260 🌈 From Broadway to Yoga Mats: Lauren Chaitoff's Journey in Revolutionizing Children's Wellness

In this uplifting episode, Wendy Valentine sits down with Lauren Chaitoff, the powerhouse behind Yogi Beans and author of 108 Awesome Yoga Poses for Kids. Lauren shares her inspiring journey from actress and Pilates instructor to pioneering children’s yoga and mindfulness practices. Discover how yoga can help kids manage stress, regulate emotions, and cultivate lifelong self-love. Lauren discusses how she built Yogi Beans into an internationally recognized wellness brand and offers valuable insights into empowering the next generation through mindfulness.

 

💞 If you’re a parent, educator, or anyone passionate about children’s well-being, this episode will inspire you to help kids thrive in mind, body, and spirit.

 

What You’ll Learn:

✨ How Lauren transformed from a theater major into a trailblazer in children’s yoga

✨ The emotional, mental, and physical benefits of yoga for kids of all ages

✨ Practical ways parents and educators can introduce mindfulness to children

✨ How to turn your passion into a successful business and create a positive impact

✨ The story behind Lauren’s book 108 Awesome Yoga Poses for Kids and how it can help kids manage stress and emotions

✨ Why mindfulness and self-love are essential tools for kids growing up in today’s world

 

Episode Highlights:

🧘‍♀️ Lauren’s journey from acting to launching Yogi Beans in 2007

📚 The inspiration behind her book 108 Awesome Yoga Poses for Kids

🌎 How Yogi Beans collaborates with major brands like American Girl and Athleta

💡 Tips for encouraging kids to explore mindfulness and yoga

👩‍👧 How yoga can strengthen the parent-child bond

 

Episode Promotions:

🌟 FREE Masterclass Alert!

Want to learn how to teach yoga to kids? Join Lauren’s FREE Masterclass on January 15th, 17th, and 21st! No experience needed—just a passion for working with kids.

👉 Sign up now at https://yogibeans.com/yes

 

📖 Grab Lauren’s Book: 108 Awesome Yoga Poses for Kids is the perfect gift to help children manage stress and embrace mindfulness.

👉 Available on Amazon and at www.yogibeans.com

 

💻 Learn More About Yogi Beans:

Explore programs, classes, and resources for children’s yoga and mindfulness at www.yogibeans.com

 

👉 Connect with Lauren

https://yogibeans.com/
practice. So for me, when a child learns how to
regulate their breath through what I'm teaching them
and then in turn regulate their emotions, that's
a win.

>> Wendy Valentine (00:14):
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(03:12):
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Welcome back, my beautiful midlife
mavens. Today we have an incredibly inspiring
guest who has been at the forefront of the
children's Yoga movement for 17
years. Wow. You go, girl. Meet Lauren

(03:32):
Chof, founder, Chief Visionary
Officer of Yogi Beans. Such a cute
name. And a certified yoga and
Pilates instructor, Lauren is a
pioneer in promoting children's mental and physical
well being through yoga and mindfulness.
She's worked with leading brands like American Girl,
Athleta, My Fave, and the

(03:54):
NYC Department of Education, bringing her
passion for wellness to kids, parents and educators
around the world. Lauren's debut book,
108 awesome Yoga Poses for
Kids, is a whimsical and playful guide designed
to help kids manage stress and regulate
emotions through yoga. Whether it's an
under the sea or jungle safari theme,

(04:17):
Lauren's creative approach makes yoga fun and
accessible for children everywhere. From teaching
her first Yogi beans class in 2007 to
creating a globally recognized wellness brand,
Lauren is on a mission to help the next generation
thrive. Get ready to be inspired by her
story, her insights, and her contagious
enthusiasm for mind body wellness. Please welcome

(04:39):
Lauren, uh, to the show.
Uh.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (04:43):
Oh my goodness. That was probably one of like the best
intros ever. So thank you.

>> Wendy Valentine (04:49):
Isn't that nice to hear though? You know, it's like,
ooh, who is she talking
about?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (04:55):
I was like, this person sounds amazing.

>> Wendy Valentine (04:58):
Let me meet this Lauren girl.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (05:00):
So thank you. Thank you for the warm welcome. I
appreciate it. That was great.

>> Wendy Valentine (05:05):
Thanks for being here. And I told you earlier, your
book is so cute.
It is so well done. I mean, really
like the. I like the full color even though your cute
pants that you're wearing in it and then
it tells you the ages, like for the
poses and just the different
names. I don't think I can do the telephone

(05:27):
though.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (05:28):
The telephone. Oh, it's a bit of a hip opener.
Yeah.

>> Wendy Valentine (05:31):
If you're on YouTube, you can see. I'm gonna try to do the telephone,
but I can't. It's. It's like literally putting your
foot up next to your ear.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (05:40):
Well, I always tell the kids yoga's a practice,
not a perfect. So yeah, you know, we
try. It doesn't. It might not get to your ear, but that's
okay.

>> Wendy Valentine (05:49):
Yeah, it is, uh, seriously, such a
Good book. It is. I mean, I wish I'd had this book
with my kids, like, and helping them
to just relax their body, relax their
mind is so good. But we'll. We'll
get back to that. My first question for
you is, how did you get into yoga?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (06:10):
How did I get into yoga? So in, um.
Almost feels like a past life, but in my, uh. I guess
up until my. Up until I was in my
mid-20s, I was very serious about pursuing acting.
So I was a theater major. I went to Northwestern. I studied theater.
I moved out to Los Angeles. I, you know, pursued
acting. And, um, during that time, I was
waiting tables and bartending and cocktail waitressing, and

(06:32):
I decided I need a job that, uh, pays my rent
but also fills my soul. So I started teaching
Pilates because at the time, I, uh, I didn't think
I was spiritual enough to teach yoga or good enough or I had
this whole, you know, story in my head. And then I moved back
to New York. M. In about. I guess I moved
back in about 2005, so. Oh, my God, 20 years
ago, I moved back and I kind

(06:55):
of decided, you know what? I don't think I want to continue
acting anymore. I was doing a few, you know, like,
little shows. I wouldn't even say off off Broadway. Like,
so off, you know, like, so far off off.
Literally, like, just. I was doing
shows. Yeah, like. Like
that, yes. You know, the Lower east side, little playhouses and

(07:16):
stuff. Um, and I just decided, you know what? I don't think I want to do this
anymore professionally. And I was like, I was teaching, still teaching
Pilates, and I said, you know what? I really love
inspiring people in their wellness journey.
Um, I was. I was feeling good about that. So I was like, maybe I
will get my yoga certification. And I got my yoga
certification through Yoga Works, which at the time, back in, like, the

(07:36):
early aughts, was everywhere in the city. And
when I completed my teaching practicum, which is, you know, at
the end of your certification, you go up, you teach, they give you
feedback. My feedback was, Lauren,
you have, um, good queuing, you know, all your
alignment points. However, you do have a lot of energy.
And if you're going to go teach yoga, you may want
to tone it down a bit. And I thought,

(07:59):
okay, well, I do. I have a lot of energy. I know
who I am. And I. I. To me, yoga is about
being authentic. It's about truth. And I was like, I'm not
gonna change who I am to.
For, you know, for anyone. I should use this
Energy and I should channel it and I should teach
yoga to kids. And I did a lot of children's theater. I was a
nanny, so I'd always loved working with children. And that's kind

(08:22):
of how the idea for yogi means.

>> Wendy Valentine (08:24):
Interesting. I would have never
see. And I shared with you too. I got certified in
yoga and that was one of my issues. I had way too
much energy. I was like, I couldn't even
like, okay, now let's go ahead and
lay down. I was just like, I feel so
weird. Although I did record meditations and I
had to use that voice and that's a little, a little bit easier, but in

(08:47):
teaching yoga. But how creative though for you to
do that? So. Okay, and then yogi
beans, how did that. I mean, you shared a little bit about
how that started.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (08:56):
Yes. So I, I had this idea, I was like, you know
what, I should probably, maybe I should teach
yoga to children. And at the time, one of my trainers, she had
like a two year old who she'd bring with her a lot and they'd always be like,
Lauren, you have to stop playing with Noah. Uh, Lauren, come back into the training.
So, you know, I was like, I think I should use this work and share
it with children. And I was teaching Pilates and I

(09:16):
had a lot of clients on the Upper east side, Upper west
side, and they would tell me these stories about their children. You
know, they're interviewing for preschools or they're
so stressed. I'm like, I don't, I couldn't even
believe interviewing for a preschool.

>> Wendy Valentine (09:29):
Yeah.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (09:30):
And I thought, you know, I thought to
myself, you know what? Children really need
this? And that's, you know, I said, I think
my energy would lend itself. Well, I think children,
especially in, you know, at the time in New York City, these stories that
we're hearing, I'm like, they, they need this just as much
as I do. And I think a lot of us that begin

(09:50):
our wellness journey or come into yoga, we tend to start it
later in life. You know, I started my first yoga class was in
college and I, I'm gonna say I was an
anxious child, I'm an anxious adult, you know, And I
thought to myself, wow, if only I
knew just a little bit of what I learned since
I started my practice and just learning about, um,

(10:10):
you know, I'm not my thought in my head. And all of
these things that yoga, yoga gave to
me, I said, wow, if 7 or 8 year old
Lauren, you're just an iota of any of
this. How different My childhood might have been. So that
was also a big impetus for me. Um, like, why
wait, why we do all these other things as children?

>> Wendy Valentine (10:30):
Yeah. I mean, some people think that yoga is just about
like the asanas, the physical poses, but
it's so much deeper than that.
And I, I can see then why that would be so
helpful. I mean, it's helpful for all ages, but especially
for children. It's like, it's, it's setting that foundation
for them of how to regulate

(10:51):
their emotions, how to be calm, how
to. And, and, and even just
standing, you know, in, in good.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (10:58):
All the benefits that. Exactly. There's the physical
benefits for the children, you know, learning how to stand
tall and you know, flexibility, strength.
But there's also the mental focus,
concentration, and the, the big one is the
emotional. Especially children today, you know, the stress they're under
with social media and all of that external
validation that they're seeking. So teaching them to go

(11:20):
inward.

>> Wendy Valentine (11:21):
Do you know of, of children that you've taught when
they're little and they're still keeping up with it?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (11:27):
Oh, yeah. I have, um. So I started yogi beans
in 2007 shortly after my move back from
California. And I have three sisters that I started teaching in
2007. They were maybe 2,
5 and 7 at the time. Around that now
they're, they're in their 20s. One is graduated,
one is, um, a senior in college. One is going

(11:47):
to college. And I still keep in touch with them. Yeah, for sure. And they've.
We've spoken about how their yoga practice has
stay with them throughout their journey. And I have other students that reach
out to me. I mean, I've been doing it long enough now that the kids
that started with me when they were younger, they're in college.

>> Wendy Valentine (12:03):
Yeah. I mean, I can see though how, huh. Again, like the
mindfulness piece can be so critical
for, for a child and,
and it's something that like, you don't ever. I don't know who said
it. It was Einstein that like once you
expand the mind, you, it can never go
back. You can never. So. And it's so
true. It's like you, like once you expose

(12:25):
a child to a lot of those, you, uh, know,
those teachings though, it's, it's in there. I mean,
so much better. Like, so much better than some of
the crappy, limiting beliefs we adopt as a
child. You know, good things.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (12:40):
Children are also very, I have found, especially
the younger they are, they're already connected to all this.
It's as we get older, right and as we start taking these
signals from society that we start closing ourselves
off, that we start not honoring our authentic self.
So, like, the younger the child, the more they're like, oh, yeah,
this all made this all sense. And then as especially

(13:00):
tweens and teens, you know, that's when we start
getting, um, we're looking outwards instead of
inwards. So yoga helps them with that.

>> Wendy Valentine (13:08):
All right. So are your classes all in person?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (13:12):
Most of them, yeah. We have a few virtual, like, kids that
work with us virtually. But yes, most of our. All of our
classes are in person. So we work with, um,
schools, nonprofits, municipalities,
corporate clients, private clients, and we have a
team of amazing instructors that go and
teach all the classes. I mean, at one point, you know, years ago, it

(13:33):
was me teaching seven days a week. And now we've grown, so
we have an incredibly, um, gifted team of instructors that
are passionate about sharing this work.

>> Wendy Valentine (13:41):
Do you find that there are some kids, like, there's usually always,
like, some at least one super hyper kid that's
bouncing around that he can't settle. He or
she can't settle down. Like, and what do you do
with that? Do you?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (13:54):
Yeah. So, I mean, there's. I mean, there's all different. You know,
there's the child that doesn't want to participate. There's the child
that's watching everything and absorbing it all. There's the super hyper
child that gets everyone riled up. And I always tell,
um, when I train instructors, I always tell them, you know what,
It's a life lesson. What? You resist persistent. So when
working with children, you really have to be present. That's
the first kind of the yoga sutra, too. Yoga's now. So you

(14:17):
be present with the children, and rather than resisting their energy,
you want to go into their energy. Right.
And. And take it and then be able to kind of
redirect it so you can get back to the
lesson. Um, so when there's really hyper children, you
know, that's okay. A lot of parents will say, oh, my child could
never do yoga. Of course they can. You don't have to. People
say, oh, I'm not flexible. I can't do yoga. Well, that's why.

(14:40):
Right? You don't. You do. You know, as a teacher, people always
say that. Well, that's why you practice. So, like, if your child
is super hyper, of course we want to teach that.
And it's also children's yoga, so our classes are
fun and there's movement and laughter.
They're not expected to sit on the Mat and be quiet the whole
time.

>> Wendy Valentine (14:58):
I would think too, it's also a way for them to get in
touch with their bodies. Knowing their
bodies. Like, I mean, I know for me, even just
as an adult doing yoga, it's like nice and quiet
and then you feel like, oh, that's what that feels like when I'm
raising my arm up. Oh, that hurts a little bit or
ooh, that feels good. Right? I mean, it's a way for

(15:19):
them to learn their bodies and to love their
bodies. That's. Yeah. Bing,
bing, bing.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (15:25):
So much, so much about. It's a ripple effect.
And this is true for not just children.

>> Wendy Valentine (15:30):
Right.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (15:30):
Like the love needs to start from within and then it can
go outwards. So we're very big on IM
affirmations. We're very big on stressing. Yoga is
a non competitive physical activity. And I
taught adults for years too, at Equinox and all the gyms in the
city, and they still need those same reminders. You know, yoga's a
practice, not a perfect. It's not about touching your
toes. It's just like what you said, it's being aware of your body

(15:53):
right in the present moment.

>> Wendy Valentine (15:55):
M. I love it. How do
parents actually get their kids to start
doing yoga?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (16:03):
So a lot of our classes take place in schools, so the kids
are already there. Nice. However,
a lot of. I mean, I just got an email just yesterday from a father. My
seven year old wants to do yoga. So a lot of children
actually ask their parents, you know, they, they want to
practice it. It's not, it's surprisingly not
such a hard sell. Children really. And I think

(16:23):
part of it is our curriculum. And we are, we're not adult yoga
teachers teaching kids. We are children's yoga
teachers. So children really enjoy the
class. And the funniest part is they'll ask all the time, right? You have the
first class and then are we gonna do that thing at the end where we like
lie there and. Yeah, we do that every class.
They love my favorite ohs. Mine
too. They love it. They love just

(16:45):
being able. Being invited to just rest and not
have to do anything. Right? Yeah. It's so
important we live, even for children. We're in this like hustle
society and just being allowed to like lie there's.
They're like, we do that every class. Yeah, every
class.

>> Wendy Valentine (17:00):
Yeah. Giving yourself permission to rest. Yes.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (17:03):
Yeah. So important.

>> Wendy Valentine (17:06):
Do you ever do like parent, like a, uh, parent and
child?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (17:09):
Yeah. Yeah, we do family yoga. So for children
under three, there is always a grown up
Present. I always say we're not babysitters. So, like, for anyone under
three, if it's not a class in a school, but it's a class at a
yoga studio, they're always going to come with an adult.
And then for children above three, we'll offer
family yoga. So where the family gets to practice together. And
that's really sweet.

>> Wendy Valentine (17:31):
What kind of transformation do you see that takes
place even in just one class
with the child?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (17:39):
I think the biggest thing that we can teach people, and what
I've heard from parents as well, like what
the children are really taking, is how you
breathe and change how you feel.
So when a child is, let's say,
overwhelmed or having a really big feeling or
has to go to the doctor to get a vaccine or has to. I know.
I remember one parent, this was years ago, he wrote us an

(18:01):
email saying, I have to administer eye drops to my daughter.
And every night it is like, I dread it. It is
the bane of my existence. And he goes, last
night, I'm about to administer these drops. And she goes,
daddy, let me take a breath first.
And he was like, I couldn't believe it. She took a deep breath and let me put the eye
drops in. So I think tools like that, those

(18:21):
coping strategies are the biggest, the
biggest takeaway. You know, I always tell parents and children
I really, it's great if they can do a crow pose,
sure. But, like, I don't care about that. You know, like,
like you said in the west, so much,
um, so much of the focus on yoga is on the
asana or the postures. Um, really, there's. There's
so much more to the practice. So for me, when a child

(18:44):
learns how to regulate their breath through what I'm
teaching them and then in turn regulate their
emotions, that's a win.

>> Wendy Valentine (18:52):
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if a parent sees what difference
is making for their child, that they're like,
ooh, maybe I'll start doing.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (19:58):
Yes. I had. I've had many parents who come to family
yoga who are like, this is the only time I'm stretching
during the week, you know, and that class is for the family. It's
not for just the adult. But I've had parents tell me, you know what?
Because my child started a yoga practice, I've started a
practice. And I love hearing that.

>> Wendy Valentine (20:15):
Yeah, it's such a great way to bond with your child.
I mean, I shared with you, um, that,
you know, when I got certified and then I. I
started, like, my kids were my students, you
know, because I had to get so many hours or whatever,
and. But it was so neat
to see them. They were. And they were

(20:36):
really engaged, and they were like, oh, like, they were doing tree
pose, and we kind of make it fun. And then at
the very end. Yeah, the Asino. And they'd. And they
would. They would fall asleep. I was like, this is
awesome.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (20:49):
They really do love it. Yeah.
Yeah.

>> Wendy Valentine (20:53):
So, um, yeah, let's talk more about the book.
How did the book come about?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (20:58):
So the book came about. I, um, had. You know,
I started yogi beans in 2007. I was always like, you know,
I want to write a book. I want to read a book. And,
um, we do a lot of trainings. We train people
how to teach yoga to kids. So in our training manual, we had
all these pictures, and they were old, and I was like, you know what? I
need new pictures. So I. I hired a
photographer. I had all these beautiful pictures taken in those rainbow

(21:21):
pants. And I think I took those photos. I'll tell you the
date. It was like, May 19, 2020.
So, you know, what was happening next. So we took these
photos, and it was like. We were hearing about COVID when we
did the photo shoot, but we were all like, yeah, it's gonna be. It's fine. It's fine. I
have a makeup artist, like, in my face. Um,
and then the night. I think it was the next day. The next day or two,

(21:41):
the city shut down. Everything closed.
Schools closed. And I had all these photos,
and I was like, what am. What am I doing with them now? You
know? So I decided, I'm going to make. I'm going to use them for. I'm going
to put all our trainings online. And for that year of
2020, everything kind of pivoted online.
And I said, I'm going to create like a digital
pose book. I'm going to create, um, a

(22:04):
PDF of all these poses and create some
digital offering. And that totally
bombed. Total, Total.
You know, I had this idea and it happens, right? And
just did not do well, fell flat. And
I was talking to a friend of mine who was in publishing, and I was like, I really, you
know, I have all these cards. I know this would be such a

(22:24):
great educational resource for parents
and teachers and yogis. He said, well, the first thing you need to
do is you need to get an agent. And I was like, well,
I know nothing about the publishing world. I have
no idea, like, where to even start. And he was
like, you know, good friend from college. He made an
introduction. Um, I met her, my. My agent, Liz,

(22:45):
who was great, who believed in the project. She used to work for Sesame Street.
She had like a background in the children's.

>> Wendy Valentine (22:50):
Oh, that's so cool.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (22:51):
And, yeah, and then we, you know, we pitch the book and,
you know, you have your book coming out. You know, it works. And, um,
and that, that's kind of, you know, the book. The
book came from that. From realizing that also
children are very visual learners. And most of
the, um, books and products that are out there in the children's
yoga world, they're not photographs. They're kind of like cute,

(23:11):
adorable drawings of either animals doing the
pose or like a child doing the pose. But,
uh, a drawing, not a photograph. And I'm like, I
think having the photograph is so helpful,
um, because children can see the pose. Someone that is teaching
it can clearly see the pose. So that was also another reason why
I really felt passionate about the book.

>> Wendy Valentine (23:30):
Yeah. Like I said, it's. It's so well
done and it's cute. It's not. It's not
too. I mean, yes, it's made for kids, but still, I was
like, oh, this is.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (23:39):
Yes. It. I've had grown
ups be like, I could use it in an adult class. It, it's. It
toes that line of being really playful for a child.
Yet it's an excellent. A lot of teachers and
especially PE teachers have told me it's such a great.

>> Wendy Valentine (23:53):
Yeah, I was gonna say so good for. For
school teachers. It's like in, like, pick them, you know,
maybe like, they open up the book to a different pose
each week or do they ever, like, do
things like where the kids are actually, like the teacher, like,
okay, yeah, we do.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (24:09):
That in class too. I think it's great to empower children. Especially
you were saying, like, uh, what do you do when you have a really hyper child?
I'm constantly trying to show children themselves in
another light. So for the hyper child that's constantly
told, oh, you're the class clown, or oh, you don't know how to listen,
let's take that child and make them a leader, let's take
that child and say, you're going to teach this pose now open to

(24:29):
any pose in the book and then you teach it. So yes, it's
an excellent resource for schools as well.

>> Wendy Valentine (24:35):
Oh, good. Um, and then you
have master class coming up,
which I think is so cool. And it's
free.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (24:44):
It's totally free. So this is my first
time. You know, I think, um, I,
when I started Yogi needs in 2007, I
was not, um, you know, as women, I think we
can either tear each other down or
we lift each other up. And I am just a big
believer in the latter. Like, why not

(25:04):
right? When one of us rises, we all rise. And
when I entered the Yoga World in 2007,
I was not, um, I had someone who
was kind of out to get me and she, it was
terrible, um, and talked a lot
of, a lot of negative stuff
about me to other people in the industry, really tried

(25:25):
to bring me down. And,
um, and it hurt. And I had a
lot of imposter syndrome for a really long
time. And I feel like I've been doing this for
17 years and I've had, I've been fortunate,
um, to have a lot of success doing, doing it.
And I want to help other people, you know, because to
me, the more children that are exposed to

(25:46):
yoga, the better, the better our world will be, you
know, if more children.

>> Wendy Valentine (25:50):
Yes.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (25:50):
I'm passionate and have self compassion and just,
you know, mindfulness and present moment awareness.
So I want to help other people that are either already teaching
yoga or interested or curious about teaching
yoga to children. I want to show them like you, if I can do
this, you can do this too.

>> Wendy Valentine (26:07):
Yeah. Oh, I love it. You're being, you're being the
change we need to see in the world.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (26:12):
Yeah. Uh, right. I think we all, sometimes the world
is so overwhelming.

>> Wendy Valentine (26:17):
Right.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (26:17):
With all these negative things that we hear, especially on
social media, you're inundated with like the divisiveness
and like, it doesn't have to be like that.
You know, if we all do our
small part when it feels overwhelming, I have to remind
myself like, if I could just do my small
part in, like, my small corner of the world again.

(26:38):
That's going to have a ripple effect rather than being like, what do
I do? The world is a dumpster. Um, fire. Right.
If you feel like, uh, like, just focus
on, like, your small corner and then you'll
see, like, even if you just change one person's
life right. In a day, like, I always think, like, what can I do
today to just maybe uplift one person?

(26:58):
Whether it's giving them a compliment or holding the door open
for someone or something like that. Like, one small thing to
pay it forward. So, yes, I have a free master
class. Oh, yes, anyone. And I'm going back to that.
Um, interested in teaching yoga to kids. It's going to be
January 15th, 17th and 21st.
You go to yogi beans.com. yes, you can

(27:18):
sign up there. It's going to be amazing. I'm really.

>> Wendy Valentine (27:20):
Now, do they. Do they already need to be.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (27:23):
No, you need nothing. You need,
you need just. I like working with children.

>> Wendy Valentine (27:29):
Yep.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (27:30):
I love yoga. This sounds interesting.
Like, that's all. You know, if you're like, I hate kids and I hate
yoga.
Yeah, maybe then don't come. But if you're like, I love working
with children, I, you know, I, I'm in the. Well,
even people that are in the wellness industry, we get a lot of people that
are, you know, um, get a lot of ots,
pts. We get a lot of therapists that.

>> Wendy Valentine (27:52):
Come and then they, like, even nurses,
like, if they're, they can help, like when they're
the, you know, kids are in the hospital and they can help, like,
hey, let's calm our mind, calm our bodies. Let's
do this little pose.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (28:06):
Uh, yeah, we've worked with the Ronald McDonald's house before going
there, teaching over to kids there. So whatever you, like,
if they're. You're working with children, you can incorporate this
work into anything that you're doing. Whether you're
speech pathologist, whether you're a reading specialist, a
guidance counselor. There are ways to infuse this into your
work.

>> Wendy Valentine (28:24):
I'm glad you didn't listen to that naysayer
years ago.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (28:28):
Right? Yeah.

>> Wendy Valentine (28:29):
I'm glad that you didn't side with her. I'm glad
you, like, trusted your heart and your soul
and you went for it. And, And I'm even
glad that the, uh, when you took those, the
pictures of the, the poses and then that
first thing flopped because then now you have this beautiful
book.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (28:47):
It's so cool, right? Like, I feel
like yeah. Sometimes things, things have a way of
working out or unfolding in ways that we don't always
expect, you know, for anyone on like that
entrepreneurial journey. And they think like, oh, this didn't
turn out the way. And you know, you know, yeah, turn out the way
I hoped. And then you're like, okay, but if, if you believe

(29:08):
in it, then you just keep moving forward. You don't let it stop you
and you keep moving forward and moving forward and things
have a way of unfolding.

>> Wendy Valentine (29:15):
Yeah.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (29:16):
Unexpected, unexpected ways of unfolding.

>> Wendy Valentine (29:19):
Yeah. I mean, and that's one thing I especially learned
in doing yoga. It's like, okay,
this, I can't do this pose today. Maybe I can do
it another day. Oh, that didn't work out the way I wanted to. This.
Then it ends up, um, you know what I mean? Like being detached and
just surrendering and just allow.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (29:36):
Flexible. No pun intended. Right. But like,
not the physical flexible, but just being flexible and being
like, today maybe I can't do this post and tomorrow maybe
I can. It's all a practice. It's all a journey. It's, you know,
so much of the yoga, I say the real, the
real goal is to take your yoga off the mat and
into your everyday life. It's not so much about touching your

(29:57):
toes or doing down dog, you know, although those feel
great, you know, but, um, it's. It's so much
more than that, you know?

>> Wendy Valentine (30:05):
M just thinking too that like this book, it's. I know
we're past Christmas, past the holidays, but it's always
a good time for a gift. But, um, it's a great gift,
like to give to. For
your kids that have kids, for your
grandkids, for your friends that have kids. I
mean, it's really.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (30:22):
Absolutely. It's a healthy gift. You know, it's
like I'm such a big. I have a. A 12
year old who's in middle school and she's like the only one that does
not have a phone. We have like held really strong.
Good for you. Hm. We have help. And I see
now the. She's okay with it now.
You know, she, she sees like what her friends, which

(30:43):
people always say, oh, but they're left out, but they're left out of so many
other things that you want them to be left out of. And going back
to the book, it's such a, you know, you're instilling these
healthy habits in children. So, you know. Yeah, get them
a book, get them a yoga mat, get them a water bottle, you know, you could
do a whole wellness. This package about, you
know, loving yourself, because that's so important, and

(31:04):
that's what we want to teach young girls and boys.

>> Wendy Valentine (31:06):
Oh, I know. It's funny when you're talking about
the phone, because my kids just came out here to
Portugal, and now that they're adults, you
know, then they tell me all the things that drove them crazy
when they were kids. And one of them that, uh, because I was so
strict about them not having a phone until they.
I think I was. It was either 12 or 13 years old,

(31:27):
and they give me a hard time. I'm like, I'm telling you, though, it
made a difference in your life.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (31:32):
Yes.

>> Wendy Valentine (31:33):
I believe they are not. They're really good
about picking up the phone and calling. They're not.
They don't. They're actually probably better than I am
as far as, like, they're not texting and doing it. Like,
when. When you're with them, they are with you. They are
present. They're not just on their phones the whole time. Said, that does. Does
make a difference. Yeah.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (31:52):
Yeah, I think so. I think so. That's good.

>> Wendy Valentine (31:54):
This is so good, Lauren. Thank you.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (31:57):
Oh, well, thank you for having me.

>> Wendy Valentine (31:59):
So I. I sound like a mommy, but I'm so proud of you.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:02):
I. I appreciate it. I greatly
appreciate it. Thank you so much.

>> Wendy Valentine (32:06):
Yeah. I can't imagine, like, there's going to be more coming.
I feel beyond the book and beyond.
Yeah.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:14):
So my word for this year is open. Open.

>> Wendy Valentine (32:16):
Right.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:17):
I am just trying to be open and
receptive. Um, Right. It's easy to
not, um. I think too, like, just kind
of. Yeah. As we get
older and are in like, our midlife.

>> Wendy Valentine (32:30):
Right.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:31):
Just not playing small anymore. Right.

>> Wendy Valentine (32:33):
Yeah.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:34):
Going. Going for it, you know, going.

>> Wendy Valentine (32:37):
Be open to whatever comes your way.
I like it. Uh, so where can we find you
and how do we get the book and join the master class?

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:45):
Yeah, so you can.

>> Wendy Valentine (32:47):
You can.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (32:47):
You can find me. Um, I. I feel like I'm probably
most. We're on all the things, but I feel like
I'm most active on Instagram because we have the largest
community there. Um, so we're Yogi
Underscore Beans. You can find
[e-mail] and then the master class
is yogibeans.com. yes.

>> Wendy Valentine (33:07):
Oh, nice.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (33:08):
Yes. Yogibeans.com. yes. Go
for it. Do it. Um, you can sign up for the master class there.
Again, totally free. Just a one hour
of you're curious come. Not gonna
hurt.

>> Wendy Valentine (33:20):
Yes. Just say yes. And be open.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (33:22):
Be open.

>> Wendy Valentine (33:23):
Yeah. I mean, the thing is, no matter what you. If you
do anything with it, it's like, you'll get something out of it.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (33:29):
Yeah. I mean, even if you're just like, oh, I learned something for
myself, or I learned something I could share with, like, my. My
child, or I learned something I could share with my
grandchildren.

>> Wendy Valentine (33:38):
Yes.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (33:39):
It's going to be a win, Win.

>> Wendy Valentine (33:40):
I'm like, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes,
yes. All right. Thank you so much,
Lauren.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (33:46):
Oh, my pleasure. Thanks for having me.

>> Wendy Valentine (33:48):
Wendy, did this podcast
inspire you, Challenge you, trigger you to make a
change or spit out your coffee laughing? Good.
Then there are three ways you can thank me. Number
one, you can leave a written review of this podcast on
Apple iTunes. Number two, you can take a
screenshot of the episode and share it onto social

(34:08):
media and tag me Wendy Valentine.
Number three, share it with another midlifer that
needs a makeover. You know who I'm talking about.
Thank you so much for listening to the show. Get out
there and be bold. Be free. Be
you.

>> Lauren Chaitoff (34:29):
Sa.