The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast

390: Yoga for People with Limited Energy with Katie Blecker & Audrey

Description:

People with chronic illnesses, disabilities, or other health conditions may have limited energy. As yoga teachers, what are some things we should know when teaching people with limited energy? What are some things that are helpful, and what should we avoid? Katie Blecker and Audrey share their insights as yoga teachers with limited energy.

Katie Blecker is a yoga teacher, advocate, and visual artist. Her lived experience with complex chronic illness informs her worldview and inspires her passion for disability advocacy. In her work as a trauma-informed yoga facilitator both online and in-person, Katie focuses on supporting folks who live with chronic illness and pain, disability, and chronic stress using tools such as therapeutic asana, pranayama, and meditation.

Audrey also is a yoga teacher and advocate whose experience with complex chronic illnesses informs her way of practising and teaching. As a disabled and neurodivergent person, her philosophy is that the practice will adapt to the person, not the other way around. Audrey devotes herself to sharing the transformational tools of yoga with other people so they too can find a practice that serves them, where community, access, and joy are centred.

In this episode, Katie and Audrey share their personal journeys with chronic illness and how these experiences have shaped their inclusive teaching methodologies. They explain what "limited energy" means and how it differs from someone who is simply more tired than usual, and how their own conditions influence their work as yoga teachers. Katie and Audrey also highlight the importance of adapting yoga practices to individual needs, the role of community in fostering a supportive environment for those with chronic conditions, and how yoga teachers can best support people with limited energy.

Key Takeaways:

[2:20] Shannon introduces her guests for this episode - Katie Blecker and Audrey.

[8:31] What work does Audrey do and who does she do it for?

[10:21] What does Katie do and who does she do it for?

[11:58] What are CFS and ME? Katie and Audrey share a little about these chronic conditions.

[15:02] What are some things that Audrey has found unhelpful in a yoga class because it does not work well for someone with limited energy?

[19:45] Having limited energy is not just about feeling more tired than usual. Katie explains the distinction.

[23:55] What do yoga teachers who are working with people with limited energy need to know?

[30:48] Shannon pops in to share a little about OfferingTree.

[33:13] Katie invites us to take a step back and reflect on why we might feel the need to "fix" or "help" someone through yoga.

[35:33] What are some of the benefits of yoga for people with limited energy?

[42:15] How do Katie and Audrey show up for their work as yoga teachers as people with limited energy?

[50:21] Find out more about Katie and Audrey's work via their websites and on Instagram.

[54:33] How do Katie and Audrey speak up for social justice when they have limited energy?

[63:13] Speaking up for social justice is not a sprint, it's a marathon, and it is important not to make it a competition.

[70:08] Shannon shares her takeaways from this conversation with Katie and Audrey.

[74:22] Shannon shares a quick personal update.

Links:

• Audrey

• Audrey on Instagram

• Katie Blecker

• Katie Blecker on Instagram

• Yoga for People with Limited Energy 5-week Series

• Cozy Yoga Winter Series

• Anti-Oppression, Inclusion and Accessibility in Yoga - Resources by The Connected Yoga Teacher

• Shannon Crow on Instagram

Gratitude to our Sponsor, OfferingTree

Quotes from this episode:

"Limited energy is like a profound absence of being able to create energy through the body. It's not being tired, it's a severe level of fatigue that can't really be recovered from on a day to day level. ... We start out with almost an impairment in energy on a daily basis." - Katie

"First and foremost, remembering that our students are the experts in their own bodies and their own experiences." - Katie

"Yoga will not heal or fix any anyone." - Audrey

"It's important to look at all of the wonderful practices of yoga and not always focus on Asana and movement." - Audrey