Stretching Research Roundup

From ritualistic roles in ancient times to the dominance of white Western women in modern asana imagery, the role of women in yoga has experienced some changes through the years. In today's episode, host Rachel Land welcomes returning guest Firdose Moonda, MA, to shed light on the often-overlooked role of women in yoga. Firdose traces women's roles from early Vedic ritual and the epics through fierce goddesses, Mirabai, Indra Devi, and the development of modern yoga. Along the way, she invites us to question the idea that yoga has a singular and straightforward history, explore the limitations of viewing ancient traditions through modern eyes, and consider how today's teachers and practitioners are actively creating the future history of yoga. "The circular journey that yoga has taken back to me as a woman who is quite connected to culture made me feel like there's something missing in the exploration of how I'm seeing myself here." — Firdose Moonda. — What You'll Learn: From Indian men to white Western women [02:33] Women's roles in early Vedic ritual [05:50] Fierce goddesses and the complexity of the divine feminine [12:21] Medieval times: Mirabai challenges social expectations [19:02] Indra Devi: yoga asana moving West [27:21] Creating yoga's future history now [35:24] Have we moved beyond fear-based cultural appropriation to truly honor yoga's roots? [42:49] The Women in Yoga Teacher Training with Firdose Moonda [50:20] — Links Mentioned: Watch this episode on YouTube LIVE Online Women in Yoga Teacher Training Rachel's Strength + Stretch series on Yoga Medicine Online Previous podcasts wth Firdose: Yoga, Politics & History Yoga & Religion Yoga's Hidden History

Death will inevitably touch us all, yet it's a topic many of us instinctively shrink from. In this episode, host Rachel Land is joined by returning guest Dr. Marnie Hartman to explore this dichotomy. Dr. Hartman is a Doctor of Physical Therapy, yoga teacher, and now death doula. Today she shares how her personal journey led her into end-of-life care. She unpacks the problem with cultural avoidance of death and highlights the unique role yoga teachers can play in supporting students through grief, uncertainty, and end-of-life reflection. This conversation offers practical tools, philosophical insights, and a powerful reminder that awareness of death can profoundly deepen how we live. "Don't wait. Stop waiting. Like today, today is the day you start having that conversation." — Dr. Marnie Hartman. — What You'll Learn: Introduction: why this topic? [0:53]

In this episode of the Yoga Medicine Podcast, host Rachel speaks with Yoga Medicine Therapeutic Specialist Stephanie Ketter about her 1,000-hour research project. Inspired by her own experiences with sleep disruption and forgetfulness, Stephanie's project examined the effects of a yoga-based intervention on menopause symptoms related to sleep, mood, and concentration. Stephanie walks through the eight-week group intervention, which combined live online lectures, yoga, pranayama, meditation, mindfulness, and acupressure with short at-home on-demand video practices, sharing the challenges she faced and what she learned along the way. The episode ultimately highlights how complex and varied this life phase can be, and the importance of giving people practical tools they can use to respond to their symptoms. "I can definitely talk about sleep problems and not falling asleep and staying awake, and I met so many women who reported the same, like...being awake every night, impossible to fall back asleep for weeks or a month, and it takes a toll on your health, on your well-being, and also on the concentration." - Stephanie Ketter. — What You'll Learn: What inspired Stephanie's 1,000-hour research project [03:49]

Revisit a previous episode where hosts Tiffany Cruikshank and Katja Bartsch dive into a 2025 study analyzing more than 145,000 symptom logs from nearly 4,800 women pre- peri- and post-menopause. They discuss how symptoms can vary widely between individuals and across different stages of the transition, while also highlighting why emerging research should be interpreted with curiosity rather than certainty. "The research is really making an effort to understand how women experience their transition on a daily basis." — Katja Bartsch. — What You'll Learn: The study: more than 145,000 symptom logs from almost 5,000 users [02:15]

Today's episode explores one of our favorite topics, fascia, from a fresh perspective. Host Rachel is joined by David Lesondak, Senior Structural Integrator and Fascia Specialist at UPMC's Center for Integrative Medicine. David is an author, educator, and fascia specialist whose work focuses on helping people better understand and appreciate the fascial system. David unpacks what fascia is, why it matters, and what yoga practitioners need to know to support fascial fitness. He explains the importance of feeding our bodies a varied "movement diet", including pandiculation, hydration through twisting, myofascial release, elastic recoil, skipping, and bouncing. The conversation also explores the need for collaboration between yoga, bodywork, and other treatment modalities, and touches on whether fascia could actually provide a framework through which we experience embodiment. "Our bodies are meant to do all kinds of things, and so we should be feeding them all kinds of stimulus." — David Lesondak. — What You'll Learn: Defining fascia: your whole-body connective system [03:04] Getting "unstuck" - the who, what, and why of hands-on fascial intervention [05:40] Pandiculation for fascial fitness [09:17] Hydration, twisting, and the "sponge" analogy [11:39] Myofascial release and why softer is better [17:30] Elastic recoil, skipping and preparatory counter-movement [21:30] Building a more varied "movement diet" [27:49] Collaborative referral networks; a multi-model treatment for fascia [29:24] What yoga practitioners can learn from The Fascia Connection [33:23] Fascia as the mechanism for embodiment [37:47] — Links Mentioned: Watch this episode on YouTube Fascial Fitness Sun Salutation The Fascia Connection: Discover the Key to Flexibility, Vitality, and Pain-Free Living Connect with David Lesondak: Facebook | Instagram | David Lesondak