From the Heart with Rachel Brathen

In this episode, Rachel is recording from NYC with her best friend Olivia Rothschild. Rachel and Olivia “met half way” in NYC for the only reason that they wanted to spend some time together and have a little break from the husbands and the babies. They chat about life, sex, having more babies, shaving, veganism and all the usual things best friends talk about. Who do you call when you just need t...

Welcome to the first From the Heart episode of 2019 where Rachel shares her intentions for the new year. First, reflecting on 2018 and the challenges that it brought into her life, Rachel notices that she was shook by a loss of confidence. From working too hard and too much, chasing around a crazy toddler and having social media telling her all the things she was doing wrong, Rachel felt self-doub...

In this episode, Christmas has just ended and Rachel is feeling the relief. She realizes why people spend the holidays with their extended family - because leaving all the cooking to one person is too big of a job! Rachel discusses the pressure she put on herself to create the perfect Christmas for her family and how it left her missing her mom and wondering exactly what she was trying to recreate...

In this episode, Rachel touches on an unexpected parenting issue her and Dennis have come across - Dennis doesn’t want to be Santa for Christmas. Christmas is an especially important time for Rachel and she reflects on her past to figure out why that is. Prior to having her baby girl, Rachel placed so much emphasis on her birthday. Not too long ago, she realized that a happy birthday meant separat...

In this episode, Rachel discusses the disconnect between what resonates with her inner voice versus what society tells her. She wonders what her life would be like if she fully let the wild woman inside of her blossom - not the woman who has been conditioned by society.  These thoughts were triggered after Rachel noticed a pattern of how often she tells Luna how beautiful she is. Of course, this i...

In this episode, Rachel is on her very first day of maternity leave - and it is not going well. She discusses everything that led her to this moment, from feeling burnt out and tired from work with a heavy burden of responsibility on her shoulders. So she took time off and... cleaned the house, walked the dogs, fed the goats, took out the garbage, browsed Instagram and felt like she did nothing of...

In this episode, Rachel talks about her absolute inability to slow down. After a very intense few years culminating with back-to-back retreats and trainings, her body has started giving her serious signals to work at a slower pace. How do you slow down when moving fast is all you know? Rachel wraps her head around the fact that there is never a time that she is not working. Not on her honeymoon, n...

In this episode, Rachel continues sharing with her group of yoga teacher trainees as they discuss Fear and the answer to the question, “What Scares You?” How does fear hold you back? Does it run your life? Does it paralyze you? How does it show up day-to-day? Listen to what this community had to say about it - it may sound very familiar. Then of course, the participants turn to another question, “...

In this episode, Rachel is once again joined by her yoga teacher trainees for a special two-part podcast segment. The topic of this group sharing is Fear and answering the question “What scares you?”. We are all dealing with fears somewhere in our own lives - in our relationships, family or work lives. Sometimes fear is purposeful, but often it holds us back or paralyzes us. Here, the participants...

In this episode, Rachel is immersed in leading her third yoga teacher training while Luna is with grandma and Dennis is at an Iron Man race.  Rachel reminisces on all the programs she has led since Luna was born, from the ones that were super overwhelming while breastfeeding to the ones that are easier now that Luna is older. Rachel is used to hosting large groups, but it was having a baby that ma...

In this episode, Rachel is joined once again by her husband and baby daddy, Dennis Schoneveld! Both Rachel and Dennis have big things coming up - Dennis is participating in his second Iron Man at the same time that Rachel is leading a yoga teacher training. They discuss what happened the last time Dennis did an Iron Man - and how it was the most they’ve ever fought as a couple. Recognizing that Ra...

In this episode Rachel begins by discussing her newly launched Yoga Girl Community - a safe space for people to open their hearts online. From receiving so many deep and personal messages through emails and social media, she knew she needed to find a space to connect us all in a deeper and more tangible way. With the Yoga Girl Community comes the tradition of Sharing Sunday. Speaking deeper on thi...

In this episode Rachel is joined by JP Sears, the comedian, author, speaker, emotional healing coach and YouTuber (with over 300 million accumulated views!). Sharing from the heart what has been present in his life lately, JP opens up about feeling lonely and insignificant and how it is through merging comedy and spirituality that he seeks to bring awakening to others. It is, as he says, one of th...

In this weeks episode Rachel speaks to us from Path of Love, a retreat she has been assisting for the past week in Motala, Sweden. To begin, Rachel tells the story of her own Path of Love experience when she participated in May, 2016. She shares the story of what brought her there (she finally went after booking it twice and cancelling!) and what came out of it (Hint: Her name is Lea Luna).  Rache...

In this episode Rachel is joined by none other than Cheryl Strayed! Cheryl is a novelist, essayist, column writer and podcast host with the Number 1 New York Times best selling memoir “Wild” (you’ve probably seen the movie, starring Reese Witherspoon!) along with several novels under her belt.  Rachel begins the episode by reminiscing on Cheryl’s novel “Tiny Beautiful Things” and how it was on her...

The wait is finally over. Welcome to Yoga Girl! In this episode, Rachel shares the news she has been wanting to spill forever - we have launched! All the secrets and hints are finally being revealed and this podcast is all about Yoga Girl - the lifestyle, the movement, the brand and the community. Rachel answers all the questions that come in and goes in depth into detail on why she created this p...

Feeling emotional, Rachel begins her first solo episode in almost a month catching up on all the recent changes that have come about in her life – from launching her YouTube channel to getting steps closer to the big initiative she has been hinting at so much. With James Aspey visiting Rachel in Aruba, it is no surprise that veganism has also been a topic on her mind. She discusses her family dyna...

In this episode, Rachel introduces her community to Rachel Cargle. A writer, speaker, and educator, Rachel Cargle’s work is centered around educating white women on how they can support women of color in genuine ways. Rachel Cargle begins this discussion by sharing how she began this journey of activism and how she didn’t have a choice as a black woman trying to exist in a world not built to suppo...

In this episode, Rachel invites Susanna Barkataki to discuss the topic of cultural appropriation. Susanna is a teacher, inclusivity promoter, yoga culture advocate and the author of the original article, “How to Decolonize Your Yoga Practice” that was widely circulated across social media over the past few weeks. The conversation begins with Susanna speaking on her personal history of experiencing...

In this episode, Rachel is joined by the talented, humble and down-to-earth guitarist from Snow Patrol, NathanConnolly. First discussing how they randomly ended up in LA together through the connection of a mutual friend, Nathan then dives into how the first show opening for Ed Sheeran went, and what life touring is like (hint: he needs it). From his beginnings singing in a gospel choir to joining...

In this episode Rachel is joined by none other than beloved international singer, Seal! True to the spirit of the From the Heart podcast, Seal begins the episode by giving a refreshingly honest answer to how he is feeling in his life now compared to a year ago. He shares how his perspective has changed from feeling helpless, victimized and isolated to feeling simply fantastic – and the incredible...

What does alignment mean for you? What do you need to feel good? Recognizing what is truly important for you is the first step to living a life rooted in your own truth.  Rachel begins this episode speaking from the heart on how she has compromised her alignment over the previous weeks. Through being tired from working non-stop for too long and getting caught up in late-night Netflix episodes she...

In this episode Rachel shares her all-time favorite books on Yoga and Spirituality. She dives into the words that came along with her on adventures, the stories that supported her, and the passages that changed her life. Books often represent so much more than the paper they are made out of. To Rachel, her books are sacred keepsakes that are filled with little notes, letters, and pictures that tel...

In this episode Rachel continues sharing with the rest of her Yoga Teacher Training group on their Inner Critic. The group shares the judgmental, disapproving thoughts they harbour when that negative voice we all have in our heads is leading the way. Now hearing from 50 women from 15 different countries that have shared their most hurtful thoughts they carry about themselves, it becomes so evident...

In this episode Rachel invites her Yoga Teacher Training group to join her in sharing a piece of what their inner critic - that judgmental, disapproving voice we all carry in the back of our heads - speaks of, and what life is like when we live from that place. 52 women from 15 different countries share from a place of deep vulnerability and then turn toward the Inner Best Friend - a voice that sp...