Moved To Meditate Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Labyrinth Walking Meditation with Peggy Burt Apr 06, 2022

Show notes

In this episode, we have a fascinating conversation with my friend, Peggy Burt. Peggy is a yoga teacher and labyrinth meditation facilitator, and here she'll be sharing her knowledge of this unique form of walking meditation.

You'll hear how Peggy first experienced labyrinth meditation and had an unexpected "lightening bolt moment" with it. She talks about how the practice of walking the labyrinth helped her connect her love of movement (from her dance background) to yoga, and eventually meditating in stillness.

We also cover:

the history of the labyrinth, including the medieval Christian cathedrals of Europe (notably Chartres, France), and the presence of spiralling paths in ancient Druidic, Celtic, Norse, Greek, and Italian cultures, as well as indigenous cultures in the Americas
the rich symbolism embedded in the labyrinth shape and design, representing the journey of spiritual seeking, and much more
how the twists and turns of the labyrinth seem to subvert the rational mind (that wants to have the path figured out)
the practice of taking a question with you into the labyrinth and allowing intuitive wisdom to arise
how public labyrinths bring a community feel to this contemplative activity (and how to find a labyrinth near you!)

Peggy describes how her yoga practice complements the labyrinth meditation, and how these mindful movements became her gateway to meditation. And, we touch on her work bringing arts, mindfulness, and movement into K-12 schools as social-emotional learning.

I hope you'll enjoy this conversation as much as I did, and go find a labyrinth near you!

For all of the resources mentioned today and the full show notes, visit this episode's page at movedtomeditate.yoga/podcast.

To connect further with Peggy, visit her website at mindfulstrategies.com or follow her on Instagram @peggyburtyoga.

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga.

You can find practices that align with and support these podcast topics in the Moved To Meditate Class Library.

And, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

Life and Practice Evolving Together (Part 1) with Mike deHilster Mar 30, 2022

Show notes

I have a special guest for today's episode...my husband, Mike deHilster! We decided to sit down and interview each other, and share a little about our story.

Mike is part of the MTM team, and he also has his own relationship with mindfulness and movement practice. We talk about some of our life experiences here - from music school to working in the non-profit world and living in different regions of the US - and how yoga and meditation have woven throughout all of these activities in different ways.

You'll hear about how we each got started with our first experiences of practice (some of this is pretty funny), and how the dedication (and stress) of musical training helped get us both interested in mindfulness and practical ways of taking care of the body.

I hope this conversation helps you reflect on your own journey, and that it supports you in knowing that you can make your practice your own.

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga.

You can find practices that align with and support these podcast topics in the Moved To Meditate Class Library.

And, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

Deeper Dive - Compassion Mar 23, 2022

Show notes

In today's episode, I'm introducing the next Deeper Dive theme, which is Compassion. We'll be focusing on compassion practices during the month of April, building on the Metta (loving-kindness) topic of March.

Metta is the "baseline" of benevolence that we cultivate in practice, and compassion (Karuna) is how the benevolent heart opens when it comes into contact with suffering or struggle. Like with kindness, there are many ways to practice compassion in the real world, supported by formal meditation techniques designed to develop our capacity for care and awareness.

In this episode, I'll give some examples of how compassion helps us to be with challenging experiences, whether they are our own difficulties, the struggles of others, or the pains of the world. We'll look at how compassion helps balance our growing awareness as we meet our edges in meditation practice, and how it helps us avoid the trap of spiritual by-pass (aka trying to avoid all negativity in order to maintain our blissful ideal.)

We'll also distinguish between wise compassion and the well-intentioned misfires such as enabling, co-dependence, and compassion fatigue. And you'll hear my story about how a dachshund named Scarlett became a compassion teacher for me years ago, simply by sitting quietly with me while I was sick.

Join us on this Deeper Dive, and gain some tools and insights for your compassionate heartfulness.

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga.

You can find practices that align with and support these podcast topics in the Moved To Meditate Class Library.

And, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

** As mentioned at the beginning of the episode, to receive the Deeper Dive worksheet on this month's theme of Compassion, you can sign up for the MTM email newsletter here. The worksheet is designed to support your personal, creative exploration of this theme, and it's coming out the first week of April! **

P.S. If you missed the newsletter because you're listening to this later, you can still get the worksheet. All you need to do is email me at mail@movedtomeditate.com and ask. :)

So You Think You Can't Meditate (Part 2) - Practicing with Pain Mar 16, 2022

Show notes

Today's episode is the sequel to an earlier one called "So You Think You Can't Meditate, Part 1" (Episode 23), which covered some common obstacles to practice. Here in Part 2, I'm delving into the experience of pain and how it factors into meditation.

Drawing from what I've learned from some of my meditation teachers who are more pain aware, and also from my yoga therapy training and experience working with students who have pain, I'll offer some perspective on how mindfulness can help with this challenge.

We'll cover:

the discomfort that is a normal part of the meditation process
meditating when the pain is more serious or ongoing
what the research says about mindfulness and pain
how the practice might need to be adjusted to accomodate pain

I also discuss the Teaching of the 2nd Arrow, which is a Buddhist perspective on pain vs. suffering. And, I'll give some specific techniques you can use in your meditation to be mindful of pain without getting stuck on it.

The full show notes with links to resources can be found on the podcast page of my website!

You can find practices that align with and support these podcast topics in the Moved To Meditate Class Library.

And, we can connect on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

Metta Meditation, Part 2 - Phrases and Nuances Mar 09, 2022

Show notes

Today's episode is a second look at this month's Deeper Dive theme of Metta, or loving-kindness practice. We'll go in more detail about the common practice of using Metta phrases, and cover some important nuances that can help you orient your intentions for the meditation.

This builds on Episode 24, where we started with an overview of Metta practice - what it is, where it comes from, and some of the ways it's traditionally offered as an antidote to states like fear and anger/judgement. (So, you might want to start there if you're not familiar with this practice yet.)

In today's talk, you'll hear about:

using words/phrases to invoke the essence of kindness or goodwill, and why it can be useful as a way of engaging the thinking mind
whether Metta Meditation is different than prayer
distinctions between Metta Meditation and using affirmations
how a Metta "wish" relates to our expectations for external change

We'll also go over some tips for choosing your own Metta phrases, and how personalizing the traditional phrase framework can help you develop your own relationship to this form of meditation.

Give it a listen, and let's bring a bit more kindness and goodwill into the world!

As mentioned in the episode, to receive the Deeper Dive worksheet on this month's theme of Metta, you can sign up for the MTM email newsletter here. I'll be re-sending the worksheets in my newsletter around 3/17/22, along with a recorded meditation with Metta phrases.

P.S. If you missed the newsletter because you're listening to this later, you can still get the worksheet. All you need to do is email me at mail@movedtomeditate.com and ask. :)

Also mentioned today: the upcoming Yin Yoga Teacher Training and the next live online class series "Hips & Hamstrings in the Here & Now."

Lastly...I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

Stress and Brain-Body Resilience with Jessica Patching-Bunch Mar 02, 2022

Show notes

My guest today is Jessica Patching-Bunch (or JPB), a stress resilience coach with a background in neurodevelopment research. In this episode, we have a lot of fun unpacking the concept of stress and how to navigate it better.

You'll hear why JPB left a career in academics and research to bring neuroscience-backed tools to the public, and her tips for filtering through the huge amounts of health information that we get from different sources.

We talk about:

What is exactly is stress, and is it always bad for us?
How our beliefs about stress can actually affect how our body responds (levels of hormones and other biomarkers)
How we can take our power back through awareness and by using simple practices to build a better relationship with our stress response
Why breathwork is her #1 favorite tool for stress resiliency (and what people often misunderstand about breathwork)
How different kinds of exercise affect your brain differently (running vs. yoga vs. weight lifting, etc.)

This episode will broaden your perspective on stress and empower you to build more resilience! I hope you'll enjoy geeking out with us on some practical science for your brain and body.

To connect with JPB, you can visit her website at https://www.brain-bodyresilience.com/

or listen to her podcast Brain-Body Resilience

or follow her on Instagram @jpb.brainbodyresilience.

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga

or the Moved To Meditate Class Library at movedtomeditate.com

And, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

As mentioned at the beginning of the episode, to receive the Deeper Dive worksheet on this month's theme of Metta (lovingkindness), you can sign up for the MTM email newsletter here. The worksheet is designed to support your personal, creative exploration of this theme, and it's coming out the first week of March!

P.S. If you missed the newsletter because you're listening to this later, you can still get the worksheet. All you need to do is email me at mail@movedtomeditate.com and ask. :)

Deeper Dive - Metta (Lovingkindness) Feb 23, 2022

Show notes

Today I'm introducing our next Deeper Dive theme of Metta (or lovingkindness), so this is a preview of the MTM theme for March. Like Equanimity, Metta is one of the heart-based wisdom qualities taught within the Buddhist Mindfulness tradition and also in the Yoga tradition.

Metta (or Maitri, in Sanskrit) is usually translated as "lovingkindness," but you can also think of it as friendliness, goodwill, or benevolence. It's an attitude of mind that we can cultivate as our baseline way of responding to ourselves and to the world.

In this episode, I talk about how Metta goes against the grain of much of our cultural conditioning, and challenges the biased ways we see things (the world, other people, ourselves). The teachings are very clear that all beings are intrinsically worthy of this benevolence, and it's not something we need to earn.

As an antidote to anger and ill-will, Metta asks us to open our hearts to people we don't understand, or who we don't necessarily consider to be "good." It's also an antidote to fear, as you'll hear in one of my favorite traditional Buddhist stories, that describes how the Buddha and his monks dealt with hostile spirits they met in the forest.

Lastly, I talk about different approaches to practicing Metta, including the repetition of Metta phrases, Metta for the body, energetically radiating Metta, and incorporating kindness as a guiding principle in your yoga or mindful movement practice.

Since this is our Deeper Dive theme for March, there is a free 3-page worksheet that you can download and use to take a closer look at the topic of Metta! I will be sending the worksheet out with my email newsletter during the first week of March...you can sign up to receive it here.

P.S. If you missed the newsletter because you're listening to this later, you can still get the worksheet. All you need to do is email me at mail@movedtomeditate.com and ask. :)

Also, I'm teaching a FREE Mindfulness 101 Workshop online on February 26th (2022). Get the details and sign up at movedtomeditate.yoga/events.

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga

or the Moved To Meditate Class Library at movedtomeditate.com

Lastly, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

So You Think You Can't Meditate (Part 1) Feb 16, 2022

Show notes

In this episode, I talk about common roadblocks to starting a mindfulness practice, especially expectations of "what counts" as meditation.

This isn't really me trying to convince you that you "should" meditate. Rather, I hope this episode might be helpful if you're interested in meditating, but haven't quite gained traction in your practice yet.

We will cover some of the misconceptions about how to sit in meditation, and how the Buddhist texts talk about four main mindfulness postures (these might expand the possibilities for you!).

We'll also talk about how long and how often to meditate when you're just starting, using guided meditations, and how to recognize your mindful moments outside of meditation so that you can build on these experiences.

If you're curious about meditation, this episode should provide some great practical advice, as well as the encouragement to get started and enjoy your practice!

P.S. I'm teaching a FREE Mindfulness 101 Workshop online on February 26th. Get the details and sign up at movedtomeditate.yoga/events.

And, you can find my free guided meditations on the Insight Timer app here.

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga

or the Moved To Meditate Class Library at movedtomeditate.com

Lastly, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).

Rest, Joy, and Somatic Restorative Yoga with Melissa Smith-Wilkinson Feb 02, 2022

Show notes

Today we have a heartfelt and inspiring conversation with Melissa Smith-Wilkinson, an expert Restorative Yoga teacher and the founder of Pranava Yoga Studio in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

You'll hear how Melissa defines Restorative Yoga, and how this practice of rest and non-doing can refresh body and mind. Melissa weaves somatic movements into her teaching of Restorative Yoga, and we talk about how these gentle "developmental movements" can help prepare the body for long Restorative poses.

She also describes how Restorative Yoga can offer us time and space to tend to the internal, emotional experience, and how it can be used for physical rehabilitation (as in the example of her frozen shoulder).

We talk about some of the nuts and bolts of Restorative - like are you supposed to feel a stretch? How can you practice at home with minimal props? And how can you practice in the midst of pain?

This is a rich conversation, including practical advice for finding rest in sometimes unconventional ways, and making room for moments of joy throughout your day.

To connect with Melissa, you can visit her website at https://www.pranavayoga.studio/

try her Restorative sequence with minimal props (on YouTube) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EW1zmRZYxVk

or check out her Caregiver Wellness Retreat organization at https://www.caregiverwellnessretreat.com/

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga

or the Moved To Meditate Class Library at movedtomeditate.com

And, as mentioned at the beginning of the episode, our current Deeper Dive theme is Equanimity. There is a free 3-page worksheet that you can download for inspiration and self-reflection. I will be sending the worksheet out with my email newsletter during the first week of February...you can sign up to receive it here.

P.S. If you missed the newsletter because you're listening to this later, you can still get the worksheet. All you need to do is email me at mail@movedtomeditate.com and ask. :)

Deeper Dive - Equanimity Jan 26, 2022

Show notes

In today's episode, I'm introducing our Deeper Dive theme for February, which is Equanimity. This capacity we call "equanimity" is steadiness of mind, and it's something we develop through mindfulness practice.

My personal working definition of equanimity is "an empowering steadiness that allows us to be in relationship with circumstances." Despite turbulent situations, or uncertainty, or scenarios we can't change, this is a mind that can stay centered and remember its highest intentions.

In this episode, we'll explore:

how equanimity is often confused with apathy or numbness
how it's connected to courage and confidence
what the energetic, embodied characteristics of groundedness and spaciousness have to do with equanimity
how to work with your nervous system to create more physiological equanimity.

I'll give examples of small, accessible ways to practice equanimity during your daily activities, as well as traditional ways to develop it in meditation, including the equanimity phrases that I use in my own practice.

Since this is our Deeper Dive theme for February, there is a free 3-page worksheet that you can download and use to take a closer look at Equanimity! I will be sending the worksheet out with my email newsletter during the first week of February...you can sign up to receive it here.

P.S. If you missed the newsletter because you're listening to this later, you can still get the worksheet. All you need to do is email me at mail@movedtomeditate.com and ask. :)

To connect further with me (Addie), check out my main website movedtomeditate.yoga

or the Moved To Meditate Class Library at movedtomeditate.com

Lastly, I'm on Instagram at @addie_movedtomeditate (for mindfulness, movement, yoga, and pictures of PNW nature and my adorable kitten, Mustache).