Yoga Teacher/Nerd’s Podcasts and Other References

Teaching is a trial-by-fire process. The only way to improve is to keep doing it and prepare for the next. I have always been a teacher. Now that my classroom has changed, my teaching style eventually evolved as well. It didn’t come in a flash. My desk was traded in for a mat, my study lamp for a Himalayan salt block, lastly, my attire is in Spandex. Everything was all new, disconcerting, I didn’t feel authentic nor realized in my job. I sought help. 

It was so useful especially when I decided to move away from the city and take my style of yoga to a smaller town.

One of the habits I built to sharpen my skills was research. Scouring the internet for everything that could serve my craft. I still do it today. It keeps me updated. The best part, I find new resources everyday. I’m here to share the 10 best ones. The following sites have helped shape me as a teacher. From anatomy and physiology, Therapy, cultural sensitivity, all the way to gender sensitivity these sites were priceless for me and I am so grateful for stumbling on them all these years ago. Without further ado, I give you:

The 10 Blogs and Podcasts Yoga Teachers Should be Following ( in no particular order )

Yoga teacher Resource

Medium: Podcast (Link to the podcast)
Creator: Mado Hesselink

What Makes it Great: Mado Hesselink has been my go-to podcast for all the things we go though as teachers. As we all know that there’s more to it than capturing clients. The fears, anxiety, doubts, the process of landing your first job, even making decisions for your career. Will I be a yoga nomad to travel and teach in exotic places ? Or is it better to settle and open a studio in my hometown? Most of the questions I’ve had in my head, Mado has a podcast for. Aside from hearing her views, she also conducts interviews and on-air coaching. Those were really comforting because I didn’t feel so alone as a teacher. She gives practical, no-nonsense advice while having the awareness that Yoga isn’t just a normal 9-5 job. Which makes her very empathic in the way she handles her topics. My favorite ones to listen to again and again are: 

• Building confidence as a teacher
• Self doubt and Impostor Syndrome
• Cueing, Intention and Progressive Sequencing
• Ethical Use of Social Media

The Lucas Rockwood Show and Yoga Business Mastery / for Yoga teachers and Studio Owners  

Medium: Podcast (Link to the podcast)
Creator: Lucas Rockwood

What Makes it Great: Lucas Rockwood has been a figure in the yoga industry for more than a decade. His Podcasts started as the Yoga Talk Show along with the occasional interview. Today it has evolved into all interviews with topics ranging from nutrition, mental health, social situations, yoga and the business of yoga. His interviews are usually from experts or people seeking advice. Similar to a focused Tedtalk.. It’s an effective formula simply because his show is relatable to everyone. Yoga teachers, students, or to the person who stumbles on his site. There is something for everyone at whatever point they are in their lives. The most helpful part of his work is the practical application of running the numbers before you make big decisions on your business. It was so useful especially when I decided to move away from the city and take my style of yoga to a smaller town. Here are some of my favorites:

• Is My Market Saturated 
• How to build a community after class
• How to work on ( not in ) Your Business
• How to live your Authentic Life

Bri’s Blabs

Medium: Instagram TV
Creator: Briohny Smyth / @yogawithbriohny

What Makes it Great: I had the pleasure of being a student of Briohny at my 200H Teacher Training. At the time, her brand was still Bryce Yoga, a company she started with her ex-husband Dice Lida-Klein. Both had a wonderfully unique teaching voice that complimented each other perfectly. It was Briohny’s cues that pushed my body into poses I never thought I could ever do. She’s become the voice in my head that pushes me to aim higher as a teacher and practitioner. When she started Bri’s Blabs to transform her individual image away from her  previous brand, I thought, “She came back swinging!” Briohny’s Instagram TV episodes are short spiels about what it’s like as a yoga teacher from or sharing someone else’s brand or business that she believes in. You could be a seasoned yogi, or a starter teacher and they would still have value. These bite-sized briohny bouillons are perfect for yoga teachers on-the-go. Short enough to captivate moreover easy to retain. More importantly, they give pause to reflect. Here are my must-listens: 

• The business of Social Media
• The Hidden Cost of Fear: Your Passion
• Why Positive Thinking is Holding You Back
• Why Yoga Teachers Can’t afford Avocado Toast

Elephant Journal

Medium: Online Magazine (Link to the online magazine)
Creators: Waylon Lewis 

What Makes it Great: Sharing a mindful life is the slogan of Elephant journal. They started out as an on-print Magazine in 2002. In lieu of wasting paper, they decided to go online. What I love about them is that they’re not afraid of controversial topics. They face them head on. They receive a million comments about it. Their articles generate conversation as they create their community. Also if you enjoy their writing, they have an online academy that can take you through their steps as content creators. I’ve had an inkling to go through their course for a while but I’ve decided to schedule that until after my 300-hour TT. The downside is that it’s a subscription. Unlimited all day access to articles are $3 a month but you can read 2 articles a day for free–which isn’t bad at all. Just remember that rule or you lose your ‘fix’ the moment you close the tab. If you want to get started with them here are some articles: 

•  F*ck Spirituality. Real Spirituality is Dirty, Messy, and Gross.
• Why I’m Not “Killing it”: The Way We Talk About Exercise is Toxic
• Savasana for the Yogis Who Can’t Sit Still
• The Unsaid Untold Truths of Being A Yoga Teacher

Yoga Tune Up 

Medium: Blog (Link to the blog) 
Creator: Jill Miller

What Makes it Great: Jill Miller, C-IAYT, ERYT is the co-founder of Tune Up Fitness Worldwide. She is a godsend when it comes to the therapy side of yoga. When I first started teaching, my first clients were 70 years old and up. They weren’t shiny young yogis with a clean bill of health. I had to deal with various issues like post knee surgeries, cervical spinal issues, lumbar issues, clients who were told by their MD to try yoga.  Luckily, I am a registered nurse and  all that stocked up knowledge came in handy. The thing was, everything I knew was from a clinical standpoint. The information I sought was to address the wellness of healthy people with conditions that they are living with from a fitness and/or yoga perspective. 4 years ago I stumbled onto Yoga Tuneup. It was exactly what I was looking for. A site that taught yogis how to prevent injuries, self-care using props and show that it’s never too late to start their practice. I urge you to read the blog posts or even invest in her books and video series. Here are my top picks:

• Understanding Fascia and the Benefits of Myofascial Release
• Protecting your power of sight: 4 exercises to reduce strain and strengthen your eye muscles
• Healing Pelvic FloorDysfunction with Massage, Breath and Movement
• A Secret to Happiness for Seniors: Balance Exercises that Uplift  

Curvy Yoga

Medium: Blog and Podcast (Link to curvy yoga)
Creator: Anna Guest-Jelley

What Makes it Great: Curvy Yoga is probably one of the first Yoga teachers to promote body positivity. She loved the practice of yoga but at the time the Industry wasn’t ready for her. So she paved her own way moreover, for others who thought that yoga was only for dancer-like bodies. I discovered the existence of curvy yoga while I was  going through body issues of my own. Living in the Philippines with western curves takes a toll on your self-esteem. At a size 8, I was considered a big girl. I know that my experience is nothing in comparison to what others have gone through. Then again, body issues are what they are: They hurt no matter what degree they’re in. Anna has done a wonderful job at opening possibilities for people of all shapes to feel that they can take part of the magic yoga brings. In her blog and podcast (by the way the podcast has more episodes so go through), she tackles the many ways Body negativity can affect us, how to deal with them,  to just be happy no matter what. It is a  lesson all of us can learn or revisit multiple times in our lives. Here’s what you can sink your teeth into:

• How to Customize Yoga To You
• How to Stay Connected to Your Practice
• The Chunky Thigh Episode
• Body Acceptance Blueprint

Man Flow Yoga 

Medium: Blog and Vlog (Link to Man Flow Yoga) 
Creator: Dean Pohlman

What Makes it Great: Finally! Something for the  boys. One of the gripes I have is the constant mythbusting of yoga to men. Even then, most of them don’t believe me or prefer to hear it from a bro. This site saved my voice. I was so happy that I could just give my male friends the link to this site so that they could see for themselves. Man flow yoga talks about yoga through the eyes of their species. The tone is boy-friendly and probably something more identifiable to them. This doesn’t mean that it doesn’t have it’s teaching nuggets for women and teachers. The blog is geared to the asana, anatomy and physiology side of yoga. The focus on the male anatomy also talks about how yoga benefits men specifically. It’s quite interesting to read about yoga from a purely a male perpective. I usually read very neutral or female-centric articles so this was refreshing as well as necessary for us to have in our industry. Man flow yoga also has a subscription site to gain access to their workouts. Here are some interesting articles:

• 10 Poses for Better Sex
• Stop Trying to Make Men Do Yoga
• Guest Post: The Stress/Yoga Connection for Men
• 6 Poses for Muscle Gain

Mind Body Green 

Medium: Online Lifestyle Magazine and Shop (Link to the magazine) 
Creator: Jason and Colleen Wachob

What Makes it Great: Let’s go a bit mainstream here. Mind Body Green is my site when I want to catch up on the trends in wellness, lifestyle, yoga, and nutrition. The way I approach this site is to read about the latest articles then cross-reference them with medical or nutritional sites especially when I read about supplements. I’m not saying that I don’t trust this site–I just like to augment my knowledge on my topics of interest. That said, Mind Body Green is pretty well-researched because everything I read on so far has checked out. Articles aside, they feature a wide range of online wellness classes if you are interested in a more in-depth guide to a practice yoga or otherwise. This site also has a unique feature called Revitalize. Talks from wellness summits in the past that we would normally not have access to. Last but not least, the supplement shop. I have never tried any of the supplements on Mind Body Green, I have to say they’re pretty interesting. Here are my top picks from MBG

• Two Cardiologists Debate Fat, Sugar, and Coconut Oil
• The Future of Fitness Tech 
• Sick Tired and Stressed Solutions to the Women’s Stress Crisis
• Performance and the Pursuit of Balance

Yoga With Adriene

Medium: Youtube Tutorials and Blog (Link to Yoga with Adriene)
Creator: Adriene Mishler

What Makes it Great: I saw Adriene’s popularity grow through the ‘Expats of Madrid’ Facebook community. People were raving about her online YouTube channel. Many of us foreigners in Spain are mostly English teachers. Our schedules are often at the beck and call of our private classes, extra curricular English in schools or companies that have English Class during their long lunch. We usually work 3 jobs plus freelancing. Maintaining a yoga practice is left by the wayside. Adriene inadvertently tapped into our demographic and we thank her for it. While she wasn’t the first one who has gone the Youtube road, She  has made something accessible, timely, and time conscious. She knows that people cannot be rammed down the throat with yoga philosophy. Her technique is simple. The videos are well done, consistent, and viewer-focused. Which is the most important catching point for her work. Now that her following has grown to the millions, She has an app, workshops, with her own brand  called FWFG (Find What Feels Good). Still, most of her fans keep going back to her Youtube Channel as she still keeps on adding new videos despite the paid online offerings. My top picks for videos are 

• Yoga for Travel
• Yoga Kiss
• Yoga for Text Neck
• Strength and Stamina Roller Derby Yoga

Yoga Rove

Medium: Blog (Link to blog) 
Creator: Ally and Victor

What Makes it Great: Yoga Rove, formerly known as Grounded Panda is a community that celebrates the beginning of a yoga practice. Yoga rove has mountains of resources. From the nitty gritty of a popular pose, a detailed answer on FAQ about practicing yoga, Tutorials for short or long flows. Everything that a newbie yogi will need to get started on a practice is here. For teachers, it is a treasure trove of cues and options for our beginners.  Check it out and I hope you can find it as helpful as I have. Here are some faves!

• Yoga for Anxiety. How Often Should You Practice?
• What’s a Vinyasa
• 10 ways Yoga Actually Changes Your Body
• Why Yoga Blocks are Absolutely Necessary to Your Practice

Apologies for the long post but there it is! A reference guide to all your wellness needs to date. I hope this article serves you well and May you find the enlightenment you are looking for.