In 2014, Jill decided she was done with her corporate job as a party planner, she wanted to be a full-time yoga teacher. The road to a successful and fulfilling career as a wellness professional was, however, harder than she anticipated.
Feeling depleted, Jill decided to enter, once again, the corporate world. But it wasn’t long before she realized she couldn’t go on living a corporate life. That’s when she entered Yoga Health Coaching.
Two years on, Jill is living her dream life, and is the YHC Coach of the month. Listen to the podcast to learn how living the habits changed Jill’s life and led her to create a successful coaching business.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• How to transition from a corporate to a wellness career
• How to be comfortable experimenting with your business
• How to turn overwhelm into action

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Learn more about the Find the Money Course
• Jill’s website
• Jill’s Instagram

Show Highlights:

• Jill talks about her postpartum depression
• Jill shares how she is making her program evergreen
• Jill explains how saying no became a superpower

Timestamps:

• 1:24 From corporate mess to a successful Yoga Health Coach
• 10:16 Implementing Easefull Living and the Habits
• 21:50 Experimenting and adjusting your business
• 32:41 Advice for people contemplating joining YHC

Guest Bio:

Jill is a yoga teacher, certified yoga health coach, and soon-to-be mom of 3. Her mothering journey began with burn out, postpartum depression and anxiety, and tons of mom guilt as she fell into the common trap of feeling like being a mom meant being a martyr.
Reconnecting to her yoga practice, incorporating Ayurveda into her daily routine, and connecting with women who were also putting themselves back on the radar were the keys to healing and reconnecting with her own power and desires. Her company Life By The Moon is what came of this transformation from burnt out cog in the wheel to creatrix of a life driven by passion and joy.
She walks with women as they awaken to their innate ability to be energized and vibrant in their bodies, patient and loving with their families, passionate in their work, connected and trusting of their intuition, delighted in the playful curiosity of wondering how GOOD life can be, and choosing a daily experience in full alignment with their own power and desires.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• Why you don’t need to be tech savvy or “just like Cate” to be a good Yoga Health Coach.
• How the habits of Body Thrive carry us through tough times.
• How to determine when you need support and when that support needs to be paid help.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Suzanne’s FB
• Suzanne’s website
• Be a coach
• Have a conversation
• Discover more about Body Thrive 
• Watch the Masterclass NOW

Show Highlights:

• 9:15 -14:47 Suzanne talks about her struggles with learning the technology needed to run an online course. Through mentoring, she learned that the tech was just a supporting component of the real work: connecting with and supporting other people.
• 14:48 – 17:59 Suzanne and Rachel discuss the process of making a course your own by utilizing your own strengths and interests and by responding to the needs and desires of your course members.
• 22:30 – 31:14 – Suzanne talks about how the habits of Body Thrive carry her through tough times in her life.
• 32:37 – 40:00 Suzanne talks about how her coaching skills have evolved and how she models the practice of the habits.
• 40:00 – 42:15 Suzanne and Rachel discuss how Yoga Health Coaches show up as we are with no pretense.
• 43:23 – 53:05 Suzanne and Rachel discuss how to determine when you need support and when that support needs to be paid help.
• 58:00 – Suzanne talks about the new framework she is using for her work: energy management, nourishment, connection, and the launch.

Favorite Quotes:

• “I’m still in a learning curve.” — Suzanne Lynch
• “Those are the things – thinking I had to be a tech expert, thinking I had to have it all done yesterday, thinking I had to be like Cate, and then dealing with life issues – the biggest life issues of my life came up in that period – so I’m really grateful for all the growth that I had, and the support of the habits, and the support of the community.” — Suzanne Lynch
• “One thing I appreciate about Yoga Health Coaching is that we’re talking about what is really happening in our lives” — Suzanne Lynch
• “This is my ministry, my work.” — Suzanne Lynch

Guest BIO:

Suzanne has been helping people get out of pain, and live happier, healthier lives for over 12 years. She has a special talent and affinity for Therapeutic Yoga, and loves helping clients feel better than they have in years. Suzanne has been a meditator for 30 years, and was certified in 2001 by the NACC as a Catholic Chaplain. She has studied yoga since 1989. Suzanne lives in Saratoga with her husband, Bruce. She is a mother of two grown children. Connect with Suzanne on her FB page and get more info on Suzanne’s website.

We have learned a lot about creating better shows, and have had great exchange and support among the YHC Podcaster community. We would like to give a big thanks to all YHC Podcast show-hosts: Rosie Tait, Annie Barrett, Carly Banks, Neve Fletcher, Brooke Bailey, Gin Burchfield, Suzanne Lynch and Grace Edison.

If you are part of the Yoga Health Coaching community, and especially if you are in YHC Mastery, feel free to apply here for our new YHC Podcast season.

Here’s to a prosperous 2019 behind the mic!

In order to celebrate our successes from the last year, here are our most successful shows in 2018:

1. How Vatas, Pittas and Kaphas Isolate and Slow Their Evolution, By Cate Stillman & Grace Edison

Cate and Grace discuss the ways the doshas affect our self-limiting behaviors and how we can use our natural tendencies as assets. Vatas are very sensitive and naturally self-isolate in their own insecurity. They get excited about things but often change direction. Pittas are fiery. They’re mentally sharp but can be critical and irritable know-it-alls. They struggle with “beginner’s mind.” Kaphas are stable and compassionate. They’re loyal, bonded, and loving, but can be stuck in their comfort zone. They resist change and can be complacent. We all have one of these tendencies. No one is exempt. Get to know what your tendency is; flip it, and it becomes an asset.

2. Mindset of Highly Successful People, By Cate Stillman & Grace Edison

Cate and Grace discuss the mindsets and habits of highly successful wellness pros. In her enrollment conversations for Yogahealer, Grace sometimes gets the sense that mindset problems are “squashing” the urgency to evolve, to be successful. Mindsets are mental habits. Highly successful people possess a strong belief in what they’re doing and they’re willing to do the “hard stuff” to reach their goals. They’ve refined the mental habit focusing on what they can accomplish right now that will get them to the future they so clearly vision. To help them with their mindset, successful wellness pros practice habits that include investing in themselves, uncompromising self care, and meditation.

3. Getting Out of your Own Way, By Grace Edison and Carly Banks

Getting in our own way happens to everyone. But it doesn’t have to. We can take the time to step back and observe our patterns, be open to changing how we converse with others and develop practices for becoming more clear on noticing it happening and taking steps to let go of those beliefs and habits. When we observe, open to change, and implement practical steps towards those changes, we get out of our own way. A career in wellness means deep self-investigation. Grace Edison and Carly Banks discuss their experiences with investigating how they get in their own way, why it happens, and what has worked for them to get rid of that habit and build in better ones.

4. How Habits Can Make or Break Your Dharma, with Brooke Bailey and Annie Barrett

Yoga teaches us how critical our patterns are, not only in shaping our bodies, but also in shaping our destinies. Through the work of habit evolution we can prepare our minds and bodies to do the deeper work of self-understanding. There is a yogic process for personal development, written about in the ancient texts of the Vedas and made actionable for modern life through the process known as The Four Desires, developed by Yogarupa Rod Stryker. In this episode of the Yoga Health Coaching podcast, Annie Barrett has a conversation with Four Desires Trainer Brooke Bailey about how the habits of dinacharya prepare us to go to new depths of self-understanding and do the work of our unique dharma.

5. Two Hashimoto’s Thrivers Talk Answers Beyond Diet, with Rosie Tait & Gin Burchfield

Over 20 million people in the USA are affected by thyroid disease, and in the UK 15 in 1000 women are affected. Hormone replacement is routinely prescribed without any reference or regard to underlying cause. But there is good news! For those who are prepared to look outside the traditional medical model, functional medicine has an enormous amount to offer. But much of what is offered is based around dietary advice. Ayurveda has something unique to offer, and it’s particularly helpful for the those who suffer from a Pitta imbalance (you may know this as a Type A personality). In this episode, two members of the Yoga Health Coaching community who suffer from Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis share their root causes, their pre-diagnosis lifestyles, and how they each came to realize that dietary changes alone were just scratching the surface for recovery and maintaining health.

6. Break Free from Old Beliefs, and Design the Life You Want, By Cate Stillman & Grace Edison

Often, we tell ourselves that it takes a certain type of person to achieve the things we want in life, and that we just don’t have what it takes. We come up with all kinds of reasons that we can’t do what we want, or be who we want to be. We get stuck in old mental patterns, or samskaras, and believe that this is just the way life is. In today’s episode, Cate and Grace talk about all the ways we disqualify ourselves, and how we can break out of these limiting beliefs and outdated patterns to design the person we want to be, the business we want to create, and the life we want to live.

7. How I Stopped Pressing the Snooze Button and Woke Up to My Own Life, By Carly & Amarylis Fernandez

All too often, potential pro healers fall into lives and patterns that society deems “normal” only to find themselves years later unhappy, burnt out, and unfulfilled. Such was the case with Amarylis Fernandez. She thought she was doing everything “right.” She had a husband, education, a home and career, yet felt lost in her life. She set the bar low for herself, accepting low paying work and settling in her marriage. The life she was leading wasn’t bringing her joy, and she felt like she was just wandering through it. After the birth of her daughter, Amarylis came to her breaking point. Taking small steps toward health, Amarylis found Yogahealer. No longer pressing the “snooze” button, Amarylis has transitioned out of her old life. She is experiencing joy, and she is waking up to the possibilities this new way of life holds for her.

8. The Power of Integrity and Authenticity, By Carly&Luisa Doerstel

Yoga health coach Luisa Doerstel is a yoga teacher who was running around with a full schedule, trying to make ends meet. She felt ungrounded, unstable, and frustrated, especially because she knew that she was out of integrity with what she was teaching. She came to a point where she knew she needed to either quit or shift. So she shifted. She brought her struggles into her classes and integrated what she was learning with what she was teaching. By revealing herself, she deepened her connection with her students. She now leaves her classes feeling energized rather than depleted.

9. How to Make Health Fun: Yoga Health Coaching Tips, By Neve Fletcher and Suzanne Lynch

Yoga health coaches Neve Grace Fletcher and Suzanne Lynch chat about what they have learned about creating fun, authentic, in-person experiences for their course members. When Neve posted pictures of her course members having fun together in person, it inspired Suzanne to start organizing meet-ups for her course members as well. Suzanne coaches a large local contingent with whom she organizes monthly meet ups that revolve around her own strengths and interests. She also hosts open houses on Friday evenings that are open to anyone: friends, neighbors, local public figures. As a yoga health coach, when you’re having fun, you’ll naturally attract new members and elevate the entire experience for everyone!

10. When Our Ego Keeps Us From Connection + Growth, By Cate Stillman & Grace Edison

Cate and Grace dive into the spicy and edgy topic on how to move from a place of feeling pissed to a place of empowerment. Our egos have a tendency to bring us down with the 4 D’s of defense, distraction, discounting, and denial.  What we need is to take action and stand up to ourselves by making connections with our peers and forming strong and honest bonds. By forming peer groups we have a better ability to overcome our negative thoughts and habits. We gently nudge our egos out of the way in order to stay on our true paths towards connection and growth. In listening to the feedback our peers give us, we are able to build trust and gain confidence in ourselves and grow at a rapid rate, breaking through our glass ceilings.

What you’ll get out of tuning in

• How to inspire others via your own transformation
• How to finally lose weight and keep it off for good with new habits
• How to detox safely and naturally with a group and a leader

Top 5 YHC Podcasts in the first quarter

This is our 25th YHC Podcast episode and we want to celebrate with Top 5 YHC Podcast episodes in our first quarter of publishing:

1. Learn to Time Bend with Dana Skoglund + Annie Barrett, By Annie Barrett
2. The Habits for Hope in Healing with Annette Shellenbarger, By Cate Stillman
3. From Fibromyalgia + Chronic Fatigue to Yoga Health Coaching with Lynn Taylor, By Cate Stillman
4. YHC Personal Evolution Paths with Grace Edison + Dr. Michele Colon, By Grace Edison
5. Hashimoto’s Autoimmune Disease: Healing with Yoga Health Coaching, By Cate Stillman

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Catch the last Yogidetox offer 3 for 1 
• Yoga Health Coaching
• Diabetic Recipes and Juicing Recipes for Diabetics
• A Simple Ayurvedic Juice Cleanse
• Kitchari Recipe
• Diabetes & Your Feet
• YogiDetox Fall

Show Highlights:

• 0:30 — Dr. Michele explains how she lost 30 pounds in a year at the age of 48 by doing a seasonal detox
• 2:20 — Dr. Michele explains what the Yogidetox is and why she think it works
• 3:35 — Dr. Michele discusses her results with the detox
• 6:15 — Dr. Michele explains why it works best in a group setting
• 7:30 — Dr. Michele explains why it’s important for you to get clear on your why
• 10:30 — Dr. Michele discusses what she eats during the Yogidetox
• 12:15 —  Dr. Michele reminds us that we need to set aside a little bit of time to have a successful detox

Favorite Quotes:

• “Sometimes it just has to be a firm ‘no’.”
• “I’ve kept all of the weight off.”
• “When you change your habits, you incorporate them into your daily life.”
• “Get really clear on your vision.”
• “It doesn’t have to be an all-liquid diet.”
• “People don’t want to waste their money on expensive supplements and powders.”
• “Getting older doesn’t mean you have to gain weight.”

Habits Were My Game Changer

I made it my mission to find ways that would help me feel better. I’ve changed my diet many times. I went vegetarian for 6 years, gluten free, paleo, and even keto. I deepened my yoga practice, tried herbs, relaxation, energy healing, and cannabis. I couldn’t find any relief. Nothing seemed to work. I just kept feeling more tired, weaker and less energetic. Then, in the spring of 2016, I came across Yogahealer. I learned about Ayurveda and habits. I got the support I needed and I found tools to evolve my habits and implement them into my daily life. That was a game changer.

Even though I still have a chronic condition, my daily routine has supported me in enjoying a better quality of life. My daily practices helped me to get in touch with my body and listen to it with awareness and intention. I now give my body what it needs on a daily basis. The habits have taught me to love myself fully, and to be at ease with what is. My daily routine has helped my digestive system heal and sync with the rhythms of the nature that surround me. I now care for my senses, and most importantly, I live in integrity with my own values.

The 10 Habits of Body Thrive Have Power and Wisdom

Earlier lighter dinner, early to bed, start the day right, breath body practices, plant based diet, self massage, sitting in silence, healthier eating guidelines, sense organ care, easeful living. These 10 habits rooted in Ayurveda contain such power and wisdom, that if you introduce them into your life and stick with them, your experience on this earth will improve greatly in many different and surprising ways. These are all simple practices that when done daily, they’ll start to become automatic behaviors that form a healthy routine. That is the goal.

In the science of habit change, we have what are called keystone habits. These are a single or a set of behaviors that hold all of the other habits in place. In my case, I have a couple of keystone habits.

Early to bed is my first keystone habit. This habit is so important to me because a big part of my condition is fatigue and low energy. Going to bed early guarantees I get enough time and quality sleep for me. I usually go to bed in between 9:30 pm and 10pm. After I get in bed, I normally don’t have any trouble staying asleep and resting all night.

My Tips on How To Get Your Zzzzs

I get that this is not the case for everyone, so if you have trouble sleeping throughout the night or resting fully, I recommend you try a few things. One of them is self massage with warm oil before bed. You can massage your whole body, your feet, or just your head, whatever works better for you. Another tip is to try reducing the amount of fluid you consume after 6pm to avoid having to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. My final tip is to make sure your room is as dark as you can possibly make it. Close all the shades or try wearing a sleep mask. Stop all interactions with electronic devices at least an hour before bed, to avoid mental stimulation and the amount of blue light that your eyes receive. The blue light tricks your brain into thinking it’s daytime.

I Sit in Silence And It Really Makes A Difference

My second keystone habit is to sit in silence. The nature of my condition and my own ayurvedic constitution is strongly Vata. I have an overactive nervous system, and doing a silent meditation first thing in the morning has helped me tremendously to start my day in a calm, grounded and aware state. The way I sit in silence is practicing mindfulness meditation. I’ve been doing this for several years, and it has had a huge impact in my life. It’s given me perspective, as well as helped me to see and accept things as they are. Using meditation, I have become much more in touch with myself. Keep in mind that meditation is not the only way to practice this habit. You could just sit in a quiet and comfortable space and breathe. Or you could practice contemplation. Really, the point is to do something that provides a space for you to calm yourself and shed any worries or stress. Meditation allows you to get quiet and into a grounded state. There are many ways to do that.

Another couple of habits that I’ve found helpful for my condition are self massage and an earlier lighter dinner. Self Massage provides me with a sense of comfort and groundedness to my body. The oil brings an element of heaviness which is just what I need for my light and airy constitution and my nerves. An earlier lighter dinner helps my body wind down and relax before bed without a heavy and full feeling in my stomach. Eating an earlier, lighter dinner allows space for my body to do housekeeping overnight without any strain.

I Need to Keep Moving!

Because of the feeling of weakness and fatigue I often have, I tend to avoid major physical activity and in turn I find myself settling into sedentary behaviors. Thankfully, I usually catch myself. For me implementing a breath body practice has been quite challenging, but very beneficial. I see how easy it is for me to just sit around when I don’t feel well, but my body needs movement to be able to circulate and awaken energy. Think about it, if you feel tired and unenergized and you sit around and become stagnant, those feelings are going to keep sinking you down deeper. If you move your body intentionally a little bit every day at different times throughout the day, you’ll start to awaken and produce the energy that your body is lacking.

Baby Steps Lead The Way

I’ve been approaching the implementation of this habit with small incremental improvements otherwise known as KAIZEN. The idea is to start introducing practices or actions in small increments. You can start easy and working your way up. One habit changing idea that has worked for me is is this. I start with five minutes of yoga everyday after meditation. Then I apply a 5-minute increase in my practice every other week until I reach my desired goal regarding the length of my practice. So far, I’ve found this to be the easiest way to implement new habits or behaviors into my life.

Simple Actions Can Change Your Life

In conclusion, no matter what your condition is – healthy, chronically ill or somewhere in between, the implementation of these practices will improve the quality of your life in many different forms. The way these practices have helped me and the results I have received may be very different from your own experience with them. Yet me sharing my own story is just a way of showing the power and wisdom that the habits inherently contain. My hope is to give you the push you need to start to practice these simple actions and make them part of your life, one habit at a time. And if you are already doing it, to encourage you to continue and cherish your daily habits like your life depends on them, because let’s be honest, it kind of does.

Like many YHC members, Luisa is a yoga teacher who was running around with a full schedule, trying to make ends meet. She felt ungrounded, unstable, and frustrated, especially because she knew that she was out of integrity with what she was teaching. She came to a point where she knew she needed to either quit or shift. So she shifted. She brought her struggles into her classes and integrated what she was learning with what she was teaching. By revealing herself, she deepened her connection with her students. She now leaves her classes feeling energized rather than depleted.

As a yoga health coach, Luisa’s approach is the same. She emphasizes getting back into flow, rhythm, and integrity with your authentic self and with nature.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• How the ten habits of Body Thrive leads us to deeper connection with ourselves and others.
• Why wellness pros sometimes feel out of integrity with what they are teaching.
• What you can do to establish connection and authenticity on and off the yoga mat.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Body Thrive Course
• Body Thrive Book
• YHC Have a conversation
• Luisa’s facebook
• Luisa’s website 

Show Highlights:

• 2:30 – Like many YHC members, Luisa is a yoga teacher who was running around with a full schedule, trying to make ends meet. She felt ungrounded, unstable, and frustrated, especially because she knew that she was out of integrity with what she was teaching.
• 5:15 – In our Western culture, yoga is often viewed as just another form of exercise. Too often, we focus on asana (the poses) and ignore the other 7 limbs. The 10 habits of Body Thrive are a deeper dive into the eight-fold path of yoga that brings us into integrity with and to a deeper understanding of our selves.
• 7:10 – Luisa has used the tools of Body Thrive to show up in a different way to her students and course members. Rather than creating an illusion of a teacher who is perfect in all ways, Luisa started to reveal her true self: someone who isn’t always happy, someone who doesn’t always feel good, and someone who was suffering from hormonal imbalances. She brought her struggles into her classes and integrated what she was learning with what she was teaching. By revealing herself, she deepened her connection with her students.
• 11:30 – As a yoga health coach, Luisa’s approach is the same. She emphasizes getting back into flow, rhythm, and integrity with your self and with nature.

Favorite Quotes:

• “I feel like the ten habits of Body Thrive really brought me to that place where I was finally connecting and understanding what my body needed.” — Carly Banks
  “I think you really need this connection to yourself first to connect with others because only then do you get this opening. But at first you have to ground yourself. You have to feel this heartbeat, this breath. Get to know yourself.” — Luisa Doerstel
• “If you’re unstable and if you’re kind of falling apart and trying to be something or someone in this search . . . you lose your essence.” — Luisa Doerstel

Guest BIO:

Luisa Doerstel is a yoga teacher living in Cologne, Germany.  As a certified  Yoga Alliance Yoga teacher RYS 200 , she teaches a mix of Iyengar, Jivamukti and Vinyasa Flow with elements of dance and martial arts. In her yoga practice, Luisa seeks to convey special qualities of movement by combining static postures with vinyasa flows to cultivate flexibility and strength, tension and relaxation, and sensitivity for one’s own body. She is currently in training as a Yoga Health Coach with Cate Stillman. With constant curiosity and a deep desire for knowledge and development, Luisa continues to educate herself through workshops, trainings and further education. Contact Luisa Doerstel on her FB page and her website.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• How the habits of Body Thrive are transformational for families.
• How Ayurveda can help kids with special needs.
• How Yoga Health Coaching is adaptable to segments of the population you are already in and working with.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Body Thrive Course
• Body Thrive Book
• YHC Have a conversation
• Living Ayurveda

Show Highlights:

• 2:20 – Tania has taken the 10 habits program to a niche segment of the population that she is a part of: parents and caregivers of children with additional needs. Often those parents and caregivers neglect self care and focus solely on providing care to others. Tania’s mission is to help them put themselves first so that they can show up as their best selves and provide even better care to others.
• 3:50 – Tania is a foster mom who is raising eight children: six of her own and two adopted children. One of her adopted children has fetal alcohol syndrome and one of her daughters was born with a cleft lip and palate. She spent a lot of time traveling to doctors and children’s hospitals and she found herself suffering from “compassion fatigue.” She was tired, overwhelmed, and, consequently, less patient with her family. Her business was suffering as well. Stress relief came in the form of snacking and nightly glass of wine.
• 7:15 – When Tania enrolled in the Living Ayurveda course, it forced her to take an honest look at how she was living and coping. Now, even though she is doing more, she doesn’t overextend herself. The result is a sense of ease and the ability to show up more fully for herself and her family.
• 8:18 – After Living Ayurveda, Tania enrolled in Yoga Health Coaching so that she could help other moms like her.
• 9:50 – Tania was drawn to Ayurveda when she started researching natural ways to treat her daughter’s ADHD. As a result, she and her family are eating a much healthier diet and her daughter does not require medication to control her ADHD. Instead, her daughter practices yoga, meditation, and self massage.
• 12:30 – Tania and her husband have 8 children and have fostered nearly 100 through respite work.
• 13:22 – Carly is also teaching her kids about the habits of Body Thrive. The result is a calmer, healthier family. Both of these women are empowering their families with self care practices.

Favorite Quotes:

• “These habits should be foundational teachings for every person. They are wholly transformative for families.” — Carly Banks
• “I’ve lived it, so I get it. I know that sometimes we forget to take care of ourselves, and that’s one of things that I see in a lot of the parents I support. They’re always reaching out for their kids . . . . Sometimes we forget to put ourselves first so that we can do the best job we can.” — Tania Milliken

Guest BIO:

Tania is a foster mom who is raising eight children. She was drawn to Ayurveda when she started researching natural ways to treat her daughter’s ADHD. She enrolled in the Yogahealer Living Ayurveda course and took an honest look at how she was living and coping. She implemented positive shifts in her family’s daily routine, and the results were profound. As a yoga health coach, Tania has taken the 10 habits program to a niche segment of the population that she is a part of: parents and caregivers of children with additional needs. Tania’s mission is to help them put themselves first so that they can show up as their best selves and provide even better care to others.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• How Yogahealer retreats facilitate growth and self-revelation.
• Why you need to connect with yourself before you can connect with others.
• What role the divine feminine plays in our wellness careers.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Body Thrive Course
• Body Thrive Book
• YHC Have a conversation
• Women’s Power to Heal
• Catch the Extended Early Bird offer $699 for SLC retreat!

Show Highlights:

• 0:45 – Often we go on on retreat in order to experience a breakthrough, a revelation, or to boost motivation, and often, not long after returning from retreat, we slip back into our old ways.
• 1:25 – Kristen went to the Yogahealer Mexico retreat thinking in the back of her mind that she would like to leave the retreat with a two-year exit strategy for her day job. What she found upon arrival is that her agenda “floated away” and she simply wanted to immerse herself in the community. Kristen was a panelist for a group talk on the first night of the retreat. She was asked how the habits of Body Thrive had changed her life. In the moment, sensing deep connection with and receptivity from the community, and with no fear of being judged, she found herself exposing parts of herself that she had been hiding for a very long time.
• 3:00 – With a history of anorexia, spinal osteoporosis, amenorrhea, the habits have allowed Kristen to step out of the shadows and reconnect with her feminine energy. Rather than leaving with an exit plan, Kristen left with an entry plan back to her divine feminine nature. That shift in her has changed the way she coaches her course members.
• 6:17 – Carly experienced a similar shift, although she describes it a bit differently: a shift from a head-forward approach to a heart-forward approach. She now tracks her menstrual cycles so that she can optimize each phase for the benefit of her business.
• 8:00 – Coming out of the retreat, rather than slipping back into old ways, both Carly and Kristen have shifted into new levels of flow and new ways of coaching. Things are coming together easefully and new opportunities are arising. Kristen was experiencing some resistance to enrolling new course members, so rather than stressing herself out trying to meet a quota, she decided to more deeply nurture her current course members. She has found new ways to nurture her feminine nature, the water element, creativity and flow.
• 10:50 – As wellness pros, we are here to be of service. In connection with the divine feminine, we (men and women alike) hold the power of transformation. By balancing the masculine and feminine, or the head and the heart, we can build a business around nurturance of ourselves and others.
• 12:28 – The Mexico retreat allowed Carly to recognize and codify her values so that she could bring those into her business. She states that she would not have been able to do that without first tapping into the feminine energy. YHC provides the structure and content for your business, but it was the retreat experience that allowed Carly to marry that to her unique values.
• 13:25 – In her recent blog, Kristen likens the retreat experience to trees in a forest. Each tree is made stronger by its connection to the others.
• 14:30 – The next retreat will be in September in Salt Lake City. YHC and the retreats provide a community that facilitates connection, growth and fun.

Favorite Quotes:

• “I want to make love to these habits. I feel so strongly . . . I feel so connected to them.” — Kristen Polzien
• “What I’m finding, and what I’m feeling in this community, is that that level of connection with yourself is a priority. . . . You need to have that before you can truly connect with people.” — Kristen Polzien
• “We really get interested in our values, as a group, and building a business in a way that aligns with our values.” — Carly Banks

Guest BIO:

inspires and enables people to care for themselves so that they may enjoy Vibrant Wellbeing. Kristen has a Ph.D. in exercise physiology and has devoted 20+ years to health and weight management research. Coaching behavior change is Kristen’s Zone of Genius. Kristen guides dynamic groups to cultivate sensational self-care habits, rooted in Ayurveda (the healing sister science of Yoga). Kristen’s members transform their identities from complacent and overwhelmed to awake and easeful. Kristen’s gift of passionate reflection illuminates a path for people live a more Sensational, Engaged, Expressive life. Enjoy a free 7-day VibrantAdventure with Kristen at her website.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• How our limiting beliefs keep us from earning in accordance with the wisdom we possess.
• Why Yoga Health Coaching is a such a successful business model.
• What is underlying your desire for lifestyle freedom.

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Body Thrive Course
• Body Thrive Book
• YHC Have a conversation
• Catch the Extended Early Bird offer $699 for SLC retreat!

Show Highlights:

• 0:30 – Spring has sprung, and it has sparked creativity and pro-generative juices. There has been a lot of talk on the forums about creating unique offerings, signature programs. Cate gives the example of Yoga Health Coaching, which marries Ayurveda with a freedom-based, location-independent lifestyle. Cate used to offer a signature-system-building program. What she found was that it was really difficult for most people to do that while maintaining an income-producing job. The second thing she found was that even with a good signature system, marketing and enrolling for the course also took a great deal of time and was actually where the majority of one’s time would be spent. So she started offering Yoga Health Coaching as a signature system for others to use.
• 7:10 – As wellness pros, we’ve invested heavily in our wisdom, yet many of us have trouble asking others to do the same by investing in our courses. Yoga Health Coaching teaches us why it’s not only right to do so, but that we may be doing a disservice to others by not asking them to do so. YHC course members are trained in mindset (our own mindset and the mindset of potential course members) so that we can begin to earn at the next level in accordance with the wisdom we possess using a proven signature system.
• 8:55 – Yoga Health Coaching is a “business in a box” that is customizable and allows us to capitalize on our own unique strengths. For Grace, the content was exactly the kind of information she wanted to deliver to her course members, so she was able to concentrate on simply becoming a better coach and finding the language for her marketing that would attract the kind of people she wants to work with.
• 11:00 – Your knowledge and skills are much more directed when you’re creating within the YHC model. Building a signature system has now shifted into YHC Mastery. If there’s a proven system, and you’re in a peer group with others who are working the same system and having success, you quickly realize that if you aren’t, you’re the problem. In YHC, your peer group is there to help you work through that.
• 13:00 – Sometimes wellness pros create a great signature system, but don’t know how to market it or enroll members. Other times, we create signature systems that aren’t that effective. The reason why YHC is so successful is that the Body Thrive system is effective and we learn how to successfully market and enroll members. It can also be niched to very specific segments of the general population, and because you run your pilot program during your training, you get paid to test it!
• 15:30 – Working one on one with clients can be exhausting and often leads to burnout because you’re not able to work with them at the level of depth you know is possible. Part of the YHC enrollment process is admitting that what you’ve been doing isn’t working.
• 17:30 – YHC builds colleague to colleague to relationships that result in deep connection, shared context and a “master mind” effect.
• 20:17 – While lifestyle freedom might rank high on your wishlist, usually, what is underlying that is a desire for deeper connection in your relationships, including online relationships with course members and colleagues, which will help you grow and evolve personally and professionally.
• 24:45 – If you want to uplevel your peer group, you have to be proactive about it. As simple and as streamlined as YHC is, it’s still a challenging program that forces you to uplevel and shift your mindset about limitations.

Favorite Quotes:

• “If you have a blank canvas, and you can create a signature system given everything that you know, it’s actually a harder place to start than when someone’s like, ‘This is the universe. Create within here.’ — Cate Stillman
• “What we looked at in Yoga Health Coaching is How do we pivot in real time? How do we pivot to the kind of work we want to be doing, the kind of depth we want to be working at, the kind of people we want to be working with, at a level of depth of investment.” — Cate Stillman
• “When you have no resistance to the method and the methodology, things happen really, really, really fast!” — Cate Stillman

Guest BIO:

Grace Edison lives in British Columbia, Canada. She’s a mom of twin 8 year olds, a Yoga teacher, studio owner, and Yoga Health Coach — and she also works for Cate Stillman in Admissions at Yogahealer! More than anything, she loves to make people laugh and has a not-so-secret dream of doing stand-up comedy. Grace has a strong passion for empowering others to take their health and wellness into their own hands. She loves building authentic relationships, making people laugh, and creating supportive communities. After a long-standing relationship with severe depression, Grace has found deep relief through the habits of Ayurveda — and much credit is due to Cate and her Body Thrive program. After taking Body Thrive several times and jumping into Yoga Health Coaching, Grace came aboard the Yogahealer team.

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• Why it’s important to look beyond diet for answers to Hashimoto’s
• Why it’s important to look for early signs of Hashimoto’s
• Why being gentle with yourself is key to Hashimoto’s recovery

Links Mentioned in Episode:

• Body Thrive Course
• Body Thrive Book
• YHC Have a conversation
• Gin Burchfield website 
• Dr. Izabella Wentz website
• Stacey Robbins website
• Hashimoto’s book

Show Highlights:

• 4:00 – The western medical model is very limited in terms of autoimmune issues. Functional and holistic medicine look at the entire body as a system, rather than a set of separate systems, and focuses on holistic wellness rather than medication.
• 8:20 – The daily habits of Ayurveda form the foundation for wellness. They are so much more than just diet, and they are hugely important for Hashimoto’s recovery.
• 11:30 – Ignoring our body’s needs and signs of degeneration will only worsen our conditions. It is important to address early patterns of disease in your life in order to prevent more severe disease later.
• 17:30 – Often, we are rewarded for behavior that gets the job done now but will ultimately lead to our burnout. It is important to be aware of this and instead of becoming addicted to high intensity and forced drive, to get into flow.
• 28:00 – Sunlight and connection with nature is critical not only for people with Hashimoto’s, but for all of us!

Favorite Quotes:

• “The medical model is extremely limited.” – Rosie Tait
• “Now that we’ve found dinacharya, it’s safe to say that the habits just form the foundation.” – Rosie Tait
• “With autoimmune disease in general, it is important that we are as soft with ourselves as possible.” – Gin Burchfield
• “Can we be forgiving with ourselves? Can we be gentle with the way that we express those habits?” – Gin Burchfield
• “What if easeful living is the way?” – Gin Burchfield

Guest BIO:

Gin began her career in massage, Ayurveda, yoga, and wellness in 2001, and has been in private practice in Raleigh and Cary, NC since 2008. She now specializes in Medical Massage Therapy and Ayurveda. Gin has also served as faculty in the Therapeutic Massage program at Wake Technical Community College since 2009 and enjoys her work as a Montessori Yoga and Anatomy Instructor through her self-developed “My Body is Science” program. She is currently studying to become a Certified Yoga Health Coach and is offering her new group-coaching formatted, 10-week program PURE HEALTH four times per year. Prior to this, she had the distinction of working at the Chopra Center for Wellbeing, founded by renowned physician and author Deepak Chopra. Here she learned Ayurvedic Massage Therapy and Panchakarma (detoxification) administration. She served as Assistant Supervisor in the Chopra Center Spa before being recruited to work as Therapeutic Bodywork Team Lead at Wellspace, a large integrative healthcare center formerly located in Boston, MA. Check her website and facebook page.