J takes a moment to break from his usual format to reflect on the challenges of the last year and share some of his biggest takeaways. He talks about his daughters mental health struggles and the medical care she has received, conclusions on the results of his MRI and persistent hip pain, scientific lenses in the alternative health sphere, knowing when to part ways from existing protocols, and embracing the role of spirit in yoga and healing.

Richard Rosen, author of Yoga by the Numbers: The Sacred and Symbolic in Yoga Philosophy and Practice, talks with J about keeping yoga vibrant despite life's challenges. They discuss Richard's friendship with Rodney Yee, the Piedmont Yoga Center, Iyengar method in the early days, the appropriate use of pranayama, Yogi Ramacharaka, living with Parkinson's Disease, children's poetry for adults, and the intuitive process of a rewarding life.

Elisa Malinverni, author of Yoga for Recovering Addicts: Stories of Hope and Ways of Self-Healing, returns to talk about overcoming addictions. They discuss the ways media and society distort information about addiction, the open drug scene in Berne in the eighties, opposing positions on what addiction is, when yoga becomes addictive, psychedelics and states of consciousness, and the role of prayer and spirit in overcoming challenges.

Adam Bucko, author of Let Your Heartbreak Be Your Guide: Lessons in Engaged Contemplation, talks with J about prayer and divine grace. They discuss Adam’s childhood in Poland during the totalitarian regime, a life-defining experience in India, working with homeless youth, occupy wall street and social change, monasticism, falling apart that leads to a calling, being in a state of receptivity, and transforming into more loving people.

Bernie Clark, author of the Your Body, Your Yoga Trilogy, talks with J about the completion of the third and final volume on the upper body and the larger picture of biomechanics and yoga. They discuss functional vs ascetic approaches to the body, stressing tissues, what air line pilot cockpits tell us, anti-fragility and stability, asymmetries and proportions, nocebo, the value of x-rays or MRI, and understanding that each person is unique.

Rick Olderman, author and creator of the Fixing You® Method at Home Course and for Health Professionals, talks with J about his systems thinking approach to addressing pain. They discuss the limitations of traditional physical therapy education, incorporating Anatomy Trains and Hanna Somatics, biomechanics and common patterns of dysfunction, J's body and right anterior femoral glide syndrome, and creating bridges to function.

Esther Gokhale, founder of the Gokhale Method, talks with J about alleviating pain through anthropologically informed postural work. They discuss the imprints of her childhood in India, her studies in biochemistry, the Aplomb Institute in Paris, the crippling back pain that led to her lifelong crusade, indigenous cultures and J-shaped spines, the use of wearable technology, butt muscles and gait, and learning to turn knowledge into postural habits.

Jonni Pollard, cofounder of 1 Giant Mind and author of The Golden Sequence, talks with J about Vedic Meditation and the universal nature of our existence. They discuss Bija mantras, creating a movement around social coherence, scaling group meditation, a meeting with the Dalai Lama that changed everything, the split within science, guru function, prying open subtle dimensions, and the instinct to nurture a sense of belonging.

Tanis Fishman, founder of the School of Sankulpa, talks with J about experiencing unity consciousness. They discuss surrender and awakening moments including a bad car accident Tanis was in at age 19, her travels and time at the Bihar School of Yoga, feeling beyond our mental impression storehouse, touching pure frequencies, prayer as communion with higher consciousness, and being witnessed upon the humble path.

James Swanwick, co-founder of Swanwick Sleep, talks with J about wearing blue light blockers and eliminating alcohol consumption for better health. They discuss the positive effects James observed when he stopped drinking, how it lead to producing glasses with orange lenses, the evolution from natural to artificial lighting, the ill effects of blue light on melatonin release, and creating habits that help optimize performance and well being.

Sam Wilde, founder of The Sacred Order of the Great Mother and host of the Fertile Feminist Podcast, talks with J about a connection they made years ago and nurturing a felt sense of The Great Mother. They discuss a formative conversation they happened into together two decades back, Sam's experience of not fitting into the yoga world, her work as a minister, feminist liberation theology, and being a midwife to the spirit of mothering.

Laurel Beversdorf, creator of Yoga with Resistance Bands Teacher Training and host of the Movement Logic Podcast, talks with J about the integration of resistance bands and other implements into the deeper aspects of yoga. They discuss the way persistent pain shapes practice, conditioning and the value of strength training, the demonization of yoga poses, the fallacy of certifications, definition of training, and subtle elements of discovery.

Eric Shaw, author of Sacred Thread: A Comprehensive Yoga Timeline: 2000 Events that Shaped Yoga History, talks with J about the arc of yoga and its relationship to culture from ancient times to modern day. They discuss Eric's early efforts to translate yoga scholarship into common vernacular, life on the yoga circuit, the infamous Facebook post, bifurcation at odds with unitary philosophy, and anchoring ourselves in transparency and truth.

Catherine Annis, core teacher for Intelligent Yoga Teacher Training, talks with J about Scaravelli-inspired yoga and the evolution of yoga teacher training. They discuss her start as a dancer, discovering her primary teacher, moving into a space of ease rather than seeking out challenge, structure and the use of form, meeting people where they are, defining parameters for training teachers, and having courage to share authentic experience.

Libby Hinsley, author of Yoga for Bendy People, talks with J about the prevalence and education gap regarding hypermobility syndromes. They discuss the lack of understanding and confusion around diagnosing Hypermibility Spectrum Disorder, varied issues that overly lax collagen can present, the benefit of slower and simpler movements, appropriate strength training, and the role of yoga in addressing pain and easing suffering.

Nikki Costello talks with J about the changing dynamics between yoga teachers, students, and institutions. They discuss their parallel trajectory of practice over the last thirty years, Nikki's evolution and identity as an Iyengar lineage holder, the pedagogy of liberation, dogma and co-creation, facilitating inquiry, discernment of students, the problem with scaling yoga teacher training, and reimagining the classroom to embody healing.

Sukadev Bretz, founder of Yoga Vidya, talks with J about going from being a disciple of Swami Vishnudevananda to founding a democratically run non-profit spiritual Yoga organization. They discuss what it was like to become a disciple and take vows, when institutions become more about rules than people, choosing to leave and creating something with community rights and safeguards, and allowing ourselves to be guided by the Divine.

Jeff Carreira, author of The Path of Spiritual Breakthrough: From Awakening to Cosmic Awareness, talks with J about the process of awakening into deeper awareness of our spiritual existence. They discuss the realization that there is more to reality than the sum total of everything we’ve been told exists, how we make meaning, organic growth, disappointment of a spiritual path, and embracing a field of infinite possibility as the new paradigm.

Robin Rose Bennett, author of Healing Magic: A Green Witch Guidebook to Conscious Living and The Gift of Healing Herbs, talks with J about the language of plants and the need for radical revitalization. They discuss the value of dandelion, Ginkgo biloba trees, the sacredness of dirt, turtle medicine, synchronicity, oat straw, earth spirit teachings, Robins upcoming course on Radical Self-Care, and the evolutionary impulse towards "kin-dome.".

Glenn Murphy, author and Founder of NC Systema, talks with J about the Russian martial art of Systema and the intersection of self-defense and self-development. They discuss the origins of Systema, Glenn's background in other types of martial arts, the limitations of over adherence to form, Vladimir Vasiliev and Mikhail Ryabko, remaining calm when someone punches you in the face, and experiencing yourself as part of nature.