Deepen Your Yoga Practice

In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren Leduc dives into the Prana Vayus, the five vital energy currents within the subtle body that influence our physical, emotional, and spiritual experiences. While many are familiar with the chakras, fewer practitioners explore these foundational energetic flows—yet understanding them can transform both your yoga practice and your daily life.

Lauren explores:

The definition and origin of prana and vayu

Each of the 5 Prana Vayus:

Prana Vayu (inward + upward, heart/lungs, intake)

Apana Vayu (downward + outward, pelvic floor, elimination)

Samana Vayu (inward + centering, navel, assimilation)

Udana Vayu (upward + outward, throat/head, expression)

Vyana Vayu (circulating + integrating, full body, coordination)

How to feel and work with each current on the mat

Practices to cultivate energy balance, intention, and inner alignment

Ideas for integrating Vayus into your teaching, breathwork, sequencing, and daily living

Whether you're a student, teacher, or simply someone seeking more clarity and vitality, this episode will help you deepen your understanding of subtle energy and reconnect to your inner wisdom.

‍♀️ Want to go even deeper? Lauren’s 300-Hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training begins in January 2026 and includes full training on subtle anatomy, energetics, and yogic philosophy.
Learn more: trueloveyogakc.com/yoga-teacher-training

Prana = vital life force; Vayu = wind/movement

The 5 Vayus represent directional flows of energy in the body

Awareness of these flows enhances physical, emotional, and spiritual balance

You can work with the Vayus through asana, breath, meditation, and intention

Knowing which Vayu is deficient or dominant can guide self-care and practice

You don’t need to memorize them to begin noticing energetic shifts

Subtle body awareness creates a more integrated, intelligent yoga practice

The Vayus can inform decisions, boundaries, digestion, voice, and vision

Teachers can use the Vayus to sequence, theme, and assist more effectively

Each Vayu has a role in our healing and wholeness

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This Thanksgiving week, Lauren invites you into a gentler, more honest expression of gratitude—not a list, not a platitude, but the embodied art of presence and savoring.

In this solo episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, you’ll explore yogic teachings like:
Santoshya – contentment
Ishvara Pranidhana – surrender
Abhyasa & Vairagya – disciplined presence + letting go
️ Pratyahara – withdrawing from overstimulation

Lauren shares personal reflections, seasonal wisdom, and gentle invitations to slow down—especially during the holidays. She also addresses the complexity of Thanksgiving as a holiday, honoring its historical context and encouraging thoughtful land acknowledgment.

✨ Topics include:

How slowing down activates the parasympathetic nervous system

Why savoring is a deeper form of gratitude

Mindful eating as a spiritual practice

Accessible yoga and journaling rituals for the season

Thanksgiving classes at True Love Yoga

‍♀️ What are you savoring this week? Let us know on Instagram or Spotify comments.

Studio Schedule: https://www.trueloveyogakc.com/schedule

Journal prompt:
What am I rushing through in my life?
What’s asking me to slow down and savor?

In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren Leduc continues the chakra series with a nourishing and powerful exploration of the Sacral Chakra—the energetic center of creativity, sensuality, pleasure, and emotional flow.

From hip-opening asana to watery sequencing, from dance rituals to journaling about shame and joy, Lauren shares ways to connect with your sacral energy both on and off the mat.

You’ll learn how to recognize imbalances, how to invite more fluidity, and how to honor cycles in your body and life. The episode also highlights the divine feminine energy of Shakti, the wisdom of the womb space, and the role of the moon and seasons in sacral healing.

✨ Topics include:

What the sacral chakra governs

Signs of balance and imbalance

Hip openers and wave-like sequencing

Pelvic floor awareness + Mula Bandha

Somatic creativity and emotional expression

Healthy boundaries in intimacy

Connection to Shakti and cycles

Off-the-mat practices for flow and pleasure

‍♀️ Practice prompt:
Try a hip-opening slow flow, journal about what brings you pleasure, or dance to a sensual playlist that awakens your creativity.

Mantra:
I live in flow. I honor my body’s wisdom. I am a creative, emotional, and sensual being.

Dive deeper:
Lauren’s book Embody Your Inner Goddess explores the sacral chakra in depth during Week 2.

Interested in deepening your energetic and teaching practice?
Explore Lauren’s 300-hour Advanced YTT

Is yoga calling you deeper? In this special episode, Lauren Leduc, founder and lead trainer at True Love Yoga, shares the transformative journey of 200‑Hour Yoga Teacher Training. Whether you’ve been curious about teaching yoga or simply want to deepen your personal practice, this episode explores who YTT is for, what you’ll learn, and why 2026 might be your year to say yes.

Lauren reflects on her own path from hesitant student to teacher, explains what makes the True Love Yoga program unique, and invites you to notice the subtle inner pull that may be guiding you toward growth, transformation, and community.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

Why YTT is more than preparing to teach — it’s a path of personal transformation

The wide variety of students who benefit from training (not just future teachers)

What’s included in TLY’s 200‑Hour YTT curriculum: asana, anatomy, sequencing, philosophy, practice teaching, mentorship, and more

How community and mentorship support every step of the journey

Accessible options: in‑person & virtual, scholarships, and financing

Key Dates & Details

Enrollment opens: November 11, 2025

Early Bird Savings: $500 off when you enroll by January 31, 2026

Training starts: March 2026

Format: Hybrid (in‑person + virtual)

Scholarships: BIPOC and work‑trade options available

Apply & Learn More: TrueLoveYogaKC.com/YTT

Journal Prompts from this Episode

What would it feel like to say yes to myself in 2026?

What part of me is ready to grow, to share, and to lead?

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In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren explores one of the most beloved and practical teachings from Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras—Sutra 1.33, known as the “Locks and Keys.” This timeless framework offers guidance on how to cultivate emotional intelligence, maintain inner peace, and meet the world with grace and clarity.

Lauren breaks down each of the four “locks” we encounter—joy, suffering, virtue, and negativity—and the yogic “key” to unlock peace in response: friendliness, compassion, delight, and equanimity. Through personal stories, on-the-mat examples, and off-the-mat reflections, Lauren invites you to integrate these tools into your daily life and teaching.

This episode includes:

The full translation and meaning of Yoga Sutra 1.33

How the four keys support emotional regulation and self-awareness

Real-life reflections on jealousy, compassion fatigue, admiration, and anger

How to use the locks and keys in your personal practice, relationships, and teaching

A mantra to help you embody the teachings

Journaling prompts for deeper reflection

An invitation to deepen your study through True Love Yoga’s 300-Hour YTT

‍♀️ Suggested Reflection:
Which of the four locks is most challenging for you right now? How might you pause and respond differently?

Mantra:
“May I meet joy with friendliness, pain with compassion, virtue with delight, and negativity with equanimity.”

Ready to go deeper?

Explore the teachings behind yoga’s most transformative inner tools in Lauren’s 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training, launching in January 2026:
https://www.trueloveyogakc.com/yoga-teacher-training

Listen now and tag @trueloveyogakc or @iamlaurenleduc in your reflections.

n this Halloween-themed episode, Lauren Leduc explores the haunting impact of social media on our minds, nervous systems, and spiritual lives. She breaks down how platforms manipulate attention, distort truth, and diminish focus—while offering powerful yogic tools for reclaiming awareness and navigating the digital world with discernment and purpose. Through concepts like pratyahara, ahimsa, tapas, and santoshah, Lauren provides a thoughtful guide to using social media skillfully—rather than being used by it.

What You'll Learn:

Why social media feels so addictive—and how it’s designed that way

How short-form content impacts your focus and dharana (concentration)

How to create mindful digital boundaries using yogic philosophy

Breath checks, mantras, and journal prompts to reset your relationship with social media

What it means to post from a place of dharma, satya, and service

 Journal Prompt:
What does my current relationship with social media look like, and how might I bring more yoga into it?

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Episode Summary:
In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren Leduc explores the deeply restorative and transformative practice of Yoga Nidra, also known as yogic sleep. She unpacks its roots in yogic philosophy and tantra, explains its effects on the nervous system and brain states, and walks listeners through the key phases of a typical practice. Lauren shares how Yoga Nidra has impacted her personally and offers suggestions for incorporating it into both personal practice and yoga teaching. This episode is a beautiful invitation to embrace rest as a sacred part of the yogic path.

Takeaways:

Yoga Nidra is a guided meditation that leads to deep rest and access to subconscious layers.

It supports nervous system regulation, emotional healing, and spiritual clarity.

A typical practice includes setting a sankalpa, body scan, breath awareness, opposite sensations, visualization, and reintegration.

It’s accessible to all bodies and beneficial for stress, anxiety, insomnia, and trauma.

Yoga Nidra reflects the yogic values of pratyahara, dharana, and dhyana.

It is a powerful lunar practice that complements active styles like vinyasa or yang-based movement.

Teachers can integrate Yoga Nidra into retreats, restorative classes, and trauma-sensitive environments.

Lauren’s 300-hour YTT includes Yoga Nidra training and scripting.

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Summary:
In this heartfelt interview, Lauren Leduc sits down with True Love Yoga teacher Katie Kriefall to explore her personal healing journey through yoga. Katie shares how chronic pain led her to the practice, the impact of her global travels on her teaching philosophy, and how she integrates Hatha, Strala Yoga, pranayama, and Trataka meditation to support nervous system regulation and ease. With a deep passion for accessibility and softness, Katie reflects on what it means to move with lightness—on the mat and in life—and offers wisdom for practitioners seeking to find ease in their own bodies and minds.

What You’ll Learn:

Katie’s journey from chronic pain to empowered movement

The role of international experience in shaping a versatile teaching style

The difference between Hatha, Strala, and Qigong-informed yoga

The power of Trataka meditation and breath in calming the mind

How softness and accessibility can be profound paths to healing

Why joy, lightness, and nervous system regulation are central to Katie’s classes

Workshops Mentioned:
️ Light Within: Hatha, Pranayama & Trataka — October 25, 2025
Move with Ease: Intro to Strala Yoga — November 15, 2025
Book a spot on the TLY schedule

In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren Leduc explores the philosophy, purpose, and profound benefits of restorative yoga. She shares her personal introduction to the practice—during a time of deep healing—and explains how restorative yoga offers an essential counterbalance to our busy, high-effort lifestyles.

Listeners will gain clarity on what restorative yoga is (and what it’s not), how it differs from yin yoga, and why it’s essential for nervous system regulation, emotional processing, physical recovery, and spiritual grounding. Lauren also shares simple ways to start practicing restorative yoga at home and highlights how this nurturing, parasympathetic practice connects to yogic principles like Ahimsa, Ishvara Pranidhana, and Apana Vayu.

Whether you’re brand new to restorative yoga or a seasoned yogi needing a reminder to slow down, this episode offers permission to pause, surrender, and be supported.

‍♀️ Want to go deeper? Lauren teaches restorative yoga as part of her 300-hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training, launching January 2026. Applications open September 15, 2025.

Restorative yoga is a deeply supported, passive practice that prioritizes ease over effort.

It differs from yin yoga by requiring no deep stretch or stress on the tissues.

Restorative yoga activates the parasympathetic nervous system, reducing cortisol and inflammation.

It enhances vagal tone, emotional resilience, digestion, fertility, and immune function.

Props like bolsters, blankets, and eye pillows create a safe container for release and healing.

Restorative yoga connects to yogic principles like Ahimsa, Ishvara Pranidhana, and Apana Vayu.

The practice supports trauma healing, emotional processing, and deep relaxation.

It is especially beneficial for high achievers, caretakers, athletes, and those recovering from burnout or illness.

You don’t need fancy props—household items can create a home practice.

Rest is not a luxury—it’s vital to sustainable wellness.

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In this episode of Deepen Your Yoga Practice, Lauren Leduc kicks off a seven-part chakra series with an exploration of the Root Chakra—Muladhara. Learn how this foundational energy center relates to safety, survival, money, home, the body, and our sense of belonging. Lauren shares philosophical insights, personal reflections, and a wide array of grounding practices—both on and off the mat. You’ll discover the power of asana (like Tadasana, Warrior II, and Malasana), bandhas (Pada Bandha and Mula Bandha), mudra, nature connection, Ayurveda, and nervous system care to help regulate and rebalance this vital energy center. She also offers journaling prompts to deepen your inner work and encourages you to choose one grounding action this week.

This episode supports the themes in Lauren’s book Embody Your Inner Goddess and offers a glimpse into her chakra-based 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training launching in January 2026.

Where in my life do I feel ungrounded?

What does safety mean to me?

What roots me when I feel disconnected?

If you're loving this series, check out Lauren’s book Embody Your Inner Goddess for chakra-based embodiment practices and reflections.

Are you a yoga teacher ready to go deeper? Apply now for the 2026 300-hour Advanced Yoga Teacher Training through True Love Yoga. Limited spots available!

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