Jess On The Mountain: Yoga, Chakras & Becoming Your Own Guru

Dr. Deb Kern is a health scientist, visionary teacher and guide who is dedicated to helping women live divinely embodied lives. Her years of practice as a nurse, health educator, personal trainer, yoga teacher, Nia teacher and yoga therapist, combined with her life experiences, have given her insights not found in books.  She has observed, time and time again, that when we take actions in our own healing and become aware of the patterns that disconnect body and mind, miracles can occur in every area of our lives—and she adores inspiring others to experience these miracles.

She’s the the author of Everyday Wellness for Women and Create the Body Your Soul Desires, the creatrix of a healing movement practice called PranaShakti™ Dance, and the mom of an amazing young man.

Listen through the end for a delightful treat!

Learn more about Deb:

Manipura, chakra three, is our center of self esteem. Self esteem is pretty important when it comes to delighting in life and seeing beauty. After all, if we feel not so great about ourselves, life itself seems not so great. 

Today I’m going to talk about:

Clues that you might have low self esteem.

Ways to boost your chakra three vitality.

My favorite yoga technique for chakra three.

More about Jess:

Scout Chavers is a community birth worker, student midwife, and yoga teacher who is passionate about the cycles of life, death, and pleasure.

She is joining us on Jess on the Mountain today to talk about how the chakras and her journey as a birthing professional have taught her important lessons in letting go, holding space, and the power of pleasure.

Scout says that chakra work changed everything for her when she took her first chakra training with Anodea Judith a decade ago (I was in that training too!).

"It was the first thing that gave me language to things that I felt like I understood for a long time but didn't have language for."

My conversation with Scout is rich and deep as we explore a variety of topics that ultimately lead us to the theme of delight and how she views pleasure and joy as not only a birthright but a form of activism.

xo,

Jess

Connect with Scout:

We hold so much within us, and letting go is a practice that leads to openness and space for delight. In this episode, we explore a few types of attachments, or kleshas, that keep us from experiencing ease and flow.

1. Attachment to ideas about what is perfect or ideal and letting go to find delight in the just right for right now; that Perspective Training skill!

2. Attachment to My Way in different contexts and how letting go allows us to delight in seeing something bloom and grow as we loosen our grip.

3. Attachment as Heart Walls that prevent vulnerability and keep us hidden behind an identity, and breaking down those walls so we can fully delight in our life and relationships. We also talk about where you might experience physical symptoms in your body that are clues to what needs to be released. Change is a constant, so finding delight in letting go of what does not serve us is a freeing practice! May your inner guru help you see what needs letting go, may you do the work to release it, and may that lead to a life of delight and ease, as you walk up and around this mountain we call life. Much love, Jess

Mentioned in this episode:

This episode is fun and different because this time I'm the one getting interviewed! I recently had a joyful conversation with Shannon Jamail, the founder and creator of Mind & Body Complete, and host of the Retreat Leader's Podcast.

You might remember Shannon from last season's podcast when I interviewed her for Episode 28: Embodying Surrender and Manifestation. Shannon owns a retreat center called Retreat Ranch just outside of Austin in the beautiful hill country and I hosted a sold-out retreat there last Fall. It is such a beautiful space that I booked another retreat there for this coming April!

I always enjoy my conversations with Shannon, but this one was extra delightful because it was all about retreats - why they're important, and how they can help us cultivate transformation and nourish our second chakra.

I hope that this episode helps inspire you to go on retreat, and if you feel called to join Blossom & Bliss at Ranch Retreat on April 12-14, there are still some spots available. I'd love to have you.

Today we welcome back the guest from our most downloaded episode of last season – Ana Pilar Cruz. She's a teacher's teacher and an expert in yoga philosophy.

Our second conversation is centered on the second chakra (how fitting!). We kicked things off right away with a question that is frequently debated among those of us who study the chakra system:

Can chakras become blocked?

Tune in for Ana Pilar's thoughtful response to this question and the discussion that follows around granthis ("grun-tees"), which means "knot".

There are three main granthis in the body - one is associated with desire and attaches us to the physical world and our sense of self, one has to do with our karma and action, and one is affiliated with time and separation of self from the greater whole.

This is a fascinating topic and Ana Pilar does a wonderful job of explaining them in such a way that makes it tangible to understand not only what they are and where they reside in our bodies, but also how they affect us.

Tune in to raise your awareness of your granthis and receive tools to help cultivate remedies to these blocks or "knots" in your life.

Love,

Jess

More about Jess:

How do we experience pleasure, sensuality and creativity in Chakra 1, muladhara? DELIGHT in the material, tangible things in life helps us feel safe and secure and leads to an overall sense of well-being. In this episode I share practices you can do right now to: - enjoy meals and foster a balanced, secure relationship with food - delight in your physical body, see the wonder of your form and accept your body as a safe place for your spirit - intentionally bring moments of delight and routine to your day to establish good boundaries that actually build up the energy needed to get things done! Experiencing DELIGHT in our root chakra is an important step on the path to an aligned body, mind and spirt.

In Season 3 of Jess on the Mountain, we’ll explore chakra 2 and the theme of DELIGHT as we move up the liberating current of the chakras from root to crown. 

In this episode you’ll hear what I’ve been up to during “Acorn Time” and some of the ways you can experience DELIGHT by taking more time to savor, more time to celebrate and less time to worry.

I tell a little about what is inspiring me and is swimming around and coming together in the creative bowl of chakra 2.

And lastly, we peek into something I call “perspective training” that I’ll talk more about all season long. I think it’s an important skill we can all use in the “world on fire.”

I’m glad to be back with you for another season of this journey on the mountain!

More about Jess:

Chakras are part of your subtle body system; your energetic self. You can't see them, but they spin like gears and encounter the world around you and create the world within you. This can be hard to wrap the mind around. I get it. Truth be told, I don't think we have to understand or believe all that to make the chakras, and the study of them, valuable, applicable, and pragmatic.

Listen to learn 3 of the ways I use the chakras as a valuable framework for deepening awareness and living with intention!

Rob Bell has evolved from a megachurch pastor to a world renowned heretic (which I think is a good thing), questioning some of the ways the Christian religion has been teaching things that actually go against Spirit and Scripture, and proposing that the world, that God, is much more about love than damnation, and heaven and hell can be found right here on earth. His book, Love Wins, catapulted him into the greater public eye in 2011 when he was named one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people. He has been interviewed by Oprah, quoted by Brene Brown, and he’s here today to talk about his new book, “Where’d You Park Your Spaceship.”

With his new book as the backdrop of our interview, we talk about the creative process, our perception of others, of seeing our life patterns, of dealing with grief, and how stories emerge from within. You may not be writing a book, but you ARE writing the book of your life, which is our greatest creative Chakra 1, 2, and 3 endeavor. 

Rob Bell is the New York Times Bestselling author of fourteen books and plays which have been translated into 25 languages. His visual art can be seen on Instagram @realrobbell, his band is HUMANS ON THE FLOOR, and his podcast is called The RobCast. 

How does your body communicate with YOU?

We have officially returned to the bottom of the mountain, as we dive this week into Chakra One: Muladhara.

The first chakra is the earth element – our body, and our foundation. Located at the base of the spine, it houses our trust, fears, and ability to feel safe in the world. Chakra One asks us to be IN our body and LISTEN.

Join me as I share how I embodied Chakra One this past week when I didn't release an episode because I chose to listen to my own body. We will talk about the different organ systems that are affiliated with this chakra, how imbalances show up in your body, and I will offer up some great tips, yoga poses, and the perfect self-paced course designed to get you fully embodied so you can bring your root chakra back into balance.

You won't want to miss it. See you there!

Much love,

Jess

For this week's podcast episode, we have officially arrived in Chakra Two: Svadhisthana. Located in the pelvic bowl (the sacral complex), this is where we house our creativity, sensuality, sexuality, emotions, desire, and reproduction. Since our theme this season is Embodiment, I decided to focus this conversation on Sensuality.

The word "sensual" simply means 'of the senses' - sight, smell, sound, taste and touch. So "sensuality" is the enjoyment or expression of something that is pleasing to our senses. Sensuality is sometimes used interchangeably with sexuality, and although they can certainly be intertwined with one another (after all, our sexuality also lives in Chakra Two), sensuality is more about living a life with all your senses fully alive – a complete experience of your body and your environment.

That's what we're diving into today on Jess on the Mountain. Tune in to hear what age our second chakra develops, the shadow sides of chakra two, my own personal story of when I first discovered that I was a sensual being, and how we can all embrace and embody our sensuality in our everyday lives.

Love,

Jess

More about Jess:

Today’s episode is all about the third chakra - Manipura. Located at the solar plexus, the color is yellow, the element is fire, and its focus is on the will, self-esteem, personal identity, and transformation.

Joining us for this conversation on surrender and manifestation is the multi-talented Shannon Jamail, a best-selling author, podcast host, retreat leader, therapist-turned-mentor, and yoga teacher trainer.

She is the founder and creator of the Mind & Body Complete Family of Companies which includes her retreat center, Retreat Ranch, outside of Austin Texas. Her passion and mission is to elevate individuals in mind & body in order to connect, grow & thrive through her online courses, books, programs & retreats.

Shannon knows a lot about manifestation. And not only does she know how to make things happen, she does so with a level of conscious intention that is felt by everyone around her. She shares with us some of her own processes around creating intention and transformation (spoiler alert - she uses the chakra system!), how she combined her love of horses with her love of yoga, and how she tapped into the power of her third chakra to create the ranch retreat of her dreams.

Ironically, our conversation about will and manifestation turned into one about surrender. That's right - an important aspect of intentional manifestation is full surrender... and humble acceptance. There are a lot of a-ha moments in this episode – some that I had in real time while talking with Shannon, and some that I'm still thinking about today! I would love to hear what your own a-ha moments are from this episode.

"When you fully surrender and then accept that surrendering, is when the power is unleashed... that's how you become the most powerful." ~ Shannon Jamail

Much love,

Jess

Today we arrive in chakra three: our lustrous gem, the beautiful yellow of Manipura, that houses our ability to do and to transform. It is the seat of our will and self esteem, and asks the question: How is your fire burning? 

Building and embodying a strong will, an appropriate fire, requires discernment, right action, and proper boundaries. Too much heat, stress, or effort and we burn out. Not enough, and the flame dies out leaving us scattered and directionless.

Learn some tools and ideas you can apply right away to overcome overwhelm and inertia, no matter where you land on the spectrum of high to low energy.

Links from this episode:

We are back with part 2 of our Chakra Four conversation with Emily J. Hooks and her deep wisdom around the topic of forgiveness.

As the discussion continues, we explore how there is a time and a place for forgiveness, that we have to dismantle what forgiveness even means, and how forgiveness doesn't have to include reconciliation (or even the other person's participation or knowledge of your forgiveness!). Emily shares with us how the toxic dynamic with her mother completely dissolved when she forgave her, even though her mom knew nothing about it.

"I forgave everyone in my life and no one knew about it until I wrote my book." ~ Emily J. Hooks

Forgiveness is YOUR process and YOUR healing. What an empowering concept!

Don't forget – Emily's book, The Power of Forgiveness: A Guide to Healing and Wholeness, is available at all the major booksellers and is linked in the show notes below. She has also generously offered her Audible audiobook format to our listeners FOR FREE! Link & instructions on how to get the audio version of this powerful book are included below.

Much love,

Jess

More about Emily:

This week's episode is all heart. That's right, we're delving into Chakra Four - Anahata.

We are joined by the incredible writer, speaker, and workshop facilitator Emily J. Hooks.

Emily's work focuses on inquiry-based healing from past hurts. Her work reorients readers toward compassionate self-acceptance and accountability, and she specializes in the topic of forgiveness, which is the center of our conversation today and a beautiful embodiment of the heart chakra. In fact, it was such an in-depth and phenomenal conversation that our team chose to release it in two different parts. This is part one of our conversation and the second part will be released next week.

Emily spent the first few decades of her life managing her emotional and spiritual pain and the many traumas she had endured in her childhood. In 2003, she found herself in destitution and in deep suffering over the loss of the people who mattered most to her. Instead of giving up, she chose to move through the pain she carried and let go of her limiting beliefs about who she was and what the world was like.

In a huge moment of awakening, she saw her entire life unfold and self-compassion emerged. At that moment she vowed not to live a tragic life. To not just survive, but to thrive.

She began to deeply study the act of forgiveness, from texts and philosophies around the world. This led her to "relentlessly forgive" anyone who had ever caused her harm, including herself. As a result of this radical act of complete forgiveness, everything in her life transformed. And today her promise is to contribute as fully as she can for as long as she is able to.

Emily's work embodies the concept that through the work of forgiveness, we can all find love, compassion, and empathy for others and for ourselves; that it is possible to both mourn the loss of what was not, and fully embrace what is.

Her book, The Power of Forgiveness: A Guide to Healing and Wholeness, is available at all the major booksellers, and is linked in the show notes. Emily has also generously offered her Audible audiobook format to our listeners FOR FREE! Link & instructions on how to get the audio version of this powerful book are included below.

I can't wait to hear what you think about this conversation. Let's take a journey through the heart and explore the embodiment of true forgiveness.

Much love,

Jess

More about Emily:

This week's episode is all about sound, which is directly related to Chakra Five - Vissudha (which means "purification").

Sounds are happening everywhere, all the time.

Pause for a few seconds and just listen. What do you hear? Maybe an airplane flying overhead, traffic on the streets below, birds chirping, the wind blowing, your dog snoring, children playing, a phone dinging, your stomach growling, and on and on! Even in the quietest of environments, there is always sound.

This chakra is the realm of sound, vibration, and resonance. It's where we both speak our truth and where we listen attentively to others. From my experience, Chakra Five is the chakra that is most frequently out of balance for people. Do you ever feel tightness in your trapezius muscles (where your neck & shoulders connect)? Hellooo Chakra Five!

Join me as we embody the fifth chakra, discuss the symptoms of imbalance (both excesses and deficiencies), and explore the different ways that sound (and silence!) affects us. And I share some great practices you can do to charge and release your own Chakra Five.

Let's jump into some good vibrations together. See you there.

Much love,

Jess

In today's episode, we have reached the part of the mountain that is Chakra Six - Ajna.

This chakra allows us to clearly see reality. It helps us discern between what is an illusion and what is truth. Living in a world full of differing opinions, false flags, false prophets, and propaganda – the truth can be tough to get to! Luckily, the six chakra helps us cut through the noise and distractions and allows us to connect with our inner guru. After all, it's the seat of our intuition!

Join me today as I walk us through how we can embody Chakra Six, including the organ systems it's connected to and where it lives in your body. We'll also discuss the physical symptoms of a Chakra Six imbalance, how it can help your life when it's in alignment, and ways to bring more Ajna awareness into your everyday life.

This episode will include some helpful practices that you can start incorporating into your life today. So let's get to it – our intuition awaits!

Much love,

Jess

Our first guest of Season 2 is a fellow Austin-based yoga professional whom I've known for many years and have a ton of respect for. Ana Pilar Cruz has been teaching yoga since 2001 and, in the modalities of Hatha, Hatha Flow, and Ashtanga Yoga, has been training yoga teachers since 2006 at both 200 and 500-hour levels in the United States and abroad. As the current Director of Yoga Therapy at My Vinyasa Practice,  she excels in teaching pranayama, mantra, and yogic philosophy & literature. Ana Pilar expands her teaching beyond the mat by bringing the history, philosophy, and mythology of yoga to communities and conferences across the United States.

She's here with us today to talk about Chakra Seven, how it is the gateway to the Divine, and how we can embody the Divine in our everyday lives.

Our conversation begins with the stages of life and how we embody them through the lens of the chakra system. From there we move into the practice of seeing the Divine in yourself and others, and then discuss different conditions that can create blocks in the seventh chakra and examples of how that shows up in world events.

We also talk about the importance of ritual in accessing the Divine, and how boundaries are important in creating sacred connections. Ana Pilar then shares how the way she was raised to simply be curious about religion and her own relationship with the Divine kept her mind and heart open.

This is such a juicy conversation and I could have talked with her for hours! We will have to have her back again. Enjoy this episode, and may it inspire you with a few ways you can find and sustain your own connection to the Divine.

Much love,

Jess

Online Yoga Membership (OYM) Boot Camp September 11-17 Sign up and get ready!

Get started or continue on your personal chakra journey:

Welcome back to Jess on the Mountain! We are kicking off Season 2 at the top of the mountain with the crown chakra – the thousand-petaled lotus of Sahasrara. Not sure how to pronounce that? Don't worry - even I mispronounced it for years!

Imagine the snow cap of a mountain taking the shape of a beautiful white lotus of enlightenment. This is our connection to Spirit and the Divine. This is where we get the 30,000-foot view that gives us self-awareness and an understanding of how the world operates.

Sahasrara is energy at the highest vibration – beyond sound and light, into ether and thought waves. Our energetic bodies, our etheric bodies, go beyond our skin and into the space around us, especially at the crown of our heads.

This podcast season's theme is Embodiment, so tune in to learn which glands the seventh chakra is affiliated with and how excesses and deficiencies can show up in our bodies. We then talk about what it means to embody Sahasrara in our everyday lives, and we end the episode with a brief meditation to help you embody Spirit.

Much love,

Jess

Welcome back to Season Two of Jess on the Mountain!

Last season, we started at the bottom of the mountain (at our root chakra) and worked our way up to the top, exploring each of the seven chakras as we journeyed alongside one another.

This season, we're going to start where we left off - at the top of the mountain! As we slowly work our way back down through the chakras, our focus this season will be working with the theme of Embodiment. Tune in to this intro episode, where I talk about embodiment and why it's so important, as well as provide some insight into the exciting topics and guests we have lined up for you this season. And if that wasn't juicy enough, I also announce a special companion online course called... (you guessed it!) Embodiment, which would make an excellent travel buddy as you follow along this season (totally optional of course!).

I'll see you at the top of the mountain.

Much love,

Jess

Get started or continue on your personal chakra journey:

On the mountain of life, today we consider our choice of hiking partners, romantic or otherwise. After all, it’s not just you on the mountain! And everyone affects each other, through the chakras, on an energetic level. If we’re to experience Unity in the spiritual realm, it helps to have an experience of unity in the material world. This is how I see the crown and heart connected. Human love as a material expression of divine relationship.

My dad gave me much advice in this area over the relatively short time we had together, and today I share three of my favorite pieces with you:

1. Don’t put your happiness in someone else’s hands. 

2. Don’t let your shorts catch on fire. 

3. Marry the rocking chair.

Today is a great conversation about linking, meditation, and yoga therapy. Our guest is Amanda Green, who is a Certified Yoga Therapist and expert in teaching and guiding students and teachers in meditation, breath, postures, and chanting to foster healing and balance at Innermost Yoga and Yoga Well Institute. (Scroll down for whole bio and links.)

2:20 Amanda's journey

5:10 What is Yoga Therapy? (vs. private yoga)

7:00 Two ways we develop patterns

8:45 All about the Sixth Chakra: Ajna

10:30 What is linking?

16:00 Four reasons to meditate, according to the Yoga Sutras

20:25 Linking to a sunflower

22:20Like attracts like and the gunas

26:00 Dismantling our own structures: When and why we need help

28:00 How attachment to a meditation object can cause problems

35:20 When it's helpful choose your own object meditation

37:30 For those who can't visualize...

43:24 How to learn from Amanda

Want to learn more and experience object meditation?

Today I’m celebrating how meaningful and fun the three workshops I taught last week were, and I want you to benefit from what we experienced. So stick with me to hear about the myth and the truth that emerged from this workshop! 

Today I have a few stories to share with you about hitting the reset button in any area of your life. 

Helpful resources:

Take a look through the lens of the chakras at living life on purpose, and how applying chakra yoga wisdom and tools can take you from “What’s blocking me?” to “Oh-I get it!” and make the changes you decide to change.

Get started or continue on your chakra journey:

Join Jess June 6, 7, or 10 at the FREE online workshop 

We now enter the realm of Chakra 5, Vishuddha, and “the voice.” You know, the one in your head that criticizes, doubts, and often convinces you that you can’t or shouldn’t do something that you desire? It’s the one that prevents the feeling of freedom in your life. It can hold you back from really stepping into your power and truest sense of self.  I recently worked on kicking mine to the curb, and in this episode I share with you what I found to be very helpful and powerful in this process.

Other helpful links:

Get started or continue on your chakra journey:

Wendy Vickery is a Bio-Energy Healing Practitioner and trainer as well as a Kundalini Yoga Teacher.  She has over 20 years’ experience in the holistic health field, and in experiencing our body’s incredible healing capabilities. She sat down with Jess last week in Chacala, Mexico, to talk about this healing modality, her personal inspiring story, and her favorite hack to start healing yourself right away.

You can connect with Wendy on her

Today’s guest is Kelly Emmert, owner of The Art Garage, in Austin Texas. Kelly has been creating art since childhood, and that love helped her create a vision for her future.  From starting her business in her garage, to outgrowing that space and building a studio, to now expanding to a second location, Kelly is a master manifester.  She shares with us her story, her philosophy, and hopefully inspires you to create the life YOU want, and be happy in your journey of creation.

This week I'm happy to offer you 3 simple practices that can help balance the heart chakra, and build awareness around how love and compassion are operating in your life. There is one breath practice, one meditation, and one journaling exercise to get you going.

Today we enter the heart chakra where we encounter love and relationships. Anahata means unstruck. The you within you that was, is, and always will be, perfect, whole and complete.

An excessive heart chakra can lead to codependency, poor boundaries, clinginess, jealousy,  being overly self sacrificing.

A deficient heart chakra can make you withdrawn, cold, critical, judgemental, intolerant, narcissistic.

When you know your tendencies in imbalance, you can make changes that will improve your experience in love and relationships.

Source text: Eastern Body, Western Mind, by Anodea Judith

Get on the waitlist for the next Chakra Savvy cohort:

Think of chakra blocks as boulders on your path or dams in your river. Your whole system flows with your life force, your prana, your energy–but anytime there’s something that flows there is opportunity for a roadblock.

• What does it mean to be blocked?

• What are some causes of blocks?

• What are shadow sides of each chakra?

• Working with shadows

• Physical, mental, spiritual, habitual blocks

A feeling of abundance, when your cups overflow, is a sign of a healthy and supportive chakra one and two. All your basic needs are met, so you can enjoy your life and its pleasures.  But when life gets to be too much, too spread out, whatever energy you have is pouring out everywhere, not held within the steady boundaries of the riverbanks, you might become overly emotional or sensitive as your bandwidth for stress diminishes.  The river dries up. 

You feel depleted.

Or at least that’s how it feels when it happens to me!

If you or someone you know is a little "extra," this episode is for you!

This episode is an interview with Chelsea Cohen, a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor. We get to have a great conversation (spoiler alert--it's chakra two emotions stuff!) about so many things, including:

> Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and what it’s premise is.

> What is the middle path?

> What are the most challenging things people come up against with self awareness, emotions, identifying patterns, and creating positive change in their lives. 

Interview outline by minute:

7: DBT is evidence based therapy for people who have difficulty regulating their emotions. 

11: What are the steps and goals of DBT?

23: What is “urge surfing?” 

25: Finding the “middle path” as the synthesis between opposites.

31:30: What are some “superpowers” of people who feel emotions in the extremes?

32: 30: Nature vs. Nurture? “Orchids and tulips”

This episode is all about self care, specifically care of your physical self,  beyond the bubble bath and pedicures. This is REAL care–not the recommendations of health gurus who sell you supplements, or IG posts that remind you you are worthy. This is self love at chakra one, at the base of your mountain: giving your body grace, gratitude, and goodness. 

If you've ever had an injury or a chronic condition, or you have one now, I hope this episode will bring you a new perspective on caring for your body with an attitude of gentleness. I've learned a lot about being gentler with myself, and I know I'm not the only one who has some room for growth in this area.

If this episode rings true for you or helps in any way, please subscribe and leave a review!

Much love

This episode is all about our body’s cues and communication with us. I’m hoping that you will open up to a relationship with your body that is inquisitive, compassionate, and caring. We continue our conversation around muladhara, or chakra one.

Here are some clues we discuss in listening to our body's signals:

• Where is the pain or tightness, and what chakra might that correspond to? 
• How does your relationship to food correspond to chakra one?
• How are you sleeping? 
• When do you wake in the night?
• Do you have some systemic toxicity? 

May you pay attention to your earth suit, hear what your system is whispering to you through pain and tightness,sleep, and ama, and may you practice patience and compassion as you guide yourself towards balance, one little practice at a time.

Much love

Helpful links and resources:

Today’s episode is all about embodiment.

We ask, are you actually living IN your body, WHERE your body is? Or are you more in your head, with your body as a bit of an afterthought?

This is the realm of muladhara, the work of the root chakra.

Physically, we place muladhara at the base of the spine.  Metaphorically, we place this at the base of the mountain.

Losing the sense of connection to our base, to our body, is often a culprit for increased worry/anxiety, weight gain, food issues, financial difficulty, and material obsession. It can be harder to focus, have proper boundaries, and generally practice good self care. If you’ve ever had major illness, surgery, physical abuse, or inherited trauma–you might have some work to do at chakra one.  From my experience, though, we could all use a little love at muladhara.

Embodiment challenge! Choose one to do this week:

1. Take a slow walk in nature, noticing your surroundings.
2. Mindfully massage your feet with oil.
3. Sit down for all meals for three days in a row.

As a certified yoga therapist, I work 1:1 with clients for goals they have to feel better, body, mind and spirit. Quite often, we must begin at the base–at muladhara–at the element of earth–before we can even address low back pain, anxiety, or weight loss. It’s something I come back to again and again in my own life as well.

To practice embodiment is to take your physical wellness and connection into your own hands, feel, be in, and accept your life just as it is, and learn to trust that life is conspiring in your favor, all your needs will be met, and life is abundant.

Much love

...............

How is your root chakra?

Today’s episode is all about self-awareness: 

• What does self-awareness really mean? 
• How does being self-aware help my life and well-being? 
• How do I know if I am self-aware? 
• How could I improve my self-awareness?

You are not alone on the mountain of life, but it sure is good to take some time to figure out how much you know about your closest climbing companion–YOURSELF. 

Love, Jess

Want to Know More?

Today we're asking the question "What's a chakra"? 

In this episode, I'm going to simplify this large concept of what a chakra is, which will hopefully be useful as we continue this journey together in learning how to use the chakras as a tool for self-awareness.

Love, Jess

Subscribe now so you never miss an episode!

Hello, and welcome to the first episode of my new podcast, Jess On The Mountain. 

I’m Jess Goulding, a longtime yoga teacher, certified yoga therapist, and chakra system expert.

Jess On The Mountain is an ongoing conversation about gaining self-awareness as you move up, down, and around this mountain called life, with a lot of useful tools and resources to help your journey along the way.

I used to look at a mountain as something to climb, to conquer, to get to the top and finally see the view. Now I know that there is an amazing view to be seen with every step we take up that mountain when we are tuning in, listening deeply, and following our own inner wisdom.

As much as I’ve been connected to my intuition most of my life, trusting it has been a process.  I’ve had many teachers and guides along the way, and all the best ones would always point me back to myself. My first great teacher was my dad, and you'll hear me refer to him often. After he died when I was 27, I found myself searching for another teacher who could be that mirror into my deepest knowing. But after several years, I came to the conclusion that nobody outside of myself had the answers I was seeking.

There is no guru on top of the mountain. There’s just a mountain. 

I have, however, found guides who have helped me along in my journey. They are a small handful of people who I believe were placed in my life at just the right times. You probably have people like this in your life too. Like sherpas on the mountain, these guides can help us carry the load, navigate the rough patches, and keep us from getting totally lost, but they don’t decide our direction or destination - that’s on us. 

We have the roadmap - YOU have the roadmap – to living your best, most balanced, most harmonious life.

What I’ve learned teaching yoga and chakras over the last several years, is that the chakras can be that roadmap. By learning about your blocks, habits, patterns, strengths, and challenges, you will uncover your truth. You will learn to trust your inner wisdom and always know your next step.

I used to think that the chakras were a mysterious language learned by "woo-woo" yogis and new-age weirdos, but it turns out that they’re actually quite practical, useful, effective, and incredibly helpful for our overall self-awareness and mind-body connection.

This is the journey we will take together. We will learn to tune in, listen, and follow our blueprint - our own wise self embedded in our DNA. We get to be in wonder of the journey, even when we trip and fall, or come up against a boulder. Each step is one of curiosity, leading to the next at just the right moment.

It is my dream to get as many people into the self-awareness game as possible. I believe the world will be a better place because of it.

So let’s get started, shall we? This is going to be fun. 

Love, Jess

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Connect with Jess:

https://www.jessgoulding.com