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Look. We need to get into it.To ask all the questions, to unearth all the possibilities, to sit with some uncomfortable answers.So I asked Leslie Kaminoff to come on, and we did just that.KEY TAKEAWAYS:*” Fundamentally it is a governance issue” is my favorite quote about the IAYT issue that is on this entire podcast series. Because they do have a governance issue, and it is important that we talk about it. To reiterate: a 501c3 organization in the United States exists to serve a public function, and a 501c6 org is a business or trade organization that exists to serve its members. The IAYT is currently the former, not the latter. *Medicalizing yoga and yoga therapy comes with a whole host of complications. And this series on the podcast will cover some of those complications as we go forward into talking about licensure, the medicalization of yoga, and more.*Yoga is relationships. This is a quote from this episode of the podcast that I have already used a dozen times since Leslie and I recorded this podcast together a few weeks ago. Because it is so true. We are in relationship with ourselves, our students, our colleagues, and our organizations. It is important that we chose to build the best versions of those relationships that we can so we can all thrive, and also so that yoga and the yoga industry can thrive in this modern world. *If you missed it, if there is an offer to write a rebuttal of someone wishes to write a position paper about moving towards licensure in the yoga therapy space. Please someone take Leslie up on this so I can read both your paper and his response. I love this kind of stuff.*Yoga has long taken place within the outskirts of culture. I have said this a lot, but we came of age in the counter-culture movement of the 90s, and a lot of us really liked it that way. I include myself in this group. I don't know if the 19 year old version of myself that started yoga would have found her way into today's modern yoga spaces. I think about that a lot actually, especially in the context of all those gifts that a consistent yoga practice has given me over the last 27 years. Leslie refers to this with his assertion that yoga has existed very often between the cracks of general culture. Comforting or not, that is the reality of what we have been. And I am interested to see if we keep that trend going forward into the future.RESOURCESWorking In Yoga WebsiteWorking In Yoga NewsletterLeslie's WebsiteFind Taylor Casey
Yoga educator Leslie comes back on the podcast to talk yoga peaking, online training, business models, AI, yoga and society, yoga research, the Olympics, BJJ, aikido, why Mark can't run, ageing, Zoom-life balance, and polarisation. A wonderful catch-up between embodiment friends. Find out more about Leslie here: https://yogaanatomy.org/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Leslie Kaminoff, co-author of the bestselling book “Yoga Anatomy” and creator of YogaAnatomy.net, is a yoga educator and internationally recognized specialist with over four decades' experience in the fields of yoga, breath anatomy and bodywork. His approach to teaching combines intellectual rigor, spontaneity and humor, and is always evolving. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Get a free copy of Mark's latest eBook at this link: https://bit.ly/Top12Embodiment Subscribe to Mark's new Feral Philosophy You Tube channel here: https://youtube.com/@feralphilosophy_mw?si=PHJcNwK4GYpRSflK Join Mark for in-person workshops – https://embodimentunlimited.com/events-calendar/?utm_source=TEP&utm_medium=Description&utm_campaign=Events Join free coaching demos sessions with Mark – https://embodimentunlimited.com/free-coaching-with-mark/?utm_source=TEP&utm_medium=Description&utm_campaign=Demo Find Mark Walsh on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/warkmalsh/
On Episode 70 of TAAM I speak with the brilliant yoga educator, Leslie Kaminoff.Leslie is steeped in a tremendous amount of practice ( he started yoga at age 20, in 1978) and professional teaching experience. He was there before the first YTT's formed and has stayed the course to watch the West make it's own yoga, as we eclipse the role of Guru Devotion on the path to personal insight.We had a fluid, rolling conversation that touched upon some of Leslie's personal chronology, how to practice bandah, the role of hands on assists, as well as "what is the point of all this physical stuff we are doing with our bodies?" Leslie encourages the modern yogi to use their practice to "move into good space" (joy) while trying to avoid bad space (suffering.) This conversation will intrigue yoga teachers as well as those who are new to practice because of it's depth, and raw honesty, and Leslie's vast experience. Thank You Leslie Kaminoff for your generosity in sharing good cheer with The Art of Aging Mindfully Community! You can follow up with Leslie's offerings and courses at:Personal Website: https://yogaanatomy.org/Leslie's Online Education Community: https://www.yogaanatomy.net/Instagram @leslie.kaminoff : https://www.instagram.com/leslie.kaminoff?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==To order Leslie's "Yoga Anatomy" book, authored with Amy Matthewshttps://amzn.to/4f34eS4TO SUPPORT THE ART OF AGING MINDFULNESS PODCAST:patreon.com/jaisugrimTo Train with Jai in Yogic Conditioning Longevity Classes:https://theartofagingmindfully.com/online-classes/To get your Viome Full Body Intelligence Kit, with $100 Discount:viomehq.sjv.io/eKnAO1Enter discount code ARTOFAGING TO RECEIVE $110 OFF YOUR VIOME KITEnjoy and Share this informative episode! Have a beautiful Day Everyone!
Live from the Berkshire Yoga Festival 2024, J talks with Johanna Epps, Louise LeGouis, and Leslie Kaminoff about motivation, purpose, and the zeitgeist of the times. They discuss making sense of the scandals, new challenges, marketing and patience, hurting our bodies and student safety, what sells and presenting to the public, bubbles bursting and the traveling teacher circuit, reasons to attend and benefits of presenting at a festival, eternal topics and breaking new ground, and not taking for granted the joy of being in person. To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Contribute to J's fundraiser to open a center. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.
Laurice (Lauri). D. Nemetz, MA, BD-DMT, EYT500, LCAT, CIAYT is an adjunct professor at Pace University having taught classes in yoga, myofascial anatomy and more at the Pleasantville NY campus since 2004 and is a 2020 Pace U. President's Award recipient for Outstanding Contribution. In the summer of 2021, Lauri was awarded the position of Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, for Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, IL (2021-present). She is also a licensed Creative Arts Therapist, a member of the American Association for Anatomy, a board-certified member of the Academy of Dance/Movement Therapists, a registered yoga teacher at the experienced 500-hour level, past President of the Yoga Teachers' Association (YTA), a Stott Pilates instructor, a certified yoga therapist and an occasional kayak guide! Lauri graduated from Wellesley College (Art History and French), earned a Master's degree in Dance/Movement Therapy (Psychology) from Goucher College, with additional extensive postgraduate anatomy education.Her yoga lineage includes Tao Porchon Lynch, Karin Stephan, Leslie Kaminoff, David Hollander, and Kim Schwartz among many more with who she is fortunate to have learned from. In therapeutic work, she aligns most closely with Rogerian and Jungian theories and this combined study has informed her work with a number of diverse populations including work with trauma survivors, autistic children, neonatal and general rehab populations. Her current private work combines work from her varied background and focuses on guiding individuals to reach their fullest potential physically and mentally.Currently an independent anatomical dissector with several projects (more in the anatomy tab) including KNM dissections (with Leslie Kaminoff, Yoga Anatomy), Lauri is additionally a lead dissector with the international team of the Fascial Net Plastination Project. She regularly presents at conferences including the American Association for Anatomy, Experimental Biology, the Fascia Research Congress, the American Dance Therapy Association, and Movement: Brain, Body and Cognition Conferences (Oxford University; Harvard Medical), and loves teaching in yoga teacher training programs. Her workshops in both anatomy and movement have included locations in Canada, Brazil, Germany, Costa Rica, and across the U.S. She has a chapter on dance/movement therapy in the Creative Arts Therapies Manual (2006) and has published several articles including in the International Journal of Arts Medicine and upcoming in The Anatomical Record.Her book, The Myofascial System in Form and Movement (2023) (click here for more information) is being published by Handspring Publishing, a respected imprint in bodywork, anatomy and movement. She is particularly passionate about studies of environmental space, art and science communication. She considers herself an explorer looking to connect people through meaningful movement conversation to their own bodies and each other.Lauri's instagram page: @wellnessbridgeLauri's facebook: Lauri NemetzLauri's book: The Myofascial System in Form and MovementContact me: Email: jpanasevich@gmail.com Phone: 267.275.3890Website: yogawithjake.comInstagram: @yogawithjakeReach out to me directly if you are interested in my upcoming, online, Yoga For Dudes - Brand-New Beginner's
Leslie Kaminoff is a yoga educator inspired by the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar. He is recognized internationally as a specialist in the fields of yoga, breath anatomy and bodywork. For over four decades he has led workshops and developed specialized education for many leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in America and throughout the world. His approach to teaching combines intellectual rigor, spontaneity and humor, and is always evolving. Leslie is the founder of The Breathing Project, a New York City based educational non-profit dedicated to advancing educational standards for yoga teachers and other movement professionals. His unique year-long course is available online at yogaanatomy.net. He is the co-author, with Amy Matthews, of the best-selling book “Yoga Anatomy.” You can follow him on Instagram (@leslie.kaminoff), Twitter (@lkaminoff) and on Facebook (LeslieKaminoffYogaAnatomy), on YouTube (YogaAnatomy) and learn more at YogaAnatomy.org. Reverence for Impulse is an unscripted, unplanned and (hopefully) unedited podcast with me, Weena Pauly-Tarr. Together with my guests, we're asking what is alive in this moment?We start each episode with a few minutes of meeting each other head-to-toe, through the language of our bodies, before we press record and bring it to a conversation. We start where we are. This is not a hard hitting agenda or getting to the bottom of things, it's about being in the bottoms of things. Finding each other in the not-knowing. I'm here for the spaciousness, the awkwardness, the silliness, the silence — From the dark insides of our bodies to the brightness of our minds, I'm excited to welcome people who's impulses I'd like to get to know.
Today's conversation is with Leslie Kaminoff Leslie is a yoga educator inspired by the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar. He is an internationally recognized specialist with five decades' experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He leads workshops for many of the leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in the world. Leslie's book Yoga Anatomy, (co-authored with Amy Matthews), sold out its first print run of 19,000 within one month of its June 2007 release, and has been a top-selling yoga book on Amazon ever since. The book went on to sell over a million copies in 23 languages by the time the third edition of Yoga Anatomy was released in the Fall of 2021. Leslie also helped to organize international yoga conferences while serving as Vice-President of Unity in Yoga, and was part of the ad-hoc committee that established national standards for yoga teacher training. Prior to the formation of The Yoga Alliance, Leslie was a strong voice in the ensuing national debate regarding the application of those certification standards. This dialogue resulted in the creation of e-Sutra, pioneering e-mail list and blog with a worldwide readership. Leslie is the founder of The Breathing Project, a New York City based non-profit educational corporation and studio which ran highly respected year-long courses in yoga anatomy from 2003 to 2017. The courses taught at The Breathing Project in New York City have been available online to a worldwide audience at yogaanatomy.net since 2011, with thousands of students worldwide participating in this growing online community. Leslie has also partnered with Lauri Nemetz and Lydia Mann as KNMLabs.com to produce week-long human dissection lab experiences for yoga and movement professionals. In our conversation today we had a wide-ranging discussion about our work, life experiences, and shared interests in yoga and bodywork. We discussed the importance of adapting to each individual's needs in teaching yoga, the core principles of yoga, the therapeutic effects, and the mind-body problem. Towards the end, we touched upon the importance of emotional regulation and the role of a yoga teacher. It was a very enjoyable conversation and I wish it could have gone on for hours more. Leslie is a seasoned veteran in both the bodywork and yoga world and his experience, wisdom and compassion help make him a top leader in the field. You can learn more about Leslie at https://yogaanatomy.org If you are enjoying and getting something out of these talks, we'd appreciate it if you would leave a positive review of the podcast and subscribe to it through the platform of your choice. When you do this it really helps other people find us, and we greatly appreciate your support. You can find more about Andrew at http://andrewrosenstock.com and http://RolfingInBoston.com Many thanks to Explorers Society for use of their song " All In" from their majestic album 'Spheres' Please check them out here https://open.spotify.com/album/1plT1lAPWEQ1oTRbWOiXm3?si=eAL08OJdT5-sJ6FwwZD50g
Leslie Kaminoff is a yoga educator inspired by the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar. He is an internationally recognized specialist with four decades' experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He leads workshops for many of the leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in the world. Leslie's book Yoga Anatomy, (co-authored with Amy Matthews), sold out its first print run of 19,000 within one month of its June 2007 release, and has been a top-selling yoga book on Amazon ever since. The book went into 12 printings before the newly-revised third edition of Yoga Anatomy was released on October 31, 2011, now with well over half a million copies in print and translations into 23 languages. Leslie also helped to organize international yoga conferences while serving as Vice-President of Unity in Yoga, and was part of the ad-hoc committee that established national standards for yoga teacher training. Prior to the formation of The Yoga Alliance, Leslie was a strong voice in the ensuing national debate regarding the application of those certification standards. This dialogue resulted in the creation of e-Sutra, an influential e-mail list and blog that has an active worldwide membership. Leslie is the founder of The Breathing Project, a New York City based non-profit educational corporation which ran highly respected year-long courses in yoga anatomy from 2003 to 2017. Leslie Kaminoff founded The Breathing Project in 2001 as a non-profit dedicated to the sharing of educational, community-based programming related to yoga, anatomy and health enrichment. From 2003 until mid-2017 the main vehicle for this mission was the physical studio we ran in New York City. The Breathing Project continues its mission of community service by producing and co-sponsoring workshops, immersions, symposia and publications featuring thought leaders from the fields of yoga, anatomy, somatics and other allied fields. The courses Leslie taught at The Breathing Project in New York City have been available online to a worldwide audience at yogaanatomy.net since 2011, with thousands of students worldwide participating in this growing online community. In this episode, Jacob & Leslie discussed: three tiers of yoga education: instructor, teacher, educator (and therapist?) the yoga teaching landscape post-Covid the historical arc of yoga's popularity the psychology of the classroom & student/teacher dynamics studying the anatomy of the mouth through Sanskrit See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Leslie Kaminoff is a yoga educator inspired by the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar. He is an internationally recognized specialist with four decades' experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He leads workshops for many of the leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in the world. Leslie's book Yoga Anatomy, (co-authored with Amy Matthews), sold out its first print run of 19,000 within one month of its June 2007 release, and has been a top-selling yoga book on Amazon ever since. The book went into 12 printings before the newly-revised third edition of Yoga Anatomy was released on October 31, 2011, now with well over half a million copies in print and translations into 23 languages. Leslie also helped to organize international yoga conferences while serving as Vice-President of Unity in Yoga, and was part of the ad-hoc committee that established national standards for yoga teacher training. Prior to the formation of The Yoga Alliance, Leslie was a strong voice in the ensuing national debate regarding the application of those certification standards. This dialogue resulted in the creation of e-Sutra, an influential e-mail list and blog that has an active worldwide membership. Leslie is the founder of The Breathing Project, a New York City based non-profit educational corporation which ran highly respected year-long courses in yoga anatomy from 2003 to 2017. Leslie Kaminoff founded The Breathing Project in 2001 as a non-profit dedicated to the sharing of educational, community-based programming related to yoga, anatomy and health enrichment. From 2003 until mid-2017 the main vehicle for this mission was the physical studio we ran in New York City. The Breathing Project continues its mission of community service by producing and co-sponsoring workshops, immersions, symposia and publications featuring thought leaders from the fields of yoga, anatomy, somatics and other allied fields. The courses Leslie taught at The Breathing Project in New York City have been available online to a worldwide audience at yogaanatomy.net since 2011, with thousands of students worldwide participating in this growing online community. In this episode, Jacob & Leslie discussed: three tiers of yoga education: instructor, teacher, educator (and therapist?) the yoga teaching landscape post-Covid the historical arc of yoga's popularity the psychology of the classroom & student/teacher dynamics studying the anatomy of the mouth through Sanskrit See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In this episode, Leslie Kaminoff discusses his yoga journey and how philosophy inspires inquiry in asana practice. Leslie discusses his journey, specifically how embodied movement has played a role in his love of anatomy. Leslie shares how his teacher, Desikachar, influenced his life and shaped his teaching pedagogy. Leslie discusses his book, Yoga Anatomy, and how KNM Labs started. KNM Labs will be hosting two labs this year; one in June in Colorado Springs and one in the fall in San Diego.
Join Michelle Young for an unforgettable interview with Lauri Nemetz. Lauri is an anatomy professor, author, and dissector who just released a book, The Myofascial System In Form And Movement. Lauri facilitates the cadaver lab in Colorado Springs, with Leslie Kaminoff and Lydia Man. This summer, My Vinyasa Practice will be going to the lab for a second year to deepen our understanding of functional anatomy. In This podcast, Lauri discusses what brought her to yoga, how yoga influences her professional life, and how her new book took shape.
Gerald Disse & Linda Munro Bringing Mysore to Paris (www.ashtangayogaparis.fr | @ashtangayogaparis Bringing Mysore to Paris | Teaching as a married couple | Finding Ashtanga in the early 90s | Changes from yoga | Looking for meaning | Being in class with Madonna | Giving up a career in fashion | Becoming a teacher | Teacher-student relationship | Yoga Lifestyle | Building a community in Paris | Pattahbi Jois 1991 | Sharing with other teachers | Eating more chapatis | Start of the Paris shala | Mysore v Led class | Changes in practice | Importance of the series | Importance of leaving the Ashtanga rules | Impact of “Me Too” with teaching This episode is sponsored by Momence, the booking system we use and highly recommend. Momence facilitates online, in-person and hybrid classes and events, and there are packages to fit self-employed teachers to multi-site studios. With Momence, you can: · Manage your class and workshop schedule Organize your appointment types and availability Create marketing and win-back campaigns Organize your on-demand videos and courses See exactly how your business is doing through insightful reporting. Have customers self-check-in via kiosks Sell products and services with a fully integrated point of sale With live support by chat, phone and email Momence is easy to use for yourself and your customers. 2 MONTHS FREE TRAIL: for more information click on the link https://www.keenonyoga.com/momence/ or book a demo and quote “Keen on Yoga” Support Us Donate: https://keenonyoga.com/donate/ Buy us a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/infoRf Become a Patron: https://keenonyoga.com/membership/ Exclusive content, yoga & lifestyle tips, live Zoom meet-ups & more. €10 per month, cancel at any time. Connect With Keen On Yoga Instagram Keen on Yoga: https://www.instagram.com/keen_on_yoga/ Instagram Adam Keen: https://www.instagram.com/adam_keen_ashtanga/ Website: https://keenonyoga.com/ GÉRALD DISSE Gérald has been practicing yoga since 1989 and teaching since 1996. He discovered Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga in 1991 with Sri K Pattabhi Jois in Mysore, India. He spent 8 years traveling to Mysore spending 4 – 6 months per visit to learn more of the system, then going off to some other exotic location to practice daily what Guruji had taught him. Gérald was taught up to the third series and was one of the first French students to have been personally authorized to teach by Sri K Pattabhi Jois. In addition to his Ashtanga practice, Gérald continues to cultivate a meditation practice in the tradition of Kriya Yoga. He has a daily pranayama practice and has been certified to teach kriya and pranayama by his teacher, Sri O.P. Tiwari. LINDA MUNRO Linda took her first yoga class in 1995 in Toronto, Canada with Ron Reid. But a couple of months later she was in a fairly serious car accident and had to have physical therapy. This is when she decided to use the yoga as a way to compliment the therapy. Soon after she realized that the yoga would be a life time practice. A practice of asana, pranayama and meditation but also a practice of being truthful, a practice of being kind, a practice of being fearless, peaceful and happy. She believes that the practice of “yoga” is continuous; the practice does not stop when you roll up the yoga mat. The practice of yoga includes the way you live your life, the way you relate to your family, friends, co-workers and to the strangers on the street. This is the life long practice of developing yogic awareness. In 1997 she moved to New York City with her work in the fashion business while continuing a daily ashtanga practice studying under Eddie Stern. The year 2000 brought her to Paris, France. After thirteen years in the world of fashion she decided it was the time to move fully into the direction she had been moving since her first yoga class. She studied yogic scriptures and philosophy, having completed a 250 hour study program of Patanjali's Yoga Sutra, and a 120 hour course on the Bhagavad Gita under the supervision of Georg Feuerstein. She was one of his 10 mentoring students until he passed away in 2012. Linda is also a student of Sri O.P. Tiwari and is certified by him to teach pranayama. As well she has completed the anatomy for yoga training with Leslie Kaminoff and is a junior yoga anatomy trainer. Not to mention she has studied with the late guru of Ashtanga Yoga, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois in Mysore, India and NYC. In 2019, Linda and Gerald opened Ashtanga Yoga Golfe Juan, a new location to share their precise teaching of yoga on the Côte d'Azur, in the south of France, their new home.
We will explore Yoga & The Breath with the wise Leslie Kaminoff. Leslie has over 40 years expertise of teaching Yoga with expertise in anatomy and breath. He is the Author to the wildly successful book 'Yoga Anatomy' which virtually every yoga teacher or yoga enthusiast has this book. We discuss how the book came about, Leslie gives advice to emerging yoga teachers. We also learn all about his non- profit the breathing Project! Where to find Leslie IG: https://www.instagram.com/leslie.kaminoff/ Website: https://yogaanatomy.org The Breathing Project: https://www.facebook.com/BreathProj/ Clinical Corner Podcast: https://yogaanatomy.org/podcasts/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/BreathingProject Yoga Knees: https://yogaknees.com Use promo code: YOGAAND to get 10% off your next order! Connect to Yoga And... Podcast Please support us on Patreon: patreon.com/yogaandpodcast Please write us a glowing 5 star review wherever you get your Podcasts yogaandpodcast@gmail.com Instagram: yogaandpodcast TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@yogaandpodcast --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/yogaandpodcast/message
In this episode we interview Leslie Kaminoff, an internationally recognized specialist with four decades' experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. Leslie is also the author of the acclaimed book Yoga Anatomy, and the founder of The Breathing Project. WE DISCUSS: Here are a few of the key points we discuss … What it was like to write and sell over 1 million copies of his book, Yoga Anatomy.Leslie's thoughts on meditation, and what some people may be missing.The difference between a Teacher and an Educator.The history and current state of Yoga.His new, forthcoming, extremely in-depth, fully online community version of “The Breathing Project”. … and much more. Here's one great quote from this episode: “A true master is someone who's capable of creating another master.” – Leslie Kaminoff Leslie’s perspective on yoga, the body, and the education of teachers & instructors is a must-listen for both yoga students and trainers alike. This is an episode packed with wisdom, mastery, and true learning. FULL SHOW NOTES, LINKS, & CREDITS: 2:00 Leslie discusses growing up with the spirit of curiosity and what brought him to write his popular book, Yoga Anatomy, which interestingly wasn't actually his idea. 7:00 Leslie describes what it was like to have his book become a huge hit, with over 1 million copies sold. 16:00 Learn about the little details that went into the making of the book that you may have overlooked, like how much effort was put into each and every drawing. 20:00 What is the distinction between a teacher and an instructor? 27:00 Leslie explains his thoughts on meditation and how some people may be missing out on the benefits. Sam and Leslie discuss how some even damage their bodies by focusing on the wrong things. 33:00 “You can't leave your body behind […] the body is not the obstacle to enlightenment that needs to be overcome […] the body is the vehicle for liberation.” – Leslie Kaminoff 35:00 Leslie goes through the timeline of how yoga gained the vast cultural awareness and acceptance that it has today. He points out how the fitness industry came about much more recently than most people realize. 42:00 These days, we see more and more yoga/wellness/fitness “influencers” pop up on social media every day. How many of these yoga instructors that we see have directly or indirectly been educated by Leslie? 47:00 Leslie talks about his experience with The Yoga Alliance and how to get involved. He also discusses The Breathing Project, the nonprofit he founded in the early 2000's, and how they are currently building a unique online platform for it. LINKS Join Leslie Kaminoff's new online platform specifically for one-on-one yoga and movement education: The Breathing Project Amazon – Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff & Amy Matthews Amazon – Strength Training Anatomy by Frede
Leslie Kaminoff, founder of The Breathing Project and coauthor of Yoga Anatomy, returns to talk with J about the changing professional landscape and deeper inquiries into the nature of healing. They discuss Leslie's bout with long covid and the procedure that reset his heart, working on the third edition of Yoga Anatomy, TKV Desikachar and teachings on Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, Leslie's coming show examining one-to-one teaching, having faith, surrendering to dharma, intuition and knowledge, and forever continuing to learn and discover. To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM. Check out J's other podcast… J. BROWN YOGA THOUGHTS.
Be inspired and encouraged as you listen to Lauren Reese Co-Owner/Yoga Teacher at MOVE+breathe Yoga, fitness and Sports Performance on her journey in health, fitness and becoming a yoga teacher. How important it is to move your body and so much more. How in her worst struggle God showed her the beauty in the struggles. Lauren is a lululemon ambassador and currently has clients who are NFL and MLB athletes. She has been involved in group fitness for over 20 years. She started with teaching aerobics, weight training classes, and triathalons. After several injuries, Lauren found herself in pain. Frustrated – because even though she was “fit”, her body was always hurting – she turned to yoga to find strength and healing for her injuries. Yoga not only helped her feel better physically, but yoga also taught her the importance of balance, both literally and figuratively. Lauren's classes are powerful yet playful and encouraging. Her creative sequencing mirrors her lighthearted personality, and each class is a new experience. Lauren's goal is to help her students find balance for their bodies and their lives. She finds her passion in working with athletes (both privately, with sports teams, and with both college and professional athletes), leading adult yoga retreats, and teaching kids yoga. Lauren was a PrAna featured yogi on REI's Yoga for Athletes Live Tour, and she has studied with Sage Rountree, Jill Miller, and Leslie Kaminoff. Certifications include RYT 200 Lifted Heart Yoga School, Certified Sage Yoga for Athletes Teacher (one of only 33 in the country!), Certified Yoga Tune Up® Teacher, Certified Roll Model Method® Teacher, Certified Functional Movement Systems, Certified Grounded Kids Instructor, and Certified Yoga Fit. "I make sure to honor my time and show up for my students. I say no to things so I can say yes and show up the best way possible." Lauren Reese To learn more about MOVE+breathe visit their website here: www.movebreatheperform.com Listen at www.cheriandbroc.com or you can listen to us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify iHeartRadio, Stitcher and other podcast platforms.
New EasYoga Podcast Episode 68 - Join Gemma in this episode where she talks to special guest Beth Morgan.Beth is London's leading teacher in Solomon Yogalates. She trained with the Louise Solomon (founder of Yogalates) in 2014, receiving a 500 hour qualification in this official blend of Yoga and Pilates. She gained her advanced Hatha yoga teaching qualification on the foothills of the Himalayas in 2016, and over the years has continued to develop her learning and teaching skills with esteemed teachers such as Norman Blair, Tiffany Cruikshank, Leslie Kaminoff and Bernie Clark.She is passionate about helping people improve their posture, breathing, strength, flexibility and overall wellbeing, and believes that strength-based Pilates is a huge benefit to yoga students keen to maintain healthy mobility and a sustainable practice in the long term. Beth teaches Yogalates, Hatha yoga and Yin classes online and in person. She also runs international Yogalates & Yin retreats, and currently offers an 80 hour Yogalates CPD teacher training for qualified yoga teachers to help them expand their skillset.You can find out more from Beth at:https://yogalateslondon.com/Easyoga Podcast was voted #7 of the Best 15 UK Yoga Podcasts by Feedspot. Go check it out. https://blog.feedspot.com/uk_yoga_podcasts/Have a great day and as always, let me know your thoughts by leaving a comment below also please make sure to subscribe to this podcast.Did You Know...That You Only Need To Move Your Body For 30 Minutes Per Day 3 Times Per Week To Feel Awesome And Shift That Stressed Weight.Discover The #1 Secret Which Is 100% FREE!https://www.easyoga.co.uk/accessnow100percentfreeConnect with Gemma via her social platforms:EasYoga Website is : https://www.easyoga.co.ukFacebook Grouphttps://www.facebook.com/groups/1526740577474162/?ref=bookmarksSocial Platforms:Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/yogigemma/Pintrest – https://www.pinterest.com/YogiGemmaYouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3AzNc6oBLzanU-MgZsd-6AFacebook https://www.facebook.com/gemma.nice.7Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/easyogaonetone Twitter – https://www.twitter.com/@easyogagemmaLinkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/
Leslie Kaminoff, Yoga educator, co-author of Yoga Anatomy, founder of the Breathing Project and soon to be launched platform for yoga therapists and 1 to 1 yoga, shares his yoga journey with Shira. We talk dissection, yoga going online, vagal tone, yoga therapy or yoga education, power and assymetric responsibility, healing, student-teacher relationships Larry Payne PhD Desikachar T.Krishnamacharya's Makaranda Light on Yoga - BKS Iyegnar Amy Matthews Beatrice Beebe Liby Hinsley David Frawley Gary Kraftsow
About Chelsea McQuaid: She is a yoga teacher, Mindfulness Mentor, and Kidding Around Yoga trainer. She attended the 200-hour certification from Plasha Yoga Studio in 2013. Later, she went on to complete her 300-hour certification there. Now, she is an E-RYT 200, RYT 500, and YACEP. She is committed to her professional growth with continuing education in meditation, pranayama, anatomy, and children's yoga. Some of her teachers include Leslie Kaminoff, Haris Lender, Rudra Swartz, Michael Plasha, and Chris McCooey In this episode, Adam and Chelsea McQuaid discuss:Difficulty and benefits of yogaKids can do yoga too Focusing on your breath Being mentored on mindfulnessKey Takeaways:Yoga isn't as easily accessible as deep breathing and meditation, but like those tools, they provide a lot of health benefits. They can also stabilize and bring healing to mental health issues and even help with addiction. Kids need yoga. They are often stressed out by academics and overstimulated by social media, they need something to balance their life. By being an example to them, and making yoga, mindfulness and meditation easy and fun for them to do, you'll be able to influence them in a way that will impact them forever. Mindful breathing is an essential skill in today's uncertain and stressful world. When you put your focus into your breathing, you take it away from stress and other strong negative emotions and will be able to think about the task at hand. Mindfulness is necessary in every stage of life. There would be a lot of missed opportunities if we don't pause for a moment to ask ourselves if we're really doing what we were meant to do in life. "Mindfulness is cultivating a sense of awareness and what's happening around you. It's being curious, observing, and taking things in a different way." — Chelsea McQuaidConnect with Chelsea McQuaid: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yogichelsea108Website: https://www.yogi-chelsea.com/Email: chelsea@yogi-chelsea.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chelseamcquaid/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yogichelsea108/ Connect With Adam Weber:Website: https://meditationnotmedicine.com/about/Email: adam@meditationnotmedicine.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/easytomeditate Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meditationnotmedicine/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPnbji9rDrCfxhY0W8sHL9ABook: Meditation Not Medicine Show notes by Podcastologist: Justine Talla.Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.
Happy Halloween! Welcome to an encore presentation of my discussion with Lauri Nemetz about what it's like to work in a human cadaver lab! As some medical schools move away from dissection and towards virtual imaging to discover the inner reality of the body, many manual therapists, yoga teachers, and somatic therapists of all kinds are kicking it old school – by learning about anatomy and challenging themselves in cadaver labs. Adjunct Associate Professor at Pace University, master dissector, dance and yoga teacher Lauri Nemetz and I share tales from the lab and the lessons we learn about life when we study the dead. Laurice (Lauri) D. Nemetz, MA, BC-DMT, LCAT, ERYT500, C-IAYT Lauri is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Pace University since 2004 and the 2020 President's Award Honoree for Outstanding Contribution, a licensed Creative Arts Therapist, a member of the American Association for Anatomy, a board-certified member of the Academy of Dance/Movement Therapists, past President of the YTA (Yoga Teachers Association), a certified yoga teacher at the 500-hour level, a Stott Pilates instructor, certified yoga therapist (CIAYT), former faculty and dissector assistant for Anatomy Trains. Currently she is a dissector with several projects including the Fascial Net Plastination Project and KNM Labs, a joint project with Leslie Kaminoff. She has exhibited her artwork internationally with themes of anatomy and movement and also kayak guides on occasion! She is ever curious and enjoys sparking conversation and new ways of thinking and moving. Her forthcoming book, The Myofascial System in Form and Movement will be published by Handspring Publishing in 2022. Lauri's website www.wellnessbridge.com Gil Hedley's website --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/david-lesondak/message
When it comes to yoga, fitness, and anatomy, Leslie Kaminoff has seen it all. Just don't call him an expert. Because as any yoga student knows, the more you learn in this practice, the more you realize you just don't know. Leslie started his yoga career down the street from Jane Fonda's first fitness studios in L.A. He was working at the Sports Medicine Institute when one of the studio instructors started teaching therapeutic yoga to physical therapists at the Institute. Leslie shares what it was like to have a front-row seat for this intersection of yoga and fitness in the West. He was in the right place at the right time and found himself on that first committee of the Yoga Alliance. Leslie helped set the standards that many yoga studios and health clubs use today to hire teachers and trainers. At the time, standardization was needed because the popular demand for yoga greatly outweighed the supply of experienced teachers. Today, our modern climate inspires us to ask: are hours really the way to gauge whether someone is qualified to teach yoga? Leslie breaks down the Yoga Alliance origin story, how these hourly standardizations came to be, and provides a new perspective for us to see where and how these Westernized expectations surrounding yoga came about. He also speaks to the effect of yoga on physical therapy and how the yoga community responded to injuries, asanas, and the path to healing. Teaching a therapeutic style of yoga that doesn't adhere to the sometimes strict rules of the asana practice took a bit of practice itself. Leslie had to learn a new way to speak to students that encouraged them to inquire about the sensation of the practice rather than setting some expectation of the sensation. Of course, the nature of the asanas is to provide a framework for the student to see how and where their body fits into the pose. How else do you learn something new about yourself if you don't try a new physical position or style of breathing? However, the poses often look different for each person and learning how to teach individual students rather than the perfect asana sequence was key to Leslie's experience of becoming the therapeutic yoga teacher he is today. I am so excited to have Leslie come and teach at the Miami Life Center. Having him teach an in-person class means so much to me. We have lost so much during this pandemic, but seeing a classroom full of yoga students in person is something I miss the most. If you would like to take a class with Leslie, keep an eye out for his schedule on his website at YogaAnatomy.org. If you would like to sign up for yoga courses with me, get your free 30-day membership on Omstars.com & use code: PODCAST. Keep up with us online @omstarsofficial. Keep up with me on Instagram at @kinoyoga and visit my blog at Kinoyoga.com. If you want to share what you've learned on your yoga journey, get in touch with me at info@kinoyoga.com. You could be invited to guest spot on The Yoga Inspiration Podcast.
As some medical schools move away from dissection and towards virtual imaging to discover the inner reality of the body, many manual therapists, yoga teachers, and somatic therapists of all stripes are kicking it old school – by learning and challenging their assumptions about the body in cadaver labs. Adjunct Associate Professor at Pace University, master dissector, dance and yoga teacher Lauri Nemetz and I share tales from the lab and the lessons we learn about life when we study the dead. Laurice (Lauri) D. Nemetz, MA, BC-DMT, LCAT, ERYT500, C-IAYT Lauri is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Pace University since 2004 and the 2020 President's Award Honoree for Outstanding Contribution, a licensed Creative Arts Therapist, a member of the American Association for Anatomy, a board-certified member of the Academy of Dance/Movement Therapists, past President of the YTA (Yoga Teachers Association), a certified yoga teacher at the 500-hour level, a Stott Pilates instructor, certified yoga therapist (CIAYT), former faculty and dissector assistant for Anatomy Trains. Currently she is a dissector with several projects including the Fascial Net Plastination Project and KNM Labs, a joint project with Leslie Kaminoff. She has exhibited her artwork internationally with themes of anatomy and movement and also kayak guides on occasion! She is ever curious and enjoys sparking conversation and new ways of thinking and moving. Her forthcoming book, The Myofascial System in Form and Movement will be published by Handspring Publishing in 2022. Lauri's website www.wellnessbridge.com Gil Hedley's website --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/david-lesondak/message
Breathing can be such a powerful tool to manage big emotions and to stay focused. I invite you to get curious and think about how you breath! - what type of breath do you like?In this meditation we explore the anatomy and the difference between a heart breath and a belly breath. I am a yoga teacher and studied pranayama breathing - I am totally bias... I am a Heart breather. I was lucky enough to take a course with Leslie Kaminoff of the Breath Project. We will explore further breath techniques in future episodes.
Carrie is my yoga teacher and mentor. She had the opportunity to travel around the US assisting Jonny at conferences and Wanderlust Tahoe. She has studied with, Dr. Ray Long, Leslie Kaminoff, Baron Baptiste, Tao Porchon-Lynch, Kathryn Budig and Seane Corn, in addition to several others. She is internationally recognized and an established teacher and leader in the Cleveland area. In this episode we talk about scoliosis, adapting teaching during coronavirus, and how yoga is so beneficial in so many ways. You can find Carrie online at https://www.carrietreister.com/. Instagram - wwwinstagram.com/carrietreister. Facebook - Carrie Treister
Susanna is the author of Yoga 365: Daily Wisdom for Life On and Off the Mat. She is a yoga teacher, writer and artist, whose work is rooted in South Indian Philosophy. Her spiritual home is in the great Nataraja and Tillai Kali Temples of Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu, India, where she has travelled for darshan annually since 2008 . Susanna created Devi Soul Yoga, an approach to teaching that includes Hindu myth, mantra, mudra, and meditation in each of her classes. She combines these practices with a careful attention to alignment and an emphasis on the breath to guide flowing movement sequences. Her classes are challenging with a powerful spiritual component, inviting students into the deep sweetness of svadhyaya, or self-study. Based in NYC, Susanna leads workshops internationally, mentors, trains teachers, and speaks on yoga philosophy, meditation, and Hindu myth. Teaching since 2002, she is E-RYT-500 and YACEP. Off the mat, Susanna spends her time writing and drawing. Her book, Yoga 365: Daily Wisdom for Life On and Off the Mat, has sold over 30,000 copies and is currently being translated into Korean and Vietnamese. Susanna writes for numerous publications and created the popular Writing Your Practice and 30Things workshops and online courses, which apply yoga philosophy and myth to the practice of writing, unlocking yogis' creativity and refining their self-expression. Students from over 25 countries have participated since 2011. Previously Susanna worked at NYC's Museum of Modern Art where she lectured and wrote, including co-writing the book Looking at Matisse and Picasso(2003).Susanna is deeply grateful to Dr. Douglas Brooks, Leslie Kaminoff, and Sianna Sherman for continually inspiring, supporting, and challenging her.If you haven't listened to my first episode with Susanna you can listen here:https://stuartwatkins.org/podcast/susanna-harwood-rubin/Follow Susanna here:https://susannaharwoodrubin.comGet Susanna's book:https://susannaharwoodrubin.com/yoga-365-book/Much gratitude to the sponsors of this podcast:https://blessitbee.com.auEnter promo code STUART for 10% offhttps://www.themilkcleanse.comEnter promo code STUARTWATKINS for 10% offhttps://sacredtaste.comEnter promo code STUARTWATKINS for 10% offWith love,StuSupport the show (https://stuartwatkins.org/podcast/)
Welcome to Yoga Files. This is part of my Expert Events Podcast with a focus on Yoga Teachers and Yoga practitioners with at least 30 years of yoga experience. Leslie Kaminoff is a yoga educator inspired by the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar. He is an internationally recognised specialist with four decades' experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He leads workshops for many of the leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in the world. Leslie and I have known each other since the late 1980s in downtown New York's gritty arts and Yoga community. Although I have only seen Leslie once since 1994 - he is that rare person with a great memory and feeling for people who can easily pick up a relationship as though no time at all has passed. Yes, we did speak for 2 hours (actually longer before I hit record and after I powered off). I was going to turn this into 2 Parts but did not want to disrupt the flow, as I listened I just couldn't bring myself to chop it up. I hope you'll take the time to watch in stages and do listen to the whole thing! Leslie has so many insights as to how people and events from LA and NYC converged to shape our modern yoga. He has been involved in so much of the momentum; which you will hear all about in this podcast. Leslie's vision and breadth of knowledge and commitment to his quest to study and to share Yoga are enormous. Find out more about Leslie, and how to study with him - click here. For his great interview with Desikachar and other writing he references click here. Add his seminal book on Yoga Anatomy to your library, find it by clicking here. Welcome to my new podcast with Expert Events and Yoga Files. I am sharing this from KikiTV.LIFE - where you can meet me all week long *10 LIVE ZOOM wellbeing, yoga, mindset classes and events a month Tired of hearing the same old crap? Go Beyond with KikiTV.Life **FREE 3-Day Trial (easy to subscribe, easy to unsubscribe) *** Only $29.99 a month (less than $1 a day) https://kikitv.life Are you a Yoga Teacher or Wellness Coach struggling to earn a real living from your passion and profession? Work with me on for your Balanced Yoga Business. Learn more by clicking here. Please SUBSCRIBE.
Yoga and anatomy teacher Leslie joins me to discuss yoga philosophy, fitness, The Olympics, Bodywork, Desikachar, yoga clinics, Yoga Alliance, cancel culture, “self made soul”, Indian nationalism, agency and of course the conference! A pleasantly cantankerous one. Yogaanatomy.net
Elian Zach received her formal training in sound therapy at The New York Open Center under the guidance of world-renowned sound researcher, practitioner and ethnomusicologist, Alexandre Tannous. An advanced, E-RYT yoga teacher, she completed her trainings and continuing education in New York with a variety of master teachers from different yogic disciplines, including Nevine Michaan of Katonah Yoga, Colleen Saidman and Rodney Yee of Yoga Shanti, Leslie Kaminoff, Ramanand Patel, Sam Chase and Kevin Gardiner. Elian is also a breathwork facilitator, trained in Breakthrough Breathwork, a modality which she frequently incorporates into her sound offerings. Early in her life’s journey, she was trained in classical and contemporary theatre at Circle in the Square Theatre School on Broadway, and has worked extensively on stage, film and television productions, as well as contributed her voice to various projects. Together with David Shemesh, she co-founded WOOM CENTER, New York's first of its kind multi-sensory yoga and meditation studio, based primarily on the therapeutic and psychedelic properties of sound vibration, where they both facilitate and host practitioners from all over the country and the world. Along with Alexandre Tannous, David and Elian host WOOM Sound School several times each year, a celebrated sound practitioner training program. WOOM has been featured in various publications such as Vogue, The New York Times, New York Magazine, and Well + Good, and has also been covered by BuzzFeed, NowThis and The Culture Trip. Elian has had the pleasure of sharing sound with both smaller private groups and on larger scale events such as MediClub, Flavorpill’s Quiet Mornings at The MoMA, and Burning Man. The team has taken their work all over the world and facilitated experiences in Costa Rica, Ibiza, Tel Aviv, Colombia and Hong Kong. Elian’s greatest joy is to meld all of her passions into one transformative practice that invites a holistic participation of the physical, emotional, intellectual, creative and spiritual bodies. http://www.woomcenter.com Natalie Brown: http://www.soundshealstudio.com http://www.facebook.com/soundshealstudio http://www.youtube.com/soundshealstudio http://www.instagram.com/nataliebrownsoundsheal Music by Natalie Brown, Hope & Heart https://youtu.be/hZPx6zJX6yA This episode is sponsored by The OM Shoppe & Spa. The OM Shoppe & Spa offers a vast array of Sound Healing and Vibrational Medicine tools for serious professionals and for those ready to make sound and vibration part of their ongoing lifestyle. More and more we are coming to understand that our individual wellness is a direct reflection of our personal vibration. How we care for ourselves, our physical bodies, our minds and our spirits. The OM Shoppe is ready to help you today in a variety of ways. They offer the countries largest showroom of Quartz Crystal Singing bowls, sound healing instruments and vibrational medicine tools. If you are ready to uplevel your sound healing practice The OM Shoppe is a great place to get guidance and direction. They are available to consult with you directly by phone or you can shop online. They really enjoy getting to know their clients and customers one on one to better help recommend the right sound healing tools in the right tones for you. Call them today or visit them at http://www.theomshoppe.com. If you are ever near Sarasota, Florida, do consider stopping in and visiting with them or enjoy a luxury spa treatment such as sound healing, energy work, massage, vibroacoustics or hypnotherapy. They truly offer a full holistic experience for practitioners and those seeking healing through natural means.
Leslie has been described by himself as a ‘yoga educator’, and by others as a ‘yoga cowboy’. This is a very appropriate term, as he really does interest himself in every aspect of yoga; its anatomy, practice, teaching as well as its philosophy. He is a courageous, honest and unconventional thinker in the yoga-world which is really needed now more than ever. Having started practice in the 1970s, he later spent a long period as a student of TKV Desikachar (the son of Krishnamacharya - father of modern toga). Having done his time within traditional studies, he went on to co-author with Amy Matthews ‘Yoga Anatomy’, a book that has sold over a million copies worldwide. He also founded the influential ‘The Breathing Project’, and New York Studio. He now teaches from the wealth of his personal experience accumulated in a lifetime dedicated to yoga informed by his uniquely personal approach.
Leslie Kaminoff has 40 years of experience practicing yoga. In this episode, he shares lessons and wisdom from years of practice, as well as thoughts on regulations, Yoga Alliance, the importance of mentorship and feedback. Leslie is well known for his Yoga Anatomy book and online course.
Leanne Woehlke Well, let's just dive right in. I'd love for you. Leslie. Tell us a little bit about your journey. What was life like for you before yoga? How did you find yoga? Leslie Kaminoff Um, well, I was quite young. So life was like a lot of 19 year olds just trying to live independently, but still with some help from parents. So, we'd have to go back to like 1978 when I was 20, and took my first yoga class I was living in in Manhattan in the East Village at the time. Before it was fashionable when it was actually kind of dangerous. And my father was taking yoga at the Sivananda Center here in New York City on 24th Street. And he invited me to class and I went, and I went somewhere else during final relaxation, some place I'd never been before. And that intrigued me. And so I signed up for beginners course. And by the summer of 1979 40 years ago, I was up in Canada. In at the main ashram, the headquarters of the Sivananda organization is in the back north of Montreal, and I was doing my teacher training there, and it's just been pretty much what I've been doing. Ever since it's pretty much the only career I've ever had, Leanne Woehlke Wow. What would you say? It's, it's funny is this week I actually went and I taught at the middle school, they asked me to come teach. So I taught six classes for them. And as you know, and would expect in Savasana, they get so still. And so you know, Leslie Kaminoff If you do your job, right, and the rest of the class they get still. Leanne Woehlke Right, that's true. But what do you think it is about Savasana and that takes people to that place? Leslie Kaminoff Well, I can speak personally and you know, it might resonate with others, because I don't think I was I was that unusual as a, you know, a 19 year old. I had never laid down before, on a floor or a bed or otherwise with the intention of doing anything other than sleeping or whatever else you do in bed and so the idea of just lying down and intentionally consciously relaxing every part of my body was a brand new experience. So I could say that was the first time I experienced intentional relaxation as opposed to just being tired and lying down and sleeping. So that is life changing was for me. Leanne Woehlke Yeah, I agree. I think it's just a sense of as our lifes get busier and busier, that intentionality drops away, the relaxation is, you know, gone completely for most of society. So it's interesting, this practice of yoga, and I'm in this personal questioning myself, like, what is the future of yoga? What is going to happen and what are your thoughts on that? Leslie Kaminoff Well, something can have a future if it's if it's a thing and yoga is not thing. So, you know, when when a question like that is is posed, it has to be contextualized. To a great extent. I mean, I asked a similar question to my teacher, Desikachar, way back in would have been 1992 when I was visiting India and studying with him. And it was in a very specific context, though, because at the time I was working with a group called unity and yoga, which some people know is actually what turned into the Yoga Alliance. And we were doing a big international conference and inviting all of these teachers and gurus, you know, back then there were still many active gurus running yoga organizations. And we had extended an invitation to Desikachar to attend and maybe even keynote, this event. And well, we shouldn't have called it a keynote because they were There were some fairly big egos there, and it wouldn't have been good to make one person, the keynote and not the others. But anyway, he he politely declined the invitation but offered instead to do an interview with me.Which has been posted on my blog forever. And so at the end of the interview, I asked him this question, you know, I said, since you're not going to be with us, you know, next year when we do this conference, if you know this, I was recording it. And so I said, if this microphone were somehow magically linked to that, you know, event and this gathering of 500 plus people and you wanted to say something to them about the future of yoga, what would you say? And basically, he said, You know, I don't have the right to say anything about the future of yoga, at least for Westerners, and particularly for Americans because I'm not American. I'm an Indian. I'm living here in Madras. I have my own context, I have my own religion, I have my own history and context basically, is what he was saying. And, you know, the, he said, when you're talking about the future of yoga, you're what you're really talking about is the future of mankind. And he said, it was best for Americans to handle the future of yoga in America, and best be handled by people who care about the future of mankind. And that was the most I could get him to commit to say, because, you know, he was very much about the individual and, and, and entering into a connection with the person in front of him and saying and doing whatever was appropriate in that context. So the idea of him saying something that could be appropriate for 500 people he didn't know was not really the best way for him to Give a response. But what he did say was very interesting. Number one, he's not gonna, you know, be pontificating from Madras about what Americans shouldn't shouldn't be doing in the name of yoga. That wasn't his nature. You know, he probably would react the same way I do when I see all these permutations of, you know, goat yoga and pig yoga and rage yoga and beer yoga. And I think I saw your yoga and stripping the other day like burlesque yoga. You know, so all of these things that attach the word yoga, he would, you would have had a reaction, but he also would have had the perspective that, you know, in the context of the time and place where these are being offered, this is, this is what it takes to get certain people on a mat. And if that's what it takes, you know, and if once you're on that map, somebody asks you maybe for the very first time in your life to do what I did when I was 19 years old, which is to lie down at the end of all of this, and intentionally relax your body or at least be conscious of your breathing. You know, if you're doing something like that, for the first time in your life, it has the possibility to absolutely transform you as it did for me. So, while at the same time I can maintain my standards of what you know, I consider to be yoga for me, and how I teach and the people I teach. I can be very conscious of the fact that that's not everyone's context. And some people wouldn't get onto the mat unless there was the prospect of going to class with their dog or having a goat climb on them or being buzzed with beer or weed or being able to curse or whatever. So, you know, I'm pretty open minded about that. Even though I do have my reactions every time I see one of these new things come up. So that's the future of yoga. I think it's As long as we can keep the field free from people who have that reaction and then have the additional reaction of they have no right to do that, and someone should stop them. As long as we can keep the world safe from the yoga police. I think we're okay. And I've been working hard to do that for several decades now. Leanne Woehlke Right it you know, I agree, I think if somebody can go to goat yoga and take a picture with a goat dressed in a Santa or an elf costume, and then they get the idea like, Hey, this is kind of fun. And then they come great. Is that going to be my regular practice? No, because goats pee and I don't really want to goat peeing on me or my yoga mat or my child or any of it. Leslie Kaminoff Well, humans fart and they do that constantly. So you know, where do you draw the line? That's up of someone's body. Leanne Woehlke That's true. Leslie Kaminoff Yes, true. Leanne Woehlke Now talk a little bit you alluded to it about how you have He works diligently to try to avoid yoga becoming regulated. Leslie Kaminoff Hmm. Yeah, um, Well, I think we have to clarify terms. Because people use the word regulation, they throw it around a lot without really understanding what it means. Because I see people out there doing stuff that perhaps they shouldn't be doing. And they point to the fact that Yoga is an unregulated, multi billion dollar field at this point. And it should be regulated to prevent people from, you know, abusing their position and all of that. So, regulation is something that government does. And the power that's wielded by the government, it's very simple to understand the kind of power that the government feels it's a gun period. They wield force. And when they start wielding that force in What up to that point has been a free market, free for quality to rise to the surface and free for ship to sink to the bottom. You know, that's the nature of the market. And the fact that some people don't like the shit doesn't mean that they have the right to use the government's guns to stop them from doing it. There's other things that can help prevent some of the abuses that go on mostly better education, and better peer to peer relationships, better community communication, better feedback mechanisms that could be built into some of the things for example, that the Yoga Alliance is doing. But when, I'm not exaggerating, when I say government is a gun, you know, think of it this way. What's the worst thing that your country club can do to you if you break their rules? You know, you out there kick you up, what's the worst thing the government can do to you? If they, if you break their rules, Leanne Woehlke they put you in jail? Leslie Kaminoff hat if you don't want to go to jail? What if you resist going to jail, and they want you to go? They will, they will send someone with a gun to take you to jail. And that's regulation, period. And, you know, the Alliance is is an example of that. It's the Country Club. You know, you don't have to join. You may complain about who they let in or who they don't let it in or who they keep in. But the strongest penalty they can impose is to kick you out of their club. And they have done that. People have been delisted people have been deprived of using their designation. It's not a huge number with lots of digits in it, but it's not zero. It's probably not 100 it's somewhere between zero and 100. But, you know, but the point is they they're not equipped to be an investigative kind of organization where they can launch, you know, tribunals, about the teachers behavior. You know, people see the Alliance is the first court of appeal for misbehavior in the classroom. They are being very misperceived as to their role. You know, that represents a severe breakdown in community level communication and peer mentorship. And, and a lot of times it happens because of the very human tendency for people to want to avoid conflict. You know, if a teacher is doing something in the classroom, or saying something that you don't like, or if you get hurt you, you have to remember I've worked for a body as a body worker for many, many years treating yoga injury. So I hear these stories. No, so if whatever bad happens in the classroom, it is very unlikely that the student will confront the teacher about it. They may confront management you The studio owner or if it's a club or whatever, you know, they could leave a bad review or whatever, but very seldom directly to the teacher. So we don't have good mechanisms for teachers getting critical feedback or not good enough mechanisms, or enough mechanisms at all, you know, what students are very willing to share with teachers His praise, how much you're changing my life, how great I feel, how much you love your class, how much I love you, you know, the projection that goes on all of that. So there's probably nothing more psychologically damaging for a person then to be exposed only to praise and never exposed to critical feedback. And so that's something we need to acknowledge and and address I do it in my workshops by you know, we've created an online forum that all the students have access to, they can respond anonymously if they want or leave their name and email if they want us to get back to them. And I've gotten some devastating critical feedback on those forums. Stuff that it's really hard for me to hear because it just, you know, puts a knot in my stomach. But that's exactly what I need to hear in order to grow as a teacher and as a human being and to find my blind spots. Right. So, you know, all of that is a conversation worth having. But the important thing to remember is that kind of communication, it's from the bottom up, it's, it's, you know, community based. It's it's ground level, peer to peer mentorship, all of those things. When people look at the Alliance wanting to impose discipline or standards from the top down. They're really, really missing the point the lions can't do that. Even if it's decided to do that. It would be really, really bad at doing that. They're bad at returning emails. You know, they can't even return a goddamn email, how are they going to become, you know, this kangaroo court of yoga justice. It's just it's a gross misperception you know of what their role is. Leanne Woehlke I think that there's a sense of I've heard, you know, from teachers, I've heard from students that they graduate from teacher training, and they ask, well, do I need to get certified with Yoga Alliance? And the first thing I say is, wait a minute, it's not a certifying body. Let's clarify what it is and what it isn't. And that conversation, but I think this concept you raise about community based feedback is really interesting. Leslie Kaminoff Yeah. It was part of my recommendations as one of the advisors on the standards review. You know, my, my recommendations went far beyond the scope of the one committee I was on, which was scope of practice. I just, you know, I basically just did a brain dump on everything I've been working on the last 30 years since before the Alliance existed. You know, I was in the room when we came up with the standard. So I was on the ad hoc committee. So I've been involved in this conversation before there was an Alliance. So I've seen the art of how this has gone, you know? So yeah, Unknown Speaker If people need a little bit of context for this conversation, not just a knee jerk reaction like, Oh, you know, the Alliance should be doing more to prevent this this sort of thing. What they do well, the thing the Alliance has done well is the advocacy work, which is keeping the government out of the business of regulating yoga, they have been successful in every state in which they have gone in, to fight whatever stupid measures were being proposed by these, you know, second post secondary or vocational training boards that each state has to, to pull yoga into their, into their control. They've been very successful and the reason they have resources in order to do that very necessary work as well as they do, because of the registry is the registry is not as you pointed out, it's not a certification. You know, the only one who can this person who can certify Teachers, whoever trained them, and that's important to remember. Leanne Woehlke Right? And you know, and I think that it's, it's a good point to even for, for students to understand. What does that mean? Obviously different schools have different credentials, different experience, different history, etc. Let's switch gears a little bit. And let's talk about, you know, you mentioned obviously, you've worked with bodies for years and trained so many teachers. Leslie Kaminoff There's one hanging on the wall behind me. Can Leanne Woehlke I see it? I love it. Leslie Kaminoff Yeah, sometimes it doesn't work out well for the clients and just Leanne Woehlke at least there's not multiple bodies. Leslie Kaminoff Yeah, well, you haven't seen the closet. Have you? Leanne Woehlke That's true. That's true. Um, talk a little bit about your you're known for the breath and the practice. What do you feel is the purpose of the breath and the practice? Leslie Kaminoff Is that what I've known for most people Just think I'm the guy that wrote the book. Leanne Woehlke Well for anatomy, I mean, but but really, I think I know when I had you talk with my teachers and training last year that you really clarified so much for them about the breath and the importance of it and so say a little bit about how did you come to that understanding? Leslie Kaminoff Oh, um, well, I can I can point to certain milestones along the way. And certainly, just teaching yoga At first, the Sivananda system of yoga, you know, in the late 70s, early 80s, I was on staff with you and and I was directing the Los Angeles Community for them for a while in the early 80s. And teaching many, many classes and then many bodies in the class many different bodies in the classes. And I developed my interest in anatomy just from that from observing all the differences and similarities that exhibited in terms of them being able to do or not do or to what extent they could do or not do this, this basic 12 postures I was teaching them. So having the format be the same for all the classes was a great way to get started, because all the differences showed up because I was teaching the same postures all the time. And of course, you know, my curiosity started just in my own body with my own practicing before I was teaching, like why can I do this? Why can't I do that? You know, how can I do something tomorrow that I'm not able to do today? And then just extending that into that same question into the students I was working with so but the the the turning point for the breath part of it and because you know, breathing is part of the Sivananda sequence, there's breathing it's taught you know, you teach Kapalabhati you teach abdominal breathing, you teach alternate nostril breathing. You teach people to coordinate their breathing with the sun salutation. The Surya Namaskar and the beginning of class. But the turning point really came. It had to have in 1981, shortly after I went to Los Angeles to run that community for Sivananda. And I met someone who was to become a lifelong friend, who was just sort of starting out himself, Larry Payne, who I'm sure you know, who's one of the founders along with Richard Miller of IAYT, the International Association of Yoga Therapists, and he was just getting his center started in Marina Del Rey, I was in West Hollywood at the time it but we, we met had a visit and he had just gotten back from traveling around India visiting all of the famous yoga teachers that he could he tells very colorful stories about that trip. And it seemed like the person who was most impressed with was was the one name he mentioned that I had never heard before, and that was Desikachar. And I said, Well, what makes this guy so special? And all he would tell me was "it's all in the breath." That's all he would say. I think that's all he could say at that point. I don't know how much more than that he understood even after having met him. But it stuck in my mind. I forgot the name Desikachar. I didn't hear the name again until around 1987 you know, like maybe six years later. But this thing that is all in the breath really stuck with me. So I started paying more careful attention not just to how I was breathing in my practice, but how all the students were breathing. And that just led me into that particular focus when I was learning about anatomy to learn more about the diaphragm and the ribcage and so by the time I met Desikachar in 1988, I had all of these observations and sort of tricks that I had learned about different ways to coordinate the breath with movement. So I had a lot of questions. But in between that I did start working in the field of Sports Medicine and bodywork and dance medicine. When I moved back to New York after living in LA, I worked for an osteopath, who treated dancers in LA, I was working for a chiropractor treated athletes. And one of the, this osteopath I work for was quite well known and he attracted some very, very good people to work with him and, and one of them was a woman named Irene Dowd is very well known in movement circles here in New York and internationally, really. And she used to work there couple days a week, and I remember and she doesn't remember saying this to me. I asked her years later, and she not only didn't remember saying it to me, she didn't remember ever having said anything like this. She said it didn't sound like her, but I know, I know who it was her, I have a good memory. And I was asking her some questions about the diaphragm about, you know, what's the right way to breathe in this movement and that was later breathing that movement and in a That. And she just she said this word. Well, if you do it that way, you're going to lose the postural support of a diaphragm. And I was like, What? diaphragm postural support. It's a breathing muscle. But it made total sense was it just something clicked when she said that was like, Wow, there, this is a muscle of postural support, not just something that gets air in and out of your body. And and so that was in my mind. You know, just a couple years later, I met Desikachar. And so all of this stuff just was just in this brew, this mix of trying to figure things out and that's the guitar. I didn't really have any anatomical answers for me. The practice the philosophy, everything else, yes. And in spite of the fact that he was trained as a structural engineer, before he took up the serious study yoga with his father Krishnamacharya. He did not in western anatomical terms really have a lot to offer me by way of explanation when I was asking all these questions, so I just kind of kept limping along and figuring it out on my own. And, you know, here we are, you know. And what I did learn about the anatomy, though, did reinforce everything I learned from Desikachar, in terms of the brilliance of the system and the brilliance of what his father came up with, by recognizing the intimate connection between the movements of the spine and the movements of the breath, and how you can play with that to produce different effects in different people for therapeutic purposes. So that all went into the mix with the fact that, along with all this, I should mention them in the context of this whole period of my life, from then until now really, is that I've had my hands on thousands of people, feeling their bodies, feeling their breath, helping them with their breath, you know, working on deep muscles like the psoas and the diaphragm. And all of that. So there's a lot of kinesthetic learning that's come through my hands about this as well. So everything's influencing everything else. Leanne Woehlke So why do you think we're seeing more injuries in yoga? Leslie Kaminoff Just more people are doing yoga. I mean, just quantity of injuries or percentage of people practicing who are injured. So how did you mean the question? Leanne Woehlke You know, I don't have hard numbers, it seems as if, and I don't know if it's with ramped up frequency or as the population of people practicing increase, we're getting people who maybe have some predisposition, or prior underlying injuries or, issues going on. It seems you know, a lot of shoulder issues, even in my own studio, and I'm pretty careful about anatomy and not pushing it too hard. I, you know, I tell them, there's nothing enlightened about putting your foot behind your head. So unless you really feel you need to do that this other poses probably gonna do the same thing Leslie Kaminoff It's more about getting your head out of your ass instead of putting it up there. So, go go with that one if, you know, feel free to use that one, Leanne Woehlke Right, that's that's much more useful. But it seems like I've had a couple of students who were, you know, sound bodies end up with back issues with a bulging disc, and, you know, I could look at it and say, okay, it's a mom who's had a new baby, so maybe she's holding her body in a certain way. She's pretty hyper mobile in some areas, too. Leslie Kaminoff Yeah, well, first of all, I don't know that there are more yoga injuries as a percentage of numbers of people practicing. We can speculate we, you know, I don't know who has those numbers or if they even exist. Because and it's true with just about anything. You know, is it better reporting? Is it the fact that Social media amplifies things. Who knows? I do know, though, that if you look at the arc of the last 30 years or so, the styles of yoga that have become more prominent, that have really played a key role in popularizing it, in our culture, and in particular in fitness culture are the more intense forms of yoga. You know, the more athletic vinyasa, hot vinyasa styles, all of it really comes from Ashtanga. The influence of Pattabhi Jois's Ashtanga vinyasa style of teaching can't be overestimated. Because that's what made the gyms want teachers. You know, that's what made people want to make money training teachers. You know, back in the mid 90s, when we first started turning our attention to like the standards that might go into training and teacher, there was a lot going going on right then but the main thing in the market and by the way, nobody up to that point had attached the word industry to yoga. You know, 10 years prior to that, you know, in the early to mid 80s nobody attached the word industry to fitness either. Fitness became an industry in the 80s thanks to Jane Fonda in the in the VHS and you know the development of things like Nautilus and you know, the Olympics being in Los Angeles and the running craze that already been going on. There's a lot of things that came together in that place in time where I happen to be in LA in the 80s, working in sports medicine with Olympic athletes. And Jane Fonda students who were getting injured down the road because we were just down the road from her studio, right. So you know, I saw that coming together in the fitness world. Then 10 years later, I saw the fitness world start swallowing the yoga world. But there was a tremendous demand for teachers for yoga teachers at that time and not enough supply. And it's hard to imagine that now 30 years later when actually the opposite is the case. Right? So we kind of created a monster with these standards. Because we handed people the recipe for Look, here's how you teach a teacher training. Here's the subjects, here's the hours and boom, you know, but there was a definite need in the marketplace at that time. And it was being filled by people like Beth Shaw. You know, who, who you know who Beth is, right? Okay. Yeah, yeah, she created yoga fit. And, and so, you know, it was brilliant. I mean, she's a brilliant businesswoman. You know, she's going to the clubs and saying, hey, look, you want yoga in your clubs, I can give it to you next week. Just give me your aerobics teachers for the weekend. Because they already know how to teach group fitness, they're already on your payroll. You don't need to hire new people. Just give them to me. In a weekend, they'll know how to teach yoga class. That's how yoga fit was born. And it was brilliant. You know, but it made people like me and colleagues of mine and folks who had been coming to unity in yoga conferences and who would start to go to Yoga Journal conferences. And when they started doing that, it's like, you know, we're looking at this and going, you know, I don't know off the top of my head how many hours it takes to, you know, reasonably train a yoga teacher, I'm pretty damn sure a weekend isn't enough. And that's that's the, you know, one of the questions we sat down with and we came up with the 200 and the 500 things, you know, so and so this this boom has just been happening it's it's definitely showing signs of leveling off. There's all indicators right now that, you know, the unlimited growth model that a lot of studios and the bigger yoga businesses, you know, we're, you know, basing their growth model on this expected increase year over year demand for what they're offering. You know, it's it's been pretty saturated right now and businesses are dropping like flies. I mean, Yoga Works delisted its stock a couple of months ago and, you know, they're there and in trouble closing studios left and right. And, you know, there's just a lot of market saturation right now. And the last thing that business needs, by the way is dealing with a unionized labor force, do you really want to put the final nail in your coffin just unionize the teachers that'll do it in a heartbeat. It's a whole other conversation. But it's back to the injuries. You know? We like we were not comfortable as humans, I think, not having a story that explains things, you know. I mean, that's, that's what religion is for, you know, it's not always the best explanation or an accurate one, but it's a story and it explains things, you know. And, and, and so, you know, we see all of this happening, and it shows up on social media. And it's all these conversations. And, frankly, some people have found a way to make a living being scaremongers about all of this. You know, I won't mention any names William J. Broad, but um, you know, there's others I can mention who you know, with probably all good intentions are really decontextualized what's actually happening in in yoga, you know, because here's one factor, right? Yoga makes you more sensitive to what's going on in your body, you start paying attention. Right? It's a double edged sword. I always tell people Yoga is this double edged sword. The good news is that it makes you more sensitive to what's going on in your body. The bad news is it makes you more sensitive to what's going on in your body. Right? It's the same thing. You know what what can be a tremendous benefit can also be a problem, you start noticing things. Plus, yes, you do have some more intense, forceful styles of yoga being taught, and you have people doing adjustments on people they shouldn't be doing. I can't tell you how many stories I've heard of people, clients who have come in to get bodywork and the stories of how they got injured in class by a teacher shoving or pulling or yanking or cranking on them and you know, it does happen and because We are more aware of all of these issues now they're being discussed. They're being incorporated into the way we train teachers, the way we educate teachers and the public, you know about these classes. But again, that's sort of the leveling, balancing nature of a free market. You know, when we come up with problems, as an industry or as individuals in the industry, there's no one thing is called the industry. It's just people working in the same field. But they're, they're individuals, but the ones who are responsible and want to offer good instruction, good training for teachers, the one the ones who want to have good information will seek it out and, you know, eventually, you know, things will get better. And, and, look, it's human nature to just push and find your limits by pushing and learn how to respect them by pushing too far. You know, I have been that I have been that person in class, I've been that person in my own practice, I didn't need it, I didn't need another teacher in the room pushing me at a certain point in my yoga career, to just want more and more and more, you know, more awesome as more range of motion, more variations, more intensity, whatever. And I was young and my body was young, and it was able to withstand it without too many negative long term consequences other than some arthritic knees, which, frankly, it probably gotten started even before I started yoga by you know, playing basketball on concrete when I was younger, right? So, you know, we we live and we learn to sometimes we learn by by hurting ourselves, it's unfortunate, you know, if we have to learn by letting other people hurt us. And I think that's, that's something that, you know, I've been working really hard in my workshops and, you know, whatever I whenever I write things or do interviews to you know, say look, we need to need to have this conversation. Because it is a it is a problem. But I don't know that as a percentage of people practicing, it is that much higher than it used to be. I know people back in the old days in, you know, the old classical hatha yoga days before the Ashtanga stuff before the athletic stuff who really mess themselves up just by doing really long headstands plows, shoulder stands, you know, real problem like real problems with their spine and their spinal cord and their spinal nerves from the way they've damaged their necks and their spines from you know, the classic kind of intense, hatha yoga things that we were doing back in the day. So each each style has its own risks. Leanne Woehlke So if if we're looking at it, what is the the right way then to have individualized treatment or individualized treatment but practice and instruction so that you're getting what's right for your body or Leslie Kaminoff Well, yeah, when you say individualize, it's not necessarily one on one. I can individualize a practice, in a group of any size. All I have to do is make sure that each student is being offered the agency an opportunity to conduct their practice as an inquiry into what's working for them. And there's a very simple formula for that, you know, and it's not proprietary, you know, I share it all the time in my workshops, and I teach using this method is very simple. It's called, try this. Now, try that and see what you notice. Right? And so, in order to use this, though, you have to not be attached to the idea that there's only one right way to do things and there's only one right result that you'll get when you do that thing, right? Because that's certainly not true. So Turning the practice into an inquiry is far more powerful, and ultimately safe than just administering cues and corrections. And comes from the standpoint that if you do it the correct way that I'm teaching you, you will not get hurt, because that's that's utter bullshit. That does not, that's not true, even a little bit. Leanne Woehlke Yeah, I think there's also no way to know what's going on inside someone's body or what their joint actually looks like, unless you have an X ray. Somebody could have really, you know, shallow hip sockets or really open hip sockets and the pose is gonna look entirely different and feel very different. Leslie Kaminoff Absolutely, absolutely. The main thing is to get the student to be a little more attentive to what's going on inside their own bodies, you know, and not rely on the teachers eye or experience or knowledge to keep them safe. You know, there's this there's this whole, you know, conversation about well, the teachers gonna come in and they're because they're a good teacher, and they have this experience or they or they wrote an anatomy book, you know, they're going to know more about what's going on in your body than you do now, from a certain perspective, that's true because I can see your body in a way you can never see it. Because not because I'm smart, because I'm not you, you know, that's a given. So, on the one hand, yes, I have access to information about you that you don't have. It doesn't mean I know what's going on inside or what's healthy or safe for you. I just know what I just know what I'm seeing. And what I'm seeing is something you can't see. So we have to balance that reality with the equally true reality that the only person who can ever know ever has a shot at knowing what's going on inside someone's body is themselves. And a lot of people don't want that agency. They don't want that responsibility. They want someone else to do it for them. And, you know, you know, I saw this happening with Desikachar all the time where, you know, he was very skillful at deflecting that and handing the conversation back to the student and not letting any of that stuff stick to him. And for that reason some people found him infuriating. They found him evasive, secretive, they would think, or just plain annoying. But what he was really doing was not accepting that responsibility for someone else's experience. And, not be willing to inject his answers into someone else's context. Because, you know, it may not be for them, it may not be right for them. And that's how he that's how he handled me. 100% Leanne Woehlke And that's how you handle your students. That sounds like Unknown Speaker Well, I do my best. I mean, I'm not Desikachar, but it's good to have a good role model. Leanne Woehlke Tell me about what is a situation where you've just been so inspired by the practice, Unknown Speaker by the practice by, like something that happened on my mat or in the In working with Desikachar, or Leanne Woehlke Either one, it could either be on your mat as a personal experience, or that you've seen, you know, as a witness of a student. Leslie Kaminoff I think some of those inspiring moments, literally inspiring moments are when I'm working with someone else. And sometimes it's in a group situation in a clinic or workshop where I'm demonstrating on one person and people are watching. Because then, well, let me talk about that. Because, you know, this happens all the time in the private one on one work, but when it's especially inspiring, when there's a group of students observing me work, to illustrate something we're learning about breathing with with someone's body. And usually I'll ask for the person who has the you know, worst breathing in the room, asthma or, you know, tendency toward panic attack or whatever it is who you know who's got a breathing issue, so I want them And almost always, there's this moment when I can figure out how to get them to relax and stop trying to breathe. Get out of their own way and just let the body take a natural breath on its own. Once all the effort and you know trying to breathe goes away, here's this breath that comes in. In those moments, I like to think of myself as a breath midwife, you know? Or doula breath doula, perhaps I don't know. And it's very moving. It's very moving. It's always a very emotional moment, not just for the, for me and the person I'm working with, but sometimes even more so. For the people that are watching. It's very, very evocative. It moves something that's like, there's this. Sometimes it's a simultaneous... again, good news, bad news thing that happens the moment like that. And the good news is, of course I, you know, this, this breath comes in, it's like wow, this, this can move, you know, I'm feeling space where the breath has just moved, that I have not felt for who knows how long that's the good news. And then right on the heels of it sometimes not always, but sometimes is, Oh, now I can remember why I stopped breathing that way in the first place. Right? Because there's something there's something that arises in the context of our development that has to do with what we call affect regulation, how we learn how not to be overwhelmed by our internal emotional body states that we do with our breathing, we learn to regulate our affect with how we modulate our breathing spaces. And sometimes we can go through an entire lifetime without ever knowing that it's missing or knowing that we can recover. But when it does happen in these moments, it's incredibly inspiring. Moving for everyone who's present. So those are some of the best moments. And that happens all the time in private one on one work, but when it's sort of kind of amplified in a room of people who are just willing to be present and supportive of that happening, those are those are special moments and maybe some people who'll be watching us have been in one of my workshops, when we've done that and can definitely, you know, relate to to what I'm saying. Leanne Woehlke It reminds me of this year, I did a session with someone that does some of Donnie Epstein's work. And he says, Leslie Kaminoff Yeah, I know I know Donnie Epstein is Yeah, Network. He invented Network Chiropractic. I spoke to him on the phone once back in the old days when he's first getting started. Yeah, Leanne Woehlke and it's now it's a lot of it. They just, it's done with breath. So to me is I thought like, okay, I'll experience it and you're on a table and moving the body in certain ways, with the breath. And you hear these stories about people that had long holding patterns and releasing it. So it's, you know, I was like, well, we kind of do this in yoga. Leslie Kaminoff Well also talk to Michael Lee, because that's the whole basis of Phoenix Rising. Mm hmm. You know, and to to be involved in a skillful dialogue process with someone, as you're supporting them in these poses and positions. And, yeah, the, the tremendous breakthroughs people can have in this context is very inspiring. So yeah, if you ever get to talk to Michael about it, you'll you'll, you'll hear a lot of stories like that. Leanne Woehlke Right? How do you think we do we need to emphasize the breath more in yoga. Leslie Kaminoff I don't know who's we? Leanne Woehlke Teachers in general, I mean, I think it's, it's there. But in this inquiry, it's almost as if there's, ah... again, as I'm kind of looking globally at the industry and thinking like, Okay, we've got this huge push for Asana. Hmm. But if we go back into looking at, you know, an Asana without breath really isn't yoga? Leslie Kaminoff Well, Desikachar would say something like that, for sure. That was definitely his take on it is that, you know, well, he would be very practical. He'd say, you know, because we look, we'd be in the room, we'd be working at whatever practice he gave, and very simple practices, but you know, you're amongst your fellow yoga teachers or yoga therapists or whatever, and you're, he's there, and you want to impress them. So you start working a little too hard, you know, and he'll bust you on that. And so he would say things like, "If what you're doing in your asana practice is so physically demanding that you're losing a connection with your breath. You have ceased to do yoga." Yeah, and it's not that it's necessarily a bad thing that you're doing because you could be working out, you could be working on your strength, you could be working on your flexibility you could be, you know, learning some gymnastic trick. And you know, that's, that can be nice. And you know, it's not like it's bad. But if you want it to be yoga, according to this view, you have to select what you're doing and how you're doing it in such a way so as to be able to stay connected with this process of inhaling and exhaling. So if you're asking me if I think there should be more of that, well, yes, please. I mean, you know, I make my living teaching that. So I'd be stupid to say no. But again, I'm I have to also say, well, it's a free market out there. And just because someone wants to attach the word yoga to something, which by that definition, perhaps isn't, because the breath is who knows where, you know, they still may have a transformational experience because of whatever they're doing because, look whatever you're doing, whether you're focusing missing it on not, you're going to be breathing. You know, and, and breathing tends to want to find more space in your body, whether that's your intention in the practice or not. There is an intelligence which I don't think is too strong a word to use, about how your breath will help you find space for your breath eventually. And so even if it's not an explicit part of the practice, if what you're doing is called yoga, and it even slightly resembles asana practice, and it even has a little bit of this idea that you can bring your mind and your body and your breath together and you can relax a little bit. You know, because the word Yoga is attached to it that can lead you it can lead you into other experiences, it can lead you maybe to look it up on Wikipedia, you know, and you know, you're going to get An idea of the history and the philosophy and all of that, you know, it's not like this information is in hiding. It's, it's pretty available. You know, at least I've done my best to make it available and a lot of other people have and, you know, it's not it's not a Secret Doctrine. No One No One there's no secret super secret breath practice out there, that you know, you have to go to a cave to learn or, or, or sign an NDA before taking well actually there that does exist. But anyway, you know, some people know what I'm referring to. But it's these aren't huge secrets, really. It's the science is there, we're starting to understand things about, you know, polyvagal theory and vagal tone as it relates to breathing cycles. And, you know, the tako method is out there. There's just, there's a lot of available information and it's not that hard to find and if you have one of these experiences, and one of these classes and, and and the word Yoga is attached to it. It's like okay, maybe I can do it without the goat now, you know, and and find someone that that is going to explore it a little more depth perhaps if I'm willing to go to a little more depth. So yeah, more breath please. And you know, we people who care about as long as we keep doing our jobs, you know people find us Leanne Woehlke what's next for you as a teacher? Leslie Kaminoff Well not blowing the deadline we're working on for the third edition of yoga anatomy. That would be nice. You know, we've made the deal with our publishers Human Kinetics to come out with the third edition by around this time next year just in time for holiday gift giving in 2020. So Amy Matthews and I just had a meeting this morning we have you know, we were just regularly scheduled to keep tabs on each other as we work on the new material. For this third edition, which is really going to be much, it's going to be a lot more different from the second edition. And the second one was from the first and there's a lot of improvement in the second edition. But we said this this morning, the second edition was really what we wanted the first edition to be. But we ran out of time and budget and just patience from our publishers because we blew so many deadlines, getting the first edition out. So the second edition is really what we wanted the first edition to be, if we had had those resources. The third edition, we're reimagining a lot. And it's based on 10 years of experience. You know, from the last time we really worked on the book, and there's gonna be new illustrations and expanded chapters, new chapters, lots more information within the awesomeness so that's what's next after that is a book I've been meaning to write for since before yoga anatomy. So that's like 14 years. And it's more about yoga and my personal story. What I learned with Desikachar and my other teachers weaving in some of the things from the yoga sutras that I learned from Desikachar, and from my years as a body worker, and it also includes some of the stories I told her about, you know, the sweep of like the industry that I've been able to witness in the last 40 plus years. So hopefully, people will find it interesting, at least, I find it interesting to tell the stories, and it'll be interesting to get them, you know, out of my mouth, in my head and onto this computer here. So we'll that'll be the next thing. And I think also, upgrading my online material is a big priority for me. And that'll have to happen in the next couple of years too, because the stuff that we put up has been up for a while and I'm not teaching all those things the same way anymore, and I want to make sure that we're putting the best quality stuff out there. The fundamentals course actually is I don't think we need to mess around with that. That's the one that people use to provide the anatomy hours for the teachers. courses, and that's doing pretty well. It's the other ones principles and practices that I think are in need of some, some fresh perspective. So that's enough and travel, you know, you got all this travel happening or got a big tour to Australia coming up next year or we're headed off to Europe in a week. So, you know, I'll keep going where the gigs are squeeze it all in? Leanne Woehlke Right? You know, I think that you've got such I'm excited for your books. I think I have the first version of Leslie Kaminoff yoga, green or purple, Leanne Woehlke purple. Leslie Kaminoff That's the second. That's the second edition. Leanne Woehlke So I look forward to the third and then your story about your own personal story. You've got such a rich history. And I love kind of getting to the people that have been practicing for four decades and have a broader history as opposed to just Instagram followers. Leslie Kaminoff Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's something you know, I mean, who could have anticipated social media and all of that back in the day, but, you know, it's just the evolution of things and people get information any way they can and, you know, build careers any way they can. But the one thing that's inevitable is everyone is going to age. You know, the people who are lucky enough to age, right? People complain about aging, I always remind them it really it beats the alternative. And so eventually, these more therapeutic ways of working the gentler ways of working, you know, as my friend Jay Brown says, gentle is a new advanced, that's his big thing, right? And there's a real truth to that. So, you know, however you got started, whether it's on Instagram or you know, with a dog or a pig or a mug of beer, or you know, joint too, Whatever, you know, if you if you stick with it, you're going to be doing it in an ageing body that's going to need to you need to adapt what you're doing to accommodate that. And, you know, hopefully I'll stick around long enough to get the next couple of generations to start looking at these things and just keep the conversation going. I mean, no, right now, I mean, for me, I always say this, you know, I said, how when I was younger, it was more and more and more and more, you know, how much can I do? In my practice? Now at age 61. Now, it's pretty much how little can I get away with? Leanne Woehlke I hear you I turned 50 next month, and so looking at how my practice has changed over time. It's definitely very different than when I was in my 20s Leslie Kaminoff Sure, yeah. And you know, you're busy now. I mean, you know, I don't have the free time I had in my 20s I'm living in an ashram anymore. I got shit to do The Yoga is for maintaining my ability to do my shit. You know, I, do my yoga to live my life not the other way around. And that's the perspective you get when you know if you stick with it long enough and your body ages and I hope my body will continue to age because that means you know, I'll still be here Leanne Woehlke if you could put on like one billboard or one web page, your message for the entire world summed up happy Leslie Kaminoff Don't be an asshole. I don't know. Wait a yoga message? Leanne Woehlke Whatever your messages, Leslie Kaminoff whatever my message is. Leanne Woehlke Yeah. Leslie Kaminoff Well, I would I would say something like I think one of my favorite quotes that I came up with, which ties a lot of different things together. But it uses Asana as a model for that, because that's what, that's the most accessible entry point. For the vast majority of people into my world, you know, I would just stick with the thing I say, which is that "Yoga is not about doing the asanaa. It's about undoing what's in the way of the asanas". And that's a deep statement and there's some deep teachings there. And that's a perspective I got from from my teacher. And it's really profound if you think about it that way. Because it's not like what we're looking for is somehow in the asana and we'll get it once we perfect it and unlock the benefit and there it is for us. It happens along the way every step along the way. When this thing that you weren't able to do yesterday, you're able to do a little bit better today because it showed you whatever was in your system that was in the way. So Yoga is fundamentally about uncovering and dealing with obstructions, you know? And the practices help us do that. Because like, when we learn a new way to breathe, what it's really doing is helping us unlearn our old way of breathing. So these these subtle little understandings, I think that sort of shift the perspective and allow us to get a lot more done with a lot simpler, a lot simpler practice. Yeah, the simpler the practice is the more profound relationship you can have to it. And that's something he forces you to recognize. Because the complicated shit is not available so much anymore. Leanne Woehlke That's true. Leslie Kaminoff Yeah, I've been cursing a little bit. I hope you're not gonna bleep me. Leanne Woehlke No, you're totally fine. Right. Leslie, how can people catch up with you? Leslie Kaminoff Oh, um, my personal website is Yogaanatomy.org. And that's two A's yoga anatomy, yoganatomy is someone else with the one A. So, yoga anatomy.org. And there's links to everything I do there my schedule and you know, things I write and blogs and online courses and what not. So that's the easiest way to find me. So thank you for asking. Leanne Woehlke Absolutely. And then I think you're also or you were, I think you're taking a little break while you're traveling, but you're also on ompractice. Leslie Kaminoff I was where were we evaluating how and when to reengage with live teaching on the internet. It was a really fun experiment. I really enjoyed doing it. But it when these tours started happening with the timezone difference and the changes and just scheduling wise, there were definitely times where I would have been up in an airplane. Or you know, be have it be three in the morning somewhere. For the regularly scheduled time that we that we started in the summer, when I was taking a break on Cape Cod for a month, and you know it, we kind of got it going, they're able to maintain a regular schedule. So it was it was fun. It was great. I love what they're doing with ompractice. And just, for me, to be fair to the regular students who would want to keep showing up. I just wasn't able to maintain the regularity of it because of all the traveling to the other side of the world and time zones and stuff. So we'll see. Just stay tuned. You know, if anyone's interested in that, it'll certainly be announced on in a blog post or on my web page or whatever. If we do the live teaching on the internet, the courses have been on the internet, those are on demand those those have always been there. Leanne Woehlke Well, wonderful. Thank you so much. I so appreciate you taking time I know you're so busy. But I hope that this conversation reaches those who will benefit And you're an amazing teacher. So thank you for your contribution to the world of yoga. And to me personally, I really appreciate it. Leslie Kaminoff Thank you. That's very kind. It's lovely to hear you say that and happy to have had the conversation. Thanks for inviting me. And yeah, just send me the link when it's out and I'll circulate it in my circles and, you know, get it out there. Leanne Woehlke Awesome. Thanks so much, Leslie. I appreciate it.
Leslie Kaminoff (@leslie.kaminoff), co-author of the bestselling book “Yoga Anatomy” and creator of YogaAnatomy.net, is a yoga educator and internationally recognized specialist with over four decades’ experience in the fields of yoga, breath anatomy and bodywork. His approach to teaching combines intellectual rigor, spontaneity and humor, and is always evolving. In this episode, you’ll hear from Leslie on: [31.52] The influence of T.K.V Desikachar. Leslie reveals how his outlook on life was transformed when he swapped the spiritual and esoteric teachings of the Sivananda Yoga tradition for the more pragmatic and worldly approach adopted by Desikachar. [43.13] Leslie’s attitude to enlightenment. He expresses his doubts about the concept of enlightenment and admits to regarding the longed-for dissolution of the self as a somewhat dubious goal. [48.33] The significance of suffering. Leslie refers to a conversation with Desikachar which made him realize that awareness of the inevitability of suffering provides a powerful motivation for the practice of yoga. [52.05] Breathing into the body. Following Desikachar’s advice, Leslie helps people to heal physically and emotionally by teaching them how to breathe energy and prana into every part of their bodies. [59.36] Respect for the individual. Leslie adapts his teaching to suit the individual because he recognizes that each person’s body is different and that their ability to perform yoga asanas will be affected by their unique anatomy. Announcements: Visit henryyoga.com to learn how to level up your yoga practice in just 40 days. Use code “HOMEPRACTICE” to get lifetime access to the Henry Yoga App for just $20. Follow @henryyoga.app on Instagram Go to www.warriorbridge.com/teachertraining to learn more about their upcoming teacher trainings Check out Rainbo to view their collection of medicinal mushrooms that can elevate your body, mind and spirit. Use code “HENRYWINS” at checkout to claim 15% off your purchase. Links from this episode: Grab a copy of Leslie’s recommended book - Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff Looking for your next book to read? Check out the list of every book recommended on Dharma Talk Leslie Kaminoff’s Interview with T.K.V. Desikachar Get in touch with Leslie: Follow @leslie.kaminoff on Instagram Visit Leslie’s website: www.yogaanatomy.org Support the Podcast: If you find this podcast valuable you can support it directly by visiting: henrywins.com/donate Credits: Music by Momentology (@momentologymusic) Production and audio engineering by Ease of Mind
Annebelle van Tongeren with Lucy Karnani Senior Yoga Teacher, Yoga Therapist and Teacher Trainer Yoga Communications Coach , Teacher Mentor, BSc (Phys Ed).After practicing yoga for many years Lucy trained as a Yoga Teacher at the Kripalu Center in Massachusetts, USA and has continued her yoga teaching and yoga therapy studies in Australia and the USA, having completed over 1,000 hours since 2011. Lucy has studied with yoga luminaries Michael de Manincor; Vidya Carolyn Dell’uomo and Devarshi Steven Hartman; Ganesh, Indira and A.G. Mohan; Amy Weintraub, Leslie Kaminoff and Richard Miller; as well as with Heather Plett, developing her expertise in ‘holding space’. She feels very grateful to be able to share the wisdom and experience that she has received from these many gifted teachers, as well as from her students and clients with whom Lucy has worked over the last eight years in both Australia and the USA. Lucy is a dear friend of Annebelle’s and has been such a consistent mentor in the journey into this brand new world, post burnout.https://www.yogacommunication.org/Purchase the book Conscious Communication for Yoga Teachers & Therapists : Lucy Karnani and Jill Danks https://www.yogacommunication.org/book1Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/consciousyogacommunication/Instagram: @yoga_communication www.fernandfrost.com.au Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fernandfrost/Instagram: @fernandfrost YouTube: https://youtu.be/hiuPj5afR6E
Leslie Kaminoff is a straight talking yoga teacher who has been around long enough to have seen the tremendous shift in how yoga is practiced and perceived in the US. In this follow up to their previous conversation about the history and future of the Yoga Alliance, Leslie shares his background and yoga origin story. He and Mado also discuss the ways in which the birth of the fitness industry paved the way for what we in the west know yoga to be today. Episode Highlights: Leslie’s recommendations for people looking to work as a full-time yoga teacher Leslie’s personal yoga story How the rise of the fitness industry directly influenced yoga as we know it in the US Whether someone is or isn’t doing “real yoga” if they came to yoga through fitness Thoughts on the Yoga Alliance’s new standards The origin of the Leslie’s esutra email list and the original dialogue he started around the Yoga Alliance standards years ago Links & Resources Join the Yoga Teacher Resource Email List and Get 100 Yoga Class Themes Free Leslie Kaminoff’s Yoga Anatomy website Episode 46: Leslie Kaminoff on Teaching Standards and the Yoga Alliance Episode 60: Yoga Alliance CEO on their new standards with Shannon Roche Leslie’s public statement after new standards announced E-sutra post with original Yoga Alliance dialogue
Confino: Major points: Small Yoga pauses during the working day can refresh and relieve discomfort. Carol has developed a series of minute movements, breathing and meditation to bring the body, mind and emotions into a healthier state during the workday. Carol is helping people develop sustainable habits that are beneficial and easy to do. 00:41 This is episode one hundred twelve of changing face of yoga. And my guest today is Carol Confino. Carol has been a nurse for over 20 years and she's now shifted to preventing illness and disease becoming a yoga teacher, a yoga health coach and a certified yoga therapist. She's found ways of dealing with depression, self doubt and anxiety. The simple prompts process of noticing when these issues come up begins the process of overcoming. Welcome. Carol. Is there anything else you'd like to add to that particular introduction? 01:38 Just to clarify, I was an RN way back. I was an RN 14 years, but it's been 20 years since I've actually been a practicing nurse. But, I've been teaching yoga since 2006. Transition. 01:55 We all are doing that, aren't we?. I was very interested in what you were talking about doing desk yoga classes at a health fair. And you said it's a really different format from just doing office yoga or corporate yoga or whatever you want to call it. 02:23 It was interesting because I hadn't really thought about doing much corporate, but I was offered this job to do a health fair. Not so much in handing out flyers about my business or anything, but to teach office yoga. first time I had done hour long workshops at offices in the past, but I wasn't sure how this is going to work in a health fair. And I hit on what I call pause practices. I had done a workshop at my studio, Sun and Moon Yoga Studio here in Fairfax, Virginia. I did practices to pause during the day where you just take a minute or less and do some kind of practice that's going to either change your mind or your body in some way. So I used some of that and some of the things that I did with the desk yoga and there were a few practices that when I did them really resonated with people who didn't usually do yoga. So that's when it hit me that there's a whole population cause I've gone in offices and I've done a yoga class before or after work. But actually having it as part of their work day. Because yoga is more about mindfulness, being aware and when you start to become aware of when your posture is getting out of whack, what can you do? 04:04 And you know, you can go through all the alignment cues and things and sit up and you can bring your shoulders back. But I found that just bringing your arms out to a tee position brings in all the alignment cues and then you can add some practices that bring some strength up into your shoulders so you don't round forward so much. And if you incorporate that during your day, like as you're typing away on the computer, you notice you're rounding and you're in the middle of a thought, bring your arms out to a t, you've just broken up the muscles that were tight rounding you forward. And then you go back to typing and you roll down again. When you get to a breaking point where you've come to the end of the thought or the paragraph, you can do some stretches that will keep your shoulders up and keep you in better alignment because it's not so much the rounding forward that's bad. It's staying there. So if you can a couple of times an hour come in and out of it and to get them to sit and listen cause everybody's in a hurry. All these practices take a minute or less and I have about 20 different ones: minute meditations, eye exercises, shoulders and the arms. And they all fit into a nice little format and I give them a little handout they can take back to their desks that goes through all the practices, some breathing practices, some energy medicine practices and I go over the ones that are more unusual and then I say you can look everybody can round and arch their back and roll the shoulders. But explaining some of the things that I do that can keep you in better alignment and gets you through your day a little more comfortably. 06:13 Oh, how clever. That's really interesting. I'm sitting here doing the T thing. 06:22 If you do that t and then bring your arms in a cactus position. So you bend your elbows. 06:27 I am. 06:30 So if you turn your palms towards your head, okay, your upper back muscles are getting a little stretch and so your shoulders and the chest is contracting but they're not moving any bone. Really turn your palms away. And now the upper back muscles contract and the chest muscles stretch. So you go back and forth between those two. And then bring your arms down without moving your shoulders. I found this out from doing it over and over again. By at the end of the day, when I go to round my shoulders, I would feel a little more resistance than I did before I did cactus arms, which is different than if you bring your arms behind your back and squeeze your shoulders together. Your shoulders can come immediately come forward because you haven't gotten the stabilizing muscles to stay there. So that's like a revelation for a lot of very tight men particularly. But even women, they come and they do this and they notice it right away. And there's other ones, a couple of other ones that I do, and I talk about how to fit that practically into your day. Just like I said you're middle of something and then when you get to a stopping point, you do the stabilizing things and before you go on break, you can do some eye exercises. There are lots of different ones, there's even more than that. I didn't even go into the wrist with the ones that I do with the office. The wrist is much more subtle to work with. 08:06 I saw you had a a youtube video on it. 08:09 I had some on there and I'm going to have a little course. I'm doing the health fairs. Then I started making up the whole little handout that I have is going to come out as a course where all 20 practices are done. And the minute meditations I have recorded about a minute and a little longer because I just startto welcome them and then do about a minute. I've had people ask me when I've done this in offices, do you have any videos with this? And I said I have a few on youtube but this is going to be an actual little course package. 08:58 It's interesting.I think it's hard for people when they're working, but to take that time to take an hour or so for a yoga class, but just to get that habit in of really noticing where your shoulders are or whatever is, it's quite clever really. Because they can do that without really taking away from there their time at work. 09:21 And it makes them aware because actually if you do it over and over again, it actually becomes more comfortable to sit upright. You're really working your body very hard rounding your shoulders forward. It's not a bad position but the strongest position for your spine is when your head is balanced on top of the spine. Once you get your muscles used to that again, because that's how you were when you were a little kid. Your head couldn't go forward cause it was so heavy. Babies when they sit up, sit upright. Because that's where your spine is the strongest. You don't usually see little kids with rounded shoulders cause their heads are so heavy. Then when they bring them forward, it throws their balance off. But if you can kind of get aware that this is really more comfortable and also it gets them moving, even if like it's not get up and walk around the office. But even when you're in your chair you can change your position a lot. You've seen a belly dancer move, they have their arms in a tee position, they can bring a lot of movement to their body. But their shoulders stay where they are. It's actually not a very tight position, rounded shoulders. You can't move as well. You're restricted cause you're crushing your chest. You know, if the belly dancer had rounded shoulders, she couldn't get that movement down through the rib cage because she's crushing it. But if you bring your arms up, you actually can get a lot more movement. Your body is free or to twist. Not that you're going to stay still. Your body likes to move, your eyes like to move. Those things that you do every day is going to have more of an impact then what you do once a week in a yoga class or at least as much impact. Developing habits that are sustainable that aren't hard. We've had master teachers, like Leslie Kaminoff. He talks about even how you walk you can really, if you really are mindful of how you walk, it can help prevent some bunion's and things like that from just being aware of how your body's designed, which we didn't come with a book of how to, and so you kind of winging it. And when when somebody talks about what bones hit the floor first. When you put more weight on the outside edge of your foot, you're going to get a bunion there because it's protecting you. Work on your muscles, which isn't just the foot, it's the muscles of the leg and all that. They are all connected and bringing people in with these simple things they do at the desk, it might get them more interested. Some of these other aspects that aren't necessarily yoga poses, but like mindful movement and mindful sitting. 12:32 Let's go into that. How do you define mindful sitting? 12:38 Well, mindful sitting is noticing when my shoulders are rounded forward first of all. Where your feet are; are you really comfortable where you are? Because I do share with my classes at the studio sometimes and even when you do like cactus arms, when you're seated, notice that what happens with your feet and your legs too. If you don't cross your legs, your feet kind of come flat on the floor and the knees come over the ankles and your rib cage is lifted and you're in alignment without me telling you anything else. Now it's good to break it up and really notice and why you want everything aligned. But your knee likes to be at a right angle or a little, maybe a little bit straighter. I was just hearing something on the radio about when you put your car on cruise control, now they're saying put your feet flat on the floor in the car and sit up a little. But anytime you habitually do the same movement, always have your knees apart or together it's going to put strain on the knee, ankle or wherever. If you always cross your legs, real tight, that's going to start working on your hip. Just kind of noticing and being aware. 14:20 I was just going to ask do you give them help with getting that habit into their daily movement? I think that would be the hardest thing is just remembering to do it each time, 14:36 I'm building this as a business idea. I started with this office yoga, with the health fairs and then I'm going to start to work with either local companies or even online doing. My ideal is to have like little 15 minute things once a week or a couple of times a month because much longer people don't really want to do a lot like at work there. When you're busy, saying take an hour and for this relaxation practice or whatever it is, too much time, 15 minutes sounds reasonable. And then I'll have time for questions after, but what I can talk with them about whatever their issues are and it's like chipping away. So if you first get this idea of just coming into that cactus once in a while when you're at your desk. When you find that successful, then you start to notice other things. And I have talked to people about, do you notice, , what do you do with that arm that always hurts? I mean, is that the arm you use your mouse with. It's sometimes just bearing your position a little bit can make a big difference, and what kind of wear and tear you do on your body. That's kind of what I can build it into. From my own experience in working with brand new people to yoga because it's the type of people that really need yoga. It's the people who aren't going to go to work an hour early with yoga clothes and then change and go to work. These are the people that are just going to sit at their desk and not do anything unless it's really quick and easy. Some of the CEOs or the people running the thing running the health fairs will come over and they say, oh, office yoga, what is that? Or it's called all different things. Desk stretches. Each place has a different name, but they say, oh I only have about five minutes. So I'll just say, okay, I can do something in a minute or less. And I do it. You can see in their eye that it made an impression like wow, that does feel different. And it was so easy. And it's really easy. And especially when you think about it, even mindful sitting you kind of once somebody brings your attention to it. You think my outer outer part of my knee, that is always getting pulled out once because I sit with my knees apart all the time and it's fine to do, like I said, all of these positions like I tell the people at the health fairs is: none of these positions is wrong for your body. It's just what you do all the time is going to cause wear and tear. Knowing what is neutral for your body or because you kind of know what isn't putting any stress on your muscles. If you ever carried a crate or something and you had your fingers around it and you had to hold it longer than you expected. And your fingers don't open really quick, that's what happens to your back. But we sit with our back rounded forward for an hour and that's what happens with any muscle. You hold in one position for a long time. Our muscles are meant to move And whether we think about it or not, we're always moving like that. Even when you hold a Coffee Cup with your hand here, move your fingers up and down. You know, you never perfectly still and we don't think about that. But we do sit in front of the computer now and, and it's, I think as we do more and more on the computer, it is going to take its toll on our eyes, on the body. You know, they, they show that picture of how people progress from programs. Magnum man, the little, yeah. Chimps off and then they're going back. I've seen pictorials where they show it coming back down and this guy sitting at his desk all curled up looking just like the monkey at the beginning. Whatever you do over and over changes your body. People develop the hunchback and their shoulders are always rounded and that has long-term health impacts. What I usually have next to my station when I go to these health fairs is, there was an article in the Washington Post that you can Google just by putting in, don't just sit there. And what it is, is it's a picture of a guy over his desk and a cross section and next to it, it's got all the things that can happen from sitting improperly. And what that picture does is it draws people over, either laughing or you know, or concerned a little bit. It shows it crushes your heart. It doesn't let your lungs open up just from the way you hold your body and people know that it's not working well. And then when you explain that your body was meant to sit up, right? You've let certain muscles get stronger and other ones get weak that you feel like rounded forward is more comfortable. But after a while, once like I noticed as soon as my shoulders round forward now just because I've been doing yoga for so long. One other thing I do with the eyes is eye exercises and it struck me that even working in the office when we didn't have the computer doing everything, you would get up from your desk to look up information. You'd have to go over, get a book, find it on the shelf, bring it down and then your focus would change four or five times just looking up something. So your eyes got a little movement and your eyes didn't stay right in center right on this middle of the screen and just move in like an eight inch or 12 inch square. Even with the big screen, it's still only about 18 inches. Your eyes got a lot more range. We keep on for eight hours looking the same distance away with the same focus. Because now you can look up everything online. You don't have to move and , it's taking its toll on the eyes as well. And those are really simple just looking near and far, I'm making a point, you know like before you go on break, when your eyes are a little fuzzy focus far away, focus near in. you know, if you'll have a window, look at, look out the window, think about looking around, up, down at and then the sides. So these are all little things that don't take any time. You don't need a yoga mat, you don't need special clothes. But it's yoga, it's my your mind becoming aware of your body and then breathing practices to calm you down or to get you energized. There are all kinds of practices that it can be done in a very short period of time. 22:57 Excellent. I really think that's interesting because you're doing the essence of Yoga aren't you, of noticing, of being present and feeling what your body and your breath and your mind are doing. And that's basically, yoga is more than the Asanas. Where do you see this going? it sounds like a very accessible, easy to do kind of practice that it has a lot of benefits. How do you see it growing? 23:35 Well, I'm just trying to get it started. I think like having like either live or recorded 15 minutes little sessions periodically and seasonal, like doing packages of seasonal or topical like could be longer 45 minute sessions. If places want something like that can be customized to what the needs of an organization would be. You could bring in all kinds of practices like for anxiety and depression for sleep. and pain. I have a lot resources from all different certifications for Yoga, for depression and even with the brain, brain longevity, and memory and incorporating right and left brain and work like that can all be brought in. Make it really simple and easy practices that can be brought into any of these companies. My ideal is at some point to have people doing a year-long program where either a monthly or biweekly or quarterly packages where I could do either the short ones and even like for new employees when they come in, maybe have a recording like a, a zoom or a, not a Webinar, but a little video of me of going through the basics of these press pause practices; taking a practice and incorporating it every day. On the front of the flyer that I give out, it usually says, pick one or two to do each for the day and see which ones benefit you the most. And then maybe there's ones you always go to. And what happens eventually is you notice, oh, I really need this one now. End of the day practices, things like to leave work at work. So all of these we are creating either through a breath practice or a mindfulness practice at the end of the day, instead of rushing out the door. Do something that like almost like a little, not a ceremony, but a little thing that work is over. I clear my mind, I clear my thoughts and just let everything go and now I'm ready to go home and I'm not in a panic getting out the door. I'd like to see more and more corporations are getting more and more into the wellness and into retaining employees and in to employee health and these kinds of practices where they do it, they can do it anywhere, any not even just at the desk. You can do it anywhere, anytime. It can be incorporated in your daily life without you having to worry about being flexible. That's the whole thing. When you talk to people about doing yoga, they're all worried. You have to be very flexible and the idea is you're really thin and really flexible and you get into all of these positions. The positions are just way of someone who is real flexible of getting sensation. Someone said the difference between a flexible and an inflexible person is how much they have to move to feel the sensation. So someone is tight doesn't have to move as far. And they feel it. And somebody else who's more flexible has to move deeper and everybody's body is different. So things that work for some people aren't going to work for others and that's where you kind of tailor things in the therapeutic vein. That helped bring us all together. But where I'm seeing is that corporations might might be interested in having this be a regular thing that they can share with their employees. It can vary over the year or different topics? 28:16 I could see where, especially since it's not taking them away from work. It's just giving them a little time to reset themselves as you say. 28:36 Pause, reset, refresh is like on my website. That's another little catch thing. 28:44 You said you're a yoga therapist. Do you do these kinds of things with your Yoga therapy clients also? 28:54 I haven't done as many privates. When training. I did a lot of yoga therapeutics with clients, I also got into Yoga Health coaching with Ayurveda. Kate Stillman had these 10 practices where you do things in Kaizen. So kaizen, which is taking little, little things at a time. And I think between the Yoga Therapeutics and the Yoga Health coaching with these health fairs, I kind of combined some of that. When I work with individual students, you give them small things to do, get them to incorporate them and then build on that instead of a whole bunch of things to do at once. What is the main focus of what I want? What do you want to accomplish? What the client wants to accomplish. What are the simplest practices that can get you there that you can do easily along with a more formal practice you can do during the day daily or three times a week. Practice would be longer if I was working with an individual client, but what things you could change in between. Something simple, even like a pause practice. If they're working with me for depression or anxiety - a breathing practice. What breathing practice is most effective? We'll try these different ones. Which one would work for you? And you said every time you're feeling stressed because with any of the therapeutic things, the earlier you recognize that you're having an issue, the easier it is to head it off. So sometimes in the west we tend to ignore pain and ignore signals from our body, which may or may not be pain. There may be just discomfort, but we think we can push through it and sometimes we can, but it's all taking a toll because with pain and discomfort, your body is telling you something, If you don't listen and make an adjustment, your pain level usually increases because you keep ignoring the pain signal and then all of a sudden things fall apart. I'd often hear, people say it would be like I was healthy and then I had this one thing go wrong and now everything is off. And even back then before I had done yoga, I'm thinking it probably was happening all along. You just chose to ignore it. Your body has this amazing ability to help you do whatever you want to do. Even if you're having pain, it will, it will push you through it. But it's taking its toll and body can compensate for a lot of the things we do, which is why a bunion is a compensation for your gait being in a way that you always are rubbing on that part of the foot. Your body, in order to protect your foot, forms a bunion forms harder skin there. if you start to notice it earlier and instead of ignoring it, take action. that's really helpful. Working with people with anxiety and depression and pain and arthritis you do your regular practices and then you notice when something's aggravating it and when it's aggravating it, you stop. Then you do a practice that you know will relieve it and then go back to it. So it's all again yoga; your mind listening to your body. Your breath will often be an indicator of when things aren't working well. And if you notice, I notice every time this happens, my breath gets faster in my heart rate goes up a little bit. You do a breathing practice or even just a sigh or something that changes your breathing pattern, changes your muscle movement which in turn changes your mind, your mindset. This is a global yoga therapy day is coming up. Yoga therapy is fairly new and a lot of yoga teachers do yoga therapy they modify things, but the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) actually created a certification for people who are focusing on going beyond the poses. And a lot of what IAYT is doing is funding and working on research to show that yoga therapy is effective. And, it's kind of hard to do some of the yoga therapeutics because a lot of it is preventive, so it's can't prove that something, did not happen. But a lot of people are doing research with pain, anxiety, arthritis, trauma, and are documenting changes that they see. For the next seven weeks before this comes up the global yoga therapy, it's on a Facebook page is just a global yoga therapy day and they're putting up videos every week of somebody's research and then other topics through, on the website that might be papers and things like that. 36:03 That sounds like a great resource. 36:10 YogaMate, is a place where you can look up yoga, yoga therapists and they put out all this information you can get all kinds of names of yoga therapists and how yoga therapy is researched. This Yoga therapy day is to highlight how yoga therapy it is making itself known a little bit more. Most people don't really think about yoga therapy or don't even know what exists. 36:46 Is there anything that you would like to add to what you've said or talk about something else that you would really like the listeners to know? 37:04 I think this is going to be kind of a, maybe not what I'm doing, but yoga I think is going to become more of a useful element even in medicine and in daily life. Even if they don't have enough, it's not called Yoga, this mindfulness and all it is really kind of the wave of the future. So I'm kind of happy to be here at this time and share some of this information with you and your listeners. 37:37 Thank you. It's been really interesting and I'm really impressed with how you've made it so accessible because I think that corporate yoga is probably really needed and yet it's a difficult a place to be because people are really busy. It's hard for them to do it, but I think you've done it really cleverly. I think it's really very interesting. So, thank you so much for being on the podcast. I really appreciate that you're bringing this information to the listeners and I'm sure they'll be interested also. 38:12 , thank you for having me. It's been really nice. Contacts: website: www.CarolfinoYoga.com FB: CarolfinoYoga If you enjoyed the podcast and would like to learn more about what I do I am offering a free 5 day challenge. In this challenge, each day you will be offered a practice to include your day to see the difference to take a minute break. Energy Reboot Challenge: https://www.carolfinoyoga.com/energy-reboot-5-day-challenge/ For more information on yoga therapy you can still access all the videos and information from the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/GlobalYogaTherapyDay/ If you enjoyed the podcast and would like to learn more about what I do I am offering a free 5 day challenge. In this challenge, each day you will be offered a practice to include your day to see the difference to take a minute break. Follow this link https://www.carolfinoyoga.com/energy-reboot-5-day-challenge/ For more information on yoga therapy you can still access all the videos and information from the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/GlobalYogaTherapyDay/
Today you’ll meet someone who manifests his intensity through music and dance. In sharing his passion, he also stays connected to his Indian culture and brings it to people across the US as he celebrates all things FUN. I first met Prashant Kakad in his role as a Bollywood DJ. I’ve loved attending his dance events because of the diverse variety of people and the open and free spirit of celebration. He is one of the best examples I know of psychomotor or physical excitability. As I’ve gotten to know Prashant better, I realized that he is gifted and intense in many different ways. From Orcas Island to the Florida Keys, this multifaceted Bollywood entertainer has spent the last 10 years traveling across the US sharing his passion for Indian music and culture. An Indian-born, first-generation immigrant, Prashant’s unique perspective as an Ivy League graduate and ex-Intel engineer-turned DJ transforming American nightlife has inspired many South Asians who seek to pursue a life beyond their tech job. Show Highlights: How Prashant has always been intensely passionate about dancing, music, and creative expressions---not being an Intel engineer How he travels the US with dance parties in various cities, along with dance classes and workshops Prashant’s natural inclination toward intensity in his dancing and in his meditation practice How he has had to “find the middle” of both extremes of his intensity How he grew up with a very intense life in the city of Mumbai, which has over 19 million people How Prashant stays connected to his Indian culture and loves giving others a window into that world How he had to downplay his passion for music and dancing as he grew up, mainly because of his family’s disapproval How his intensity sometimes gets out of control How Prashant finds opportunities to self-reflect and course-correct How he helps by holding opportunities sacred in bringing his culture to people and helping them connect to it Harnessing the power of his intensity by being around people who resonate with him Prashant’s personal habits of jumping headfirst, thinking later, going with his instinct, and embracing the unknown The best advice Prashant has ever received: “Live and go, based on your personal experience, not on what someone else does or says.” Prashant’s favorite books to recommend: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho and Yoga Anatomy by Leslie Kaminoff and Amy Matthews How Prashant loves to help others in teaching dance because it’s both external AND internal Resources: Find Prashant on Instagram: Instagram: Dream Prashant Find Prashant on YouTube: Dream Prashant Find Prashant’s website: Dreams Perfected Consider supporting the podcast: Embracing Intensity From last week’s episode: Side by Side: A Model of Healthy Relationships by Kate Arms
Interview With A Yogi - A Woke Yoga Podcast With Cora Geroux
On today’s episode I talk with Amy Matthews. Amy has been teaching movement for over 25 years. Amy is a yoga teacher, a body mind centering teacher, a certified laban movement analyst, and an infant developmental movement educator. Amy also co-authored the book Yoga Anatomy with Leslie Kaminoff, and was a director of the breathing project in NYC. Amy has since partnered with Sarah Barnaby to create the Babies Prohect - a space in NYC dedicated to developmental movement for babies. So, in other words - when it comes to movement, Amy really knows her shit. Amy and I discuss, why knowing more anatomy & physiology is not what makes a great yoga teacher or prevents injury ( and Amy’s take on what does ), Amy’s perspective on if and how we should teach and practice headstand and shoulder stand in yoga, and how to navigate the pressure to be commercial as a yoga teacher. You can learn more about Amy on her website You can learn more about us via our social channelsYour Host: @coragerouxWoke Yoga: @wokeyogasydneyThe Show: @interviewwithayogi
Author of Yoga Anatomy and long time teacher Leslie Kaminoff shares his insider's perspective on the history and future of the Yoga Alliance and the forces influencing teaching standards in the yoga industry. Some of the topics we cover: -->What the yoga world was like when the Yoga Alliance got started and the thought processes behind their initial policies. -->How yoga evolved from a fringe activity into an industry - and how the concerns around teaching standards changed with that evolution. -->What Leslie thinks the Yoga Alliance has done right... and several ways he thinks they have mistepped in the past -->Leslie’s top priority and reason for participating in the Yoga Alliance advisory committee -->The important element that Leslie believes Yoga Alliance is missing in their structure -->Leslie’s hope for the future of the Yoga Alliance and the industry as a whole
The intelligent edge yoga podcast was produced by Kathryn Anne Flynn; author of Teach Kind, Clear Yoga: A Guide for Practitioners and Teachers. To learn more about Kathryn, practice online, or find retreats and training opportunities, visit kathrynanneflynn.com Show Notes:Leslie Kaminoff is one of the most recognized and respected names in American yoga, but he owes it all to Canada... We talk about his beginnings as a teacher, the Yoga Alliance standards creation and review, as well as some breathwork techniques and when holding the breath makes sense.We also discuss...Leslie's forty years as a teacher, and he got started with teaching in Canada! Learning from Swami Vishnudevananda and his senior students in Val Morin, Quebec, so as a Canadian, I insist on credit for his education. (We also talk about TKV Desikachar, who was his Teacher.)We discuss the difference between instructor and teacher, and how Leslie sat at the table during the creation of the Yoga Alliance standards (back when it was Unity in Yoga). We discuss the Standards Review Yoga Alliance is undertaking, and what we both think will come of them.Since Leslie knows so much about breath work and breath anatomy, we discuss breath retention and how it's a natural inclination that can be really helpful.
Amy Matthews, CMA, IDME, BMC Teacher, RSMT/RSME has been teaching movement since 1994. She is a Certified Laban Movement Analyst, a Body-Mind Centering® Teacher, an Infant Developmental Movement Educator, and a movement therapist and yoga teacher. Amy leads the Embodied Developmental Movement and Yoga and the Embodied Anatomy and Yoga BMC℠ programs in the United States. She co-taught with Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen in Berkeley, CA for five years and was on the faculty of the Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies for ten years. She has taught embodied anatomy and movement workshops for programs in New York, Philadelphia, Berkeley, and Nebraska, and internationally in Canada, Switzerland, Ireland, England, Israel, Slovakia and Japan. Amy co-authored with Leslie Kaminoff the best-selling book Yoga Anatomy, and together Amy and Leslie teach The Breathing Project's Advanced Studies courses. Amy also works privately as a movement therapist and yoga teacher, integrating Laban Movement Analysis, Bartenieff Fundamentals, yoga, Body-Mind Centering® and Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF). Amy is certified as a yoga teacher by Yoga Union and Heart of Yoga, and as a Motherhand Shiatsu practitioner. She is registered with ISMETA as a Somatic Movement Therapist and Educator, with IAYT (International Association of Yoga Therapists) and with Yoga Alliance as an E-500 RYT (Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher). Amy has studied with a range of inspiring teachers: dissection workshops with Gil Hedley, neuro-muscular reeducation with Irene Dowd, Body-Mind Centering with Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, full-contact karate with Michelle Gay, and yoga with Alison West, Mark Whitwell, Genny Kapular and Kevin Gardiner.
Leslie Kaminoff is a yoga educator and internationally recognized specialist with over four decades’ experience in the fields of yoga, breath anatomy and bodywork. He is the co-author of best selling book, "Yoga Anatomy," co-founder of The Breathing Project, as well as creator of yogaanatomy.net and popular online publication e-Sutras, which see participation from around the globe. Episode Contains Sensitive Content (please listen to intro or read below) Leslie is a great conversationalist and he and Kathryn discourse across a variety of subjects mostly as they relate to yoga, anatomy and the body. Leslie shares information about the roots of "Yoga Anatomy," and the challenges of writing a book about such complex subject matter as it relates to movement, stillness, energy, breath, science and philosophy. He also lets us in on some of his personal history through life, yoga and bodywork. Leslie's depth of knowledge is completely self-taught by way of life and interest, landing on personal philosophies and fields of interest that carry with the assumption that we never stop learning. The pair also dive into pain science, tissue damage, somatics, Yoga Alliance and more. As with many open conversations that lean into topics like "yoga injuries" and the Westernization of yoga culture, it is often difficult to avoid that wandering into sensitive and shadowed territory. As pain science reaches over to somatics and real world applications, cult mentality and power dynamics are also touched upon. We planned for this interview to be centred around anatomy, yoga, and Leslie's storied experience with both, however, this also opened up some unexpected dialogue that Kathryn found herself unprepared for in the moment. This being at a loss for words was a first for Kathryn since these interviews and this podcast began and so, true to the authenticity we hope our interviews carry and to the ethos of Mindful Strength, we leave all of this for you to hear, inviting you to move with us in our learnings, challenging moments, and our evolution.
Lucy has been a yoga teacher for many years, having studied at the Kripalu Center in Massachusetts, USA, and has trained with many yoga luminaries such as Michael de Manincor, Indira and A.G. Mohan; Amy Weintraub, Leslie Kaminoff and Richard Miller. As we will hear in this episode, she has had many interesting occupations over her life, including teaching scuba diving, managing sales teams for radio stations and eventually becoming the CEO of Rogen, North America, a global training and consulting firm specializing in face-to-face communication. You may have noticed a constant theme in her line of work, it is that of communication - the subject of this episode. Lucy and her co-writer Jill Danks have recently released their book “CONNECTING Conscious Communication for Yoga Teachers and Therapists”. It's a fantastic book which we believe will be an invaluable resource for Yoga Teachers and Yoga Therapists. In fact, Kaye Tribe, who we interviewed in our last episode as said that she will be making this book a prescribed reading in her course at the Academy of Yoga and Mindbody Education. We have a copy of the book 'Connecting' to giveaway to one lucky listener! To find out more, visit https://podcast.flowartists.com/connecting-book-giveaway/ Links: Yoga Communication: https://www.yogacommunication.org/ Yoga Communication on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yoga_communication/ Picks of The Week: Jo – Wild Japan on Netflix Rane – J Brown Podcast – Tara Stiles - https://www.jbrownyoga.com/yoga-talks-podcast/2018/4/tara-stiles Lucy – Brene Brown – Braving the Wilderness - https://amzn.to/2xYTSlN On Being Podcast - https://onbeing.org/
In this episode, members of the Third Root Community Health Center collective join host Kate Werning for a conversation about somatic symptoms of oppression and the increased pressures since the 2016 election, in what ways Trump and our current political environment is making us sick, what it would look like to de-spa-ify healing and make it part of our everyday lives instead of a luxury commodity, and how organizers and leaders can make our movement spaces more accessible to the widest range of folks with varying capacities. (Bonus: they also sing a song!) PRACTICE: Download the next episode for a simple tapping practice called Emotional Freedom Technique. (We release a new conversation every Tuesday, and the corresponding practice on Thursday - so check back then if you don’t see it yet!) ** As a brand new podcast, we need you to subscribe, give a 5-star rating, and share a positive review to help us continue. Join us in the sustainability and viability of this project and subscribe, rate, & review now! ** Check out the incredible guests and topics we'll be featuring coming up and sign up for the email list to hear when new episodes drop at www.healingjustice.org MEET OUR GUESTS: Geleni Fontaine & Emily Kramer of Third Root Community Health Center THIRD ROOT is a holistic healthcare center in Brooklyn, NY offering yoga, acupuncture, East Asian medicine, massage, herbal medicine, and wellness education. They are a multi-racial, cross-class, intergenerational community, and a worker-owner cooperative. Third Root manifests a world where we all belong, we are all healing, and we are all welcome in our wholeness. Collective members include Geleni Fontaine, Jomo Alaquais Simmons, Julia Bennett, Emily Kramer, and Nicolette Dixon. More at www.thirdroot.org GELENI FONTAINE, a collective member of Third Root, is a fat, queer, Latina/o transperson raised and thriving in Brooklyn, New York. They are a graduate of the Swedish Institute School of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine where I studied Traditional and Classical Chinese Medicine with Jeffrey Yuen, 88th generation Taoist priest and healer. They’re also a registered nurse and use knowledge of Western allopathic medicine to support individuals navigating both healthcare systems. Geleni is a member of the Rock Dove Collective, a group of healers, providers, and activists coordinating a radical community health exchange in NYC; a former board member of the Audre Lorde Project, the first queer people of color center for community organizing in the U.S.; and NOLOSE, an organization dedicated to ending the oppression of fat people and creating vibrant fat queer culture. They have a 13-year history of training and teaching martial arts and have worked many years with the Center for Anti-Violence Education (CAE) as a youth educator, anti-violence activist, and crisis intervention worker. This experience has lent to their understanding of healing as a mind / body / spirit construct that includes support for individuals as well as radical responses to the institutional oppression we face as communities. EMILY J. KRAMER is a yoga teacher and collective member at Third Root, where the crossroads of her work as a movement professional, social justice activist and spiritual seeker joyfully meet. In her classes, Emily invites us to pay attention to subtleties of our sensation and alignment in order to create space internally, making way for healing and discovery. She encourages students always to honor their own bodies and beings, while valuing the community aspect of the space. She has specialized training in anatomy, backcare, anxiety/depression, addiction, trauma-sensitivity, and yoga for young people. She studied with Off the Mat, Into the World, Alison West at Yoga Union, SchoolYoga Institute, Street Yoga, Bent on Learning, Leslie Kaminoff / the Breathing Project, Jyll Hubbard-Salk, Elena Brower, Larry Yang and many inspired teachers on this path. In 2009, she created Spirit Boxing, a workshop that combines her experience as a former amateur boxer and yogini, to serve women, youth, and queer / trans community. She has also facilitated movement and outdoor education programming with young people ages 6 – 15 since 2006. She has collaborated with Girls for Gender Equity and the Center for Anti-violence Education, and has taught through Bent on Learning, Safe Horizon, Kripalu, Columbia and Cornell Universities. REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODE You can see Third Root’s space access statement at bottom of their website, www.thirdroot.org Bending Toward Justice: recommended social justice training for yoga teachers JOIN THE COMMUNITY Check out the incredible guests and topics we'll be featuring coming up and sign up for the email list to hear when new episodes drop at www.healingjustice.org Follow us on Instagram @healingjustice, like Healing Justice Podcast on Facebook, and tweet at us @hjpodcast on Twitter We pay for all costs out-of-pocket and this podcast is 100% volunteer-run. Help us cover our costs by becoming a sponsor at patreon.com/healingjustice THANK YOU This podcast is mixed and produced by Zach Meyer at the COALROOM, and this episode was generously edited by the talented Yoshi Fields. Intro and closing music gifted by Danny O’Brien All visuals contributed by Josiah Werning
Leslie Kaminoff invites J to join him for the last of his live oral history events at The Breathing Project. They are accompanied by a small group of staff and friends for an intimate conversation about what has gone past and what lies ahead. The discussion tracks some history behind the Breathing Project, the publication of Yoga Anatomy and rumors of a potential third edition, and all the emotions around saying goodbye as the space reincarnates into the Babies Project and Leslie sets a new course for himself and The Breathing Project Foundation. This episode is part of our premium podcast subscription. To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM.
Leslie Kaminoff has been an internationally recognized yoga and breathing expert for decades. So what happened when he lost his breath for six months? When he lost control of his body? When he lost touch with his emotions? Join us as Leslie recounts his deeply personal journey to "mastery," and shares what he's learned about life, yoga, and the power of breath. Music: www.bensound.com
In Part III of Shannon's Pelvic Health Mini Series, she welcomes Shelly Prosko, another passionate professional who works in the realm of pelvic health. With warmth and grace she shares her perspective adding to our discussion on pelvic health. Shelly Prosko has an extensive fitness and physical therapy background which led her to combine physical therapy and yoga to become a Professional Yoga Therapist. She is a pioneer in her Physio Yoga Therapy- a combination of Physical Therapy and Medial Therapeutic Yoga. She received her Physical Therapy degree at the University of Saskatchewan in 1998, her Medical Therapeutic Yoga training through the Professional Yoga Therapy Institute in North Carolina and her Pilates Certification through the Professional Health and Fitness Institute in Maryland. Shelly has treated those with issues surrounding pain management and, driven by her passion for sharing all she has learned with others, she offers specialty PhysioYoga Therapy courses along with speaking at various educational schools and conferences throughout Canada and The United States. Shelly has a love for acting, dancing, and music and figure skating. Shelly's journey to PhysioYoga 2:50 Who can study with Shelly 7:25 Building relationships and gaining referrals from health care professionals 11:00 Shelly contemplates if there would be an effective way to integrate physiotherapy into the 200-hour yoga teacher training and learn more about anatomy and physiology? 17:55 The practice of Kegels and Muhla Bandha 22:00 The movement of the diaphragm and pelvic floor when breathing 23:45 Caution around doing Kegels 24:45 An overactive pelvic floor is more common than we might think 25:30 Shelly discusses a study done in 2016 by Van Dyken & Sinead Dufour that discover that 83% of people with low back pain have an over-recruited pelvis 25:45 Another study done on incontinence links the condition with poor balance and often the pelvic floor is over-activated in this case 26:25 Referring a yoga student to a Physiotherapist or with pelvic health, a Pelvic Floor Physiotherapist when it is appropriate 28:00 Clues that yoga students may be over-engaging their pelvic floor 30:09 Jules Mitchell and her thoughts on stretching 31:00 Kegels may aggravate pelvic floor dysfunction 32:25 Proper way to do a Kegel or do Mulha Bandha 33:00 Shelly shares that 50% of people, after being taught one-on-one still struggle with the proper way to do Kegels 33:15 Mulha Bandha - one of the energetic locks 34:30 Introduction of Mulha Bandha in Western yoga 35:05 Leslie Kaminoff's explanation of the history of Mulha Bandha and its use in pranayama and sitting 36:10 Pelvic Floor health in relation to health and movement 37:20 Antony Lo the Physio Detective #tensiontotask 41:00 Is the Muhla Bandha comparable to Kegels? 42:40 How Shelly cues Muhla Bandha Shelly's article (link below) 8 ways to Engage Pelvic Floor Links Shelly's Webpage Anthony Lo- The Physio Detective Julie Wiebe pt Jules Mitchell Pelvic Floor Galore Blog Post: Optimizing Pelvic Floor Health: Where Does Yoga Fit In? by Shelly Prosko Article: 8 Ways to Help Yoga Students Engage Their Pelvic Floors by Shelly Prosko Article: Optimizing Pelvic Floor Health Through Yoga Therapy by Shelly Prosko Article: Anatomic connections of the diaphragm: influence of respiration on the body system by Bruno Bordoni and Emiliano Zanier Youtube Video: Bandhas in a Modern Practice: A Historical Perspective by Leslie Kaminoff Special Thanks: To Laura for compiling the show notes (I am still laughing over your blueberry story from last week Laura!) and to Rob who edits all of the audio between bear sightings
J sits down with his old friend, Zack Kurland. They started out in the yoga word on parallel tracks but Zack ended up taking a different turn ten years ago. They finally get a chance to talk about the way things went and how they are now. Zack discusses his studies in Yoga and Ayurveda, the early NYC days, his experience in yoga-related businesses, starting the Breathing Project with Leslie Kaminoff, the time that they knew each other as fellow teachers, and his decision to depart the yoga profession and find another direction. This episode is part of our premium podcast subscription. To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM.
Trista Zinn is a personal trainer who specialized in pelvic health and core pre-programming. Trista is the founder of Coreset Fitness. Her interest in pelvic health began when she was diagnosed with a grade 2 prolapse as the condition could not be corrected by surgery she sought out alternative treatments. Trista connected with the Hypopressive®Method so strongly that she travelled to Spain to train under the only English speaking teacher at the time. Trista is now Canada's highest qualified and most experienced trainer in Hypopressive® - Low Pressure Fitness. Trista is incredibly passionate about continuous education in the fitness field, feeling that new knowledge should be embraced and shared. She is a mother of 2 and an outdoor enthusiast. In this episode Shannon and Trista discuss their mutual interest in pelvic health, in particular, how it relates to breathing. Are common breath practices helpful or perhaps harmful to our pelvic health? Intro to Trista Zinn 5:15 What is Hypopressives? 6:25 Trista defines the Core 7:15 Importance of Posture 8:00 Benefits of Hypopressives 8:55 What Hypopressives encompasses 9:30 Who Should do Hypopressives? 10:10 Trisha's Tube of Toothpaste Analogy 12:00 Rib Cage Breath 13:35 Jelly Fish Breath Analogy 15:00 Belly Breathing 17:10 “Engage the core” in yoga why Trish believes this is a harmful cue 18:00 “Do Less”- helpful mantra with this practice 21:15 Uddiyana Bandha- similarities and differences between this breathing practice and Hypopressives 23:15 Caution around teaching Belly Breathing 25:00 Pelvic Floor Dysfunction 27:00 Caution around cueing Kegels 27:50 Trista's story- her Pelvic Prolapse 32:00 Taking the Hypopressive Course 34:45 Other Compatible Courses 35:25 Diaphragmic Breath- an unnecessary term 38:15 Links: Article: Jelly Fish Breath and Definition of Core by Shannon Crow Article: New Thoughts on Belly Breathing by Shannon Crow Video: Facebook Live: Introduction to Pelvic Health by Shannon Crow Video: "Your Diaphragm and the Cheetah" by Leslie Kaminoff Trista Zinn's Website Hypopressive Canada Deepha R. Romuwalt PT, C/NDT, Physio Plus, Owen Sound, Ontario Search for a Canadian Physio Floor Specialist Pelvic Health Solutions- Introductory Pelvic Health Course Bellies Inc Courses Today's Episode is Sponsored by: Shannon Crow's Yoga for Pelvic Health: Online Training for Yoga Teachers Special Thanks to: Laura Cameron, (writer, cat lover and yoga practitioner), for compiling such great show notes and Rob Muir for editing each and every show
Leslie Kaminoff has been a yoga educator for the last four decades and is an internationally recognized specialist in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He leads anatomy and yoga methodology workshops for many of the leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in the world. He is the co-author of the bestselling book Yoga Anatomy, and the founder of The Breathing Project, Leslie has also helped to organize international yoga conferences while serving as Vice-President of Unity in Yoga, and was part of the committee that established national standards for yoga teacher training. In today’s conversation we’re talking about what it was like to have a front row seat for the birth of the fitness and yoga industries in the United States, concepts related to breath and breath anatomy, the art of teaching and the importance of creating an atmosphere of inquiry in yoga classes and how that can honor students’ individuality and allow for deeper insights.
Peter Blackaby, author of Intelligent Yoga, talks with J about how he went from Iyengar yoga and an anatomical approach to a view that encompasses the complex relationship between things. They discuss some of his influences, including Vanda Scaravelli, Serge Krakovetsky, and Stanley Kellerman, the idea of functionality, and letting go of yoga practice as a form of physical exercise. This conversation is precursor to the upcoming Beyond Anatomy Symposium with Peter, Leslie Kaminoff and Amy Matthews at the Breathing Project NYC. This episode is part of our premium podcast subscription. To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM.
I’m talking with Leslie Kaminoff, Amy Matthews, and Peter Blackaby about our upcoming somatic symposium in New York this April called Beyond Anatomy. There is a vast amount of information about the body out there (and in here within the show)- so how do we discern what's applicable and useful and not simply make ourselves crazy with information overload? And what is ""beyond anatomy"" to each of us? For me this is a fantastic way to kick off the whole of season 4 as I am dedicating that season to interviews related to what happens- what happens inside yourself, in your life, in your community- when you dive deeply into the body experientially, rather than simply intellectually. This doesn't mean we're chucking the importance of learning critical things like anatomy- but it does mean there's more to the story. Much, much more!
Our guest in this episode is Leslie Kaminoff. Leslie is a yoga educator inspired by the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar. He is an internationally recognized specialist with thirty seven years’ experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He leads anatomy and yoga methodology workshops for many of the leading yoga associations, schools and training programs in the world. Leslie’s book Yoga Anatomy, (co-authored with Amy Matthews), has been printed more than 12 times and has sold over 500,000 copies.
How important is the breath in yoga and what does a breath centered practice look like? Join us with yoga anatomy expert, Leslie Kaminoff, co-author of the wildly successful Yoga Anatomy book, as he explains the importance of breath as well as talks about many relevant topics with modern postural yoga. Special Guest: Leslie Kaminoff www.yogaanatomy.org Host: Ashton Szabo www.anatomyofliving.com Sound Engineer: Zach Cooper Producer: Benn Mendelson www.sivanaspirit.com
Many people hear that yoga can be very healing – and it can, but when it comes to RSI you have to be extremely careful in your practice. Leslie Kaminoff, a yoga educator with over three decades' experience in the fields of yoga, breath and anatomy, talks about why the hand is vulnerable in many yoga poses. Leslie teaches in the tradition of T.K.V. Desikachar, and is the founder of The Breathing Project, a New York City-based educational non-profit dedicated to teaching individualized, breath-centered yoga. He is the co-author, with Amy Matthews, of the best-selling book “Yoga Anatomy.”
When we start to practice yoga, things begin to change in our lives. First we may start to see our body and all the tension and stress we are holding. Then if we're lucky, we start to see how we are holding unhealthy things in our minds and hearts as well. The same could be said [...]
When it comes to the inside track on being a yoga teacher and the industry, Leslie Kaminoff has been part of the conversation since it started. J has known Leslie for many years, he was one of the original teachers at The Breathing Project and their programs have become “sister schools.” In this conversation, they talk about the early times before J got on the scene, the origins of the Yoga Alliance, the International Association of Yoga Therapists, regulation of yoga, the business of independent studios and the heart of why yoga teachers do what they do. This episode is part of our premium podcast subscription. To subscribe and support the show… GET PREMIUM.
Expert in yoga, breathing and anatomy Leslie Kaminoff joins us to share his wealth of knowledge. The author of the must have resource for yoga instructors Yoga Anatomy and founder of The Breathing Project shows how a knowledge of the mechanics of the body lead to a deeper, more profound yoga practice and life expereince. Leslie demystifies the complex workings of the body and the breath, putting topics into terms which are refreshingly accessible and applicable. Gain insights which will powerfully shift your personal mind-body experience and the way you teach yoga from how to avoid common stress injuries from yoga to exploring the breathing body.Support the show (https://yogainmyschool.com/?p=13405)
Expert in yoga, breathing and anatomy Leslie Kaminoff joins us to share his wealth of knowledge. The author of the must have resource for yoga instructors Yoga Anatomy and founder of The Breathing Project shows how a knowledge of the mechanics of the body lead to a deeper, more profound yoga practice and life expereince. Leslie demystifies the complex workings of the body and the breath, putting topics into terms which are refreshingly accessible and applicable. Gain insights which will powerfully shift your personal mind-body experience and the way you teach yoga from how to avoid common stress injuries from yoga to exploring the breathing body.Support the show (https://yogainmyschool.com/?p=13405)
Tami Simon speaks with Leslie Kaminoff, a yoga educator with more than 30 years of experience in the fields of yoga and breath anatomy. He is the founder of The Breathing Project in New York City, a non-profit dedicated to teaching breath-centered yoga. Leslie is the coauthor of Yoga Anatomy, and with Sounds True, a program called Freeing the Breath: Health, Clarity, and Relaxation Through Better Breathing. In this episode, Tami speaks with Leslie about the most common misconceptions about better breathing, how to experience a "breath koan," the relationship between the motions of the breath, and what it feels like in the whole body to take one beautiful breath. (62 minutes)
The Fit Marriage Show: Fitness | Health | Wellness | Lifestyle | Relationships
The Fit Marriage Show welcomes Yoga Expert Leslie Kaminoff. As someone who has been practicing yoga for over 30 years, Leslie has a lot to share with us busy, married folks.