Why Do We Practice Yin Yoga – Episode 100!

Episode 100!
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[00:00:00] Welcome to a Yin Yoga podcast. If you’re new around these parts, welcome. If you are a Return listener, welcome back. Today is a very special episode. It’s an episode that I actually wasn’t sure we would ever get to. Those of you regular listeners have to have heard me say in the past that. Of my biggest fears with the podcast was running out of topic Ideas hasn’t happened yet, but it is still a worry.

So if you got subject ideas, send them my way. You can comment, below if you’re on YouTube or Spotify or send me a DM on Instagram. Me know if you have subjects you want me to cover. They have to be obviously related to yin yoga or yin adjacent. Otherwise, there’s other podcasts for that, but I would love to know.

So my biggest worry was always that we would not have enough episodes, and that the podcast would kind of [00:01:00] fizzle out. And it still may at some point. We don’t know, but so far, so good. But today, the time you’re listening to this now, if you’re listening to it live, it’s now. If you’re listening to this in the future, it’s already happened, but we have hit our 100th episode.

Amazing. Never thought it would happen. A hundred. Now you might be thinking, wait a minute, Nick, aren’t you on like season seven or something? How come it’s only a hundred episodes? And that’s because I practice what I preach and I take breaks. So in the winter we take, , kind of Christmas holidays to early January off the pod.

And I also take summers off the pod. Those two times of year. First of all, I need some rest. So, and it allows me to kind of prerecord and pre-B batch for, for the next season. But also those two particular times of year are really low for podcast listenership anyway. , Not as many people listen in the summer or kind of over the winter holiday breaks.

So those are the times that I have taken off. , Occasionally I’ll take like a [00:02:00] couple episodes off in the spring. . Yeah, so that’s why we’re at a hundred episodes and my friend Addie d Hilter, who you will hear from on this episode, and she has been on the pod twice and I’ve been on her podcast a couple times too.

She did this fun idea when she hit 100 episodes where she had people, I can’t remember what the prompt was. Something about mindfulness or. I can’t remember. But anyway, she had people that had been on the podcast before, leave her a little voice note about why they practice or something to that effect.

And so I thought I would just borrow Addie’s idea and that it might be fun to do a why do I practice yin yoga episode? These will be the answers coming from some of my guests. Not all of my guests didn’t manage to get everybody. , On board in time, but we’ve got some, some of our former guests that will be sharing with you why they [00:03:00] practice yin yoga.

So that’s what we’re gonna do for today’s episode. Before we get to that, I wanna very quickly read some feedback that I’ve gotten on the pod. This is from Wendy on Spotify in the comments, and it was specifically on the Deep N of Winter episode. Oh, Nick, thank you. Thank you for this beautiful episode. I will listen to this one again and again.

I love your podcast, your spirit, your wisdom, your humor, and your generous heart. Looking forward to taking your yin teacher training in the next year or two, wishing you a restful, restorative winter season. Thanks, Wendy. So my friends, I love getting your feedback. So whether it’s, if you’re on. Spotify, you can do it in the comments.

If you’re on YouTube, you can do it in the comments. If you’re watching or listening to this on my blog, I got comments there too. The only place you really can’t comment is Apple. [00:04:00] Oddly enough, um, you know, if I share it on Instagram, you can let me know in the comments or send me a dm. Let me know how , the podcast has helped you, uh, what you think about it.

If you got some suggestions. Or you can leave a review. So whether you’re on Apple or Spotify, you can leave five stars. So if you’ve been loving the pod, you could take a moment to do that. I’d be uber grateful. And then on Apple, you can also leave a written review as well so that you could let me know of how the pod back, how the podcast has helped, or what you think of it, et cetera, et cetera.

Okay. So that’s that. The other very quick announcement is to mention at the time of this recording,, my spring yin training will be approaching rapidly and I may have a couple spots left. I don’t know because I’m recording this in advance, but the link is in the show notes. To either join the most current training [00:05:00] coming up or if you would prefer to, get on the wait list for a future training.

And then once you’re on the wait list, I can , send you all kinds of yny yoga goodies and things like that as well. Okay. So that’s all the business we can dust our hands off with that. Now I do wanna say, especially for those of you audio and video wise, you can expect this episode to be a little sporadic with.

Volume. , And also with, , the videos. Some might be horizontal. Some might be vertical because I literally ask these lovely folks to just send me a little video clip. And so I’m taking it straight from the video clip. So you can expect these to be lo-fi and delightfully imperfect. But what I’m gonna do is I’ll introduce each person and then I will, , and what, what episodes they’ve been in.

And then I will share their little video snip. Slip or audio if you’re listening to it on the pod, and then we’ll go to the next person. And I’ve just put them loosely chronologically because [00:06:00] that seemed to make the most sense. The other thing to mention is that I will add mine at the very end.

I will tell you why I practice in yoga. Okay, so let’s get into this. Here are why some of my past guests practice yin yoga. So we’re gonna start with my first guest and aptly. So he should be the first guest because it is my teacher. There would be no yin yoga in my life. I would not be practicing it, studying it, nor training teachers in it.

If it wasn’t for Mr. Paul Greeley. , Paul Greeley was, I interviewed him in season one, episode four. He was the very first guest that I had on because. I think that’s just the best way to honor your teacher. They should be the first. , And here is what Paul has to say about why he practices yin yoga,

Hello, I’m Paul Greeley and in the year [00:07:00] 2002 I published this little green book, yin Yoga, an Outline of a Quiet Practice. And this book helped popularize yin yoga all over the world. But in my personal practice, I started Haha Yoga Asana practice in 1978. And in all these years I’ve practiced many forms of yoga, including those styles of yoga that are known today, such as hot yoga or power yoga, Ashtanga yoga.

And I have found all these forms of yoga, a valuable contribution to human health and wellbeing, including my own. But in this year, the year 2026, uh, my personal haha yoga practice is almost exclusively yin. And this is because it is the ideal way to prepare the body and train the mind to sit still comfortably for long periods of time while practicing pranayama and meditation.

[00:08:00] And as I move through the 68th year of my particular physical embodiment, I find these practices more and more important in my life. So I’m delighted to learn that Nick and a Yin Yoga Podcast are now quickly approaching their 100th episode milestone, and I hope for her and for the podcast many more years of spreading the news about this wonderful practice that we call Yin Congrat.

, So thank you, Paul, for taking the time to make me a little phone video, send it in my way. Our next guest is Addie d Hilter. And Addie, I have been on her podcast a couple times once, and then she’d been on mine once and then we teamed up and we did like a, a collab.

Where we recorded it and we each edited it to our liking, and then we shared it so it’s essentially the same interview with slightly different edits and different titles. So she posted it on her pod, [00:09:00] I posted it on my pod. And so that’s my friend Addie. So Addie was on season one, episode eight, mindfulness in Yin Yoga.

And then also that collab interview was on in season three, episode one. And that was called Deepening Yin, the Power of Props, yin Yoga. And this is what Addie had to say about why she practices yin yoga.

Hello, this is Addie d Hilter. I’m a yoga therapist, Qigong teacher and mindfulness meditation teacher, as well as the host of the Move to Meditate podcast. Congratulations to Nick for 100 episodes of a Yin Yoga podcast and all the great conversations you’ve had here so far. I’m so grateful to have been a part of your show and wish you many more wonderful episodes.

I personally practice yin yoga because for me it was really one of the first bridges I found [00:10:00] between my yoga Asana practice and my Buddhist meditation practice. Yin yoga gave me the confluence of the stillness of meditation. And the embodiment of yoga and really helped me to decompartmentalize these two parts of my path.

So I’ll always be grateful to yin yoga for that gift and the ways that it’s allowed me to bring more mindfulness into my movement practice and to bring more and more embodiment into my. Meditative life as well. So thank you to Nick for all you do to help bring this yin yoga practice to more practitioners.

And thank you to all of Nick’s wonderful listeners and the yin yoga community.

Thank you Addie, for sending that in. And then my next guest video that we have is my friend Pamela. Pamela was on season one, [00:11:00] episode 12, and we talked about interception and yin yoga, um, and how yin yoga in both her and my opinion, is an amazing tool for practicing interoception. All of these will be linked to the show notes, so if you missed any of these and you’re like, wait, what?

What the hell is interception? It’ll be linked. You can listen, and this is what. My friend Pamela Crane had to say about why she practices yin yoga,

Hello, I’m Pamela Crane, certified yoga therapist, and I practice yin yoga because I love the way my body feels afterwards. I love that feeling of release and calm and peace, and I wanna say congratulations, Nick, on 100 episodes of your podcast, and thank you for everything you do for the profession of yoga, yoga therapy, and particularly in this.

Specialized field of Yen yoga.

. Thank you [00:12:00] so much, Pamela, for sending in this little video.

Okay. Next , we have Dr. Karina Smith. Dr. Karina Smith has been on the pod twice, season two, episode five in the episode titled Yin Yoga Is Not Chinese Medicine. And then again, in season five, episode 12, with mentorship matters. , So this is, , what my friend Karina from the land under said about why she practices yin yoga.

Hi, I’m Karina Smith, a yin yoga teacher and yin yoga teacher trainer from Melbourne, Australia. I run local and international yin trainings and workshops. I’m also an acupuncturist and I practice yin yoga because it is a rebellion against the world telling me I have to move fast and keep producing whenever I practice in yoga.

It’s a reminder to me that being [00:13:00] slow and mindful is my right, and it’s a place where I get to deeply connect with myself. Okay.

. Alright. Thank you so much Karina for sending the little video clip and then we have my friend Lita, who we did training together with Mr. Paul Grill. I don’t know if we were together once or twice, I can’t remember.

But in season four, episode one, the power of words with Lita Levi, she has got a wordsmiths tongue. Let me tell you, friends, this is a great episode and it includes a really good infographic too, about words that you can use in yin that are just so beautiful. And this is what my friend Lita said about why she practices yin yoga.

Hi, my name is Lita Levine. I am a yoga teacher, trainer, and studio owner based in Finland, and I practice in yoga because [00:14:00] it’s one of the few places I can actually just be without any distractions. And I need that. We need that. Congratulations to Nick on a hundred episodes.

Thank you so much, Lita, for sending a video in. All right, our next guest, season four, episode three. Miss Tiffany Crookshank was on talking about yin yoga for athletes. Tiffany was nice enough to send me a quick video talking about why she practices yin and here it is

I am Tiffany Kirkshank, founder of Yoga Medicine, and I practice yin yoga mostly for peace of mind and of course ease of body.

So that was a little message from Tiffany Khan about why she [00:15:00] practices yin yoga. All right, we’re onto somebody that rarely needs an introduction in yin circles, season four, episode nine and 10. It was a long one, so I split it into two episodes.

Insights with Bernie Clark. , We’ll be having Bernie on again soon, , because he’s got a new book that I’m just reading currently. So once I’ve finished it, we’ll have Bernie on again. And this is what Bernie said about why he practices yin yoga.

Hi, I’m Bernie Clark, a yin yoga teacher, author, and edutainer. Nick Daniel asked me, why do I do Y yoga? Well, I practiced yin yoga for balance a long time ago, due to my type A personality, A for stanga, I was burning out and literally burning up. Just in time. I came across Sarah Powers and Paul Greeley Yin Yoga gave me the other half of my practice.[00:16:00]

A half I was missing. I was missing the stillness, the mindfulness, the calm abiding, which curiously actually yin yoga, improved my range of motion and reduced my stress over 20 years later. I’m so grateful Yin Yoga came into my life when it did.

. Thank you so much, Bernie, for sharing your love of yin. All of us, and for your books and for the work that you do in the yin community and for sending me this little video. Okay, my friends. Next we have Norman Blair, those in the u, the UK yin yoga scene. Probably know Norman quite well.

The season five, episode three, Norman was on and the. Episode was called Yin Yoga and the Middle Way with Norman Blair. And this is why Norman says in his [00:17:00] own words, he practices yin yoga.

Hi, my name is Norman Blair. I’m a teacher of yin yoga for a long time, and I also train other people in this wonderful practice. I’ve written a couple of books, uh, brightening our Inner Skies, which came out 10 years ago, and a book that I bought out last summer called A Book of Yian Wisdom. So I practice in yoga.

Because it brings me joy. I practice in yoga because through this practice I can experience some space, some slowing down, can bring me ease. It can help to release some of the tension and the anxiety that I, along with everyone else experience. I love this practice. Thank you.

. Thank you so much, Norman, for taking the time to send [00:18:00] this little clip.

. Okay. And another much beloved person in the yin community, A Kiwi. , So Miss Gabrielle Harris, season six, episode four. We talked about her book, the Language of Yin. And Gabrielle will be coming on in the future as well, because she has another book, which as soon as I finish reading Bernie’s book, I’ll be reading her book and then we’ll have her on to chat about that.

And this is what Gabrielle had to say about why she practices yin yoga

Hi, this is Gabriel. I’m the author of The Language of Yin and the Inspire Yoga Teacher and Lessons in Meditation. Um, I love Yin because it gives me a little bit of time and space every morning to gather my thoughts together. I love the silence of it and introspection.

. Thank you so much, Gabrielle, for [00:19:00] sending that little video in for us. And now my friends, we are at the end of the guests for the most part and we’re onto myself.

There’s been so many episodes that I have been on, being that it’s my podcast and I do a lot of solo episodes, so, , we won’t highlight any of them specifically. , Why do I practice yen yoga? I practice yen yoga for so many reasons. One, because it’s incredibly therapeutic to my body, so it gives me a sense of release and spaciousness that I just don’t get in other styles of yoga.

It’s extra good for my mind. The long holds, the stillness and the quiet. I give my mind a little reprieve from the busy whirling of my normal A DHD brain and many meditations in each pose. That’s another reason that I practice [00:20:00] yin. I also practice yin because it gives me some glimpses into my mind, into my body.

It allows me to. Practice embracing my witness consciousness so that part of me that is aware, that I’m aware and my witness is, and practicing the witness, which I also do in meditation, allows me to respond instead of react in tough situations. So when I sit on a yoga mat and I’m feeling. Let’s just use Dragon Pose as an example since it’s not one of my favorites.

So let’s just say I’m in Dragon Pose and I’m witnessing that sensation and my hip flexors, and I’m hearing the stories that my mind is telling me about Dragon Pose, and I can observe those stories and those thoughts while they’re happening. That’s what I mean by witnessing, and this is an incredibly useful skill when I’m not on my yoga mat and [00:21:00] I’m just out in the regular world dealing with other people.

So Yin yoga has made me more calm, patient, grounded, content wise, and a kinder human all because of these long holds. The stillness and the quiet, and this ability to practice my witnessing consciousness to relieve any chronic pain that I might be feeling. Because we all know anyone who’s had chronic pain.

It’s very hard to be a nice human if you’re in a lot of pain. , And it gives me a chance to experience that spaciousness both in my body and also in my mind. So that is why I practice y yoga. I practice yin yoga because . It’s good for me. It makes me more grounded.

And spacious in my mind, it gives me the ability to respond instead of react in tough situations, and therefore it makes me a kinder [00:22:00] human. So that’s why I practice y yoga. So I wanna thank each of you, especially those of you who’ve actually listened to all 100 episodes. And if you haven’t, don’t worry.

There’s plenty of ways to catch up. In fact, there is a Google Doc in the show notes that says all episodes at a glance. So you can kind of surf by guest or subject and then click on it and it takes you to my website where you can listen or watch the video there. So if you’re a little behind, never fear, there’s no such thing as behind.

You can watch and listen to as many as you’d like. For those of you who’ve been with me from the beginning, who’ve listened to every episode, and especially to those of you who have. Offered reviews and feedback and shared the podcast, whether it be on Instagram or at the studio you work at or wherever.

From the bottom of my heart. Thank you so, so much. There is no way I could have made it to 100 episodes without you. , I don’t [00:23:00] think that I would’ve had the chubu, so to speak, to just keep going week after week if I didn’t get the feedback and the love from you as the audience. So endlessly grateful for you, for each and every one of you.

And thank you so much for being, , a fan of the podcast, for sharing the podcast, for listening to the podcast, for downloading the podcast, for messaging me, et cetera, et cetera. I would love to hear from you. So if you are on Spotify or if you are on YouTube, or if you’re on my blog in the comments below.

Let me know. Why do you practice yin yoga, specifically? Yin, what about yin? Why do you practice yin yoga? I would love to hear from you. Who knows? Maybe when we reach another landmark episode, I’ll read all of your comments about why you practice yin. That would be fun. So there’s your homework, [00:24:00] my friends.

Let me know in the comments if you’re listening on, on Apple and there’s no comments, you can click through to get onto my blog, , and leave them there. And that would be great. So on YouTube, you can leave them below Spotify. You can comment below. If you’re on Apple hop over to my blog. , You can listen or watch there, and then you can also leave me some comments.

Let me know. Why do you practice yin yoga? And until we meet again, bye for now.