Mandy Ingber’s Secrets of Strength and Healing
Odds are that you haven’t made it this far in your life without ever having your heart broken. Sadly, heartbreak is a fact of life. And it doesn’t really matter how it was broken or how many times it’s happened, one thing is absolutely certain — heartbreak is heartbreak. The heart never seems to get easier to heal.
This is why I was fascinated by celebrity fitness and wellness expert and New York Times best-selling author, Mandy Ingber‘s new book, Yogalosophy for Inner Strength. It’s a fabulous and insightful 12-week love yo’self and heal yo’self program designed to help us all not just survive heartbreak and times of transition but to thrive and grow through these inevitable processes.
Mandy’s tone is compassionate and relatable, like a trusted friend providing thoughtful guidance for your journey toward healing. She gives detailed and specific self-care practices including recipes, yoga, journaling, meditations and even playlists for every step along the way.
It’s a very special piece of work, if you ask me — I mean, you really don’t see such comprehensive self-love books like it out there very often. So imagine how unbelievably thrilled I was to have the chance to chat with Mandy and find out more about how this awesome heart-healing book came to be.
Q&A with Mandy Ingber
What inspired you to write a book about healing the heart? I was going through my own heartbreak as well as through some health issues that were getting me down. I realized that the tools I was using to move myself through it were actions that I’ve been helping other people with for the last 20 years through my teaching. Often and most commonly, people come to me when they are transitioning and I help them through actions. When we get out of a thinking place, and more into action, we begin to feel more, and thaw out. When you get where your feet are, your heart opens and life becomes much richer.
Do you have to know anything about yoga before beginning? I actually incorporated some yoga basics in part one of the book. I noticed from my last book that the audience is craving some of the basic info about the energy body and specific yoga philosophy, however the book is much more than a yoga book. It includes other types of actions, both fitness-related, and otherwise. I try to make everything user friendly. I can understand how intimidating it can be to feel like you have to learn a whole new language in order to try something out. This book isn’t like that. All you need is an open mind and you can really pick and choose what works for you. Although there are some advanced and aspirational poses, they are meant to inspire. It is not a requirement that you hit the perfect pose.
What types of tools do you offer in your book to support the healing process? Yoga-based exercise routines, heart-healthy recipes, meditation exercises, journal exercises, breath work and creative projects. I also have experts from my circle of friends weigh in on their tools for healing the heart and increasing joy. They are the support team in the book, as I wanted to illustrate the need we have for reaching out to each other. I’m giving you my dream team. Some of the tools they bring are, flower essences, aromatherapy, crystal healing, art therapy, recipes and a variety of others.
What can we expect to gain from your 12-week program? You can expect to gain a relationship to where you are, your feelings and how to use emotion to motivate you towards action. Acting your way into correct thinking is the underlying mission of this book. Leaning in to how you feel rather than avoiding it, and using it as fuel.
You share quite a bit about your own heartbreak and healing experience in the book — did you find it difficult to be so open about your experience? Actually, sharing my experience to help others gives meaning to all that I have gone through. I have developed my inner strength as a result of certain traumatic occurrences. Life happens, and there’s nothing we can do to change that, but where we do have some power is how we respond to those events. It’s in those moments where we get to know ourselves on an even deeper level. Sharing my struggles is very organic for me. It’s a part of my path. So, no … this is the way I have been teaching from day 1 in 1996 when I first got on my Spinning bike and opened my mouth to speak out what was inside of me, and motivating me. I healed myself by opening my mouth and communicating. What I had once used to turn in on myself, could now power a whole room. I’ve learned to share. It’s good.
What is the most important thing to know about the healing process? Patience. Allow yourself the space to heal. Healing is a natural process, so you can’t force it. The best thing you can do for yourself is to love yourself through it. I once heard that loving is giving something your full attention. So give yourself your full attention. Allow yourself to be where you are. Once you accept that, you will be able to make the right choices.
Sending out love and gratitude to Mandy for taking the time to chat with us! Be sure to check out Yogalosophy for Inner Strength and let us know if you love it as much as we do! —Alison