Mike Huggins - "Prison Yoga"

Mike Huggins - "Prison Yoga"

Mike Huggins, founder of Transformation Yoga Project and author of Going OM: A CEO's Journey from a Prison Facility to Spiritual Tranquility, talks with J about the turn of events that took him from the top of a corporate ladder to federal prison. They discuss his work in applying yoga practices for addiction recovery and trauma-related issues, the personal realities of incarceration, and serving on a board together at Liberation Prison Yoga.

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Peter Blackaby - "Beyond Anatomy"

Peter Blackaby - "Beyond Anatomy"

Peter Blackaby, author of Intelligent Yoga, talks with J about how he went from Iyengar yoga and an anatomical approach to a view that encompasses the complex relationship between things. They discuss some of his influences, including Vanda Scaravelli, Serge Krakovetsky, and Stanley Kellerman, the idea of functionality, and letting go of yoga practice as a form of physical exercise.

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Helene Couvrette - "Montreal International Symposium on Therapeutic Yoga”

Helene Couvrette - "Montreal International Symposium on Therapeutic Yoga”

Helene Courvrette, co-founder of MISTY-Montreal International Symposium on Therapeutic Yoga, talks with J about her passion for bringing people together to share and learn. They discuss some of the deep tragedies and losses that Helene has endured, how they led to the work she does as a Yoga Therapist and organizer of MISTY, and the miracle of life that fueled it all. They also touch on the difficulties of organizing events and yoga centers.

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Alex Auder - "Magu Yoga, Old-School in Philly PA”

Alex Auder - "Magu Yoga, Old-School in Philly PA”

Alex Auder, director of Magu Yoga and old friend of J, talks about her mothers' relationship to Andy Warhol, growing up in the Chelsea Hotel, NYC in the 80’s, the early formative times of Jivamukti Yoga, and the fierce determination of independent yoga center owners to make shit happen. They also compare and contrast the current landscape of social media and teacher trainings with how things were in the older days of yoga industry.

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Dui Turner and Carol Horton - "Yoga With Veterans”

Dui Turner and Carol Horton - "Yoga With Veterans”

Dui Turner and Carol Horton have a conversation with J about the Yoga Service Council and the recent publication of Best Practices For Yoga WIth Veterans. Dui shares her story of nineteen years in military service, her passion for the healing arts, and how she is bringing them together. Carol joins in to speak about her role on the council and to give further insight into the process of creating consensus and community.

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Theo Wildcroft - "Re-Wilding Yoga"

Theo Wildcroft - "Re-Wilding Yoga"

J brings Theo Wildcroft on the show after a lovely shout-out online that also included a playful jab about the lack of guests from outside North America. They discuss her research inquiring into the democratization of physical practice, the convergence of yoga and activism, and the radical impact of “pagans doing yoga in fields.” Theo was also around for the Anusara meltdown, and teaches yoga to children with special needs.

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Douglas Rushkoff - "Team Human"

Douglas Rushkoff - "Team Human"

Serendipity brings Douglas Rushkoff, author of Throwing Rocks at the Google Bus and Aleister & Adolf, and host of Team Human podcast, to J’s basement for a conversation on the digital age and the economic effects of information technology on human well-being. They discuss Rushkoff’s writing trajectory, chronicling the evolution of the internet from its early open source origins to its corporate controlled iteration of today.

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Brenda Feuerstein - "Georg’s Legacy"

Brenda Feuerstein - "Georg’s Legacy"

J has the honor of talking to Brenda Feuerstein, wife of the late Georg Feuerstein. Georg’s writings have been a huge influence on J and this was a special opportunity to learn about a man he considers a teacher but never met in person. They discuss Brenda’s relationship to Georg, on both personal and professional levels, and the work of continuing his legacy. They share in mutual appreciation for the deeper aspects of practice.

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Susanna Harwood Rubin - "Devi Soul and Yoga 365”

Susanna Harwood Rubin - "Devi Soul and Yoga 365”

J hangs out with Susanna Harwood Rubin, author of Yoga 365, in her Manhattan apartment for an intimate conversation about the early years of the NY scene and how things have gone since then. Susanna shares some early shaping experiences transitioning from art world to yoga world, her perspective on the rise and fall of Anusara, and her love of studying yoga philosophy. They also talk about Hindu deities and her new book.

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Brian Leaf - "Garden State Yogi"

Brian Leaf - "Garden State Yogi"

Brian Leaf, author of Misadventures of a Garden State Yogi and Misadventures of a Parenting Yogi, is a mutual friend of J’s producer. They knew of each other for years but this is the first time they actually met. They discuss Brian’s work helping students manage ADD and overcome standardized-tests, how he overcame ulcerative colitis through yoga and Ayurveda, his devotion to Swami Kripalu, and coming from a place of knowing.

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Katchie Ananda - "Jivamukti Vet, Spiritual Midwife"

Katchie Ananda - "Jivamukti Vet, Spiritual Midwife"

Life comes full circle for J in this conversation with Katchie Ananda, his first ever and beloved teacher. They talk about early times when the NY yoga scene was just burgeoning, Katchie’s move away from NY to Colorado to study with Richard Freeman, her time in Anusara and relationship to John Friend, and the dharma path that she is following today. They touch base on how things have changed, and the need for "all hands on deck."

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Roslyn Brown - "J’s eldest daughter at age 7”

Roslyn Brown - "J’s eldest daughter at age 7”

On the occasion of her seventh birthday, J shares some conversations with his eldest daughter, Roslyn Brown. He promised her that they were recording a “real” podcast and, after a recent incident where he maybe wasn’t there for her as a father, he felt compelled to make good on his promise. They talk about animals, her baby sister, her mom, and whether they should stay in Brooklyn or move somewhere else.

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Ryan & Kate - “Unrolled Podcast”

Ryan & Kate - “Unrolled Podcast”

J sits down with Ryan Cunningham and Kate Robinson, hosts of Unrolled, for a lively conversation in Ryan’s kitchen just after a workshop at his center, Bow St. Yoga in Sommerville MA. They talk about how Ryan went from being a former-manager to a yoga center owner, showers, the awesomeness that is Unrolled Podcast, why J does Sanskrit chanting and if the name of his podcast is lame, and forging new models for yoga going forward.

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Shelly Prosko - “Physio Yoga”

Shelly Prosko - “Physio Yoga”

J talks with Shelly Prosko, founder of Physio Yoga, about her mission to integrate yoga into the healthcare system. Shelly shares some of her personal story of how a random injury catapulted her work incorporating medical therapeutic yoga and traditional physical therapy. They discuss the difference between bringing medicine into yoga and yoga into medicine, the limitations of allopathic models, and the need for clarity of scope.

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Erich Schiffmann - “Freedom Yoga”

Erich Schiffmann - “Freedom Yoga”

J talks to one of the greats, Erich Schiffmann. This is the first time they have ever spoken to each other and Erich takes J through some history and a bevy of tales that speak to the coming of yoga into the west and mainstream. They discuss what it’s like to have lunch with J Krishnamurti and get slapped by BKS Iyengar, the origins of the traveling yoga career, free-form yoga, and learning how to learn from your own practice.

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Cristina Kuhn - “Living with MS”

Cristina Kuhn - “Living with MS”

Cristina Kuhn returns to talk with J about the one big thing they didn’t discuss last time they got together, her MS. She shares what it was like to be diagnosed, conventional and alternative treatments, the emotional impact, and the resolve to carry on with life. They also touch base on how business is going at her center, the Yogi Underground in Falls Church, VA.

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Cyndi Lee - “OM Yoga”

Cyndi Lee - “OM Yoga”

Cyndi Lee, founder of the influential OM Yoga center, was someone who set the stage for people like J. After running in the same circles for years, they finally get a chance to meet. They talk about Cyndi’s personal journey into yoga and Tibetan Buddhism, yoga coming into the mainstream, the story of how OM Yoga came into existence and why it had to close, and the way things are playing out now.

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Joey Slater-Milligan - “Yoga of Wheatus”

Joey Slater-Milligan - “Yoga of Wheatus”

J talks with Joey Slater-Milligan, background vocalist from the band Wheatus. Joey graduated from J’s teacher training program a while back and they take some time to learn about each other outside of the practice space. Joey shares her journey from a small village in England to playing arena-sized shows with a band she started out selling t-shirts for. They also discuss why she decided to do teacher training and her young adult sci-fi novel ‘PSY’.

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Jason Crandell - “Professional Responsibility”

Jason Crandell - “Professional Responsibility”

Jason Crandell has always been on J’s radar as someone of his generation who managed to break through into the mainstream. They talk about early days of yoga journal cruises, what it takes to launch a yoga career, the invent of yoga teacher training, social media literacy, realities and issues facing current yoga business models, raising the educational bar and holding teacher trainers accountable.

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Wendy Reese - “Whole Being Zone”

Wendy Reese - “Whole Being Zone”

J returns the favor and brings on Wendy Reese, host of The Whole Being Zone Podcast. They talk about the horrors of having crappy internet service, what the yoga scene is like in a town of five hundred people, the journey from fitness to wholeness, dealing with mental illness, learning to love yourself, the practicality of psychic power, and how to build community. They also discuss her new book Alchemy of Yoga: Living Yoga Off the Mat.

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