Yoga & Beyond | The Yoga And Movement Science Podcast

Shelly Prosko, PT, PYT, CPI, specializes in pain science, yoga therapy and pelvic floor health. She's dedicated to bridging the gap between yoga and modern healthcare philosophies and believes this integration is highly effective in creating and sustaining optimal health. Shelly has been integrating yoga into her physical therapy treatments since 1998, addressing a wide variety of conditions and populations, with a special focus on helping people suffering from persistent pain and pelvic health issues. We discuss what yoga therapy is, how it can be used in healthcare professions, pelvic floor health, pain science, how the research does not support the idea that “optimal alignment” eliminates pain and the how we can still teach alignment without instilling fear of movement and more.

Last year Mel, Kim and I decided to write a book in order to dispel some of the popular claims we hear in mainstream yoga classes. Exposing Yoga Myths V1 is the result of those efforts. In this episode we talk about some responses (good and bad) to the book. We go off on some fun tangents too about Ace of Bass and Insane Clown Posse. don't ask.Co-owners of SMARTer Bodies™, Kim-Lien Kendall and Melissa Gutierrez have collaborated for more than 5 years to help their clients move better and improve their quality of life. Together they transcend the fitness and yoga industries’ quick fixes and trends to create a meaningful and lasting system that truly helps people attain their goals.

Diana and Helen are both experienced yoga teachers and physical therapists. They've created a course that reflects the thirst for applicable and teachable knowledge regarding functional anatomy both for the yoga teacher and the physical therapist. Each course aims to fill the gap between basic training and a safer, smarter practice. Both are grounded in anatomy, physiology, biomechanics and therapeutics. Their quest: to enhance awareness and safety for the 21st Century movement specialist.

Lauren Ohayon is a body mechanics geek who relishes in constant learning, laughing and community. Through her biomechanics and movement studies, Lauren has developed a style of teaching that helps students gain awareness of their structure as well as understand how to re-balance their bodies. She also specializes in helping clients with diastasis recti, organ prolapse and other pelvic floor issues. Lauren uses tools from Yoga, Pilates and Restorative Exercise™ to offer her clients long term solutions for living in a well balanced, functional and strong body. Holy Shift is an educational and experiential platform that delivers information regarding alignment, aging and health and gives people factual science based information for longevity of their bones, muscles, organs and tissues.

Redefining stretching with Biomechanist and Yoga Educator Jules Mitchell, MS. We talk about her upcoming book, different types of stretching like PNF, the shoulder joint in downward dog and why she doesn’t say the word "tight" anymore when referring to muscles.

Mobility maker and creator of Radius Yoga, Dana Santas talks more about how she works with athletes, why breathing is THE fundamental movement pattern and her beef with good posture.

Mel, Kim and I talk about the myth that doing yoga gives you long and lean muscles and a  Vogue article about foam rolling that Tony Gentilcore busted up. We touch on body image, eating disorders, women in sports and dance, Ronda Rousey, Serena Williams, Misty Copeland and Mel summons Rage Against the Machine.

Mel, Kim (SMARTer Bodies founders) and I talk more about our book, Exposing Yoga Myths. We riff more about cultural misappropriation, yoga teachers trying to make a living, Lululemon, Kirtan, yoga can't hurt you, the Yoga Alliance and teacher regulation, the Dunning-Kruger effect, and pain as a teacher. oh yeah, it's on!

In this episode I talk to Mel and Kim of SMARTer Bodies about our upcoming ebook, Exposing Yoga Myths. We talk about how we started working together, cultural misappropriation in the yoga world, and infallible gurus, and how we're not afraid to contextualize yoga in science and physiology.Co-owners of SMARTer Bodies™, Kim-Lien Kendall and Melissa Gutierrez have collaborated for more than 5 years to help their clients achieve more efficient movement and improve their quality of life. Together they transcend the fitness and yoga industries’ quick fixes and trends to create a meaningful and lasting system that truly helps people attain their goals.

How has modern yoga practice changed since the early 90s? Can the Yoga Alliance or International Association of Yoga Therapists do a better job credentialing yoga teachers? J. Brown and I also discuss injury in yoga practice and the controversial reactions sparked by Kino McGregor's hip injury. J. Brown is the owner  of the Abhyasa Yoga Center in Brooklyn and the creator of the Gentle is the New Advanced yoga method.

How does exercise affect the brain? After achieving tenure at NYU and researching how memory works in the brain, neuroscientist Dr. Wendy Suzuki realized that her life was in the lab and her social and physical well being were suffering because of it. She wasn't maximizing the potential of her brain because everything you do or don't do affects the brain. She decided to do something about it - to start exercising and to get strong. She stuck to it and with hard work she started to notice the effects on her brain: her mood, memory and attention improved because of exercise. This fascinated her and has become the focus of her work as a neuroscientist. She's dedicated to researching the power of exercise to improve people’s learning memory and cognition.We talk about her new book, Healthy Brain, Happy Life: A Personal Program to Activate Your Brain & Do Everything Better, how exercise affects the brain, brain hacks, brain myths and more.Dr. Wendy Suzuki is a Professor of Neural Science and Psychology at New

Dr. Evan Osar - creator of Fitness Education Seminars and author of Corrective Exercise Solutions talks to us about his approach to movement which requires alignment breathing and control. He shares why you probably don't need to release your psoas, why we need to earn the right to get to higher level complex exercises, what happens when we try to over use muscles like the TVA (transversus abdominis), and why we don't need stretching we just need better alignment when we move.

Mike Fitch, creator of Animal Flow and Global Bodyweight Training talks about what we get out of quadrupedal movements, his experiences with Parkour and other influences of Animal Flow, and his new Bodyweight Athlete program. His advice: "Whatever you do, learn something new. Be willing to be bad at something! "

Dana is the yoga/movement expert for CNN and CNN Health, and the creator of Radius Yoga Conditioning which helps athletes move, breathe and focus better to enhance performance and decrease injury.  Nicknamed the “Mobility Maker,” over the last ten+ years, she’s worked with more than 35 teams and hundreds of athletes in the NHL, MLB, NFL, NBA, MLS, PGA, LPGA & WTA. She's worked with the Philadelphia Phillies, Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, Orlando Magic and Tampa Bay Lightning; she’s also mobility consultant to many other pro & collegiate teams.We talk a lot about the breath, how the diaphragm is the king of the core, how it affects mobility, how there’s a lot of conjecture out there in yoga, how she’s a difference maker to many athletes and what yoga every damn day means to us.

Joanne Elphinston is a physiotherapist for more than 20 years, writer, innovator, lecturer and educator. She’s also the creator of JEMS which stands for Joanne Elphinston Movement Systems. JEMS is all about enabling people of all backgrounds, ages and levels of physical ability to learn the art of working with their body instead of against them, to have confidence in their bodies, and to reclaim and enjoy the activities that matter most to them.JEMS draws from the fields of biomechanics, motor learning, neuroscience, philosophy  psychology and holistic practices. We talk about her method as well as her book entitled Stability, Sport and Performance Movement. 2pdnj3uk

Dr Ray McClanahan is not your typical Podiatrist. Instead of reverting to surgery, he believes in preventative measures and uses sports science principles to restore foot alignment and function. He also educates the public on healthier shoe choices and created the silicone toe spacers, Correct Toes. There are a lot of tips here for foot strengthening, stretching, making smart shoe choices, dealing with the wear and tear of high heels.

Katy Bowman talks about what minimal footwear is, what it does for your body and how to transition into it. I also included 2 foot-related excerpts from previous interviews with Dr. Mark Cheng and James Earls!

Join me for an in-depth conversation with Gary Ward about how he works with the feet and how they influence the whole body. We talk about how the feet affect the whole body, footwear, the joy of going barefoot, ways to mobilize the feet, and the importance of giving the feet and the brain varied surfaces to adapt to.

Join me for an in depth conversation with Dr. Mark Cheng about his roots in Chinese Martial Arts and the many MA masters he's been lucky to study with. We talk about his Tui Na Practice, FMS/Gray Cook, Pavel Tsatsouline, why movement is like money, breathing, his DVDs and more.

Charlie Weingroff - Doctor of Physical Therapy, certified Athletic Trainer and certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Formally trained in DNS, ART, Dry Needling, Graston, FMS/SFMA and the RKC.Charlie talks about the boundaries of health and fitness professionals and how they can work together to get the best results for their clients. We talk about functional movement, squats, deadlifts, reflexive core stability, about why russian twists are obsolete, why the diaphragm is the most important core muscle, how yoga fits into an athletic training program, his DVDs including a new one he just released with Dr. Mark Cheng called Hacking the Hinge.