How Giving Up Strength Training Made Me Even Stronger

For the past two years, my mornings have focused on strength.

First, it was calisthenics, a more focused bodyweight practice than yoga asana could give me.

I worked through progressions, perfected my form, and got stronger than ever. But I was also constantly sore and tired.

I didn’t realize it yet, but this pointed to a bigger problem.

So I shifted to kettlebells.

A simple routine of heavy swings and Turkish get-ups. And for a while, it felt great.

Then something started to change.

I wasn’t recovering as well. My sleep got lighter. Instead of feeling energized, I felt wired.

And when I sat down for meditation, my nervous system was running on overdrive. I wasn’t able to drop in.

At first, I tried to push through, waiting for my body to adapt. But that moment never really came.

Because the problem wasn’t adaptation. It was a lack of deeper balance.

Strength Wasn’t the Problem. Imbalance Was.

Since I teach yoga full-time, I already get plenty of movement.

My days are filled with asana. So I leaned on strength training as my counterbalance.

But I had missed the big picture.

My strength training was pushing me too far into Yang energy. Because of this imbalance, I wasn’t able to recover or find my natural equilibrium.

And it wasn’t just the training that was depleting me.

I had also been creating constantly.

Between teaching, writing, and building my business, I was in constant output mode.

This, too, was Yang energy. Driven, focused, expansive.

My entire lifestyle tilted toward Yang, and my body needed the opposite.

Yin and Yang: The Art of Listening

In Taoist philosophy, Yin and Yang aren’t just abstract ideas. They describe how energy moves through everything—your body, your mind, your practice.

• Yang is active. It fuels strength, movement, creativity, and expansion.

• Yin is receptive. It fosters softness, stillness, restoration, and integration.

And here’s the thing. Most people are stuck in constant Yang mode without realizing it.

• If your life is full of stress, intensity, and deadlines, throwing yourself into high-output workouts might not be the right answer.

• If you feel sluggish, scattered, or unmotivated, deep restoration alone might not be enough.

The key isn’t doing more or less. It’s doing what’s needed.

And most people aren’t listening.

My Body Needed a Different Kind of Practice

So I made a change.

Instead of reaching for a kettlebell, I returned to my Qigong practice for my morning movement.

It’s not yoga or weights, but it’s still a powerful way to start my day. It allows me to work with subtle energy in a way that feels natural. I can move my whole body without wearing myself out, and it seamlessly integrates the principles of Yin and Yang.

I felt the difference within days.

I was less wired, more steady. My nervous system began to rebalance, and everything started to feel right again.

This doesn’t mean I’ve quit strength training forever. Strength training is awesome. And necessary.

But balance sometimes means accepting seasonality.

There’s a time for building and a time for restoration. Right now, my body needs the latter.

And that’s the deeper lesson. Balance isn’t just about strength or rest.

It’s about finding the right mix of effort and restoration, output and renewal.

So if you’re feeling out of sorts, take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Where in your life have you leaned too far into Yin or Yang?

Trust your intuition. The right answer is already there.

Stay balanced,
Rob

PS: If you’ve been feeling off, it’s time to pay attention to the balance of Yin and Yang in your life.

That’s why I created The Embodied Mindfulness Method.

It’s a free course designed to help you understand these forces and design a practice that actually supports you. You’ll build steadiness, clarity, and strength, without burnout.

👉 Join for free here.

And if you want something fully customized, I have space for two private students right now.

We’ll build a practice that actually fits your body, your life, and your energy.

If that sounds like something you need, reach out here, and we’ll set up a meeting.

Yin Yoga for Evening Calm: Gentle Poses for Restful Sleep

Let’s wind down together with this Yin Yoga for Evening Calm practice. In this session, we’ll stay entirely on our backs, using minimal props to help you release tension and gently ease into a restful state. My goal is to guide you through poses that encourage deep relaxation, quiet your mind, and prepare you for a good night’s sleep. This class is your invitation to slow down, breathe, and give yourself the care you deserve.

Resistance Is Not Futile: How to Slay the Distraction Dragon

Dear Reader,

I’ve been lying to you.

Okay, maybe not outright lying. But I haven’t been telling the full truth.

I’ve positioned myself as "Sir Robert: Slayer of Distractions!" A champion of stillness and the mindful path, encouraging you to unplug, find calm, and disconnect.

But here’s the truth. I’m not always as unplugged as I seem.

A few years ago, I quit social media entirely. I didn’t post. I didn’t scroll. My mind felt clear, calm, and free.

It was great for me personally. But I soon realized it wasn’t so great for my business. I was missing opportunities to share my teaching with the world.

So, I reconnected. And then the leaks started.

At first, they were small. I’d check a little here and there. I’d take time to engage with other teachers and creators.

But gradually, I felt the pull growing stronger, and it started to creep into more and more of my day.

Because when you’re creating content, you want to know how it’s doing. You want to take a peek. You want to respond to that latest comment.

And that pull to check, to stay plugged in, is not a coincidence. It’s by design.

Tech companies have built a perfect machine to keep us hooked. They exploit our dopamine systems, locking us into endless loops of scrolling and checking. And it’s not just you and me; it’s all of society.

I fear we’ve become like fish in water, so immersed in distraction that we don’t even notice we’re suffocating.

Today, I want to share how this has shown up in my own life and offer some solutions that have helped me reclaim my sanity and focus.

My hope is they can help you too.

Big Tech Are The Borg

Modern tech companies are like The Borg from Star Trek: relentless, cunning, and always trying to assimilate us. 

And they’ve perfectly hacked our psychology.

Likes and notifications give us little dopamine hits. Lockout features keep us tethered to our phones (looking at you, Meta). And their algorithms are perfectly tuned to keep us glued, feeding us exactly what we crave in 30-second bursts.

But this constant stimulation doesn’t just tire us out in the moment. Over time, it chips away at our mental health, our focus, and even our creativity.

Humans evolved in small, quiet groups of about 150 people. We weren’t built to process this much stimulation or to have access to billions of people at once.

When I was a kid, you got your news from a single newspaper. Once you finished reading, you had to wait for the next one to come out.

Now, information is endless. 

Even if we browsed 24/7, we wouldn’t get through 0.00000000002% of the content created daily. It’s like trying to drink the ocean with a thimble.

So if you’ve ever felt drained, restless, or dispassionate in the face of this torrent, you’re not alone.

I’ve felt it too.

The more time I spend plugged in, the less motivated I feel. When I spend all day consuming instead of creating, I feel tense, anxious, or even angry.

Even meditation and yoga, the things that usually ground me, take a long time to calm the storm caused by too much screen time.

The social machine is relentless. It wants your attention. It wants to keep you plugged in.

But I’ve also learned something important: The less I engage with it, the better I feel.

Of all the habits I’ve developed, learning to manage my media consumption has been the most transformative. 

When I keep it in check, I think more clearly, feel more creative, and have more energy.

I also get something else back. A sense of contentment that feels like it’s missing in the modern age.

How to Slay The Dragon

If you want to slay the distraction dragon for yourself, here are some simple but effective guardrails to help protect your mental health.

1. Intermittent Media Fasting

If you try one thing from this list, let it be this: limit your social media use to specific times.

For me, this means no social media before lunch or after dinner. That gives me a six-hour window to check in and get things done. It’s more than enough, and it protects my best hours from being derailed.

Starting your day with your phone is like setting your brain to chaos mode before you’ve even had coffee. And if you scroll at night, it’ll wreck your sleep and leave you feeling terrible in the morning.

Also, within your window, set a time limit. 

I aim for 30 minutes daily, though I stretch this if I’m working on a project.

2. Use Tools to Help You

Willpower is overrated.

Blocking software like Freedom can lock out distractions and keep you focused. You can set it to allow browsing only during specific times, making it a perfect partner to media fasting.

Another trick I use is the Phone Foyer Method. Leave your phone in a designated spot—like near the entrance of your home or on the kitchen counter.

This forces you to physically get up if you want to check it. It’s a great way to avoid getting sucked into mindless doomscrolling on the couch.

3. Replace Distractions With Value

Eliminating distractions isn’t enough. You need to fill the gap with meaningful activities.

The best activities are physical. Go for a walk. Do yoga or qigong. Garden. Move your body in some way—it helps reduce restlessness and gets you out of your head.

It’s even better if you can do these activities with someone else.

Social media tricks us into thinking we’re connecting with others, but it’s a poor substitute for real social interaction. Even watching a show with a friend or partner is better than scrolling alone.

When you need time to yourself, meditation and reading are excellent ways to unwind and reset.

4. Embrace Imperfection

Even with systems in place, I’ve had plenty of slip-ups.

The key is to keep coming back. Remind yourself why you’re doing this in the first place.

The contentment you’ll feel from unplugging is so much better than the quick rush of a social media binge.

In Closing

This isn’t about perfection. It’s about small, consistent steps to reclaim your attention.

Unplugging isn’t just good for you. It’s an act of rebellion and an invitation to reclaim the clarity and contentment that modern life often steals from us. 

Every time you resist, you take back a piece of yourself.

Maybe resistance isn’t futile after all.

Stay grounded,
Rob

—

PS: If this message resonates with you, and you’re ready to dive deeper into managing distraction and cultivating calm, I have space for two private students right now.

Together, we’ll create a tailored plan that helps you not just unplug but truly thrive in your life and practices.

If you’re interested, reply to this email. 

Yin Yoga for Busy Minds: Find Calm Beneath the Chaos

Yin Yoga for Busy Minds helps you find the natural quiet beneath mental turbulence. This session teaches you to notice the natural stillness within, giving your busy mind a chance to truly relax and unwind.

When the World Is on Fire: What We Can Control?

I thought I had 2025 all figured out.

After some holiday indulgences, I’d settled back into a good routine and felt confident about the year ahead.

But life had other plans.

At first, it was a string of minor inconveniences:

• A toy balloon knocked out power in my neighborhood for a day.

• My car battery suddenly died, leaving me almost stranded.

Then, reality hit my community much harder.

I watched in horror as my neighbors lost everything in the worst wildfires LA has ever seen.

The city had literal black clouds hanging over it, and I didn’t know if we would be forced to evacuate too.

Suddenly, nothing felt certain anymore.

The real world was here to remind me just how little control we truly have.

When I consider these sorts of moments, whether big or small, I’m reminded of one core truth:

Control is an illusion.

The only things we truly have are our own actions and intentions.

Seneca, the Stoic philosopher, advised:

“It is not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.”

Focus on what you can control, and let go of the rest.

Or, in my favorite moment from The Lord of the Rings:

Frodo: "I wish it need not have happened in my time."

Gandalf: "So do I, and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."

It’s easy to give in to panic and fear. It’s easy to fall into blame and pointing fingers.

But none of these things can change the world around us, and often they make things worse for everyone involved.

So what can we do when the world is on fire, literally and figuratively?

1. Take care of yourself first. Fear and panic are natural, but they’re not sustainable. Unplug, pause, and breathe. Whether it’s through stillness, yoga/meditation, or simply taking a walk, find what helps you feel grounded.

2. Choose how you show up for others. Once you’ve found your footing, ask yourself: How can I help? Will you use moments of struggle to spread lies and score points? Or will you offer support—whether through service, charity, or simply being present for a friend in need?

I was lucky to have not been directly affected by the fires, but so many of my students and people around me were. One student even had their childhood home burnt to the ground.

In those moments, I knew one thing I could offer: my ability to be present. I couldn’t change their circumstances, but I could guide them toward letting go of what was beyond their control.

When the world feels chaotic, sometimes the greatest gift we can give others is our attention, calmness, and care.

By grounding ourselves and choosing intentional action, we can show up as a force for good in an unpredictable world.

The world around us is never under our control, but the way we show up in it always is.

Use these moments to practice compassion, create connection, and help those who may desperately need it.

As a final point, if you want to support the victims of the California fires, please consider donating to the California Fire Foundation or World Central Kitchen. They provide essential support, from assisting displaced families to ensuring first responders and victims have food and shelter.

~ Rob

PS: In times of uncertainty, finding ways to stay grounded and present can make all the difference. If you’re looking for tools to help you cultivate clarity and resilience, my Embodied Mindfulness Membership is open. I also have space for two more private students.

Opening to Awareness With Yin Yoga: Find Clarity and Calm

Opening to awareness is about letting go. In this Yin Yoga practice, I guide you through a yin yoga practice that will help you tune into the natural awareness that’s always present.

With minimal effort and a focus on being, not doing, this session creates space for clarity and calm.

Listening To Silence: A 30 Minute Yin Yoga Practice

Listening to silence is a powerful way to drop into the present moment. In this Yin Yoga practice, I offer minimal cues to help you truly connect with stillness and your inner experience. This quiet, meditative session is perfect for creating space in your body and mind while tuning into the subtle power of silence.