Shannon Noel is one of those people you meet and you just know she is authenticity and magic. She’s ethereal, thoughtful, empathic, and lovely, and her shop, Noel Herbals, is a hidden zen gem located in one of my favorite neighborhoods, Somerville.

I had the absolute pleasure of sitting down with Shannon in her shop to discuss all things skincare, herbalism, life, and fuzzy puppy bums. She shares all about her journey to holistic skincare and similarly to our guest for episode 9 she started out pursuing a very different career path in college.

I couldn’t ask for a better guest to enter into the double digits with on this pod; I know you’re going to love Shannon, and be sure to check out her shop to stock up on some incredible, safe, non-toxic skincare products that your skin will thank you for!

*Skip to 5min to bypass the intro and get to the interview

In this episode we hear:

- about Shannon’s career path to skincare therapy

- how college may not be the best path for everyone

- why you should dilute essential oils prior to applying to your skin

- why you should avoid “fragrance” in products

- what a facial entails and how often you should get one

- about natural versus safe skincare products

- about the importance of choosing safe and non-toxic products for your skin and home

- about what on earth is lymphatic drainage

- sorry vegans - we talk about cooking and eating fish

- how Shannon uses social media with intention

- Shannon’s mission to educate people on skincare and skin health, and some exciting new projects she’s launching soon

Bron Volney is one of the nicest people I have ever met - he’s a genuine, energetic soul who happens to also be easy on the eyes and can help you become your best physical self. He is a personal trainer and the owner of BronCore Fitness, specializing in an amazing, creative, and challenging workout designed by Bron himself.

My husband and I have known Bron for years, and one of my favorite moments from my wedding was doing squats (in my wedding dress) with Bron on the dance floor. Such a priceless memory!

Bron is an incredible unique and talented trainer who has helped my husband and I achieve fitness goals over the years. He completely removes the intimidation factor from working out, and offers his clients intentional and challenging programs to help them achieve their pinnacle of physical health. He’s also so passionate about building community and does so with BCF and his BronCore Bootcamps that happen indoors and outdoors all over the city.

*Skip to 4:40 to bypass the intro and get to the interview

Lauren Massalas doesn’t know this, but she has a really special place in my heart as she was the catalyst for my applying for YTT with NSYA at Coolidge Yoga back in 2017. We met at an event at YogaWorks and exchanged info so I could pick her brain about NSYA…and the rest is herstory!!

Lauren is definitely a super cool and incredibly talented chick. She is a PACU nurse, a yoga teacher, and an Ayurvedic Health Counselor based in Boston, MA. She has a magical way of allowing Ayurveda, a 5000+ year old medical science, seem completely seamlessly accessible to integrate into a modern lifestyle. As a health practitioner and yoga teacher, she is influenced by western anatomy and physiology, yogic philosophy, and Ayurvedic wisdom, a magical mash-up that allows Lauren to stand out from the crowd in every aspect of her career.

In this episode we hear:

about Ayurveda and what it is, for those outside of the yoga-sphere

how Lauren took a winding path to Ayurveda

what to expect from a session with Lauren as an Ayurvedic Health Counselor, and she shares a brief case study

how Ayurveda and western medicine can work together

how to avoid dampening your digestive fire and how that fire is “supreme in the long game of longevity”

about the importance of a morning routine, how to start one, and why you should stop drinking cold water

how to incorporate Ayurvedic health tips into your daily life

how Ayurveda helps individuals fully live in their body

the importance of the body’s elimination process

*Skip to 3:19 to bypass the intro and get to the interview

Today’s guest is my lovely friend Katherine, a local Maynard-based yoga teacher. I’ve known Katherine for years, as she is married to one of my best friends from high school (Hi Steve!!), and of course we’ve bonded even more over our affinity for yoga!

Today’s guest is my lovely friend Katherine, a local Maynard-based yoga teacher. I’ve known Katherine for years, as she is married to one of my best friends from high school (Hi Steve!!), and of course we’ve bonded even more over our affinity for yoga!

I honestly don’t know how to best convey the amazingness that is all that Katherine shares in this episode - she is a lovely, intelligent, strong, beautiful babe who lives fully and consciously in alignment with her yoga. She consistently engages with life in an intentional and authentic way, always finds the good and beauty in others, and embodies the foundational principles of yoga. She’s also got an incredible way with words, as evidenced by her informative posts on her blog! I feel lucky to know Katherine and call her a friend. I know that you’ll love this episode as much as I loved chatting with Katherine! I think we could’ve talked for like, hours more, haha!

In this episode we hear:

about Katherine’s view on authenticity in yoga and on social media

how she came up with her company name “Black Fox Yoga”

how yoga must celebrate all bodies in yoga

about Katherine’s views on “yogalebrities”

about how Katherine approaches teaching beginners in yoga, and why she doesn’t use props in those classes

how to cue efficiently in a yoga class

how to stand out as a yoga teacher

how to identify and manage ego as a yoga teacher

how to live your yoga with intention and integrity

Interviewing your friends is way fun and I want to do it all the time.

My guest for this episode is my good friend Nikki Magliaro, whom I met in grad school back in 2009, and oddly enough we were even in the same group interview at Northeastern University, where we attended our masters in counseling program. Crazy!!

Nikki is a brilliant clinician who works incredibly hard and pours so much love into all that she does. She and her friend and business partner Megan co-own and built together an incredible practice called Puzzle Pieces, LLC based in Quincy, MA. There, Nikki, Megan, and their team support children and families, treating Anxiety Disorders, ADHD, Adjustment Disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorders, behavioral concerns, developmental delays, coping skills, family relationships, self-esteem,  social skills, and stress. Nikki is also a Feminist therapist, an Expert Certified DIR/Floortime Training Leader, a Gemini, a yoga-lover, and a creative soul who brings so much compassion, knowledge, and authenticity into the work she does. Be sure to check out her wonderful private practice, she will take excellent care of your kiddo!

In this episode we hear:

all about Nikki’s journey to becoming a successful therapist and businesswoman

all about how Nikki built her business

useful tips for building a business

important techniques and tips on working with children and families

how Nikki uses yoga in her practice with her clients

about promoting Neurodiversity and the current movement toward acceptance

a bit about finally hearing Autistic voices

how Nikki engages in self-care and sets boundaries with her work given she’s self-employed

This man saved my life. Basically.

I’m so happy to be releasing this episode with Dr. Tim Latham, DC MS CSCS, a brilliant jack-of-all-trades. He’s got multiple degrees and areas of expertise, and he continues to learn all that he can about the ever-changing field of integrative health. I was fortunate to have connected with Tim after being diagnosed with a chronic pain + fatigue illness; through testing and non-judgmental conversations, he helped me make easy tweaks to increase my body’s ability to heal, recover, and thrive. I’d honestly never felt better!

This episode is chock full of great recommendations for anyone to improve their overall health, as Tim shares simple ways to increase one’s quality of life through nutrition and movement. We talk about the body’s resiliency, and challenging false beliefs one has about the body’s durability. Anyone who nerds out over science and health will love this episode!

Find Tim, his wife Dr. Laura Latham, and other integrative providers at their group practice in Boston at Back Bay Health & Performance, and you can also catch Tim as an adjunct faculty member in the Integrative and Functional Nutrition program at Saybrook University.

In this episode we hear:

all about Tim’s educational background and his many health degrees

about what exactly is an elimination diet and what the heck a FODMAP is

easy, accessible ways to improve one’s health

the body’s resiliency

how to challenge negative beliefs

what to expect in an appointment with Tim

how to avoid feeling overwhelmed when in the midst of a health revamp

how Chiropractic isn’t all about back cracking

about certain wellness fads and Tim’s thoughts on their validity

how mindfulness and breath-work are just as important to address as diet

about Tim’s self-care practice

some swears - yup, I’ve officially sworn/cussed/cursed on the podcast, folks!

This. This is why I started podcasting. I’m obsessed with today’s episode!

Meet my friend Emily, a local Boston-based yoga teacher; she is quite possibly the most authentic, genuine, gracious human I’ve ever met. She is an incredibly teacher in Boston and truly embodies her yoga. She shares so many insightful comments in this episode, wow is she such a wise soul!

We got to talking about all things yoga, but also life and how living in alignment with your truest self can sometimes be challenging in a day where modern technology drives all. Emily shares so many lovely insightful comments, and I know that anyone and everyone will hear something that resonates with them.

PS: There’s a *SPOILER ALERT* in this episode for those folks who watch The Great British Baking Show, and it occurs around the 42-min mark. Whoops.

In this episode we hear:

how Emily found yoga

about her journey through yoga teacher training

about some major decisions that Emily made in her life and how she was able to make said decisions boldly

how to build a sustainable home practice

how to sequence a yoga class

how Emily tapped into her self-worth

ways to reduce negative self-talk and practice acceptance

how Emily defines success

I’m very grateful that Maggie Battista willingly chatted with me one Friday afternoon earlier this month, literally days before her 2nd cookbook launch. As you’ll hear in the episode, I fangirled a bit - she is truly an inspirational woman to me. Maggie has a lovely way of balancing being assertive, grounded, relatable, and kind - she’s truly a warm soul and offers so much to those with whom she works. I met Maggie about four years ago after recipe testing for her first cookbook, Food Gift Love (I still swear by her banana bread recipe!), and we’ve kept in touch sporadically via email over the years. I especially love following her posts on Instagram as she keeps things real and shares intentionally, in an authentic way. Plus, the food pics - YUM!

Maggie is a wellness and food writer, cookbook author, creative business coach, shopgirl, and professional women’s empowerist (that should be a word!) based in Massachusetts. She’s authored two fabulous cookbooks, one for which I had the honor to recipe test, and another which was just released on February 5th, A New Way To Food. She’s a Jill of all trades balancing writing, hosting gatherings, empowering women in the creative field, and building brick-and-mortars (stay tuned for her permanent Eat Boutique store that will be in Boston!)

In this episode we hear:

about Maggie’s brand new “self-help cookbook hybrid,” A New Way to Food: Recipes That Revamped My Pantry & Made Me Love Me, At Last

about how Maggie learned how to love and appreciate herself and her body

how Maggie builds and promotes community

useful life and business tips for entrepreneurs

what it’s like being a woman in the food and business world

about Maggie’s creative business coaching

how yoga influences Maggie’s wellbeing

how Maggie reframes her thoughts to embody that she is worthy of self-love and good health

Steve is probably one of the most humble, compassionate, generous, and genuine people I’ve ever known. We worked together several years ago at a behavioral health insurance company and have fortunately kept in touch (ahh the benefits of social!). I’m so grateful that he was my first recorded interview! He is so insightful and shares some brilliant nuggets of wisdom in this episode; I know you’re going to love this episode!

Steve is a licensed mental health counselor and superhero based in Western Massachusetts specializing in working with people who are actively seeking to make a change in their overall health. He has a background in personal training and utilizes his experiences with mindfulness, meditation, playful movement, and calisthenics to help people tap into their full inner potential. He’s certified in progressive calisthenics, as a Y12SR Instructor, personal trainer, Youth and Group Fitness teacher. He also co-owns The Promethean Project with his wife and siblings, a non-profit practice that approaches health in an all-encompassing, multi-faceted way to empower the individual to have informed ownership over their health.

It’s kismet that the day I’m releasing the first episode of my podcast is one year to the day from when I graduated my 200-hour yoga teacher training! I knew that my first episode had to be with my YTT teacher and good friend Laura Ahrens; my experience with her and the team she’s created with the New School of Yogic Arts (aka NSYA) was truly transformative in my life.

Laura is a yoga teacher in Boston and Brookline, MA. She offers her students a strong, supportive space in which to practice meditative and intentional asana. Not only is she an incredible teacher, she also owns NSYA; leads mentorships and retreats domestically and internationally; and co-owns Miakoda, a sustainable, ethical clothing line with her sister Julia.