Deepen Your Yoga Practice

Have you ever wondered how the chakras, koshas, gunas, vayus, nadis, and five elements all fit together? Are they parts of one unified system, or are they different ways of understanding the human experience? This week on Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren is doing something a little different: sharing an actual recording from inside True Love Yoga's inaugural 300-hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training. Inspired by a thoughtful question from one of her students, this mini-lecture explores the historical development of yoga's philosophical and subtle-body systems, revealing how ideas that emerged across centuries eventually became woven together in modern yoga. From early Vedic thought and the Upanishads to Sāṃkhya philosophy, Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras, Tantra, and Haṭha Yoga, Lauren traces the evolution of these frameworks and explains why understanding their distinct origins matters. In this episode, you'll explore: The guṇas: Sattva, rajas, and tamas as qualities of nature and experience The five elements: The building blocks of manifestation in Sāṃkhya cosmology The kośas: Five layers or sheaths of embodied experience The vāyus: Five directional expressions of prāṇa The nāḍīs: Subtle pathways through which prāṇa is understood to flow The chakras: Transformational centers developed within Tantric traditions How these systems became integrated through later Haṭha Yoga and modern yoga Practical ways to use these frameworks for sequencing, cueing, meditation, theming, and trauma-aware teaching Rather than treating these concepts as a single ancient map or rigid hierarchy, Lauren invites us to appreciate them as different lenses through which we can explore the same human experience. Plus, a peek inside True Love Yoga's 300-Hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training! Applications are open for the 2027 program, a year-long hybrid training designed for yoga teachers who want to deepen their knowledge, refine their teaching, and continue growing as students of yoga. Explore the program: https://www.trueloveyogakc.com/yoga-teacher-training/ Because the more we learn about yoga, the more we discover there is to explore.

Pregnancy and postpartum change far more than the physical body. They transform our relationship with movement, identity, strength, and what it means to care for ourselves. Yet so much of the conversation around this season still centers on restrictions, recovery timelines, and the pressure to "bounce back." What if we approached it differently? In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren welcomes back Melody Butler, E-RYT 500, YACEP, RPYT teacher trainer, functional movement educator, trauma-aware yoga educator, and creator of Mom Bod Yoga. Together, they explore what it really means to support people through pregnancy, postpartum, and beyond—and why perinatal yoga is so much more than modifying poses to accommodate a growing belly. They discuss: Why postpartum recovery doesn't end at six or twelve weeks Moving beyond bounce-back culture toward strength, self-acceptance, and care How pregnancy and postpartum affect the whole person—not just anatomy Why yoga teachers often feel unprepared to support pregnant students The importance of core and pelvic floor awareness, nervous system support, and trauma-aware teaching How yoga philosophy can support the emotional and identity shifts of parenthood Why movement should be about nurturing ourselves rather than fixing ourselves Lauren and Melody also announce True Love Yoga's new 85-Hour Perinatal Yoga Teacher Training, launching in 2027 with Melody as lead facilitator. This five-month hybrid or fully virtual program explores perinatal anatomy and physiology, functional movement, core and pelvic floor health, yoga philosophy, pranayama, meditation, trauma-aware teaching, and intelligent adaptations for pregnancy and postpartum. Designed for yoga teachers, fitness professionals, doulas, birth workers, and other professionals who support people through this extraordinary season, the training offers a comprehensive foundation for compassionate, knowledgeable perinatal movement education. 2027 Perinatal Yoga Teacher Training March–August 2027 Hybrid or fully virtual participation Tuition: $2,000 Early enrollment: $300 off through January 15 Payment plans and limited $500 BIPOC scholarships available Applications are now open! Explore the training and apply: https://www.trueloveyogakc.com/yoga-teacher-training/ Connect with Melody: Melody Butler Yoga Because pregnancy and postpartum aren't problems to fix. They're extraordinary transitions that deserve knowledgeable, compassionate support.

As the light changes, temperatures drop, and leaves begin to fall, nature makes one thing very clear: we are entering a new season. And yet, we often expect ourselves to operate exactly the same way all year long. In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren explores autumn through the lens of yoga and its sister science, Ayurveda. Traditionally associated with vata dosha and the qualities of air and space, autumn can feel cool, dry, light, mobile, and changeable—qualities we may notice reflected in our bodies and minds, too. Rather than completely changing your routine, what if your practice simply responded to the season? Lauren shares approachable ways to bring more warmth, steadiness, rhythm, and nourishment into your yoga practice and daily life—from slower transitions and grounding postures to restorative practices, warming foods, consistent routines, and simple sensory rituals. You'll also explore autumn as an invitation to turn inward and consider: What am I ready to release? What do I want to carry forward into this season? Lauren also shares an invitation to Vairāgya: Release & Return, an autumn practice at True Love Yoga on October 18 featuring myofascial release, Yin Yoga, breathwork, reflection, and Yoga Nidra. You don't have to overhaul your life when the seasons change. Maybe you simply become a little warmer, a little slower, a little more grounded—and a little more willing to listen.

After a month away—and her first real break from the podcast in more than two years—Lauren is back for episode 108, an auspicious number in the yoga tradition. And a lot has changed. In this personal episode, Lauren shares what’s been unfolding behind the scenes: celebrating 11 years of True Love Yoga, graduating the ninth 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training class, moving through the final months of TLY’s first 300-hour training, watching Abhyāsa evolve from an experiment into a beloved weekly practice, and unexpectedly becoming the owner of a women’s athletic club. With BarBelle Athletic Club in the middle of its messy, exciting birth, Lauren reflects on what yoga looks like when life is anything but calm. Through abhyāsa (consistent practice), vairāgya (non-attachment), sthira and sukha (effort and ease), and aparigraha (non-grasping), she explores how yoga can help us navigate uncertainty—not by making change disappear, but by changing the way we meet it. This episode is an invitation to consider: What is changing in your life right now? What helps you stay rooted when things feel uncertain? And what might it look like to keep showing up without needing to control exactly how everything unfolds? Because your practice doesn’t have to make the wind stop. It can teach you how to stand inside it.

You completed your 200-hour yoga teacher training. Maybe you've been teaching for years—or perhaps your certification has been sitting quietly while you wondered what comes next. So…is a 300-hour yoga teacher training right for you? In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren Leduc takes you inside True Love Yoga's 300-Hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training and explores what advanced study actually looks like. Unlike a foundational 200-hour training, a 300-hour isn't simply about accumulating more information. It's about refinement: developing discernment, finding your authentic teaching voice, understanding the why behind what you teach, and becoming a more confident, responsive, knowledgeable, and compassionate teacher. Lauren shares what students actually study, how the year-long program works, what makes True Love Yoga's approach unique, and answers some of the most common questions prospective students ask. Whether you're actively considering advanced training or simply curious about what comes after 200 hours, this episode offers a clear look at the next layer of yoga education. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN How a 300-hour training differs from a 200-hour training Who advanced yoga teacher training is—and isn't—for Why advanced study is about refinement rather than collecting certifications How to develop your own authentic teaching voice What advanced asana study really means How philosophy can become a through line in your teaching Why business, leadership, and professional development matter for yoga teachers How mentoring supports your evolution as a teacher How True Love Yoga's flexible year-long training works Whether you need to currently teach to enroll How much weekly time to expect Why you don't need to feel "advanced" before beginning IN THIS EPISODE Beyond the 200-Hour A 200-hour training provides a foundation for teaching yoga safely and effectively. A 300-hour training asks a different set of questions. Who are you as a teacher? Why do you teach what you teach? How do you respond when a student or situation doesn't fit the script? What do you uniquely have to offer? Advanced training moves beyond simply following the map and develops the discernment to navigate when there isn't one. Refining Your Teaching Students explore advanced cueing, voice, presence, reading the room, energetic awareness, adaptive teaching, trauma awareness, and responsive teaching. The goal isn't to create teachers who sound like Lauren. It's to help each student uncover and trust their own voice. Advanced Asana + Additional Modalities Advanced doesn't always mean physically difficult. Students explore intelligent progressions, arm balances, inversions, backbends, modifications, chair adaptations, hands-on assists, therapeutic applications, advanced vinyasa sequencing, Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, myofascial release, and Yoga Nidra. Philosophy as a Through Line The Yoga Sutras, Bhagavad Gita, chakras, subtle anatomy, ethics, and other philosophical teachings aren't treated as separate academic subjects. They're integrated into sequencing, anatomy, asana, workshops, retreats, teaching decisions, and leadership. The Business of Yoga Advanced teachers also need practical tools to build sustainable careers. Students explore branding, marketing, pricing, private sessions, workshops, retreats, legal considerations, financial literacy, podcasting, public speaking, community building, and sustainable professional development. Throughout it all, students clarify their unique value, whom they want to serve, and how to communicate their work authentically. Leadership One of the biggest shifts...