Teaching live classes online presents new challenges to teachers. These includebeing able to see students clearly and provide feedback, ensuring they can see you clearly within the limits … [Read more...] about 4 Hacks for Teaching Left & Right Online with Props
3 Reasons I Had Persistent Pain as a Yoga Teacher
Teaching yoga asana is a tough job. A newer teacher, I learned this the hard way. Three big shifts lead me to experience persistent pain. 1. My practice was no longer entirely my own. Once I became … [Read more...] about 3 Reasons I Had Persistent Pain as a Yoga Teacher
Is Yoga Strengthening?
Strength is your ability to produce force. More broadly, it's the gift that keeps on giving. Its benefits for athletes are well known, but there are many reasons non-athletes and average Janes … [Read more...] about Is Yoga Strengthening?
Alignment Might Not Be the Reason for Your Shoulder Pain
Look in any of the traditional yoga asana books, including the Yoga Teacher Training manuals I taught from for years, and you’ll see a whole lot of drawings and/or photographs of the poses the typical … [Read more...] about Alignment Might Not Be the Reason for Your Shoulder Pain
Why I Didn’t Cancel Asana Because of Pain
A few years after I started teaching yoga, I had an existential crisis (of sorts). The practice I’d loved and found so much joy in for over a decade had done an about-face. Instead of making me feel … [Read more...] about Why I Didn’t Cancel Asana Because of Pain
Laurel Beversdorf | Titanium Blonde Talks
In this episode, I talk about movement, enjoying moving rather feeling like you have to do something because of what you look like or what you did during your day. Moving for the joy of moving your … [Read more...] about Laurel Beversdorf | Titanium Blonde Talks
Tune Up Fitness: 4 Steps to Turn Your Weakness Into an Area of Specialty with Laurel Beversdorf
“You can learn something that you’ve known again for the first time. You can see things in brand new ways if you approach them with the mindset of wanting to understand instead of thinking that you … [Read more...] about Tune Up Fitness: 4 Steps to Turn Your Weakness Into an Area of Specialty with Laurel Beversdorf
Tune Up Fitness: On Becoming an Empowered Educator
I know I say it a lot, but the Yoga Tune Up® Level 1 changed my teaching. I think it’s important to add that I was ready for my teaching to change.It was 2013, and I had been teaching classes for … [Read more...] about Tune Up Fitness: On Becoming an Empowered Educator
The Role of Movement In Our Lives | The Create Shift Podcast
In this podcast, host Ellen Carr and I discussed: How to live a purpose-driven life. Why stepping outside your movement community teaches you more about your movement community than staying in it … [Read more...] about The Role of Movement In Our Lives | The Create Shift Podcast
Yoga, Bands, and Baby | The Yoga | Birth | Babies Podcast
I got to talk with doula and childbirth educator, Deb Flashenberg, founder and director of NYC’s famous Prenatal Yoga Center about my shift from movement imitator to movement innovator as well as how … [Read more...] about Yoga, Bands, and Baby | The Yoga | Birth | Babies Podcast
Should Yoga Teachers Unionize? | The Beginner’s Mind Podcast
YogaWorks teachers and teacher trainers are coming together to form the first-ever yoga teacher union at YogaWorks studios in New York City. In this episode, Sarah interviewed a couple of my … [Read more...] about Should Yoga Teachers Unionize? | The Beginner’s Mind Podcast
Asana Against Resistance | Mindful Strength Podcast
I’m happy to share my latest podcast interview with Kathryn Bruni-Young on her excellent podcast, Mindful Strength. I am a subscriber and regular listener, so needless to say I was pretty stoked when … [Read more...] about Asana Against Resistance | Mindful Strength Podcast
Fluent in the Language of Kinesiology | Practice Human Podcast
It was my total pleasure to talk with my friend and colleague Caitlin Casella again on her podcast Practice Human. In this episode, I talk about what open-mindedness means for movement and the study … [Read more...] about Fluent in the Language of Kinesiology | Practice Human Podcast
Pedagogy, Critical Thinking, and Yoga Evolution | Embodiment Time Podcast
We are at an intersection between old and new pedagogical approaches in yoga educational spaces. As teachers, we have some fascinating choices to make with regards to how we lead classes and … [Read more...] about Pedagogy, Critical Thinking, and Yoga Evolution | Embodiment Time Podcast
Resistance Bands + Yoga | The Mentor Sessions Support + Strategy for Yoga Teachers
I’m happy to share this podcast I recently did with Francesca Cervero and Giulia Pline all about incorporating resistance bands into a yoga practice! Giulia and I nerd out in the best possible way all … [Read more...] about Resistance Bands + Yoga | The Mentor Sessions Support + Strategy for Yoga Teachers
Observing the Process That’s Unflolding | Nurture Your Nature Podcast
I had a great conversation with Dina Crosta on her podcast, Nurture Your Nature. We had a lovely meandering (and educational) conversation that winds around my journey from yoga student, to teacher, … [Read more...] about Observing the Process That’s Unflolding | Nurture Your Nature Podcast
Yoga Journal | Are You Hypermobile? This Sequence Will Help You Build Awareness and Avoid Injury
Ask anyone who doesn’t practice yoga why they don’t give it a try and odds are you’ll hear some version of this: “I can’t do yoga because I can’t even touch my toes.” While yogis and yoga teachers can … [Read more...] about Yoga Journal | Are You Hypermobile? This Sequence Will Help You Build Awareness and Avoid Injury
Shut Up and Yoga | But is that Even Yoga?
As a yoga teacher, I share a wide variety of movements in my classes: self-massage using therapy balls, interdisciplinary movement inspired by systems like Pilates, Feldenkrais, and weight-training, … [Read more...] about Shut Up and Yoga | But is that Even Yoga?
Outside the Box Embodiment: Practice Human Podcast
It was my total pleasure to talk with my friend and colleague Caitlin Casella on her podcast Practice Human. We go deep into a variety of subjects including: Why people themselves are often the … [Read more...] about Outside the Box Embodiment: Practice Human Podcast
Cue Your Classes Like a Pro: Laurel’s Mini-Workshop on the Yoga Teacher Resource Podcast
Do you go on auto-pilot with over-used yoga teaching cues? I got super nerdy with Mado Hesselink on her Yoga Teacher Resource Podcast all about 4 categories of cues. A few have extensively researched … [Read more...] about Cue Your Classes Like a Pro: Laurel’s Mini-Workshop on the Yoga Teacher Resource Podcast
Your Bones Determine Your Flexibility, Too.
There's more to your flexibility than muscles. Your bones play a big role in your range of motion. Joint surfaces are the parts of bones that touch other bones and permit sliding, spinning and … [Read more...] about Your Bones Determine Your Flexibility, Too.
The Purpose of Purposeless Walking
I started taking what the BBC refers to as purposeless walks this past winter as a strategy to avoid burn out and make space in my packed schedule. On these walks, purposeless is the purpose. Starting … [Read more...] about The Purpose of Purposeless Walking
Nostalgia: El jardín inglés de las emociones
¡La primavera finalmente ha brotado!El fin de semana pasado disfruté plantar caléndulas e impatiens en jardineras de ventana con mi esposo, Nathan – fue nuestro primer intento de jardinería al … [Read more...] about Nostalgia: El jardín inglés de las emociones
Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (6/6) | Shoulder Soothing Sequences | Written for the YTU Blog | May 2015
In the previous installments of this series, I discussed the anatomy and mechanics of healthy shoulder movement and how the cues we’ve been passed down (and pass along) do not always do a service to … [Read more...] about Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (6/6) | Shoulder Soothing Sequences | Written for the YTU Blog | May 2015
Uplifting News for Depressed (5/6) | The Trapezius Trap | Written for the YTU Blog | May 2015
Because a teacher’s practice is the primary resource from which they will draw their movement cues, teachers will often wittingly or unwittingly help their students adopt the teacher’s own postural … [Read more...] about Uplifting News for Depressed (5/6) | The Trapezius Trap | Written for the YTU Blog | May 2015
Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (4/6) | Refining Upward Rotation | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
In my last post, I deconstructed scapuloclaviculohumeral rhythm, the co-movement of the bones of the shoulder (humerus, clavicle and scapula) during movement. To more thoroughly understand … [Read more...] about Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (4/6) | Refining Upward Rotation | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (3/6): Feel the Beat of Your Shoulder Rhythm | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Instead of attempting to draw the shoulders down while simultaneously trying to flex the shoulders, consider ways to work and cue upward rotation of the scapula. A cue such as “Lift your outer … [Read more...] about Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (3/6): Feel the Beat of Your Shoulder Rhythm | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (2/6): Finding the Beat of Scapuloclaviculohumeral Rhythm | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Let’s begin with one of the most important things to know about the shoulder joint complex. It’s not just one joint. It’s four. When you peel back the skin that curtains the shoulder stage, all four … [Read more...] about Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (2/6): Finding the Beat of Scapuloclaviculohumeral Rhythm | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (1/6): Parampara or a Long Game of Telephone? | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Originally, yoga postures were practiced to obtain spiritual enlightenment, not for musculoskeletal health. Renunciates used their asana practice to tame their unruly flesh in order to be able to sit … [Read more...] about Uplifting News for Depressed Shoulders (1/6): Parampara or a Long Game of Telephone? | Written for YTU Blog | May 2015
Nostalgia: The English Garden of Emotions
Spring has finally sprung!This past weekend, I enjoyed planting marigolds and impatiens in window boxes with my husband, Nathan - our first attempt at outdoor, urban gardening. I'm pretty … [Read more...] about Nostalgia: The English Garden of Emotions
La gratitud que los retos pueden inspirar
Estoy segura que ya han visto o escuchado el reto de gratitud en las redes sociales. Funciona así: cada día por un periodo de tiempo fijo, escribe tres cosas por las que te sientes agradecido/a. … [Read more...] about La gratitud que los retos pueden inspirar
Descubriendo la tristeza, recobrando la alegría
La semana pasada me uní a algunos de los educadores de movimiento más brillantes que conozco en la reunión cumbre de Yoga Tune Up en Ojai California. El tema de la cumbre fue la narración de … [Read more...] about Descubriendo la tristeza, recobrando la alegría
The Gratitude Challeges Can Inspire
I'm sure by now you've seen or heard about the gratitude challenge that's been going around on social media. It works like this: every day for a set period of time, you write down three things that … [Read more...] about The Gratitude Challeges Can Inspire
Uncovering Sorrow, Recovering Joy
Last week I joined some of the most brilliant movement educators I know at the Yoga Tune Up Summit in Ojai California. The theme of the Summit was storytelling. During this Summit, I climbed an inner … [Read more...] about Uncovering Sorrow, Recovering Joy
Serratus Posterior Inferior Is A Pretty Superior Muscle
It’s true that Serratus Posterior Inferior is not the musclebrity that Serratus Anterior is. If you read up on yoga anatomy, or take yoga from a teacher who does, you’re most likely enamored with … [Read more...] about Serratus Posterior Inferior Is A Pretty Superior Muscle