This week we have meditator and athlete Sasha Dingle on the podcast. Sasha is a mindfulness teacher and coach based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and is also the founder of Mountain Mind Project. Sasha and I have actually never met in person, but our paths have crossed in different ways throughout our lives, starting with ski racing in the same circuits in Vermont as kids, moving to the Rocky Mountain West, and now connecting through mutual interest in supporting people to live fully using tools of meditation, mindfulness, and compassion. In this episode, Sasha shares her story of growing up in Vermont, competing on the Freeride World Tour, and how the ups and downs of being an athlete in the mountains led her toward contemplative practices.

In this episode we discuss: 

• Sasha's upbringing and cultural background
• The longing to make sense of ourselves and our worlds
• Competing on the Freeride World Tour
• Sasha's pathway into deeper meditation practice through injury and healing
• Founding Mountain Mind Project and training the mind like you train the body
• The "3D" experience of practicing within Tibetan Buddhism
• Unique mental and public health challenges in mountain towns and communities
• Leveraging the mind for performance in sports, relationships, parenting, and work
• The importance of a teacher and community on the path
• How meditation can actually help you hide from yourself and how to come out of hiding
• Laying the foundation for flow to emerge
• Meditation apps: to use or not to use? 
• Working with trauma and grief 
• How losing people in the mountains can impact us and how these practices can support healing through that
• Why Sasha encourages group learning 

Resources: 

• Sasha on IG: @sashadingle 
• Mountain Mind Project
• mPEAK 3-day intensive 8/6/21-8/8/21
• Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
• May You Live Well on IG: @mayyoulivewell