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:
Ashtanga Yoga Tiger Training
Larry Hobbs is an Italian American who grew up in North Carolina. He is an Army Veteran who considers himself a late bloomer, coming to the practice of yoga after turning 50… Now, in his 70s, Larry has learned about how to maintain his practice through a spinal surgery, a hip replacement, and has adjusted his practice to accommodate an aging body. You’ll love listening to Harmony, Russell and Larry colloquially reminisce their memories from Mysore and about some of the idiosyncratic Senior Ashtanga teachers they’ve met along the way.
The Only Way Out Is Through...
In this episode we interview Julie Choi Trepkau. We dig into what it was like growing up in a traditional Korean family transplanted in America when she was four years old, and how becoming a parent herself has given her a fresh perspective on generational karma, trauma, and a newfound compassion in understanding her own parents and their struggles… Find out how this high-powered high achieving business lady at the Wall St. Journal pivoted to teaching Ashtanga yoga, actively working as a doula, and now enrolled in midwifery school in Encinitas, California.
Ashtanga Yoga, The Human Reclamation Project
Aimee Echo began her career not as a Yoga teacher but a 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. Seeking refuge from the rock world, she took her first step into an Ashtanga Yoga class in 1999…
(As square as Russell is, he was very interested in Aimee’s career and asked a lot of inappropriate questions about what actually is punk. What is Authentic? Is Miley Cyrus Punk? Does she regret marrying Billy Ray Cyrus' drummer? What is Bad Religion? And, is Yoga the answer?)
LISTEN NOW!
Everyday Ayurveda with Kate O'Donnell
What exactly is the yogic diet? What should we eat to align ourselves with the principles of yoga? Learn the answers to these questions and so many more on this episode of Finding Harmony!
From her first trip to India, to living on Nancy Gilgoff’s front porch, to becoming a published author three times over and ending up on Fox News as an expert on Ayurveda, Kate O’Donnell has had a fascinating journey combining the Ashtanga yoga practice with a deep wisdom from the ancient science of Ayurveda.
Kate offers some simple and easy ways for you to integrate the ancient principles of Ayurveda into your diet and daily life, which can help to increase your energy and enrich your yoga practice!
What's it gonna take? From Addiction to Ashtanga
In this episode we interview the wild woman herself, Santina Giardina-Chard.
Santina shares with us with her incredible journey. She experienced extraordinary childhood wounds, had a tumultuous early adulthood struggling with an addiction to heroine, lawlessness and eating disorders. Love had a way of finding her though, and a transformation started to happen through the connection with her (now) husband, Shane, the practice of Ashtanga yoga, and digging deep with Gestalt therapy.
We’re lucky to know her and she's lucky to be alive!
Certifiably Organic with Jessica Walden
Whether it’s her life, her way with her family, her practice, or the work she has invested herself in, Jessica Walden is Certifiably Organic in every way.
Listen to how Jessica learned to continue practicing when faced with a debilitating back injury that would forever alter her approach to Ashtanga yoga, and how our yoga practice is about taking personal responsibility for our actions. This naturally extends to our food choices and therefore our environment.
Yoga as Sovereignty and Civil Disobedience
Dr. Shyam is an incredibly insightful authority on both South Asian and Western Philosophy. He is able to weave together classical thoughts about Logos or Logic, Linguistic Theory with Civil Disobedience, Cultural Appropriation, and the teaching of Patanjali. We discuss the essential practices of Ahimsa and Isvara Pranidhana and how they relate to the idea of non-violent resistance, Satyagraha.
As he said, "My Lunch With Two White People"
Dr. Jag is a public speaker and leader with the organization United To End Racism, and he is the author of the book "It's Your World." He joins Harmony Slater and Russell Case in this episode of the Finding Harmony Podcast to talk about issues of race, discrimination, unconscious bias, white fragility, and how we can begin working on ourselves to change the world around us.
This is a topic that we are extremely passionate about, so at times we may use some adult language. Please use headphones if your kids or other sensitive ears are around.
Aging, Injuries and Ashtanga Yoga
In this episode, Harmony and Russell explore the topic of aging, injuries, and how to adapt the yoga practice for many different phases of life and the obstacles that can arise as the years go by.
The After Birth Experience
In this episode, I speak about what my personal experience was like after giving birth and how the practice of Ashtanga yoga helped to put the pieces of myself back together again.
Russell and I discuss different approaches to the practice postpartum, and how (after becoming a mother) your life will never be the same… Listen Now
Demystifying Ashtanga Yoga and Pregnancy
In this episode, I speak about my personal experience practicing Ashtanga yoga during my pregnancy and how I like to guide other women who are practicing while pregnant.
If you are imagining what it might be like to practice during pregnancy, or if you are a teacher wondering how to instruct pregnant students, this is an episode of Finding Harmony that you won’t want to miss!
Into The Mystic
In this episode Russell and I explore what the mystic experience is, how it is conceptualized in different religions, environments, and cultures. We discuss our human condition and the tendency to get caught up in the traps of duality, always needing to name, categorize, and create hierarchies with our minds… especially with in-laws!
Take A Trip to VAGUS Without Leaving Your Home
Russell Case describes the Vagus Nerve and how it effects your mood. Learn why the yoga practice works at a physiological level and things you can do to increase it's effectiveness. You will love hearing stories about Richard Freeman, and Barak Obama, and more of Russell's fascination about how different narcotics act on the brain.
A Potpourri of First Impressions
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to travel to India? Hear about Harmony's first trip to Mysore, and what it was like traveling to a completely different culture as a young women in her early 20s. You will love hearing about the surprise she received at her first astrology reading, the cultural differences between the East and West, and some tips and tricks to staying healthy, while living in an environment with less than optimal conditions.
The Ups and Downs of Co-Parenting in a Blended Family
Parenting can be difficult at times, and even more so when you are coming into an already established family bond. In this episode Harmony asks Russell to describe his experience with co-parenting and creating a blended family as a step-parent.
Who Is Russell Case?
Find out who Russell Case is, how he got into yoga and what the Ashtanga yoga scene was like in Mysore, India almost 20 years ago. In this episode, Harmony asks Russell to tell about how he came to practice yoga. You will love to hear the lightness and levity of Russell's story that shines through in his sense of humor as he talks about his experience with the practice and going to India for the first time.
Rotation of Consciousness and Deep Relaxation
Harmony leads listeners through a type of meditation technique that brings about a state of deep relaxation. This rotation of consciousness through the body, brings awareness to each part, and in doing so, allows for the relaxation of any held tension. Through this practice, you are invited to experience a state of total relaxation, while being awake, which will increase your overall energy levels in both body and mind.
How Ashtanga Yoga Found Harmony
This is an introduction to who Harmony is, where she came from, and how the practice of Ashtanga Yoga found her, and helped her to find herself.