Reggie Hubbard - "Politics, Spiritual Truths, and Sound Healing"

/

Reggie Hubbard, founder of Active Peace Yoga, talks with J about recovering from a stroke and praying instead of protesting. They discuss his background in politics, the impact of 9/11, realities of a broken system, working for Bernie Sanders, navigating dark nights of the soul, collective liberation, coming into community, political neutrality as a privilege, having a stroke, turning to sound for healing, listening to your intuition, addressing dis-regulation with deep spiritual resonance, and gratitude for every little miracle.

/ / Comment

J. Brown

J. Brown is a yoga teacher, writer, and founder of Abhyasa Yoga Center in Brooklyn, New York. A teacher for 15 years, he is known for his pragmatic approach to teaching personal, breath-centered therapeutic yoga that adapt to individual needs. His writing has been featured in Yoga Therapy Today, the International Journal of Yoga Therapy, Elephant Journal and Yogadork.

Aimee Echo - "Mysore Lives in the Spirit of its Teachers"

/
Aimee Echo - "Mysore Lives in the Spirit of its Teachers"

Aimee Echo, founder of Community Yoga Club/Ashtanga Yoga Long Beach, talks with J about the carrying on of tradition and the evolution of practice. They discuss parallel scenes in 90's LA and NY, sub culture of Mysore rooms, Patabhi Jois, studying with Sharath and Shruthi, authorization agreements and certification, Jois Yoga, Sharath's death, new "active" series, Desikachar, and casting a shorter net to invite more serious inquiry and practice.

Read More

Abby Hoffmann - "Boutique Fitness Ain't What It Used To Be"

/
Abby Hoffmann - "Boutique Fitness Ain't What It Used To Be"

Abby Hoffmann, founder of Yantra Studio, talks with J about their formative years and opening another yoga center again after they both swore they never would. They discuss Ashtanga rooms in the late 90's, being asked to teach before TT’s, bringing yoga to dance training, rock star teachers, taking a gig at hot studio chain, the boutique fitness model, learning business skills, patterns of attendance, and being rooted in your community.

Read More

Roberta McGinley - "Hot Studios Are Bouncing Back"

/
Roberta McGinley - "Hot Studios Are Bouncing Back"

Roberta McGinley, once owner of Tadasana Yoga Studio in Wappingers Falls NY, talks with J about owning centers and finding places to teach. They discuss when Roberta hosted J for a workshop in 2018, different styles and discerning hot, moving from space to space, adult spiritual summer camps, unexpected life turns, puppy yoga workshops and vin yin classes, ins and outs of hot 26, and having your heart touched by yoga.

Read More

Judith Valerie - "Old School Ways of Enduring Community"

/
Judith Valerie - "Old School Ways of Enduring Community"

Judith Valerie, a Raleigh NC tradition for over 30 years, talks with J about sticking to principles and building creative spiritual community. They discuss students that inspire, early childhood experiences of being a pantheist, traveling around India and Nepal, receiving Shaktiput, the role of alignment cues, Interplay philosophy, evolving teacher/student relationships, keeping things alive in spirit, and trust in letting students come to you.

Read More

Mike Huggins - "Maintaining the Spark of Yoga Service"

/
Mike Huggins - "Maintaining the Spark of Yoga Service"

Mike Huggins, author of Going OM: A CEO's Journey from a Prison Facility to Spiritual Tranquility, founder of Transformation Yoga Project, and long time friend of the show, talks with J about the state of yoga in the criminal justice system and beyond. They discuss training incarcerated people, power dynamics, life cycle of the yoga industry, instructor vs teacher, differentiation and specialty, and the human aspects that give meaning to our lives.

Read More

Danielle Kunz Dwyer - "Finding Joy Even Though It’s Stressful"

/
Danielle Kunz Dwyer - "Finding Joy Even Though It’s Stressful"

Danielle Kunz Dwyer, founder of Yoga For You, talks with J about organizing a business and being together in a more expansive state. They discuss connecting via email and open sourcing info on how to go online, studying Ayurveda and yoga in NYC in the early aughts, periods of unknowing, students and subscriptions, profitability of the yoga profession, foundations of trust, and what really grows someone in their practice.

Read More

Mariela Cruz - "Who is in Authority and What is the Criteria?"

/
Mariela Cruz - "Who is in Authority and What is the Criteria?"

Mariela Cruz talks with J about her recent post entitled, "The Death of My School in Mysore." They discuss discovering her guru Sharath Jois while being a mother of seven children and a lawyer, becoming the first authorized teacher in Central America, Patabhi Jois and harms done, Sharath assuming the leadership role and grieving his death, new certifications being announced, physical adjustments, and silver linings amidst turmoil.

Read More

Giana Gambino & Bradshaw Wish - "Sustaining the Profession"

/
Giana Gambino & Bradshaw Wish - "Sustaining the Profession"

Giana Gambino & Bradshaw Wish, founders of C.A.Y.A Yoga School and hosts of The Funny Thing About Yoga Podcast, talk with J about the ins and outs of having a yoga career in 2025. They discuss having a collaboration, teachers as brands, resolving conflict and developing trust, admin and websites, starting a podcast, letting go of micromanaging, desire for connection, sharing revenue, perseverance, and being innovative.

Read More

Neal Shaffer - "Deciding What Practice Will Be"

/
Neal Shaffer - "Deciding What Practice Will Be"

Neal Shaffer, founder of First Mile Strategies, talks with J about what it's like for new teachers in today's climate. They discuss finding Rodney Yee through Comcast On-Demand, doing hybrid teacher training coming out of the pandemic, online vs in person learning, asana and meditation, Rodney and Colleen's teaching, parting from fitness orientation, business models based on human scale, and meaningful support of caring teachers.

Read More

Jonathan Sattin - "A Place Where People Feel Connected"

/
Jonathan Sattin - "A Place Where People Feel Connected"

Jonathan Sattin, founder of triyoga and the forthcoming HOME, returns to talk with J about how we got to the current crossroads we face and the reasons for opening a new center. They discuss the elements that enabled his initial success, lockdowns and the challenges of reopening, sustainability and scale, effectiveness vs efficiency, deciding to sell and ultimately leave, delivering something special, and having an impact on peoples lives.

Read More

Nyk Danu - "Making it Work Against All Odds"

/
Nyk Danu - "Making it Work Against All Odds"

Nick Danu, host of the Yin Yoga Podcast, returns to talk with J about navigating the yoga profession in a post-pandemic time. They discuss the importance of email lists and independent Online platforms, courses vs drop-in classes, resumes and teaching jobs, transitioning students to registered series, enforcing cancellation policies, normalizing human experience, podcasting, and what makes the challenge feel worth while.

Read More

Julie Smerdon - "Shared Practices and Saving Graces"

/
Julie Smerdon - "Shared Practices and Saving Graces"

Julie Smerdon returns to talk with J about meeting the challenge of life's crossroads and the difference between trust and faith. They discuss recent health scares, dealing with death and grieving, working through challenges in front of students, reassessing professional direction, prayer as listening, forms of personal practice, woman over fifty feeling invisible, getting back to in person teaching, and the sensitivity to hold space for togetherness.

Read More

Sebastian Shaw - "People Not Protocols"

/
Sebastian Shaw - "People Not Protocols"

Sebastian Shaw, a Clinical Social Work/Therapist and old friend of J's, joins the show to talk about the blessings and burdens of a life dedicated to helping people. They discuss how Sebastian and J met, connecting with at risk youth, training as a social worker, dealing with horrible situations and watching people get better, agency vs private practice gigs, data driven medicine, credentials and scope, and the underlying significance of rapport.

Read More

Rebecca Sebastian - "Organizations, Credentials, Livelihoods"

/
Rebecca Sebastian - "Organizations, Credentials, Livelihoods"

Rebecca Sebastian, founder of Sunlight Yoga and host of the Working in Yoga Podcast, talks with J about recent shifts and long standing debates within the yoga profession. They discuss the history of trade organizations and teacher trainings, nonprofit spaces and fundraising, the credentialing shift at the IAYT and The Future of Yoga Facebook Group, marketing and business, pricing, and letting the weight of ones work speak for itself.

Read More

Emily Smith - "Ins and Outs of Online Yoga Industry"

/
Emily Smith - "Ins and Outs of Online Yoga Industry"

Emily Smith, founder of Yogaversity, talks with J about the former and current state of online yoga. They discuss her eight-year tenure as a producer for Yoga International and the transition from print to digital, first figuring out what a yoga class looks like online, Yogaglo and copyrights, portals and pay structures, YI being sold to Gaia, set curriculum’s and self-directed learning, developing courses, and remaining forever curious.

Read More

Steve Szakal - "Becoming the Best Version of Your Self"

/
Steve Szakal - "Becoming the Best Version of Your Self"

Steve Szakal, ultra runner and yoga teacher, talks with J about overcoming life's obstacles and being who we are meant to be. They discuss getting caught up in the war on drugs, the inhumanity of institutionalization, starting to run marathons, going to yoga, experiencing beauty and exercising demons, differences between Bikram and Gosh Yoga, being a yoga teacher, becoming inundated with love, and being the best version of yourself.

Read More

Rolf Gates - "To Meet and Hold Suffering Wisely"

/
Rolf Gates - "To Meet and Hold Suffering Wisely"

Rolf Gates, author of Daily Reflections on Addiction, Yoga, and Getting Well, talks with J live at the 20th Anniversary Celebration for Dragonfly Yoga about the role of yoga in recovery and what it means to be human. They discuss his military service, recognizing addiction, going into rehab, intensity and intimacy, preying to God, before and after covid, intense administrative moments working at Kripalu, and cultivating a capacity for good will.

Read More

Vish Chatterji - "Vedic Astrology and Your Deeper Soul"

/
Vish Chatterji - "Vedic Astrology and Your Deeper Soul"

Vish Chatterji, author of Astrology Decoded: The Secret Science of India's Sages, talks with J about Vedic Astrology as a tool to align with divine nature and cultivate a Satvic existence. They discuss parallel paths and a love of Rishikesh, growing up in an Indian family and becoming a tech CEO, Western astrology not being accurate, birth charts and rising signs, inner spiritual development, and living in a western world connected to ancient wisdom.

Read More

Laurie Lowe - "Communities, Commitments, and Connection"

/
Laurie Lowe - "Communities, Commitments, and Connection"

Laurie Lowe, founder of Sage Yoga Studio, talks with J about growing a community and finding a wy to sustain it. They discuss meeting each other in Manchester, coming into yoga organically, British Wheel of Yoga Teacher Training, baby and me classes, importance of having your own space, angel landlords, marketing and administration, commitment and gratification, the unseen work of teaching, and getting out of the way to let things happen.

Read More