Today’s guest is Mira Binzen, Director of Training for Global Family Yoga.
Mira is a registered Yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance at the 500-hour level (E-RYT, RCYT), a certified iRest Yoga Nidra teacher and a professional Integrative Yoga Therapist (1,000-hour level certificate).
She holds a degree in Child Psychology from The University of Minnesota’s Institute of Child Development, with specialized study in Communication Disorders. She has been training people to teach yoga to children since 2002.
Here are the mantras from the show that you can incorporate into your daily life to be healthier and happier:
Mantra #1: Get outside
Mantra #2: Protect some unstructured time in your day
Mantra #3: Keep a gratitude journal
Mantra #4: Practice alternate nostril breathing
Mantra #5: Set the tone for bedtime (it sets the tone for how you wake up)
Mantra #6: Breathe from your belly for relaxation (baby breathing)
Mantra #7: Pause, and breathe, THEN choose
More about Mira: As a developmental therapist traveling through India in the mid-nineties, Mira was exploring Yoga for her own interest when an ‘aha’ moment changed the course of her professional work.
She discovered the practice to be an exquisite way for both children and adults to integrate their sensory experiences while cultivating awareness, balance and openness in both body and mind. This initial insight sparked a passion that continues to burn brightly as she shares the timeless teachings of Yoga with students of all ages and abilities.
Mira found her spiritual home (and spiritual name, “Mira”) with the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centers. In January of 1999, she received her 200-hour Yoga teacher certification from this school in Kerela, India. Later that same year, she found YogaKids International and became one of the first ten “Certified YogaKids Facilitators” (CYKF) in October of ’99. She went on to mentor and train hundreds of CYKFs for the next four years while working with founder Marsha Wenig to expand the training curriculum. Marsha commented on Mira’s time with YogaKids saying,
Her commitment to excellence, her integrity, depth of knowledge in the field of Yoga and passion for its practice contributed to our program in immeasurable ways and I am grateful for her time with us. Her strong connection to the spiritual aspects of Yoga along with its values and traditions were an inspiriation to us all.”
Before moving to Chicago in 2005, Mira was 
a Yoga therapist with the Integrative Medicine Program at Minneapolis Children’s Hospital – the first and largest integrative children’s clinic in North America.
She continues to pursue the path through a dedicated personal practice and continuing study with Yoga luminaries Richard Miller, PhD, Yogarupa Rod Stryker and the spiritual leaders of the Sivananda centers and ashrams worldwide.
Her blend of playfulness and professionalism provides an engaging, safe and joyful experience for all. Her education, experience, and deep commitment to improving the lives of children and families are combined to create a training program of the highest quality.
