Finding Harmony Podcast

50 Years on the Mat: Simon Borg-Olivier on Longevity, Ease, and the Gut Brain (VIDEO) Video

Finding Harmony Podcast

Show Notes

Are you working out — or working in?

In this deeply enriching conversation, Harmony Slater sits down with Simon Borg-Olivier — co-founder of Yoga Synergy, physiotherapist, researcher, and one of the most original minds in the world of movement. Simon has been exploring yoga, breath, and consciousness for over 50 years, and his answer to almost every question is the same: find the ease.

Simon's philosophy challenges the deeply held assumption that more effort equals more benefit. He makes a crucial distinction between the workout (which leaves you depleted, hungry, and stiff) and the work-in (which leaves you energized, calm, and clear). His approach blends biomechanics, nervous system science, and ancient wisdom traditions — and at age 66, his biological age tested at 48.

In this episode, you'll discover:

Why strength without tension, and flexibility without strain, are the real goals of practice The 'work-in vs. workout' distinction — and how it changes everything The 12 hidden 'bridges' between the conscious and unconscious nervous system Why the diaphragm — not the breath — is the true link between mind and body Simon's concept of the gut brain and its connection to ancient traditions (Dan Tian, Tanden, Kanda) What 'airplane yoga' means — and why it's the philosophy behind his teaching His extraordinary life story: from a Tibetan lama in Sydney to machete wounds in Goa Why Iyengar told him 'most people need 90% bhoga' — and what that means for your practice How to become a chef in your practice, not just a student following recipes Where to find Simon's free membership site and global retreats

CONNECT WITH SIMON BORG-OLIVIER: Website: simonborgolivier.com Membership & courses: healthhappinesslongevity.co

UPCOMING EVENTS: Harmony teaches at Agora Yoga, Lisbon (end of June) and Faro, Portugal (early July). Details in show notes at harmonyslater.com.

If this episode moved you, please leave a 5-star review and share it with a fellow practitioner. Your support helps this conversation reach more seekers. Purple Valley Retreat WEEK 1: https://yogagoa.com/harmony-slater/ Purple Valley Retreat WEEK 2: https://yogagoa.com/harmony-slater-2/ Ancient Breathing 2.0 Master Class - https://harmonyslater.com/free-90-minute-pranayama-masterclassFIND Harmony online: https://harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activation

More from Finding Harmony Podcast

Oct 20, 2026

Deep rest is a birthright, and daily ritual can be the way back to it. Author and teacher Tracee Stanley joins Harmony Slater and Russell Case to talk about retreat, ritual, and reclaiming your attention in a world built to distract you. Tracee is the author of Radiant Rest and The Luminous Self, and her new book, Living Ritual, answers the question she hears at the end of every retreat: how do I bring this home? She shares the story of her spiritual awakening in Cape Town, her years as a film producer, her donation-based yoga studio, and a simple evening and morning ritual you can try for seven days. She also leads a short guided practice to call your attention back to you. In this episode

Oct 20, 2026

Deep rest is a birthright, and daily ritual can be the way back to it. Author and teacher Tracee Stanley joins Harmony Slater and Russell Case to talk about retreat, ritual, and reclaiming your attention in a world built to distract you. Tracee is the author of Radiant Rest and The Luminous Self, and her new book, Living Ritual, answers the question she hears at the end of every retreat: how do I bring this home? She shares the story of her spiritual awakening in Cape Town, her years as a film producer, her donation-based yoga studio, and a simple evening and morning ritual you can try for seven days. She also leads a short guided practice to call your attention back to you. In this episode

Oct 13, 2026

What if your symptoms aren't the problem? What if they're a message? Harmony Slater and Russell Case welcome Allison Lorne, a certified nurse midwife with 25 years in women's health who guides women through perimenopause and menopause as a sacred passage rather than a set of symptoms to silence. Allison is also a spinal energetics practitioner, so the conversation moves between the clinical and the energetic: what hormones are doing, what the body is asking for, and how to come home to it. Allison explains why she calls perimenopause "adolescence in reverse," how the history of hormone therapy shaped what women were told for two decades, and why emotional symptoms like anxiety, irritability, and sleeplessness often arrive first. She shares her own first symptom, why it took her years to recognize perimenopause, and how a lifetime of intuitive healing work led her from hospital nursing to private practice. Along the way: the grandmother hypothesis, a coven on California's Central Coast, dandelions, and a simple practice for tuning in to your inner wise woman. In this episode

Oct 13, 2026

What if your symptoms aren't the problem? What if they're a message? Harmony Slater and Russell Case welcome Allison Lorne, a certified nurse midwife with 25 years in women's health who guides women through perimenopause and menopause as a sacred passage rather than a set of symptoms to silence. Allison is also a spinal energetics practitioner, so the conversation moves between the clinical and the energetic: what hormones are doing, what the body is asking for, and how to come home to it. Allison explains why she calls perimenopause "adolescence in reverse," how the history of hormone therapy shaped what women were told for two decades, and why emotional symptoms like anxiety, irritability, and sleeplessness often arrive first. She shares her own first symptom, why it took her years to recognize perimenopause, and how a lifetime of intuitive healing work led her from hospital nursing to private practice. Along the way: the grandmother hypothesis, a coven on California's Central Coast, dandelions, and a simple practice for tuning in to your inner wise woman. In this episode

Oct 6, 2026

Description Everyone is talking about nervous system regulation. But what if the goal isn't to be calm all the time? In Episode 337, Harmony Slater and Russell Case talk with Laurie James, author of Sandwiched: A Memoir of Holding On and Letting Go, host of the Confessions of a Free Bird podcast, and a certified somatic practitioner and coach who works in the Somatic Experiencing approach developed by Peter Levine. Laurie shares how caring for aging parents while raising four daughters, and the end of a 26-year marriage, led to a season of overwhelm and then to somatic healing. She explains what Somatic Experiencing is, why a healthy nervous system moves between activation and rest many times a day, how to build capacity instead of chasing calm, and why you can heal without retelling your whole story. In this episode

See all episodes →