Sage Rountree's Blog, page 17

Books to Help You Up Your Game—and Destress

Can reading a personal finance book really make you a better athlete?

Absolutely!

As I explain in The Athlete’s Guide to Recovery, your best tools for peak performance are sleep, nutrition, and stress management. Less stress, better recovery. And one smart way to reduce your stress is to get a handle on your money—and your relationship to it.

I made a list of my top-5 books for athletes to up their game, and it’s live now at Shepherd. Read it here!

This list also has some more obvious choices from fantastic writers on endurance sports and performance more generally: Matt Fitzgerald, Steve Magness, and Brad Stulberg. Any of their books—and the classic Getting Things Done, by David Allen—will help you feel more capable at focusing your attention on the things that matter.

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Book Event at Flyleaf Thursday, March 14

Join me for a book event this Thursday!Where: Flyleaf Books, Chapel Hill, NCWhen: signing 5:30 p.m.; talk and Q&A at 6:00 p.m.Register: walk in or reserve a seat here [image error] [image error] [image error] [image error]

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Preorder Sequencing Book and Get the Library Free

The Art of Yoga Sequencing publishes March 12, just over two weeks away!

Have you preordered the book yet?

If you have already preordered . . .

I am excited to give you free access to my Sequence Library!

This is a companion video demo library that brings the sequences in the book to life. Between the book and the library, you’ll find it a breeze to plan creative classes for every format and all students.

Just shoot me a screenshot of your preorder and I’ll personally reply with a code to make the $39 Sequence Library free! Drop me an email and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.

Preview the library here [image error] [image error] If you haven’t yet preordered . . .

I sure hope you will! You can put in a preorder wherever books are sold, or ask for it at your local library. There’s a list of options on this page!

If you buy it direct from my publisher, North Atlantic Books, you’ll get 25 percent off and free shipping to your U.S. address when you use the code SAGE.

Buy direct from the publisher

Then send me a screenshot of your preorder and I’ll share a code to make the Sequence Library free! Just send me an email with your preorder.

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Free Session on Athletic Recovery

Athletes, tired people, yoga teachers: join me Thursday, 2/22, at 6 p.m. Eastern for a FREE practical session on recovery!

It’s part of the Endurance Event, which has a great lineup of superstar speakers. I’ll be joining to bring the event to a close by talking about how NOT to work out—and guiding you through some easy, sweet practices to enhance your recovery.

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What to know: It’s live online—and at no cost to you!

Dress in cozy clothesHave a few beach towels or your favorite yoga props at handWe’ll do some chatting as well as some extremely gentle and relaxing movementRegister for the Endurance Event (Free!)

Hope to see you there!

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Ice Baths Are Hazing

Ice baths are hazing. And they may not be doing what you mean them to.

They are a stressful experience designed by your superiors (coaches, your higher self) to make you tougherCoaches often require them solely because they were forced to do them in their student yearsFor groups, they are intended as a bonding experienceThey can be dangerous!

And the science is out on whether ice baths improve your recovery. One recent study showed that those who took a room-temperature bath recovered faster than those who suffered in an ice bath. So why suffer?

The takeaway: you can skip it!

And if you are looking to ice baths to toughen you up, you’ll do better with a sport-specific workout that mimics the performance (race, game) you are training for. Your training itself should make you tough!

Go Deeper

This article by Chris Ballard in Sports Illustrated is a great look at the science and practice of ice bathing in 2024. If you have Apple News, you can read it here; otherwise, look on the newsstand, as I haven’t found it available elsewhere online.

I love this thread by coach Steve Magness:

Jumping in an ice bath mostly works because you get a hit of adrenaline and dopamine.

It makes you feel alive and energized.

If you like that, great.

But so does a myriad of other things. Going for a run, sprinting up a hill, playing a game with your kid, etc.

And…

— Steve Magness (@stevemagness) January 4, 2023

The second edition of The Athlete’s Guide to Recovery walks you through the new science of cold and hot therapy. Takeaway: a warm bath is nicer and will likely do more for you!

The book is out March 5.

Preorder it now and you’ll get it on publication day!

Learn to recover well

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New! Core Strength for Real People: Figure 4 and Curtsy

There is a fresh video now available in my Core Strength for Real People series.

This one:

takes you through two crosses of the legs—wide and narrowbuilds strength and balance around your hipsmoves you from your back, through table pose, to standing

Here’s a preview:

Think of it as a trip to finishing school, where you’ll work on your posture as you curtsy!

What to do: You can rent or buy the full video or subscribe to the whole series at Core Strength for Real People.

Check it out

And when you sign up for my “Regular People” newsletter, I’ll share a code for a rental of your choice from the series! Get it here:

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Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription.

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Join the Workshop Workshop and Teach Great Yoga Workshops

Over the last several posts, we’ve explored how you can better solve your students’ problems with yoga by designing workshops keyed to their unique needs and your unique skills as a teacher.

Are you ready to teach great yoga workshops?

My online yoga training the Workshop Workshop walks you through every step of the process. You’ll finish the course with all the materials you need to lead life-changing, problem-solving workshops for your students.

When you sign up for the course, you’ll receive:

Instant, lifetime access to 80+ minutes of friendly video presentation across five robust unitsA customized workbook with the exact prompts and templates that will help you plot every minute of your offering, making it as helpful to students as it can beSample contracts so that everything is buttoned down and mutually beneficial for you, your students, and your host venueSavvy promotion plans to ensure your workshop is packed with eager students happy to be there

Together, this is everything you need to offer well-planned, high-quality workshops to benefit your students and your career.

Plus, you’ll get:

My direct mentorship and feedback! Not only will I help you refine your pitch and lesson plan, I’ll share unique advice from my perspective as both a presenter and a studio owner.Six Yoga Alliance CEUs for your own continuing education trackingBonus materials, including a model for developing your own specialized workshop offerings form

Work at your own pace and at a time that’s convenient for you. Share your work with me for mentorship and feedback. Then use your lifetime access to review the materials at your leisure.

Guarantee

This course comes with a 21-day money-back guarantee. That’s above and beyond the usual one-week refund window for my online courses. I’ve set the timeline at three weeks to encourage you to get started planning your next workshop right away, while giving you time to get the work done with care and thought. If you aren’t delighted with your plans to help your students and excited about how what you learn is going to grow your career, just show me that you have done the work and I will personally refund your money.

Let’s Work Together!

You’ll get the benefit of my two decades of teaching experience, as well as my 14 years of studio ownership. Together, we will get you completely confident that your workshops are changing your students’ lives for the better. Let’s go!

Create a great workshop

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What You Can Learn from Joe-Paul’s Story

How the Workshop Workshop Helps You Help Your Students

My colleague Joe-Paul used the Workshop Workshop to develop a wide range of offerings he has hosted at our studio, Carrboro Yoga Company. These run the gamut from Yoga for Recovery from Loss and Yoga to Support Sobriety to Celebrate the Sun. Here’s what Joe-Paul says:

I find workshops a fulfilling way to share yoga and be helpful to students!  I’m aware that some of the topics target a smaller potential audience (those who have had major loss, those in recovery from addiction) but also have a sense of our students at Carrboro Yoga and added my more fun workshop, Celebrate the Sun.

I am thinking about trying to do my Yoga for Recovery from Loss series or versions of it going forward too. I can both refine the content and presentation as well as figure out how to provide continued support to those students. Attendees have all asked when the next one will be.

Your video and lessons in the Workshop Workshop are top-notch. Obviously, the content is great, but the quality of the videos and your clear teaching style make them exceptional. There clearly is a student-focused professor in you seeping out!

Elevate Your Workshop

Joe-Paul’s special talent as a workshop leader lies in his thorough preparation. He maps out every class and workshop in a document of his own design. Each document has time stamps, quotes, notes about the movement he’s cueing, and a scripted final thought. What’s more, he brings in a lagniappe—a little gift—for every student. In his weekly classes, these are cards with a pretty image and his quote for the day. For workshops, he often brings something even more extra. In Yoga for Recovery from Loss, he brings each student a bouquet of fresh rosemary, a symbol of remembrance. This really elevates students’ experience.

[image error] [image error] How will you serve your students best?

The Workshop Workshop will walk you through the entire process of planning, placing, and promoting meaningful workshops for whatever students and whatever topic you best work with.

This online continuing education course is available to start right now. It’s a great mix of prompts and accountability—I’m here to review your work along the way. Let my two decades of experience in this field benefit both you and your students!

Create a great workshop

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Build a Clear Image of Your Students and Your Niche

In this post, we used the journalists’ rubric of who/what/where/why/when/how to help you define your student population and identify your niche. Here’s another approach.

I don’t just teach workshops, I also book workshops at my studio, Carrboro Yoga Company. When someone pitches me a workshop, I look for a good fit between the teacher’s niche and my studio members and students. The more clear both sides are on the audience, the better the workshop will do!

This video is the free sample unit of the Workshop Workshop, my online workbook course with mentorship designed to help you build fantastic workshop offerings to serve your students and your career. In this online yoga teacher training, you’ll benefit from my two decades of experience teaching and my dozen-plus years of booking workshops!

Create a great workshop

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How to Find Your Niche as a Yoga Teacher

I walked you through the five steps to developing successful workshops that help your students solve problems and live with greater ease.

To recap, they are:

Design the WorkshopPlace the WorkshopPromote the WorkshopTeach the WorkshopRefine the Workshop

Today, let’s drill down into step 1, to see how you can design a workshop that helps your students best.

This exercise will also help you find your niche and hone your voice as a teacher across all the things you offer: workshops, classes, even social media and any other messages you deliver to your students.

To find your voice, think like a journalist. Ask yourself these questions about your students:

Who, what, where, when, why, and how.

[image error] [image error] Who are your students?

What do the students you see in your weekly classes have in common? Is it a particular age, occupation, family situation, physical condition?

For example: they are yoga teachers who seek advice from seasoned mentors so they can help their students better

What is a problem they have?

What is a pain point they suffer?

For example: not knowing the first next step in planning a workshop, having ideas but no clear plan on how to enact them

Where does this problem arise?

Is this problem specific to a location? Where are your students when it happens?

For example: at their computer, thinking about planning their next class, workshop, or piece of content

When does this problem happen?

Is there a particular time of year when this problem arises? Or a point in someone’s life: menopause, divorce, moving house?

For example: at the start of the calendar year, or immediately after yoga teacher training

Why does it happen?

Can you work back to the root cause of the problem?

For example: teacher trainings often focus on classes, not workshops, even though they share a lot in common

How can you solve this with yoga or related tools?

What methods have you learned in dealing with this problem yourself, and how can they benefit your students?

For example: this blog post! I also wrote about creating workshops in The Professional Yoga Teacher’s Handbook and created an online workbook course with mentorship called The Workshop Workshop.

Answering these questions will help you understand your students’ needs better. Once you’re clear on where they suffer, you can help solve their problems!

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