February 26, 2025 • 41 mins
10 years and 399 episodes have led us to this very special moment in TBG history— our 400th episode! Growing this podcast has been so transformative for myself, my team, and the community we have built along the way. With that in mind, today’s episode is centered around the resting work we must remember to integrate as we grow.
Dr. Chelsea Jackson Roberts is an internationally celebrated Peloton yoga and meditation teacher and scholar, highly regarded as a leader in a new generation of yogis who are passionate about expanding the visibility of who is commonly seen as a teacher.
Unpacking her own history with meditation and yoga as both a healing tool and wellness practice, Dr. Chelsea shares how her practice has deepened her understanding of intentional movement, the need for grace with our bodies, and the lessons it has offered her throughout her motherhood journey.
About the Podcast
The Therapy for Black Girls Podcast is a weekly conversation with Dr. Joy Harden Bradford, a licensed Psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia, about all things mental health, personal development, and all the small decisions we can make to become the best possible versions of ourselves.
Resources & Announcements
Did you know you can leave us a voice note with your questions for the podcast? If you have a question you'd like some feedback on, topics you'd like to hear covered, or want to suggest movies or books for us to review, drop us a message at memo.fm/therapyforblackgirls and let us know what’s on your mind. We just might share it on the podcast.
Grab your copy of Sisterhood Heals.
Where to Find Dr. Chelsea Jackson Roberts
Instagram: @ChelseaLoveYoga
Practice with her on the Peloton app.
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Executive Producers: Dennison Bradford & Maya Cole Howard
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:11):
Welcome to the Therapy for Black Girls Podcast, a weekly
conversation about mental health, personal development, and all the small
decisions we can make to become the best possible versions
of ourselves. I'm your host, doctor Joy hard and Bradford,
a licensed psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information or
(00:32):
to find a therapist in your area, visit our website
at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com. While I hope you
love listening to and learning from the podcast, it is
not meant to be a substitute for a relationship with
a licensed mental health professional. Hey, y'all, thanks so much
(00:57):
for joining me for the four hundredth episode of the
Therapy for Black Girls Podcast. We'll get right into our
very special conversation after a word from our sponsors. Ten
(01:18):
years and three hundred and ninety nine episodes have led
us to this very special moment in TVG history, our
four hundredth episode. Growing this podcast has been so transformative
for myself, my team, and the community we have built
along the way. With that in mind, today's episode is
centered around the resting work we must remember to integrate
(01:41):
as we grow. Doctor Chelsea Jackson Roberts is an internationally
celebrated Peloton yoga and meditation teacher and scholar, highly regarded
as a leader in a new generation of yogis who
are passionate about expanding the visibility of who is commonly
seen as a teacher. Unpacking her own history with meditation
and yoga as both a healing tool and wellness practice,
(02:04):
doctor Chelsea shares how her practice has deepened her understanding
of intentional movement, the need for grace with our bodies,
and the lessons it has offered her throughout her motherhood journey.
I'm really excited for you to hear this conversation. If
something resonates with you while enjoying the conversation, please share
with us on social media using the hashtag TVG in Session.
(02:26):
Here's our conversation. We're big fans here at Therapy for
Black Girls, So we have a virtual gathering every Thursday,
call three for Thursday, and we start with meditations and
we often use your five minute meditations from Peloton as
our grounding. So it is such an honor to chat
(02:48):
with you.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
I love that same here.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
Thank you, Thank you. So maybe you can take us
back in history for a moment. Do you remember your
very first yoga class, and can you try tas a
line from that moment to the Chelsea we know you
as now?
Speaker 2 (03:04):
Yeah, I remember, like yesterday. I remember it was a
hot yoga class. I remember feeling incredibly uncomfortable, looking around
the room and wondering if I was in the right place,
if I was in over my head. I remember there
were mirrors all around, and I remember that moment when
I looked at myself in the eyes and it was
just like that a high moment. It was fear, it
(03:25):
was excitement, curiosity, it was uncertainty, it was not being
really sure what I was experiencing. But I just remember
that it was hot, and I remember myself leaning into
the discomfort, but then also wondering what was on the
other side of it, and I fainted. I fainted in
(03:46):
that hot yoga class. And I also remember coming to
I remember cold towels around me, people seeing if I
was okay. But what I walked away with is knowing
that it was that moment that changed the trajectory at
the rest of my life. It was at a time
when I was a first year school teacher. I'm a
former elementary school teacher, and I just remember looking and
(04:10):
longing for a space, for me to feel free, for
me to feel like I was accomplishing a goal, and
for me understanding my body and especially in that time
put me where I am today, and that's who you
see me as now. There were certainly other things that
led to kind of this synergy that met me being
(04:31):
an educator, me being a researcher, me being someone who
was very introspective. I always wanted to be self reflective
and so to be able to cast as wide of
a net that will even reach for us to be
able to talk today. That is the path that led
me to where I am right now.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Wow, what a story. So I did not know that
origin story. So you know, I think hot yoga. I
feel like I hear about it sometimes and then not
so much much other times. What is the importance of
like the hot, like the temperature in the world.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
I will not stress an importance or not. I think
that that's for the practitioner. That was just my entry point.
I thought that yoga had to be this workout. I
thought that it had to be something where if I
didn't sweat, then it was a waste of my time.
It was actually after that that I realized that the
hot wasn't necessary. It was really the practice. And I
think that once you can tap into what the practice
(05:26):
means for you, whether it's yoga or meditation, then that
hot is gonna come, whether it's in the form of
the lesson that you're learning on the met or it's
not necessary. It's not required. So I'm not necessarily an
advocate of you gotta have that hot yoga. That was
just my introduction to yoga.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
Mm hmm, got it. So can you talk a little
bit more about the differences and maybe similarities between yoga
and meditation, because I think sometimes people use those kind
of synonymously when they are different. Can you talk about
the difference between both of them.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
So historically, when you look back at the origin story,
we're talking about origin stories of yoga and meditation, it
was actually the meditation. It was the practice of being
one point of your focus. Right now, I think that
this time that we're in is a perfect example of
what's on the opposite end of being in a meditative state.
So when you're overwhelmed, when you're consuming, when you feel
(06:21):
like you're being consumed by all the messages the information
that you're getting out in the world. I think that
people seek a meditation practice when they want to People
say quiet their mind, but I don't. I'm not an
advocate of saying that we need to quiet our mind.
I think that that would just like make me not
want to try meditation, because that is absolutely hard. But
(06:45):
I think that it's being clear on what your thoughts
are so that you can be grounded and then be
able to articulate that from a place of understanding. And
so meditation for me is a place that I go
when I want to understand. When I need to just
be reflective, I take a moment to pause, whether it's
for five minutes or a thirty minute practice. Now, yoga
(07:08):
was then introduced way later. When you're looking at the text,
when you're looking at the origin story with relationship to
India in particular, all of the texts about yoga came
after what people were what the teachers with the stages
were teaching about meditation and that learning of the wisdom.
So I think of meditation as this access point, whether
(07:29):
you're a child or whether you are one hundred years old,
it's a place that you can explore. Yoga is the
physical practice that can even prepare your body to be
able to sit for meditation and listen. I love yoga.
I call it a moving meditation because you're still really
one point of focus on your practice, whether it's your body,
(07:51):
your mind, or your breath.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
I really appreciate you bringing in and tying it to
this moment in particular, because I think you use the
perfect word of whelm. You are just feeling stretched thin
and like there's just so much coming at us. Can
you talk about what kinds of things are important or
would allow us to get more into a meditative state
when it feels like there is so much coming at
us that one I.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Think that you know before we even started this conversation,
it was important for us to find the space that
was quiet. Now you could do your best when it
comes to meditation. I always tell people it does not
have to be a perfect setting. If we wait for
that perfection, we may never ever meditate. And so for me,
it's important to find an environment that at least is
(08:35):
suitable for me to be able to focus on my breath.
And that is what I always tell my students. You
mentioned peloton. I love that we've practiced together through peloton,
and if you know me, you know that I'm always
either usually visualization as your anchor or the breath as
your anchor. And so people who want to try that
practice always say started a small amount of time. I
(08:59):
love that I can can offer step by step and
how to start a meditation practice, even in five minute
increments on the app. So I love that we practice together.
So meditation, it sounds like a tall order, but if
you really pace yourself, you'll see how it's actually quite accessible.
Speaker 1 (09:19):
So you started our conversation talking about how you were
looking for like a different relationship with your body and
like freedom with your body, and one of the ways
that drew you to yoga. How has your relationship with
your body and like the idea of balance changed, both
as a practitioner and also now as a new mom.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Yeah, it's humbling. One of my favorite and most ancient texts,
it's called the Yoga Sutras by Pantanjui of Pantanguly, and
the first line is the yoga begins now, and it's
almost like I always I'm a child of the eighties,
and I always like to refer to mister Miyaiki and
the Karate Kid. And if anybody is familiar with that,
(09:59):
mister miyaiki. He is telling an Daniel's son to you know,
waxel on, wax off, and he's like doing this practice
of wiping the windshield over and over again, and he
doesn't understand why I'm doing this. And then finally it
was the big competition and he saw all this is
where we integrated. And for me twenty years almost or
(10:19):
really twenty plus years of practicing yoga, it's as I age.
It is as I step into this uncharted territory of
being a new parent, being a new mom, as I
step into uncharted territory of casting as wide of a
net as a people who can listen to me right
now speak about yoga and meditation. It has certainly gotten
(10:41):
me more clear on why I still practice yoga and meditation.
When we think about the life in which we live today,
especially as we grow older and we become more engaged
in society, a lot of people think sometimes yogis are
like quiet, and this is you know, we're just about peace,
and I am about peace. But it also gets me
(11:02):
clear on where I stand on issues in the world,
where I understand myself, how I play a role in
what I said. I want to just feel free on
the mat. How do I play a role in ensuring
that my child, children whoever come after me, will experience
freedom in that way? And for me, yoga is deeply
integrated to how I show up in the world, and
(11:25):
I'm all about, you know, using it as a liberatory
practice for people.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
Can you say more about how that shows up in
your mothering.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
Yeah. So one of the first things that I learned
in yoga was about non attachment, and that was scary
to me, like detachment, non attachment, Like I didn't understand
what that meant until I practiced yoga. And it's really
of going in with this intention as goal of wanting
to be clear on what I wanted to get out
(11:55):
of my practice, but also being open that I may
not have control over the environment. Maybe something will try
to take me out of that moment, but I'm going
to come back to my practice to practice being present.
And for me, I can't control This is the most
humbling practice of knowing that I can't control my partner,
I can't control my child, I can't control anyone outside
(12:19):
of the way that I govern myself in this world,
And so being a parent isn't any different, if anything,
I see my yoga practice showing up for me in
those moments of I'm going to do my best. I'm
going to do all of the things that I've learned
up until this moment to do my best, and it
doesn't have to look perfect. And if it's not perfect,
that doesn't mean that I'm going to give up. It
(12:40):
means that I come back to practice the next day.
And so remembering it take that breath, remembering to be
present because the first thing that I heard when being
a parent to people who had children who were older
than my experience, and they would just always say, enjoy it,
be present. They grow up so fast, and so has
(13:00):
teaching me to be present with where a noble is
in life, in every breath, and so yeah, it has
certainly empowered me as a parent in ways that I
don't think that I would have tapped in had I
not had the practice.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
Thank you for that. That's such a beautiful reminder, that
is you do get that advice off and right like
being present because it goes so fast and it's important
to kind of connect it to the ways that we meditate, right.
I think that's a good reminder. Thank you for that.
More from our conversation after the break, we talked a
(13:41):
little bit about your work with Peloton, and so can
you tell me about like the pressure if you feel
any about like practicing so publicly something that's so intimate, right,
Like it feels like, well, we're practicing with you on
the app. It feels like we are just kind of
in the room with you. So it feels very intimate,
but you're on this large stage. Can you talk about
the pressures of that.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
For sure, where I feel the most comfortable is when
we are practicing, when we are in it together, because that,
to me, is where that humility comes in. I speak
about humbleness a lot in this conversation we've just had,
but it keeps me there because I'm like, I'm still practicing.
I don't care how many years I have underneath my belt.
It's still a practice for me. So I feel the
(14:22):
connection whenever I'm able to deliver the practice. But if
I'm focused on yoga meditation, that's where I'm like, Okay,
I got this. It's in conversations like this where I'm
still learning. I'm so challenged. I'm still developing and evolving,
hopefully getting stronger, and I know that my practice. I
talk publicly about how I would often feel overwhelmed with
(14:43):
public speaking, in particular i am a PhD. I remember
feeling so like it was in my heart, in my bones,
you know, the work that I did with yoga, literature
and art camp, which was the result of my dissertation.
But I remember defending the dissertation and having to communicate
in that way. And so there is a pressure that
(15:03):
I've never ever felt before in life, because peloton has
certainly placed me in homes and gyms and communities that
may have never accessed maybe yoga before, or maybe not
have been educators and may not have found me that way.
And so now being in a more general population, it
(15:24):
strengthened me more than ever. It's reminded me that this
is not about me. I can still use my narrative,
my origin story as a way to share, you know,
how the practice has impacted me. But it also opens
my mind, whether it's the music that I use or
the stories that I open myself to tell so that
I can connect with whomever. And I think that that
(15:47):
is what truly is going to strengthen us, especially during
times that we may feel disconnected community wise and globally
that I think that the more that we step onto
the mat and interrogate ourselves those and the things that
keep us disconnected, we'll understand it and how it shows
up out in the world. And so that's those pressures
(16:07):
are often soothed by knowing that it's for this greater
understanding of connection. And so that's how I'm dealing with
the pressure. And it's not perfect, just like my practice,
but I keep showing up, and that for me is
what's important.
Speaker 1 (16:24):
So let's talk about this music because this is one
of the things that I think is most exciting to
me about the way that you practice, because I think
you often do use You had a recent outcast meditation
like you often bring in very now music in a
way that I think is not what we typically think
of as yoga or meditation music. So can you talk
about those choices and maybe how that has broadened your audience.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Yeah, Well, I think about just music in general. I'm
a musician. I'm a trained pianist, whether I'm playing classical
music or if I'm trying to figure out jazz or
you know, I've always seen music in the genres of
music as a way that we can transcend languages. As
you know, different cultures can appreciate music, and that's a
(17:09):
universal language sometimes. And I think that when you're feeling overwhelmed,
especially in practices like yoga that center your body or
can censor the body so much, whether it's like I
don't know if I'm flexible or enough, or I don't
know if I have the right yoga body, and all
of these things that tell us that we do not belong.
(17:30):
I think that when we open music as an invitation
or as a bridge, we remind people that they belong.
So when I first started teaching yoga, I remember, you know,
it wasn't the biggest moment of my career that was challenging,
but it stood out. It was when I was teaching
at a local studio and one of the regular practitioners
(17:52):
told me that the music that I was playing didn't
belong there, and it was like hip hop or R
and B, and so I started to, you know, reflect
on that and almost making it a mantra, like the
music doesn't belong here, I don't belong here. And you
have to be careful of the self talk and the
mantras that you create and etch into your heart and
into your mind, and it was important for me to
(18:13):
rewrite that. And so I'm like, so what if I
started putting actual like trap yoga in here. What if
I put you know, I did a metal yoga class
and talk about stretching myself to adhering to the guidelines
that I've put out there for people to try with yoga,
like try something new, move beyond your discomfort. And it's
(18:34):
just like, I think that once I move beyond musical genres,
I'm opening myself and hopefully creating a bridge and safety
for people who didn't know that they belonged. And so
if they hear music that is familiar, then let that
be the thing that brings you to the map. So
that's kind of where the music diversity that I bring
(18:55):
to the map comes from.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
I love that. I love that you are joining us
Chelsea for our four hundredth episode of the Theory Uses
than you and you know so much about work has
been kind of centered in community, and to me feels
like it is a parallel for the career you've had.
You've talked about like this twenty plus years, a practice
that you've done in practicing in Alulu, Liming Ambassador and
(19:20):
your teaching career. So what has longevity really taught you
about authenticity?
Speaker 2 (19:27):
What has longevity taught me about authenticity? I think that
the longer that you were here as a more aware
human being, the truer you were going to be to
yourself and to the people around you. And so for me,
I want to be here. We're about to go to Ohio.
My grandmother is celebrating one hundred years and she is
so very present, so very we can be in conversation.
(19:50):
Sometimes I'm learning things that's in pop culture from her
before I heard about it, and so I learned from her.
And the one thing that I remember is many things
that I remember from her is that she continued to
keep her mind young by understanding and learning new things.
So she's constantly working with her hands or driving somewhere
(20:12):
or learning a new thing. And so for me, I
think that longevity, the longer that we're here as present
human beings, yes, the truer that we're going to be
to ourselves and the people around us. And so I
celebrate you know, I celebrate you all and what you're
doing in the longevity and showing the value that understanding
(20:33):
that we matter and are worthy of therapy and spaces
that we understand who we are at a deeper level
in this moment. Yeah, LONGEV, that was a beautiful question.
Longevity offers definitely to that authenticity.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
So you know, I'm a member of the Facebook groups
for Black Men's Peloton Group, and it often feels like
we are like championing you as you are championing us, right,
like in creating the spaces where all of us can
feel seen on the mat ment. I know you were
also a Spelman grad, So can you talk to me
about your time at Spelman and what you really learned
about sisterhood in your time there.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
So I'm from Dayton, Ohio originally and going to Spelman College.
I went to a Black College tour and I remember
going to like fam you shout out to all the
HBCUs out there. There is little spread across and I
think about how excited I got when I went to
all of these different places. But there was something that
happened when I stepped onto the campus of Spelman College
(21:34):
that affirmed me in a way that I was searching
or longing for where I was from, where I was
from in terms of the age that I was coming from,
at that time, the region in which I was coming from,
and I remember that I wanted more. I wanted to
understand and learn more whether I was going to go
and go back to my hometown and Spelman for me
(21:54):
was it was an affirmation, It was a reminder, it
was an opening. Lens said, I don't think that I
had ever applied towards myself because I saw the reflection
of myself through my sisters and siblings who were around me,
who I may never have had access to. And so
I think that all of us when I ask another
spellman graduate what drew you to spellmen? Oftentimes our answers
(22:19):
are definitely diverse, but there's always this common thread that
we needed this, this affirming space, that it normalized our leadership,
our presence, and our voice in the world. And I
know that it has sharpened my tool. That was definitely
a springboard for where I am today.
Speaker 1 (22:41):
I love that that's such a hood theme definitely comes
out a lot when you talk to you spell and
women right like that. That's a clear sense that this
is the space created for and by you.
Speaker 2 (22:50):
Exactly, and that is what you know offered. That was
the birthplace of yoga literature in our camp for teen girls.
And you know, it was like this intergenerational experience of saying,
this is where I learned this, and I wish that
I had this. As my colleague Octavia Rahem would say,
she would say, I wish this is a place that
(23:10):
I wish I would have had when I was this age.
And so for us to have been able to provide
a space for us to even at the age of thirteen,
to begin to understand practice. So it's like yoga, meditation
and therapy and art and literature and all of these
spaces that are valuable for us. It was important for
me to give back as well.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
So can you talk more about the yoga literature and
or you talked about it being an extension of your
dissertation project. Can you see more about what the camp was.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
My dissertation was at Emery and it was in language,
Literacy and culture, and I wanted to look at how
yoga because it has such an impact in my life.
I wanted to know how could it be used as
a tool for us to understand, to interrogate the world,
to speak up as a voice in this world. How
is yoga and meditation fueling that It specifically to work
(24:01):
with young people who identified as women of color, specifically
black women. But we had a diverse range of teachers,
whether they were from Iran or Korea or Caribbean. We
had a very diverse group. But because we were at
a historically black college, it was important for us to
also remind ourselves because we were positioned here, we are
(24:23):
positioned here in the United States, and I think that
that context is always important as black women. And so
Yoga Literature and Art Camp is underneath the umbrella of
Red Clay Yoga and that's our nonprofit that my husband
Shane and I found it, and so for me it
has been this landmark. It is a space where community gathers,
(24:45):
whether you're a community activist, an educator, and artist, and
we work together so that we can create these spaces
for young people in particular to feel safe and seen.
And yoga meditation was certainly that platform for me, and
I was just like, well, what would happen if we
extended that even at a younger age.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
What do you think of some of the benefits of
young people getting engaged with yoga?
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Well, I know for sure through my research. So I'm
an ethnographer and I studied specifically the culture and the
way in which people communicate in language, and the girls
who participated, they saw how it impacted their direction that
they went after they graduated from high school. We have
one young woman who applied for a master's program in yoga,
(25:33):
in particular in MFA, and then we have another young
woman who started her own company, and then others who
were activists in their graduate schools after they went to Spelman.
We had a handful of girls who actually applied and
went to Spelman afterwards, and so it was interesting to
see what we already saw was this light in them.
(25:54):
Because in order to go to wild A Camp, it
was free, but you had to want to be there.
It wasn't like this place that you sent your children
because you just needed something to do with them. And
I understand how people need to negotiate their time, but
this was a space that we wanted the teens to
want to be there. So they applied, they went through
an interview process, and so knowing that they had something
(26:17):
in them that wanted to be more reflective, we knew
that that was just the fuel that we needed and
support to see where they went out into the world.
And so many of them are showing up in leadership
positions like I mentioned activism graduate school trajectories, and so
we're really proud of our Wildlife graduates.
Speaker 1 (26:37):
I love those stories and it does feel like, you know,
then they changed the little circles that they are a
part of, right with the YLA camping that expressed to
wherever they.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
Find themselves there exactly.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
Yeah. Yeah, more from our conversation after the break. As
I hear you talk about yoga, Chelsea, it often feels
like a way of community care. Can you talk about
(27:08):
like the connection between yoga and community care and yoga
as a form of community care.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Yeah, I think that because yoga is something that is
expected to be a routine, a practice, a ritual, if
you will, just like anything that brings meaning or builds
meaning for you, whether as an individual or a collective.
I think that when we pour into something and we
practice doing it over and over again, that it does
leave those ripples that move out into the wider community.
(27:36):
And so I think that community care looks like these opportunities.
And I always love to quote James Baldwin and that
I always talk about the both, and for me, the
both and is both the suffering and the joy. And
James Baldwin often talks about understanding our own suffering as
individuals so that we can understand the suffering of others
(27:58):
because it's there, that's just the experience. But what we
can do is use that understanding of the suffering to
go deeper into love. And for me, love is the
portal to joy. And so we can feel overwhelmed by
the reality of the shifts and changes of the world,
we can, but how dare we not also understand and
(28:22):
see the love and the joy that exists too. I
think about my grandmother who's turning one hundred, and I
think about the stories that she still tells, and it's
always sprinkled with so much joy. And so my hope
is that our community care looks like creating those safe spaces,
those affirming spaces, those spaces where we can practice liberation
(28:42):
as a way to not only care for ourselves, but
to care for each other. So that, for me, is
what a yoga and meditation community does.
Speaker 1 (28:51):
So, Chelsea, I remember the excitement of you announcing your pregnancy.
I remember it on Instagram, But I also know that
so many athletes are there's hesitation around like pregnancy and motherhood,
especially when their positions are connected to physicality, right, so
getting pregnant, Like, is this going to disrupt my career
in some way? How have you been able to navigate that?
Speaker 2 (29:12):
I know you do like people do like personality quizes
to understand like what type of person? Big picture detail,
like all of those things, And I think that I
am definitely detailed. But I think what gives me hope
is big picture And when I think about the fullness
of my life, when I think about the fullness of
my grandmother's life and what you know she'll think about
(29:34):
on that, you know, towards the end as I'm sure
people consider each and every day. But I know that
I'm going to think about the impact that I made
with my career. But I also want to remember those
moments of love that I share with my family and friends.
So whatever that looks like whether I would have become
a parent or not, I want to look at the
(29:56):
ways that I choose to spend my time with the
people I love and care about. And so for me,
I am not going to allow anything like whether it's
professional career wise, impact the bigger, fuller picture of love
that I know that I am worthy of and so
for me and my journey, being a mother, a parent
(30:17):
was certainly a part of that. Being married to my
best friend was a part of that. And so I'm
grateful that it's working out. And of course it comes
with sacrifice, it comes with the balance between effort and ease,
it comes with all of the things. But I do
believe that that we are worthy if we want to
see our lives play out in a certain way, that
it's possible. I waited later to have children and I
(30:40):
still have exactly what I knew that I wanted, and
it's scary to say that out loud sometimes, and I
think that yoga and meditation strengthened my courage to say
the things that I wanted, and being a parent has
been a part of that.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
Thank you for that. Can you say more about how
yoga meditation helps it priests courage?
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Yeah, Well, if anyone's ever tried or attempted yoga positions
or even allowing their mind to tell them that they
didn't belong somewhere and they still did it anyway, then
that to me is showing you how you can show
up out in the world. I always say that you
use your yoga practice as a way to strengthen how
you show up in the world. And so if I'm
(31:23):
telling myself, oh, I don't belong here, I don't have
a yoga body, I don't have what it takes to
be a so I'm not gonna go I'm probably showing
up in different aspects of my life like that. So
the number one thing is I tell students to be
kind to yourself, like to even lighten the load or
the expectation so that you do have an entry point
where you can set sustainable, achievable intentions and goals so
(31:49):
that you don't overwhelm yourself and then just say, oh,
it's not perfect, I'm never doing this again. And so yeah,
that that's my approach. That is my approach.
Speaker 1 (32:00):
And I'm sure you're already doing this, But how are
you planning to introduce your little one to yoga and
meditation as he grows over there?
Speaker 2 (32:07):
Well, he's already there. And I think that that's so
beautiful that it even surprises you how much they are
paying attention. And I think that that's a testament to
just being present with the people you love, especially the
little ones. Because Noble was doing movements that I had
no idea he was paying attention to. But because whenever
I have a live class, Shane is always very It's
(32:29):
that routine of noble is there front and center for
a morning meditation or a morning yoga class. I will
end the day even with me being right there, with
Shane being right there with the sleep meditation. So he's
hearing these things daily and it's a part of his
routine and so he's already introduced. Whether it was by
(32:50):
design or on purpose or not, he's around it. That's
why y'all be careful what you say around the little
ones and do, because they are watching.
Speaker 1 (33:00):
Absolutely. Yes, So you talked a little bit about this, Chelsea,
But what's something that you've learned about yourself from motherhood
that you didn't expect.
Speaker 2 (33:09):
I didn't realize that I am as strong as I am,
Like I didn't. It's when you sit back from those
moments that may feel like chaos, and if you can
get through like some of those moments, it's just like
anything else is just like I can I can make
it through this. I can get through this. And again,
this is where yoga and meditation comes in. It's just like,
(33:31):
what good is it going to do for me to
now physically arrive to the state that my mind is
trying to take me. And it's just like this ripple effect.
And so yoga for me teaches me how to practice okay,
when chaos happens, when the unexpected happens, what are you
going to do? Oh wow, remember this tool, this breath
you remembered on the mat. You can do it here
(33:52):
right now. And so it reminds me of that connection,
and that in turn reminds me how strong I am
in those moments, and then also how vulnerable I am.
I don't think that we talk about that enough, about
the soft parts of us. It's always like, I didn't
realize how strong I am, resilient I am. I didn't
realize how vulnerable I am, how soft I am, how
(34:13):
tender this moment is. And so it's definitely making my
senses even more aware and I love that.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
So on the Everyday Better podcast, you talked about losing
your best friend to gun violence at the age of
twenty four and how yoga was really instrumental in helping
you to heal through that greed. Can you talk about
how yoga isn't anchoring for people and can be used
for emotional healing beyond just movement.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
Absolutely, and for every case, what's case by case, And
I wish I would have found therapy earlier. I think
that yoga and meditation was a gateway and an opening
for me to even open myself to sit down with
a professional therapist. And so I'm with a somatic therapist,
which is important for me because I am so connected
to my body and its responses. And so during that time,
(35:02):
especially early twenties, I think that they say your frontal
lobe is just ending in development in like twenty five,
and so I had seen these experiences in the news.
I'm from Dayton, Ohio, I was living in Atlanta, I'm
a black woman, I have black family men like all
of these things, Like, I had always seen gun violence,
but it was always very close to home. But when
(35:24):
it hit home, I think that I definitely had this
trauma response of freezing. I froze, everything stood still. I
didn't know what, didn't know what to do in that moment.
And so I had already had this yoga practice that
was doing this physical thing for me, but I had
never connected it to well, what if I used it
as a way to heal from this experience. I didn't
(35:47):
know that that was what I was doing. I didn't
know that that was the language. I didn't even realize
until later after doing therapy that I was tapping into
that part of me that was responding to that traumatic event.
So Missy Carter Misty Denise Carter from Fayetteville, North Carolina,
Spelman Class of two thousand and one was definitely a
(36:10):
catalyst for me seeing that how yoga and meditation went
beyond this physical practice that was just like this workout
for me to being transformative and again impacted the trajectory
of my life. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (36:24):
Yeah, And when you were looking for a therapist, did
you know to look for like semantic therapy or did
you try something else before? And then it led you
dismissed I.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Had tried something. I had tried good old fashioned therapy.
It was just like, I need a therapist. It's a therapist.
And it was when I started getting deeper into yoga
and I understood what somatic practices were, and then I
knew to look for a specific type of therapists And
it was the best decision I could have made, Like
it was just a holistic approach for someone like me.
(36:56):
Who was so dedicated to the embodiment of yoga.
Speaker 1 (37:00):
Yeah right, right, I'm sure that that was very important.
Yeah yeah, So what would you say two black women
who maybe want to start a mindfulness or yoga practice
with f you like, they don't have the time.
Speaker 2 (37:12):
You are worthy of that time. And I don't know
what else we are making time for if we can't
carve out that time and space for ourselves. I think
that this is a well known reminder to put to
apply the oxygen mask first before applying the other. My
mother in love always says that who is a survivor
of breast cancer and uses her spunk her influence to
(37:33):
tell other women in particular to get yourself examined, to
get yourself checked out, to make that time and space.
And that is my same way that I go about
yoga and meditation, or if it's not yoga and meditation,
find rest practices. I think that yoga and meditation are
great access points because there is way more information but
(37:56):
just resting. I think that black women in particular need
to be reminded of that. And also it's not lost
on me that our lives aren't necessarily set up for
that luxury. But I need us to all take a
moment and pause. It's just like, well, what else can
we do if we don't do that, And so finding
that space to rest, to pause, to listen.
Speaker 1 (38:20):
Are there any particular yoga poses or affirmations or meditations
that you would offer for people who want to start
small and maybe kind of get this practice going.
Speaker 2 (38:28):
I always tell people, like, if you go to a
yoga class, or if you're practicing with me and you
think that you can't finish it out, find a posture
at least one that resonates with you, whether you are
lying down on your side in a feudal position, just
try to stay with it because that is a part
of the routine, that is a part of the practice
(38:48):
of sticking with it and singing it through. And so
I just tell people to start out small, whether it's
five minutes or a thirty minute practice, and to choose
that posture that feels best for you and you can
hold it, give yourself permission. Nobody is going to give
you a demerit. No one is going to write you up,
you know, for not doing it the right way. And
(39:09):
I think that yoga and meditation allows us to unlearn
the things that we've learned about ourselves and that we
have to place onto ourselves, especially as black women, to
allow this to not be that place where that exists.
Speaker 1 (39:25):
Yeah, thank you for that. It has been so wonderful
to spend some time with you today, Chelsea. Thank you
so much for joining us questions.
Speaker 2 (39:32):
This is a beautiful conversation and congratulations on four hundred.
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (39:37):
I really appreciate that. So where can we stay connected
with you? What is your website as well as any
social media challenge you like to share.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
I am Chelsea love yoga across all social media, and
I am Chelsea Jackson Roberts. And you can find me
at Peloton. And you do not need the equipment. This
is a common misconception. You do not need a bike,
a tread or anything to connect with me. All you
need is your smartphone and app anything that can hold
(40:06):
that Peloton. I can either take you to sleep with
a sleep meditation, wake you up in the morning with
a flow. Whatever you need, I'm here and you can
do it, and you are worthy of the time and space.
Speaker 1 (40:18):
Absolutely, thank you, Chelsea.
Speaker 2 (40:20):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (40:26):
I'm so glad Chelsea was able to join me for
this conversation today. To learn more about her and her work,
visit the show notes at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com
slash Session four hundred and don't forget to text this
episode to two of your girls right now. If you're
looking for a therapist in your area, visit our therapist
directory at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com slash directory. And
(40:47):
if you want to leave us a voicemail with a
question or a topic you want to suggest for the podcast,
please leave us a voice note at memo dot fm
slash Therapy for Black Girls and let us know what's
on your mind. We just might answer it or address
it on the podcast. This episode was produced by Alice
Ellis and Tyree Rush. Editing was done by Dennison Bradford.
(41:09):
Thank y'all so much for joining me again this week.
I look forward to continuing this conversation with you all
real soon. Take good care,
Welcome to the Therapy for Black Girls Podcast, a weekly
conversation about mental health, personal development, and all the small
decisions we can make to become the best possible versions
of ourselves. I'm your host, doctor Joy hard and Bradford,
a licensed psychologist in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information or
(00:32):
to find a therapist in your area, visit our website
at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com. While I hope you
love listening to and learning from the podcast, it is
not meant to be a substitute for a relationship with
a licensed mental health professional. Hey, y'all, thanks so much
(00:57):
for joining me for the four hundredth episode of the
Therapy for Black Girls Podcast. We'll get right into our
very special conversation after a word from our sponsors. Ten
(01:18):
years and three hundred and ninety nine episodes have led
us to this very special moment in TVG history, our
four hundredth episode. Growing this podcast has been so transformative
for myself, my team, and the community we have built
along the way. With that in mind, today's episode is
centered around the resting work we must remember to integrate
(01:41):
as we grow. Doctor Chelsea Jackson Roberts is an internationally
celebrated Peloton yoga and meditation teacher and scholar, highly regarded
as a leader in a new generation of yogis who
are passionate about expanding the visibility of who is commonly
seen as a teacher. Unpacking her own history with meditation
and yoga as both a healing tool and wellness practice,
(02:04):
doctor Chelsea shares how her practice has deepened her understanding
of intentional movement, the need for grace with our bodies,
and the lessons it has offered her throughout her motherhood journey.
I'm really excited for you to hear this conversation. If
something resonates with you while enjoying the conversation, please share
with us on social media using the hashtag TVG in Session.
(02:26):
Here's our conversation. We're big fans here at Therapy for
Black Girls, So we have a virtual gathering every Thursday,
call three for Thursday, and we start with meditations and
we often use your five minute meditations from Peloton as
our grounding. So it is such an honor to chat
(02:48):
with you.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
I love that same here.
Speaker 1 (02:51):
Thank you, Thank you. So maybe you can take us
back in history for a moment. Do you remember your
very first yoga class, and can you try tas a
line from that moment to the Chelsea we know you
as now?
Speaker 2 (03:04):
Yeah, I remember, like yesterday. I remember it was a
hot yoga class. I remember feeling incredibly uncomfortable, looking around
the room and wondering if I was in the right place,
if I was in over my head. I remember there
were mirrors all around, and I remember that moment when
I looked at myself in the eyes and it was
just like that a high moment. It was fear, it
(03:25):
was excitement, curiosity, it was uncertainty, it was not being
really sure what I was experiencing. But I just remember
that it was hot, and I remember myself leaning into
the discomfort, but then also wondering what was on the
other side of it, and I fainted. I fainted in
(03:46):
that hot yoga class. And I also remember coming to
I remember cold towels around me, people seeing if I
was okay. But what I walked away with is knowing
that it was that moment that changed the trajectory at
the rest of my life. It was at a time
when I was a first year school teacher. I'm a
former elementary school teacher, and I just remember looking and
(04:10):
longing for a space, for me to feel free, for
me to feel like I was accomplishing a goal, and
for me understanding my body and especially in that time
put me where I am today, and that's who you
see me as now. There were certainly other things that
led to kind of this synergy that met me being
(04:31):
an educator, me being a researcher, me being someone who
was very introspective. I always wanted to be self reflective
and so to be able to cast as wide of
a net that will even reach for us to be
able to talk today. That is the path that led
me to where I am right now.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Wow, what a story. So I did not know that
origin story. So you know, I think hot yoga. I
feel like I hear about it sometimes and then not
so much much other times. What is the importance of
like the hot, like the temperature in the world.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
I will not stress an importance or not. I think
that that's for the practitioner. That was just my entry point.
I thought that yoga had to be this workout. I
thought that it had to be something where if I
didn't sweat, then it was a waste of my time.
It was actually after that that I realized that the
hot wasn't necessary. It was really the practice. And I
think that once you can tap into what the practice
(05:26):
means for you, whether it's yoga or meditation, then that
hot is gonna come, whether it's in the form of
the lesson that you're learning on the met or it's
not necessary. It's not required. So I'm not necessarily an
advocate of you gotta have that hot yoga. That was
just my introduction to yoga.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
Mm hmm, got it. So can you talk a little
bit more about the differences and maybe similarities between yoga
and meditation, because I think sometimes people use those kind
of synonymously when they are different. Can you talk about
the difference between both of them.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
So historically, when you look back at the origin story,
we're talking about origin stories of yoga and meditation, it
was actually the meditation. It was the practice of being
one point of your focus. Right now, I think that
this time that we're in is a perfect example of
what's on the opposite end of being in a meditative state.
So when you're overwhelmed, when you're consuming, when you feel
(06:21):
like you're being consumed by all the messages the information
that you're getting out in the world. I think that
people seek a meditation practice when they want to People
say quiet their mind, but I don't. I'm not an
advocate of saying that we need to quiet our mind.
I think that that would just like make me not
want to try meditation, because that is absolutely hard. But
(06:45):
I think that it's being clear on what your thoughts
are so that you can be grounded and then be
able to articulate that from a place of understanding. And
so meditation for me is a place that I go
when I want to understand. When I need to just
be reflective, I take a moment to pause, whether it's
for five minutes or a thirty minute practice. Now, yoga
(07:08):
was then introduced way later. When you're looking at the text,
when you're looking at the origin story with relationship to
India in particular, all of the texts about yoga came
after what people were what the teachers with the stages
were teaching about meditation and that learning of the wisdom.
So I think of meditation as this access point, whether
(07:29):
you're a child or whether you are one hundred years old,
it's a place that you can explore. Yoga is the
physical practice that can even prepare your body to be
able to sit for meditation and listen. I love yoga.
I call it a moving meditation because you're still really
one point of focus on your practice, whether it's your body,
(07:51):
your mind, or your breath.
Speaker 1 (07:53):
I really appreciate you bringing in and tying it to
this moment in particular, because I think you use the
perfect word of whelm. You are just feeling stretched thin
and like there's just so much coming at us. Can
you talk about what kinds of things are important or
would allow us to get more into a meditative state
when it feels like there is so much coming at
us that one I.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Think that you know before we even started this conversation,
it was important for us to find the space that
was quiet. Now you could do your best when it
comes to meditation. I always tell people it does not
have to be a perfect setting. If we wait for
that perfection, we may never ever meditate. And so for me,
it's important to find an environment that at least is
(08:35):
suitable for me to be able to focus on my breath.
And that is what I always tell my students. You
mentioned peloton. I love that we've practiced together through peloton,
and if you know me, you know that I'm always
either usually visualization as your anchor or the breath as
your anchor. And so people who want to try that
practice always say started a small amount of time. I
(08:59):
love that I can can offer step by step and
how to start a meditation practice, even in five minute
increments on the app. So I love that we practice together.
So meditation, it sounds like a tall order, but if
you really pace yourself, you'll see how it's actually quite accessible.
Speaker 1 (09:19):
So you started our conversation talking about how you were
looking for like a different relationship with your body and
like freedom with your body, and one of the ways
that drew you to yoga. How has your relationship with
your body and like the idea of balance changed, both
as a practitioner and also now as a new mom.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
Yeah, it's humbling. One of my favorite and most ancient texts,
it's called the Yoga Sutras by Pantanjui of Pantanguly, and
the first line is the yoga begins now, and it's
almost like I always I'm a child of the eighties,
and I always like to refer to mister Miyaiki and
the Karate Kid. And if anybody is familiar with that,
(09:59):
mister miyaiki. He is telling an Daniel's son to you know,
waxel on, wax off, and he's like doing this practice
of wiping the windshield over and over again, and he
doesn't understand why I'm doing this. And then finally it
was the big competition and he saw all this is
where we integrated. And for me twenty years almost or
(10:19):
really twenty plus years of practicing yoga, it's as I age.
It is as I step into this uncharted territory of
being a new parent, being a new mom, as I
step into uncharted territory of casting as wide of a
net as a people who can listen to me right
now speak about yoga and meditation. It has certainly gotten
(10:41):
me more clear on why I still practice yoga and meditation.
When we think about the life in which we live today,
especially as we grow older and we become more engaged
in society, a lot of people think sometimes yogis are
like quiet, and this is you know, we're just about peace,
and I am about peace. But it also gets me
(11:02):
clear on where I stand on issues in the world,
where I understand myself, how I play a role in
what I said. I want to just feel free on
the mat. How do I play a role in ensuring
that my child, children whoever come after me, will experience
freedom in that way? And for me, yoga is deeply
integrated to how I show up in the world, and
(11:25):
I'm all about, you know, using it as a liberatory
practice for people.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
Can you say more about how that shows up in
your mothering.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
Yeah. So one of the first things that I learned
in yoga was about non attachment, and that was scary
to me, like detachment, non attachment, Like I didn't understand
what that meant until I practiced yoga. And it's really
of going in with this intention as goal of wanting
to be clear on what I wanted to get out
(11:55):
of my practice, but also being open that I may
not have control over the environment. Maybe something will try
to take me out of that moment, but I'm going
to come back to my practice to practice being present.
And for me, I can't control This is the most
humbling practice of knowing that I can't control my partner,
I can't control my child, I can't control anyone outside
(12:19):
of the way that I govern myself in this world,
And so being a parent isn't any different, if anything,
I see my yoga practice showing up for me in
those moments of I'm going to do my best. I'm
going to do all of the things that I've learned
up until this moment to do my best, and it
doesn't have to look perfect. And if it's not perfect,
that doesn't mean that I'm going to give up. It
(12:40):
means that I come back to practice the next day.
And so remembering it take that breath, remembering to be
present because the first thing that I heard when being
a parent to people who had children who were older
than my experience, and they would just always say, enjoy it,
be present. They grow up so fast, and so has
(13:00):
teaching me to be present with where a noble is
in life, in every breath, and so yeah, it has
certainly empowered me as a parent in ways that I
don't think that I would have tapped in had I
not had the practice.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
Thank you for that. That's such a beautiful reminder, that
is you do get that advice off and right like
being present because it goes so fast and it's important
to kind of connect it to the ways that we meditate, right.
I think that's a good reminder. Thank you for that.
More from our conversation after the break, we talked a
(13:41):
little bit about your work with Peloton, and so can
you tell me about like the pressure if you feel
any about like practicing so publicly something that's so intimate, right,
Like it feels like, well, we're practicing with you on
the app. It feels like we are just kind of
in the room with you. So it feels very intimate,
but you're on this large stage. Can you talk about
the pressures of that.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
For sure, where I feel the most comfortable is when
we are practicing, when we are in it together, because that,
to me, is where that humility comes in. I speak
about humbleness a lot in this conversation we've just had,
but it keeps me there because I'm like, I'm still practicing.
I don't care how many years I have underneath my belt.
It's still a practice for me. So I feel the
(14:22):
connection whenever I'm able to deliver the practice. But if
I'm focused on yoga meditation, that's where I'm like, Okay,
I got this. It's in conversations like this where I'm
still learning. I'm so challenged. I'm still developing and evolving,
hopefully getting stronger, and I know that my practice. I
talk publicly about how I would often feel overwhelmed with
(14:43):
public speaking, in particular i am a PhD. I remember
feeling so like it was in my heart, in my bones,
you know, the work that I did with yoga, literature
and art camp, which was the result of my dissertation.
But I remember defending the dissertation and having to communicate
in that way. And so there is a pressure that
(15:03):
I've never ever felt before in life, because peloton has
certainly placed me in homes and gyms and communities that
may have never accessed maybe yoga before, or maybe not
have been educators and may not have found me that way.
And so now being in a more general population, it
(15:24):
strengthened me more than ever. It's reminded me that this
is not about me. I can still use my narrative,
my origin story as a way to share, you know,
how the practice has impacted me. But it also opens
my mind, whether it's the music that I use or
the stories that I open myself to tell so that
I can connect with whomever. And I think that that
(15:47):
is what truly is going to strengthen us, especially during
times that we may feel disconnected community wise and globally
that I think that the more that we step onto
the mat and interrogate ourselves those and the things that
keep us disconnected, we'll understand it and how it shows
up out in the world. And so that's those pressures
(16:07):
are often soothed by knowing that it's for this greater
understanding of connection. And so that's how I'm dealing with
the pressure. And it's not perfect, just like my practice,
but I keep showing up, and that for me is
what's important.
Speaker 1 (16:24):
So let's talk about this music because this is one
of the things that I think is most exciting to
me about the way that you practice, because I think
you often do use You had a recent outcast meditation
like you often bring in very now music in a
way that I think is not what we typically think
of as yoga or meditation music. So can you talk
about those choices and maybe how that has broadened your audience.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Yeah, Well, I think about just music in general. I'm
a musician. I'm a trained pianist, whether I'm playing classical
music or if I'm trying to figure out jazz or
you know, I've always seen music in the genres of
music as a way that we can transcend languages. As
you know, different cultures can appreciate music, and that's a
(17:09):
universal language sometimes. And I think that when you're feeling overwhelmed,
especially in practices like yoga that center your body or
can censor the body so much, whether it's like I
don't know if I'm flexible or enough, or I don't
know if I have the right yoga body, and all
of these things that tell us that we do not belong.
(17:30):
I think that when we open music as an invitation
or as a bridge, we remind people that they belong.
So when I first started teaching yoga, I remember, you know,
it wasn't the biggest moment of my career that was challenging,
but it stood out. It was when I was teaching
at a local studio and one of the regular practitioners
(17:52):
told me that the music that I was playing didn't
belong there, and it was like hip hop or R
and B, and so I started to, you know, reflect
on that and almost making it a mantra, like the
music doesn't belong here, I don't belong here. And you
have to be careful of the self talk and the
mantras that you create and etch into your heart and
into your mind, and it was important for me to
(18:13):
rewrite that. And so I'm like, so what if I
started putting actual like trap yoga in here. What if
I put you know, I did a metal yoga class
and talk about stretching myself to adhering to the guidelines
that I've put out there for people to try with yoga,
like try something new, move beyond your discomfort. And it's
(18:34):
just like, I think that once I move beyond musical genres,
I'm opening myself and hopefully creating a bridge and safety
for people who didn't know that they belonged. And so
if they hear music that is familiar, then let that
be the thing that brings you to the map. So
that's kind of where the music diversity that I bring
(18:55):
to the map comes from.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
I love that. I love that you are joining us
Chelsea for our four hundredth episode of the Theory Uses
than you and you know so much about work has
been kind of centered in community, and to me feels
like it is a parallel for the career you've had.
You've talked about like this twenty plus years, a practice
that you've done in practicing in Alulu, Liming Ambassador and
(19:20):
your teaching career. So what has longevity really taught you
about authenticity?
Speaker 2 (19:27):
What has longevity taught me about authenticity? I think that
the longer that you were here as a more aware
human being, the truer you were going to be to
yourself and to the people around you. And so for me,
I want to be here. We're about to go to Ohio.
My grandmother is celebrating one hundred years and she is
so very present, so very we can be in conversation.
(19:50):
Sometimes I'm learning things that's in pop culture from her
before I heard about it, and so I learned from her.
And the one thing that I remember is many things
that I remember from her is that she continued to
keep her mind young by understanding and learning new things.
So she's constantly working with her hands or driving somewhere
(20:12):
or learning a new thing. And so for me, I
think that longevity, the longer that we're here as present
human beings, yes, the truer that we're going to be
to ourselves and the people around us. And so I
celebrate you know, I celebrate you all and what you're
doing in the longevity and showing the value that understanding
(20:33):
that we matter and are worthy of therapy and spaces
that we understand who we are at a deeper level
in this moment. Yeah, LONGEV, that was a beautiful question.
Longevity offers definitely to that authenticity.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
So you know, I'm a member of the Facebook groups
for Black Men's Peloton Group, and it often feels like
we are like championing you as you are championing us, right,
like in creating the spaces where all of us can
feel seen on the mat ment. I know you were
also a Spelman grad, So can you talk to me
about your time at Spelman and what you really learned
about sisterhood in your time there.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
So I'm from Dayton, Ohio originally and going to Spelman College.
I went to a Black College tour and I remember
going to like fam you shout out to all the
HBCUs out there. There is little spread across and I
think about how excited I got when I went to
all of these different places. But there was something that
happened when I stepped onto the campus of Spelman College
(21:34):
that affirmed me in a way that I was searching
or longing for where I was from, where I was
from in terms of the age that I was coming from,
at that time, the region in which I was coming from,
and I remember that I wanted more. I wanted to
understand and learn more whether I was going to go
and go back to my hometown and Spelman for me
(21:54):
was it was an affirmation, It was a reminder, it
was an opening. Lens said, I don't think that I
had ever applied towards myself because I saw the reflection
of myself through my sisters and siblings who were around me,
who I may never have had access to. And so
I think that all of us when I ask another
spellman graduate what drew you to spellmen? Oftentimes our answers
(22:19):
are definitely diverse, but there's always this common thread that
we needed this, this affirming space, that it normalized our leadership,
our presence, and our voice in the world. And I
know that it has sharpened my tool. That was definitely
a springboard for where I am today.
Speaker 1 (22:41):
I love that that's such a hood theme definitely comes
out a lot when you talk to you spell and
women right like that. That's a clear sense that this
is the space created for and by you.
Speaker 2 (22:50):
Exactly, and that is what you know offered. That was
the birthplace of yoga literature in our camp for teen girls.
And you know, it was like this intergenerational experience of saying,
this is where I learned this, and I wish that
I had this. As my colleague Octavia Rahem would say,
she would say, I wish this is a place that
(23:10):
I wish I would have had when I was this age.
And so for us to have been able to provide
a space for us to even at the age of thirteen,
to begin to understand practice. So it's like yoga, meditation
and therapy and art and literature and all of these
spaces that are valuable for us. It was important for
me to give back as well.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
So can you talk more about the yoga literature and
or you talked about it being an extension of your
dissertation project. Can you see more about what the camp was.
Speaker 2 (23:40):
My dissertation was at Emery and it was in language,
Literacy and culture, and I wanted to look at how
yoga because it has such an impact in my life.
I wanted to know how could it be used as
a tool for us to understand, to interrogate the world,
to speak up as a voice in this world. How
is yoga and meditation fueling that It specifically to work
(24:01):
with young people who identified as women of color, specifically
black women. But we had a diverse range of teachers,
whether they were from Iran or Korea or Caribbean. We
had a very diverse group. But because we were at
a historically black college, it was important for us to
also remind ourselves because we were positioned here, we are
(24:23):
positioned here in the United States, and I think that
that context is always important as black women. And so
Yoga Literature and Art Camp is underneath the umbrella of
Red Clay Yoga and that's our nonprofit that my husband
Shane and I found it, and so for me it
has been this landmark. It is a space where community gathers,
(24:45):
whether you're a community activist, an educator, and artist, and
we work together so that we can create these spaces
for young people in particular to feel safe and seen.
And yoga meditation was certainly that platform for me, and
I was just like, well, what would happen if we
extended that even at a younger age.
Speaker 1 (25:05):
What do you think of some of the benefits of
young people getting engaged with yoga?
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Well, I know for sure through my research. So I'm
an ethnographer and I studied specifically the culture and the
way in which people communicate in language, and the girls
who participated, they saw how it impacted their direction that
they went after they graduated from high school. We have
one young woman who applied for a master's program in yoga,
(25:33):
in particular in MFA, and then we have another young
woman who started her own company, and then others who
were activists in their graduate schools after they went to Spelman.
We had a handful of girls who actually applied and
went to Spelman afterwards, and so it was interesting to
see what we already saw was this light in them.
(25:54):
Because in order to go to wild A Camp, it
was free, but you had to want to be there.
It wasn't like this place that you sent your children
because you just needed something to do with them. And
I understand how people need to negotiate their time, but
this was a space that we wanted the teens to
want to be there. So they applied, they went through
an interview process, and so knowing that they had something
(26:17):
in them that wanted to be more reflective, we knew
that that was just the fuel that we needed and
support to see where they went out into the world.
And so many of them are showing up in leadership
positions like I mentioned activism graduate school trajectories, and so
we're really proud of our Wildlife graduates.
Speaker 1 (26:37):
I love those stories and it does feel like, you know,
then they changed the little circles that they are a
part of, right with the YLA camping that expressed to
wherever they.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
Find themselves there exactly.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
Yeah. Yeah, more from our conversation after the break. As
I hear you talk about yoga, Chelsea, it often feels
like a way of community care. Can you talk about
(27:08):
like the connection between yoga and community care and yoga
as a form of community care.
Speaker 2 (27:12):
Yeah, I think that because yoga is something that is
expected to be a routine, a practice, a ritual, if
you will, just like anything that brings meaning or builds
meaning for you, whether as an individual or a collective.
I think that when we pour into something and we
practice doing it over and over again, that it does
leave those ripples that move out into the wider community.
(27:36):
And so I think that community care looks like these opportunities.
And I always love to quote James Baldwin and that
I always talk about the both, and for me, the
both and is both the suffering and the joy. And
James Baldwin often talks about understanding our own suffering as
individuals so that we can understand the suffering of others
(27:58):
because it's there, that's just the experience. But what we
can do is use that understanding of the suffering to
go deeper into love. And for me, love is the
portal to joy. And so we can feel overwhelmed by
the reality of the shifts and changes of the world,
we can, but how dare we not also understand and
(28:22):
see the love and the joy that exists too. I
think about my grandmother who's turning one hundred, and I
think about the stories that she still tells, and it's
always sprinkled with so much joy. And so my hope
is that our community care looks like creating those safe spaces,
those affirming spaces, those spaces where we can practice liberation
(28:42):
as a way to not only care for ourselves, but
to care for each other. So that, for me, is
what a yoga and meditation community does.
Speaker 1 (28:51):
So, Chelsea, I remember the excitement of you announcing your pregnancy.
I remember it on Instagram, But I also know that
so many athletes are there's hesitation around like pregnancy and motherhood,
especially when their positions are connected to physicality, right, so
getting pregnant, Like, is this going to disrupt my career
in some way? How have you been able to navigate that?
Speaker 2 (29:12):
I know you do like people do like personality quizes
to understand like what type of person? Big picture detail,
like all of those things, And I think that I
am definitely detailed. But I think what gives me hope
is big picture And when I think about the fullness
of my life, when I think about the fullness of
my grandmother's life and what you know she'll think about
(29:34):
on that, you know, towards the end as I'm sure
people consider each and every day. But I know that
I'm going to think about the impact that I made
with my career. But I also want to remember those
moments of love that I share with my family and friends.
So whatever that looks like whether I would have become
a parent or not, I want to look at the
(29:56):
ways that I choose to spend my time with the
people I love and care about. And so for me,
I am not going to allow anything like whether it's
professional career wise, impact the bigger, fuller picture of love
that I know that I am worthy of and so
for me and my journey, being a mother, a parent
(30:17):
was certainly a part of that. Being married to my
best friend was a part of that. And so I'm
grateful that it's working out. And of course it comes
with sacrifice, it comes with the balance between effort and ease,
it comes with all of the things. But I do
believe that that we are worthy if we want to
see our lives play out in a certain way, that
it's possible. I waited later to have children and I
(30:40):
still have exactly what I knew that I wanted, and
it's scary to say that out loud sometimes, and I
think that yoga and meditation strengthened my courage to say
the things that I wanted, and being a parent has
been a part of that.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
Thank you for that. Can you say more about how
yoga meditation helps it priests courage?
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Yeah, Well, if anyone's ever tried or attempted yoga positions
or even allowing their mind to tell them that they
didn't belong somewhere and they still did it anyway, then
that to me is showing you how you can show
up out in the world. I always say that you
use your yoga practice as a way to strengthen how
you show up in the world. And so if I'm
(31:23):
telling myself, oh, I don't belong here, I don't have
a yoga body, I don't have what it takes to
be a so I'm not gonna go I'm probably showing
up in different aspects of my life like that. So
the number one thing is I tell students to be
kind to yourself, like to even lighten the load or
the expectation so that you do have an entry point
where you can set sustainable, achievable intentions and goals so
(31:49):
that you don't overwhelm yourself and then just say, oh,
it's not perfect, I'm never doing this again. And so yeah,
that that's my approach. That is my approach.
Speaker 1 (32:00):
And I'm sure you're already doing this, But how are
you planning to introduce your little one to yoga and
meditation as he grows over there?
Speaker 2 (32:07):
Well, he's already there. And I think that that's so
beautiful that it even surprises you how much they are
paying attention. And I think that that's a testament to
just being present with the people you love, especially the
little ones. Because Noble was doing movements that I had
no idea he was paying attention to. But because whenever
I have a live class, Shane is always very It's
(32:29):
that routine of noble is there front and center for
a morning meditation or a morning yoga class. I will
end the day even with me being right there, with
Shane being right there with the sleep meditation. So he's
hearing these things daily and it's a part of his
routine and so he's already introduced. Whether it was by
(32:50):
design or on purpose or not, he's around it. That's
why y'all be careful what you say around the little
ones and do, because they are watching.
Speaker 1 (33:00):
Absolutely. Yes, So you talked a little bit about this, Chelsea,
But what's something that you've learned about yourself from motherhood
that you didn't expect.
Speaker 2 (33:09):
I didn't realize that I am as strong as I am,
Like I didn't. It's when you sit back from those
moments that may feel like chaos, and if you can
get through like some of those moments, it's just like
anything else is just like I can I can make
it through this. I can get through this. And again,
this is where yoga and meditation comes in. It's just like,
(33:31):
what good is it going to do for me to
now physically arrive to the state that my mind is
trying to take me. And it's just like this ripple effect.
And so yoga for me teaches me how to practice okay,
when chaos happens, when the unexpected happens, what are you
going to do? Oh wow, remember this tool, this breath
you remembered on the mat. You can do it here
(33:52):
right now. And so it reminds me of that connection,
and that in turn reminds me how strong I am
in those moments, and then also how vulnerable I am.
I don't think that we talk about that enough, about
the soft parts of us. It's always like, I didn't
realize how strong I am, resilient I am. I didn't
realize how vulnerable I am, how soft I am, how
(34:13):
tender this moment is. And so it's definitely making my
senses even more aware and I love that.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
So on the Everyday Better podcast, you talked about losing
your best friend to gun violence at the age of
twenty four and how yoga was really instrumental in helping
you to heal through that greed. Can you talk about
how yoga isn't anchoring for people and can be used
for emotional healing beyond just movement.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
Absolutely, and for every case, what's case by case, And
I wish I would have found therapy earlier. I think
that yoga and meditation was a gateway and an opening
for me to even open myself to sit down with
a professional therapist. And so I'm with a somatic therapist,
which is important for me because I am so connected
to my body and its responses. And so during that time,
(35:02):
especially early twenties, I think that they say your frontal
lobe is just ending in development in like twenty five,
and so I had seen these experiences in the news.
I'm from Dayton, Ohio, I was living in Atlanta, I'm
a black woman, I have black family men like all
of these things, Like, I had always seen gun violence,
but it was always very close to home. But when
(35:24):
it hit home, I think that I definitely had this
trauma response of freezing. I froze, everything stood still. I
didn't know what, didn't know what to do in that moment.
And so I had already had this yoga practice that
was doing this physical thing for me, but I had
never connected it to well, what if I used it
as a way to heal from this experience. I didn't
(35:47):
know that that was what I was doing. I didn't
know that that was the language. I didn't even realize
until later after doing therapy that I was tapping into
that part of me that was responding to that traumatic event.
So Missy Carter Misty Denise Carter from Fayetteville, North Carolina,
Spelman Class of two thousand and one was definitely a
(36:10):
catalyst for me seeing that how yoga and meditation went
beyond this physical practice that was just like this workout
for me to being transformative and again impacted the trajectory
of my life. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (36:24):
Yeah, And when you were looking for a therapist, did
you know to look for like semantic therapy or did
you try something else before? And then it led you
dismissed I.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Had tried something. I had tried good old fashioned therapy.
It was just like, I need a therapist. It's a therapist.
And it was when I started getting deeper into yoga
and I understood what somatic practices were, and then I
knew to look for a specific type of therapists And
it was the best decision I could have made, Like
it was just a holistic approach for someone like me.
(36:56):
Who was so dedicated to the embodiment of yoga.
Speaker 1 (37:00):
Yeah right, right, I'm sure that that was very important.
Yeah yeah, So what would you say two black women
who maybe want to start a mindfulness or yoga practice
with f you like, they don't have the time.
Speaker 2 (37:12):
You are worthy of that time. And I don't know
what else we are making time for if we can't
carve out that time and space for ourselves. I think
that this is a well known reminder to put to
apply the oxygen mask first before applying the other. My
mother in love always says that who is a survivor
of breast cancer and uses her spunk her influence to
(37:33):
tell other women in particular to get yourself examined, to
get yourself checked out, to make that time and space.
And that is my same way that I go about
yoga and meditation, or if it's not yoga and meditation,
find rest practices. I think that yoga and meditation are
great access points because there is way more information but
(37:56):
just resting. I think that black women in particular need
to be reminded of that. And also it's not lost
on me that our lives aren't necessarily set up for
that luxury. But I need us to all take a
moment and pause. It's just like, well, what else can
we do if we don't do that, And so finding
that space to rest, to pause, to listen.
Speaker 1 (38:20):
Are there any particular yoga poses or affirmations or meditations
that you would offer for people who want to start
small and maybe kind of get this practice going.
Speaker 2 (38:28):
I always tell people, like, if you go to a
yoga class, or if you're practicing with me and you
think that you can't finish it out, find a posture
at least one that resonates with you, whether you are
lying down on your side in a feudal position, just
try to stay with it because that is a part
of the routine, that is a part of the practice
(38:48):
of sticking with it and singing it through. And so
I just tell people to start out small, whether it's
five minutes or a thirty minute practice, and to choose
that posture that feels best for you and you can
hold it, give yourself permission. Nobody is going to give
you a demerit. No one is going to write you up,
you know, for not doing it the right way. And
(39:09):
I think that yoga and meditation allows us to unlearn
the things that we've learned about ourselves and that we
have to place onto ourselves, especially as black women, to
allow this to not be that place where that exists.
Speaker 1 (39:25):
Yeah, thank you for that. It has been so wonderful
to spend some time with you today, Chelsea. Thank you
so much for joining us questions.
Speaker 2 (39:32):
This is a beautiful conversation and congratulations on four hundred.
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (39:37):
I really appreciate that. So where can we stay connected
with you? What is your website as well as any
social media challenge you like to share.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
I am Chelsea love yoga across all social media, and
I am Chelsea Jackson Roberts. And you can find me
at Peloton. And you do not need the equipment. This
is a common misconception. You do not need a bike,
a tread or anything to connect with me. All you
need is your smartphone and app anything that can hold
(40:06):
that Peloton. I can either take you to sleep with
a sleep meditation, wake you up in the morning with
a flow. Whatever you need, I'm here and you can
do it, and you are worthy of the time and space.
Speaker 1 (40:18):
Absolutely, thank you, Chelsea.
Speaker 2 (40:20):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (40:26):
I'm so glad Chelsea was able to join me for
this conversation today. To learn more about her and her work,
visit the show notes at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com
slash Session four hundred and don't forget to text this
episode to two of your girls right now. If you're
looking for a therapist in your area, visit our therapist
directory at Therapy for Blackgirls dot com slash directory. And
(40:47):
if you want to leave us a voicemail with a
question or a topic you want to suggest for the podcast,
please leave us a voice note at memo dot fm
slash Therapy for Black Girls and let us know what's
on your mind. We just might answer it or address
it on the podcast. This episode was produced by Alice
Ellis and Tyree Rush. Editing was done by Dennison Bradford.
(41:09):
Thank y'all so much for joining me again this week.
I look forward to continuing this conversation with you all
real soon. Take good care,
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