.

If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. Come connect with us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast

If you’d like to make a difference, visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member.

Become part of our inner circle and be the first to know what's coming up by signing up here.

Get their book at http://strengthforyoga.com and use the coupon code ONANDOFF20 to get $20 off (good until on Sunday, April 18th)

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Jenni Rawlings has completed a wealth of trainings & learning in the fields of yoga, anatomy, biomechanics, and human movement, including a 500hr YTT with her main yoga mentor Jules Mitchell, MS.

Jenni completed a 6-month mentorship with Chris Beardsley, director of Strength & Conditioning Research and an expert on the science of strength training, and she’s also a certified Functional Range Conditioning Mobility Specialist (FRCms) and a Restorative Exercise Specialist. She writes regularly for Yoga International and for her own body geek-focused yoga blog. She is also a Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider (YACEP®).

Jenni is originally from California, spent a couple of years in Chicago, and recently re-located with her husband and two dogs to Durham, NC.

Jenni teaches yoga & continuing education content for yoga teachers via her website. She also offers daily yoga & movement ideas, tips, and educational content on her Instagram and Facebook feeds.

Travis Pollen is a personal trainer, author, and PhD in Health & Rehabilitation Sciences. Over his seven-year personal training career, he’s trained professional athletes, senior citizens, and everyone in between. He’s on a mission to bridge the gap between rehabilitation and performance. In addition to his doctorate, Travis has a master’s degree in Biomechanics and Movement Science as well as an American record in Paralympic swimming.

When he’s not earning advanced degrees or breaking records, he can be found listening to indie folk music and eating sushi, preferably at the same time. He currently resides in Philadelphia with his girlfriend and their furry friends.

Visit his website to learn more about him: https://travispollen.com.

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PREMIUM | Segmented Breath Practice

Mon, 29 Mar 2021 10:00:42 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a premium member. As a member, you get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this pranayama today, and the ability to request the exact kind of content you need to continue to deepen your practice. As this subscription is on Patreon it also contributes to the community. Since Patreon is a crowdfunding platform it enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world.

For as low as 5$a month, you get new exclusive content every month. Today you get to practice with me a Kundalini breath where we break down the inhalation and exhalation into segments. It’s a calming, healing, and uplifting breath practice suitable for beginners!

With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording on zoom and continue to record during this shelter in place.

Know that as you become a PREMIUM member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis, and when you become a premium member, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, which helps me continue to offer it, which I love to do so. I truly appreciate you.

Ok! That’s it for now, go onto withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger visit us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast or stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Thank you guys, until next time!

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Your Intuition and Your Fullest Potential, with Amisha Ghadiali

Mon, 22 Mar 2021 09:00:40 GMT

Have you ever considered how your intuition can help you access your inner wisdom? Learn to better trust your instincts? Or find your truest path in life? That might seem like a big promise, but the truth is no one knows what you need better than yourself.

For this episode, I sat down with Amisha Ghadiali. Amisha is an award-winning social entrepreneur, intuitive therapist, teacher, and leader. She’s the host of the globally acclaimed podcast The Future Is Beautiful, which explores the relationship between politics, spirituality, sustainability, and creativity. She's the author of the book Intuition: Access your inner wisdom. Trust your instincts. Find your path, hence our subject of today! She has an extensive background in leading meditation, breathwork, yoga, and energy healing. She has been featured in publications including The Huffington Post, VICE, The Guardian, Harper’s Bazaar, VOGUE, and many more, and has spoken at events and festivals around the world including TEDx Oxbridge, to name one. A selection of her meditations, myths, poems, and mantras are available on Insight Timer App.

MY BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

Fear is the main reason we don’t fully connect to and use our intuition. The voice of our conditioning is also very strong. It sometimes feels like it’s our own voice. Clearing and making our life as spacious as possible is a way to make space for our intuition to come through.
Our intuition is wired in a way that wants to create a more beautiful future, it wants us to live from that place of the soul, it wants us to honor the beauty and fragility of the world we live in, it wants us to be creative and innovative and to find ways to handle shifts and change systems that are not working. By its very nature, it’s connecting us to ourselves and our dharma.
A physical asana practice will help you listen with your body. As the energetic lines open and the information can travel, you can feel and hear intuition and wisdom.
Living with your intuition is a whole level of intimacy you have to have with yourself. If you can cultivate intimacy in other areas of your life and be prepared to live from that place of authenticity in your relationships, it becomes easier to access within yourself.
Intuition has an aliveness to it. By becoming more present to our intuition, we get off our auto-pilot, start envisioning our future and consistently realign what is in our best interest, while staying open to possibilities and letting ourselves be surprised and delighted by life and how it unfolds.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Why have we lost contact or some contact with our intuition?
How can we start tapping back into our intuition to fully live to our highest potential?
How can we create space to enable inner shifts so we can listen to your own wisdom?
How can we use our whole body to listen?
Is the body the entry point to connect to our intuition?
And then how do you connect to the more subtle?
How can we learn the difference between our intuition, our thoughts, and our imagination?
How does feeling connected in other ways in our life help us connect to our intuition?
How can we use intuition as a tool for the parts of our life that we can’t control?
How can we learn to trust intuition and validate our choices?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you’d like to make a difference, visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. I thank you in advance.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Amisha Ghadiali is an award-winning social entrepreneur, intuitive therapist, and the founder of the Presence Collective — an online community for creative, connected and courageous living. Her work is centered around sacred activism, as she inspires international audiences to become effective agents of change and contribute to the collective wellbeing of the world.

Amisha is the host of the globally acclaimed podcast The Future Is Beautiful, which explores the relationship between politics, spirituality, sustainability and creativity. The show offers deep and insightful conversations with fascinating and diverse guests challenging the dominant world story and sharing ideas for co-creating a beautiful future. Guests have included Sonya Renee Taylor, Charles Eisenstein, Polly Higgins, Satish Kumar, Sally Kempton and Bruce Parry to name a few.

Amisha has an extensive background leading meditation, breathwork, yoga, and energy healing. An experienced facilitator, she hosts a variety of retreats, workshops, and online programs sharing tools for balance on a physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual level. She currently runs the Beautiful Leadership Immersion, an embodied learning and unlearning adventure for inner transformation and systemic change, and works one on one with clients in her Presence Leadership Mentoring program. Most recently, she held Style and Presence, a global womxn’s summit and reclamation of worth featuring 26 empowering speaker sessions with progressive voices and thought leaders.

She has been featured in publications including The Huffington Post, VICE, The Guardian, Harper’s Bazaar, VOGUE, Rebelle Society, Grazia, and Ecouterre, and has spoken at events and festivals around the world such as TEDx Oxbridge, Bali Spirit Festival, Sunday Papers Live, UnBox, and Burning Man. A selection of her meditations, myths, poems and mantras are available on Insight Timer.

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The Transformation Journey with Julie Martin

Mon, 08 Mar 2021 13:34:18 GMT

You might feel like we are in a time of winter, maybe the winter of your life. It might feel dark and full of despair, but the pain you might be feeling now can ignite an incredible transformation if you choose to use it as fuel for your transformation.

For this episode, I sat down with Julie Martin. Julie has been teaching yoga for 25 years, including 10 in Goa, India. She teaches how to break free from linear yoga and outdated dogma and invites students into a practice that embraces their individuality and curiosity. She just published a book called the transformation journey and today we sat down to talk about yoga and mindfulness practices that help us through stages of personal empowerment and transformation.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Transformation is an ongoing process. You can't move into growth until you take stock of where/who you are now. Then, you need to practice acceptance and get in touch with what you want instead of not want. Define it and refine it. When you don't know what you want, you are at the mercy of random chaos. Transformation is about focusing our energy. And we can't direct our energy towards what we want if we focus on what we don't want.

2- Deep down, we don't usually want to change who we are, so much as changing how we feel about who we are. If we don't come from a place of need to change but focus on our sensations, we can be open to the possibility for growth and realize we're already ok.

3- Our brain is wired for repetition. The limbic system is organized by our ancestral beliefs and the way we were brought up. They create a loop in our thoughts and it takes focused energy to break out of its momentum.

4- To create real change, we have to take knowledge and turn it into experience, into energy and this is where the yoga practice comes in. This is why yoga is not about shapes, but feeling and sensing.

5- How would you act if you already had/felt what you want to have/feel? Find the things that make you feel like the person you want to be and start to act how that person would act.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

What do you think about the times we are going through collectively right now?
What are the pillars of transformation? What is it? How does it work?
What are the role of the mind and our beliefs in transformation?
How can we can directly affect our energy for it to be supportive to transformation?
Why do we get stuck in our old habits even when we know they don’t serve us?
How do we transform without coming from judgment or resentment or stories of not-enoughness?

GIVEAWAY!

I have an extra special something for you today! Back in episode 57, we had Trina Altman on to talk about yoga deconstructed. Recently, Trina published a new book called Yoga Deconstructed: Movement Science Principles for Teaching. She has generously sent me a copy to give to you guys! Thank you if you joined our giveaway and left a review for the podcast on iTunes. The winner of this giveaway is iTunes user StitchGnomercy. They said: "Fantastic & Insightful! I'm really impressed by the diversity & depth of experiences and interviews in this podcast. I've never felt so seen in a yoga podcast!" StitchGnomercy, send me an email (erika.belanger@gmail.com) or DM me on Instagram.

If you didn't win, you can still get 15% off just by being a listener today. Get the book here: http://bit.ly/yoga-deconstructed and use the coupon code altmaneb15.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate it.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Raised as a Vendatist, she grew up immersed in the philosophy of yoga. In her 20's she began to practice asana and research different ways of moving while studying the history of yoga. The resulting discovery is that yoga is EVOLVING and always has, so we have permission to explore these practices, challenge the myths, and move forward with knowledge and awareness. Her mission is to EMPOWER your practice. To help find your own pace, fluidity, and strength in a structure that is an invitation, not a rule. Tap into your curiosity and trust your experience to take charge of your practice on and off the mat.

Website

www.brahmaniyoga.com

Julie on Ekhart Yoga:

https://www.ekhartyoga.com/teachers/julie-martin

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PREMIUM | Guided Meditation for Self-Love

Mon, 01 Mar 2021 16:32:30 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this meditation, and the ability to request the exact kind of content you need to continue to deepen your practice. As this subscription is on Patreon it also contributes to the community since Patreon is a crowdfunding platform it enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world.

Know that as you become a member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every week, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. And when become a PREMIUM member, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, which helps me continue to offer it, which I love to do so. I truly appreciate you.

On the 5$ tier, you get one new exclusive every month. Today you get a 20 minutes guided meditation helping you feel into who you are, accept it, be grateful for it, and love it. With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording on zoom and continue to record during this shelter in place.

GIVEAWAY!!!

In the last episode, we were hosting a giveaway. Thank you if you left a review! The winner of Trina Altman’s new book: Yoga Deconstructed: Movement Principles for Teaching is iTunes user StitchGnomercy. They said: "Fantastic & insightful. I’m really impressed by the diversity & depth of experiences and interviews in this podcast. I’ve never felt so seen in a yoga podcast!"

Thank you! Send me an email at erika.belanger@gmail.com and I'll get you your book!

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Scalar Light Healing, with Tom Paladino

Mon, 22 Feb 2021 10:00:43 GMT

Imagine if you could heal any virus in your body? And on top of it, you didn’t really have to do anything. Too good to be true? This episode is for you.

Today I sat down with Tom Paladino. Tom is a researcher seeking to make a difference in the world by providing people with the education and tools to restore optimal health, and by helping enhance their quality of life. Tom began research with Scalar Energy during his undergraduate years following in the footsteps of Nikola Tesla. He was also able to study the work of Hieronymus’ which included unbinding the DNA bonds of microbes. Today we sat down to talk about how he’s using Scalar energy and developed instruments to heal people.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Scalar Energy is the first energy of the universe, the primal energy of the sun and the stars. When you can tap into that fundamental energy, you can have fundamental control over nature.

2- Scalar Energy allows you to create a molecule or break apart a molecule, assemble a vitamin or disassemble a virus. Scalar Energy allows you to have control over the molecular forms and when you can do that, you can control human health.

3- This happens by way of photographs. The photograph serves as an energetic bridge to the person. It's put in an instrument that sends the necessary energy to your field to act in a certain way. It's a tool that allows us to control nature. It happens at the quantum level. It affects our nonphysical constitution.

4- People can expect to experience a clearing of their sinuses, a clearing of bacterial plaque on their teeth, lesser symptoms of arthritis, better mobility, less inflammation, chakra balancing, deeper sleep, enhanced dream states, sense of peace and tranquility.

5- Sign up for a free session and see how it feels. You don't have to do anything but send a photo of yourself.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

What is scalar light or scalar energy?
How does the technology work?
How do you control if it will create a molecule or break down a virus?
In practice, what can we do with it?
Does it work with all viruses?
Are we affecting the DNA strands? Can we use scalar energy to change human DNAs and cure genetic diseases?
What's missing for this to be accepted in western medicine?
Let’s come back to the fact that you are using a photo to do that. How does that work, what does the instrument do exactly?
How does it work? What are the steps people have to do?
What are some of the effects people can experience? What can they look for?
On your website you have different program offers ranging from addiction, fat metabolism to hormones, do you use a different instrument, a different technique, what changes the result?
Have you tried with the covid's virus?
What do you answer to “it’s too good to be true” kinda skeptic’s comment?
How do you suggest people go about this to get the most out of it?
What's coming next?

GIVEAWAY!

I have an extra special something for you today! Back in episode 57, we had Trina Altman on to talk about yoga deconstructed. Recently, Trina published a new book called Yoga Deconstructed: Movement Science Principles for Teaching. She has generously sent me a copy to give to you guys! All you have to do to enter the giveaway is to leave a review for the podcast in general or any episode you enjoyed on iTunes or iPhone podcast app. If you’re unsure how to do that check this article. And if you don’t win, you can still get 15% off just by being a listener today. Get the book here: http://bit.ly/yoga-deconstructed and use the coupon code altmaneb15. I’ll announce the winner on our next episode: 82!

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate it.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Tom Paladino is a scalar energy researcher based in Florida. Scalar energy is the fundamental life force found everywhere in the world, space and universe. It originates from the sun and stars. Chi, prana, OM, mana, life force, pyramid energy or zero-point energy are synonymous terms for scalar energy.

He theorized that all energy in the universe initiates as scalar energy; and that the sun of our solar system and the stars of the universe are the points of origin, “the storehouses,” for scalar energy. He further theorized that scalar energy is instructive energy, as the entire universe is instructed by this Divine Essence. Subsequently, all spiritual, cognitive, emotional and physical action in the universe is initiated and maintained by scalar energy instructions. Scalar energy provides order in the universe.

Website: www.scalarlight.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/experiencescalar/

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Awakening and Healing Your Womb with Diana Beaulieu

Mon, 08 Feb 2021 11:00:48 GMT

Did you know your womb is one of your strongest energetic centers? It affects your relationships, your sexuality, your health, your creativity, and your manifesting powers.

For this episode, I sat down with Diana Beaulieu. Diana is a Modern Medicine Woman, Womb Awakening teacher, coach, author, speaker, and storyteller. With studies in biology, human sciences, and psychoneuroimmunology she worked as an anthropologist and a writer and researcher for international NGOs focusing on addiction, homelessness, and women’s service. After a deep and personal healing journey, she founded Sacred Woman Awakening - a new modality and healing path designed to help women overcome past sexual and emotional trauma to step into a new level of feminine embodiment and empowerment.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Everybody needs to heal their sexual energy. Women who have a physical womb hold trauma in that part of their body. Trauma can be something that happens to you, it can be collective or ancestral. Men also have that energetic center and trauma to heal related to their masculine energy.

2- You can move through trauma, you can become embodied and available to love and you can anchor yourself in such a degree of self-love that you can truly magnetize a loving partner who's able to reflect back what you already feel for yourself.

3- Two of the biggest energy centers we have in our bodies are the womb and the heart. A lot of us are still in our heads. It's not only an organ, it's a center of awareness. It's alive, it has consciousness, intuition, emotions, memories. She's a multifaceted aspect of us.

4- We can access the womb energy by our intuition, listening, asking her to tell us; share with us. Once we start to really listen, we start to wish to heal whatever story is there. We can start to heal her by bringing healing energy and healing light into its space. Once we healed the womb, we can access its wisdom.

5- Trauma attracts trauma. Awakening and healing the womb helps us attract a very pure masculine energy. Couples can work together so both can heal and grow to the potential that they know they have. And understand how we affect each other's energy.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Is your work geared towards women who have been victims of sexual trauma or all women?
How has your own healing journey allowed you to transform your relationships, sexuality, and health?
What does it mean to heal your womb or your feminine energy? How do we access this energy?
How do we reset our relationship with the masculine energy?
How/what can we share with our partners to continue to create and cultivate healing?
How do we uphold our boundaries and create a healthy space for sacred sexuality?
How do we move from feeling wounded to feeling whole?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate it.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Diana is a Modern Medicine Woman and Womb Awakening Mentor and is the founder of Sacred Woman Awakening.

She has developed and teaches Sacred Womb Awakening a ground-breaking learning and healing program for women who wish to step into their authentic and embodied feminine power. She runs online training, including a 2-year Womb Awakening practitioner training, and has trained women from all over the globe.

She also mentors and coaches professional medicine women to step into their unique gifts and healing powers.

Diana Beaulieu studied Human Sciences at Oxford University and has over 20 years of professional experience in anthropology, music, storytelling, shamanism, and energy medicine.

Found out more about her here:

Website: www.sacredwomanawakening.com
Free 8 part video series: From wounded to the whole woman: https://www.sacredwomanawakening.com/womb-masterclass
My 8-week Womb Awakening Online Course: https://www.sacredwomanawakening.com/womb-awakening-online

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PREMIUM | Yoga for your Upper Back, Shoulders and Neck

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 16:07:34 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content like this one, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. As this subscription is on Patreon it also contributes to the community. Since Patreon is a crowdfunding platform it enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world.

On the 5$ tier, you get one new exclusive every month. Today you get a 30 minutes video yoga sequence focusing on your tech neck to follow along and address any pain and postural issues. With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording on zoom and continue to record during this shelter in place.

Know that as you become a premium member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every month, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis. Plus, when becoming a premium member, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, which helps me continue to offer this podcast. I truly appreciate you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and Your Menstrual Cycle with Mia Tarduno

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 10:00:23 GMT

Did you know you can optimize your life by living in accordance with your cycle, just like with any other rhythms that exist in Nature?

For this episode, I sat down with Mia Tarduno. Mia is a yoga teacher, she’s certified in Trauma-Informed Yoga, and Certified Life Coach. Her mission is to connect people with their natural states of being to restore balance in their health, lifestyle, work, and relationships. She focuses her work on women’s health using mentorship, yoga, rituals, gathering, and menstrual cycle awareness to help them through the seasons of life.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- The cycle is like our inner yoga. Observing it is a spiritual practice. Working with the phases of the cycle reflects the cycles of the breath and phases of yoga poses.

2- There are 4 phases to your cycle. Your hormones change in every phase, your body will feel different, and requests and needs different things. Menstruation is like winter. It's characterized by energy is low, introspection, resting time, planting seeds. It might feel more natural to sit and meditate than in other parts of the cycle. Pre-ovulation is like spring. It's characterized by creativity, freshness, fun, playfulness, new ideas. Ovulation is like summer. It's characterized by expression, extroversion, being out, carrying big projects or presentations. The pre-menstrual phase is like fall. It's characterized by introspection, more awareness, time of the critic, no BS, and clarity.

3- The first step to live in accordance with your cycle and track it. Get a notebook, take a page by day of the cycle, and for every day 1, take notes. Later, you can contrast all day 1 against each other. You will start to see your patterns.

4- Generally speaking, choose more rigorous, strength base practice during pre-ovulation and ovulation and slower but challenging practices during pre-menstruation, and finally, yin and restorative during the menstruating phase.

5- It can be counter-culture to honor your bleed time but also your whole cycle. Practice to not silence it, to not be ashamed. Track it, prepare for it (make meals ahead of time, talk to people about what you need, make space in the schedule), make a ritual around menstruation (lighting red candles, wearing red, listening to particular music, drink raspberry tea) Savore rest. You're not broken, reclaim what it is to be a woman.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Why did you decide to focus some of your work on using yoga to balance the menstruation cycle?
What does it mean to live in accordance with our cycle? Why is it important for women to pay attention to their cycle and eventually do that?
Can we go over the basic things we should know, starting with what is the process that is happening during the cycle?
How does what is happening physiologically translate energetically?
If we want to pay attention and live in accordance with our cycle, how do we do that? What is the first step?
What happens with our tracking if we are irregular?
What happens in the case where we are on birth control? What can we still look at, learn from, or do to support our cycle?
How can yoga support us through the cycle and how could our practice reflect or serve our body in what it’s going through?
How can we shift our perspective around our cycle, especially when we find ourselves struggling or in pain?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a ton of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate your support!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Mia is a Women’s Mentor, Yoga Instructor, and Women’s Gathering Facilitator. Her offerings include movement, yoga, rituals, menstrual cycle awareness, and exploring vulnerable moments and conversations. She is a 500hr Registered Yoga Instructor, Certified Trauma-Informed Yoga Teacher, and Certified Professional Life Coach. Her mission is to connect people with their natural states of being to restore balance in their health, lifestyle, work, and relationships.

Website: Movecreateradiate.com

IG: @movecreateradiate

Facebook Group: Move Create Radiate's Women's Well-Being Circle

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Setting Goals and Moving Forward with Erika Belanger

Mon, 04 Jan 2021 10:00:03 GMT

Happy New Year guys! This time a year is perfect to reflect on the past year and project ourselves into the future to envision and create what you want to experience. Did you feel like 2020 was a year of ruined plans? If so now’s the time to take control back, dream again, and start to rebuild.

Are you the type not to follow through on resolutions? Or maybe not even set them? This episode is for you. Instead of setting vague and empty resolutions, learn how to set the right goals for yourself, and how to accomplish them easily.

Once more, for today’s episode, I do not have a guest, I’m taking the spotlight. I got so much good feedback from my episode #73 Yoga, chronic pain and mental health, that I decided to do some more solo episodes once in a while.

Today’s episode is a skeleton or a teaser for the work we’ll do for my 5-day New Year Group-Challenge starting on January 8. I took this huge thing I teach over 5 days and boiled it down to some of the most important concepts and tools I wanted to share.

So after listening to this episode, if you really want to dive into this work, but you feel overwhelmed or you don’t want to do this alone but you can’t afford one-on-one coaching, join us in my New Year Group Coaching Challenge and you'll do all this with my support and in the community at a fraction of the price. Together, we’ll get clear on your intention and your priorities. We’ll look at the area of your life that need the most attention, and set goals to move the needle forward towards what you’ve been longing to experience. We’ll plan step by step how to get there and give you the support you need to stay on track and make it happen… If you want to know more visit my website @erikabelanger.com or send me an email erika.belanger@gmail.com

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- I work in 3 steps when setting goals: First, consider the context (past and now and lessons learned), second, create a ritual of letting go of what doesn't serve you or stands in your way, and third start the process of moving forward by cultivating confidence, opening myself, setting a goal and creating momentum.

2- Get clear on your values, passions, and purpose. They are really the keys to knowing what you want. Use intuition as a way to get clear information that is not influenced by your conditioning.

3- The right goal is fulfilling and in alignment with who you are and what you want. It's big enough to create change but realistic enough to be doable. It's breakable into smaller pieces that are tangible and measurable.

4- One way to stay on track is to attach meaning to your goals. Knowing why do you want to accomplish something is one of the keys to staying motivated when you are faced with challenges. The other one is to give yourself internal rewards for every milestone accomplished.

5- Take care of your nervous system. It is at the origin of your thoughts and actions. Regulating the nervous system is important for long term change and repetition of positive thoughts and behaviors.

TOPICS I COVERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Steps to set goals
How to identify our current context?
The role of appreciation and celebration
Identifying what has helped you in the past
Identifying what has stopped you in the past
Example of practices of letting go/forgiveness
The importance of releasing before moving forward
How to cultivate courage and confidence
The importance of opening yourself to new possibilities
Being honest with what you value
Connecting to your intuition
identifying your passion and purpose
What kind of goals we should set?
How to create momentum
How to stop self-sabotage

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a tone of exclusive audio and video content for this episode you get a workbook to follow along, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate your support! Thank you.

ABOUT ME

Erika is a yoga teacher, the host, and producer of On & Off Your Mat Podcast, and a transformational life coach. Being a teacher is part of who she is, and she uses yoga, podcasting, and life coaching as different entry points all aiming to help her students and clients build a happier, healthier, and more peaceful life. Her radiant spirit and engaging sense of humor create light-hearted practices focused on awareness, intentional movement, and self-care. She empowers her students and clients to awaken to themselves, become embodied, and build the life of their dreams.

Website : www.erikabelanger.com

IG :@erika.belanger & @onandoffyourmatpodcast

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Envisioning Your New Year with Elena Brower

Mon, 28 Dec 2020 16:50:45 GMT

I hope you’re having a happy holiday season! This time a year is perfect to reflect on the past year and project ourselves into the future to envision and create what you want to experience. Did you feel like 2020 was a year of ruined plans, a strange waiting game where everything felt out of your control? I know I did…

So we can start to move forward, I sat down for this episode with Elena Brower. Elena is a Mama, teacher, artist, poet, bestselling author, and Podcast Host of Practice You, Elena has taught yoga and meditation since 1999. Her first book, Art of Attention, has been translated into seven languages, her Essential Mentorship is beloved for bringing analog creativity to online coursework, and her third book, Being You, will be released in early 2021. With all the work focusing on reflection and contemplation, I thought she would be a great guest to talk about envisioning our new year.

If you want to go further in this or you’re wondering how to envision your new year and move forward when all you feel is held back, I’ve planned a 5-day New Year group-challenge. Together we’ll get clear on your intention and your priorities. We’ll look at the area of your life that need the most attention, and set goals to move the needle forward towards what you’ve been longing to experience. We’ll plan step by step how to get there and give you the support you need to stay on track and make it happen. If you want to know more, go to www.erikalanger.com or send me an email at erika.belanger@gmail.com.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

Personal integrity and making promises to ourselves is at the base of our transformation. Everything you are enjoying right now is the result of previous thoughts or actions. That’s very good news because those all things that are changeable.
How you handle your circumstances, no matter how horrific they are, how you choose to show up, determines the rest of your day, week, month, year and life. Make one vision for each area of your life. Rate it on a scale of 1-10. Ask yourself how close are you to your ideal? For anything below and 8, look into your life and see what is perpetuating this distance, what is stopping you? what structure is not in place to help you get there? Then, you have to put into place the structures you need to create that vision and dismantle the structures that are keeping you from it.
Right your vision in the present tense. Do not mention anything you do not want. Give yourself permission to dream big enough to actually create tangible change in your life.
To keep the promises you make to yourself, give yourself a consequence that is cross-purposes, so as it keeps you from doing the behavior you want to stop, and also affects positively another area of your life. It’s a positive way to keep you on track where to need accountability.
Reflection and contemplation are ways to learn to trust your intuition and know you have the answers you are seeking.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
What n your life made you want to become a teacher?
Why did you decide to close your yoga studio?
Where does the love of art have to start?
You have your own story of recovery and I wanted to ask you about your path towards recovery and what helped you in the process?
How has yoga supported you in your recovery?
How has the Handel method helped you?
How do we show up in a state of empowerment to have an agency in our life?
How do we envision?
How do we act in alignment with what we want and keep the promises we make to ourselves?
What’s the place of our past experience?
What is the importance of reflection and contemplation? How does it serve us?
What’s one thing you have learned this year? What can we take away from this year?
What do you want to see more of in the world?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW! DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY

If you like this podcast, you can continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a tone of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate your support! Thank you.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Mama, teacher, artist, Double Diamond leader with doTERRA, bestselling author and Podcast Host of Practice You, Elena has taught yoga and meditation since 1999. Her first book, Art of Attention, has been translated into seven languages, her Essential Mentorship is beloved for bringing analog creativity to online coursework, and her third book, Being You, will be released in early 2021. Her spoken word poetry can be heard on Above & Beyond’s Flow State albums. Listen to her renowned Practice You Podcast at practiceyou.com, and experience yoga with Elena on Glo.com.

Her website: https://elenabrower.com

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The Art of Sequencing, with Jason Crandell

Mon, 14 Dec 2020 17:33:36 GMT

If you are a newer teacher sequencing might feel overwhelming at times and having some structure can be very grounding and helpful. If you are not a teacher, this episode is still for you, don’t go anywhere. Having some knowledge, some behind the curtain information about sequencing might help you identify or choose the right teacher for you and it might help you create a container for your own self-practice, give you direction and encourage you to step on the mat more regularly.

For this episode, I sat down with Jason Crandell. Jason is a natural teacher and author with more than 20 years of experience. Named “one of the teachers shaping the future of yoga,” by Yoga Journal, Jason has been an in-demand teacher at conferences around the world for more than a decade. Considered a teacher’s teacher, Jason has taught on countless teacher-training faculties, leads trainings globally, and regularly presents teacher-training content at esteemed conferences, so he’s the perfect guest to talk about sequencing.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Teachers should not focus on creativity first in their sequencing. Creativity is important but there are skills to be learned first. A sequence should be an expression of what you want to teach on that day. Once you have identified what you are trying to teach and how you will get there, then you can sprinkle creativity in.

2- All details matter but not all details matter equally. If you want to offer a whole-body movement and feel-good practice, you can't teach too many techniques at the same time. You can be detailed as much as you want but not about everything you are teaching. Be specific with your details, but create repetition in the details you choose, so students can learn.

3- Sequencing is not about rules. It's about creating a container, a structure you can color in.

4- Here's his architectural sequencing method:

- Choose a few (3) focal points (region of the body, postural techniques, theme, peak pose...)

- Preparation (teach your detail, specific things in link with your focal point)

- Sun Salutations and variation (establish timing, rhythm, cadence, pacing)

- Sun Salutation and Standing Posture (rhythm and focal points, options for different bodies, ability, and intensity desire)

- Sun Salutation and Arm Balance/Inversion

- Backbends

- Forebends, Twists

- Closing (Savasana)

5- The psychological and psycho-emotional aspects of yoga are implicits to the process. They come from the embodied experience of the practice, not the intellectual or rational explanation of the concepts. The essence of yoga is a sensory experience of the asana. If you believe in the teaching of the yoga tradition, there's no difference between what is physical or philosophical. A class is not more spiritual or less spiritual, the spirituality is just more or less spelled out for you.

QUESTION HE ANSWERED:

Your main teachers are Rodney Yee, Richard Rosen, and Ramanan Patel, what’s one thing you’ve learned from each that is now part of your teachings today?
Your style of vinyasa is slightly different from other vinyasa teachers, why do you emphasize alignment and technique in your vinyasa? Why is it important for you?
Why do you think teachers should follow a sequencing method and commit to it?
Do you think sequencing can help personal practice?
Can we go over the steps of your sequencing method?
Why do you choose the physical as a focal point and less the philosophy?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME A PREMIUM MEMBER TODAY.

If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate, and review anywhere you listen. Come connect with us on IG @onandoffyourmatpodcast as we revisit every single episode since the beginning. Continue to get inspired and learn even more with a Premium Subscription. As a member, get early access to regular episodes, a tone of exclusive audio and video content, and the ability to request the exact kind of episode you need to continue to deepen your practice. This subscription is on Patreon so you can also contribute to the community. Patreon is a crowdfunding platform that enables fans like you to support creators like me in sharing everything yoga offers with the world. Sounds good? Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member. At the same time, you support me in the creation and production of this podcast, so I really appreciate your support! Thank you.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Jason Crandell is a natural teacher and author with more than 20 years of experience. Named “one of the teachers shaping the future of yoga,” by Yoga Journal, Jason has been an in-demand teacher at conferences around the world for more than a decade. Considered a teacher’s teacher, Jason has taught on countless teacher-training faculties, leads trainings globally, and regularly presents teacher-training content at esteemed conferences. Jason’s primary teacher is Rodney Yee—who was kind enough to say, “Jason is taking the art of teaching yoga to its next level.”

For the past 10 years, Jason has honed his approach by looking to peers outside of the yoga community, in the fields of physical therapy, orthopedics, traumatology, and sports medicine. These collaborative partnerships have enabled Jason to offer the most up-to-date to asana technique, cueing, injury management, and hands-on adjustments. Jason’s goal is to blend the timeless wisdom of yoga philosophy with evidence-based information to create yoga curriculum that helps modern practitioners grow and evolve.

His website: www.jasonyoga.co

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PREMIUM | Yoga for Your Core

Mon, 30 Nov 2020 13:34:08 GMT

A strong core is not about bikini season, and a core workout is not a post-Thanksgiving punishment.

A strong core stabilizes the body and allows you to move in all directions with more control and less injury risk. Whether you're flowing through a vinyasa or mopping the floor, all necessary movements either originate in your core, or move through it. So, in turn, weak or inflexible core muscles can impair how well your arms and legs function in mobility and strength. This sturdy central line of the body connects your lower and upper body allowing you to balance as well. In short, your core affects everything you do.

For episode 74 of On and Off Your Mat Podcast, premium members requested a yoga sequence focused on core strength, so this episode is part of our premium subscription. Visit ~~patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger to have access to the full video sequence.

You can become a premium member for as low as 5$/month. As a member, you'll have access to exclusive content like this 30 minutes video yoga sequence focusing on your core to follow along. You'll be able to request what kind of content you want, to get precisely what you are looking for, and improve your practice without having to pay for a one-on-one session with me. You can also have access to some or all the classes I've been recording on Zoom and continue to record during this shelter in place. I'm talking over a hundred yoga classes.

A premium membership will propel your practice and is a way to give back to the community. Know that as you become a member, your contribution ripples to tens of thousands of people every month, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a diverse community of yogis, helping cover production costs and simply helping me continue to provide this podcast, which I love to do, so I truly appreciate you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga, Chronic Pain and Mental Health, with Erika Belanger

Mon, 23 Nov 2020 18:34:04 GMT

We are finishing our mental health series today. If you missed our 3 other episodes, check out #70: Yoga for Stress and Anxiety, and #72 Yoga for Mental Health. You also got a deep dive and practice of alternate nostril breathing on our Premium Membership on Patreon for #71, as a tool to deal with stressful times.

Today is a special episode. I do not have a guest. I wanted to do this episode and talk about my journey with chronic pain and mental health and how yoga has been part of my healing.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Stress affects directly your pain, and your pain affects every aspect of your life. Addressing stress will help manage the physical, mental and emotional consequence of being in constant pain and will reduce the pain at the source.

2- No matter the type of pain you have, there are things you can do to support your body: food & supplement, gentle exercise, acupuncture, massage, chiropractic, talk therapy, meditation, visualization, sleep/rest and breath are all great tools to experiment with.

3- You can live joyfully despite the pain. As you acknowledge your pain, learn to listen to what it's trying to tell you, and stay curious and kind, you will start to understand the pain, how it affects you and which strategies help you the most. That creates agency and empowerment and helps you move out of hopelessness.

4- There's hope. Nobody knows your body better than you. No matter what your situation is, there's a way. Doctors are human like you and me and might not have all the answers. Seek help but don't abandon your power in the process.

5- There's a clear link between mental health and chronic pain. It's important to acknowledge your emotions, experience them & process them. On the other hand, you also need to see the big picture and focus on the good. Practice acceptance, gratitude and loving kindness.

THINGS I TOUCHED ON DURING THIS EPISODE:

My story
What is endometriosis
What is chronic pain
What happens when we ignore pain
The effects of stress on pain
My top ways to manage chronic pain
Lessons / Things I wished I learned earlier
How to enjoy life despite the pain
The link between chronic pain and mental health
How to cope with the emotional impact of chronic pain
How did yoga helped me solidify my recovery

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast. Have you checked out our new Instagram page @onandoffyourmatpodcast already? We are starting all the way back from the beginning, revising every single episode! So come by and follow us so you can catch up on all the episodes you missed and their content or get reminders from your favorite episodes! You can also continue to support this show through Patreon as i mentioned before. For as low as 5$ a month you get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations and more, and in the 2nd and 3rd tiers, you get access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during the shelter in place. So, if you’d like to have access to all this including the episode on alternate nostril breathing to help you detress, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT ME

Erika is a yoga teacher, the host and producer of On & Off Your Mat Podcast and a transformational life coach. Being a teacher is part of who she is, and she uses yoga, podcasting and life coaching as different entry points all aiming to help her students and clients build a happier, healthier and more peaceful life. Her radiant spirit and engaging sense of humour creates light-hearted practices focused on awareness, intentional movement and self-care. She empowers her students and clients awaken to themselves, become embodied and build the life of their dreams.

Website : www.erikabelanger.com

IG :@erika.belanger & @onandoffyourmatpodcast

Email and share your story : erika.belanger@gmail.com

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Yoga for Mental Health, with Dr. Lauren Tober

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 11:41:43 GMT

We are continuing with our mental health theme in hopes of supporting you through these challenging times. If you missed our Episode #70: Yoga for Anxiety, find it here, and our articles and premiums episode on Alternate Nostrils Breathing, you can find the deep dive article here and the practice of alternate nostril breathing or a follow along on our Premium membership on Patreon. Some of you have reached out to say how much it helped them, thank you if you did!

For today's episode, I sat down with Dr Lauren Tober. Lauren is a Clinical Psychologist and Yoga Teacher with a passion for health, healing, happiness and awakening. She is the founder of Awake Psychology, an online Australia-wide psychology practice, the Centre for Mind Body Wellness in Mullumbimby (Australia), teaches Mental Health Aware Yoga trainings world-wide and runs several highly acclaimed online courses. Lauren believes that happiness is our true nature, and that yoga, gratitude, authenticity, compassion, creativity and community help us to cultivate happiness in our lives on an everyday basis.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Stress is a precursor to mental illness. It underlines a lot of physical and psychological illnesses.

Mental illness and mental health challenges are extremely common. In many western countries, 1 in 5 report a diagnosable mental illness in the last 12 months period. Another 1 in 5 people struggle without meeting the diagnosable caracterias.

2- Over half of yoga student report starting yoga for mental health reasons and more than 3/4 report continuing practicing for mental health reasons.

3- Creating a safe container in our classes is the first and most important thing we can do as a teacher to support our students, particularly those struggling with mental illness challenges. Be consistent and predictable, give permission to leave and leave the door unlock, use non-judgmental and inclusive language. Invite instead of insist, ask to notice instead of telling what their experience should be. Reduce likelihood of comparison and competition. Look at your own biases and beliefs. Be mindful of touch. Be fully present.

4- You don't need to fix people that are having an emotional response during class. You can be there for them, notice what's happening, but oftentimes, there's nothing you actually need to do. We don't need to rescue them.

5- Yoga isn't therapy but is therapeutic. Coming together in community, moving the body, mindfulness, practice to regulate our emotions, mood and the nervous system, exercice, are all things that are therapeutic.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

What in your life particularly brought you to want to focus your work on mental health and mental illness?
Can you define mental illness?
As yoga teachers, what should we know about mental illness?
How can yoga teacher support students that come to yoga for mental health reasons? And how do we stay within our scope of practice while doing so?
What creates a safe container in class?
How can we ask permission to touch in a way that makes it easy and comfortable for people to say no.
How can we be more present for our students?
What should teachers watch out for to not be triggering, to not add on to trauma, or simply not to be counterproductive to their students needs?
What are some therapeutic skills yoga teachers need to learn?
Any tips for teachers that might have to deal with a moment of crisis in their class?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast. Have you checked out our new Instagram page @onandoffyourmatpodcast already? We are starting all the way back from the beginning, revising every single episode! So come by and follow us so you can catch up on all the episodes you missed and their content or get reminders from your favorite episodes! You can also continue to support this show through Patreon. For as low as 5$ a month you get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations and more, and in the 2nd and 3rd tiers, you get access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during the shelter in place. So, if you’d like to have access to all this and/or help me in the creation of this podcast, please find us on IG or Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Dr Lauren Tober is a Clinical Psychologist, Yoga Teacher and certified iRest Meditation Teacher with a passion for health, healing, happiness and awakening. Lauren is the founder of Awake Psychology, an online Australia-wide psychology practice, the Centre for Mind Body Wellness in Mullumbimby (Australia) and teaches Yoga Teachers around the world about mental health with the Mental Health Aware Yoga training.

She has also created several acclaimed online courses, including Meditation, Pure + Simple, Living Your Heartfelt Desires and A Daily Dose of Bliss. Her work is soulful without being new-agey. It’s evidence based, without being clinical. It’s authentic, heartfelt and life changing.

She has been featured in various publications including Sydney Morning Herald, ABC Radio, Collective Magazine, Australian Yoga Journal, Australian Yoga Life Magazine, Peppermint Magazine and more.

Lauren believes that happiness is our true nature, and that yoga, gratitude, self compassion, authenticity, creativity and community help us to cultivate happiness in our lives on an everyday basis.

You can read more about Lauren’s qualifications and experience here.

FB group :

Instagram: @mentalhealthawareyo

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PREMIUM | Alternate Nostril Breathing

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 08:55:10 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member. On the 5$ tier, you get one new exclusive every month. Today you get a lesson on Alternate Nostril Breathing, we talk about what is the practice, why do it, the benefits, any contraindications, I give a few tips to help you and then we practice together with a few different variations. With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording on zoom and continue to record during this shelter in place.

Today’s episode can be used as a practice along with audio or as a class to learn the practice... It was requested by some patreon members. Thank you for the request and please continue to send them my way.

Know that as you become a PREMIUM member, Your contribution ripples to thousands of people every month, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis, helping cover production costs and simply help me continue to offer this podcast, which I love to do so. I truly appreciate you.

Ok! That’s it for now, go onto withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger or Stay tuned for our next regular episode!

Thank you guys, until next time!

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Yoga for Stress and Anxiety, with Amanda Whiting

Mon, 26 Oct 2020 09:49:23 GMT

With the World Mental Health Day earlier this month, and everything happening socially, politically and health wise in the world right now, I thought it was the perfect time to dig in the power of yoga to support us through these times.

For this episode, I sat down with Amanda Whiting. Amanda is a yoga teacher specializing in yoga for emotional well-being. She is the creator of the online programs Yoga for stress and anxiety and Yoga for resiliency and self-compassion. Amanda is passionate about teaching and inspiring others to use postures, breath work, and meditation, to manage anxiety, become empowered, and cultivate a greater sense of well-being.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Yoga can help you change your relationship to your body and to your own mental illness. Instead of having the expectation of curing anything, create the intention of forming a more friendship based relation with your own experience and your own life.

2- Yoga can help manage anxiety because it's balancing for the nervous system and is a tool of awareness. It give us a sense of understanding what is happening in the body and facilitating a connection between the mind and the body which tunes us in more accurately to what is happening inside, so we can evaluate what is helping and what isn't.

3- Stress happens to every single person. Your body is overtaxed, unsure how to react and it's can't follow it's natural rhythm. Anxiety is a significantly stronger sympathetic nervous response. Some signs include; thingness in the chest, increased heart rate, change in blood flow & tingling.

4- With anxiety, your body is trying to help you. It's trying to protect you. I's not out to get you. The more you fight anxiety the more anxious you'll get. Listen, practice acceptance, self-compassion and gratitude instead. Once you get ok with your situation, things actually start change.

5- Repetition, rhythmic movement and linking of breath with the movement are keys in your movement practice to help calm your sympathetic response. To choose the intensity of your practice, meet your nervous system where it is now.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

What in your life has led you to particularly want to help people deal with stress and anxiety?
Why turn to yoga instead of other methods to deal with anxiety? How can yoga help?
So we are all on the same page, can you define anxiety and how it’s different than stress?
As we relate it to yoga, how does it look particularly from the standpoint of the nervous system?
Are there misconceptions about anxiety? Or anything we need to understand better to be able to reduce it more effectively?
What does a movement practice geared towards reducing stress and anxiety looks like?
What else in the yoga tool kit can help alleviate anxiety?
Other at-home small everyday tips/tools to help?
What can people reflect on?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast. Have you checked our new Instagram page @onandoffyourmatpodcast already? We are starting all the way back from the beginning, revising every single episode! So come by and follow us so you can catch up on all the episodes you missed and their content or get reminders from your favorite episodes! You can also continue to support this show through Patreon. For as low as 5$ a month you get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations and more, and in the 2nd and 3rd tiers, you get access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during the shelter in place. So, if you’d like to have access to all this and/or help me in the creation of this podcast, please find us on IG or Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Amanda can say with certainty that teaching is her passion. Her desire to inspire others is apparent in her teaching where she brings together yogic philosophy, alignment principles, and a sense of “real”ness. Yoga has taught Amanda that through postures (asana), breath work (pranayama) and meditation, her anxiety becomes more manageable, strength becomes apparent, and an overall sense of wellbeing is inevitable.

Her website:www.withinyouyoga.com

FB:www.facebook.com/withinyouyoga

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Honoring the Roots of Yoga, with Susanna Barkataki

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 07:45:51 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Susanna Barkataki. Susanna is a yoga teacher, Certified Yoga Therapist and the founder of Ignite Yoga and Wellness Institute where she runs Ignite Be Well 200/500 Yoga teacher Training programs. She is the author of the forthcoming book Honor Yoga’s Roots: Courageous Ways to Deepen Your Yoga Practice. With a degree in Philosophy from UC Berkeley and a Masters in Education from Cambridge College, Barkataki is a diversity, accessibility, inclusivity, and equity yoga unity educator who created the ground-breaking Honor {Don’t Appropriate} Yoga Summit with more than 10,000 participants.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Originally, the practice was meant to help transcend the attachment to the body. A full yoga practice is far beyond the physical. It includes all 8 limbs, yoga philosophy, ethics, mantra, mudra, spiritual and lineage acknowledgment and appreciation, and more.

2- To be a responsible and holistic yoga teacher today, you need to have some understanding of social justice and social equity since yoga is about unity.

3- Yoga was pre-religious, it was a earth based spiritual practice. Yoga came from the elements as a way to understand suffering, understand the world around us, and to learn to be more in harmony with that world and with ourselves. It later co-existed and was influenced by the major world religions. It's at least 2,500 BCE, possibly 5,000-10,000 BCE.

4- The lack of accessibility, representation and equally in yoga classes is a public health issue. As a teacher, ask yourself who is not here and why are missing?

5- As a student, diversify your feed, seek out a variety of teachers, support organizations that work towards equality and diversity. Commit to stick to a variety of practices. There are no rule book. It's about thinking critically and acting in a way that brings balance to the power difference and tries to heal the harm that was made in the past.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Why are you passionate about this work? And who do you it for?
You say “There has been some misunderstanding as to what yoga is in the west today” Could you explain what is the definition of yoga you work with, just so we’ll all be on the same page?
How does the definition translate and look like in our experience of yoga in a studio in the western world?
What as westerner yoga teachers should we study, look at, consider?
Can we do a brief overview history of yoga?
Was the watering down of the practice to make it more palatable was a good strategy?
How does racism shows up in the yoga community and how can we create more equality and diversity?
As a student, how do you make other students feel more welcomed and participate in the efforts of the studio to be more inclusive?
What is cultural appropriation, what isn’t?
What does cultural appropriation look like in the yoga context?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 69th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. With even a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. On October 1st, you got a Restorative Yoga Class on Video. You can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

An Indian yoga practitioner in the Shankaracharya tradition, Susanna Barkataki is the founder of Ignite Yoga and Wellness Institute and runs Ignite Be Well 200/500 Yoga Training programs. She is an E-RYT 500, Certified Yoga Therapist with the International Association of Yoga Therapists (C-IAYT). She is the author of the forthcoming book Honor Yoga’s Roots: Courageous Ways to Deepen Your Yoga Practice. With an Honors degree in Philosophy from UC Berkeley and a Masters in Education from Cambridge College, Barkataki is a diversity, accessibility, inclusivity, and equity (DAIE) yoga unity educator who created the ground-breaking Honor {Don’t Appropriate} Yoga Summit with more than 10,000 participants.

IG: @susannabarkataki

susannabarkataki.com

ignitebewell.com

namastemasterclass.com

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PREMIUM | Restorative yoga at the wall

Mon, 05 Oct 2020 12:35:17 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member. On the 5$ tier, you get one new exclusive episode every month. Today you get a 30-minute video sequence, a delicious no props required restorative yoga class with me. With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording on zoom and continue to record during this shelter in place.

Today’s episode is a simple and easy sequence to prepare you for bed, to take a break in a stressful day or just to use as a self-love act. It was requested by a few patreon members. Thank you for the request and please continue to send them my way.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Self-Mastery, wit Eva Beronius

Mon, 28 Sep 2020 10:51:49 GMT

Do you ever long for a deeper understanding of yourself that leads to transformation? If so, this episode is for you.

I sat down with Eva Beronius. Eva is the founder of Self Mastery and Beyond and the highly praised online meditation course Beyond the Mind. Her own journey has included transforming a state of PTSD and anxiety with symptoms like panic attacks, depression and trust-issues into a thriving life and peaceful mind. She has experience with various techniques in trauma therapy and personal growth as well as a spiritual foundation in the Toltec tradition. She is passionate about how we can access change by bypassing the rational mind.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Even considering that our unconscious beliefs about ourselves drive 80% to 90% of our thoughts and emotional reactions, real change is absolutely possible. The very step towards transformation is to release your stress. In a stressed brain, there's no space for anything else but survival, for fight or flight.

2- The cycle starts with a painful emotion that we carry. Then, we create a belief linked with the events that led to the creation of that painful emotion. Eventually, something happens that activates this beliefs and we latch onto a protective mechanism that has helped us in the past to avoid feeling that emotion pain. We avoid, distract, manage, pretend...

3- Our protective mechanism can push us intro overly strong reactions and make us project our past experience onto our present situation. By reliving the same situation or emotional reaction, your mind is trying to solve the painful situation, to create a different outcome so it can get to a resolution. It will be repeated again and again until you move forward and make a different choice in your reaction.

4- The first step in self-mastery is self-awareness; the capacity to observe yourself by directing your attention. In the second step, to help you step into the observer, you can journal at the 3rd person to help create some distance to disidentify from the situation and your reaction and gain a more neutral perspective. Step 3 is mapping, dividing your reactions into characters, versions of yourself, or archetypes. Once you have identify those, you can start noticing them throughout your day, how they are layered, structured and interacting together, and which emotions each character carries, what does their world consist of?, What do they believe? That way you can create a new relationship with your emotions, step into your subconscious and start releasing the emotions and changing your inner world, your programming.

5- Find a way to break down your "old house" while building your "new house". if you only work on building the new parts of yourself, you create disconnect, shame, rejection of an other part of yourself.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

What was going on in your life for you to want to make a change?
What is the structure hidden under our reactions?
What kind of beliefs drive our emotional reactions?
How do we know if our protective mechanism are still serving us?
What are some tools to reflect on our protective mechanism? How does the process looks like?
How do we start to move away from suffering, break our cycles?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 67th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. With even a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. on September 1st, you got an episode on self-care, on what is it, why it's important and how to practice it. You can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Eva Beronius is the founder of Self Mastery and Beyond and the highly praised online meditation course Beyond the Mind. Her own journey has included transforming a state of PTSD and anxiety with symptoms like panic attacks, depression and trust-issues into a thriving life and peaceful mind. She has experience with various techniques in trauma therapy and personal growth as well as a spiritual foundation in the Toltec tradition. She is passionate about how we can access change by bypassing the rational mind.

Today she is teaching workshops and retreats around the world, hosting online courses and working with individual clients. She believes one of the most important pieces to healing is connection – with yourself, with others and with life itself – and her coaching is signified by presence, non-judgement, compassion and truth.

Her website : https://selfmasteryandbeyond.com

IG : @evaberonius

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Instagram, Nomadic teaching, and tips for students, with Adell Bridges

Mon, 14 Sep 2020 09:37:35 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Adell Bridges. Adell is a yoga teacher who has travelled the world to share her love of yoga. Her background as a gymnast plays a meaningful role in the playful and creative style of her teaching, which she intertwines with pranayama, yoga philosophy, and anatomy to take the physical practice into a journey of inner awareness and acceptance. Adell trained in India before teaching in Asia, Europe, Central and North America, sharing her own yoga journey in hopes of inspiring and serving others in theirs.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Let your why lead your presence online. Know what is your intention and own who you are and you'll

2- The physical part of the practice is a tool to come in a state a yoga.

3- Joint hypermobility affects all the connective tissues in the body caused by a disruption in the collagen. It affects your joint, but also your skin, your blood vessels, your gut lining.

4- Whatever movement you don't do, you loose.

5- Transitions are just a series of posture that we move through quickly. A posture can be any position you can put your body in. Paying attention to our transitions helps us stay in the present moment. It helps us stay aware of our physical sensations, our strengths and weaknesses; helps us avoid injuries. It's a great place to learn. Just like in life, nothing is ever totally static, we are always transitioning, moving form thing to thing.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

You say that yoga has changed your life for the better in every way. Can you elaborate?
How do stay out of the over-identification with your body and your practice when you have such a big presence online?
How do you realize that you are more than your body in the practice.
You started this project on hypermobility. Can you explain what it is and why you wanted to address the issue? What's the goal?
How can people know id they are hypermobile?
Tips for better handstand?
What’s the one thing you wish people knew about handstanding?
What is the most questions you get asked the most often about their handstand practice?
What mindset is helpful?
What's your favorite backbend?
Tips for safer backbends?
Why engage the glutes in backbends?
What's your energetic experience of deep backbends?
Why should we care about fascia?
What does fascia response well/not well to?
What's one thing you wish you knew about fascia a long time ago?
How do you take care of your fascia?
Why think about our transitions?
What happens in that space between poses?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 66th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. With even a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. on September 1st, you got an episode on self-care, on what is it, why it's important and how to practice it. You can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

Before we get to today's episode, I have one last announcement about my upcoming India Yoga Retreat… With the covid situation and travelling situation not getting better, I have decided to postpone to the following year instead so FEB 2022 . I’m adding another retreat in Europe for the fall of 2021, instead. Stay tuned for more details about that.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Adell is a yoga teacher who has travelled the world to share her love of yoga. Her background as a gymnast plays a meaningful role in the playful and creative style of her teaching, which she intertwines with pranayama, yoga philosophy, and anatomy to take the physical practice into a journey of inner awareness and acceptance. Adell trained in India before teaching in Asia, Europe, Central and North America, sharing her own yoga journey in hopes of inspiring and serving others in theirs.

adellbridgesyoga@gmail.com

www.adellbridges.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Self-Care : What, Why & How

Mon, 31 Aug 2020 12:11:41 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member. On the 5$ tier, you get one new exclusive content every month, like this episode with me on self-care, plus the other regular episodes in the video, uncut and uncensored format. With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording and continue to record during this shelter in place.

In today’s episode, I talk about self-care. What is my definition of self-care, why I think it’s important, and what is actually looks like beyond bubble baths and candles… You feel inspired and empowered in your own practice of self-care. This episode was requested by a few Patreon members. Thank you for the request and please continue to send them my way.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sanctuary Meditation and Yoga Nidra, with Rod Stryker

Mon, 17 Aug 2020 18:08:46 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Yogarupa Rod Stryker. Rod is a world-renowned yoga and meditation teacher, guiding and sharing his wisdom for 40 years. He is the founder of ParaYoga®, and the author of The Four Desires: Creating a Life of Purpose, Happiness, Prosperity, and Freedom. He is the creator of one of the most comprehensive online yoga trainings in the world and most recently, the app Sanctuary, a premier destination for all levels of those wanting to experience the life-changing practices of meditation and yoga nidra, Rod has dedicated his life to improving lives through his lectures, writing, practice, teaching, leadership, service and family life.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Hierarchy in teaching doesn't have to be informed my patriarchy or dominance. The role of a teacher is to lead by definition, but to eventually make themselves obsolete, by empowering their students so they can walk away and stand in their own wisdom and capacities.

2- Ultimately what determines the quality of your life is the quality of your perception of life and the depth of your own self-awareness. Yoga is about the mind more than it is about the body. The end goal is the refinement of the quality of your perception, so yoga asana is a meditation tool.

3- Yoga Nidra is the conversion of sleep and meditation. Your body is fundamentally asleep and your mind gets into a delta pattern; it's most quiet, most relaxed, deep state of relaxation, but there is still a thread of being conscious. It recalibrates us our perception of ourselves by being both a practice and a state of consciousness.

4- To live a happier, more purposeful life, you have to start by getting still. Then, you get clarity on how to live in alignment with your purpose. It doesn't matter what you're doing in life, but you won't find happiness until you live a purposeful life. You will feel lost for not having done what you were here to do, not being who you were meant to be, and creation will suffer from you not playing your role in it. "An undisciplined mind is unfit for any path".

5- Understanding your life purpose helps you deal with the small things in life, not only the big challenges. When you learn how to responds better to those small things, your destiny changes. You take the driver seat in shaping your destiny by making those everyday small right decisions. Peace is never guaranteed but we are each responsible for finding our own peace and best form of self-care is to overcome our nature.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

How do you describe ParaYoga?
You recently launched a new meditation app called Sanctuary, why did you choose to ch
One of the things you teach is Yoga Nidra, for listeners that have never done Yoga Nidra before, can you explain what it is?
How do to start moving towards a happier and more fulfilled life?
How do you uncover your true purpose and live a happier life?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 64th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. I have just added 2 new tiers to the premium memberships. As before, with a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. on August 1st, you got a 25 minutes delicious Yoga Nidra,so perfect timing! Now you can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Yogarupa Rod Stryker is a world-renowned yoga and meditation teacher, guiding and sharing his wisdom for 40 years. He is the founder of ParaYoga®, and the author of The Four Desires: Creating a Life of Purpose, Happiness, Prosperity, and Freedom. He is the creator of one of the most comprehensive online yoga trainings in the world and most recently, the app Sanctuary, a premier destination for all levels of those wanting to experience the life-changing practices of meditation and yoga nidra, also known as Enlightened Sleep. Rod has dedicated his life to improving lives through his lectures, writing, practice, teaching, leadership, service and family life.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Telling a story through yoga photography, with Robert Sturman

Mon, 03 Aug 2020 12:00:46 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Robert Sturman. Robert is a dedicated yoga practitioner and photographer capturing the timeless grace and embodied mindfulness of yoga in his work. His stunning repertoire of portraits runs the gamut from yogis perched on rocks surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, to African orphans practicing yoga in Kenya, to breast cancer survivors, bare-chested and scarred. In addition, Sturman has worked extensively photographing war veterans who have embraced the practice of yoga to heal PTSD, first responders and more. He has been an Official Artist of the 47th Annual Grammy Awards, the 2010 FIFA World Cup and 2008 United States Olympics.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Photography is a way to pay attention, recognize, see, and acknowledge to the person you look at.

2 - Photography can be like positive propaganda. You can share new ideas that will become the norm. You can change the world through the images you take. It's the most influential form of communication.

3 - Yoga simply helps you make better choice. Yoga is for anybody and everybody, anywhere and everywhere.

4 - Being an artist is different than being a photographer.

5 - Never look down on anyone. When you photograph someone. Be eye to eye, on your subject's level. It's a sign of respect!

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Why do you choose to showcase yoga in your photography?
How do you tell a story through a still image?
Does the subject and the story you choose to tell change the power of the art piece?
What was the idea behind your "Scars are Beautiful" Portfolio? What drew you to breast cancer survivors?
Why do cancer survivors wanted to do these shoots? What was their intentions?
Which prisons have you visited and photographed?
You say that “everything you know about the essence of photography, I learned from working in prisons” Can you explain that?
Is the camera a way for you to share what you see so more people can see it?
What was your intention about photography the military and first responders doing yoga.
You photographed for the Africa Yoga Project and made and did a photographic essay for the New York times about it. What did this portfolio and your trip to Nairobi teach you? Did it change your perspective on yoga in any way?
What inspires you right now? What would you like to see more represented?
How do you feel about everybody being a “photographer” now?
Any tips to take better photos?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 63rd episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. I have just added 2 new tiers to the premium memberships. As before, with a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. The newest episode was an amazing 25 minutes Yoga Nidra. Now you can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

A dedicated yoga practitioner, photographer Robert Sturman has increasingly focused on capturing the timeless grace and embodied mindfulness of asana in his work.

His portraits, whether set in the lively streets of Manhattan, the expansive beaches and canyons of Malibu, the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro, the timeless elegance of Walden's New England, or the bleakness of San Quentin Prison, remind us that there is beauty everywhere.

His stunning repertoire runs the gamut from yogis perched on rocks surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, to African orphans practicing yoga in Kenya, to breast cancer survivors, bare-chested and scarred. In addition, Sturman has worked extensively photographing war veterans who have embraced the practice of yoga to heal PTSD, in an effort to help change the heartbreaking statistics of veteran suicides each day.

In Sturman's own words, "I often think of Rumi's words 'I can't stop pointing to the beauty.' That feels right to me." Sturman's honors include Official Artist of the 47th Annual Grammy Awards, 2010 FIFA World Cup Artist Representing America, and Official Artist 2008 United States Olympics. Sturman has been the subject of two separate New York Times articles celebrating his photographs of yoga from around the world.

Artist website:

www.RobertSturmanStudio.com

Social media:

www.instagram.com/robertsturman

www.facebook.com/Artist.Photografia

Press:

https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/31/yoga-in-africa/

https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/18/turning-yoga-into-art/

https://medium.com/@AJEnglish/portrait-of-a-yogi-16a1af9818fe

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

PREMIUM | Yoga Nidra

Mon, 27 Jul 2020 16:32:41 GMT

This is on and off your mat podcast, exclusive episode #62: Yoga Nidra. This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member. On the 5$ tier, you get one new exclusive content every month, like this meditation, plus the other regular episodes in the video, uncut and uncensored format. With the other tiers, you can also have access to some or all the classes I’ve been recording and continue to record during this shelter in place.

With today’s episode, you get a 25 minutes reclined guided meditation, perfect to relax fully during the day or to get ready for bed. Thank you for the request and please continue to send them my way.

Know that as you become a PREMIUM member, your contribution ripples to thousands of people every month, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis, helping cover production costs and simply help me continue to offer this podcast, which I love to do so. I truly appreciate you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Less is More, Gentle is Advanced, with J. Brown

Mon, 20 Jul 2020 12:00:23 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with J.Brown. J is a yoga teacher, writer, and podcaster. He is at the forefront of a quiet yoga revolution, based in healing, that seeks to change the dialogue and direction of yoga practice in the west. His writing has been featured in Yoga Therapy Today, the International Journal of Yoga Therapy, and across the yoga blogosphere. His podcast is internationally renowned for raising the level of conversation around the practice.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- The point to do one-on-one is to adapt the practice to the needs of the students. In a group class, if you use simplicity and repetition in the sequence, students get to know what is coming and if you offer tools so students learn how to individualize the practice, you can as a teacher walk around, and help in a way that the group practice becomes closer to a personal, one-on-one practice.

2- Less is more. Simple breathing and simple movement can have huge impact. They teach you sustained attention, and that connects you to how you feel, it builds your awareness and clears your perception of what is happening in your life.

3- Sometimes we need to do something, so we can stop doing, and find wonder, awe and harmony. In there lies healing.

4- When you decide that your practice is not about the poses, the practice becomes about the breath. "Attention to breath and body to that" instead of making the breath follow the movements. When you loose the breath, pull back on the movement. Use the breath as a stabilizer in the movement, and operate form a place of awareness. Let the breath be your boundary.

5- The relationships teacher-student is at the core of the practice. Depth of relationship is better on many levels than wider reach.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
How do you bring the main principals of a personal practice into a group practice?
What's the value of self-practice in your opinion?
What is yoga for you? What's your experience of yoga?
What do you wish teachers and students alike would understand better about the breath?
How can more gentle be more advanced?
Why did you start the podcast?
Is there any episode that were particularly impactful to you?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 61th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. I have just added 2 new tiers to the premium memberships. As before, with a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. Last month you got a 30 min Hatha Flow. Now you can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

J. Brown is a yoga teacher, writer, and podcaster. He is at the forefront of a quiet yoga revolution, based in healing, that seeks to change the dialogue and direction of yoga practice in the west. His writing has been featured in Yoga Therapy Today, the International Journal of Yoga Therapy, and across the yoga blogosphere. His podcast is internationally renowned for raising the level of conversation.

Visit his website at jbrownyoga.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga, Body Neutrality & Gender Questions, with Bethany C. Meyers

Mon, 06 Jul 2020 16:17:02 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Bethany C. Meyers. Bethany is the founder of the online sensation, the be.come project, is a master instructor and entrepreneur with a message known for inclusivity and body-neutrality. Their unique approach to movement awakens clients in profound ways. Meyers’ voice stands apart in the fitness world as a leader in dismantling beauty standards. They are also a champion of the LGBTQ+ community.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Language affects the way we move. Use your words to honor where your bodies is, connect to how you feel and choose what serves you best, what is right for your body. Shame and punishment do not yield long term results.

2- Body neutrality is respecting our bodies no matters how you feel about it that day.

3- Ask yourself why you need to comment on someone else's body appearance and how often you do it, why you do it and how it might impact them. You have no idea about what they are going through.

4- Gender is more complicated than genitalia : There is the gender that is assigned to you at birth from genitalia , so your body (note that there's as many inner sex people as red hair), there's your identity (how do you identify) and your social expression of it (how to you dress, present yourself to the world).

5- The use of new pronouns needs practice. It's like learning a new language. It's not about being perfect but making the effort to attempt to use them. Try reading a book out-loud and changing the pronouns to they/them, or write sentences and read them out-loud. If you're talking and struggle use the person's first name instead. If you make a mistake, correct and move-on.

QUESTIONS THEY ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE:

How can we approach fitness and yoga with a body-neutral way of cuing?
How do move away from using shame and punishment as motivation?
What's the difference about body positivity and body neutrality for you?
What has did you time/recovery from ED taught you about your body and influences the way you teach?
How do we move the society needle on fat-fobia? What can we do as individuals?
You describe yourself as “queer-poly-married-non-binary-they/them” and say that scares you, I’ll make it not. Let’s talk about it.
What do we need to know about gender?
What about gender congruence, choice, and trends?
Do you have tips to help people use they/them pronouns?
Anything else you want to add before we finish?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 60th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. I have just added 2 new tiers to the premium memberships. As before, with a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. Last month you got a 30 min Hatha Flow. Now you can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Bethany C. Meyers, founder of the online sensation, the be.come project, is a master instructor and entrepreneur with a message known for inclusivity and body-neutrality. Their unique approach to movement awakens clients in profound ways. Meyers’ voice stands apart in the fitness world as a leader in dismantling beauty standards. They are also a champion of the LGBTQ+ community.

Please note the be.come project is spelled just like that, all lowercase and the punctuation.

https://thebecomeproject.com/

IG: @bethanycmeyers

IG: @thebecomeproject

the be.come project is also offering the below during this time:

IF YOU ARE ABLE TO SUPPORT:

Click below to purchase one month of be.come at $30 for someone in need (normal price $35). Purchase as many gifts cards as you like. the be.come project will match every single COVID-19 relief purchase to double the impact, while spreading movement and compassion in a time when we need it most.

IF YOU ARE IN NEED:

Please email share@thebecomeproject.com, tell us about your situation and how a free month of the be.come project will be helpful. Applicants will be put on a waitlist and as gift cards come in, we will distribute on a first come, first serve basis. PLEASE only apply if you are in need. We know this goes without saying but we are trusting you to make the right choice to ensure this goes to the right people.

IF YOU ARE IN BETWEEN:

We are offering $5 off your first month. Sign up with the promo code: staysafe.

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PREMIUM | Full body Hatha Flow

Mon, 29 Jun 2020 18:30:54 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member.

With this episode, you get a 30 minutes full body sequence video flow to follow along and do at home with me. This one was also a request! If you have requests please let me know about them, I'm happy to create content just for you!

You get one new exclusive episode a month, plus the other regular episodes in the video, uncut and uncensored format.

We are also adding new tiers, if you want regular video classes, you'll have more options. Stay tuned and visit withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger for more details.

Ok! That’s it for now. Stay tuned for our next episode!

Thank you guys, until next time!

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Restorative Yoga and the Importance of Slowing Down, with Judith Hanson Lasater.

Mon, 22 Jun 2020 14:20:33 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Judith Hanson Lasater. Judith has a Ph.D in East-West psychology, she’s a trained, Physical Therapist and has been teaching yoga since 1971. She trains students and teachers throughout the United States as well as abroad. She is the co-founder of Iyengar Yoga Institute in San Francisco and a founder of the Yoga Journal magazine and is president of the California Yoga Teachers Association. She has written eight books, including her most recent one called: Restore and Rebalance: Yoga for Deep Relaxation.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Restorative yoga is remembering to be still every day. When we are still, silence arises. When silence arises, fear melts away. When fear melts away, there's space for spontaneous gratitude, joy, compassion and empathy. From there's an integration of our being.

2- You can't force yourself to relax, but you can carve out 20 minutes a day to do nothing. Doing nothing is the best thing you can do for yourself. It's a radical thing. No music, no talking, no recording. Do it in a place you feel safe and it's quiet.

3- It will start to notice that your mind is a drunken monkey. Pay attention to the sensations of breaths and you'll create radical presence. Becoming aware of sensation is a practice of body-fulness on top of mind-fulness.

4- The body is always trying to reach out homeostasis. Stress is the most important disruptor of that state of homeostasis. Worrying is praying for what you don't want. so let's focus on what you don't want.

Physiologically, it takes at least 15 min to relax, if you are well rested.

5- The light is the most stimulating thing to the nervous system.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you define what is restorative yoga and explain what is special about it or different than other styles of yoga?

Do you think it's a more meditative practice compare to other asana practices?

What are the benefits, or positive effects of this practice?

How do you take the weight of stress off the body?

What are the stages of Savasana?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 58th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a tell-all episode on my life story.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Judith Hanson Lasater, Ph.D., PT, C-IAYT, E-RYT-500, YACEP®, has taught yoga around the world since 1971. She is a founder of the Iyengar Yoga Institute in San Francisco, CA, as well as the Yoga Journal magazine which is published in a number of countries. Ms. Lasater frequently trains teachers in virtually every state of the union and is often an invited guest at international yoga conventions. She is president emeritus of the California Yoga Teachers; Association as well as the author of numerous articles on yoga and health for nationally recognized magazines. She was featured in Self Magazine in 1998 as one of the outstanding yoga teachers in the U.S. In 2000, she was selected by Yoga Journal Magazine as one of the outstanding yoga teachers shaping yoga practice in America today. She was selected by Natural Health magazine, on the occasion of their 40th anniversary, as one of the five people in the USA who has had the most influence on natural health in America during those 40 years. In 2015, Yoga Journal Magazine selected her the most influential yoga teacher in the USA in the last 40 years.

She is the author of ten books, including: Yoga Myths: What You Need to Learn and Unlearn to Stay Safe and Happy on Your Yoga Mat (2020) Restore and Rebalance: Yoga for Deep Relaxation (2017, What We Say Matters: Practicing Nonviolent Communication (2009),YogaBody: Anatomy, Kinesiology, and Asana (2009), A Year of Living Your Yoga (2006), Yoga Abs (2005), Yoga for Pregnancy: What Every Mom-to-Be Needs to Know (2004), 30 Essential Yoga Poses: for beginning students and their teachers (2003), Living Your Yoga: finding the spiritual in everyday life (2000), and Relax and Renew: restful yoga for stressful times (1995), and Living Your Yoga: finding the spiritual in everyday life (2000).

Her website : judithlasater.com

www.judith.yoga

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Yoga Deconstructed, with Trina Altman

Mon, 08 Jun 2020 12:00:58 GMT

For this episode I sat down with Trina Altman.Trina is the creator of the programs Yoga Deconstructed® and Pilates Deconstructed®, which we’ll talk about today. On top of her public, privates and online classes and courses, Trina has presented at Kripalu, the Yoga Alliance Leadership Conference and Yogaworks, among others. She also created and taught a Pilates continuing-education course for physical therapists and was part of the faculty for the Brain Longevity conference at UCLA.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Body weight activities, repetition, and low variability adds more risks for injury. Play with load, range of motion, direction of movement, plane of movement, open chain/close chain, orientation to gravity, intensity, tempo, etc.

2- There's huge value in one-on-one lessons. You can learn faster and get an individualized, customized, personalized approach to your movement. Progression is faster, there's more possibility for leaning and it's easier to avoid injuries.

3- Pain is a bio-psycho-social event. The correlation between damaged tissue and pain is low. Everybody have a difference pain tolerance. For the same sensation, one person will identify it as pain the other as pleasure. It's really complicated.

4-Cross training is key to continue a yoga practice for a long time without sacrificing what you love by having to stop due to an injury. Think about adding external load, cardiovascular training, balance and agility, motor development, coordination, flexibility, jumping skills, and more.

5-Before you take a group class, you should know what you can do, what you can't do, what you should and what you shouldn't do. And know that those 4 things will change throughout your life and from day to day. The only way to know those 4 things is to work one on one with a teacher. That way, in a group class, you don't need the teacher for modifications, you know how to take care of your body.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

You created Yoga deconstructed and Pilates deconstructed, can you explain what those are? And why you created them?
What is somatic movement?
What problem did you try to address with creating yoga deconstructed?
What in yoga/pilates was putting you at risk for injuries?
How can we bring more variability in our movement practice? What is the goal?
What can we do, inside our scope of practice, to help prevent injuries?
If we do have pain during yoga or everyday life activity, where do we start? What do we look at first? What are the different clues we can be aware of?
I know some listeners probably love the flexibility aspect of yoga and don’t naturally feel drawn to strength or stability work. How can they continue to improve their flexibility, focus on their flexibility without sacrificing their stability?
One thing you teach a lot and I also love to teach is regressions/progressions, can you explain how those are useful? And give an example?
How can student learn what modification is best suited for them?
How can a teacher look at the yoga cues they use all the time and evaluate the use/effect of what they are trying to do?
If there's no right way to do things, is there a wrong way?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 56th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a tell-all episode on my life story.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Trina Altman, BS, NCPT, received her training through STOTT PILATES® and is an E-RYT 500, YACEP®. She’s the creator of Yoga Deconstructed® and Pilates Deconstructed®, which take an interdisciplinary approach to foster an embodied understanding of yoga and Pilates and their relationship to modern movement science.

Trina has presented at Kripalu, the Yoga Alliance Leadership Conference and Yogaworks, among others. She also created and taught a Pilates continuing-education course for physical therapists and was part of the faculty for the Brain Longevity conference at UCLA.

Trina was a finalist in the Next Pilates Anytime Instructor competition in 2017. Her work has been published in Yoga Journal, Yoga International, and Pilates Style magazine and her classes have been featured on Yoga International and Yoga Anytime. She also consulted for Equinox to help develop their signature program Best Stretch Ever, which utilizes the mobility stick to improve functional range of motion, body awareness, and total body strength. Her book, Yoga Deconstructed®: Transitioning From Rehabilitation Back Into The Yoga Studio is slated to be published by Handspring Publishing in the fall of 2020.

She works out of Los Angeles at Equinox and Kaira. For more information on Trina and her online classes and courses, visit trinaaltman.com. Follow her on Instagram at: @trinaaltman & on Facebook at: Trina Altman Yoga and Pilates.

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PREMIUM | A Meditation to Access Your Intuitive Mind

Mon, 01 Jun 2020 17:38:44 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member.

In that episode, we explore 3 ways to get assistance in making decisions. We can ask the mind and the body for intuitive guidance by using different styles of a question, and observing the information we receive in sensations, imagines, sounds, words, feelings to get clarity on the next right action for us.

You get one new exclusive episode a month, plus the other regular episodes in the video, uncut and uncensored.

Ok! That’s it for now. Stay tuned for our next episode

Thank you guys, until next time!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Power of Binaural Beats for Meditation and Life.

Mon, 25 May 2020 12:00:06 GMT

For this episode I sat down with Karen Newell. Karen is the co-founder of Sacred Acoustics and co-author with Dr. Eben Alexander of the book Living in a Mindful Universe :A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Heart of Consciousness. As an innovator in the emerging field of brainwave entrainment audio meditation, she empowers others in their journeys of self-discovery. Creating and recording binaural beats and other sound patterns, she teaches how to connect to inner guidance, achieve inspiration, improve wellness and develop intuition.

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Delta brain waves are associated with deep sleep, Theta are associated with deep mediation, Alpha is for focus and concentration, and Beta, is the state we are in thinking and going about our days.

2- The sounds don't affect the physical body directly but change your awareness of your body, your level of identification with the physical and non-physical parts of yourself, it affect the mental, energetic, emotional and spiritual aspects which in turn will impact the physical body.

3- Binaural beats can help you access deeper levels of mediation, deeper sleep, better focus, deal with mental health issues (particularly anxiety and depression) and access higher levels of consciousness (telepathic connection, Kundalini awakening, lucid dreaming and out of body experiences.)

4- The sounds affect the lower, primitive brain, entraining it to match the vibration to put the thinking mind on hold.

5- For optimal effect, use headphones and lie down when you listen.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey co-founding sacred acoustics?
Can you explain what is the different brain to states of delta, theta and alpha? What happens in each state and why we might want to entrain with one vs the other?
How does it work? Can you explain how hearing a sound affects and changes your brain?
If you feel anxiety, does it means it's being released or just activated? Should people continue or change recording?
How do you create them? What’s the creative process like?
How do psychedelic drugs affect your brain waves compared to the binaural beats?
How does it affect our beliefs, and help us access higher levels of consciousness?
What's your opinion on affect the body and physical pain with these sounds?
What’s the difference between binaural beats, monaural beats, isochronic tones and the other sound patterns you use?
How do you know the level of quality of a recording?
Why headphones are important?
Do you also use cymatics? Or only audio?
Tips and tricks to make the most of it?
How can we use this technology to be useful in times of crises like right now?

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ABOUT OUR GUEST

As an innovator in the emerging field of brainwave entrainment audio meditation, Karen Newell, co-founder of Sacred Acoustics, empowers others in their journeys of self-discovery. Using Sacred Acoustics recordings, she teaches how to connect to inner guidance, achieve inspiration, improve wellness and develop intuition.

In her search for answers to fundamental questions, it became clear that direct experience is crucial to full understanding. To bolster her strong sense of inner knowing and alignment with her higher nature, she enrolled in a series of hands-on experiential courses to investigate and develop such skills as lucid dreaming, astral travel, telepathy, remote viewing, self-hypnosis, and different forms of energy healing.

She developed a facile expertise in living through daily connection with universal consciousness using heart awareness as a central element. At international workshops presented with best-selling author Dr. Eben Alexander, Karen demonstrates key practices of consciousness exploration: heart awareness, intention, maintaining neutrality, emotional management and cultivating internal knowing. She is co-author with Dr. Alexander of their latest book, Living in a Mindful Universe: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Heart of Consciousness.

During 26-years working in the magazine and newspaper publishing field, Karen held key leadership positions involved with the direction and management of technology transitions faced by the print industry. Her business skills include web development, desktop publishing, communications, information technology, project management and strategic planning.

www.sacredacoustics.com

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Meditation 101, with Bex Urban

Mon, 11 May 2020 11:00:14 GMT

For our 54th episode, I sat down with Rebecca Urban. Rebecca, known in yoga circles as "Bex," has led Yoga and Pilates classes since 2000. As a child, Bex was introduced to many spiritual teachers and practices, igniting a thirst for spiritual insight and physical well being that has inspired her all of her life. Her father introduced her to meditation at age 4, by 6 she was visiting the Insight Meditation Society, Massachusetts. In 1983, Ram Dass came to her family home to gather with a group of psychologists about a book he was writing. At 12, Bex had the honor of meeting the Dalai Lama and presenting him with a rose. Since 2003, Bex has worked one-on-one with clients in her own private space and online at UrbanGlo Studio, where she offers sessions in Pilates, Yoga, Reiki and intuitive healing.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- You might be rolling your mat at the end of the practice and it will be unrolling in front of you all day long.

2- Why do you need to wait that the plane is crashing to put the oxygen mask on yourself? Use meditation as a self-care practice. Instead of a to do list, start build a to be list.

3- At the minimum, take 3 minutes with your hands on your belly in bed and breathe. After the timer goes off, ask yourself : do I feel better or do I feel worst? In only 10 days, 3 minutes a day, you'll start to feel a difference. If you don't, you have a great opportunity to question why you're so resistant to the practice.

4- Start where you are. Be in the present. Begin by ease dropping on your own mind. Ask yourself, is that thought true, kind, necessary? if not, let it go. Become awareness. Be still and quiet, and see it as mind training. Find what works for you and slow it down. Start small, attainable. Ask a friend to join you, support you and meditate at the same time.

5- Mediation helps you expand your capacity to tolerance. You'll learn to be more discerning. Give yourself permission to believe that slowness is beautiful and beneficial, and that you are enough no matter what your practice looks like. There are no bad mediator. It's a chance to find refuge in yourself and to reclaim your goodness. Remember that it's not a result oriented practice and that even long time mediator have days where they struggle. You're doing the best that you can and that's what's important.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

- How was it to grow up in that context? How did it influence who you are today?

- Is it all yoga to you or are the physical and seated practice different?

- I heard you say “My yoga mat is always unrolling in front of me” Can you elaborate on that?

- Meditation is one of those things we generally know is good for us yet we resist... I’ll say an excuse to not meditate and you give me your answer…

I don’t have time
I’m not religious, not even spiritual, so it’s not for me. It’s too woo-woo
I can't sit still.
It’s boring. I have more important things to do.
I don't want to sit and face myself and my emotions. It's too hard. It hurts.
I’m not comfortable sitting cross-legged on the floor.
I’ll look weird/ be judge by / my partner doesn’t do it… no one I know...
I’m not good at it.

- What's the key to finding the right meditation type for you?

- Why do we resist things that are good for us?

- Why practice? What's the point?

- What actually happens when we meditate? How can listener know they are doing ok?

- What are the main obstacles to us sitting?

- Should people necessarily seek the help of a teacher?

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DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 54nd episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a tell-all episode on my life story.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Rebecca Urban, known in yoga circles as "Bex," has led yoga and Pilates classes since 2000. Certified through the Yoga Alliance and PMA, Bex’s approach focuses on bringing awareness to our breath as the essential link between mind, body, and movement. She emphasizes finding center, balancing the body from the inside out, and using the physical practice to forge a larger spiritual connection. Her positive energy inspires everyone she works with to show up, release, and build strength.

Bex leads classes with enthusiasm, warmth, and a gentle sense of humor. Her students attest to her authentic ability to bring them into the moment, and guide them to a place of focus and greater self-acceptance. She weaves sequences that are safe, creative, challenging and filled with reverence. Bex invites students to set their own intentions, making the practice uniquely their own. She brings spirit, love, and openness to her teaching with the ultimate goal of inspiring a devotion to movement and yoga and its many benefits in all her students.

Learn more about her :

Her website : www.bexurban.com

IG: @bexurban

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PREMIUM | My Life Story

Mon, 04 May 2020 12:00:08 GMT

This episode is part of our PREMIUM subscription. To get access to it, visit ~~Patreon.com/onandoffyourmat~~ withribbon.com/u/erikabelanger and become a member.

In today's episode, I go over pretty my whole life story from birth to now. I’m talking really openly about my struggles with anxiety, depression, eating disorder, and chronic illness, and i finish by sharing my hopes for the future.

Know that as you become a PREMIUM member, Your contribution ripples to thousands of people every month, allowing me to offer accessible quality free content to a wide community of yogis, helping cover production costs and simply helping me continue to offer this podcast. I truly appreciate you.

You get one new exclusive episode a month, plus the other regular episodes in the video, uncut and uncensored.

I hope you enjoy!

Thank you guys, until next time!

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Yoga is More Than Asana, with Alexandria Crow

Mon, 27 Apr 2020 12:00:39 GMT

For our 52nd episode, I sat down with Alexandria Crow. Alexandria is an internationally respected teachers’ teacher who leads teacher trainings and workshops around the world. Through her Yoga Physics methodology, her in-person continuing education workshops and online DeConstruct to ReConstruct Course, as well as her 300 hour teacher intensive, she aims to clearly explain the what, why’s and how’s of asana, meditation and yogic philosophy making the practice approachable for everyone, of every level and of every walk of life. As a former competitive gymnast, she fell in love with yoga but through a series of significant and unforeseen injuries her practice and teaching has dramatically evolved to focus on sustainability and accessibility.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- We have to stop being afraid to do what is wise for us instead of what we were told was the advanced pose. Be skillful and let go the rules. Investigate and make an inform decision instead of relying on the "pre-fab" variation of the pose.

2- When we look at the value of challenging poses, ask yourself "Who would you be without (pose you're striving for)? / Why do I want to learn that? What do I think what I'll get out of it.?"

3- Being a very advance student doesn't make you a very good teacher automatically. Look for a teacher that empowers you to be able to practice on your own, that understands the practice, than can verbalize and articulating why you're doing what you're doing. Look for a teacher that tries to educate instead or demonstrate.

4- Meditative contemplative practices are not to stop the mind, they are used to create space, to understand that you are not your thoughts, that not everything they say is true, that you're not even responsible for a lot of them (they arise from habit, conditioned behavior and even just out of the ether), t's about being able to sit, watch and feel what they do to your body, how they create your choices and actions and being able to step back as the witness instead of being dictated by them.

What's Effort and effortlessness is about duality and our desire to manipulate what's is happening.

5- Non-attachment is not about being detached form everything, it's about observing your relationship with everything and the it's state of impermanence, and seeing how that relationship might create suffering in your life.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

What is yoga? How do you define the practice?
How can the poses help us the goal of the practice?
Why did you create the Asana Lab?
How do you balance choosing the most appropriate variation and not always staying in your comfort zone?
What’s the value in working towards really challenging poses in your opinion?
There is pressure as a teacher to be able to do the fancy poses, teach the challenging poses, how can we bring the point of yoga across in public classes without that? How do we keep it salable/profitable
Often times, with IG, there’s this assumption that a teacher that has a strong physical practice will automatically be a good teacher… How can a student make the difference?
What's the place of the other limbs of yoga in our modern western classes?
Can you comment on these concepts :

Fluctuation of the mind
Effort and ease
Permanence/Impermanence
Duality and union / illusion
Non-attachment

10. How can we as students refine our participation, our understanding of the practice, and as teachers encourage our students to do so?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 52nd episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a VIP member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a lesson on Breath of Fire and a practice of it.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Alexandria is an internationally respected teachers’ teacher who leads teacher trainings and workshops around the world. Through her Yoga Physics methodology she aims to clearly explain the what, why’s and how’s of asana, meditation and yogic philosophy making the practice approachable for everyone, of every level and of every walk of life. Her in-person continuing education workshops and online DeConstruct to ReConstruct Course, as well as her 300 hour teacher intensive train teachers to be better informed on yogic philosophy and history, the physical mechanics of the body and how to apply that knowledge to asana, as well as how to ethically lead group classes that are accessible and sensitive to all. Her Yoga Physics mentorship program is helping teachers build on their strengths, while discovering their own unique voices.

Years of research, scientific inquiry, self inquiry/scrutiny, development and integration have gone into Alex’s work. The result is an evolved set of techniques and approaches that eliminate the problematic components of physical asana practices and group classes while providing an in-depth understanding of how individual teachers situate themselves within these dynamics. The class formats and teaching tools that Alex offers are sustainable and accessible for anyone that wants to take class regardless of circumstance and that teach yoga’s philosophy in real time in an experiential way.

Alex’s emphasis on paying attention and her insistence on each individual respecting their own uniqueness encourages them to love and celebrate who they are. It’s this love of their own unique perfection that creates true change in her students so they can connect with more grace to themselves, to others and to the world.

Find out more about her :

Her website

Instagram @alexandriacrowyoga

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Becoming a (better) Yoga Teacher, with Noah Maze

Mon, 13 Apr 2020 12:00:08 GMT

For our 51st episode, I sat down with Noah Mazé. Noah co-founded his school, The Mazé Method with his wife, Tracy, nearly a decade ago. Together they have pioneered training content to enhance and sharpen the skills of yoga teacher around the world. Noah serves as faculty for teacher trainings internationally, and acts as a consultant to corporations developing yoga education programs. He is a regular presenter at Wanderlust Festivals and contributes to publications including Yoga International, Yoga Journal and more. He offers online classes at Yoga International, Wanderlust TV, and OmStars, and offers a vast array of online content via his own site.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- Teacher trainings are not only for students that want to be teachers. You can have other goals in that learning experience. A 200H is just scratching the surface. There's always more to learn. We are never really done being a student of yoga, even when you are a certified teacher.

2- Being a good teacher is being authentic to yourselves, owning your voice, what you know and don't know, your experience and what is not your experience. They make no greater claim than what belongs to them, and they find the balance between confidence and humility.

3- When you're a student-teacher, go to class, but don't be just a student; peak behind the curtain, be curious about all the things the teacher is considering to make the choices that they are making, the sequence that they are teaching, the instructions that they are giving. The more you can have multiple perspectives, the more you'll learn.

4- Alignment is the shape of the pose we're going for. Any deviation could be considered misalignment, but it doesn't mean it's wrong, bad or injurious, it only means it's not what we are going for at this moment. What we label as aligned is limited to a specific context.

5- To grow as a teacher, you have to start with self-compassion, be clear on your goals as a teacher and look at your choices according to the experience you wanted to offer.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
How do you ignite a love of teaching and intrinsic motivation in students / future teachers?
What does it take to be a successful yoga teacher? How does success actually look like?
How does a good student becomes a good teacher? What does that transition look like?
How to pick the right training for you?
What are the pieces that you will find no matter who you study with?

Burst questions:

One fun fact about anatomy?
One alignment that is misunderstood?
One tip for more efficient sequencing?
One thing to remember as a new teacher about teaching pranayama or meditation?
Bhagavad Gita or Yoga Sutras? Which one do you choose?
For all the teachers out there live streaming on zoom or other platforms because of the shelter-in-place, how can they use this time as an opportunity to grow and become better teachers?
What can teachers look at/for when they watch themselves on video?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 51st episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a lesson on Breath of Fire and a practice of it.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Noah has devoted his life to the subject of yoga. Noah is best known for his clear, precise and methodical teaching style, his tangible knowledge, and his ability to transmit with openness, curiosity, and wit. In the words of his students: Noah’s fierce and compassionate dedication to yoga inspires and holds space for students to journey deeper into body, heart, mind, and spirit than they ever could have imagined. Noah began a regular hatha practice when he was 14 years old and has spent his life in learning. He has collected, gathered, experienced and embodied this vast subject: seeking out the best teachers, learning from different lineages and absorbing much of what has been on offer.

Ever-advancing the conversation and curriculum in yoga education, Noah co-founded his school, The Mazé Method with his wife, Tracy, nearly a decade ago. Together they have pioneered training content to enhance and sharpen the skills of yoga teacher around the world. Noah is always a student and has devoted himself to creating pathways for teachers to continue their learning and cultivation of voice and skill. In addition to creating and developing his school's curriculum, Noah serves as faculty for teacher trainings around the world, and acts as a consultant to corporations developing yoga education programs. He is a regular presenter at Wanderlust Festivals and contributes to publications including Yoga International, Yoga Journal and more. He offers online classes at Yoga International, Wanderlust TV, and OmStars, and offers a vast array of online content via his own site, which can be found at www.mazeonyoga.com and www.themazemethod.com.

Noah lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Tracy, their two children, 8yo Oliver and 11yo Madeleine, and their five rescued dogs.

Learn more about him :

www.mazeonyoga.com

www.themazemethod.com

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Goddesses, Meditation & Love, with Sally Kempton

Mon, 30 Mar 2020 18:47:48 GMT

For this episode, I sat down with Sally Kempton. Sally is a widely respected teacher of meditation and spiritual wisdom. She has spent over four decades practicing, teaching, and writing on meditation and spiritual philosophy. Sally spent 20 years as a swami in a traditional Vedic order of monks. Sally is the author of the best-selling books "Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga" and of "Meditation for the Love of It,”, and an audio program called Doorways to the Infinite: The Art and Practice of Tantric Meditation. She is on the faculty at Esalen and Kripalu, teaches meditation on the websites Glo.com, Gaia.com, and Yogajournal.com, and is a contributing editor at Yoga Journal. Sally teaches online courses and seminars on meditation and spiritual philosophy, and leads retreats and workshops in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1-We are in the middle of a shift in global consciousness. You can see as a curse, a result as our global carelessness or as a manifestation of sacred energy. It is the universes gift to you.

2-Tantra is a tradition that offers tools for tuning-in the sacredness of every part of your experience. It's about non duality; not making a split between the mind and the body or ourselves and others. It's a devotional path where we put the emphasis on tuning to higher energies, particularly Shakti, feminine power.

3-Goddesses are condensed form of Shakit Energy. The different goddesses can help us connect to all the different aspects of ourselves, our divine feminine nature. They exist as psychics states of our being.

4-If you are afraid of a strong energy, turn towards it. As you move through it's intensity, you will eventually find the love that they are really about.

5-Life is all about love. Love is the floor, it's the ground. it;s what is. There's interpersonal love, romantic love, but a lot of the practice is about opening to the love that is always there. you need to remove the vales that cover and close our heart. Learn how to open your heart. Feel into the energy of the heart space. You can cultivate it and invite it in.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your spiritual journey?
Why do you work particularly with Goddesses?
A lot of your work is based in non-dual tantra. Can you explain what that is and what are its core principals?
How to choose which Goddess to work with?
Should we be afraid of Kali energy? How can we work with her and feel safe?
I’ve heard you say “Your priority is to experience love, to feel love” How can we experience more love?
How do we move from having to meditate to wanting/loving to meditate?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 48th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a full length video Yoga Tune Up class to improve balance through self-massage and corrective exercises.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Sally Kempton is a widely respected teacher of meditation and spiritual wisdom. She is known for kindling meditative states in others, and for teaching students how to work with yogic teachings for practical life-change. A former journalist who wrote for Esquire, New York, and the Village Voice, she has spent over four decades practicing, teaching, and writing on meditation and spiritual philosophy. Sally spent 20 years as a swami in a traditional Vedic order of monks. She was deeply trained in the teachings of Kashmir Shaivism and Vedanta under the guidance of her enlightened teacher, Swami Muktananda.

Sally is the author of two best-selling books, Awakening Shakti: The Transformative Power of the Goddesses of Yoga, and Meditation for the Love of It,” which Spirituality and Health magazine called “the meditation book your heart wants you to read”. Her audio program, Doorways to the Infinite: The Art and Practice of Tantric Meditation, was released by Sounds True in 2014. She is on the faculty at Esalen and Kripalu, teaches meditation on the websites Glo.com, Gaia.com, and Yogajournal.com, and is a contributing editor at Yoga Journal. Sally teaches online courses and seminars on meditation and spiritual philosophy, and leads retreats and workshops in the U.S., Canada and Europe.

Learn more about her:

www.sallykempton.com

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Inspiring Students and Healing Through Yoga, with Heidi Kristoffer

Mon, 16 Mar 2020 16:16:56 GMT

For our 49th episode, I sat down with Heidi Kristoffer. Heidi is the creator and producer of CrossFlowX™,Microsoft Bing Fitness Yoga & MSN Yoga, and wellness expert for and contributor to multiple online platforms. She was rated one of the: Hottest Trainers in America by Shape Magazine, most inspiring yoga teachers in the world by DoYouYoga, and most popular instructors in NYC by RateYourBurn and ClassPass. Heidi can often be seen featured as an expert on television and in magazines worldwide. Her goal is to make yoga, health, strength, and whole, happy living accessible to everyone.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Yoga teaches you that you are enough. No effort required. Remember this and show up exactly as who you are. Being yourself is the only way to be truly inspiring. Draw from your own experience, from what matters to you, what drives you.

2- Learning inversions and arm balances is a gift to build confidence, capability, strength and independence.

3- Never make an important decision from the fight-flight-freeze mode.

4- Instead of forcing to get in a pose, feel your way into it. When you're not balancing effort and ease you create disease.

5-Yoga is not a quick-fix pill, yoga is a long term sustaining fix. Here are 5 important tips when it comes to yoga and healing: A) Change your mindset around healing. Healing comes form the inside. If you believe you can heal you will. Your body follows what your mind tells it. B) Allow the nervous system to do it's thing and heal : create space, slow down, soften, relax around the injury. C) Don't do it alone but be the driver of your healing journey. Be an advocate for yourself while working with all the specialists you can lean on. D) Be patient and disciplined at the same time. E) Use the practice to strengthen your mental capacities and tap into your intuition so you know what's best for you and your healing. You are the expert on you. No doctor in the world knows more about you and your body than you.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

How is yoga different than any other fitness practice for you?
Why did you transition into fitness and yoga?
You were rated the most inspiring yoga teachers in the world by DoYouYoga. I believe what inspires us as teacher comes through to inspire other people…So what inspires you?
How do you inspire people?
What does it take nowadays to be an inspiring teacher?
How do you balance staying authentic and true to yourself and building a brand that is popular enough to be salable?
What would you say to people becoming teachers seeking fame and popularity?
How can we use yoga as a tool to heal and strengthen the body?
What are some of the biggest blind spot people have when it comes to health and fitness?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Heidi Kristoffer is: mom to three tiny humans, her CrossFlow yoga app, and CrossFlowX™, co-host of new hit “Off The Gram” podcast, creator and producer of Microsoft Bing Fitness Yoga & MSN Yoga, and wellness expert for, and contributor to, multiple publications and platforms. Her goal is to make yoga, inversions, health, strength, and whole, happy living accessible to everyone. Rated one of the: Hottest Trainers in America by Shape Magazine, most inspiring yoga teachers in the world by DoYouYoga, and most popular instructors in NYC by RateYourBurn and ClassPass, Heidi can often be seen featured as an expert on television and in magazines worldwide. A former award winning actress of stage, film and television, and graduate of Cornell University, Heidi makes it her mission to bring happiness to everyone through every medium.

Find out more about her:

Her CrossFlow Yoga Digital Studio

Her Website

Instagram

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

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Recovery 2.0: The Role of Yoga and Spirituality with Tommy Rosen

Mon, 02 Mar 2020 17:46:30 GMT

For our 48th episode, I sat down with Tommy Rosen. Tommy is an internationally renowned yoga teacher and addiction recovery expert who has spent the last two decades immersed in recovery and wellness. He holds advanced certifications in both Kundalini and Hatha Yoga and has 28 years of continuous recovery from addiction. Tommy is one of the pioneers in the field of Yoga and Recovery. He is the founder and CEO of the Recovery 2.0. A program that includes Online Conferences, Group Coaching , a recovery coach training, international retreats and workshops, a podcast called the Power hour and a critically-acclaimed book Recovery 2.0: Move Beyond Addiction and Upgrade Your Life

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

The energy of addiction is an inter-generational tread that builds patterns of behavior that are created intending to solve challenging and complex emotional issues in the family. As we grow up, we continue these patterns of behaviors.
Addiction is any behavior you continue despite it bringing negative consequences in your life. Every human being is somewhere on the spectrum of addiction. If you're not addicted directly to alcohol or drugs, sex or co-dependency, gambling, shopping, or being in a state of debt, food or experience any eating disorders, you might be addicted to technology, to being busy, to negative thinking, to self-doubt, to procrastination, to resentment or to the current way things are.
Recovery is about understanding yourself so you can reconcile the differences between your inner and outer experience of the world. As you get to know yourself, you can start forgiving yourself and others, and eventually love yourself and others. It requires humility, openness, a desire to look at your life and change, a wiliness to learn from your life experiences, a capacity to admit when you're wrong, to be in a state of surrender and to work to understand that the outer world is not where your joy is going to come from.
The path of recovery is a path of discovery. A path where you have an intention, a goal to live with greater awareness, greater consciousness, where to aim to live healthy in your body and mind, where to cultivate harmonious relationships. The path is not an easy, obstacle and stumble free road. Your commitment to learning from what life is showing you is being on the path. You'll have good and less good days.
The role of yoga and spirituality in recovery is to bring our subconscious choices and patterns to light so we can work on them. It helps us attune to a higher vibration and higher state of consciousness, build more clarity, more intuition, cultivate a mind able to focus and see the truth. When your energy is attuned in this way, you connect with people that will meet you and support you on this path.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, your recovery story and yoga journey?
What does addiction actually look like?
How do we measure success in recovery? Why, generally speaking, are we not more successful in recovery, especially long term recovery?
You talk about addiction from a vibrational and energetic point of view, which I love, and is pretty different than other ways it been approached in the past, can you explain what that means and how yoga and spirituality then can help.
How do we use breath, movement, meditation to change that frequency?
What works about the 12 steps and what’s missing?
I love your holistic approach to recovery, I have also heard you talk about diet being another pillar in recovery. How can food help us strengthen the recovery process and help prevent relapse?
Just like in the 12 steps, some make a bigger impression on your life. What yoga concepts or philosophy piece has made the biggest impression on your recovery or on the recovery of people you
work with? Go to yoga concepts?
How is committing to a daily practice important when you’re on a path of recovery? Vs practicing here and there, when you feel that you need it?
How does discovering your mission, living on purpose, and being of service to others also support our recovery?
How would you wish we were treating addicts in this world?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Tommy Rosen is an internationally renowned yoga teacher and addiction recovery expert who has spent the last two decades immersed in recovery and wellness. He holds advanced certifications in both Kundalini and Hatha Yoga and has 28 years of continuous recovery from addiction.

Tommy is one of the pioneers in the field of Yoga and Recovery. He is the founder and CEO of Recovery 2.0, where he has created the Recovery 2.0 Global Community, the Recovery 2.0 Online Conference series, the Recovery 2.0 Group Coaching Program and the Recovery 2.0 Coach Training. Tommy also leads Recovery 2.0 retreats and workshops internationally and presents regularly at conferences spreading the message of “Don’t just survive, THRIVE.

Tommy’s Podcast The Recovery 2.0 Power Hour launched in 2016 and reached #1 in the "Self-Help" and “Health” categories and #8 in all of iTunes.

Tommy’s first book, Recovery 2.0: Move Beyond Addiction and Upgrade Your Life, was published by Hay House in 2014 to International acclaim and continues to transform the lives of readers across the globe.

Learn more about him :

Recovery 2.0 Website

IG : @tommyrosen

Facebook Recovery 2.0

YouTube channel

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

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Yoga competitions and staying connected to your life’s purpose, with Henry Winslow

Mon, 17 Feb 2020 12:00:20 GMT

For our 47th episode, I sat down with Henry Winslow. Henry is a dedicated yoga practitioner whose teaching is rooted in the Ghosh, Ashtanga, and Dharma Yoga traditions. In 2018, Henry took first place in the International Yoga Sport Federation's World Championships, and started to host his own podcast called Dharma Talk and in 2019, he launched the Henry Yoga app, a 40-day program for anyone looking to get serious about yoga, no matter their budget or schedule.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- The competition is about your mind vs your deeper sens of self. It's not about pinning yogis against each others.

2- Never place limitation on yourself based on assumptions. You can have whatever you want in this life as long as your interested and engaged in the process.

3- It's impossible to be out of your dharma. Dharma is an evolution of your life and your soul in this embodied life. Every step you take on your path leads to the next.

4- Yoga is a critical practice in understanding who you are. With steady practice, yoga helps you see the stories you create and recognize the conditioned patterns that you make up.

5- Yoga shows you what's important to you, helps to connect to yourself, and give you the tools to change the world around you. It tunes you on to your moral compass, awakens you to your problems and the solutions you want to bring to those problems and invigorates you to tackle them with renewed fervor everyday.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

You were the International Yoga Sport Federation’s World Champion in 2018, can you tell us why you got into these competitions?
How do you balance preparing for competitions with practices of contentment or intentional living?
What did it mean for you to win? What happens when you get to that level of mastery with the body?
You were a competitive diver and an athlete, how is yoga as a sport different than other competitive sports?
I think yoga, has an impact on our relationship with ourselves and others, what are some of the things you’ve learned about yourself and others in these competitions?
You host the Dharma Talk Podcast, how do you define dharma and what would you say your dharma is?
How does your yoga practice shaped your dharma?
How can yoga help us live a life of purpose and personal significance? What are some of the greatest lessons you’ve learned from hosting this podcast?
You also have an app called The Henri Yoga App. I know your mission is to make yoga accessible for all… How do you do that coming from such an advance physical practice?
From the outside, it seems like your doing it all… Where do you go form here? How do you stay anchor in the present and at the same time continue to grow your business?
Any tips for teachers that want to travel and teach?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

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Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 47th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Henry is a dedicated yoga practitioner whose teaching is rooted in the Ghosh, Ashtanga, and Dharma Yoga traditions. In 2018, Henry took first place in the International Yoga Sport Federation's World Championships, and in 2019, he launched the Henry Yoga app, a 40-day program for anyone looking to get serious about yoga, no matter their budget or schedule.

To Henry, yoga is above all else a tool for cultivating clarity. He credits his practice for attuning him to his own values and for lending him the courage to leave a safe yet emotionally draining job in pharmaceutical advertising and blaze a new path in yoga and entrepreneurship. Through live classes and workshops, the Henry Yoga app, and his podcast Dharma Talk, Henry empowers students worldwide to connect to their innermost selves, where our natural resilience, unlimited power and universal compassion reside.

Reach out : henry@henrywins.com

His website

Hi IG: @henrywins

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

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Chakras 101, with Anodea Judith

Mon, 03 Feb 2020 12:00:09 GMT

For our 46th episode, I sat down with Anodea Judith. Anodea is the director of Sacred Centers a teaching organization for yoga, psychology, and transformational wisdom. She holds a doctoral degree in Human Health, a Master’s in Psychology, is an E-RYT 500 yoga teacher. She is considered the foremost Western writer on the subject of the chakra system, with several best-selling books, including the classics Wheels of Life and Eastern Body-Western Mind. She teaches world-wide and is considered the go-to authority on the chakra system.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- The chakras are centers of organisation for the reception, assimilation, storage and expression of your life force energy. They are balancing portal between the inner and outer world.

2 -They serve as a system that guide us in integration of mind and body within a spiritual framework, mapping the full spectrum of human potential.

3- The chakras are a guide on human evolution and human history, mapping the development age of our society. We are nearing the end of the 3rd chakra era; the love of power and we are moving towards a more heart centered society based on the power of love.

4- Chakra can be out of balance in excess by overcompensation or in deficiency by avoidance. Each chakra needs to be balanced by it self and they need to be balanced in relation to each other.

5- Yoga, bio-energetic exercises, pranayama, mantras, mudras, mediation, visualization are all tools to balance and heal your chakras.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

How did you become passionate with the chakras?
What are the chakras?
Why should we learn about them?
How do the chakras related to human evolution?
How does the next level of evolution looks like?
Can we do a quick overview of them their meaning, location, the element they are associated with, their characteristics?
The chakras are usually taught from the bottom up, but you also teach them from the top down. What’s the difference?
Do you think the chakras are personal and unique to each individual?
Are there specific characteristics of over-active/underactive chakras?
How can we ring them into balance?
How do you choose which tool is the right for us and a particular chakras.
Do you have any references for listeners to study this on their own?
You teach healing, liberation through the chakras. Is that only a personal journey? Is there a way we can bring it into the collective?

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Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 46th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Anodea Judith, Ph.D. is the author of nine best-selling books on yoga, psychology, spirituality, and social change. She is best known for her pioneering work with the chakra system, through the classics Wheels of Life and Eastern Body, Western Mind.

She holds a doctorate in Human Health, a Master’s in Clinical Psychology, and has engaged in lifelong studies in yoga, mythology, sociology, history, systems theory, evolution, and comparative religion. Her most recent book is Charge and the Energy Body.

Learn more about her:

Website: www.anodeajudith.com

Contact info: anodea@sacredcenters.com

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga, Meditation and Your Money, with Manny Weintraub

Tue, 21 Jan 2020 16:05:58 GMT

For our 45th episode, I sat down with Manny Weintraub. Manny specializes in explaining investing to people who haven’t seriously considered it before. As an avid meditation and yoga enthusiast, he looks beyond Wall Street’s conventional wisdom and focuses on mindful investing. During his 30-year career as a Chartered Financial Analyst, Manny has looked after hundreds of clients and managed more than 1.5 billion dollars.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

Mindfulness helps you make clear decision about your money, stay out of the fear business, take action without over worrying and be less reactive to the market.
Stay grounded in the present to make your money decisions. Base yourself on how things are now and not how they might be in the future, or they were in the past.
Don't wait for the perfect market to invest. Do the best you can with what's available. Let go of your desire of perfection. Doing something with your money is better than doing nothing.
Money is a energy exchange. Having money allows you to take care of yourself so you can give more to others. It then creates more choices in your life. With more money, you can have a greater impact on your community.
Focus on the individual sectors or individual stocks to invest in companies that align with your values, and don't forget to chose a company that is profitable and offers a service that will still be needed in 10 years.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself including your yoga and meditation journey?
What’s the link between mindfulness, meditation, yoga, and investments?
What’s the fundamental lesson meditation has taught you about money & investing?
Is doing something with your money always better than doing nothing?
How do we shift our money mindset away from having to chose between making money and living a spiritual life.
If we do want to invest, how do create a portfolio inline in your values?
How do you know that your financial ad visor has your best interest at heart?
How do you use the mindfulness and meditation to help support clients in their money concerns?
Any tips for listeners? Where do we start if we do want to invest?
If we want to invest in a company/stock that offers a high return on investment and has a beneficial impact globally, where do we start? How do we find them and know that they are in fact profitable?
What are some common misconceptions around investing?
Any tips about taking loss?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 45th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Manny Weintraub specializes in explaining investing (in plain English) to people who haven’t seriously considered it. As an avid meditation and yoga enthusiast, Manny looks beyond Wall Street’s conventional wisdom.

During his 30-year career as a Chartered Financial Analyst, Manny has looked after hundreds of clients and managed more than 1.5 billion dollars. His unique approach focuses on mindful investing, retirement. He credits yoga with getting him through the 2008 financial crisis and wants to teach you how to eliminate the stress of making your money decisions.

www.spearsabacus.com

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and Sanskrit, with Nicolai Bachman

Mon, 06 Jan 2020 13:41:21 GMT

For our 44th episode, I sat down with Nicolai Bachman. Nicolai holds an M.A. in Eastern Philosophy, an M.S. in Nutrition. He has studied extensively at the American Sanskrit Institute, the Ayurvedic Institute, the American Institute of Vedic Studies and the Vedic Chant Center. Nicolai has been teaching Sanskrit, chanting, yoga philosophy and Ayurveda since 1994. He has authored several books on Sanskrit and Yoga Philosophy. Today, we sat down to talk about the importance of Sanskrit within the yoga tradition.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- To go deep in yoga you have to start learning Sanskrit. You have to include something more than posture. Not only does it shows you respect the practice and the tradition, but the name of the pose carry information about the intended experience.

2- The pronunciation of the language is of the highest priority. The vibrating energy of the words expresses prana and carries the meaning of the word.

3- When doing mantras, If you pronounce the words wrong it changes the intention, so make sure you pronounce it correctly and find a teacher that can help you.

4- Rhythm is build in the language. Words are broken down in syllables. have long and short sounds. and are done at different tones (low to high) It breaks out the monotony and helps retrain and learn information.

5- When studying the Yoga Sutras, learn the sound of the verses first. As you chant the sutras, all the information it carries will come forward. The sound is associated with the meaning.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

What is Sanskrit, where/when it originated… what should we know about it?
Is it a dead language?
How does knowing Sanskrit add to our practice?
Do you think teachers in the west should use it more than they are?
If people want to learn Sanskrit, where should they start?
Why is Sanskrit pronunciation important?
Does the placement of the tongue helps activate the energy channel?
What are the most mispronounced words?
What are the symbols that can help us know how to pronounce?
Why is the musicality important?
Do you believe it’s essential to do mantras in Sanskrit?
In traditions like Kundalini Yoga, the chant and mantras are in Gurmukhi instead of Sanskrit. Does it matter?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 44th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. Feeling stressed and tired after the holidays? This month, get a yoga nidra; a guided meditation to induce total physical, mental, and emotional relaxation.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Nicolai has been teaching Sanskrit, chanting, yoga philosophy, Ayurveda, and other related topics since 1994. He has a knack for synthesizing and organizing complex topics into simple and understandable presentations. His education combines informal, traditional study with the academic rigor of university classes. Nicolai studied extensively at the American Sanskrit Institute, the Ayurvedic Institute, the American Institute of Vedic Studies and the Vedic Chant Center. He holds an M.A. in Eastern Philosophy, an M.S. in Nutrition, and is eRYT500 certified. His ongoing studies continue to broaden his repertoire and inform all future classes.

Nicolai has authored several Sanskrit book/CD learning tools including 108 Sanskrit Flash Cards, The Language of Yoga (Sounds True 2005), The Language of Ayurveda, and The Yoga Sutras: An Essential Guide to the Heart of Yoga Philosophy (Sounds True 2010). He also wrote an easy-to-read paperback on yoga philosophy called Path of the Yoga Sutras (Sounds True 2011).

Learn more about him :

www.sanskritsounds.com

REFERENCES

Mantra Yoga and Primal Sound - By David Frawley

Susanna Friedman Teacher Training in Baha

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LEVITYoGA™: Subtle Body and Healing with Peter Sterios

Mon, 16 Dec 2019 13:00:36 GMT

For our 43rd episode, I sat down with Peter Sterios. Peter is a yoga teacher, writer, architect, the founder of MANDUKA®, and the creator of LEVITYoGA™. He taught yoga at the Obama White House for First Lady Michelle's anti-obesity programs, and in 2018, was brought in by the Pentagon to share yoga’s therapeutic effects with the US Marine Corps. Today we sit down to discuss Peters new book Gravity & Grace, the evolution of his renowned instructional DVD selected as one of Yoga Journal’s top 15 videos of all time.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Grace is the attraction between 2 bodies that occur at a level deeper than the physical body; in the subtle body.

2- The connective tissue in our body wraps the muscles, joints, organs but also goes much deeper. We now know that it penetrates muscles and bones. It's the primary inhibitor of movement and it's a repository for physical and emotional trauma.

3- The most effective and powerful emotions to create flow in our energy and our bodies is gratitude and empathy.

4- When you feel any kind of pain in the body it's an indication that something is out of balance either physically or psychologically.

5- The chakras don't exists until you visualize them in your body.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

What is LEVITYoGA™? What are the practice principles?
Can you define the concepts of gravity and grave and how they apply to the yoga practice?
Why soften and surrender particularly around the heart and the belly?
I am fascinated with fascia. Why is it important for us to know about our connective tissue with our practice?
How do we get in contact with the more subtle parts of ourselves? What can come in the way?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

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Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 43rd episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your support with this podcast. Visit our VIP member page here to support me and help me continue to offer this podcast, covering production costs and allowing me to create more episodes. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month.

Welcome to our newest Patreon Member : Jennifer and Wayne. Thank you so much for your support.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Peter Sterios is a teacher, author, architect, founder of MANDUKA®, and creator of LEVITYoGA™. He taught yoga at the Obama White House for First Lady Michelle's anti-obesity programs, and in 2018, was invited to the Pentagon to share yoga’s therapeutic effects with the US Marine Corps. He lives in San Luis Obispo CA and leads Teacher Trainings, Workshops, and Retreats internationally. Peter’s first DVD “Gravity & Grace” made Yoga Journal’s ‘top 15 yoga videos of all time’ and his new book “Gravity & Grace” is available at leading booksellers. For more info, visit www.LEVITYoGA.com

Learn more about him :

Website

www.levityoga.com

Facebook

www.facebook.com/peter.sterios

www.facebook.com/petersteriosyoga/

Instagram

www.instagram.com/petersterios/

You Tube

www.youtube.com/user/psterios

YogaAnytime.com

www.yogaanytime.com/videos-by/89/Peter-Sterios-Yoga

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

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Optimal Heath and Wellness, with Melina Meza

Mon, 02 Dec 2019 12:30:35 GMT

For our 42nd episode, I sat down with Melina Meza, Melina is a pioneer in the field of yoga, nutrition, and Ayurvedic Health, sharing her knowledge with yogis around the world for more than 20 years. She is the author of Seasonal Health and Wellness and the Art of Sequencing as well as the creator of Yoga for the Seasons – Fall Vinyasa DVD. Her teachings can also be found on Yoga Anytime, YogaUonline, and Gaiamtv. Whether it’s with individual clients, workshops or retreats, Melina teaches a holistic practice that features lifestyle, diet, and yoga practices tailored to the rhythms of the four seasons.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Ayurveda is a practical, experiment based, preventative health science teaching people to tune in with the flow of nature to address their needs in order to balance yourself with the elements.

2- For optimal health, keep track of digestion of what you take in (food and experience), good energy levels, ability to focus, good sleep, creativity.

3- In fall, turn towards things that are warm, hydrating, nurturing, drawing your attention more inward and helping you slow down.

4- For better sleep, avoid food late in the evening, self-care (oil massage, bath), writing down what you have on your mind, rest before bed, no screens 1 hour before bed.

5- For optimal digestion, eat when you're hungry, stop when you're satisfied (before being full), avoid cold liquids around meal time, distraction while eating.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us about yourself and your journey through yoga, nutrition and Ayurveda?
What is Ayurveda?
In your opinion, what does optimal health and wellness looks like nowadays?
Something I like about your book is that it’s simple. You don’t talk about the constitutions. Why not? Do you think we need to understand them to choose the best practice for us or is following the rhythm of nature enough?
We are in fall now, what are the qualities of this season that we should keep in mind?
Do you have tips for good sleep hygiene?
Digestion is at the core of Ayurveda. Any general tips for better digestion?
How should our movement practice look like in fall?
If we look at meditation, what kind of practice would serve us best in fall?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 42nd episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta was generously supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user .demilo.. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

On and Off Your Mat is also now part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators get shoutouts on the episode and as monthly members you receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Visit my patreon page at here to become a member and get access to all the exclusive content from the last few months! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to what you have missed so far. In December, you got a pranayama practice to go with episode #41! Your support means the world to me. I really want to continue to offer this podcast, but financially it’s challenging, so even with something as small as 5$/month makes a really big difference and helps me continue to share, educate and inspire thousands of students around the world every episode. Thank you in advance.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Melina Meza is a pioneer in the field of yoga, nutrition, and Ayurvedic Health, sharing her knowledge with yogis around the world for more than 20 years. She is the creator of Seasonal Vinyasa Yoga, a holistic practice that features lifestyle, diet, and yoga practices tailored to the rhythms of the four seasons to help people stay healthy as they age. Her passion for Nature, the five elements, beauty, and humor forge the foundation of her unique approach to well-being. In addition to working with individual clients, Melina facilitates year-round yoga and Ayurveda workshops, leading retreats in extraordinary sanctuaries around the world. She is the author of Seasonal Health and Wellness and the Art of Sequencing books as well as the creator of the Yoga for the Seasons – Fall Vinyasa DVD. Her unique teachings can also be found on Yoga Anytime, YogaUonline, and Gaiamtv.

Another way that Melina blends her passion for Nature and creativity is through being a professional photographer. Her images are featured in the books Seasonal Health and Wellness and Yoga for Healthy Aging, and regularly included in Esalen and Breitenbush Hot Springs catalogs.

Find out more about her :

www.melinameza.com

Her books :

Seasonal Health and Wellness - Change Your Life One Week At A Time

Art of Sequencing, Vol. 1

Art of Sequencing, Vol. 2

Art of Sequencing, Vol. 3

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Intro to Pranayama (Breath work) with Richard Rosen

Mon, 18 Nov 2019 13:00:44 GMT

For our 41st episode, I sat down with Richard Rosen. Richard a renowned yoga teacher and the author of five books on yoga. He trained in Iyengar Yoga in San Francisco, and has been teaching for more that 30 years. He, Clare Finn, and Rodney Yee founded the Piedmont Yoga Studio (now called "Nest Yoga") in Oakland in 1987. He is a contributing editor of the Yoga Journal and president of the Yoga Dana Foundation. He has written hundreds of reviews of yoga books and videos for magazines including Yoga Journal, and has given workshops in countries all around the world. Today we sat down to talk about the basic concepts around pranayama.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- You can't push yourself in pranayama. You have to remain calm, patient, take your time and back off from your desire to get something done. If you feel, anxious, frustration or anger, you're pushing to hard.

2- When we are not breathing efficiently, generally in comes form tension in the body, and emotions like fear that make us contracted.

3- To begin a breathing practice, start by getting comfortable with watching the breath. Don't do anything. Let the breath have it's own way.

4- Be patient, do it frequently, start laying down on the floor, add support under the spine to open the chest. Sandbags and earplugs are also very useful to support you in your practice.

5- Pranayama is usually done after asana and a gateway to meditation. Asana prepares you to sit and then, Savasana is the most important preparation for pranyama. You actually prepare for pranayama by doing nothing. If you cant sit in alignment, breathing becomes difficult so stay reclined and breathe laying down.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us about yourself and your yoga journey?
Can you explain what is prana and pranayama?
You talk about becoming a witness when we practice… What does that mean?
Why you are passionate about this particular limb of yoga?
What does it mean to be an efficient breather? What are the common defects of the breath?
What are the elements of the breath?
How do we prepare for pranayama? What’s the foundation we need to establish?
Why practice pranayama? What are the benefits?
How does pranayama affect our state of mind or prepare us for meditation.
What’s the link between prana and consciousness?
Tips, tricks, guidelines for beginners? Or reminders for regular practitioners?
For students that are new to pranayama, where’s a good place to start?
For newer teachers that would like to start including some pranayama in their classes, can you give some ideas of how to build a breath pattern into a whole class, or use pranayama as a theme for the practice?
Is it realistic to include pranayama in 1h class?
Why is pranayama not a very popular practice?
Do you think people need to understand the koshas to practice pranayama?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 41st episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user D. Coyle. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

On and Off Your Mat is also now part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators get shoutouts on the episode and as monthly members you receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Visit my patreon page at here to become a member and get access to all the exclusive content from the last few months! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to what you have missed so far. In November, you’ve got a video flow of one of my favorite warm-up sequence, it was requested by a listener that comes to my classes. Coming up in December, you’ll get a pranayama practice to go with this episode! Your support means the world to me. I really want to continue to offer this podcast, but financially it’s challenging, so even with something as small as 5$/month makes a really big difference and helps me continue to share, educate and inspire thousands of students around the world every episode. Thank you in advance.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Richard began his practice of Hatha Yoga in 1980 at the Yoga Room in Berkeley, and from 1982 to 1985 trained at the BKS Iyengar Yoga Institute in San Francisco. In 1987 he co-founded the Piedmont Yoga Studio with his good friends Clare Finn and Rodney Yee, and taught there for nearly 28 years until it closed its doors in January 2015. Richard continued on with the new owners of You and the Mat until July of 2018, when Nest Yoga purchased You and the Mat’s Oakland location.

Richard is a contributing editor at Yoga Journal magazine, and since 1990 he’s written feature articles, book reviews, a variety of columns, and over 300 yoga video reviews. He’s also the author of four books, The Yoga of Breath (Shambhala 2002), Yoga for 50+ (Ulysses 2004), Pranayama Beyond the Fundamentals (Shambhala 2006), and Original Yoga (Shambhala 2012), as well as recording a seven-CD set titled The Practice of Pranayama (Shambhala 2010). Since 1989 he’s been on the board of directors of the California Yoga Teachers Association, and in 2008 helped form CYTA’s grant-making wing, the Yoga Dana Foundation, which supports California yoga teachers working with underserved populations, such as at-risk and incarcerated youth and disabled students.

Learn more about him :

His website

Get his books :

Original Yoga: Rediscovering Traditional Practices of Hatha Yoga

The Yoga of Breath: A Step-by-Step Guide to Pranayama

Yoga FAQ: Almost Everything You Need to Know about Yoga-from Asanas to Yamas

Yoga for 50+: Modified Poses and Techniques for a Safe Practice

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and Your Self-Love Journey, with Heather Reinhardt

Mon, 04 Nov 2019 12:00:06 GMT

For our 40th episode, I sat down with Heather Reinhardt. Heather is an author, speaker, producer, entrepreneur, yogi, and Yerba Mate addict. she created a lifestyle brand and product line called Amour De Soi™, which includes Affirmation Candles™ and Self-Love Jewelry. Her debut book, Go Love Yourself, was released in Spring 2019 and she’s now working on a four-part book series that’s currently being adapted for television called Past Life Husbands. Today we sat down to talk about self-love and the journey through it.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- Yoga impacts your self-love journey because it shows you who you are. The mat is a mirror for your entire life.

2- Self-love is a righteous knowing of your identity; an understanding of your past choices and a clarity on your future choices. Only when you know yourself, can you love yourself. You stop judging yourself, and when you stop judging yourself you stop judging others. Self-love then becomes the seeds of what is needed to heal the planet.

3- Sacredness is a key to self-love. Sacredness is the combination of your mind, body and spirit working together. To live your best life, you have to know all 3 aspects of that about yourself and act in a way that serves all 3. Good self-care is the key to live in your purpose.

4- Self-awareness is the first step to emotional intelligence. When you get triggered and are able to notice it, you can choose how to response. Taking responsibility for your choices and choosing compassion and forgiveness for yourself instead of blame, judgment and anger is an act of self-love.

5- Breakdowns are the start of breakthroughs. They are a process of transformation in which alone time is crucial to create spaciousness in your life and get clarity. Over scheduling is a strategy to run from yourself.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us about yourself and your journey toward self-love.
How is the mat a mirror of our life? What did you learn about yourself on your mat?
What does it mean to love one-self?
Why is it challenging for people to make the choice to love themselves? You say: “no one really just wakes up one day and decided to love themselves.”
In our last episode, #39 The Portal with Tom Cronin, we talked about shifting our mind’s view on what it means to be human… because if we really saw the beauty in that, we would value different things and act differently. In your book, you talk about understanding our own sacredness as a key to self-love… can you explain what you mean?
What does it look like to treat your mind and your thoughts with respect?
Any tips to shift our mindset?
How can we move from gratitude to manifestation.
What does it look like to treat your body with respect in your opinion?
What does it mean to respect your spirit?
How does following your intuition helps you understand your own sacredness?
What's there a link between boundaries, choices, empowerment, and self-love?
Is setting and respecting your boundaries an act of self-care?
What’s the link between emotions, emotional intelligence, and self-love?
Is there a destination to the journey of self-love? Is there a moment where you have arrived and everything gets automatic and easy?
What’s the biggest obstacle on the self-love journey?
How is alone time crucial?
How is self-sabotage a betrayal of our sacred self and growth? How do we stop it?
Why is life on auto-pilot not a life of growth? How do we get off from auto-pilot if that’s feeling safe?
How do you face people that confront you with the phrase “ You’ve changed” and how can we align with people that add momentum to our growth?
Do you have any practices, tips or useful tools to cultivate self-love to share with us we haven’t yet mentioned?
Anything else you want to add before we finish? If there was one takeaway you’d like listeners to leave with what would it be.
I’ll put all your info in the show notes, but in the meantime, what’s the best place for people to find you? If they want to say hello or study with you?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 40th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

On and Off Your Mat is also now part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators get shoutouts on the episode and as monthly members you receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Visit my patreon page at here to become a member and get access to the August and September and now October exclusive content! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to what you have missed so far. On November 1st, I was planning to get you your next exclusive episode, but with the California Fire and the lost of electricity, I got delayed. I will get it to you ASAP. In the meantime, you also got this episode in our video chat format, adds free, uncensored and unedited before it was launched on iTunes!!!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

As the Self-Love Aficionado, Heather Reinhardt really loves herself. And, she wants you to really love yourself, too. She wholeheartedly believes that having self-love supports you during your struggles. She’s on a mission to make sure as many people as possible have the proper tools to cultivate self-love. With that in mind, she created her lifestyle brand and product line, Amour De Soi™, which includes Affirmation Candles™ and Self-Love Jewelry.

Heather's debut book, Go Love Yourself, was released Spring 2019. Heather’s upcoming project, Past Life Husbands, is a four-part book series that’s currently being adapted for television. Heather has her fingers in many pies (both metaphorically and IRL--she loves pastries). She is an author, speaker, producer, entrepreneur, yogi, and Yerba Mate addict.

Get to know more about her and her work :

Go Love Yourself

Amazon - http://bit.ly/GLYbook

Affirmation Candles

www.affirmationcandles.com

Sites and Social Media

www.heather-reinhardt.com

www.instagram.com/heathereinhardt

www.instagram.com/affirmationcandle

www.facebook.com/heathereinhardt

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Portal : When meditation and mindfulness change your life

Mon, 21 Oct 2019 11:30:15 GMT

For our 39th episode, I sat down with Tom Cronin. Tom is the founder of The Stillness Project, which is a global movement to inspire 1 billion people to meditate daily. He’s been teaching meditation for top-level companies in Australia, from Nova Fm, CBA, Rivkin Finance, Criteo and Fairfax Media. He is the author of 5 books and has written for The Huffington Post, Mind Body Green and Finermind. He’s also been featured on national TV, and in prints, including Vogue magazine, The Daily Telegraph, Business Review, Conde Naste Traveller, and Sydney Morning Herald. Tom has also spoken on stage presenting keynote talks in Mexico, Malaysia, USA, Bali and Australia. We sat down to talk about his latest project : The Portal, a documentary on mindfulness and meditation.

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1- You don't have to wait for your life to be in crisis to start to make a change. If you're already in crisis, just start by listening in, so you can come back home to that connection with your inner state. Use meditation and mindfulness to become aware of your programming and eventually to update that program.

2- Meditation is a tool to enable us to experience more consciousness and open our hearts. Technology can be the same if investors and inventors are also working from a conscious and open-hearted state.

3- We need to cultivate more respect and deeper appreciation for the human experience. We have to stop devaluing some of the highest priorities of what it means to be human : living with an open heart and a quiet mind, exploring the gifts and wonder of why we are here.

4- The only way to change the world is to change yourself. The shift has to be collective at the grass-roots, one person at the time. It's about radical responsibility.

5- Transformation and growth can seem like turbulence, chaos and turmoil at times, but as the progress start to unravel and change you, you start to see the positive shifts.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us about yourself and your journey toward finding meditation and mindfulness?
Why did you decide to make a documentary?
How do you define mindfulness and meditation?
How have these practices changed your life?
What’s the premise of the documentary?
How did you choose the stories shared in the documentary?
In the beginning, Daniel Schmachtenberger asks : “What would life on an enlightened planet would look like?” What's you answer to that?
If as Micheal Siegel says : Every single crisis on the planet is a human-generated problem" can also all the solutions be human-generated?
How can technology help us level up as humans beings?
How do we reprogram society to move towards a more enlighten culture?
In your opinion, what’s more important than money, status or power?
Do you think that a shift in our vision of what it means to be human, can shift how we take care of ourselves, our society and our planet?
Is the movie out yet? Where can people find it?
Can you tell us about the stillness project?
How do you know how many people have been touch with the stillness project?
How do you measure your impact on the world?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 39th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Kaytee Fink. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

On and Off Your Mat is also now part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators get shoutouts on the episode and as monthly members you receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Visit my patreon page at here to become a member and get access to the August and September and now October exclusive content! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to what you have missed so far. On October 1st, as a exclusive episode, you got a tutorial on Uddiyana Bhanda or abdominal lock, in audio and video format! And you also got this episode in our video chat format, adds free, uncensored and unedited before it was launched on iTunes!!! So a lot of extra stuff this month!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Tom Cronin is the founder of The Stillness Project, which is a global movement to inspire 1 billion people to meditate daily. Tom discovered meditation in the early stages of his successful 26 yr career in finance as a tool for stress management. Tom’s experiences through the meditation were not only immediate but very profound. He explored deeper and deeper into the realms of his meditation practice and after studying advanced courses in Bali, India and Australia, he qualified as a Meditation Teacher. Tom has been teaching meditation for top level companies in Australia, from Nova Fm, CBA, Rivkin Finance, Criteo and Fairfax Media. He has been on national TV (Morning Show Channel 9), he has been featured in Vogue magazine, The Daily Telegraph, Business Review, Conde Naste Traveller, and Sydney Morning Herald. He has written for The Huffington Post, Mind Body Green and Finerminds and currently has 5 books published. Tom has also spoken on stage presenting keynote talks in Mexico, Malaysia, USA, Bali and Australia.

Find out more about him and the movie :

The movie : entertheportal.com

Him : Tomcronin.com

The Stillness Project

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Practicing, Living and Teaching Yoga Philosophy with Courtney Seiberling

Mon, 07 Oct 2019 16:25:38 GMT

For our 38th episode, I sat down with Courtney Seiberling. Courtney is a writer, yoga teacher, and educator. She dedicates herself to projects that inspire and help people and is passionate about yoga philosophy. Her latest book : YOGA’S YAMAS and NIYAMAS – 10 Principles for Peace & Purpose is inspiring reader to apply these yoga philosophy concepts in their practice on the mat and in the life off the mat. So what a better subject for this podcast!

5 BIGGEST TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Where does your passion for yoga philosophy comes from?
How can knowledge of yoga philosophy impact the physical practice of asanas, (postures) on the mat?
Why is it still relevant today although it was written thousands of years ago?
Where can a student start if they are curious? What’s a good entry-level text? What text, which version/translation/commentary would you recommend people to dive in first ?
What do you tell students that are feeling intimidated by philosophy?
What are subtle and less subtle ways teachers can bring yoga philosophy into their class?
Any tips for teachers that are not comfortable teaching philosophy in class?
What’s your favorite philosophy concept? Is there one you come back to often when you teach?
How can we take yoga philosophy off the mat and into real life? Can you give examples of concepts that listeners could start to integrate today?
How does having a spiritual system help us in our daily life? cope with challenges both large and small?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 38th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

On and Off Your Mat is also now part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators get shoutouts on the episode and as monthly members you receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Visit my patreon page at here to become a member and get access to the August and September and now October exclusive content! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to what you have missed so far. On October 1st, as a exclusive episode, you got a tutorial on Uddiyana Bhanda or abdominal lock, in audio and video format! And you also got this episode in our video chat format, adds free, uncensored and unedited before it was launched on iTunes!!! So a lot of extra stuff this month! Before we get to our episode with Courtney, I want to Welcome to our newest patreons members this week : Jean-Francois Belanger and Tracy St-Johns. Thank you so much for your support! It will help me continue to offer this podcast, help me cover production cost and potentially allow me to create more episodes!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Courtney Seiberling is a writer and yoga teacher from Los Angeles, CA. Her book YOGA'S YAMAS and NIYAMAS - 10 Principles for Peace & Purpose is an accessible guide to applying yoga philosophy to everyday life through intentional thought and practice. The book is deeply personal and includes memoir-like essays to show how she’s used these principles to move through events like heartbreak, death, and rape. Courtney is most interested in making philosophy less heady and more heartfelt and teaching from a place of honesty and realness.

Learn more about her :

Her website : courtneyseiberling.com

Her YouTube Channel: Courtney Seiberling

Instagram: @courtneyseiberling

Get her book : YOGA’S YAMAS and NIYAMAS – 10 Principles for Peace & Purpose

REFERENCES

Donna Farhi - Yoga Mind, Body & Spirit: A Return to Wholeness

Eknath Easwaran - The Bhagavad Gita

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Sab

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hatha Yoga. Balancing the Masculine and Feminine Energies with Brenna Geehan

Mon, 16 Sep 2019 11:00:25 GMT

For our 37th episode, I sat down with Brenna Geehan. Although Brenna is a San Francisco based teacher, I’ve never had the chance to practice with her, but I’ve heard amazing things about her and her classes. One thing I've heard is how her classes are perfectly energetically balanced, so I thought she’d be the perfect guest to talk about Hat-ha Yoga and the balancing of the masculine and feminine energies.

5 BIGGEST TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1. We are forgetting half of ourselves when we continuously only rely on one type of energy. We need to use both energy to their fullest aspect to really do anything fully.

2. We mostly seek joy and happiness in our external world but it truly comes from our internal world. So cultivating more lunar energy, which is helping you to turn inward, will help you replenish and find joy and happiness.

3. A complete yoga practice needs to include pranayama and meditation : You need the moving inward techniques to balance your energies.

4. Asana is helping you deal with your past, pranayama is helping you deal with your present and meditation is helping you deal with your future

5. The lunar energy is that which helps you go in and look at yourself. It helps you rest, digest and heal. The solar energy helps you move and interact and deal with the world around you, it helps you go out. cultivating the lunar energy will help you hold on to energy longer, it will help you feel steady. Once there, you can handle the external life no mater how turbulent life gets.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you define Ha-Tha yoga.
When we talk about sun/moon, yin/yang, feminine/masculine, is it all the same thing?
Everybody posses both energy no matter how they identify?
In the context of yoga, what does masculine means and what does feminine means?
What does it look like if you have too much feminine or too much masculine energy? What problem can it create?
Since society encourages the development of our masculine energy more, do many people have a lunar/feminine/yin energy that is overdevelop or out of balance in that way?
Is the goal to bring more lunar/feminine/yin energy in to get as close to balance as possible?
What can people do to bring in more yin energy in their practice?
Is meditation always a way to bring lunar energy?
Those 2 opposite energy is making me think of Sthira Sukham asananam from the Yoga Sutras, the balance steadiness and ease, is there a direct link there or are those different concepts in your mind?
Is it important to know where these energy live in our body?
For newer teachers out there or students that practice at home, what do they need to understand about the energetic effect of our practice on the mat to make sure their choice of practice is balanced while creating polarity?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 37th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Kirbysjdbrjskbhd. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

On and Off Your Mat is also now part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators get shout outs on the episode and as monthly members you receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Visit my patreon page here to become a member and get access to the August and September exclusive content! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to what you have missed so far. And on October 1st, you'll get your next exclusive episode: a tutorial on Uddiyana Bhanda. Before we get to our episode with Brenna, I want to welcome to our newest patreons members this week: Alison Winder, Laurey Greide, Soheil Javanshir-Majd and Stan Caires. Thank you so much for your support! It will help me continue to offer this podcast, help me cover production cost and potentially allow me to create more episodes!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Brenna is the Co-Director of Sri Yoga Teacher Trainings and Retreats and has been teaching for 17 years.

Brenna loves to get real with people because she insists on getting real with herself everyday. Brenna believes that we are all here to not only get through life but also to find out how to thrive. Every person's thriving will look different and Brenna encourages students of Yoga and Meditation to go deeper and deeper, and deeper still ~ until they are satisfied.

Brenna teaches yoga as an Energy Management system and in every class, workshop, training, or retreat, one walks away with richer tools to help themselves experience more joy and spaciousness, less fear and tension, and to get intimate with their life purpose. Her classes are a masterful alchemy of clear alignment cues for the body and breath that draws each student to a remembrance of their Sri their brightest, fiery heart and soul.

Currently, Brenna teaches weekly and monthly Yoga, Meditation, and Yoga Nidra classes in San Francisco, as well as Sri Yoga retreats and trainings. Come find out why students think she has the best Savasanas in the city!

Find more about her :

www.brennageehan.com

www.internationalyoga.com/retreats/bali-brenna-jean

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Forrest Yoga with Ana Forrest and Jose Calarco

Mon, 02 Sep 2019 11:00:06 GMT

For our 36th episode, I sat down with Ana Forrest and Jose Calarco. I never had the pleasure to practice live in person with them, but I love the importance and the attention to healing that Forest Yoga stands for. The intentions behind the practices are truly powerful and the spectrum of tools to get reconnected to the body, to the truth, and to move through our suffering is really making those practices much richer, and so I wanted to sit down with them to chat about what healing possibility yoga can offer us.

5 BIGGEST TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1. Your life is infinitely precious. Don't waste it. Thinking that you are not enough is a lie. Tend to your life force and to your spirit in a respectful and reverent way.When you act in a way that doesn't serve you, deep down you know, so stop. Instead do things that help you evolve.

2. Yoga alone might not be enough to heal deep wounds. The body needs movement and action, the mind needs to be still, the emotions need expression and the spirit needs nourishment.

3. To be in integrity, you have to connect with all parts of yourself.

4. There's a lot of suffering and anguish in the yoga community, but yogis need to understand that you don't have to suffer. You can get out of pain, heal your pain and start to live a life that you are proud of.

5. When you set an intention for class, pick something inside of you that needs heeling.

QUESTIONS THEY ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what was the vision behind starting Forrest Yoga?
Integrity is a pillar of forest yoga. How do you teach it?
I think that before we can even connect to our integrity we need to move out numbness and connect to our bodies, so we can listen better to what it’s trying to tell us. How do you approach that? Where can people start?
Can you give examples of tools you give students to get out of pain and heal?
How do you work with the breath?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 36th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Flo Dupuy. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

On and Off Your Mat is also part of Patreon. Patreon is a web platform where you can donate to financially support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators will get shout outs on the episode and as monthly members you will receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Our first exclusive episode was about me, and the second one that just came out on sept 1st was a guided loving-kindness meditation. This month, you’ll get access to one more exclusive gift! I met with Ana and Jose on Video Chat so you’ll also get access to the full unedited video discussion! Visit my patreon page here to become a member and get your hands on all this exclusive VIP content. I want to Welcome our new patreons members this week : Emily Goodell, Felice gold, Julie DErrico, Mark Stefanski, Peter & Linda Hsu and Teri Kelly. Hope you enjoy your exclusive content! Also a special shout out to Karen Holt for her generous donation. Thank you guys for your support. I’m extremely grateful for you.

ABOUT OUR GUEST OF TODAY

Ana Forrest and Jose Calarco. Ana is an internationally-recognized pioneer in yoga and emotional healing. She is the Creatrix of ForrestYoga, a powerfully physical, internally focused practice that emphasizes how to integrate the transformative experiences from the mat into your daily life. With the collaboration of Jose, ForestYoga transformed by embodying and bringing alive ancient spiritual teachings from the Aboriginal culture through ceremonies, stories and songs.

Ana is the author of the book Fierce Medicine and a regular contributor to the Huffington Post, Elephant Journal, Origin Magazine, MantraYoga and Health Magazine, and Yoga Journal Magazine. She is known as a mystic, visionary, philanthropist, and Medicine Woman.

Jose’s background ranges from producer and administrator of large-scale events, to artistic director in the fields of dance, film, theater, yoga and music. Today he the Creative Director, Ceremonial Director and Business Mentor of ForrestYoga. Together they travel the world teaching the healing power of yoga through movement and breath, integrity and spirit.

Find out more about them and their upcoming events :

Website : forrestyoga.com

Events : forrestyoga.com/events

Check out their YouTube Channel :

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPXdW-IGG59j_KlrGYc7_EQ/videos

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga and the 5 Senses with Michele Klink

Mon, 19 Aug 2019 11:00:31 GMT

For our 35th episode, I sat down with Michele Klink. Michele was one of my mentors throughout my first teacher training. She supported me in my growth as a new teacher, and I was always inspired by her passion and dedication for teaching. I have been amazed with how she weaves in philosophical, energetic and spiritual context in her classes, and when I saw that she was offering a workshop on Yoga and the 5 senses, I thought that would be the perfect opportunity to have her on the show as a guest.

5 BIGGEST TAKE AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE

1. The senses are the window to the world we see. Over stimulation of the senses create a fatigue that dulls our senses and therefore our view of the outside world in a way that prevents us to see what is truly there.

2. The goal is to focus on one sense, then withdraw a little bit away from the sense to quiet the mind chatter that is associated with that sense. Allow the awareness of your consciousness to grown until you withdraw completely to be able to really the world as it is ; pure peace, joy and so on.

3. The senses can control the mind and the mind can control our senses. Your sense can deplete you or you can awaken your inner pharmacy of healing through your 5 senses.

4. Some of the Ideas she suggested to explore the senses on the mat (more in the episode):

- Sight : Try a Drishti or gaze point, visualize.

- Sound : Listen to your breath, one sound or one tone in the music.

- Touch : Notice how your skin feels. Use a mudra.

- Smell : Smell the breath in and out the nose. Use essential oils.

- Taste : Tongue mudras

5. Some of the Ideas she suggested to explore the senses off the mat (more in the episode):

- Sight : Go out in nature, look at the view. Sit in front of a sunset.

- Sound : Beautiful music, inspirational words, a soothing voice.

- Touch : Self-Massage, long hug.

- Smell : Choose a smell you love and associate it with a positive emotion.

- Taste : Chew your food! Stay for a few minutes

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

Can you tell us about yourself, your background and your yoga journey.
Can you give us a general overview of what the 5 sense mean in the context of a yoga practice and why we should pay attention to it in our modern day society?
Should we focus on the senses or do we withdraw away from the senses?
Is it easier to start with our dominant or favorite sense or with the opposite?
Is the goal of focusing on our senses to deepen our experience of the present moment?
How do we work with the 5 Senses on the mat?
And how do we do it so that we are not attached to a specific desired experience and stay anchored in the present moment?
How can we incorporate practices with the 5 Senses off the mat, for example for Optimal Health?
If there was one takeaway you’d like listeners to leave with what would it be.

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 35th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Teechadeb. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

Other very exciting news, I’m adding another way for you to support this Podcast. I am now part of Patreon. Patreon is a platform where you can donate to support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators will get shout outs on the episode and as monthly members you will receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Our first exclusive episode will be about me! Thank you if you send me questions! Your support means a lot and will help me continue to offer quality content here for free! Check out my Patreon page here, see my intro video, donate or become a monthly member. Right now, you have an intro video to listen to, and the August exclusive content is out! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ Tier to listen to that episode about me. And On September 1st, you'll get your next exclusive episode. I recorded one of my favorite meditation : Loving Kindness. I want to Welcome to our new patreons members this week : Anastaisa Randall, Bethany Miller, Barbara Peleg, Deanne Roy, Elisabeth Toomey, Kimberley Mourey, Lynn Robinson, Sue Galassi, and Tom Jacob. Thank for your support! Hope you enjoy your first exclusive episode. Also I was amazed with the generous donations I’ve received! Thank you Tom Jacob, Lara Holt, Johanne Labrie and Guy Belanger for your support. I am beyond grateful for you guys.

ABOUT OUR GUEST OF TODAY

Based in Northern California and teaching in Marin and the San Francisco Bay Area, Michele Klink is an experienced Yoga Instructor E-RYT 500+ with Yoga Alliance with over 25 years study, continuing education and teaching. Michele Klink's mission is to offer opportunities to evolve you toward a happy, contented and fulfilled life. Whether in a group or individual setting, she sees your true potential and provides an evolution of experience for your body, mind and spirit in a safe and caring environment. She encourages the fulfillment of health and creative aspirations to make this life well-lived and lived with love!

Michele is a skilled Yoga Instructor, Therapeutic-Oriented Yoga Specialist, Yoga Teacher Trainer, Professional Mentor, Reiki Practitioner, Holistic Health Educator, Creativity Coach and an inspiration to all!

An experience with Michele is always multi-layered to facilitate a deep inward experience, mingled with mindfulness and positive psychology. She guides you through a physical unfolding and emotional untangling to a broader perspective and spiritual insights to realize a higher vision, helping you to realize your authentic potential.

Learn more about her, her YOGA CLASS schedule, October 2019 JAPAN, Yoga and Meditation Retreat, workshops, BLOG on SENSATIONAL SAVORING: A Guide to Daily Mindfulness Meditation on :

www.micheleklink.com

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Real Love, Mindfulness and Loving Kindness with Sharon Salzberg

Mon, 05 Aug 2019 11:00:05 GMT

For our 34th episode, I sat down with Sharon Salzburg. Sharon is a world renowned meditation teacher. We’ve never met in person but I follow her work. I listen to her podcast, The Metta Hour and I’ve been reading her book Real Love, The Art of Mindful Connection. Although the book has been out for a while now, love has always been a difficult concept for me to fully grasp and this book was full of ah-ha moments, of explanations and ways of putting things I could really relate to. It gave me hope and tools for the future, so I thought it would be a great subject for us to tackle today.

5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS OF THIS EPISODE

1. Love is not a feeling it's an ability we all have to connect deeply to ourselves and others. The love you experience is in your own hands, it's inside you, it's yours to tend.

2. Loving kindness is the antidote to fear and mindfulness gives us the ability to understand our emotions and the space to experience and move through them.

3. It's correct to want to be happy. Everybody wants to be happy. Don't be ashamed of that quest. Our beliefs, our conditioning and our habits either enhance or hinder our ability to be happy.

4. The ability to see and the willingness to be seen is the key to having loving relationships with others.

5. You cannot fail at meditation. Your goal is not to make your mind blank or keep certain experiences from happening, our goal is to change the relationship we have to each of these experiences. Meditation is a resilience training. We learn to constantly begin again.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THE EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your journey to meditation?
What is Loving Kindness vs Mindfulness and why you chose to focus your teachings on these practices instead of any other types of meditations?
Why did you choose to write a book about love.
What is real love?
How did these practices change your life?
What are the mistakes we do that keep us from genuine happiness? How do we avoid them? How can we use mindfulness as a tool to move towards it?
Why is it so hard to love ourselves?
How does self-love or a lack of affect how we show up in the world and how we enter in relationships?
What’s the importance to understand our inter-connectivity with the world around us?
In the book you talk about the concept of you-me-and the space in between. What’s in that space? Why should we care about it?
How do assumptions tint our capacity to be open, to listen and be in relationship with others?
How can we cultivate a Love that is more an unconditional, sustainable ability, rather than a fleeting feeling.
What’s your hope for the future of meditation in this country?
What do you say to people that say they can’t meditate?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 34th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Teechadeb. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

Other very exciting news, I’m adding another way for you to support this Podcast. I am now part of Patreon. Patreon is a platform where you can donate to support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators will get shout outs on the episode and as monthly members you will receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Our first exclusive episode will be about me! Thank you if you send me questions! Your support means a lot and will help me continue to offer quality content here for free! Check out my Patreon page here, see my intro video, donate or become a monthly member. Right now, you have an intro video to listen to, and the August exclusive content is out! You can make a one time donation or become a member at 5$ tier to listen to that episode about me, just like our new patreons members this week ; Thank you Bethany Miller and Barbara Peleg for your support! Hope you enjoy your exclusive episode. I am so grateful for you.

ABOUT OUR GUEST OF TODAY

Sharon Salzberg is a pioneer in the field of meditation, a world-renowned teacher and New York Times bestselling author. She has played a pivotal role bringing meditation and mindfulness into mainstream American culture since 1974. Sharon is co-founder of The Insight Meditation Society, in Barre, MA and has authored 10 books, including the New York Times bestseller, Real Happiness, her seminal work, Lovingkindness and her 2017 release, Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection.

Acclaimed for her down-to-earth and relatable teaching style, Sharon offers a secular, modern approach to Buddhist teachings, making them instantly accessible. Her writing can be found on Medium, On Being, the Maria Shriver blog, and Huffington Post. Sharon is also the host of her own podcast, The Metta Hour, with 100+ episodes featuring interviews with the top leaders and voices in the meditation and mindfulness movement.

Learn more at www.sharonsalzberg.com

Read her writings : on Medium

Listen to her podcast : Metta Hour Podcast

Follow her on :

YouTube

Facebook: @SharonSalzberg

Instagram: @sharonsalzberg

Twitter: @sharonsalzberg

Linkedin: @sharonsalzberg

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Place of Yoga in Healing with Melissa McLaughlin

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 11:00:40 GMT

For our 33rd episode, I sat down with Melissa McLaughlin. Melissa is yoga and meditation teacher here in the Bay Area, but also has a background of Personal training, so her classes are grounded in exercise science and anatomy. She has experienced many different challenges and used yoga as part of her healing process. We recently sat down to talk about life and I was amazed by her journey so I thought it would be interesting to sit down and talk about it on the podcast.

5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS OF THIS EPISODE

1. Healing is a recognition of your own wholeness. You're not doing yoga to make yourself more perfect. You're doing yoga to realize that you are already perfect and whole, as you are.

2. Yoga is not the medicine or the solution to the problem, but it affects the way you experience and face the challenges, and it helps you body to allow any healing you need to have to unfold.

3. Look for a teacher that inspires you, encourage you to modify as you need, empowers you, doesn't take credit for your self-development and helps you take responsibility for your own choices and healing.

4. Move at a pace that allows you to pay attention to the subtlety of your breath and your body, to get off auto-pilot.

5. Progression and variability is the best way to stay physically safe in your yoga practice.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THE EPISODE :

Our subject of today is yoga and healing, can you tell us a bit more about the challenges you faced in the last few years and your journey through that healing process.
What does healing mean to you in the context?
Do you think yoga helps because it affect the way you see challenges or helps your body to allow the healing to take place
How can listeners know if the class, the teacher or the format is the right fit for them, the right container that would allow their healing to take place?
How can yoga help us feel embodied, reconnect to ourselves and be able to listen to the messages of our body?
What’s the role of the nervous system in healing, and how can we tap into that aspect through yoga?
Physically, how can students stay safe and how can teacher offer a safe practice?
Anything else you’d like to add before we wrap it up? One take away you’d like people to leave this conversation with?
Where’s the best place for people to find you?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 33rd episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user KK Brack. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

Other very exciting news, I’m adding another way for you to support this Podcast. I am now part of Patreon. Patreon is a platform where you can donate to support this podcast or you can become a monthly member. Donators will get shutouts on the episode and as monthly members you will receive exclusive content : mini-shows, guided meditation, guided flows and so much more. Our first exclusive episode will be about me! Thank you if you send me questions! Your support means a lot and will help me continue to offer quality content here for free! Check out my Patreon page here, see my intro video, donate or become a monthly member. The exclusive content will be available real soon!!!

ABOUT OUR GUEST OF TODAY

Melissa McLaughlin is a San Francisco Bay Area yoga teacher and American College of Sports Medicine certified Personal Trainer. Her yoga journey began in 2008 when she discovered and fell in love with the Sivananda Yoga lineage. The blend of simple yoga postures, breathing practices, and devotional chanting resonated deeply with her curious, philosophical nature.

After years of dedicated practice with some of the West's most senior yoga teachers, Melissa took her first formal teacher training where she became fascinated with the structure of the human body and went on to intensively study Western Exercise Science and Anatomy which deeply influences the way she approaches teaching asana. You can find her teaching weekly classes throughout Marin County that are both accessible and challenging and leave plenty of time for stillness and reflection. On her teaching Melissa believes, “My job as a teacher is to share the tools of this practice with clarity and accessibility and create enough space for the magic of yoga. My sincere hope is that this practice encourages you to listen to, find confidence in, and seek guidance from your greatest teacher, you.”

Learn more about her here :

Her Website : www.melissamclaughlinyoga.com

Instagram : @melissamclaughlinyoga

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pre and Postnatal Yoga and the Secret Magic of Your Pelvic Floor, with Jane Austin

Mon, 08 Jul 2019 15:38:00 GMT

For our 32nd episode, I sat down with Jane Austin. Since Jane is San Francisco based pre and post natal yoga teacher, I’ve never personally taken class with her, but I’ve heard numbers of fellow teachers raving about her, her classes and her trainings. When I saw she was also leading workshops on the pelvic floor, I thought we could make a great episode that anybody could relate to, mom to be or not.

5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS OF THIS EPISODE

1. Yoga gives you an opportunity to shift form all the external chatter (from what people think you should be doing) to the internal experience. When you understand that what you're experiencing is true for you, you can learn how to trust yourself.

2. When you listen to your own truth, you will make choices and decision for yourself (and your baby) that are going to be appropriate. And what's true for one women is not true for an other. You know your body better than anybody else.

3. You don't HAVE to go to a class to practice yoga. Roll out your mat and just commit to doing any amount everyday. Rolling out your mat is a way to set an intention to do some self-care.

4. Holding Mula Bandha for a long time without releasing can be very detrimental for your health.

5. Embracing yourself and loving yourself is the first step to reconnect to your pelvic floor. Then, when we have a relationship to it, visualizing muscle function, will create more activation and more receptivity.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THE EPISODE :

Can you tell us about yourself, your yoga journey, and why you chose to dedicate yourself to pre and post natal yoga.
What are the needs of pregnant women when it comes to yoga? And what are the benefits they get out of it?
How important is the power of the group and the community?
Do you have tips for self-care for newer and not so new moms out there?
For teachers that teach regular class that are listening, what are some ways they can hold space or be supportive to a pregnant or postpartum mom coming to their regular class?
For teachers that are interested to train in pre and post natal but have reservations because they are not moms, have never been pregnant, what do you say to them?
Why is it important for you to teach about the wonders of the pelvic floor?
How does a strong pelvic floor helps us be more stable and more powerful?
What’s the link between the pelvic floor and our nervous system?
What’s the biggest obstacle when it comes to pelvic floor health?
Do you have an example of movement or breath technique that can help listeners to get started with building more awareness or vitality to the part of that body?

SUBSCRIBE, RATE & REVIEW!

GIVEAWAY WINNER. DO YOU WANT $75 OF SHOPPING?

DONATE OR BECOME AN EXCLUSIVE MEMBER TODAY.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 32nd episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode or get on my mailing list!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Embraced Yogi. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST OF TODAY

Passionate about yoga and the transformational power of motherhood, Jane Austin specializes in working with prenatal and postnatal mamas. She is a mom herself and has been involved with the birthing community since 1990, working as a yoga teacher, homebirth midwife, doula, and childbirth educator.

Jane is the founder and director of Mama Tree, a prenatal yoga school dedicated to educating yoga teachers, doulas and midwives on how to use the tools of yoga to support pregnant women and new moms in all stages of the childbearing year and beyond.

Her teacher training program attracts students from all over the world.

Find out more about her :

Website : janeaustinyoga.com

FB @PrenatalYogawithJaneAustin

IG : @JaneAustinYoga

** Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga Medicine, with Tiffany Cruikshank

Mon, 24 Jun 2019 11:00:00 GMT

For our 31st episode, I sat down with Tiffany Cruickshank. I met Tiffany at Yoga Journal Live Event in SF. I took some of her Yoga Medicine workshops over a few years and I absolutely loved her approach to the body, her attention to the anatomy, physiology and biomechanics. Since then I’ve been following her online and dreaming of doing her trainings. I’m in awe with all the work she does as a yoga teacher, teacher trainer, author, and activist, so I was very excited to sit down with her and chat about it all.

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user BNorys. Congrats! Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card! Special shout out to ValerieBrett. Thank you. I'm really touched.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Tiffany Cruikshank-Founder of Yoga Medicine® is an internationally renowned yoga instructor, who has spent the past 20 years crafting a methodology for teaching and practicing yoga, wherein the practice is melded with Eastern and Western notions of medicine. Cruikshank’s teaching is held up by her work as a holistic health practitioner, acupuncturist, and sports medicine expert. Based in Seattle, Cruikshank teaches regularly for YogaGlo, and travels extensively around the world. She is also the author of Meditate Your Weight. Her approach has helped thousands of yogis around the world see their practice in a new light as a result of Cruikshank’s innovative thinking and dedication to the practice.

Find out more about her :

WEBSITE: www.yogamedicine.com

IG: @TiffanyCruikshank, @Yoga_Medicine

Twitter: @TiffanyYoga. @Yoga_Medicine

Facebook: @TiffanyCruikshankYoga

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THE EPISODE :

Why did you choose Chinese medicine over Ayurveda or western medicine?
Are there some basic recommendation you give patients that are useful for most people, that you could share with us now, so listeners can have a few tools they can integrate in their lives for better health?
How can the concepts of chi and ying-yang inform our yoga practice?
Parallel to chinese medicine you also specialized in sports medicine, is it from those 2 loves that Yoga Medicine has emerge? Can you tell us a bit more about that training program?
You’re also leading The Yoga Medicine Research Institute (YMRI) as a non-profit research organization focused on the application of yoga, meditation & mindfulness to improve health & the human condition, is that your way to do your own continuing education?
Can you share with us one example of research and the findings that came out of it?
Are those research projects available to the public?
Can we talk about your book Meditate your weight? I think the link between meditation and metabolism is fascinating, and the role of our nervous system in our health is often times underrated.
How ignoring the power of our mind can be a limiting factor in our health? How can people use meditation to support weight loss?
You also founded the YOGA MEDICINE SEVA FOUNDATION. Can you tell us what’s it’s about? Why did you choose to give back in that way? Why human trafficking and sexual exploitation?
How can listeners support you and this foundation if they’d like?

*Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yoga Journal's Live Be Yoga Tour with Jeremy Falk

Mon, 10 Jun 2019 11:00:00 GMT

Guys! 30 episodes already? Can you believe it?

For our 30th episode, I sat down with Jeremy Falk. I met Jeremy on line and then realized we had many friends in common in San Francisco. Yoga is a small world. When I saw that he was an ambassador for Yoga Journal and he was going travel around to document the impact of yoga in the west, I was in total awe with him, and so inspired to think that maybe someday I could do something like that myself. I knew right away I wanted to sit down with him to talk about that and a bit of everything else he does to get to know him better.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 30th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you including Tiffany Cruikshank, Jane Austin and Sharon Salzberg to name a few so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen to not miss an episode!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user Sffilmfan. Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST :

Jeremy Falk is an E-RYT 500HR whose mission is to connect our head, heart, and hands through the power of yoga to feel fully alive and of service to the world.

His alignment based Bhakti vinyasa that combines discipline with heart has earned him the title of Ambassador for companies like Lululemon, Fitbit, and most recently Yoga Journal, where he traveled the US + London documenting yoga's impact in the west.

In the last few years he has developed a passion in the self exploration and elevation of brotherhood through men's work, having studied mainly from Shems Heartwell as well as Preston Smiles and John Wineland. He lives in San Francisco teaching full time while offering popular workshops and retreats.

Find out more about him :

His website : www.jeremyfalk.com

IG @jeremyfalkyoga

FB @jeremyfalkyoga

Check out his :

RETREAT: The GETAWAY // A Weekend Yoga Retreat in Mendocino, CA

July Men's Event : The Evolving Edge Men's Workshop

His articles about the tour : Live be Yoga Tour

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED

Can you tell us what’s the tour about? What was the goal?
How were you chosen?
When they asked, what did you think at first?
What’s your biggest take away from the whole experience? What one thing you really brought back with you?
I would love to hear a little bit more about a few different events. What city or event made the biggest impression on you? And why?
Can you name one person you met who transformed you as a student? And one who transformed you as a teacher?
How has your teaching changed after the tour?
You do meditations for audible and you teach online for movewith. Why are you choosing to expand your teaching outside of the class in that way? What do you like about it?
Any advice for teacher that want to expand their teachings outside of public class and go on online platforms? I’ve been considering it myself but I think I’ve intimidated.
In your live classes, you chant and play the harmonium and we’ve talked with a few teachers that do on the podcast... Why do you choose to chant? Why do you like it or why is it important for you?
You call yourself a men’s work ally. Can you tell us about that? Why are you doing it, why do you think it’s important?

*Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chanting in Yoga and Kirtan with Jai Uttal

Mon, 27 May 2019 12:33:41 GMT

For our 29th episode, I had the honor to sit down with Jai Uttal. I heard about Jai’s Kirtan a long time before I was able to attend in person, but the wait was totally worth it. The music itself was transporting, the performance was exciting and calming at the same time, it left me feeling totally grounded, open and connected. As soon as It was done, I knew I wanted to sit down with him to talk about music, chanting, kirtan and devotion.

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Athleta is generously continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is iTunes user YogawithDana. Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram @erika.belanger and I’ll send you your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST :

Jai Uttal is a kirtan artist, multi-instrumentalist, and ecstatic vocalist. He is considered a pioneer in the world music community with his combined influences from India and American rock and jazz. Jai has been leading, teaching, and performing World Music and kirtan—the ancient yoga of chanting or singing to God—around the world for close to 50 years, creating a safe environment for people to open their hearts and voices.

He grew up in New York City and lived in a home filled with music. Jai began studying classical piano at the age of seven, and later learned to play old-time banjo, harmonica, and guitar. At age 17, he heard Indian music for the first time, and two years later moved to California and studied under the famous sarod player, Ali Akbar Khan. Jai later began taking regular pilgrimages to India, living among the wandering street musicians of Bengal, and singing with the kirtan wallahs in the temple of his guru, Neem Karoli Baba.

Jai has emerged as a leading influence in the Bhakti tradition. He considers bhakti to be the core of his musical and spiritual life.

Learn more about him here :

His Website : www.jaiuttal.com

Instagram : @jaiuttal

Facebook : @jaiuttal

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED

For people that have never heard the word Kirtan, would you explain what it means?
What can they expect if they come to an event?
Why is it a call and response format? What the goal of that type of chanting?
Why chant Mantras and not something else? Why is chanting in Sanskrit so important?
Personally, why do you love Kirtan and sacred music vs any other style.
What is your all time favorite chant?
You also teach a Kirtan Camp, who is this for? What do people learn there? What can people expect?
What would you tell people that might be interested but think they can’t sing?
What do you say to people for whom it it feels odd, uncomfortable or inauthentic to chants to god and goddesses in a language they don’t even understand?
Do you also think it’s important for people to know the English translations?

*Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bhakti Yoga or the Yoga of Devotion, with Nubia Teixeira

Mon, 13 May 2019 11:00:00 GMT

For our 28th episode, I had the opportunity to sit down with Nubia Teixeira. Nubia and I have been part of the same yoga circles here in the bay area, but I have never directly studied with her. She’s known for her using yoga and dance as a way to connect to the heart, to create healing and feel alive. She teaches Bhakti Yoga and just published a book called Yoga and the art of Mudras and today we sat down to talk about all of that!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much to all of you who left a review. The winner of this episode's giveaway is user YoginiHeart108. Also, special shout out to iTunes users feeling_it, Vivian Taube and 638 Barberry. I really appreciate you. YoginiHeart108, email me @ erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on instagram and I’ll send you your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Author, yogini, teacher trainer, and Odissi dancer, Nubia Teixeira has devoted herself to teaching different aspects of yoga for almost 30 years. Perceiving yoga as a healing art, Nubia's refinement and unique style overflows with sacred meaning and heartfelt inspiration. She is the founder of the Bhakti Nova School of Yoga and Dance and the author of the book Yoga and The Art of Mudras and of the instructional CD, Pranayama: May Breath Be Our Prayer

Nubia lead classes, workshops, and teacher-trainings internationally, independently, and in collaboration with her husband, kirtan artist Jai Uttal. They live in Fairfax, California, with their son, Ezra.

Find out more about her :

Her website : nubiateixeira.com

Get her Pranayama CD here.

Get her new book Yoga and the Art of Mudras here. (Available June 16th)

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
Can you explain what is traditionally considered the path of Bhakti or Bhakti Yoga itself?
What is the goal of Bhakti Yoga? Why is this practice important?
What are some tools or ways to practice Bhakti Yoga?
What’s the difference between love and devotion?
Id Self-Love a devotional practice?
Do you have to be religious to practice Bhakti?
Is there a modern wider scope or approach to Bhakti for people that are atheists or agnostics?
Let say you do want to devote yourself to a God. How does someone choose to which Diety, God or Goddess to devote themselves?
In the grand scheme of yoga, do you think Bhakti alone is enough or not too one sided?
How has the Bhakti path changed the way you experience life?

*Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Writing Heals, with Sarah Ezrin

Mon, 29 Apr 2019 11:00:00 GMT

For our 27th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Sarah Ezrin. Sarah is a friend and a colleague now, even a brand ambassador for Athleta with me but we met when she was my one teacher trainers in my 300h. I've always love her classes, her playfulness and her sense of community. I recently discover another side to her : her incredible talent for writing. Today we're sitting together to talk about how writing can be healing when we go through hardship.

We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen! As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. Thank you so much if you left a review. Really, there were great comments left, but there can only be one winner. This episode’s randomly picked winner is iTunes user Tara Bara. Big shout out to S.A.J.J., hellokello and HannaHarwood. I really appreciate you. Tara, DM me on Instagram or email me erika.belanger@gmail.com to get your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Sarah Ezrin is a motivator, writer, yoga teacher, and teacher trainer. Her joie de vivre is infectious. For Sarah, yoga is beyond the postures it is a guide for living. Bringing a background of psychology and life coaching, she uses yoga to connect people to their brightest and most authentic Self. Based out of San Francisco where she lives with her husband and their dog, Sarah leads trainings, workshops, and retreats at home and across the globe. Her fun and popular classes are infused with humor and positivity. Sarah is changing the world, teaching self-love one person at a time.

Learn more about Sarah here :

Her website : sarahezrinyoga.com

Her writing: sarahezrinyoga.com/writing-2/

Instagram: @sarahezrinyoga

Facebook: @sarahezrinyoga

Twitter: @sarahezrinyoga

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
Why did you start writing? Why is it important for you?
Why share in a very personal and vulnerable way?
Can you tell us about the piece Recovering from myself ? What did this recovery taught you?
What would be your advice to yoga students listening dealing with injuries? Is there something you wished you understood earlier?
What’s your best advice to avoid injuries in yoga?
How is grief good?
How has your relationship to death and grief changed over the last decade?
Has writing this article has been a way to process grief for you?
What do you say to someone that is grieving? What can one say?
Is there another subject you’ve been wanting to write about?
Which piece has had the biggest impact on your life?
To teachers or bloggers out there. Why should they write, even if they think no one is reading?
What's the writing process like for you alone vs when collaborating with magazine and online publications
Any advice for yoga teachers that have been considering freelance writing?

*Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kundalini Yoga and the Radiant Body, with Kia Miller

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 11:00:00 GMT

For our 26th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Kia Miller. Kia is internationally renowned yoga teacher and probably one of the most well-known Kundalini teachers in the West. She teaches workshops, retreats, and several 200- and 300-hour teacher trainings every year. She eventually created Radiant Body Yoga by pulling from multiple yogic disciplines. Rooted in Tantric tradition it mixes Vinyasa Flow and Kundalini with the power of Prayer, Mantra and Meditation in a holistic approach to yoga. Today we sat down to talk about that unique and powerful style.

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of our last giveaway is iTunes user MaddyRose16 Thank you for your comment. DM me on Instagram or email me erika.belanger@gmail.com to get your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Kia Miller grew up in the Falkland Islands, riding horses over vast acres of wild land. Moving to England at 15, she soon joyfully discovered yoga and has been studying with world-renowned teachers in India, Europe and the US ever since. She is certified in the Ashtanga / Vinyasa Flow tradition, as well as Kundalini Yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan.

Kia is a devoted Yogini and teacher who imparts her wonderful passion for life and well-being in her teaching. Her style pulls from multiple yogic disciplines, and is both intuitive and steeped in the traditional aspects of yoga. Her classes focus on breath, alignment and the interconnection between mind, body and spirit, allowing students to work at their own pace in a safe and transformational environment.

Find more about her and her offerings here:

website : kiamiller.com

IG @kiamilleryoga

Facebook @kiamiller

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
What is the Kundalini and Radiant Body training about?
What is Kundalini yoga, outside than just an other brand of yoga?
What are some of the misconceptions about Kundalini?
What does it mean to awaken the Kundalini?
What does it mean to have a radiant body?
What are our key responsibility as a yogi if we want spiritual transformation, if we want kundalini awakening? What’s the real, tangible work of awakening?
What is Sadhana? Why is it so important and why practice first thing in the morning?
How do we maintain our radiance? Is Sadhna enough?
Why does this kind of practice, whether we talk about Kundalini, Radiant Body and a daily Sadhana make up feel so good? Can you explain the biology behind it? What’s happening exactly?
During the training, you mentioned how pain and suffering helps us to turn in. Would you share your experience of needing to turn in, tune in and invite awakening in your life?

*Edited and mastered by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 8 Limbs, with Janet Stone

Tue, 02 Apr 2019 05:04:10 GMT

For our 25th episode, I sat down with Janet Stone. Janet is a world renowned teacher and forever yoga student at heart. Her devotion to the practice and the study of yoga is palpable. She’s based in San Francisco and I discovered her work at the Yoga Journal Live event a couple years back. I loved her teachings right away and continued to follow her work online. She offers great programs for students that want to take the studies a little further than what we can cover in public classes. And that’s what we sat down to talk about today.

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of our last giveaway is iTunes user ... Thank you for your comment. DM me on instagram or email me erika.belanger@gmail.com to get your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Janet Stone’s studentship began at 17 under the meditation teachings of Prem Rawat. His reverence for simplicity and finding joy in the rise and fall of life live on in her practice and teaching today. She

shares from the alchemy of her own sadhana through bhakti yoga and the eight-limbed path.

In 1996, she traveled to India, the birthplace of her grandfather, and became dedicated to the path of yoga. Based in San Francisco, she leads immersions, retreats, workshops and more.

Find more about her and her offerings here:

website : janetstoneyoga.com

IG @janetstoneyoga

Facebook @janetstoneyoga

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
What are the eight limbs of yoga and why do we need to know about them?
Why do thwy exist?
Why are they in that order? Where do we start and where are we trying to go?
To understand them a bit better can we unpack it and break it down limb by limb and discuss each of them?
For teachers that might not feel comfortable teaching explicitly the yamas to their classes, how can they act in a way that embodies the yamas so they teach by example instead?
What are the niyamas in contrast to the yamas?
What’s missing to the physical practice if there’s no attention on the yamas and niyamas?
In your opinion, can we say we practice yoga if we don’t practice physical movements? Or if we only practice physical movement?
How do we want to practice? What kind of quality are we looking for with our body?
Can you explain what prana is?
What's the difference between pratyahara and the following limbs?
How can people cultivate dharana?
Can people hope to find samadhi? Is it attainable for average yogi today?

REFERENCE :

Nicolai Bachman, The path of the Yoga Sutras

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Yoga Tune Up® and Chronic Pain, with Jill Miller

Mon, 18 Mar 2019 16:00:36 GMT

For our 24th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Jill Miller. Jill is the creator of the self-care fitness formats Yoga Tune Up® and The Roll Model® Method. I first discovered Jill’s work about 5 years ago while looking for a way to heal a yoga injury. What I didn’t know at that moment was the profound impact this work was going to have to my life and my health.

I suffer from endometriosis, and with March being the Endometriosis Awareness Month, I wanted to do an episode about one of the strategies that helped me deal with my symptoms. As an autoimmune disease it’s strongly affected by stress. Yoga Tune Up and the Roll Model Method have really helped me get a better understanding of my stress and gave me tools to down-regulate my nervous system so in turn, pain decreased pretty drastically. So I thought it would be a great way to talk about chronic pain management.

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of our last giveaway is iTunes user Nilly6. Thank you for your comment. DM me on instagram or email me erika.belanger@gmail.com to get your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Jill Miller (C-IAYT, ERYT) is the co-founder of Tune Up Fitness Worldwide and creator of the self-care fitness formats Yoga Tune Up® and The Roll Model® Method. With more than 30 years of study in anatomy and movement, she is a pioneer in forging relevant links between the worlds of fitness, yoga, massage, athletics and pain management. She has trained thousands of movement educators, clinicians, and manual therapists to incorporate her paradigm shifting self-care fitness programming into athletic and medical facility programs internationally. She has crafted original programs for 24 Hour Fitness, Equinox, YogaWorks, and numerous professional sports teams. She and her team of 500+ trainers help you to live better in your body with an emphasis on proprioception, mobility, breath mechanics and recovery.

She has presented case studies at the Fascia Research Congress and International Association of Yoga Therapy conferences. She has the rare ability to translate complex physiological and biomechanical information into accessible, relevant moves that help her students transform pain, dysfunction and injury into robust fitness. Jill is the anatomy columnist for Yoga Journal Magazine and has been featured in Shape, Men’s Journal, Good Housekeeping, Women’s Health, Yoga Journal, Self, and on the Today Show and Good Morning America. Jill is regularly featured on the Oprah Winfrey Network. She is the creator of dozens of DVD’s including Treat While You Train with Kelly Starrett DPT. She’s the author of the internationally bestselling book The Roll Model: A Step by Step Guide to Erase Pain, Improve Mobility and Live Better in your Body published in 4 languages. Based in Los Angeles, CA, she is a wife and mother of two small children and is currently writing her second book: Body by Breath.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HER AND UPCOMING EVENTS :

www.tuneupfitness.com

Summer events covering topics we discussed:

West coast USA: July 7-14 https://1440.org/programs/yoga/breath-and-bliss-immersion/

East coast USA: Aug 2-4 https://www.anatomytrains.com/product/rolling-along-the-anatomy-trains-walpole-usa-2019-08-02/

Aug 9-11 https://kripalu.org/presenters-programs/body-breath-yoga-tune-integrate-your-core-inside-out

INSTA @yogatuneup @tuneupfitness

FB @jillmillerfaust @Tune Up Fitness

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
Why did you create Yoga Tune Up and The Roll Model Method? What was the original need / intent?
How does the self-massage work of the Roll Model Method affects the nervous system? What does down-regulation means? Why it’s important?
How does a better awareness, help you regulate your stress or deal with symptoms of an illness in your opinion?
Can we talk about the role of emotions in our body, how they relate to stress and illness, and how this work also taps into this piece of the puzzle?
Can we look more precisely at the abdominal massage with the coregeous ball? How does that work? And why might it create an emotional response?
We talked about the body itself and the healing side of touch, we talked about awareness and emotions, can we now look at mental state and touch on the importance of Sankalpa and Self-Acceptance?
How does the regulation of the breath have such an important impact?
What is conscious relaxation? I find that often time Savasana is not as valued as it should in class. What’s the importance of this pose?

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Curvy Yoga, with Liz Eskridge

Tue, 05 Mar 2019 14:40:42 GMT

For our 23rd episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Liz Eskridge. Liz is the right hand woman of Anna Guest-Jelly, founder of Curvy Yoga, an organization that encourage body acceptance, that trains teachers and creates a safe and inclusive space for people to practice yoga no matter their size. I’ve been wanting to show the diversity that exist in the yoga world that is often less represented so I taught curvy yoga was a great place to start!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of our last giveaway is iTunes user Jenna Maryn. Thank you for your comment. DM me on instagram or email me erika.belanger@gmail.com to get your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

In 2013, Liz completed her teacher training with Curvy Yoga, an online yoga studio and teacher training center that helps people of all shapes and sizes find true acceptance and freedom, both on and off the mat.

She now plays an integral role in the Curvy Yoga organization through the Curve Camp, Curvy Yoga Teacher Training, and as the Studio Manager of their local studio in Nashville, TN.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
Can you explain what is curvy yoga and why it was founded?
For you personally, why did you want to bring curvy yoga to your community?
What can people expect from a curvy yoga class?
How are the poses taught differently? Can you give a few examples of how poses are modified?
How does the yoga practice it self and the piece about body acceptance brought together?
How do you balance body acceptance and using yoga as a way to feel better in your body and in your mind? Can you accept and love fully your body and still want to change it?
How do you hope the practice on the mat reflects in the student’s life off the mat? Anything different than from regular yoga classes?
Do you think curvy yoga is contributing or helping to make regular classes more accessible? Or does is encourage a culture of segregation?
When people have practiced curvy yoga, are they equipped to go to a regular class and modify for themselves?
How can regular classes be more inclusive? What kind of modification teachers should learn to be able to offer? What are the needs of curvy bodies?
How do you think curvy yoga is represented on social media?
How much teachers like Jessamyn Stanley have raised awareness for the movement/ changed perceptions/ helped?
For curvy students out there or teachers that what to learn to be more inclusive, what are some resources they can turn to?

*Edited and mixed by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Acro Yoga, with Jason Nemer

Mon, 18 Feb 2019 15:00:49 GMT

For our 22nd episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Jason Nemer. Jason co-founded and continues to grow the practice of AcroYoga. He has certified over 1000 teachers in more than 65 countries. He travels the world to share this incredible practice believing that movement and play are a great way to bring people together, and that using open communication and trust can change the world. Today we sat down to talk about his journey and the principles behind Acroyoga.

We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen!

If you’re in the San Francisco Bay area and you're curious about Acro, you’re in luck. I’ve partnered with AcroSF to offer you a discount on your ticket for the upcoming AcroSF festival running March 15-17. Use the code Erika at checkout to save 10%, but hurry, there are only 10 coupons available!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. Once more Athleta is supporting this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article. The winner of our last giveaway is iTunes user ali c rucker. Thank you for your comment. DM me on instagram or email me erika.belanger@gmail.com to get your shop card!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Jason Nemer is a visionary, a catalyst and someone that connects the dots. He dedicated his life to mastering and blending acrobatics, yoga and healing arts. In 1991 he became one of the first American acrobats to win medals in international competitions and also performed at the Olympics in 1996. He co-founded and continues to grow the practice of AcroYoga that has a reach of over 1000 certified teachers in more than 65 countries. His students and clients include; Serge Brin, Ashley Judd, Tim Ferriss, Marla Maples and more.

Jason’s mission is clear, “Support all people through movement, connection and play.” Success of this goal is reaching 1 billion practitioners in his lifetime.

Build your practice with expert instruction :

LA Foundation Course with Jason Nemer

Online Foundation Course with Jason Nemer

Find out more here about Jason and Acroyoga here :

IG Jasonnemer

FB Jason Nemer

www.acroyoga.org

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your journey through acrobatics and yoga?

How did Acroyoga start? How did it come together for you?

Do you prefer to be a base/flyer? How does that relate to your personality?

Can you explain what it is exactly. How is it different than acrobatics? Where/How does yoga come in? Should people have a practice of yoga to start Acro?

How has it evolved since it first started?

What’s the main difference between Canadian Acro and American Acro?

How does a typical class look like? What can people expect from their first class?

How does practicing Acro and what you learn in this particular practice ripples into your life of the mat?

How do you cultivate/encourage a tightly knitted community ?

For people that might think it’s all about acrobatic and circus arts, can we talk about how Acroyoga can actually be healing and therapeutics?

On the other hand, how do you create a safe space where personal boundaries can still be honored and respected?

How can you encourage a non-gender specific roles in the practice?

Any tips for beginners?

What’s your hope for Acro in 5, 10 or 20 years?

If people want to try Acro, get involved in the community, how do they start?

REFERENCE

Acro-Yoga Montreal

Acrosage, Benjamin Marantz

Contact Yoga, Ken Nateshvar Scott

*Edited and mixed by Alexandre Saba

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dharma and the Bhagavad Gita, with Alison Smith

Mon, 04 Feb 2019 16:46:12 GMT

For our 21st episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Alison Smith. Alison is a San Francisco yoga teacher. I met her in one of her workshops. Her presence when she’s teaching is kinda hypnotic. She’s warm, passionate and super knowledgeable. As a student, she made me feel seen and I connected right away with her, I felt this deep trust. If you can’t tell, I really I look up to her as a teacher. She’s been offering some very special things outside of her classes, one of them is called a yoga club and that format inspired me to invite on the podcast to talk about it.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Alison is known for her playful fire, inquisitive nature, and technical expertise. Her warmth and enthusiasm creates an engaging practice environment where students feel safe to learn, grow and transform.

With over a decade of teaching experience, Alison has a down-to-earth approach that makes the complexities of yoga easier to understand and relevant to your daily life.

Alison was initially certified in Anusara Yoga and has spent many years under the tutelage and mentorship of Noah Maze. She continues to draw inspiration from her Ashtanga practice, Shadow Yoga, the classical texts of the Yoga Tradition, and her study of Jyotish.

Learn more about Alison here :

AlisonSmithYoga.com

TheSpaceSF.com

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
Can you explain what is the Yoga Club and why you decided to offer this format to your students?
What’s the concept of Dharma?
According to the Bhagavad Gita, can we escape or change our Dharma? Does it change over time? Can we have more than one dharma at the time?
In your opinion whats the link between Dharma and success? How about Dharma and Happiness?
Do you feel like you're living your Dharma? How do you know?
What can people look for if they want to reflect on that? What are the telling signs?
Do you think we choose our Dharma or do we choose our path for a Dharma that’s chosen for us? Or by us but unconsciously?
Why does the Bhagavad Gita teaches not to attach to the fruits of our efforts?
How does devotion and offering our efforts to the divine come into play?
If the divine is within us, what does it mean to offer to the divine?
How do we approach it and its concept if we don’t believe in God, if we’re not religious? How would that influence your relationship to dharma?
The Bhagavad Gita is a story but can still be challenging to read for a lot of Yogis. How do you support people through the book? Which translation do you use? Why?

REFERENCES :

- Steven Cope, The Great Work of Your Life

- Ram Dass, Paths to God: Living the Bhagavad Gita

- Steven Mitchel, Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation

- Jyotish Vedic Astrology

- Allan Watts

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Teen Mindfulness Circle

Mon, 21 Jan 2019 16:18:34 GMT

For our 20th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Mark Stefanski and 3 teens : Adrian, Sophie and Olivia. Mark is a certified instructor for the Mindful School Program, a high school Biology teacher and the Coordinator of this Teen Mindfulness Circle. The program is based on activities developed by Mindful Schools, which are pioneers in youth mindfulness education. The Circle is co-led by teens that are experienced in Mindfulness instruction.

I met with Mark and 6 teens once a week throughout fall. Together, we did mindful movements and meditations, and we connected to our breath. I offered tools to connect and live with our emotions and reduce our stress. I was amazed by their self-awareness, presence and openness. They truly inspired me and gave me hope about our future. As you take a listen, I’m sure you’ll feel the same way.

Couple more things before we get started, we have another semester starting on March 5th and runing through May 7th minus 2 weeks in April. We’ll meet Tuesdays from 5:15 - 6:45 pm at the Open Eye Studio in San Rafael again, thanks to the support of Tarane Sayler. The 8 sessions cost between $100 - $400. We use a sliding scale, and will not turn people for lack of funds. If you or a teen you know might be interested, here's the link for more info or to register to the Teen Mindfulness Circle.

Also, I wanted to remind you of my workshop coming up on Feb 9th. At the moment of the recording, there’s still a handful a spots left, if you’d like to join me for the deepest relaxation you’ve ever experienced, use the promo code PODCAST15 to save 15% when you register online for Roll, Release and Relax here.

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. This year, Athleta is continuing to support this podcast in their effort to ignite a community of strong women who lift each other up, and is giving out a 75$ shop card! If you are unsure on how to leave a review check this article.

Thanks you so much for listening and being part of our 20h episode! Our 2019 lineup of guest is incredible, so if you’re not already subscribed, now’s the time! That way you won’t miss anything.

If they’re any subject you’d like to us to tackle this year, or anybody you’re dying to learn from, let me know! I would love to hear from you and create those episodes… Email me at erika.belanger@gmail.com or DM me on Instagram and we’ll talk!

ABOUT OUR GUESTS

Mark has been a science teacher since 1986. He's a Teacher Advisor and Project Advisor for the Understanding Science website, winner of the 2010 Science Prize for Online Resources in Education from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He also serves as Teacher Advisor for the award winning Understanding Evolution website.

He's the co-founder of Marin Academy's Conference on Democracy, the faculty advisor to the school’s Peace and Justice Club and the organizer of The Teen Mindfulness Circle.

Mark also volunteers for the Insight Garden Program at San Quentin State Prison, and he serves as a steward for Rick Hanson's San Rafael Meditation Group. He has served on several local non-profit boards.

*** To protect the teens on this episode, I chose not to share photos or personal information.

QUESTIONS THEY ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Mark, can you tell us a bit about yourself, why did you start this group? What was your goal?
How do you define mindfulness?
As we go around, say your name and explain why did you first chose to join this mindfulness group? What were you looking for? What were your hopes?
Has your definition or experience of mindfulness changed between the time you first started and now?
What’s the hardest part of the definition for you? Why?
How do you use mindfulness in your everyday lives now? Can you give an example?
How has mindfulness helped you deal with school, and the pressures that comes with it?
Have you notice any impact on your relationships? With family or friends?
Was there a mindfulness exercise or meditation practice that stuck with you? Do you have a favorite one or one you continue to do ?
What would you say to convince a friend to join?

OTHER REFERENCES

Spirit Rock Center

Mindful School Program

Tool for Peace

Stop Breathe Think

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Kids Yoga and the Bambini Yoga Project, with Jessica Cox

Mon, 07 Jan 2019 16:35:33 GMT

For our 19th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Jessica Cox. Jessica is an Athleta Ambassador with me and we met thru the brand ambassadorship program. As soon as she talked about her non-profit, I was amazed by her passion and drive and I was really curious to know more about her work with the Bambini Yoga Project so I invited her on the podcast so we can talk about it, and so you guys can discover what it is, why it matters and eventually maybe so you can support this project as well!

Before we get to today’s episode, I first wanted to take a minute to wish you a happy new year. As we start this new year the podcast also celebrates its first birthday so from the bottom of my heart I wanted to thank you all. I know how busy our lives are and I feel really grateful that you’ve chosen to spend your time with us.

Athleta has been supporting this podcast since the beginning and I am beyond grateful for their help. The team at Athleta really stands behind their mission to ignite strong women that want to create community and lift each other up. A very special thank you to Stephanie Phelan for believing in me.

Finally if you’re ever left a rating, a review, or shared this podcast with a friend, you are my personal hero. Thanks to you, more people can find this podcast and join our wonderful community.

To celebrate you and our birthday, the giveaway will be a little different this time. Instead of picking only one winner, I wanted to offer something to many of you and treat you in person. On February 9th, I’m leading my favorite workshop called Roll, Release and Relax. It’s a mix of self-massage, breath work and Yoga Nidra (a guided meditation in a reclined position) bringing you to an incredibly deep state of relaxation. This work has changed my life and I know it has the potential to change yours too. So if you’re in the Bay Area, or you’re willing to travel, use the promo code PODCAST15 to save 15% when you register online at www.sukhayoga.com and we can celebrate together.

Thanks you so much for listening and being part of our 19th episode! Our 2019 lineup of guest is incredible, so if you’re not already subscribed, now’s the time! That way you won’t miss anything.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Jessica Cox, Executive Director and Founder of the Bambini Yoga Project, is a Virginia Tech grad, mom and yoga instructor. In the fall of 2016, Bambini Yoga Project was created with the mission to better the academic and life experience of underserved children by providing them with the life changing practices of yoga, mindfulness and meditation.

Since it's inception, BYP has grown to provide services to more than 800 children per week. BYP's experienced instructors teach a customized curriculum in the classroom during the school day. Jessica believes that by empowering children to be happy and resilient, we can support them in reaching their highest potential. If you are interested in bringing this program to your school, please feel free to reach out.

Find out more about her and the organisation or help :

www.bambiniyogaproject.org

FB @bambiniyogaproject

IG: @bambiniyogaproject

To donate: www.bambiniyogaproject.org/donate

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

What is the The Bambini Yoga Project?
Why did you decide to start it? How did it happen? Why choose a non-profit?
How was your first experience teaching to kids? What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned since then?
What’s the difference between teaching yoga to kids in a studio vs a school?
Do you feel that it’s important to offer yoga to kids that don't have parents that necessarily practice?
Can you walk us thru a typical class?
Why is yoga and meditation important for kids? What are the benefits?
Have you seen the impact / received feedback from teachers and parents?
Can you give a few tips for yoga teachers that want to get into teaching kids?
What’s your hope for the future of The Bambini Yoga Project?

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I am Maris, with Maris Degener

Sat, 29 Dec 2018 19:42:09 GMT

For our 18th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Maris Degener. Maris is a yoga teacher, mental heath advocate, artist and writer. I met her on Instagram and we became friends. I loved the way she approached mental health and eating disorders, having my own history with these issues. A beautiful documentary was done on her and I went to watch it at the Mill Valley Film Festival. Has I laughed and cried, I thought she would made a great guest for the podcast.

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ABOUT OUR GUEST

An East Bay Area native, Maris Degener is a yoga teacher, mental health advocate, writer, and UCSC student. Since becoming certified in Vinyasa at 16, Maris's love of yoga and passion for sharing its offerings has only grown. Using the physical practice of yoga, Maris’s classes allow students to access the internal strength and power within themselves.Maris’s classes are empowering, loving, and push students to find their own unique edge whether that be physical, emotional, or otherwise. Maris's teachings and writings have been recognized by CNN Health, Seventeen Magazine, Girls' Life Magazine, and others.

Find more about her here:

Blog: yogamaris.net

Instagram: @yogamaris

Follow what's happening with the movie :

Movie: iammarismovie.com

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit of your story? How did you get to where you are today? How did you find yoga?
How has yoga impacted your mental health and your life in general?
When you got approached to do the movie, how did you first react to the offer?
Once you accepted, what was your hope?
How was the process of making that movie? How involved in the story telling were you?
Why do you think it’s important to share our stories? What does fierceless authenticity means for you?
What has writing your blog, given you? Why does it matter, why do you continue to do it?
How do you balance supporting others and protecting yourself and energy? How do you feel that you can help other people? Is there one tip you often give to people?
Why is the movie called I am Maris? Is the title about exposing and accepting everything that you are?
Why did you choose to focus the film on recovery instead of on the challenges and the darkness?
How do you feel when you look at older art pieces you’d done?
What’s one of the biggest lesson you’ve learned through this journey? What one silver lining you can see from these years of suffering? If you had a magic wand and could erase those challenging years of your life, would you or would you choose to relive it?
You’ve been touring film festivals, What are some of the best questions you got at the end of the screenings from the crowd?
What’s next for you? Any big projects coming up?

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Using Yoga Philosophy to Suffer Less, with Susannah Freedman

Tue, 11 Dec 2018 16:34:11 GMT

For our 17th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Susannah Freedman. Susannah is a San Francisco Based Yoga teacher and Teacher Trainer that has a deep knowledge of Yogic philosophy, and a Masters in Philosophy & Religion. I met her on Instagram and we became friends. I follow and love everything she does, and a few months ago, she published her first e-book called Suffer Less, Using Yogic Principles to Live a More peaceful Life. I got it right away. I mean, who doesn’t want to suffer less? Once I red it and saw how accessible and interesting it was, I reached out to Susannah, to invite her on the podcast!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Susannah teaches a rigorous style of Vinyasa yoga with a strong emphasis on breath, sensation of the subtle body and classical yoga philosophy. She helps people find refuge inside their own bodies and believes that as a global community we need to find a way to understand the concept that, as her teacher Stephanie Snyder says, we are different but not separate. Aside from her 500 E-RYT, Susannah also received her Masters in Philosophy & Religion in 2014.

Susannah currently leads yoga retreats around the world and teaches private, public, and corporate classes all over the San Francisco Bay Area. She is a Legacy Ambassador for Lululemon, has taught at Wanderlust Festival, and is core faculty at the Love Story Yoga Teacher Training in San Francisco.

Find out more about her here :

www.susannahfreedmanyoga.com

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey? I know it’s a pretty interesting one!
Why did you decide to write a book on suffering? Can you share what in your life has caused you suffering?
Why did you decide to use yogic principles to talk about suffering?
How important are the traditional yogic texts for you? What is your favorite one and why?
Can you walk us through The Yoga Sutra's Take on Suffering? What is suffering and what are the causes according to Patanjali?
How is it different than the description in the Bhagavad-Gita?
So in a nutshell, how do we ease suffering? Because we can’t totally get rid of it, yes? It’s actually inevitable?
How do you avoid future suffering?
How was the process of writing this book for you? Why did you choose to include exercises?
What’s next for you? Any other projects brewing you can share with us?

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Danni Pomplun’s Yoga Story

Mon, 26 Nov 2018 16:53:30 GMT

For our 16th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Danni Pomplun. Danni is a San Francisco Based Yoga teacher and Teacher Trainer that uses his life story and his love of the practice to change the world around him. I met him at one of his workshops, and we further connected online. He’s passionate in his purpose and generous with his self and his teachings. On top of classes, workshops, retreats and YTT, he also host his own podcast, and was featured in Vice Magazine and in the book When to Jump. I’ve been wanting to have him on the show for a long time, so I can let you guys discover who he is and why he teaches.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

"We all have our own stories. Mine has some twists and turns through a tough childhood and young adult years blurred by frustration, drugs, alcohol, and a near-death brush with cancer, and I credit yoga with helping me to become healthy and opening my eyes to a world of positive opportunities. I’m truly grateful to now be able to share what I’ve learned with others, whether it’s on the mat in my home base of San Francisco, in another location for an immersion or workshop, or through my online yoga platform. I am grateful to work alongside my teachers and mentors Jason Crandell & Darren Main, who have helped influence my teaching style.

I teach to share my passion and the love of the practice in hopes that it can change the world, one down dog at a time. "

Find more about him here and check his podcast :

Dannipomplun.com

Yogi Misfit Session

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you found yoga?
What is the biggest lesson pain and suffering has brought you?
How sharing your story has affected you or change your perspective on life, or your connection to other people?
If you had one advice for people that are going through a really rough time, what would it be?
How does overcoming all these challenges molded you in the teacher you are today? How are your teachings influenced by your past?
What’s important for you today as a teacher, what your goal, your purpose?
Why did you decided to start a podcast? How is it serving you? Serving your community? What’s the feedback you get from it?
How has starting to play the harmonium and chanting impacted you and your classes?
A few weeks back, you hosted with 3 other teachers ONE LOVE: it’s a movement… Can you tell us a bit about that and why these kind of events matter for you.
What’s next for you? Any other projects brewing you can share with us?

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Living the Sutras, with Kelly DiNardo and Amy Pearce-Hayden

Mon, 12 Nov 2018 16:20:44 GMT

For our 15th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Kelly DiNardo and Amy Pearce-Hayden. Kelly and Amy are the co-authors of an amazing book called Living the Sutras - A guide to Yoga wisdom beyond the mat. It "offers a modern, accessible and personal look at the ancient yogic philosophy and wisdom found in The Yoga Sutras". Even before the book was out, it was on my reading list and I pre-ordered it. I was so excited to dig in the Sutra from another perspective, and when I saw how simply it was presented and that it came with exercises to apply it to your daily life, I really wanted to sit down with the authors to talk about it!

As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on your iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter our giveaway. This episode, Kelly and Amy are generously giving out a couple copies of their book! You have great chances to get to read their book for free if you write a review! If you're not sure how to do it, check this article.

ABOUT OUR GUESTS

Kelly DiNardo is the author of several books, including Living the Sutras. As a freelance journalist, she specializes in exploration – whether it’s internally through yoga and meditation, physically through health and fitness, culturally and socially through profiles or the myriad ways food and travel brings all of that together. She has written for O: The Oprah Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, The New York Times, AARP and others. Kelly is also the owner of Past Tense yoga studio in Washington, DC. It was born from her vision for a welcoming, accessible, community space where people come together and find that joy as well as support for and growth in their practice.

Learn more about Kelly and her work here :

www.kellydinardo.com

www.pasttensestudio.com

Amy Pearce-Hayden who is author of “Living the Sutras” A Guide to Yoga Wisdom beyond the Mat, and owner of Tantra Wellness & Yoga, (Madison, WI) can be found spending her time teaching, lecturing, and connecting with like-minded entrepreneurs. She has devoted 20 years of study to yogic and Eastern philosophies, while running small businesses from yoga studios to restaurants. Amy is a recognized International Yoga teacher who is sought out for her expertise in linking classical yoga with modern living. She specializes in addiction, trauma therapy, and whole-family living.

Learn more about Amy and her work here :

www.tantramadison.com

QUESTIONS THEY ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself, your background and what brought you to yoga and to writing originally?
Is there a parallel for you between writing and yoga?
How was the experience of co-writing this book?
For people that have no idea what the yoga sutras are, can you explain what they are and what is the importance of that text?
What has been your relationship to the yoga sutras as students and as teachers? Has it changed?
Why did you feel call to write this book? Why was it important for you to make the yoga sutras more accessible?
How did you make a selection of sutras? What are the most important sutras in your opinion? Do you have a favorite sutra?
What is the biggest lesson you learned about your life, from writing this book?
In your opinion, what is the place of the yoga sutras in developing a personal practice?
If people feel inspire and want to dig a little deeper after your book, where should they turn? What you’re favorite translation and why?
What’s next for you? Any projects you can share with us?

OTHER REFERENCES :

- Edwin F. Bryant , The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali: A New Edition, Translation, and Commentary

- Nicolai Bachman, The Yoga Sutras : An Essential Guide to the Heart of Yoga Philosophy

- Sri Swami Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

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Critical Thinking and Yoga, with Sean Haleen

Mon, 29 Oct 2018 16:32:04 GMT

For our 14th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Sean Haleen. Sean is a celebrated San Francisco Bay Area Yoga Teacher who has been studying Hatha Yoga and philosophy for over 20 years. He leads alignment workshops all over the country as well as various teacher trainings. He leads with humor and precision and openly talks about the good, the bad and the ugly relating to the practice, the teachings and the business surrendering yoga. Today we sat down to talk about his yoga journey and how critical thinking is a important skill for teachers and practitioners.

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 14th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Sean Haleen (500 E-RYT) is a celebrated Hatha yoga teacher and practitioner. Sean has practiced and studied yoga asana and philosophy since 1997 and began teaching in 2007.

He now lives north of San Francisco with his husband and dog. He teaches public classes in San Francisco and Oakland as well as various 200HR and 500HR teacher trainings and Joyful Alignment workshops at studios across the US. In 2017, Yoga Journal selected Sean as one of the next generation’s top Yoga teachers.

Find more about him here:

His website: www.seanhaleenyoga.com

Instagram: @Seanhaleenyoga

Facebook: @YogicTraveler

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your yoga journey?
What are your goals / intention as a yoga teacher? What inspires you?
What’s one of the biggest lessons you’ve learned over your years teaching?
You call yourself a sarcastic yoga teacher, why is it important for you to challenge some mainstream/dogmatic ideas on yoga and teaching yoga?
Why do you think critical thinking is important for yoga teachers?
How do you balance reverence to the practice or to our teachers and critical thinking?
In your opinion, what’s in the scope of a yoga teacher. Or what’s not in the scope of a yoga teacher?
What’s your opinion on social media, self-promotion, and on “famous”/fame seeking yoga teachers?
What would be your one tip for new yoga teachers?
In your opinion, what are the pros and cons of the amount of practitioners and teachers augmenting so rapidly in the west?
In your opinion, what’s missing in teacher trainings?
What’s one thing you would change in the yoga world today?
What makes you human and beautifully imperfect?
What one thing you love about teaching? What one reason you continue to do it?

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Taking Your Yoga Practice Outside, with Julianne Aiello

Mon, 15 Oct 2018 16:32:43 GMT

For our 13th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Julianne Aiello. Julianne is the founder of Outdoor Yoga SF. She leads a team of passionate teachers, and teaches yoga classes on the beach in San Francisco. They believe that gathering together in nature is a nourishing way to create a community and they do it very well! Today we sat down to talk about her yoga journey and how yoga and nature go so well together!

****

Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 13th episode! We have other great guests lined up for you so make sure to subscribe to the podcast where ever you listen!

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Julianne is a San Francisco based yoga teacher, a practitioner of joy and love, and a student of life. She teaches a strong, grounding, lighthearted vinyasa yoga practice that welcomes all bodies and all beings to feel the power of stretching and breathing.

Julianne is on a mission to help people find a reprieve and sanctuary in the practice of yoga so that you can call on it often. A few minutes before a walk or run, as a practice to do at home, or simply in taking a few deep breaths to reset during your day.

You can join her classes on the beach with Outdoor Yoga SF, or reach out for privates in yoga, reiki and wellness coaching.

Find more about her here:

www.julianneyoga.com

instagram: @julianneyoga

upcoming events:

Kauai Yoga Retreat, Weekend Beach Yoga : Saturdays at 11am, Sundays at 4:30pm

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you found yoga and meditation.
How do you think it has affected your life?
How was your experience teaching at Yoga Journal Live Event like for you?
What’s your relationship to nature?
Why do you choose to teach on the beach?
Do you teach differently on the beach vs in the studio?
What are the benefits of practicing outside?
What has been the biggest challenge thru this whole project?
What has been your biggest lesson?
Do you have any tips for people who want to come practice outside?
Where is your personal favorite space to practice outside?
Is there a location outside you would like to teach you haven’t taught yet? Do you have a dream location for yoga classes?
When you lead retreats, do you take people outside the space usually reserved to yoga?
I’m gonna say a few words. Tell me the first thing that comes to your mind : Beach, Forest, Mountain, Island, Ocean...

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When your life needs a little coaching, with Lauren Zoeller

Mon, 24 Sep 2018 03:19:10 GMT

For our 12th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Lauren Zoeller. Lauren is a yoga and meditation teacher, and she’s also a Whole Living Life Coach. We really connected on the importance of self-care when looking for growth in our life and on the idea of whole living. Today we sat down and talked about what does it means to be a life coach and how has yoga has influenced her on that path.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Work-life Balance Coach. Yoga Instructor. Motivational Speaker. Lauren brings holistic balance to the busy professional. Her coaching practice equips individuals in finding work/life balance for increased happiness and heightened performance. Lauren believes that yoga, meditation, and proper self care can give anyone the balance they need to take ownership of their body, believe in themselves and live a happy life.

In addition to her coaching practice, Lauren teaches yoga at multiple studios in the Nashville area and co-leads 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Courses with Phoenix Yoga Teacher Trainings. When she is not teaching, you can find her traveling, speaking and leading workshops to promote her ultimate message of balance and self care.

Find more about her here:

Her Website

IG : @laurenzoeller

FB : @lzoeller

Free 5 Day Meditation Course: http://www.laurenzoeller.com --> Scroll to bottom to enter course

Mention this podcast when you sign up and get 20% off sessions with her!

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit more about yourself and how you found yoga.
What’s the parallel between teaching yoga and being a life coach?
Before becoming a life coach, you started by seeing one right? Why did you seek coaching? How did that help you move forward in life? You’re still seeing one now?
Why did you later decide to become a life coach? Why are you on this path?
How does a session look like? How is what you do different from therapy?
Can anyone become a life coach? What does it take?
What are your intentions as a coach, what are your goals? What do you believe in?
What’s your definition of success?
On your website, you say : You have a story, it’s meant to be told. Why do you think telling our story is important? How does telling your story has helped you?
How do I know if coaching is right for me? Any tips for people to choose the right person for them?
How can people know if the sessions are working for them? / What are the keys to having a successful coaching experience?
I would like to finish with a few journaling questions for our listeners. Can we make a list of questions you would ask clients?

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Being an Awakened Heart Warrior, with Kara-Leah Grant

Mon, 10 Sep 2018 16:42:46 GMT

For our 11th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Kara-Leah Grant. Kara-Leah is an internationally-renowned yoga teacher, author and retreat leader. She is the founder of New Zealand’s most popular yoga website The Yoga Lunchbox, she’s also a contributor for Elephant Journal, and has published two books. Today we sat down to talk about her yoga practice and how it has influenced the way she teaches and leads her retreats.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Kara-Leah is an internationally-renowned retreat leader, teacher and author. She has impacted millions of people over the last decade through her articles, books, videos and teaching. Passionate about liberation in this lifetime, Kara-Leah practices and teaches an every day path of awakening - the path of the Awakened Heart Warrior.

This path is grounded in Tantra and focuses on dissolving layers of the conditioned mind into deeper and deeper heart-felt presence. Kara-Leah’s work, through her teaching, writing and retreats, focuses on using the process of compassionate inquiry to reveal conditioned mind, and so help people to drop down into being-ness and presence.

Find more about her here:

karaleah.com

Retreats: karaleah.com/events/

FB: Kara-Leah Grant

IG : Kara-Leah Grant

Books: The No-More-Excuses Guide to Yoga & Forty Days of Yoga on karaleah.com/books/

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what brought you to yoga originally?
How does your practice serve you now? What do you seek, why is it an important part of your life?
How does having a daily practice and a home practice has impacted your life as a yogi and as a teacher? You’re doing a 1000 days of home practice challenge? How is that going? What did you learn from the experience so far?
Why does self-study and inquiry are at the center of what you do?
What is the first step for teachers that want to start teaching more than asanas?
Tantric philosophy seems to influence your teachings. Why? How? Where would you suggest people start if there are interested in the subject?
You’re the founder of New Zealand’s most popular yoga website The Yoga Lunchbox. What were your intention when you started this website?
You wrote a lot of articles on The Yoga Lunchbox and you’re also a contributor on Elephant Journal. On both platform, you have written some very open, honest and vulnerable articles. How do you decide what to write about? Any advice for teachers that want to share deep and personal experiences? Have you encounter any challenges?
You call yourself an Awakened Heart Warrior. What does that mean? How does it influence and direct you work in retreats and 1:1?
Any tips for teachers that are just starting to lead retreats? How can they make the experience more potent?

OTHER REFERENCES:

Shiva Rea

Rod Stryker

Twee Merrigan

Christopher Tompkins

Sarah Hon

Kara-Leah's Photos by : Pete Longworth

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Finding Refuge in Your Yoga Practice, with Erika Trice

Mon, 27 Aug 2018 15:07:23 GMT

For our 10th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Erika Trice. Erika is a yoga teacher and teacher trainer. She was one of my mentors when I studied to become a yoga teacher. I was amazed by her presence, and inspired by her passion. She always offers immersion that I’m interested in taking and when I saw that her next one was called The Refuge of Practice – A Weekend Yoga and Meditation Intensives, I thought the idea of refuge would be a great subject to cover on the podcast.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Erika Trice is an E-RYT500 Yoga Alliance certified teacher and teacher trainer. She has been studying and teaching yoga for over 25 years leading classes that are a combination of precise instruction on alignment, flow with breath attention, philosophical insights and playfulness.

Erika's studies include a variety of styles... Iyengar yoga, Therapeutic Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, Yin and Anusara. In addition to yoga, Erika has been a student and teacher of the Oriental Arts of Qigong and Tai Chi Chuan under the private tutelage of Larry Johnson, O.M.D.

Her teaching style reflects the transformative power of both of these disciplines recognizing the importance of a practice that is integrated, well grounded and nourishing.

Find out more about Erika :

www.erikatrice.com

FB : Erika Trice Yoga

Take classes with her at YogaWorks or at Yoga Mountain Studio.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERS DURING THIS EPISODE :

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and what brought you to yoga originally?
How do you define/see the idea of refuge? What does it mean to seek refuge in our practice for you?
How does that type of practice look like/feel like? Energetically, physically, mentally?
What in your life made you or makes you seek refuge in your yoga practice?
Can you share your thoughts about pain and suffering in general, as part of the human experience?
What parts of the practice are the most potent in your opinion when what we seek safety and shelter?
You also do workshops on the yamas and niyamas, how do these 2 subject related for you?
How much does traditional texts direct you in developing this kind of practice? What influenced you to create this workshop?
In your opinion, What’s the place of community when we seek refuge?
Why is this work important for you as a teacher? Why do you want to offer refuge to your students?
What kind of skill are you hoping to develop in your student?
How did you know/when did you realize you could serve your community in that way?

OTHER REFERENCE :

Tirumalai Krishnamacharya

T. K. V. Desikachar

Marc Nepo, The Book of Awakening

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Are you up for Aerial Yoga? with Michelle Dortignac

Mon, 06 Aug 2018 16:26:01 GMT

For our 9th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Michelle Dortignac. Michelle is the founder of Unnata® Aerial Yoga. She’s been a yoga teacher for nearly 20 years and a professional aerial acrobatics performer for almost as long. Since 2006, she grew Unnata Aerial Yoga to a worldwide phenomenon with teachers in over 30 countries. Although she’s not the inventor of Aerial yoga in general, she contributed immensely to it’s popularly in the US. Today we sat down to talk about Aerial yoga in general and her journey through it all.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Michelle Dortignac is a life-long movement artist who founded Unnata® Aerial Yoga in 2006 from the synthesis of her passion for aerial acrobatics, and deep reverence for Yoga. She is a Master of Aerial Yoga who has trained many Aerialists and Yogis offering teacher trainings throughout the world in a precise, and purely Yogic Aerial Yoga methodology. Then she returns home to teach private and group classes in NYC.

In the 20+ years that Michelle has taught Yoga, she has studied with many great Masters, who continue to inform her teaching and personal practice, and the evolution of Unnata® Aerial Yoga. Legendary Sri Dharma Mittra has taught Michelle for over 15 years, and in 2018, she will earn 500-hour certification in Dharma’s extensive Life of a Yogi TT program. She also studies regularly with Yogiraj Alan Finger and was initially certified in Vinyasa Yoga in 1998 at the OM Yoga Center, NYC by Cyndi Lee. Through all of the books, conferences, workshops and trainings she’s absorbed over the years, it’s Michelle’s personal practice since 1991 that has been the foundation for a life of Yoga.

Find out more about Michelle :

AerialYoga.com

Find out more about Unnata® Aerial Yoga :

Unnata.com

Find out more about her training with Sri Dharma Mittra:

dharmayogacenter.com

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERS DURING THIS EPISODE :

- What brought you to yoga originally? and How did your yoga practice evolve toward aerial yoga?

- What’s the difference between anti-gravity yoga and aerial yoga? Is there a difference between an Unnata class vs another aerial class?

- How did this new practice impact or changed your life?

- Why would you recommend people to try Unnata aerial? What are the biggest benefits of this practice compare to a regular yoga practice?

- I’ve heard it’s really good for back pain. In what cases can it help and how?

- I know some people might be concern with safety. What are some of the contra-indications or risks associated with this practice?

- How about hyper mobile students? Is it a better/more risky practice for them? Active vs passive stretch? Any tips for a hyper mobile practitioner?

- Any tips for first time students that want to try aerial yoga?

OTHER REFERENCE :

Trisha Brown Dance Company

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Buti Yoga and Women Empowerment, with Bizzie Gold

Wed, 18 Jul 2018 17:13:23 GMT

For our 8th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Bizzie Gold. Bizzie is a Personal Development Expert and Serial Entrepreneur. From yoga teacher to past life regression therapist, with 5 successful brands, she helps people transform to create their best life. She also consults with individuals and companies to build heart-centered successful businesses.

Although we’ve never met, I discovered her thru Buti Yoga as she’s the founder and creator. You might have heard of Buti, it’s a blend of tribal dance and primal movements, plyometrics, and vinyasa-style yoga. After one of my first tries, I wanted to do the teacher training. I wanted to sit down with her to talk about Buti Yoga and Women Empowerment in general.

One last thing before we start, we had a little bit of issues with connection and sound quality, I apologize in advance, and I hope you can hear everything she says.

GIVEAWAY

Talking about a community just like Buti made of strong women who empower each other, this episode is supported by Athleta. As always, I really appreciate your support. So as you leave a review on iTunes or on you're iPhone podcast app, you automatically enter a giveaway. For this episode, Athleta is giving out a 75$ shop card!

If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

One of the world's top Personal Development + Wellness Experts, Bizzie Gold has appeared on The Dr. Oz Show, TODAY, E!, EXTRA, Home & Family, Bethenny, ABC NEWS and MSNBC to discuss her unique approach to sustainable transformation that has garnered widespread Hollywood praise (past clients include Julia Roberts + Jennifer Love Hewitt, among others).

Gold's off-the-cuff humor and focus on diligent accountability, helps clients achieve striking breakthroughs in record time. An industry disruptor to the core, Gold is bulldozing the model of "coaching" that financially preys on countless people across the globe, replacing it with a sustainable model that puts the clients swift breakthrough at the forefront of all sessions.

In addition to her groundbreaking work in personal development, Gold is a serial entrepreneur with 5 global brands held by her successful Buti Inc. parent company. In addition to her consulting work with male and female-led brands, she works passionately to help women expand their presence in c-suite positions and access funding from private equity.

Find out more about Bizzie here :

www.bizziegold.com or on Instagram @bizziegold

About Buti here :

www.butiyoga.com or @butiyoga

About Break Method :

www.breakmethod.com @breakmethod

www.bmvmnt.com @bmvmnt

Or Reach out to her at info@bizziegold.com

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWER DURING THIS EPISODE :

How did overcoming the challenges in your life and learning from adversity make you who you are today and what you strive for?
How do you think healing and empowerment are correlated?
Buti means “a cure that is hidden or kept secret”,what do you hope people undercover? What’s hidden/kept secret? And how is Buti helping people to do that?
What make the Buti community so different? How did you create a space that’s about connection instead of competition?
Body Love is a subject that seems to pops up quite often in your work. What has been your relationship to your body and how did it influence you?
You’re a successful entrepreneur, what does it means for you to grow a heart-centered business? Any tips for women out there that struggle to connect their inner tycoon to their heart?
I’ve heard you say many times, you don’t have to suffer through life, what are the most common limiting beliefs clients have that bring them suffering?
What’s the biggest lesson begin a mother taught you?
If there’s one thing you want people to take away from this conversation, what would it be?

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Travelling to John of God, with Bethany Miller

Thu, 21 Jun 2018 16:38:39 GMT

For our 7th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Bethany Miller. Bethany is practicing psychologist and yoga studio owner. She owns and runs Sukha Yoga in Novato, where she created an great space oriented on healing and community. When I saw that she was organizing a trip to John Of God in Brazil, I immediately thought we had to sit down and chat. I really wanted to know about her experience...

I would really appreciate you writing a review on iTunes to help other listeners find the podcast! To encourage you, Bethany is graciously offering a 30 minutes chakra healing session with her AND a 30 minutes crystal bed session at the studio, a value of 125$! If you write a review on iTunes, you automatically enter the giveaway and get a chance to win. I'll announce the winners at the end of the next episode and on social media.

If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Bethany opened Sukha Yoga to create a sanctuary in Novato where people can practice yoga, experience different healing modalities and be in spiritual community. She has been a practicing psychologist for the past 20 years, but felt isolated in private practice. In 2012, she went to visit John of God, a healer in Brazil. She received a vision to open a yoga studio and healing center. She has found the greatest joy in creating a strong and loving community of wonderful students, yoga teachers and healers who come together and share their gifts.

She offers chakra healings and crystal bed sessions at Sukha and will be taking a group to visit John of God, Fall 2018.

Find out more about Bethany, the studio and the trip :

www.sukhayoga.com

Social Media :

IG: @sukha.yoga

FB: @sukhayogamarin

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWER DURING THIS EPISODE :

- Can you tell us more about John of God and what’s the concept behind the Casa? (1:48)

- How many times have you been? (4:08)

- Why did you choose to go the first time? (4:12)

- What happened while you were there? (6:40)

- Do you always start in the current room? How does it work? (7:32)

- Can you explain what are spiritual surgeries and physical surgeries? (8:51)

- Why did you decide to go back? (11:00)

- Why did you decide that you wanted to share the experience with Sukha? (11:48)

- What does it mean to be a guide? How did you become one? (13:04)

- Why do people dress all in white? (14:02)

- In your opinion, do you think you have to be spiritual or religious to get the most out of this experience? (16:30)

- What do you tell to people that are skeptics? (20:48)

- Why do you recommend people to join? What can they hope for/ gain? (23:24)

- What’s the one question people ask you the most often? (24:24)

- How do you support the students that come with you? (26:12)

- Do you have any book recommendation to learn more about John of God? (26:48)

- When is the trip? (27:28)

REFERENCE :

Photo of the room she saw when she was there and is now in the studio :

Book suggestions :

- John of God: The Brazilian Healer Who's Touched the Lives of Millions by Heather Cummings.

- John of God: A Guide to Your Healing Journey with Spirit Doctors Beyond the Veil, by Mytrae Meliana

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Fierce Kindness, Be a Positive Force for Change, with Mel Salvatore-August

Sun, 03 Jun 2018 22:09:27 GMT

For our 6th episode, I had the pleasure to sit down with Melanie Salvatore-August. Mel is a yoga teacher, teacher trainer, author and activist. We’ve met a few years back when I did my 300h, as she was part of the cohort of teacher. I felt a strong connection to her teachings so I decided to pick up her books. Today, we’re meeting to talk about her second book, Fierce Kindness, Be a Positive Force for Change.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Mama, teacher, author and kindness activist, Mel has taught yoga since 2005. Her first book Kitchen Yoga: Simple Home Practices to Transform Mind, Body and Life was published by Yellow Pear Press in 2015. Her second book, Fierce Kindness; Be a Positive Force for Change released in 2017 both hard cover/ Audible and Sharing Fierce Kindness a book of postcards to create change coming soon Autumn 2018.

As a YogaWorks Senior Teacher Trainer, Mel has taught multitude of students and educated hundreds of teachers and influencers to be a positive force for change in their own lives and the world. She is skilled at joyfully making the complex become simply actionable and believes the true teacher is within. With the tools of tantra, hatha, kundilini yoga, reiki, sound healing and pure love, Mel supports others to connect and trust their own inner wisdom to live their best life.

Mel shares tested tools to create Joy, Growth and Freedom.

Find out more about Mel and her work on :

https://www.melaniesalvatoreaugust.com/

https://www.fiercekindness.org/

Purchase the books everywhere// anywhere including :

Amazon

Social Media :

IG: @fiercekindness

FB: @fiercekindness

QUESTIONS WE ANSWER DURING THIS EPISODE :

- What’s the concept of Fierce Kindness? What does it mean to you? (1:13)

- Can you tell us a bit more about yourself? Why did you decide to write this book? (2:20)

- What have you learned from writing the book? (4:53)

- How can people start shifting their inner conversation from negative to positive? (6:17)

- Any suggestions to get started if our listeners want answer the call and take action. Where can they start? (12:25)

- What is your hope? What do you hope people will do from reading your book? (15:05)

- How does that translate to motherhood for you? (17:40)

- I saw there’s also a Fierce Kindness organization and you donate some of the book’s profit. Can you tell us about that? (18:55)

- You have an other book coming up? (20:59)

LEAVE A REVIEW

I would really appreciate you writing a review on iTunes to help other listeners find the podcast! Melanie has graciously offered to give out 2 audible copies of her book. If you write a review on iTunes, you automatically enter the giveaway and get a chance to win! I'll announce the winners at the end of the next episode!

If you're not sure how to leave a review, check this article.

REFERENCE :

ACLU : American Civil Livil Liberty Union : Equal Rights and Tolerance

Other Organisation she's encourages you to support : (more in the book)

Global Women's Equality

Green and Peaceful Earth

Spreading Kindness

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Meditation and Emotional Bandwidth, with Emily Leahy

Mon, 07 May 2018 04:35:40 GMT

For our 5th episode I had the pleasure to sit down with Emily Leahy. Emily teaches meditation and other tools to help people feel more grounded and empowered while they reach they're fullest potential. Together, we talked about the role of sacredness, rituals and meditation to stay grounded, regulate and increase your emotional bandwidth.

I would really appreciate you writing a review on iTunes to help other listeners find the podcast! This episode was graciously supported by Athleta® in their efforts to ignite a community of strong women who empower each other. As you leave a review on iTunes, you automatically enter a giveaway to win a 75$ gift card to treat yourself to my favorite yoga brand!!!! That's really worth it! So take 30 seconds to help me dress you ;)

If you don't know how to leave a review, click here!

ABOUT OUR GUEST :

Emily Leahy, owner of Return to Sacred, is a certified healer, teacher, guide in an authentic mystery school. She is passionate about individual empowerment for collective impact.

Emily supports leaders who want to create change in the world by navigating their own healing journey. She specializes in grounding techniques and tools to shift out of hustle mentality; doing less and holding more to live your worth.

In addition, Emily leads monthly events for empaths in San Francisco to master boundaries and energetic sensitivities.

Find out more about Emily and her work :

Her website : www.returntosacred.com

How people can connect:

IG: @returntosacred

FB: www.facebook.com/returntosacred

QUESTIONS WE ANSWERED on this episode:

How would you describe what you do? (1:23)

How did you get into it? (2:44)

What are people looking for when they come to you? (3:48)

Your website and your handle is Return to Sacred. What sacred means to you ? What is sacred to you? (6:20)

Do you encourage people to find what is sacred to them? (8:08)

Is that where meditation comes in? Is meditation a tool to get to know yourself? (10:44)

Can you give an example? What does this type of meditation look like? (11:56)

How does meditation or other tools to get grounded can help you? (14:41)

Once you have a meditation practice, what are the next steps? (18:55)

Do you give guidelines when you suggest journaling as a tool? (20:25)

As someone of service, how do you take care of yourself? (26:36)

How important is it to learn to soothe ourselves when we get overwhelmed? (29:47)

REFERENCES

Mystery School

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The 4 Pillars of Yoga, with Nikki Estrada

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 18:21:31 GMT

For our 4th episode I had the pleasure to sit down with Nikki Estrada. Nikki Estrada has been a prominent fixture in the yoga scene for more than twenty years, lecturing and leading workshops, teacher trainings and immersions nationwide.

Here are some of the questions she answered during this episode.

Why do people do yoga/go to class in your opinion?
What are the 4 pillars to a complete yoga practice?
Why is there so much attention on asana practice compared to the other aspect?
Do you think it takes more time to feel the impact of a pranayama practice than an asana practice?
Do you think that (fear/lack of knowledge/lack of teachings in public settings) might also be an obstacle to make pranayama more widely used?
What’s the first pranayama you teach?
What's missing in your practice when you don't meditate?
How can meditation affect your life?
How can people start a meditation practice?
Do you talk about diet in your classes? Is that in our scope of practice?
How does diet can support your practice?
What the end result of using the 4 pillars together?

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What's Up With Crystal Singing Bowls? with Adriana Cerundolo

Wed, 14 Mar 2018 15:42:07 GMT

For our third episode, I had the pleasure to sit with Adriana Cerundolo to chat about Crystal Singing Bowls. The first time I went to Adriana's healing Crystal Bowl Sessions, I knew there was something really special about her. She combines the signing bowls with percussion and she sings. The results is beautifully unique, truly powerful and absolutely transformative.

I would really appreciate if you left a review on iTunes to help other listeners find the podcast! Click here if you don't know how! As you leave a review on iTunes, you automatically enter a giveaway to win this amazing Yoga Lotus Blanket! ------->

ABOUT OUR GUEST :

Though her own healing journey, Adriana found that sound, breath, and movement are the most direct vehicles for engaging the self and altering our experience. Following her passion for music, she earned her certificate in sound healing in 2010 from the Globe Institute, and uses her understanding of vibration as the platform for her work.

Most recently, Adriana discovered Kundalini Yoga as a powerful technology for tuning our sensory system and growing awareness. She has since completed her 200hr teacher training through the Kundalini Research Institute.

As a 7Directions dance ceremony facilitator, Adriana also guides participants in harvesting body wisdom through the medicine of movement.

QUESTIONS WE ANSWERED on this episode:

How would you describe what you do? (2:30)

Why did you choose crystal bowls rather than a Tibetan bowl? (5:25)

How did you get into it? (9:23)

How much of what you do is about performance vs healing? (11:19)

Using energy to direct the sounds, do you consider yourself particularly sensitive? (13:38)

Do you find it to be a meditative practice for you? (15:02)

Do you have a ritual before using the bowls? (16:41)

How does it work? What makes it healing? Why do it? (18:33)

What can people expect as far of healing? (32:02)

Do you think of sounds in a healthy/non-healthy parallel? (34:30)

How is it different to receive and playing? (38:30)

If you want to get your first crystal bowl, where do you start? How do you choose one? (43:02)

REFERENCE

Come and attend her Crystal Bowls Healing Session on April 7th! Reserve your spot here!

Adriana made a reference to a lecture she attended. It was given by : Jac O’Keefe and was called Trust and the Spiritual Path. Check the whole program here.

7Directions : Sacred and Ceremonial Dance Women's Circle

Want to know more about our guest, connect or work with her? Check these links!

Her website : dreaminsound.com

FB: https://www.facebook.com/dreaminsound/

IG: @dreaminsound

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What is your intuition telling you? with Hillary Skibell

Sun, 11 Feb 2018 21:49:24 GMT

For our second episode, I had the chance to meet with Hillary Skibell to chat about Intuition. Hillary is a well-loved Yoga Teacher and Transformational Coach. She studied at the Academy of Intuition Medicine and is known for her inspiring and soulful teaching that connects students to the deeper pulse and flow of life.

QUESTIONS WE ANSWERED on this episode:

How would you define what is intuition?

What's the difference between Intuition, gut feeling and instinct?

How do we learn to listen to our intuition?

If we want to cultivate your intuition, where do we start?

Does having a positive mindset help you tap in your intuition?

Can we trust our intuition all the time?

What do you say to someone that thinks intuition is just a lucky guess?

How do I learn to trust my intuition more?

How much weight do you give to other people's opinions?

Any other suggestions of what we can do?

Why do all that?

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When you say yoga...

Wed, 10 Jan 2018 23:38:41 GMT

For our first episode, I'm meeting with 3 other newer teachers to talk about Yoga. What it means to them, how it's defined in literature and how it's seen by their students.

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