Hormones influence how we move, rest, recover, and show up on the mat, yet they’re rarely discussed clearly in yoga spaces. In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Manasa Rao to explore what yoga teachers need to understand about the hormonal body through both modern science and yogic wisdom. We talk about stress, rhythm, pranayama, women’s hormonal cycles, and how yoga can support balance through listening and alignment without overstepping into medical advice.

Episode Highlights:

• Are hormones a modern concept, or something yoga has always addressed through a different language?
• Hormones as internal messengers and their connection to yogic ideas of prana, ojas, tejas, and balance.
• How yoga works across the physical and subtle bodies to regulate internal harmony.
• The relationship between chakras, glands, and pranic flow, and where confusion often arises.
• Why hormonal balance is the body’s natural state and how modern lifestyle disrupts rhythm.
• Cortisol, stress, and the importance of restoring rhythm rather than suppressing hormones.
• Pranayama as a key regulator of the hormonal and nervous systems.
• How to think about different pranayama practices, including ujjayi, with more discernment.
• Pratyahara as a lifestyle-based practice rooted in routine, rhythm, and sensory regulation.
• Understanding women’s hormonal transitions, including menstruation, perimenopause, and menopause.
• Menopause reframed as a phase of reorganization and inward movement, not decline.
• How yogic practices can support different phases of the menstrual cycle.
• The importance of personalization and sensitivity when teaching hormonally affected students.
• Body-to-mind versus mind-to-body, and why dissolving that duality matters.
• The central takeaway: hormonal health comes from listening, alignment, and rhythm rather than fixing.

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Sequencing doesn’t start with themes or peak poses, it starts with understanding the pose itself. In this episode, I introduce pose literacy and explain why it’s the missing link behind clearer, safer, and more intelligent sequencing. Using Downward-Facing Dog as a real example, I break down how learning to read a pose beyond alignment can completely change how you teach, sequence, and support your students.

Episode Highlights:

• Why modern sequencing often skips the most essential step
• What pose literacy is, and why alignment alone isn’t enough
• How low pose literacy leads to guesswork, overload, and unsafe sequencing
• A pose-literacy breakdown of Downward-Facing Dog
• How a pose-first approach transforms sequencing and teaching confidence

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A deep dive into yoga sequencing, what it actually is, why it matters, and the most common mistakes yoga teachers make when planning classes, I break down the difference between choreography and intentional sequencing, explore the role of the pranic and nervous systems, and share nine sequencing missteps to avoid for safer, smarter, and more sustainable teaching. This episode is especially relevant for yoga teachers who want to build confidence, longevity, and depth in their classes.

Episode Highlights:

• What is sequencing
• Why sequencing is a skill, not a formula
• What yoga sequencing truly means beyond pose choreography
• How thoughtful sequencing supports safety, longevity, and nervous system regulation
• The role of structure, progression, intention, and integration in class planning
• Why sequencing shapes the energetic and pranic arc of a class
• How intelligent sequencing builds trust, confidence, and professional credibility

The 9 Sequencing Mistakes to Avoid:

1. Treating sequencing as simply linking poses together
2. Over-focusing on peak poses at the expense of purpose
3. Skipping joint preparation and intelligent warm-ups
4. Overloading classes with too many poses
5. Neglecting counter-poses and proper class closure
6. Designing sequences based on personal preference instead of student needs
7. Ignoring the energetic arc and pranic system
8. Forcing philosophy or over-theming without embodiment
9. Failing to teach toward longevity and sustainable practice

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As we begin a new year, I’m reflecting on a question that quietly shapes every yoga teacher’s journey: why do you teach? In this episode, I share personal insights from my own path, the lessons that only time and experience reveal, and why certifications alone don’t create longevity in teaching. I also share details about the upcoming 300-hour online teacher training, live Q&A session, and important dates if you’re considering taking the next step in your practice or teaching.

Episode Highlights:

• Why certifications and accumulated hours don’t guarantee confidence or sustainability
• The difference between loving yoga and being able to teach it long-term
• How burnout, injury, and doubt reveal the importance of a deeper “why”
• Why purpose in teaching is personal, evolving, and not meant for performance
• The connection between discipline, consistency, and Sutra 1.14
• 5 Important things about your why
• Key updates on the upcoming 300-hour online teacher training and live Q&A

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This episode feels like a full-circle moment as I wrap up the final episode of 2025. Before we step into a new year, I take some time to share what’s coming up in 2026 for the Let’s Talk Yoga and Aham Yoga community. There’s a lot unfolding, from a brand-new 300-hour online yoga teacher training to in-person study and international travel, and I wanted to lay it all out clearly so you know what’s ahead and how to be part of it.

After the updates, I’m joined by Rebecca from the Working in Yoga podcast for a thoughtful, wide-ranging conversation on creativity in yoga teaching. We explore how teachers can stay innovative without crossing into performance, why reverence still matters, and how professionalism, boundaries, and self-inquiry shape longevity in this work. It’s a reflective conversation about teaching, aging, motivation, and remembering why we came to yoga in the first place.

Episode Highlights:

• Exciting Announcements for 2026
• 300 Hour Online Yoga Teacher Training
• 200 Hour In-Person Training
• International Yoga Retreat in Italy
• Time-Sensitive Updates Recap
• Creativity in Yoga Teaching
• Balancing Tradition and Creativity
• Engagement vs. Entertainment in Yoga
• Evolving Yoga Teaching Methods
• Student Agency and Teacher Guidance
• Learning and Teaching Yoga
• Exploring Cultural Appropriation in Yoga
• Finding Your 'Why' in Teaching Yoga
• Markers of Success in Yoga Practice
• Personal Motivations and Aging Gracefully
• The Importance of Professional Boundaries
• Reverence and Cultural Differences in Yoga
• Navigating Marketing and Authenticity in Yoga
• Final Thoughts and Upcoming Trainings

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Inversions don’t have to be intimidating, flashy, or reserved for advanced students. In this episode, I break down the three pillars of teaching inversions and share how to approach being upside down with structure, progression, and nervous system awareness. If you’ve ever felt unsure about when, how, or why to teach inversions, this framework will bring clarity and confidence to your teaching.

Episode Highlights:

• Why inversions were traditionally practiced as tools for regulation, not performance.
• How modern yoga culture has distorted our understanding of being upside down.
• What actually qualifies as an inversion, beyond handstands and headstands.
• The difference between mild, moderate, and intermediate inversions.
• Personal reflections on unlearning unsafe inversion habits.
• Pillar One: Structure before shape
• Pillar Two: Progression before performance
• Pillar Three: Nervous system literacy
• Situations where inversions may not be appropriate to teach.
• Where inversions fit best within a well-sequenced class.
• How inversions cultivate humility, discernment, and emotional awareness.
• Why the deepest impact of inversions is internal, not physical.

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If you’ve ever felt like you’re “winging it” when planning your yoga classes, this episode will help you fix that for good. I break down my Sequence Smarter Framework and walk you through seven simple questions that will instantly make your sequences clearer, more intentional, and easier to teach. Whether you’re new to sequencing or ready to level up your teaching, this guide will change the way you plan your classes.

Episode Highlights:

• Why many yoga teachers struggle with sequencing and end up “winging it.”
• The purpose of the Sequence Smarter Framework and why it matters.
• How the three pillars—Purpose, Pathway, and Pose—create intelligent sequencing.
• What it really means to define the purpose of a class with clarity.
• How to build a pathway that prepares the body, breath, and pranic flow.
• Why pose selection should be the last step, not the first.
• The most common reasons yoga sequences feel disjointed or ineffective.
• How to use the seven audit questions to evaluate any sequence.
• A breakdown of applying the 3P framework to Trikonasana.
• Why thoughtful sequencing supports mixed-level rooms and aging bodies.
• How intelligent sequencing builds confidence, clarity, and longevity in teaching.

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If you’ve ever felt stuck repeating the same physical cues in your classes, this episode is going to open up a whole new way of thinking about teaching. I’m breaking down what it really means to move from gross to subtle, how subtle cueing works, and why it’s the key to creating deeper, more meaningful yoga experiences. You’ll walk away with practical tools you can use right away—no fluff, no woo, just clearer teaching.

Episode Highlights:

• Explanation of the Teach Smarter module and how this episode builds on the “Gross to Subtle” workshop.
• Why two teachers can teach the same pose but create completely different student experiences.
• The difference between the gross (sthula) body and the subtle (sukshma) body.
• Why most modern yoga teaching gets stuck in the gross physical layer.
• The limitations of staying in purely physical cueing—repetition, boredom, overthinking alignment, teacher burnout, and lack of depth.
• Clear signs that a teacher may be relying too heavily on gross cueing.
• Introduction to subtle cueing as a precise and grounded practice—not vague or woo-woo.
• Overview of the six types of subtle cueing:
  • Attention cues
  • Breath cues
  • Pranic-direction cues
  • Sensory cues
  • Interoceptive cues
  • Energetic sequencing
• A practical example of Warrior II comparing gross cues vs. subtle cues.
• Guidance on how teachers can begin practicing subtle cueing:
  • Use intentional pauses
  • Let the breath lead the teaching
  • Choose one subtle layer per class
  • Stop micromanaging alignment
  • Practice receiving your own cues
  • Trust your students’ intelligence
• Why subtle cueing matters for long-term student development and sustainable practice, especially as students age.
• A self-inquiry checklist for teachers to evaluate their cueing approach.
• Reflective questions for both teachers and students to deepen their awareness in asana.
• Encouragement to revisit the episode, reflect, and apply the concepts.
• Invitation to explore the 300-hour YTT and how the training weaves ancient wisdom with modern teaching needs.
• Brief overview of the three modules:
  • Sequence Smarter
  • Breathe Smarter
  • Teach Smarter

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