Yin Yoga Podcast

S 2| EP. 6This is Part 2 of a Two-Part Series: Why I Boycott Yoga Alliance. In this episode, we hear from two guests:Brea Johnson of Heart and Bones YogaBrea's InstagramAndAlex Crow of  Yoga PhysicsAlex's InstagramYoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the PageTo Join my Yin Yoga Classes on ZoomTo subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library:Full Show Notes https://nykdanu.com/teachers/yin-yoga-teacher-training/yin-yoga-podcast/Anatomy for Yoga with Paul GrilleyHang Drum Music by Fred Westra 

S 2| EP. 6This is the beginning of a little mini-series on the subject of the Yoga Alliance.I always meant to do an episode on Yoga Alliance because there are so many misconceptions about Yoga Alliance, what they are, what they aren't, and whether or not you need to be registered with Yoga Alliance to teach Yoga (spoiler alert the answer is no).My Therapeutic Yin Training is not registered with Yoga Alliance and neither am I.So I'll talk in the second half of this first episode about my own story with Yoga Alliance and why I don't use or support Yoga Alliance, but I'll get into that in the second half.I wanted to serve as an introduction to the two-part series. So there will be this week's episode with an interview with, Suzanne Dulin, so she will start off the series. And then you'll hear from me and then in the second half of this episode, Next week for Part 2 I have two more guests as well, Brea Johnson and Alexandra Crow.So I'll introduce them in that in part 2, but I just wanted to plant the seed that this is a two-parter.So this is a mini Yoga Alliance series. I always intended to do a podcast on Yoga Alliance, an episode on the Yoga Alliance. And then actually it was requested as well so here we go.The original video of Suzanne's that I mentioned https://youtu.be/0nfqAcDix58?si=L4AeuAdGGeyaIcmJSuzanne's Website: https://www.getabiggerboat.com/Yoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the PageTo Join my Yin Yoga Classes on ZoomTo subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library:Full Show Notes https://nykdanu.com/teachers/yin-yoga-teacher-training/yin-yoga-podcast/Anatomy for Yoga with Paul GrilleyHang Drum Music by Fred Westra 

S 2| EP. 5For this episode, we have a guest interview, which I'm doing a little bit differently than how I've done. Guest interviews in the past. Typically speaking,me when I do guest interviews, I get their whole origin story. We talk about the topic, and then we do some sort of icebreaker questions at the end.The reason that I'm doing this one differently (and I have a feeling there'll be a couple more like this) is because of the connection that I made with today's guest Dr. Karina Smith, she reached out to me on Instagram because she had heard some of the episodes, and just wanted to kind of connect and touch base and nerd out about Yin Yoga and Traditional Chinese Medicine. And because of that her back and forth with her and I in Instagram messages was so good.And then we met on Zoom, and just had like a chat, and just 2 colleagues kind of chatting it up. I realized that I think the best way for me to have her on the podcast was to have a little bit more of what I would call a fireside chat.So yes, we're going to hear about Karinas' Yoga journey and things like that. But there's a lot more of her, and I kind of going back and forth. It's more conversational than an interview style.When we have these connections on Instagram, and then, when we met on Zoom, it just felt like the conversations were so good and so rich, and so nuanced, and there was so much there that I just kept wanting to hit record.And so this time we hit record.😉There was so much that came out of this interview that the recording was nearly 2 hours long 🫣So I have edited the audio down significantly but if you want the whole thing you can get that here in the Yoga Tube Video.There were so many nuggets in this episode that it was difficult to even narrow down the subjects to come up with a title!But upon listening to it again I think what will stand out to so many teachers here is the chat we had about Yin Yoga and Traditional Chinese Medicine and some of the mistakes we see in the Yin Yoga world when it comes to lumping these together. So that's the part of the conversation I'm spotlighting but please know there is so much more richness to this conversation.Yoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the Page https://nykdanu.com/teachers/yin-yoga-teacher-training/To Join my Yin Yoga Classes on Zoom: https://nykdanu.com/students/yoga/online-yoga/To subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library: https://nykdanu.com/students/yoga/video-library/Anatomy for Yoga with Paul Grilley: https://pranamaya.com/courses/anatomy-for-yoga/?ref=20Find Dr. Karina Smith on:Her website: https://www.drkarinasmith.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/drkarinasmith/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/drkarinasmithHer Podcast: https://www.drkarinasmith.com/podcast

S 2| EP. 4If you are newer to Yin circles, then you may not know. That we don't follow these kinds of "alignment" rules in Yin Yoga.If you're not familiar with the work of Paul Grilley my teacher.He has what was a DVD (and is now an online streaming presentation) called Anatomy for Yoga. and one of the geniuses of Paul, and one of the biggest contributions he's made to the yogaverse is understanding that skeletal variations are a very real thing. Meaning if you and I were to stand next to each other, even if we were exactly the same height and weight. Kind of general body. Proportions like our arms, were similar in length, etc., etc. We do not look the same on the inside. So inside our body, our bones are not the same from one person to the next.So based on the fact that we are all different, inside we can't expect our poses to be the same on the outside either!Yin Yoga is a functional form of Yoga, not an aesthetic form of Yoga.Meaning in Yin Yoga it doesn't matter what the pose looks like. It's what the pose feels like that matters.So if you are feeling the shape in the intended area, in the 50-60% range and you aren't in any pain then you are doing the pose right, regardless of what it feels like.In Yin Yoga, we are looking for Function over Form.Yoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the PageTo Join my Yin Yoga Classes on ZoomTo subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library:Full Show NotesAnatomy for Yoga with Paul GrilleyHang Drum Music by Fred Westra 

S 2| EP. 3In this episode, we will dive into the question of what is an advanced Yin Yoga?So in the yogaverse, which we are all probably part of, Yoga has been taken from its original intent and has been turned into a bunch of funny shapes that you make with your body.So most of the time when teachers are asking this question, they're talking about the Asana or the shapes.They're talking about these pretzel poses that we make with our bodies, and they want to know about advanced Asana.So here are some problems with that concept.First of all, what is an advanced Asana to one person might be completely simple to another.So there is no way to say, this is an advanced pose, and this is a beginner pose.For example: One person could be super comfortable sitting on the floor in meditation. Another person could struggle with that just even sitting cross-legged. And yet that same person who has trouble sitting cross-legged could do a handstand in the middle of the room, but can't sit still and quiet on the floor in meditation.So which one is the advanced Yogi?Regular Podcast Links for Spotify/Blog:Yoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the PageTo Join my Yin Yoga Classes on ZoomTo subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library:Full Show NotesAnatomy for Yoga with Paul GrilleyHang Drum Music by Fred Westra 

S 2| EP. 0 bonusAccording to Traditional Chinese Medicine, it would be unwise to set New Year Resolutions.Winter is the yin-est of the yin. So in a yin time of year, the element for winter is water. And this time of year is meant to be a time of year when you go inward. Where you slow down, where you cozy up, and where you go inside. So it's meant to be more reflective.You're meant to be more introverted, meant to sleep more, meant to cozy up more, um, and to be more reflective. And so winter is the perfect time to get out journals, read books, you know, drink tea, stay warm, sleep more, rest more. Go inward and actually notice as you go inward, start daydreaming and checking in with your soul.So when we're in the winter season, we want to be wintering. And New Year's, On the Western calendar (solar), is still very much winter. January 1st is winter time. So it is not the time to be doing spring-type energy things like planning, envisioning, and goal setting that's for springtime. So in traditional Chinese medicine and Taoism springtime is the time when we have this burst of energy where we can envision and we can create new things and we can plant seeds and we can get really active and start setting goals and we can hustle a little bit more.listen to learn moreYoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the PageTo Join my Yin Yoga Classes on ZoomTo subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library:Full Show NotesAnatomy for Yoga with Paul GrilleyHang Drum Music by Fred Westra Poem by: Donna Ashworth

S 2| EP. 1In this episode, we go over the difference between Yin Yoga and Restorative Yoga. Yin versus restorative, same, same, but different?So one of the reasons I think this is important to talk about is because there's often confusion between these two styles, both with the teachers and with students. And so if you are a teacher or a studio owner who has never taken specific, specialized training in either yin yoga or restorative yoga, then I can see how these might be confused as interchangeable.Although these two styles can look very similar from the outside, from the inside, they are very different practices. They have different intentions. They feel different physically, mentally, and energetically. Both are beautiful practices. I love and practice them both. I teach them both. So when you're teaching yin and restorative, I think it's important to define the difference clearly. They're both beautiful practices, but labeling them as the same does them both a disservice. So when teaching yin and restorative, we want to be clear on how we define each style.Yoga Teachers: Join The Waitlist for my Therapeutic Yin Yoga Training at the bottom and top of the PageTo Join my Yin Yoga Classes on ZoomTo subscribe to my On-Demand Video Library:Full Show NotesAnatomy for Yoga with Paul GrilleyHang Drum Music by Fred Westra Mentioned in this episode The Queen of Restorative Judith Hanson Lasaterhttps://www.judithhansonlasater.comThe episode on Interoception: https://nykdanu.com/teachers/yin-yoga-podcast/interoception-and-yin-yoga-with-pamela-crane/

BonusWhile I am on a small holiday break from the podcast, I thought it would be fun to re-share some of the episodes of other people's podcasts where I have been interviewed about Yin Yoga. This mini-series of episodes is what I'm calling - Share The Love!This Share the Love Episode Is with Pamela Crane from the Yoga Pro Podcast About Pamela Crane:Pamela Crane (MS-Yoga Therapy, C-IAYT, E-RYT, RYT-500, YACEP) is a Certified Yoga Therapist, Actor and Dancer, and former Broadcast Journalist; who loves having meaningful conversations around yoga practices, impacts on society, and entrepreneurship skills.  In her business, Interoceptive Performance, her passion includes helping yoga professionals learn evidence-based and scientifically supported research to augment their yoga trainingTopics Covered:-Nyk’s yoga journey-Her surprising introduction to Yin yoga-Nyk’s definition of Yin yoga-The unique sensations offered by a yin yoga practice-The difference between yin and restorative yoga-To prop or not prop in yin yoga-How she realized her application of yin was therapeutic-Why she keeps her students working at 50-60% of their capacity-What Nyk does to keep her therapeutic yin classes trauma-informed and accessible-Keeping the therapy in yin-Support for hypermobility and tissue/joint damage-Misconceptions about yin yoga-The importance of interoceptive awareness and personal agency in yoga-Differentiating instruction for multi-level classes-Contraindications of yin yoga-Why being ourselves as a teacher is so important-Making sure you teach yin effectively through training

BonusWhile I am on a small holiday break from the podcast, I thought it would be fun to re-share some of the episodes of other people's podcasts where I have been interviewed about Yin Yoga. This mini-series of episodes is what I'm calling - Share The Love!In this episode, I'm interviewed by Addie deHilster host of the Moved To Meditate Podcast whom I interviewed just a few episodes ago in the Mindfulness in Yin Episode.About Addie:Addie deHilster is a Mindfulness Meditation Teacher (IMTA CMT-P), a Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT), and an experienced trainer of yoga and movement teachers (YACEP, Yoga Alliance Continuing Ed Provider).I’m the founder of Moved to Meditate, which offers online Mindful Movement and Meditation instruction in a variety of formats – live group classes, a pre-recorded Class Library, one-to-one mentoring sessions, and a podcast.Episode Details:Nyk talks about how learning anatomy from Paul Grilley – especially the reality of skeletal variation – was a game changer for understanding alignment in yoga. We also discuss the use of props in Yin Yoga, and why they are so important for making the practice accessible and therapeutic.the role of the nervous system and interoception in Yin Yoga therapyhow the long-held Yin Yoga poses can be calming for anxietythe mental challenges that often come up in a Yin Yoga practicewhy Nyk is cautious about sharing Chinese Medicine and Meridian theory in Yin classeswhat the sinew channels are, and how they may be more relevant to Yin than the MeridiansWe also discuss alternatives to some of the common language used in Yin Yoga and ways to make Yin classes more trauma-informed.

As we move into the end of season 1 before we take a holiday break I thought I would share some of the episodes of other podcasts I have been interviewed on. In this episode, I'm interviewed by Mado Hesselink Episode Highlights:  Yin as an antidote for our stressful modern culture Roots, history & philosophy of yin How you can benefit from yin yoga The major differences between yin and other styles of yoga Why it’s important to get specialized yin training The purpose of props in yin You can check out Mado's podcast and work here: https://teachingyoga.net and follow on her Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/yoga.teacher.resource/