Have you thought about doing yoga, but felt like you wouldn’t belong in a class? Do you think yoga is (as Instagram might sometimes have us believe) just for super-flexible, skinny people in designer activewear? Spoiler alert: it’s not. Yoga is for everyone. Yoga is about healing, above all else. And it can give us so much in terms of connection to ourselves and to others.

In this conversation, Alice speaks to Carolyn Jikiemi-Roberts (aka CJ), founder and owner of Hot Yoga South. As well as talking about CJ’s relationship with yoga and her path to becoming a teacher and studio owner, they also talk about diversity in yoga, how studios can become more inclusive and attract a diverse client base, and the impact of COVID-19 on the Hot Yoga South community.

Alice and CJ also discuss the impact Black Lives Matter movement, the recent protests they attended in their hometown of Brighton UK, and the wider issues of systemic racism and unconscious bias in the UK. This episode was recorded on Monday 15th June 2020

Content note: discussion of racism, mention of miscarriage . . .

Carolyn Jikiemi-Roberts (CJ) is the owner and director of Hot Yoga South. She qualified as a yoga teacher 18 years ago and worked as a hot yoga teacher for six years before opening her own studio. She now owns two studios in Balham and Brighton. CJ has a great ability to read the body and helps her clients to realign their bodies and heal themselves. Her motto is work hard, play hard and have fun - you only get one shot at this life.

Watch CJ read ‘It’s Time To Blend Out’ on YouTube:

https://youtu.be/LaooEl9rYfo

Connect with CJ and Hot Yoga South online:

http://hotyogasouth.com/ https://www.facebook.com/HotYogaSouth https://twitter.com/HotYogaSouth https://www.instagram.com/HotYogaSouth

Call HYS Balham: 0203 457 8837 Call HYS Brighton: 01273 420 279 _________

Music: Nelson Navarro & Brandon McBrayne Producer: Elijah Pear Like what you hear? Be sure to subscribe! _________

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