Jo was really excited to speak with Freya, since she loved her recent book Wonder Full Women. Attune & Bloom. Eat, Move and Meditate with the Seasons. Freya is trained as a Chiropractor, although as you’ll hear she had to stop practising in 2013 due to some serious health issues including MS. She shares how she grew up practicing yoga, dance, meditation and tai chi, and trained as a yoga and meditation teacher to help her clients but then found new depths of these practices as part of her rehabilitation and continuing self care. She also discovered Yin yoga around this time, and Traditional Chinese Medicine and working the meridian system forms the foundation of living within the rhythm of the seasons which she shares in her book, alongside wisdom traditions from many cultures - as well as a biomedical understanding of the body. She articulates these complex ideas really clearly - and that is one of Jo's favourite aspects of the book, as well as the thread of joyfully embracing life, nature and our own nature which weaves it all together. There’s so useful information in here for yoga teachers, and anyone looking to understand their nature better. While there is an in-depth section on women's health, the advice and practices could be helpful for all genders and it’s all shared in an informative, rather than prescriptive way. There was so much to talk about with Freya, including our mutual love of inversions, yin and chocolate, as well as ways to tap into joy and pleasure while living with chronic pain. Links https://gardenofyoga.com.au/workshops/celebrating-10-years-in-northcote/ More details on Freya's book and purchase links can be found here- https://www.freyabennettoverstall.com/bookavailable Freya's guided meditation recordings, including The White Light Healing Meditation (which we discussed) plus free live Yin Yoga & Meditation classes: https://insighttimer.com/freya The two ethical Chocolate brands we discussed, which Freya stocks at Maitri Studio Brighton, are- Loco Love Chocolate, with details on the delish Zingy Gingerbread Caramel we discussed https://locolove.com/collections Living Koko chocolate https://www.livingkoko.com/

Join Rane and Jo for another conversation with the latest updates from the Flow Artists podcast. It's been over 5 years since we started the podcast, so we thought it was time for a Rane and Jo episode! We answer questions from some friends of the podcast, including Donna Noble, Laura Wilson-McGinn, Beata Heyman, Jeanette Coleman, Nicole Blythe, Christa Fairbrother and Dr Kate Riegel Van West. We also share our upcoming 10 year celebrations at Garden of Yoga, and have some updates from past guests! Stay tuned to the end for an important kitty update. Please leave us a review on your favourite podcast app. Links: Garden of Yoga - Celebrating 10 years in Northcote: https://gardenofyoga.com.au/workshops/celebrating-10-years-in-northcote/ Article on TGA approving psychedelic treatments https://theconversation.com/the-tga-has-approved-certain-psychedelic-treatments-the-response-from-experts-is-mixed-199290 The New Rulebook by Chris Cheers: https://www.chrischeers.com/resources/the-new-rulebook Friends for Good Fundraiser: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/chair-yoga-and-mindfulness-tickets-545684004547 Help Supergrans support their community affected by the Cyclones in New Zealand: https://www.supergransaotearoa.org.nz/ use our link https://www.offeringtree.com/flowartists to get one month free or 15% off an annual plan

In this episode we speak with Laura Wilson-McGinn and Ian McGinn. They both teach together through Move Like You Yoga, and have a special interest in working with police, army and first responders, particularly those experiencing severe PTSD. They deliver classes specifically for the Code 9 Foundation (a foundation established to support emergency services workers with PTSD), as well as sessions that everyone can attend. Laura is of Aboriginal, English and Scottish decent. She is an aboriginal woman, whose blood line comes from Yass, NSW. She was born and raised in Melbourne. She has worked extensively across the government, community legal, and university sectors as a policy writer, researcher, sessional academic, lecturer and advocate, and as a lawyer in the Victorian Supreme Court.. Ian is a Detective Senior Constable with Victoria Police and he has a PhD in Australian Indigenous Studies from Monash University. He also works as a sessional academic at Swinburne University, teaching and lecturing in Criminology and Police Studies. They both have a passion for movement - with Laura coming from an extensive dance background including ballet, calisthenics, pole dance and aerial arts. Ian has a passion and love for jiu jitsu, yoga, fishing and bushwalking. In this conversation we discuss how all of these interests and life experiences weave together to inform the way they teach and live their yoga. Please be advised we do cover some sensitive topics including the death of a parent, and the mental health challenges connected with working in emergency services and adversarial justice including PTSD. Links: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/movelikeyouyoga/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/movelikeyouyoga/

In this episode we are excited to speak with Dr. Kate Riegle van West about her research on the health benefits of Poi. Kate is a scientist, artist, and entrepreneur with a passion for play and wellbeing. She completed her PhD in the health benefits of poi at the University of Auckland, where she conducted the first study to scientifically investigate the effects of poi on physical and cognitive function in older adults. She was awarded the Future Leader Award from the Royal Society of New Zealand and the Best Doctoral Thesis Award for her work in the poi/health field. Kate shares about how she discovered poi through circus - and her early life growing up in a town called Normal, a small American town with a circus history. She shares how a lack of published research was proving to be an obstacle in establishing programs in health settings, which along with the positive effects she noticed in her own brain and body, inspired her to move to Aotearoa New Zealand to conduct the first scientific study on the effects of poi on physical and cognitive function. We talk about the differences between International Poi and Maori Poi and some of the considerations and challenges when researching and sharing practices from another culture, as well as how joining a Kapa Haka group has helped Kate reconnect with the joy of poi. LINKS: Spin Poi website: https://spinpoi.com/ Melbourne training: https://spinpoi.com/services/australia Spinpoi on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spinpoi/ Garden of Yoga website: https://gardenofyoga.com.au/

In this episode we speak with Dr Kavitha Moahan, the author of Traditional Aerial Yoga, director of Aum Yoga Studio in Chennai Tamil Nadu India, a scientist, multiple world record holder and a recipient of the prestigious Yoga Kalaimamani award. While Kavitha has a strong physical practice, she sees yoga primarily as a path to self realisation and a way to achieve balance and peace within oneself, and focuses more on the therapeutic aspects of aerial yoga too. We were intrigued to learn more about how the Thottil, which is a traditional South Indian hammock used to soothe babies, to support deity statues in temples and even as part of funeral processions. This tool of emotional regulation and spiritual expression forms the basis of Kavitha’s approach to aerial yoga along with her research focus from her science background and deep respect for the traditions of Yoga. Finding the balance between innovation and honouring tradition is just one of the topics we cover - we also talk about her time studying in Australia, pain science, body image, woman's health and some of the unique benefits of the thottil/aerial hammock. LINKS https://www.instagram.com/aum_yogini/ https://www.aumyoga.studio/ https://www.amazon.in/TRADITIONAL-AERIAL-YOGA-Aerial-Yoga-ebook/dp/B08PZ7QPP7/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=traditional+aerial+yoga+by+kavitha+moahan&qid=1615564953&s=books&sr=1-1

For todays episode we are speaking with Kate McAnergney of Matri Yoga. Kate has been teaching yoga for 18 years and she and Jo have known each other since the late 90s. We’ll hear some of their reminiscing about that time, as well as Kate’s training at Sivananda Ashram in Kerala, South India in 2004. We’ll also hear about her time with Paul Wooden at the Gertrude Street Yoga Studio and with Anahata Giri. Kate specialises in yoga and mindfulness-based practices to support women through pregnancy and postpartum, she is also training to become a doula. We were excited to talk to her as we know that a pregnant person unexpectedly arriving in class can actually make a lot of teachers anxious, especially if it wasn’t a big part of their teacher training. Kate has some great suggestions about practices that work well in a group classes, skillful use of language including navigating corporate settings where the participant wants to keep their pregnancy private. Kate also shares some of the wonderful aspects of teaching specialised classes, focusing on this unique time in life as well as insights that would be useful for teachers of all styles. Links https://matriyoga.com.au/ https://www.instagram.com/matriyogini/ Anahata Giri https://www.soulriver.com.au/yoga-of-birth-prenatal-yoga-teacher-training Nina Isabella https://www.mamashanti.com.au/ Support us on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/flowartistspodcast

For todays episode we are speaking with Dave Charlton and Ranju Roy. Dave and Ranju have been practicing yoga since the mid 80s and have been teaching for over 20 years apiece. They teach numerous workshops and have written the book Embodying the Yoga Sutra - Support, Direction, Space. The book is written in a clear and concise style which for me, really emphasises one of the major goals of yoga - to be able to see the world and ourselves with clarity. In this episode, we talk about Daves background as an engineer, and Ranju’s background as an art therapist, and how they combine their strengths and wealth of knowledge to teach these practices in an accessible, authentic and grounded way. Links Website: https://www.sadhanamalayogatraining.com Patanjali for the 21st Century workshop series: https://www.sadhanamalayogatraining.com/patanjaliforthe21stcentury

For today’s episode we are speaking with Dr Esme Dark - Esme is a clinical psychologist, originally trained in the UK but now based in Melbourne, Australia. She has a holistic and somatic based approach and a long interest in working with trauma and transcultural mental health having worked clinically with Refugee and Asylum Seekers in the UK, Thailand and Australia. Esme is currently working in the worlds first psilocybin clinical trial in the treatment of Generalised Anxiety Disorder. Esme is involved in some amazing research and doing incredible work, so we were absolutely thrilled to get the chance to speak with her. Links: Esme's website: https://www.esmedarkpsychology.com.au/ Clinical Psychedelic Research at Monash University: https://www.monash.edu/medicine/scs/research/clinical-psychedelic-research Upcoming workshops: https://www.esmedarkpsychology.com.au/events

In this episode we speak with UK based yoga teacher, writer, coach and body positive advocate Donna Noble. This is the second time we’ve spoken with Donna for the podcast, and that’s because she is doing some really amazing work! Donna has just written a new book called “Teaching body positive yoga” which is a wonderful resource for all teachers. Whether you label your classes as body positive or not, this book is recommended reading for all teachers who want the skills and resources to facilitate a positive class experience for everyone. The tone is welcoming and informative, Donna Noble keeps it real and kind as she shares about how size, race, body image, trauma can impact someone’s experience in class, and how we can support individual needs as teachers. This is vital information for yoga teachers today, yet is sadly lacking from many teacher trainings. Teaching Body Positive Yoga introduces these topics providing a foundation of knowledge as well links to further educational resources from a diverse range of experts. It really is a fantastic resource for new and established teachers, and we were so excited to talk to Donna about the writing process Links: Donna's Website: https://thenobleartofyoga.co.uk/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donnanobleyoga/ Donna's Books: https://thenobleartofyoga.co.uk/shop/shop-2/ Use the code MAKFLOW to receive a 10% discount at https://makarlu.com!

This week we are speaking to Nischala Joy Devi, who is well known and loved for her innovative way of expressing Yoga - from the physical to the subtle for spiritual growth and healing. Her deep love and respect for these teachings shines through as she reinterprets these sacred texts with the goal of empowering each individual reader to find connection, understanding and benefit from this wisdom, for their own personal growth and greater contribution to our world. Nischala has created numerous books and trainings - although in this interview we are focusing on the newly released revised edition of The Secret Power of Yoga: A Woman’s Guide to the Heart and Spirit of the Yoga Sutras. This book is widely known and loved as the definitive feminine interpretation of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, and the new edition is expanded to include all four padas. She has a background in Western Medicine and is known for her work with Dean Ornish’s Reversing Heart Disease program and the Commonweal Cancer Help Program, as well as the Yoga of the Heart program that helps yoga teachers and health professionals adapt yogic practices for the special needs of this population. Please be advised, we do discuss Nischala’s 25 years of monastic life at the Satchidananda ashram and right at the end of the interview have a deeper discussion of the fall out and her response to the abuse that took place there. Links The Secret Power of Yoga: A Woman’s Guide to the Heart and Spirit of the Yoga Sutras - https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Power-Yoga-Revised-Womans/dp/0593235568/ Free Weekly Sutra: https://abundantwellbeing.com/free-weekly-sutra-signup/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NischalaJoyDevi Twitter: https://twitter.com/nischaladevi Nischala's Website - Abundant Wellbeing: https://abundantwellbeing.com/ Offering Tree: https://offeringtree.com/flowartists