Curious Monki | Yoga, Spirituality + Wellness

    There are many ways to understand the energy around us.  In western philosophy, when we talk energy we use a scientific lens.  We logically categorize each finding into its own tidy compartment: kinetic energy, potential energy, thermal energy, chemical energy, gravitational energy…(yes, I loved my science courses * nerd face * 😉 ) We try to create something tangible out of the unseen – and I...

    In this episode, we talk about M-O-N-E-Y .  A topic that many shy away from even though we all want and need it.  Why is that?  Probably because there's so much stigma around money plus our own complicated relationship with it.  We want it but we're afraid to admit to wanting it.  Maybe we somehow came to know it as evil.  Maybe deep down inside we don't feel like we deserve it.  Or maybe it's...

    Jenny Ravikumar  is a devoted yoga practitioner, yoga teacher, reiki master, certified crystal healer through Hibiscus Moon and owner of the Barefoot Yoga Shala studio based in Massachusetts.  Most recently, she started a successful non-profit, Yoga for Families of Addiction .  As the name implies, this non-profit provides healing for friends, families, and spouses of addicts.  Through Jenny's...

    Tara Wagner is a breakthrough coach who helps identify what's holding you back from your next level of success.  In other words, she's an expert in helping people get over their self-doubt! How timely since I just talked about this in Episode 51 .  This conversation with Tara is like an expansion of the topic of self doubt, imposter syndrome and limiting beliefs.  In specific, we talk about aw...

      Feeling STUCK can be so uncomfortable.  You're in a place in life or in your mind where you don't want to be and just can't seem to get out.  It's sticky and stuffy and frustrating.  Unfortunately being stuck is one of those inevitable situations that we will find ourselves in from time to time.  Just like fear or self-doubt.  What we can do with this feeling is to bring awareness to what it...

    Here is Part II of the conversation that I had with the lovely Mia Mitchell!  Last week she shared the heartfelt story of her darkest hour - loss of a best friend, the downfall of a marriage and contemplation of a life not worth living.  In essence, Mia's story is a powerful voice for mental health awareness.  With time, Mia healed and now has a successful essential oils business where she hel...

    Self-doubt creeps in from time to time and it's probably never going to fully go away.  Everybody experiences this feeling, even millionaires and world renowned self-help experts.  Even with their major successes, they still get a niggle of this self-doubt from time to time.  If even proven successes don't prevent self-doubt from coming back ever again, then we must learn to navigate this feel...

    Mia Mitchell is a beacon of light who works to guide others into a life they love by using essential oils as her trusted tool.  This lovely Australian lady's heart centered essential oils business stems from a reason more deep-seated than passion if you can imagine.  I dare say (after hearing her story) that this is the truest form of expression of herself.  A manifestation of her soul's purpo...

    In the last episode of Bite Sized I talked about the importance of knowing when to quit and how it can be just as important as the power of perseverance.  The wisdom is in knowing when to do which.  In this episode I talk about what to do with that information.  So you have an inkling that you need to quit something in your life. Now what?  Where do you even go from here?  I've been there many...

    Thank you for tuning into the final episode of launch week for my new segment, BITE SIZED!  Today I answer the question that I ask all of the guests I interview:  What Is The Biggest Lesson That You've Learned Along the Way? My biggest lesson is that QUITTING is just as important as PERSEVERING and takes just as much courage.  The wisdom is in knowing which is which. Quitting has such a negati...

    Welcome to the very second episode of BITE SIZED! Transitions are never easy even if it's a change for the better.  Career change, ending a relationship, starting a new endeavor....it's scary to take a leap of faith!  But once you hear what your heart truly desires, you can't really go back.  Today I talk about how to keep going even when it's scary and I share with you my two greatest pieces...

      I'm adding to the goodness with a new segment called BITE SIZED .  In these short 15-20 minute episodes I go solo and completely candid to deliver a dose of inspiration, knowledge or sum up golden nuggets from past episodes.  It's my way of amplifying the good vibes :)  I haven't reached enlightenment or anything like that yet but hey! I've picked up a few nuggets of wisdom on my very own jo...

    Rachel Scott is a yoga teacher trainer, instructional designer, and writer.  She regularly contributes to Yoga International  and is the author of Wit and Wisdom from the Yoga Mat  and A Yogi's Guide to Dating.   With over 4000 hours as a yoga teacher trainer, her passion for helping yoga educators create excellent trainings certainly shows through.  I am so grateful to have Rachel and her cap...

    Anne Douglas  of Episode 30: Messages from Our Bodies and How Anahata Yoga Can Help You Listen is back on the show and this time she's here to talk yoga philosophy.  Perhaps you'd really like to understand the philosophy of yoga but words like "vedic" "samkhya" and dates older than 1995 makes your brain want to take a nap.  Sanskrit and history are not your forte.  No problemo, start here!  Wh...

    "There is no one straight path" This nugget of insight seems to be a recurring theme throughout the conversations that I have with my marvelous guests.  Their paths are colorfully weaved with discovery and changes.  For the most part, their stories don't follow a linear trajectory.  In fact, it's the dynamic quality that brings so much inspiration and aliveness! Restaurant owner turned yoga te...

    Elizabeth Nguyen is a yoga teacher and founder of Yoga Boss Babe, a subscription box to help yoga teachers grow a thriving business.  This girl works with a stunning amount of dedication, authenticity and passion!  She is in love with her business and life today but like all great creators, there was quite a bit of travelling to get to this leg of the journey.  In fact, the first business she...

    Awilda Rivera is a yoga teacher, spiritual advisor and success coach who has dedicated her life to help empower others to succeed.  She's navigated a few twists and turns in her own life as she transitioned from being a law professional and into the world of spirituality and wellness. A cardiac episode in her late 20's brought Awilda to face a very real truth in her life.  Ever since the age o...

    Melanie Klein is an empowerment coach, professor of Sociology and Women's Studies at Moorpark Collect in Venura County, California, speaker, writer and thought leader in the areas of body confidence, authentic empowerment and visibility.  In addition to many other books she's also the editor of the recently released,  Y oga Rising: 30 Empowering Stories from Yoga Renegades for Every Body.  She...

    Marla Meenakshi Joy , Owner and Director of Downward Dog Yoga Centre,   spent years in the Himalayas studying Meditation, Sanskrit and Yoga Philosophy.  She's been studying meditation and the philosophy of the Vedas since 1988.  She began teaching in 1999 in Teacher Training programs across Canada, the U.S., Europe and Asia, as a teacher of Philosophy and Sanskrit, Chanting and Meditation, Ash...

    This soul searching business isn't easy!  As we travel this journey to the heart, we're asked to take leaps, look fear in the eyes and move with great courage and unfold into who we really are.  Stories from each other can hearten this experience - the mere fact of knowing that we're not alone and that somebody else has done it too is uplifting.  In this week's episode Anna Lundberg shares her...

    Stacey Irvine  is a yoga teacher and registered nurse at the Alberta Children's Hospital.  Her yoga journey began ten years ago when she experienced injuries as a triathlete.  Unable to continue with her regular workouts with the sustained injuries, she was encouraged to practice yoga to rehabilitate.  She quickly fell in love - at first with the physical practice and then eventually realized...

    This one is for everyone who is trying to start something out there!  A movement, a business, a whole new life.... Robindra Mohar  is an Edmonton based educator + festival producer + DJ.  He and his wife Myrah are the creators of the Canada based It's Time To Bloom Festival and Together We Bloom Society.  He is also the catalyst for Yogi Entrepreneur School where he helps entrepreneurs design...

    Kelsey Delane is a Yoga Mentor & Reiki Master who guides fellow Yogis & Yoga Teachers toward more sustained joy.  She has completed an impressive 1,000 hours of yoga training ranging from kids yoga, to trauma informed yoga, to Yoga Philosophy.  Her most passionate subject is the teachings of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.  She shares this knowledge through one on one mentorship, online platform...

      In this episode, we get to talk about a topic that I've been long intrigued by - AYURVEDA!   Susan Weis-Bohlen is an Ayurvedic expert and author the book Beginner's Guide to Ayurveda: Essential Ayurvedic Principles & Practices to Balance & Heal Naturally.     On the Ayurvedic side, she's officially a Chopra Center Certified Ayurvedic Consultant; but she's also a meditation teacher, vegetaria...

      Julie Seibt is a yoga teacher with plenty of credentials under her belt ( IAYT Yoga Therapist, Anahata Yoga Teacher and iRest Teacher to name a few) but it's probably more accurate to just describe her as an ocean of knowledge.  This is one lady who is well versed in the matters of the heart and her unshakable truth shines through the entire conversation.  In this episode, we dive into a ric...