Yoga Teacher Talk

Bask in the vibrant colors of New Delhi. Walk in the footsteps of the Beatles at the Maharishi Mahesh ashram and visit the sacred Kunjapari Temple in Rishikesh. Experience Ayurvedic foods and treatments from master instructors. Dance to sacred music, and even get a gorgeous henna tatoo! In this episode, Krystal Gignac, yoga instructor and founder of Adventure India, takes Becca on a virtual tour of Northern India, and shares her tips on the best ways to plan a life changing trip to the land of aromatic spices.      Contact Krystal / Adventure India / Grounded University at [email protected]/Insta Krystal Gignac FB/Insta: Grounded University Website: www.grounded.universityBackground music via https://www.FesliyanStudios.com

Are you ready to co-teach your next yoga class or workshop? Becca invites you to the inside lane of tag-team teaching, with dynamic duo, Holly Idzick and David Ricklck, who share their five best practices for a seemless class. Discover why co-teaching with someone you trust is guaranteed to bring an game-changing energy to your programs. A few highlights from this episode:Holly and David present Five Best Practices for Co-Teaching:   1. Clear Communication: Establishing open and transparent communication channels.  2. Defined Roles: Clarifying each co-teacher's responsibilities and strengths.  3. Seamless Integration: Ensuring smooth transitions between teaching styles.  4. Trust and Flexibility: Being adaptable to changes in the classroom setting including equipment failure or inclement weather.    5. Reflective Practices: Regularly evaluating and improving co-teaching strategies To find out more about Holly, find her here:Instagram: @yogabyhollySweatpals - YogabyhollyTo reach David check him out here:Facebook: David RicklickLinkedIn: David RicklickTo connect with your host, Becca Schmidt, take a look here: www.yogateachertalk.com [email protected] 

Welcome to Yoga Teacher Talk (formerly The Language of Yoga) and what a season premiere it is! Host Becca is joined by her guest Rachel Chase, a dancer-turned-energy healer, yoga teacher, and therapist whose path is anything but ordinary.Rachel's story begins where all great stories do: in the body. She came into this world moving, and dance became her first language — her communion with the divine. But the road from semi-professional dancer to Reiki master, yoga teacher, past life regression practitioner, and Holistic Mental Health Counselor and Spiritual Guide was paved with injuries, personal breakthroughs, and a courageous journey that has brought her to where she is today.Rachel shares how she blends gentle yoga, somatic processing, energy work, breathwork, creative movement, and self exploration into an integrative healing practice, and why she intentionally stepped away from rigid alignment cuing to hold space for her students' inner wisdom instead.Join us as Rachel and Becca share practical advice on the creative spirit of yoga teachers, leading your first workshop, and giving yourself permission to teach in your own beautifully imperfect way. Enjoy!Connect with Rachel Chase:Rachel's website: www.rachelchase.com Her ebook Healing with Self Compassion: www.freecompassionbook.com Somatic Healing Sessions Podcast: www.rachelchase.com/podcast Online on-demand courses: www.rachelchasecourses.com Hummingbird Medicine Wisdom School, a devotional community for wise women: www.rachelchase.com/hummingbird-medicine/htmlConnect with host Becca Schmidt, E-RYT500 / YACEP: Email: [email protected] Website: yogateachertalk.comInstagram: @bluemoonyogaorlandofl

Welcome to a sneak peak of our newly rebranded show, Yoga Teacher Talk. We have transitioned away from our name "The Language of Yoga", but the spirit is still very much alive. Make sure to tune in to our first episode of Season 4 with Rachel Chase. Thanks for listening!

Bethanne Weiss, Author of the book  "Move Your Assets: From the Chair, Not the Bank", and founder of FUNIQ Fitness®, shares her strategy on keeping students motivated to move. A big secret is using humor and radient positivity. Join Becca and Bethanne in this fun episode where you will begin to feel  "more joy and less oye” about teaching!Find out about Beth’s programs at BethanneWellness.com.Podcast: MoreJOYLessOYpodcast.com Book: Move Your Assets: From the Chair, Not the Bank on Amazon or you can purchase a signed copy from me at a live event.Email: [email protected] Contact host, Becca Schmidt, E-RYT500 / [email protected]: bluemoon.yogaInstagram: @bluemoonyogaorlandofl

Somatics may be the missing link in how you help your yoga students shift into a deeper mind-body connection.In therapy, as well as on the yoga mat, somatics focuses on internal body awareness, emphasizing sensations and feelings to help release deeply stored stress, trauma and habitual holding patterns by exploring what feels safe and good in the body. Dr. K shares stories about how somatic therapy helped her through personal trauma and why she is so passionate about bringing this approach to her clients on and off the yoga mat. Learn the many benefits of using somatic cuing in your classes which include greater comfort and freedom in the physical and emotional body, self awareness, confidence, a sense of well-being and even improved proprioception. Finally, learn about the “red light, yellow light, green light” method of coaching your students to listen deeply within to what feels engergecially safe on the yoga mat. And, as a special bonus, listen in as Dr. K leads host Becca Schmidt in a real-time somatic experience to help release some of the “heaviness” of their discussion. Website: themindfulprof.comInstagram: @themindfulprof & @dr.kelseyamalu Facebook: The Mindful Prof LLCLinkedIn: The Mindful ProfFind our more about Dr. Kelsey's Couples Retreat here! Check Dr. Kelsey out on Research GateSee her dissertation hereContact host, Becca Schmidt, E-RYT500 / YACEP [email protected]: bluemoon.yogaInstagram: @bluemoonyogaorlandofl#Somatics#Somaticsinyoga#TheMindfulprof#mindbodyconnection#yogateachermethods#emotionalbody

Is it “vertebrae or vertebra”?  “What is normal kyphosis?” “What exactly is a bulging disc?” “What are the best poses for a healthy but aging spine?”  Chiropractor, Dr. James Baily answers these important questions and much more, in this episode all about the back. Having a strong understanding about the design and functions of the spine is essential to a yoga teacher’s scope of knowledge. Learn what yoga teachers need to know to lead a safe and effective class. Find Dr. Baily at VerteChiropractic.com Show music from An Attachment Supreme by The King Tides from their album Russian Red, which is available wherever you stream music.Bluemoon.yoga   Email Becca at [email protected] for Inquires 

Season Three: Episode 3Letting Ganesha InWhen you’re in a jam, invite Ganesha into your classroom. Becca has tips on how the symbols and lessons from Ganesha, the Elephant, remover of obstacles can lend a hand when you need it most.Show music from An Attachment Supreme by The King Tides from their album Russian Red, which is available wherever you stream music.Links: Bluemoon.yoga   bekindyouredivine.com https://linktr.ee/bekindyouredivineEmail Becca at [email protected] for Inquires 

How much fun is too much fun on the yoga mat?  This episode talks about painting your face, grabbing glow sticks and headsets and dancing to the yoga beat! Lean in to more fun with Alex Cuellar! 

Season Three:  Episode 1 Bringing your voice to the Forefront Becca talks with Angela Schwoneck, a vocal courage coach and musician who specializes in the type of music yoga teachers love so much - bells, bowls, drums,  shruti box and the human voice! Angela leads the listeners in a chant that can cure a headache and give the body a sense of sweet serenity. (She also teaches us to chant OM with wild abandon!). Angela shares stories from her experience as a Kundalini yoga teacher and explains why the human voice can be the most powerful — and certainly the most accessible --instrument in a yoga teacher's bag.  Go to Angela’s website for a full description of her in-person and virtual programs.    Links: Bluemoon.yoga   bekindyouredivine.com  https://linktr.ee/bekindyouredivineEmail Becca at [email protected] for Inquires 

Take a virtual tour of Magnolia Yoga and Wellness Center, a comprehensive holistic center in Longwood, Florida. Magnolia is a program of Christian Relief Services, created by Lorena Castiglione, the Director in collaboration with Bryan Krizek the CEO. Magnolia is a trauma-informed space where the priority is inclusivity, safety and emotional well-being. At Magnolia, there is always an emphasis on community and collective healing, whether someone is there for yoga, sound healing, massage, acupuncture, aesthetic services, mental health counseling, or simply gathering for coffee and conversations about books. Becca talks with center director, Lorena Castiglione, MS, LMHC, RYT800, and Emma Koi, RYT200, MMus, Magnolia’s yoga studio manager and sound practitioner.Magnolia Yoga and Wellness Center partners with numerous non-profits to create tailored, supportive care. They currently host Wellness Workshops, Trauma-informed Workplace Training, Oncology Yoga, Lunchtime Sound Healing, and monthly wellness workshops. Find Magnolia Yoga and Wellness Center at www.magnoliawellnesscenter.org Reach out to Becca with your show suggestions and comments at [email protected] Music:Forest by | e s c p | https://www.escp.spacehttps://escp-music.bandcamp.comThanks for listening!

Meet renowned yoga instructor, studio owner and founder of Grounded Yoga, Krystal Gignac. She has trained hundreds of yoga teachers and has recently opened a studio in Orlando, Florida. In this episode, Gignac shares her ziz zag journey of studying yoga — from her tiny apartment with a Donna Farhi library book, to using yoga breathing techniques early in her career as a wildlife specialist to cope with the intensity of the African safari to opening a highly successful yoga school in Northern Ontario.  Gignac shares insight on how she artfully weaves yoga philosophy into her classes. This episode is inspiring for new yoga teachers wanting to add layers of yoga history and language to their classes. Suggested Books: Yoga Mind Body & Spirit by Donna Farhi (and everything else by Donna Farhi!)Moving Towards Balance by Nina Zolotow and Rodney Yee and Yoga, the Poetry of the Body by Rodney YeePerfectly Imperfect The Art and Soul of Yoga Practice by Baron Baptiste The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, by Sri Swami Satchidandanda Puro Coffee - ask for your 10% show discount!  Use code: Yoga10  when you check out.  www.purocoffeeusa.com Krystal Gignac can be found at www.groundedorlando.com Reach out to Becca with your show suggestions and comments at [email protected]/Outro Music:Forest by | e s c p | https://www.escp.spacehttps://escp-music.bandcamp.comThanks for listening!

Becca's has a poignant conversation with Alberta Dering, RYT300, a trauma-informed yoga teacher, innovator, and trailblazer in healing and resilience. Alberta is dedicated to breaking stigmas around mental health, trauma, and recovery, bringing trauma-informed yoga to underserved communities, including juvenile detention centers, domestic violence shelters, and recovery programs.Alberta offers private sound bowl healings in her home studio—an intimate sanctuary for deep rest, balance, and renewal.Reach out to our guest today with your questions: [email protected] Here is a list of Alberta's book recommendations:The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van der KolkUntethered Soul by Michael SingerThe Let Them Theory by Mel RobbinsThanks for listening!

There’s more to marketing a yoga business than getting hits on social media. Join host Becca Schmidt and Colette Ferrell, founder “It’s Just Yoga” festivals and get invaluable tips on how you can acquire new students organically through group marketing opportunities in your area. Central Florida Yoga Fanatics… mark your calendar for Sunday, March 9th for the next It's Just Yoga Festival at Lake Eola, in Orlando Florida. Experience classes for all levels and discover the latest wellness trends and enjoy some local vegan foods. Go to ijyconnects.com. Reach out to Becca with your show suggestions and comments at [email protected]/Outro Music:Forest by | e s c p | https://www.escp.spacehttps://escp-music.bandcamp.comThanks for listening!

Sit in on a warm, heartfelt conversation with Becca and longtime friend and yoga instructor Joanmarie Seacord as they reflect on how important it is for teachers to show up for their students in difficult times.  According to Seacord, “this is what we’ve been practicing for. We find a way to still the mind and calm the central nervous system to be able to stand in the storms.”  Secord also suggests sharing words of wisdom from Max Strom, "A Life Worth Breathing”,  Rolph Gates, "Meditations From The Mat”, and Richard Rohr (Daily Meditations that are put out by The Center for Action and Contemplation), and his books, "Everything Belongs", and  "Breathing Underwater”.   Season Two of the Language of Yoga promises to be there through the storms to help yoga teachers feel supported and heard.  Reach out to Becca at [email protected] Intro/Outro Music:Forest by | e s c p | https://www.escp.spacehttps://escp-music.bandcamp.com

Becca invites into her home for a private tour of her vast yoga library. Go behind the scenes with Becca as she shares her dog-eared favorites, her treasured top shelf books and tips for acquiring and curating just the collection. Listeners will get a sneak peek into the “must haves” yoga teachers will need throughout their career.Intro Music:♫ Song: Totohm Shanti - A Melodic DrumMusic promoted by ➤CopyrightFreeMusicToCreate. Video Link:   • Totohm Shanti - A Melodic Drum | Copy...  & Thanks to "Hang Drum Healing"  / @hangdrumhealing5264  

This episode is all about Balance - why we teach it, how it applies to better mobility in everyday life and some creative new ways to talk about balance to your students. Teach balance poses throughout your class and use some of these synonyms for variety: stability, steadiness, evenness, level, grounded symmetry, harmony, equity, equanimity.  And for balance poses that move, try some of these: sway, toggle, wobble, rock, roll, rotate, reverse, circle, stabilize, level, stack your joints, energetically shift. Move your gaze. Balance poses give us a opportunity to talk about Proximity and Proprioception. Encourage your students to go into inquiry about why they feel off balance. Do they know if their foot is lined up — or not lined up with the hip, are toes ground in opposition from their center of balance. Where is the CENTER of balance? Balance poses also give us an opportunity to teach Yoga Anatomy:  Which bones, joints and stabilizer muscles are involved in the balance pose? What adjustments regarding stacking the joints, or contracting muscles can they make to get feel more stable? Have you used Balance as a theme for a class or workshop? Reach out to me and share your story, [email protected] Thank you for listening!

Join us for Season Two, episode one, with renown DJ performer, Taz Rashid. Becca asks Rashid about how he stays creative while balancing a busy schedule which includes releasing a new album, a concert tour, a trip to Saudi Arabia — and a newborn baby!For more ways to connect with DJ Taz Rashid, you can check out his: Website djtazrashid.comInstagram @djtazrashidFacebook DJ Taz RashidFor more ways to connect with your host, Becca, check out @bluemoonyogaorlandofl on instagram or visit bluemoon.yoga online. The intro and outro music was composed by DJ Taz Rashid.Intro: Towards the LightOutro: Kindred SpiritsThanks for listening!

Emily and Becca chat about the perks and perils of doing yoga on a moving mat. To find out more about Emily, visit her Instagram @emzenyoga. You can also find her books here on Amazon. To find out more about Becca's work, visit bluemoon.yoga for more information. This podcast was recorded and produced at WPRK Studios in Winter Park, Florida.Outro Music:♫ Song: Totohm Shanti - A Melodic DrumMusic promoted by ➤CopyrightFreeMusicToCreate. Video Link:   • Totohm Shanti - A Melodic Drum | Copy...  & Thanks to "Hang Drum Healing"  / @hangdrumhealing5264  

No one wants admit they talk too much, but a lot of yoga teachers find the need to over-explain poses, or needlessly fill the air with talk. This episode reminds that when yoga instructors talk too much, we take away from our students’ experience.To find out more about Becca's work, visit bluemoon.yoga for more information.This podcast was recorded and produced at WPRK Studios in Winter Park, Florida.

In this episode, we look at how gate pose replicates the physical shape of the long lever that closes the latch on a gate. Students will visualize a long fence line representing life’s many choices where they may choose to keep the latch closed, or open a floodgate of new possibilities. Becca also presents how, while in bridge pose, our human form offers connection, passage and equanimity.  

Join Becca and Tribe Yoga Studio owner Stephanie for a heartfelt discussion about the importance of inclusion, connection, humor, music and all the good stuff that makes a student feel appreciated wherever they practice yoga. Tribe Yoga Studio can be found at Tribe Yoga Studiotribeyogastudio.com |

This episode brings the ancient concept of Santosha to the 21st Century. Modern students of yoga are facing post-pandemic struggles like never before - Isolation, depression, discontentment — and are bringing a desire for a new definition of contentment to their mats. Our students are striving for Happiness.  But what is happiness in the 21st Century? And how can we, as yoga instructors, help our students discover their happiness within? My guest today is Rachel Scheinberg, Museum of Happiness leader, and author of three books about Mental Health. Listen in as Scheinberg shares some innovative approaches to helping our students find more happiness from the seed of their yoga practice. You can reach her at [email protected].  

Saucha is cleanliness of the mind, body and surroundings. How can teachers be a living example of Saucha? Today’s podcast gives tips and treasures about how to incorporate this Niyama into your next class. 

How can you show a little love on the mat? Start with Gary Chapman’s Five Love Languages.  Becca shares unique ways to show a little love to your students, with words of affirmation, quality time, physical touch, acts of service and even giving gifts! 

Meet Yoga instructor Lisa Schrieber and get the inside scoop on how she adapts her words, vocal tone and cadence to her many specialized audiences. Lisa is a Kids Yoga instructor, but also teaches prenatal yoga and yoga for new moms. She is also author of “The Promise of Shabbat”, a playful, interactive children's yoga book where preschoolers are prompted to do the poses along with the reader. Lisa will share some poignant stories about her yoga journey, as well as give listeners valuable insight on everything from keeping the attention of active toddlers to holding quiet space for the fragile emotions of new moms and their infants.

GIVE ME A VERB! Becca dives into her dynamic list of "500 yoga verbs" teachers can use to cue any kind of class theme. In this episode, Becca cues three sun salutations using unique verbs for water, air and earth themes. She also introduces a “mat exploration” experiment that challenges students to appreciate all the real estate a 72” x 24” yoga mat has to offer. You’ll want to use some of these ideas in your very next class. 

The theme of this podcast is courage. Becca offers courageous poses, courageous new ways to approach your yoga practice, and how courage on your yoga mat gives you courage off the mat. And, for teachers, listen for many words and phrases to use as you teach courage.

This week, Becca talks with yoga therapist Theresia Portoghese about the scope of work, and the language skills necessary when teaching a therapeutic based yoga class. Yoga therapists are not licensed medical practitioners, cannot diagnose or treat their students medically, but they can help support a vibrant lifestyle for people who are dealing with chronic conditions.  Becca and Theresia chat about their beginnings at the YMCA and all the lessons learned with their combined teaching experience of four decades. 

Ahimsa is the first of the Yamas within the eightfold path of yoga. Ahimsa translates most directly into English as no harm and non violence. Ahimsa encompasses not only how we treat others, animals, our environment, but also how we treat ourselves. Learn how to use this important yoga doctrine as a class theme. Share your ideas or ask questions with a note to Becca at [email protected] 

Are you unintentionally creating stumbling blocks for your students? In this episode, Becca lists five major barriers yoga teachers are putting in the way of teaching a good class. Maybe you recognize some of these in your own teaching. No worries, Becca offers some great solutions to help you teach a masterful class. Share your ideas or ask questions with a note to Becca at [email protected] 

What is this podcast all about?  Enhance your yoga teaching skills by using class themes, storytelling, powerful words and humor.  Host Becca Schmidt shares insight from her 20 years of teaching yoga.  Share your ideas or ask questions with a note to Becca at [email protected]