On and Off Your Mat Yoga Podcast

For our 54th episode, I sat down with Rebecca Urban. Rebecca, known in yoga circles as "Bex," has led Yoga and Pilates classes since 2000. As a child, Bex was introduced to many spiritual teachers and practices, igniting a thirst for spiritual insight and physical well being that has inspired her all of her life. Her father introduced her to meditation at age 4, by 6 she was visiting the Insight Meditation Society, Massachusetts. In 1983, Ram Dass came to her family home to gather with a group of psychologists about a book he was writing. At 12, Bex had the honor of meeting the Dalai Lama and presenting him with a rose. Since 2003, Bex has worked one-on-one with clients in her own private space and online at UrbanGlo Studio, where she offers sessions in Pilates, Yoga, Reiki and intuitive healing. 

5 BIGGEST TAKE-AWAY FROM THIS EPISODE:

1- You might be rolling your mat at the end of the practice and it will be unrolling in front of you all day long.

2- Why do you need to wait that the plane is crashing to put the oxygen mask on yourself? Use meditation as a self-care practice. Instead of a to do list, start build a to be list.

3- At the minimum, take 3 minutes with your hands on your belly in bed and breathe. After the timer goes off, ask yourself : do I feel better or do I feel worst? In only 10 days, 3 minutes a day, you'll start to feel a difference. If you don't, you have a great opportunity to question why you're so resistant to the practice.

4- Start where you are. Be in the present. Begin by ease dropping on your own mind. Ask yourself, is that thought true, kind, necessary? if not, let it go. Become awareness. Be still and quiet, and see it as mind training. Find what works for you and slow it down. Start small, attainable. Ask a friend to join you, support you and meditate at the same time.

5- Mediation helps you expand your capacity to tolerance. You'll learn to be more discerning. Give yourself permission to believe that slowness is beautiful and beneficial, and that you are enough no matter what your practice looks like. There are no bad mediator. It's a chance to find refuge in yourself and to reclaim your goodness. Remember that it's not a result oriented practice and that even long time mediator have days where they struggle. You're doing the best that you can and that's what's important.

QUESTIONS SHE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE :

- How was it to grow up in that context? How did it influence who you are today?

- Is it all yoga to you or are the physical and seated practice different?

- I heard you say “My yoga mat is always unrolling in front of me” Can you elaborate on that?

- Meditation is one of those things we generally know is good for us yet we resist... I’ll say an excuse to not meditate and you give me your answer…

• I don’t have time
• I’m not religious, not even spiritual, so it’s not for me. It’s too woo-woo
• I can't sit still.
• It’s boring. I have more important things to do.
• I don't want to sit and face myself and my emotions. It's too hard. It hurts.
• I’m not comfortable sitting cross-legged on the floor.
• I’ll look weird/ be judge by / my partner doesn’t do it… no one I know...
• I’m not good at it.

- What's the key to finding the right meditation type for you?

- Why do we resist things that are good for us? 

- Why practice? What's the point?

- What actually happens when we meditate? How can listener know they are doing ok?

- What are the main obstacles to us sitting?

- Should people necessarily seek the help of a teacher?

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Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 54nd episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. I really appreciate your financial support with this podcast. If you can, know that you can make a big difference even with a small donation to help me cover the production cost and allow me to create more episodes. Visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a vip member. As a thank you, get access to new exclusive content every month. This month, you get a tell-all episode on my life story.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

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Rebecca Urban, known in yoga circles as "Bex," has led yoga and Pilates classes since 2000. Certified through the Yoga Alliance and PMA, Bex’s approach focuses on bringing awareness to our breath as the essential link between mind, body, and movement. She emphasizes finding center, balancing the body from the inside out, and using the physical practice to forge a larger spiritual connection. Her positive energy inspires everyone she works with to show up, release, and build strength.

Bex leads classes with enthusiasm, warmth, and a gentle sense of humor. Her students attest to her authentic ability to bring them into the moment, and guide them to a place of focus and greater self-acceptance. She weaves sequences that are safe, creative, challenging and filled with reverence. Bex invites students to set their own intentions, making the practice uniquely their own. She brings spirit, love, and openness to her teaching with the ultimate goal of inspiring a devotion to movement and yoga and its many benefits in all her students.

Learn more about her : 

Her website : www.bexurban.com

IG: @bexurban