This week’s episode is a special interview with public speaker and yogi Jason Freeman. Jason has a speech impediment due to cerebral palsy, which he was born with. He talks about how being different impacted him from an early age and how his yoga practice helped him to embrace his “imperfect best” as he puts it.
Also on this episode is Jamie Martin, Jason’s yoga teacher, who shares her insights about how to create an inclusive environment in the yoga room.
This episode is a must for anyone who’s ever felt like an outsider and everyone who hopes to make yoga studios a more welcoming place for people from all backgrounds and abilities.
Here are some highlights:
- How Jason F. ended up in his first yoga class, and how the practice of yoga helped him learn to accept himself and feel better in his body
- Jason’s advice for yoga students about how to feel more comfortable and connect with their teachers
- Jamie speaks about how to help all students feel welcome and included and not singled out for their different abilities
- We talk about the many ways yoga teachers can make a lasting impact on their students without ever knowing it
- Plus, Jason talks about how Handstand became a goal for him, and what shifted once he finally learned to do the pose
RECOMMENDED AND RELATED LINKS
Awkwardly Awesome: Embracing My Imperfect Best by Jason Freeman
WRITE A YOGA PODCAST REVIEW
If you like the podcast, please leave a review or rating on iTunes! It makes it easier for others to find the podcast. If you don’t know how to leave a review, here are some step by step instructions. Woohoo! So easy!
SHOUT-OUT TO OUR SPONSORS
- LOLA is a female-founded company offering 100 organic cotton tampons, pads, and liners. For every purchase, LOLA donates feminine care products to homeless shelters across the U.S. For 40% off all subscriptions, visit mylola.com and enter the code YOGALAND40 when you subscribe.
- Care/of is a monthly subscription vitamin service made from high, quality ingredients personally tailored to your exact needs. Their short quiz asks you about your diet, health goals, and lifestyle choices and uses these answers to create personalized vitamin packs just for you. For 50% off your first month of personalized care/of vitamins, visit takecareof.com and enter promo code YOGALAND50.
- PoshMark carries second-hand women’s, kids, and men’s clothing. They have tons of great brands like Lululemon, MadeWell, and Antropologie, which are all at your fingertips from the app. Shipping is easy for both the seller and the buyer. Find me at PoshMark.com at ferrettiO. Enter invite code YOGALAND to get $5 off your first purchase.
- GreenChef is a USDA certified organic company and meal delivery service. Everything is hand-picked, delivered right to your door, pre-measured, perfectly portioned, and mostly prepped. You can choose from Paleo, Vegan, Vegetarian, Keto, Gluten-Free, Omnivore, and Carnivore. If you’re on a structured meal plan like me, it’s a great way to get more variety into your diet without the hassle of doing all the planning and prep work yourself. For $50 off your first box of Green Chef, go to Greenchef.us/yogaland.
- If you’re like me and you wear your gym or yoga clothes 6 or 7 days a week, you want to look put together. My life has changed since Fabletics became a sponsor of the podcast. Their styles are super adorable and affordable. Get two pairs of leggings for $24 when you sign up to be a VIP. Go to fabletics.com/YOGALAND to take advantage of this deal, get exclusive discounts, and more.
- Simple Habit is a 5-minute meditation app. They have super short, doable meditations that you can do everyday. It’s available on iOS, Android, and the web. Since it’s an app, you can easily track how many minutes of meditation you’ve done in a month, browse from over a thousand different topics, create playlists, and set daily reminders. It’s super convenient and will keep you in the habit. To try Simple Habit for free for a month, visit SimpleHabit.com/YOGALAND.
