Zenful Mindings LLC

23/07/2025

The Lunar Love Letter for the Sturgeon Moon will be sliding into inboxes on Thursday and is only available through email.

This lunar cycle, we're diving into enjoying abundance during a time when we're told to start settling.

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23/07/2025

Our relationship with movement has taken a legit nosedive over the past (at least) 50 years, and I get angry when I think about it. One of the reasons I get the most angry about is when we feel too self-conscious to move.

Has that ever been you? Afraid to jump because parts of you jiggle, or fear that you’ll fall, or that you’ll take up too much space, or you’ll get out of breath?

That’s been me. And honestly I think it’s probably been most of us at some point.

I’m currently listening to The Body Is Not An Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor, which is about how body shame has influenced our relationships with our bodies, including how it’s “severed our love for activity.” She says that “many of us cannot recall a time when moving our bodies was something other than a way to punish them for failing to meet society’s expectations.”

Whoa.

Take that in. How does it resonate for you?

Do you enjoy moving around? When it doesn’t feel obligatory? If you don’t, did you ever? If you notice that it’s shifted to not enjoying it over the years, what changed to cause that?

I was digging into this and I remember running through sprinklers as a kid, and playing hopscotch, and riding my bike, and it was just awesome. I didn’t think twice about moving. I never recall it feeling bad or unnecessary. It just was and it was fun.

But we live in a time where much of the world is at our finger tips and we don’t need to leave the couch, and we often rub up against an outer world that feels like it’s constantly judging and shaming us for even having bodies, so of course it feels hard to move — we’re pulling around an awful lot of baggage. And we usually have major time crunches. We have to put in a lot of extra effort just so we can move our bodies in ways they’re already meant to move. Pretty whack, yeah?

But here we are. And we really deserve to re-open that part of our relationship with our bodies. They‘re built to move. However they can.

So let’s reignite a fire under ourselves and find something we love to move for: Neighborhood walks. Swimming. Playing with your grandkids. It doesn’t matter what it is, just see that as the magical portal to rekindle your love of movement.

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16/07/2025

One of the most fascinating things about a physical yoga practice for me is how we can have such different experiences making the same shapes with our bodies when we’re in different orientations.

This week, for example, I’ve been playing with a standing cobra shape pretty frequently, which looks the same as the prone cobra shape we commonly make lying on our bellies (except you’re standing, of course). I was thinking through what the supine (lying on your back) equivalent would be, and fish comes to mind. Same shape, different orientation.

And it’s totally rad that all three of these share the same outline, but offer very different internal experiences. In traditional (prone) cobra, I exert the most effort in my lower back, glutes, and hips. Standing, it’s more of a frontal body experience with an addictive hip flexor and lower torso stretch, and in fish, it has hints of the prior two versions but I can also more easily tune into the sensations of heart and throat opening. (Give them all a try and see what they’re like for you!)

Choosing which version of a shape you explore gives you much needed autonomy over your own practice, your body, and your mind. You can accommodate a physical limitation, a low energy level, a busy mind, and overly boisterous body sensations. Plus you can tap into all these bits of yourself just waiting to be acknowledged with the simple shift of standing up, laying down, and even sitting in a chair.

It’s like taking the same Lego bricks you have lying around and making these cool innovations out of what you already have on hand, you know? And I really dig that. No gym needed. No extra equipment required. Just the spirit of exploration and discovery with a healthy dose of curiosity and self love. Aren’t bodies the coolest?

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09/07/2025

This might sound silly, but I didn’t realize for a long time that I needed to stop following certain yoga cues off the mat and let my body be soft and body-like. I can’t remember being told this explicitly, and I think it really does need said: Stop trying to refine your body shape all the time.

There is a time and place for yoga cues to help you explore your body but there is also a need to drop those so they don’t lead to injury or imbalance. Exhibit A: my shoulder joints.

Many years of what I thought was refined posture has been contributing to hurting my body. I often experience a significant amount of mobility limitation in my shoulders, as well as tension and muscle imbalance, and a good bit of that is because I have taken the common posture cues to some extreme.

I remember being told as I was growing up, specifically because I was a girl, that I needed to keep my shoulders down and back — present myself to the world in this fashion (even writing that makes me feel a bit sick). And then enter yoga refinements where we’re often told to drop our shoulders away from our ears with little explanation or time to explore all the nuance that comes along with that.

We could all benefit from more variety. Please don’t make your yoga refinements life habits off the mat all the time. We need variation and softness and even “poor posture” sometimes. Without those things, we invite in frozen joints and weak or over-developed muscles.

It’s not even a great idea to do the same yoga practice all the time. Introduce new things. Spend some juicy time really discovering the nuances within your own body (they’re interesting, I promise!). Also take time away from your mat to do something different.

Flirting with variation squashes the dull staleness that comes with exhausted routines. We don’t flourish if we eat the same things all the time, and the same applies to our physical movements. Vary your menu. Not only will your body thank you, but so will your brain, and that’s a hot time 🔥

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02/07/2025

What would happen if you didn’t take yourself so seriously?

This question popped up for me during my morning yoga practice today, and honestly, I don’t really think I’m all that serious during yoga. But I do know that I take myself too seriously in life sometimes.

We’re living in times that require a sense of gravity and focus, and it feels like that’s all we can afford to be. We’re supposed to be serious at work to get the job done, and serious at home to get the things done, and serious about all the social issues. Sure. Let’s be serious about those things.

And we would benefit from getting down with some silly to balance out these extremes. But first we need to reconnect with our grander sense of playfulness and wonder. I’m sure many of us can relate to losing touch with fun and silliness in response to “trying to hold it all together.” Because silly feels a little useless in those situations. Except it’s not.

I was reading an interview with Dallas Goldtooth this morning about how humor is necessary in social and political activism because while anger is useful, “it also has its obstacles. It sets up walls.” So if we only rely on our anger (or seriousness) to create change in our lives and the world, we’re also creating additional challenges, to which play and silly and humor are antidotes. We need laughter. Silly. Humor. Because those things create levity and provide some autonomy in times when we might feel like little is within our control.

So can we notice when we’re being too serious when the situation really isn’t that serious? Is a sinkful of dishes so urgent? Every task on that to do list? Being a few minutes behind schedule? Can we loosen how we’ve entangled the ideas of seriousness and control? Seriousness and worthiness? None of these are the same thing.

Where can you open yourself to more humor and silliness? Share what makes you giggle (especially if it’s a corny joke or videos of billy goats — they get me every time) and let yourself loose in genuine belly laughs. And then laugh some more because bodies are squishy and weird 😉

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25/06/2025

Sometimes I wonder (and doubt) whether I’m very good at facilitating yoga. I know I don’t teach how many others do and I started deviating from things I was taught in my yoga teacher training a long time ago. I’ve often felt insecure about this and would find myself muddling through an explanation for how I teach when I couldn’t outright say what I don’t teach.

On my very confident days, I recognize that I’m purposefully and beautifully different, and I’m finding freedom in explicitly owning what I’m not: I don’t wish to perpetuate a system of thinking that focuses on shape as outcome or that glorifies certain body types. Instead, I like to give people inroads to get to know themselves so they can continue that self-exploration outside of a class and off their mat.

People often come into a conversation about yoga with me with common assumptions of what yoga classes are like or what being a yogi is about. Many of these things are untrue for me. Being open about what I’m not as a yoga teacher and differentiating what I specifically offer has helped me be seen just as I am, and outside the yoga realm, clear communication has become a way that I feel loved and seen.

So today, particularly as we immerse in the energy of a new lunar cycle, what would you like to say out loud to the world? What silent assumptions do you want to dispel with your powerful voice?

With gratitude and good energy 💜

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23/06/2025

The Lunar Love Letter for the Buck Moon will be sliding into inboxes on Wednesday and is only available through email.

This lunar cycle, we're diving into experiencing feelings during turbulent times.

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19/06/2025

The Body Mindfulness Yoga events every other Tuesday at Coy Cornelius & Judy Rogers Studios will be paused for the month of July!

There is one more this month, next Tuesday (6/24), so keep that on your calendar and stay tuned for future events through Honeycomb Arts and Wellness Collective :)

18/06/2025

I don't think we can ONLY self-care and call it a day; it’s not the only ingredient we need for heart-filled living. We also need community care.

Community care is very much like self care: it’s a relationship of giving and receiving. How are you caring for your community, and how is your community caring for you?

Many of us have shied away from community for a variety of reasons like competitive culture, financial issues, safety concerns, mental health challenges, insecurity, and growing reliance on technology to replace human connection.

I listened to an episode of The Diary of a CEO recently where Esther Perel (LOVE HER!) talks about social atrophy, particularly in terms of the digital dating age, but I think it applies across many realms of our cultural existence.

We’re seeing firsthand how this affects our society on a very large scale: political and social divisiveness, lack of social navigation skills, inability to have challenging and constructive conversations, algorithmic echo chambers, etc. etc. etc. It’s hurting us at the macro and micro levels, and it’s something we can affect directly with personal action.

I’ve definitely shied away from community in many ways at different times in my life, and I’m finding myself in a time and space where I want to reach out more. Not intrusively, but symbiotically and with discernment. With curiosity and (slightly trepidatious) eagerness to see and be seen. And it feels a little scary and totally worth it.

This is a big reason why I encourage you to step out and join a community in-person yoga practice, even if it’s not one of mine. This is a relatively small step you can take within the next week or two that can make big change.

There is so much richness to be had in sharing space with others, even if you don’t say a word. Energy vibes are pervasive. It’s give and receive out there. Be open to it. Peek out into the world and let yourself be seen. We all could use that a little more.

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11/06/2025

It can be challenging to sit with yourself in your own home, doused in chores-to-be-done and essence-of-busy-life. If, despite your efforts, you are finding yourself mid-hullabaloo, a little frantic, and/or struggling to connect with yourself, it might be time to observe where your attention is going, particularly when you’re actively engaged in a mindfulness practice.

I personally can’t meditate or practice yoga in my own home unless either my eyes are closed or I have earbuds in. I have to eliminate what I know is going to distract me and take me out of the present, and nothing will get my brain huffing and puffing out a to-do list like noticing I need to vacuum or seeing a sunbeam illuminate some dust. On top of that, my brain is already so busy that I often need something a little louder to help me find a sense of inner quiet, so I crank a dedicated yoga and meditation playlist.

I also need to ask for what I need from others. On mornings that my daughter is up and about at the time I’m practicing, I find that I have to explicitly tell her what I’m doing, why I need that time, and be specific: I need X many minutes of uninterrupted time to practice yoga so I can feel calmer during the day today.

We can’t always turn off what the outside world is throwing at us, but we can hopefully claim a small pocket of time during which we limit our input — on our own terms and with our own rules. Observing where your attention habitually goes (as much as you can without judging) will help you gather data so you can manage incoming stimuli. Hello, boundary and support practice!

If you have any nifty things that help you or that you discover along the way, feel free to share so we can brainstorm more resources for all 🙂

With good energy and gratitude ✨

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04/06/2025

Pride month is a special time of community and bold proclamation of presence:

Here we are.
Here we gather.
Here we celebrate.
Here we live.
Here we breathe.
Here we love.

This month I invite you to support your local LGBT+ communities in ways you can. Show us you care and you stand with us. Not only is this a powerful heart opener off the mat, it’s also a magnificent way to connect with your own personal power — you can do something.

I know with everything happening and making headlines, it’s easy to sink into feelings of despair and fear, but isolation isn’t the medicine. It’s now that we can all benefit more immensely from a strong sense of community and coming together. There really is strength in numbers.

From reinforcing presence and identity to advocating for social change, we all do better with supportive community surrounding us, so show your PRIDE.

No action is too small.

Shop our businesses. Attend events. Share kind words. Give us hugs. Hear our stories.

With each breath and action, we can all make a big difference.

With love and gratitude from your local q***r yogi ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

31/05/2025

A new meditation recording is available on YouTube (look for it soon on Insight Timer):

Connect with Your Yes

Use this gently guided meditation to explore where and how your body experiences the sensation of yes. Connecting with how your body signals yes is a fantastic resource in making decisions and connecting more deeply with your body’s innate wisdom. This is a slow one and just a touch over 15 minutes, making it a great recording to tune into for a morning or nightly meditation in bed or to integrate and soften after a physical movement practice.

I’m always open to feedback and requests, so if you’ve got anything you’d like to share, send it my way :)

With good energy 💜

A gently guided meditation to help you connect with and expand the sensation of yes in your body.Use this gently guided meditation to explore where and how y...