FINDING HARMONY PODCAST
What is a spiritual practice? How does it work? How will it improve my life? How will deepening my self-care transform me? What strategies can I use to improve my life, increase my health, and create wellness? How can craft a life that I love?
The Finding Harmony Podcast gets to the root of all these questions. Each episode is full of inspiration, humour, honest observations, and actionable steps that you can integrate to enhance your experience of self-love, develop a connection to Spirit, and create a life you truly love.
Show Notes Below:
The Ashtanga Shift: How to Adapt Your Practice for Life's Transitions
I think we can all agree… Ashtanga Yoga is a beautiful and powerful practice. The structure of the traditional system offers a strong path for making epic possibilities become a reality and increasing positive outcomes for both mind and body.
These benefits are easily felt by everyone while on retreat, but what happens when students go back home? How can we, as teachers, offer students the kind of support and continued learning even after the retreat ends?
This is what I'm talking about today with my guest Elizabeth Ball on the Finding Harmony Podcast!
From Conflict to Harmony: How to Improve Focus with Mindfulness with Paula Vital
In the latest episode of the Finding Harmony Podcast, I had the pleasure of speaking with Paula Vital, a fascinating individual whose life story epitomizes the transformative power of mindfulness and yoga. Paula, once a high-achieving lawyer, turned to mindfulness and yoga therapy during a period of profound personal upheaval. Her journey from the stressful corridors of legal practice to the tranquil realms of mindfulness coaching offers invaluable insights into the universal quest for inner peace and balance.
From Turkish Delights to Yoga Heights: A Unique Finding Harmony Retreat
We had the pleasure of sitting down with Sevket (Recep), whose life story reads like an adventure novel! Sevket’s transition from the high-stakes world of professional tennis to the introspective practice of yoga is a powerful reminder of the transformative potential within all of us.
His story challenges us to rethink our definitions of success and to consider how shifting our focus from external achievements to inner awareness can lead to a more fulfilling life.
Transforming Trauma: How to Embrace Healing and Self-Love After Loss
In the ever-evolving narrative of our lives, we often find ourselves at the crossroads of challenge and change, seeking pathways of healing, understanding, and ultimately, transformation.
The journey towards healing is not linear. It ebbs and flows. We challenged with lessons to build resilience, self-love, and greater awareness. I invite you to join me and my dear friend, Lara Land, on the Finding Harmony Podcast, where we delve deeper into these themes, sharing stories, insights, and practices that illuminate the path towards a more vibrant, fulfilling life.
Reflections and Revelations: Celebrating 200 Episodes of Finding Harmony
Join me and my ever-entertaining husband, Russell, on a delightful and reflective journey through the last 4 years and past 200 episodes of the Finding Harmony Podcast!
In this special episode we're diving into some of the heartfelt and humorous stories that made the last 4 years of gathering together so meaningful!
Amazing Ashtanga: Eye-Opening Insights on Yoga, Teaching, and Life - with Ross Stambaugh
Today we’re chatting with Ross Stambaugh, a travelling yoga teacher, who came to the practice to help him find freedom from the daily stress of working as a fine arts teacher in public schools. The conversation delves into Ross Stambaugh's unique yoga journey, including his choice to practice with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois' daughter, Saraswathi Jois, over making a more conventional choice to practice under her son, R. Sharath Jois.
From Injuries to Insights: Navigating Healing in the Yoga World - with Dan Fanthorpe
Join us on an epic journey with our guest, Dan Fanthorpe, (an experienced Osteopath and Ashtanga yoga teacher) and we venture into the realms of yoga, healing, and the transformative power of community as we navigate the ups + downs of injuries in yoga.
This insightful conversation goes far beyond a discussion of physical injuries to explore the spiritual and emotional dimensions of the practice.
Body Autonomy Is Punk: Breaking Free From Disordered Eating
Aimee began her career not as a Yoga teacher but a punk rock singer, recording several albums and touring the world with her band theSTART and performing guest vocals for Red Hot Chili Peppers, Garbage, Teddybears and so many more. With complete candor, she shares how she has struggled with body image and disordered eating off and on throughout her life and the steps she’s taken to reframe her relationship with food and her body.
Unlocking the Mental Benefits of Yoga: A Scientific Perspective with Jean Bryne
Join us as we sit down with our dear friend and distinguished guest, Jean Bryne, to discuss the depths of yoga's impact on mental health. With her extensive background in both traditional practice and modern scientific research, Jean offers a rare and insightful perspective on the mental benefits of yoga, explored through a scientific lens.
Balancing Life and Health: Practical Tips for Sustainable Change with Layne Stowell
What’s one small, sustainable health habit you plan to introduce or continue in your daily routine this year?
Today I’m sitting down with Layne Stowell, who’s going to help us create sustainable habits well into 2024! We’re exploring the dynamics of habit formation, the power + effectiveness of starting small. This is not just a tactic but a transformative strategy for creating lasting change in our health and overall well-being.
From Harmony, With Love: A Merry Romp Through 2023's Ups And Downs
Join me and my ever-entertaining husband, Russell, on a delightful and reflective journey through the past year.
In this special Christmas Eve episode of the Finding Harmony Podcast, we're diving into the heartfelt and sometimes humorous stories that made 2023 a year to remember…
Transforming Adversity: A Powerful Journey Through Injury and Recovery with Jen René
Russell and I are having an eye-opening chat today on the Finding Harmony Podcast, with Jen René.
Jen's story is something else – she talked us through her journey of healing from a knee injury, and how it reshaped her yoga practice. We got into the nitty-gritty of balancing strength and flexibility, especially important for us women in yoga.
A Spiritual Practice For the Holidays
With Thanksgiving behind us and Christmas coming up around the corner, I wanted to share some helpful tips for how we can use spiritual practices to help us through the holidays. Practices like yoga and mindfulness not only alleviate stress but also contribute to a stronger immune system and overall better health. Scientific evidence suggests that a calm mind can positively impact our body's cellular function and immune response.
Why Asana Isn’t Enough…
Many of us come to the practice feeling broken and struggle with an underlying sense that we’re just not enough. We seek validation by looking outside ourselves. We seek to do things right, to learn the “correct method” and toe the party line.
But when we truly slow down to feel what’s underneath all our striving and the patterns of perfectionism, we begin to see that it’s the system that’s broken, not us.
Ashtanga Dispatch with Peg MulQueen
Today I’m speaking with the O.G of Ashtanga podcasting. The woman who started “Ashtanga Dispatch,” the first podcast dedicated to Ashtanga yoga teaching, (long before most of us even knew what a podcast was, let alone had a library of them stored on our phones).
That’s right. I’m sitting down with the lovely Peg Mulqueen to talk about the benefits of having a mentor and how it’s different than being in a student-teacher relationship.
The Only Time Is Now… with Luke Jordan
This conversation with our Irish friend, Luke Jordan, is delicious. It left us craving for more. There’s simply is no good place to stop when souls join and dance together out beyond the world of ideas and language. So, we simply hit record and sank deeply into Luke’s vibe… and let time slip away.
It’s such a treasured experience to connect with someone so self-aware, so thoughtful, and so ready to deconstruct every presumption, every belief, and even reality itself.
And Don’t Forget To Breathe… With Nick Heath The Breathing Diabetic
Did you know that how you breathe can help to regulate blood sugar levels, improve insulin sensitivity, and reduce the risk of complications from diabetes?
But that’s only a fraction of what a conscious slow breathing practice can do for you!
Nick Heath, famously known as The Breathing Diabetic, joins us today to share valuable insights, not only from his own personal experience, but also from his extensive research in the area of breathing and how it effects us on every level.
On Top of The Mountain with Elizabeth Kadetsky
Today we explore the epic yoga battle between the Iyengar school and the Ashtanga school, as we sit down with author, yoga practitioner, three-time Fullbright fellow to India, researcher, editor, and Professor of English and Creative Writing at Penn State University, Elizabeth Kadetsky!
You may have hear of her very popular book, “First There Is a Mountain” published in 2004? If you haven’t read it — You must.
Today, we’re learning about her research around the authenticity of the origin stories of our yoga practice, looking at the connection between yoga and art, looking at how yoga is being weaponized by the Right-Wing politics of India, and the complicated dance between East and West.
Dancing In My Dreams with Ralph Craig III
When Tina Turner, often dubbed the “Queen of Rock ‘N’ Roll,” died at her home in Küsnacht, Switzerland, on May 24, 2023, what many did not know is that Ms. Turner had practiced Soka Gakkai International Nichiren Buddhism for the last 50 years.
What does this have to do with our guest today? We’re talking Ashtanga yoga, philosophy, and the importance of discipline in attaining true wisdom from your spiritual practice.
This is basically a class in history, philosophy, Sanskrit and culture all wrapped up into one delicious conversation that we know will enrich your lives!
Our guest, Dr. Ralph H. Craig III received his Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Stanford University, where he specialized in Buddhist Studies and in American Religions. He’s also the author of “Dancing In My Dreams: A Spiritual Biography of Tina Turner,” which will be released in November 7, 2023!
Love Your Body, Love Your Life with Anna Surrey
Today we’re diving deep into the secret feelings of guilt and shame we often carry — but don’t dare to speak about or admit… not even to ourselves.
We're sitting down with Anna Surrey, an Intuitive Eating & Positive Body Image Coach to openly explore some of the very deep patterns we carry around eating, dieting, and food.
If you’ve been struggling with your relationship to your body, food, or exercise obsession, then this is one conversation you won’t want to avoid. We’re exploring how these sneaky, self-destructive patterns can show up in unconscious ways that slowly erode our confidence and sense of worthiness, stealing joy from all areas of our lives, and some specific things you can do to free yourself from this trap!