Enhanced Body by Monica

Enhanced Body by Monica Discover how to take your teaching career to the next level. Connect with a community of teachers on the same path.

Connect to your values, discover what's important to you, plus simple and easy to accomplish steps so you create a career you thrive in! I am an experienced registered E-RYT 500hr Yoga Alliance certified instructor and teaching my students how to move intelligently is one of my top priorities. As a life-long student I am committed to training exclusively with master teachers in the industries of yoga, biomechanics, functional movement, and physiotherapy. Thus, I am equipped to aid in the identification of warning signs of poor movement patterns, which, over time, leads to repetitive stress injuries. My overall intention is to awaken the importance of body awareness, proper postural alignment and functional movement patterns. I remain committed to leading Teacher Trainings, and through Enhanced Body I host yoga retreats in Mexico, and facilitate movement workshops all with the objective of educating clients about their bodies.

For all the yogis who love ‘hip openers’ there’s another yogi who is experiencing hip pain. But why? And what can you do...
04/14/2026

For all the yogis who love ‘hip openers’ there’s another yogi who is experiencing hip pain. But why? And what can you do about it in your classes?
Let’s discuss…
This week’s episode on the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast is:
Episode 120: Poses That Trigger Hip Discomfort & How To Modify Them Safely
✨Comment/DM - POD - and I’ll send you the episode!✨ No email sign-up necessary!

Is this one of the fears you have teaching yoga? Ohmygosh I was so afraid, and I’m not ashamed to admit it!But I’m not a...
04/06/2026

Is this one of the fears you have teaching yoga? Ohmygosh I was so afraid, and I’m not ashamed to admit it!

But I’m not anymore and if you want so you don’t feel this way too, then this week’s podcast might be helpful for you!

This week’s episode on the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast is
Episode 119: What to Say When A Student Asks, ‘Will This Hurt My Injury?’
✨Comment/DM - POD - and I’ll send you the episode!✨ No email sign-up necessary!

The first injury I witnessed in yoga was not my own. It was my best friend’s injury…Neither one of us could understand w...
03/18/2026

The first injury I witnessed in yoga was not my own. It was my best friend’s injury…
Neither one of us could understand why. So we searched high and low (she’s a nurse anesthetist so she knows a bit about the human body ).
Then, in one of my continuing ed courses I wrote a blog article about it. That was 2014, since then I’ve learned & studied a lot more. So I updated the blog article: Wrist and Forearm Pain in Downward Facing Dog.
Included are the root causes, how to talk with these students about pain, and options to offer these students and why.
If you love to read like I do 🤓 check it out!

We don’t talk about wrist pain in yoga enough! So let’s change that!Giving you all the practical tools and knowledge you...
03/16/2026

We don’t talk about wrist pain in yoga enough! So let’s change that!
Giving you all the practical tools and knowledge you need to know to help students with wrist pain in your yoga classes.
It’s episode # 116 on the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast - Students With Wrist Pain in Your Yoga Classes? Here’s How To Help!
Comment / DM - POD - and I’ll send you the episode. No email signup necessary.

I used to be the teacher who panicked when students told me they had an injury. I would tell them to, “Listen to your bo...
02/13/2026

I used to be the teacher who panicked when students told me they had an injury. I would tell them to, “Listen to your body” and then I would avoid them during class. I was afraid to ask them after class how they felt because I didn’t want to hear their answer.
I would tell them “It’s not in my scope of practice” because I was scared to admit I didn’t know enough.
Then my own injuries forced me to get honest. I thought, “If I’m going to guide bodies through movement, I have a RESPONSIBILITY to understand what I’m doing.”
So I focused my continuing education on:
→ Biomechanics
→ Human movement
→ Pain science
→ Functional anatomy
→ Nervous system function
→ Common injuries
Because I wanted to be a CONFIDENT yoga teacher who could actually serve my students. And everything changed.
Now when a student mentions hip pain, I don’t panic. I ask them questions so that I can understand what they’re experiencing, what movements to avoid, what movements actually help.
Injured students SEEK ME OUT because I’m known as a teacher who understands bodies. Now I charge premium rates because I have expertise that’s genuinely valuable. And I teach other yoga teachers how to make this same shift. Because you don’t need to stay stuck in panic mode. You just need education. If you’re a yoga teacher who’s tired of feeling unprepared when injured students show up, save this post and check out the free resources in my bio. Your students are waiting for the confident version of you. But that version requires doing the work.
if you’ve ever felt this way, know that you’re not alone. Let’s normalize the journey from feeling unprepared to seeking help so that you feel confident working with all of your students.

02/10/2026

Today’s the day! The Teaching Students w/ Injuries mentorship (4th round) and I couldn’t be more excited for the transformations!
This is my baby and what I’ve been educating myself on since my first visit to the cadaver lab as well as healing from my own pain & injuries while practicing yoga.
Blending:
✨my career as an educator with school districts across the country
✨my love for human movement
✨my curiosity & ability to combine all of my education, and
✨helping students with pain & injuries over the last 14 years
to teach yoga teachers the integral part they play with students.

Continuing education matters 💕

Anatomy is fascinating and can often feel overwhelming to learn. Did you learn it in your YTT as a separate presentation...
02/09/2026

Anatomy is fascinating and can often feel overwhelming to learn. Did you learn it in your YTT as a separate presentation, on its own?
That’s pretty common as it’s often taught in isolation and not together with sequencing.
Merging your anatomy knowledge while you sequence transforms the way you think about sequencing as a whole.
Let’s talk about it!
This week’s episode on the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast is
Episode 111: The Missing Link Between Anatomy Knowledge And Sequencing
✨Comment/DM - POD - and I’ll send you the episode!✨ No email sign-up necessary!

So many yoga teachers and students get caught up in performing. And I get it! Whether it’s comparing yourself to other t...
02/02/2026

So many yoga teachers and students get caught up in performing. And I get it! Whether it’s comparing yourself to other teachers, mimicing what you see on social media, or being “creative” in order to satisfy your students.
Teaching yoga based on how a pose looks instead of how it feels.
But yoga was never meant to be performed. It was meant to be lived.
When we teach yoga as a relationship, the practice becomes about awareness, instead of achieving a particular goal.
In this week’s episode of the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast we’re discussing:
✨how to help students learn to trust their bodies
✨how to teach students to make choices that support them, and
✨teach them that it’s normal to explore movement from the inside out.
Episode 110: Teaching Yoga As A Personal Relationship
✨Comment/DM - POD - and I’ll send you the episode!✨ No email sign-up necessary!

01/30/2026

Follow and learn how to be confident AF when an injured student walks into your class!

01/30/2026

I cannot make a thoughtful point in under 60 seconds.
Much of what I post (and teach) is for people with attention spans able to integrate and synthesize information, those who can discern between multiple ideas and thoughts, and those rationalize their own various and sometimes competing beliefs.
The idea of ‘a day’ off to me means very little. The real questions are: Would you be willing to take a year off? Are you willing to invest in yourself to develop skills no one can take away from you? Are you willing to burn it all down to the ground and start anew?
In the meantime, here we are taking a day off. 🤷🏼‍♀️ I have little patience for mediocracy and shallow thinking. Those who know me, know. 😏

What does “holding space” mean to you? The way you express holding space can either encourage you or completely deplete ...
01/28/2026

What does “holding space” mean to you? The way you express holding space can either encourage you or completely deplete you. In times of collective stress, it’s important to stress that holding space does not look the same for everyone.
History reminds us that movements and communities survive not because everyone shows up in the same way, but because people recognize and contribute in ways that are sustainable for them.
This truth applies to you as a yoga teacher.
Often times, students come to yoga to process their emotions, get clear and aware of themselves, or even to escape the outside world. Holding space means more than having conversations, listening beyond your tolerance, or acknowledging and theming your entire class around current events.
Some of the most supportive ways to take care of your students is to help them feel safe.
These are the ways to do that & you can fluctuate between all of them.

Resistance is not new, we’ve been through this before.When you understand the plight of Black Americans, you learn that ...
01/27/2026

Resistance is not new, we’ve been through this before.
When you understand the plight of Black Americans, you learn that we are sophisticated in our resistance. When a collective of people are systematically held down, we move around and get smart(er).
We build interconnected systems that allow for the contribution from people with different capacities, risks, skills, and access.
Yes, our protests / movements were visible, but they were only one part of a much larger framework.
So let me drop this knowledge that we inherently understand… Every role is just as important as the other. Not every person is meant to ‘be outside.’ This doesn’t mean you don’t do anything, it means you find your role and lead the f*ck out of it.
And stop being so damn performative and get to work!

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