Yoga Strong

There is a fear many of us face when we have to stand up in a crowd or at the front of a room and make ourselves heard. Maybe you ask yourself, “Who am I to be doing this? What right do I have?” The thing about Impostor Syndrome is that it’s just a made up name, something a handful of people decided to call a feeling one day. Everything in this life is something that someone decided to just make up… so why can’t we do that, too? Because all of us deserve to be out there, owning our voices and owning who we are and what we want in this world. We all should take up space because when we do, we’re making space for others to do the same. It’s scary, yes, but it gets better when we just keep going. So let’s keep taking up space, and let’s keep making space for others to do the same.Listen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

Serenity Messner never thought she’d find her way to strength training, much less own her own gym. Lifting weights feels like the direct opposite of Yoga, but the two practices compliment each other, and both exist to make your life outside of the classroom and outside of the gym better. In this conversation with Serenity, we talk about what it’s like to be a beginner at something, enjoying the lifelong journey of fitness, Serenity’s journey to finding kettlebells, dealing with impostor syndrome, building community through the gym, and how Serenity allows herself to be held and she leads and holds up so many people.Connect with Serenity: Instagram, Website, Generation Strength AkronListen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

I’ve been thinking about wellness lately. As someone who works within the wellness “industry” there is so much to discuss around what it means to be well. You might know, I’ve been dealing with a lot of back pain in recent months, and it’s been a lesson in listening to my body, to what my pain is trying to tell me. If living Yoga Strong is all about the practice of paying attention, how have I been paying attention to my own body and self, the stress and the pain, and everything else wrapped up in that? How can we all find stillness listen to our pain, in order to find out what it is our bodies may want or need that we haven’t been giving voice to. How can we listen, so that we can live our most well lives? Listen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

I have an offer for you. What if you approached your students without an ask? In situations where someone is walking out during shavasana or following their own flow during your class, instead of looking for an explanation, you talked to your student and simply listened to their experience. When you make people feel seen without demanding anything from them, answers or otherwise, when you listen to their experience, watch how trust grows. We can create space for ourselves, for our students, for the people all around us in and outside of the yoga studio when we prioritize listening. You might be surprised what is built in that space.Listen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

You’ve heard me say it a lot, we are so much more than just one thing. And on the journey we’re all on to uncover what it means to be human and to find home within ourselves, we have to slow down. We can’t find connection, with others or ourselves, going a million miles a minute. There is SO much contained in your “true” self, and in order to be seen you have to show up as the truest, most authentic version of you. When you do, you embody a power that is brave and beautiful, and give the people around you to do the same.Kelly Smith and I talk about finding balance, breaking through self-doubt, building awareness, Yoga Nidra and the 5 koshas, becoming a caretaker, and conscious introspection.Connect with Kelly: Instagram, Website, Mindfulness in Minutes PodcastListen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

There is no single definition of what yoga is, there is no “right” way to practice, and there is no “wrong” way to be a teacher. Yoga is a practice with real depth and breadth, one that we could truly study for our entire lives and still have more to learn. And if there’s one thing I know to be true in this life, it’s that there is more than one way to be right. So if you, as a teacher, or even as a student, are facing impostor syndrome or are afraid of showing up, I want you to know that you can. You do belong in the room, because your voice is important and the way you show up will impact lives more than you could possibly imagine. We need you. I hope to see you in the room.Come to IRL Flow School in Portland April 2023Listen to Episode 170 - Developing My Own SpiritualityListen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

There’s something beautiful, especially as a business owner and entrepreneur myself, about watching another business owner out there owning it, finding success, and redefining who yoga and movement is for (and thats means everyone). Rachel Brooks was a bartender and worked in the service industry for 18 years. After finding yoga, she wanted to create a space for others with late-night and non-traditional schedules to find a place they could practice, too. There is an extraordinary amount of time, and effort, and passion it takes to bring your passions to fruition, and Rachel has worked her ass of to build what she has. What an accomplishment.Connect with Rachel: Instagram, Yin Yoga Space, SIN Yin Yoga, Seeking Space YogaListen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

I did something recently for the very first time—I walked out of a yoga class. And I remember the first time it happened in a class I was teaching, too. We might jump to conclusions and start telling ourselves stories of all the things we’re doing “wrong” or how we might be “failing,” but truly, it’s never about us. When I left, it was because of the low-back pain I’ve been dealing with, not how the class was being taught. And wherever, however our students arrive to class, it’s about them. As teachers, we are here to support and guide our students, in the ways that are best for them. It isn’t about us. It’s about them, and helping them find the freedom to flow.Check out Flow Foundation HEREJoin Flow School HEREPractice with me at Studio B HERERead some emails that aren’t boring HEREListen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss

It’s a brand new year, and everyone is talking about resolutions and intentions for 2023. I wanted to share a little bit about a word that has been coming up for me, one that I’m choosing to focus on this year: trust. To me, “trust” is a reminder to step into my joy. It’s the opposite of fear and anxiety. And even when the stress of being a business owner and a mother and a provider for my family threatens to overtake me, I remember to trust the process, and trust in myself. The world is so many things, and YOU are so many things. In each of lies both form and flow, the capability to feel stressed about everything, but to be just as stoked about it all. This year, I’m trusting that dichotomy, I’m trusting the universe, and I’m trusting myself.

This podcast is called Yoga Strong—but what does it mean to BE yoga strong, to fully embody what that means? If yoga is the practice of paying attention, what are we paying attention to? Paying attention is all about presence, how we show up in the world and bringing all of us wherever we go. We carry the physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of who we are in every room we walk into, and those aspects deserve to be seen. Showing up is a true practice, and one we’ll be working on for our entire lives. You can start here, now. We can go out into the world and be brave.Join Flow School HEREPractice with me at Studio B HERERead some emails that aren’t boring HEREListen to the Sexy Sunday Podcast HEREBuy Bonnie a cup of tea at @Bonnie-WeeksSign up for Bonnie’s sexy Sunday poetry prompts HEREConnect with Bonnie: Instagram, Email ([email protected]), WebsiteThe music for this episode is Threads by The Light Meeting. You can listen to more of their music at www.thelightmeeting.com.Produced by: Courtney Mauss