Yogaland Podcast

Today's conversation is with Alison Zak, who recently published her first book, " Wild Asana: Animals, Yoga, and Connecting Our Practice to the Natural World ." Zak's unique nature memoir artfully weaves together her personal stories, ecological context, and yoga asana. Her book is a moving and urgent call for us to remember our connection to the natural world. As Zak says, "We're more alike than...

There’s something about fall that just feels like back to school time for me, even as an adult.  Jason’s 200-hour YTT is coming up October 24th, so we thought we’d review what to look for if you’re thinking about going back to yoga school!  We talk through the importance of adapting asana to modern knowledge and safety standards, the significance of understanding yoga anatomy in a functi...

On our live episode two weeks ago, we answered the question, ‘Is this thing that we’re doing still yoga?’ Jason shared five principles that make even the most modern practices a yoga practice. On this episode, we will walk through how yoga teachers can bring these principles to life in their teaching. Here are some of the ideas we talk through: Reflecting on whether classes still have liberatory q...

As many of yoga know, Sally Kempton was hugely influential to me. She was an expert guide, a loving presence, and a creative inspiration. She passed away on July 10th and has been on my mind constantly since then. I put together this episode to honor and remember her with my friend, the former editor-in-chief of Yoga Journal, Kaitlin Quistgaard. We had a lot of fun sharing stories and memories of...

This discussion was recorded in London at the new Mission studio where Jason led Module I of his hybrid YTT a few weeks ago. Together, Jason and I explored the question -- Is this thing that we're all doing still actually yoga? Our power-hour or our 30-minute glo class or our rolling on foam rollers with some poses sprinkled in -- are those still yoga? Or has yoga in the West evolved into somethin...

Today we're talking about five things that Jason wishes he knew earlier in his yoga teaching career. We hope this discussion helps yoga teachers everywhere take some pressure off of themselves to be everything to everyone all the time. Enjoy! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/yogaland . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason takes over this week to present a special comprehensive lecture on Patanjali, aka, his Patanjali “Super Lecture.” This episode essentially combines our three existing episodes on Patanjali plus additional content featuring essential philosophical concepts to teach beginners. We wanted to provide a place for all of these conversations to exist together so you have them at your fingertips. The...

Deepen your knowledge of yoga anatomy and the anatomy of twists, in this 20-minute detailed conversation. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/yogaland . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm sharing 8 things I've learned in the process of creating this podcast for the past 8 years. Jason joins as my sound board and points out that a lot of these ideas about how to create content -- things like defining your editorial scope, sustaining your passion, and having a thick skin -- apply to teach yoga, too. So -- you get a twofer here: lessons for sharpening your content creati...

It's the 300th episode of Yogaland -- huzzah! For this momentous occasion, I've decided to reflect on the past 8 years.  So much has changed in yoga and in podcasting and I wanted to take a look back together. On the episode I share where and why podcasting started for me (it was a comfort during radiation treatment for breast cancer treatment), what my aim was in starting the podcast, and wh...

In this last of our "essentials" series, Jason shares 5 essential ideas for finding ease and stability in your shoulders during yoga practice. On this episode, you will learn: Why it's particularly crucial to build shoulder stability if you practice vinyasa yoga -- and which joint (of the four) in the shoulder is the most unstable A common misconception about what to do with your shoulders when yo...

On this episode, Jason clarifies what we mean when we talk about the core in yoga. Once you're finished listening, the core will no longer be a vague two-dimensional region that you aspire to pummel into submission. Instead, you'll understand: The difference between the abdominals and the core The functions of the core -- it contains! connects! supports! It's like a Swiss Army Knife! The part of t...

This week, I speak to yoga teacher, writer, and mama Sarah Ezrin about her new book, The Yoga of Parenting: 10 Yoga Based Practices to Help You Stay Grounded, Connect with Your Kids, and Be Kind to Yourself . As Sarah points out right at the beginning of the episode, there are far more than just 10 practices in this book. There are 34 to be exact, but more importantly it's just brimming with both...

Jason joins me this week to share 5 essential ideas for a healthy spine in yoga. How to distribute your physical and mental attention for optimal spinal health while practicing One of the riskiest moves for the spine How shielding ourselves from back pain can lead to a weak back Whether the spine twists from bottom to top or from top to bottom When it's beneficial to round the spine (and how we of...

Libby Hinsley is a yoga therapist and a Doctor of Physical Therapy living with Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. Suffice it to say, she is  the expert  on yoga for hypermobility. Her new book, Yoga for Bendy People: Optimizing the Benefits of Yoga for Hypermobility . This book is so needed in the yoga community and in the medical community, where a dearth of clarity and education aboun...

Learn the best way to practice, teach and troubleshoot one of Yoga's most important hip openers: Pigeon Pose. In this episode, Jason breaks down the Yoga Anatomy of this essential hip-opener and shows you reliable ways to troubleshoot the knee discomfort that some students experience in this pose. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/yogaland . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mo...

Jason joins me this week to share 5 essential ideas for healthy hips in yoga. Also: Jason's Essential Guide to Yoga Anatomy is open for enrollment! 🎉 Get the details and register at: learn.jasonyoga.com/anatomy Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/yogaland . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guest this week is Dara Kennedy, the founder of Ayla Beauty. Having spent more than 10 years in the retail beauty space, Dara started Ayla because she wanted to combine her expertise as a product developer and curator with her passion for yoga and wellness. I've known Dara (as her customer!) for years and the mindfulness she brings to her business is notable. Her friend and the founder of...

We know that change is a part of life -- it's also a part of the constantly evolving practice of yoga. As religious studies scholar Andrea Jain says in her book,  Selling Yoga: From Counterculture to Pop Culture , “I emphasize premodern yoga’s context-sensitivity, heterogeneity, and malleability, rather than any central quality or essence presumed by some to be present across all systems...

These are the five most essential sequencing concepts for teaching yoga classes for beginners. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/yogaland . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jason recently did a webinar on how to structure your classes for beginners and there were tons of requests from folks who wanted to be able to re-watch it even after the replay period. So, ta-dah! we are making it available to everyone as a two-part series! Part I focuses on the 5-part class structure that I’ve been using with my beginners for over a decade. Part II will be coming next week! You...

We've noticed the pendulum swinging toward strength in recent years (not a bad thing), and we wanted to offer context for the counterpoint: Stretching. (BTW, This is a great companion to episode 288, 'How much strength does yoga really build?') We take a big, contextual step back and look at: What is stretching? What are the types of stretching? What are some of the contraindications Are there sti...

Many of us have an attraction/repulsion thing when it comes to learning yoga anatomy. Why is that? Anatomy reminds us that embodiment is amazing, but it can also be overwhelming and frustrating to feel like we'll never "get it all." Never fear! On this episode, Jason talks about why it's so important to learn anatomy and how to approach it so that you feel empowered and inspired. We've got lots mo...

So excited to share this week's episode with you: Jill Miller joins me for her fifth Yogaland podcast to talk about her new book, Body by Breath: The Science and Practice of Physical and Emotional Resilience . This is a book that I recommend every yogi have in their library. It gives you the full "behind-the-scenes" tour of complex relationship between the nervous system, brain, gut, fascia, and b...

Jumping back into Chaturanga more gracefully isn’t about raw strength—although, a healthy amount of strength is certainly helpful. It’s about using leverage and motion to your advantage. The key to the process is simple: you need to counter the motion of jumping back with greater motion moving forward. This video teaches you 3 essential drills for learning to jump back into Chaturanga more gracefu...