Connecting Your Body, Mind and Spirit

Anyone who's, you know, facing a challenge, whether it's in business, personal life, be patient.

Patience is really key because you have to be in it for the long game and you have to be really committed to your cause and your purpose and your mission.

The answer isn't always tomorrow. Sometimes it's a decade and then it's actually even sweeter.

Hello everyone and welcome to Your Power Move by PassionFit. I'm Reena Vokoun, your host, and I am so excited to bring you another episode today with the lovely Desi Bartlett. Um, she is a women's health expert with over 30 years of experience in the industry. She is the IDEA Fitness Leader of the Year, uh, for 2025, which if any of you know in our industry, that is a huge, huge honor. She is a two-time author. She is the creator of the Mind Body Workout, which combines fitness and yoga and mindfulness. Um, one of her books, the foreword was actually written by Kate Hudson, who is one of my favorite actresses. So what an honor, Desi. But I'm so excited for our conversation today. So everybody, please give a warm welcome to the beautiful Desi Bartlett. Welcome.

Thank you so much for having me. I'm so happy to connect with you and your audience, and so happy that we finally got to meet in real life as well. You are lovely.

Oh, and likewise. Yes, Desi was a moderator on a panel that I was on a while back, and I've been on her Instagram Live. And as she said, we met in person in Santa Monica. Monica recently, uh, both were speaking at a health and wellness event. So it's always fun to connect with people in real life, especially, uh, people that you have so much in common with. So, and Desi Hills from, um, Hawaii is where she's tuning in from, where she and her family live. Also a mom of boys like myself. So Desi, tell us a little bit about your background, your career, kind of how you got to the amazing place that you are today. What was that journey like?

So I'm originally from Chicago, and I have my degree in kinesiology, my master's degree in corporate fitness, but I didn't start out like that. Originally, I thought I wanted to be a broadcasting major, and I was a dance minor. And I was in a dance class one day, and I hurt my knee, and I went to the doctor, and the doctor said, "Your knee is fine. You just need to strengthen your quads." And I said, "What's a quad?" And he said, "Go to the gym." And as fate would have it, that evening I met 4th place Miss Olympia, a woman named Jackie Paisley, may she rest in peace. And she said, "I've got you, girl." And she took me to the gym the next day. And my joke is that I never left. I became obsessed with how strength felt. And I don't always share this part of my background, but sometimes I do if I feel like it can be inspirational to others. I left home at 16. So to have mentors in my life that really saw me and were able to empower me, not only, you know, with guidance, but with actual physical strength, that meant everything to me. And so I became obsessed with how can I offer this to others as well? So I do that through strength training, through yoga, through meditation, all of the different modalities, because I want everyone else to know that it is possible to rebuild yourself from the inside out.

I could not agree more. And I really appreciate you sharing your story. I cannot imagine leaving the house at 16. I mean, you are such an old soul and you have so much wisdom to share. And I think that probably comes from having to mature at a very young age, but I love hearing your story about also being a dance minor. I come from a dance background as well, and I can appreciate, you know, the understanding that's needed for the anatomy and physiology of the body, but also the mindfulness and the meditation and the mental health and emotional health that's equally important, whether you're a dancer, whether you are doing a broadcast career or you're working in health and fitness. So thank you for sharing that. And what were some of those key mentors in your life? Like what were they teaching you about resilience and strength during those times?

There was, so I grew up with yoga in the household. My mother was a disciple of a wonderful teacher in Chicago, Goswami Kriyananda. So I did have some, tools from a very young age. 6 years old, that beautiful guru gave me my first mantra. So that, that's something that's been with me throughout my life, and I'm so grateful. And after Chicago, I moved to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Kind of like a hard turn, right? I'm half Mexican. I did not grow up with my biological father, and so I wanted to learn about that part of my culture. Y aprendí el español en México. I learned how to speak Spanish in Mexico. I learned about how to be Mexican, right? And while I was there, this amazing man walks into the studio where I was teaching, and it was my studio. And he said to me, I'd like to teach yoga here. And his name was Tonatiuh, which means sun god in Aztec. And I'm like, yeah, of course. Who am I to say no to the sun god, right? And so he taught yoga and I took the class. And I had this full body remembering, and I just dropped into asana. I dropped into the postures and I connected to peace. So now, not only did I have the strength from the gym, but I had the peace in my body. I was able to sit still without feeling that traumatic response of like, where can I run to? So between Kriyananda, Jackie Paisley, and the sun god, they really brought me some amazing gifts. And I would also say, Reena, that, you know, community has been everything. So there's so many faces and places and names that I can't even remember to list out right now. But it's that whole idea of alone we go faster, together we go farther. I've had so many teachers in this life and I'm grateful for each and every one.

Absolutely. I could not agree with you more about community. We got to experience it together at the CareerLab by Coach360 event last week. Weekend in Santa Monica. And it really does make a difference because you feel seen and heard and understood. Um, you don't feel alone sometimes if you are an entrepreneur or you're taking a different career path or whatever stage you are in life, having those peers to support you makes all the difference. Um, and I loved that you moved to Cabo San Lucas. My family and I went there on vacation over the holidays and absolutely loved it. Um, so I love that you also connected with your Mexican heritage. Um, what a gift to be able to take that time and energy to really discover that part of yourself.

Cabo is one of those places, I believe it's an energy vortex, and you feel the power of the land, of, you know, la tierra. And so I'm leading a women's retreat there in February. I love to bring people to these places on the planet that just hold power so that we can remember our own.

Absolutely. Yeah, it is just such a gorgeous, beautiful place. You know, living in San Diego, there was a familiarity there, but it also just had its own authentic, unique culture and scenery and landscape and weather. So how wonderful. I hope you have an amazing retreat and everybody who's listening, if you're interested, definitely check Desi out. I will be putting all of her information in the show notes. So Desi, let's, let's take it back a little bit again into your journey. And what are some of the challenges that you faced, um, you know, throughout your career, your personal life, and how did you overcome them? You've kind of given some information about, you know, a lot of the, the the yoga and the meditation and really connecting yourself with your culture and with these gurus that have been in your life. But what other things did you do to overcome any challenges that you'd like to share with us?

Yeah, so I think one that any entrepreneur can relate to is that I was the first person to come out with the round yoga mat back in 2008. And I, I brought it to a well-known yoga company. If I said the name, everyone would say, oh yeah, the leggings. And I brought it to them and They created a prototype that was absolutely beautiful, and I was able to sell it into a lot of different fitness locations. By then, I had already been an executive for Equinox and have had worked for Gaia and a lot of different companies. So I had amazing connections. And unfortunately, once the product was brought into the gyms and the studios, it was subpar. People would get on it and they would slide. It was a different, uh, finish on top than the original prototype. At that moment, I also found out that I was pregnant for the first time, which was planned. I really wanted to be a mama, but I'm like, oh my gosh, how am I going to fix this product and relaunch it and have a baby and do all the things? And what I found was it was in my best interest to take the rights back for the product to sit, to wait, and to really honor with patience when is the right time to relaunch this and how am I going to do it. And quite honestly, Reena, it took another 10 years for the right opportunity to present itself. But I would highly encourage anyone who's, you know, facing a challenge, whether it's in business, personal life, or some other sector, be patient. The answer isn't always tomorrow. Sometimes it's a decade, and then it's actually even sweeter.

Yeah, that's a really important life lesson and professional lesson. And I think if there are any entrepreneurs out there like Desi and myself that are listening in or watching, I think that patience is really key because it's a— you have to be in it for the long game, right? And you have to be really committed to your cause and your purpose and your mission. And I love the fact that you cared so much about the quality and the safety of the product for your customers that you were willing to take it off the market and wait another decade to put it back out when you felt that it was of the highest quality that it could be. Um, so I think that's, that's really an important lesson. And I love, uh, that you shared that and, and something that everybody should take note of. Definitely don't compromise your, your values, your quality levels. Um, you know, especially if your name and your face is behind a brand or a product or service, you really wanna be able to sleep at night, right? Knowing that you're putting something out there that is going to help people and not create any sort of injury or anything like that. So I think that's a great, great story. And I'd love for you to share, you know, you're a mom as well, and how has motherhood really played into your life personally, the work that you do professionally, and your purpose? And what is your purpose?

Oh my goodness, just a little light question, Reena. What's your purpose?

I know, so many questions all in one, and then a big one at the end, but I know you can handle it, Desi.

I, I always wanted to be a mama, and I'm so blessed to have these two beautiful boys who are my teachers. They're absolutely two of my most powerful teachers. And pregnancy taught me to listen to my body and honor the feedback of my body in such a profound way. And it really made me a better instructor, teacher, guide when it comes to movement, because now I, I know Every signal from the body is something that we, we should listen to, you know, instead of if I'm tired grabbing caffeine or if I've got a little ache grabbing, you know, a painkiller, maybe I just pause and listen to the wisdom of my body so that I can follow that guidance. Motherhood brought me those gifts. My boys have taught me that, you know, movement is is medicine. And when we enjoy it together, when I'm able to take my boys like to the beach or we, you know, like practice yoga together, which they'll actually do that with me like once a year as my birthday gift. I love it. It's something I really think brings families together. And when we're educating our youth, I find that it can be a little bit uncomfortable, awkward, or intimidating if we're always looking, you know, eye to eye. If I'm trying to explain to a prepubescent boy, your body's going to be changing and, you know, you're going to have to shave soon and let's buy you some deodorant, that's really uncomfortable. Um, but if we're like going for a jog together and we're both looking straight ahead and we're having this conversation, then all of a sudden we have this point of connection where we're still able to move through it quite literally. And They teach me daily. I can't even put into words all of the lessons that I learned from them, but I learn about patience and strength and joy and, and how to communicate in a way that I didn't necessarily learn as a child. But I, I have to step up. It is my honor, it is my duty, it is my joy to guide them in such a way that their internal voice— part of that comes from Mama, right? Their internal voice should be, can be, and is reassuring. When they hear that voice, that Mama voice in the background, it's, "You're wonderful. I love you. You've got this." My purpose is to help women through every stage and phase of life. So whether it is fertility, pregnancy, new motherhood, perimenopause, or beyond, This journey of mine has given me tools to help empower other women. And especially if you're a mama or you want to be a mama and you're on that path, it is my joy and my honor to share my lessons with you so that you don't have to go the hard way. Like, don't reinvent the wheel. I've got you, girl.

Yeah, absolutely. I share that purpose and that passion with you for women and also motherhood. I agree. I think, you know, Listening to your body, I think I really want to highlight what you said about that, because I think too often in society, we are so focused on the quick fix, right? And, and taking something externally and putting it into your body to solve maybe a discomfort or an issue that's happening on the inside. But, um, I agree with you, if you listen and pause and figure out what it is that's going on, there's a lot of things that you can do, um, to overcome any challenges and not to say, and I've said this before on the podcast, I'm a huge supporter of what Western medicine as needed, for sure. But I also think there are other types of philosophies from around the world that healing and that recovery and those natural remedies that you can find, whether it's through breathwork, whether it's through food and nutrition or movement, or just taking some time to really pause, I think that can make a huge difference. And I love that you are sharing that with the world and your boys are watching, right? And they're seeing that. And I feel the same way. So much of what we teach out there, we want to practice ourselves, and we want to teach that to our children. And I also share a love of yoga, um, and I've been— I, well, I'm not teaching it for the boys anymore because they're almost 15 and 18, but when they were little, 2 and 3 years old, starting at that age, I volunteered and created a yoga program in their schools and followed them in from preschool into elementary school. And then by the time we got to middle school, they're like, Mom, it's, it's too embarrassing. But, and so I said, okay, I respect your wishes, I won't have this yoga program in your schools now that you're teenagers. Majors. But I do think that the teachings are still with them. They're athletes, and I think, you know, when we have active kids, sometimes they need to stop and stretch and breathe and, and heal their body from injuries and whatnot. And my boys still to this day, like yours, do practice yoga. Um, I love that yours do it with you every year on your birthday. Um, and mine, you know, they do it more as stretching for, for sports. But what great, wonderful lessons and You're really showcasing yourself as a whole person through all these stages of your life, which is what is inspiring for other women as they approach each and every one of those stages themselves. So thank you for sharing that. Um, and if you look at your life thus far, is there a year in particular that was just so pivotal for you, um, that really maybe changed the trajectory of your path or, you know, still to this day has a profound profound impact on you.

Yes, that year was really 2008. That was when that first round yoga mat came out, and I made the choice to enjoy my pregnancy and to be present in my body with my baby. And my two boys carry very different energy. My older son, his name is Cruz, C-R-U-Z, which means cross in Spanish. But his energy is like cruising, right? It's very mellow. And so I would sing to my belly every day, and I felt this inner peace. That was so beautiful. And I had really, really wanted to share that with other women. And so I was able to also go on this path of getting really serious about teaching moms. So during that time, I came out with a prenatal yoga DVD. I started to write down all of the different things that were happening in my own body, which eventually became the genesis of my first book, "Your Strong Sexy Pregnancy." So it was really the birth of my son that led to the birth of my career with women in so many different ways.

I love that. That's so powerful. And, you know, it's like you said, your kids are your teachers and they really teach you to be still. So Cruz sounds like he's a wonderful blessing for giving you that knowledge and that wisdom at such a young age. And so in this— this podcast, as you know, it's called Your Power Move by PassionFit. And really the focus of it is, you know, on those days when you just feel It's tough to get out of bed. Maybe you're exhausted. Maybe you're burnt out. Maybe you're in over your head and you just need some motivation. You know, beginning of the year, I know everybody's out there talking about New Year's resolutions. And for some people that can be motivating. And for other people that can really turn them away because they don't want to feel like they're going to fail. And so power moves are those small little intentional micro actions that you can take to motivate yourself. And it doesn't have to be something big, but something that's just going to instantly shift your mood, shift your mindset and make you feel stronger and capable. So I would love for you to share, Desi, with our audience, because I know you probably have a whole toolbox of them. What are some of your key power moves that really help you to get going in life?

So I live in Hawaii on the island of Oahu, and the Pacific is, uh, 20 steps away from my back door. And so I'm able to go to the ocean every morning and to close my eyes and to breathe deeply. And my prayer or my mantra is, show me, show me, show me, show me how I can be of service today. And that, that's a daily practice. And rather than trying to find the answer, like, from my ego of, oh, I should do this and this and this, and here's the to-do list, or the answer from the outside world through social media of like, oh, should I be doing this peptide or that peptide, or all the noise, I really listen to the inner voice and connect to Universal Source Energy. I know that can be a little woo-woo for some, so if the word Universal Source Energy, if that term doesn't work for you, maybe just connecting to your own inner wisdom and listening for your inner voice. And one of the easiest ways to do that is, first of all, the setting. If you can get out into nature, it doesn't have to be the ocean, it can be, you know, find, find a beautiful park in your area, but also slowing your breath down. When we slow the breath down, we slow our thoughts down so we can actually understand the wisdom of our body instead of chasing everyone else's, like, ideas of what we should do.

Yeah, I think that's, that's really important, especially in the wellness industry. I agree, it's, it's wonderful. There's so much information out there. You and I work in it, we eat, sleep, and breathe it. Um, but I think for a lot of people it can be overwhelming, and And I'm reading more and more that sometimes people are starting to feel like it's just too much, right? Like, I need to be eating a certain way and my skin at this age is gonna— this is gonna happen and I need to be doing this or taking creatine or peptides or cold plunging or whatever the case may be. And those are all wonderful tools for people if they need them. But I think sometimes you're right, you have to kind of tune out the noise and really, again, back to what you were saying earlier about just listening to your own body and having your own voice tell you what it needs versus what society or even the health and wellness industry is telling you that it needs, because not every tool is going to work for everyone. I think that's what's really important, is to customize it for you and get to really know your own self from the inside out so that you can determine what's going to work best. And I think that is really critical, and that's really what The Power Move is all about as well. Um, I— when I was coming up with the concept, uh, with my team, I didn't want it to be, uh, something that's a prescription for everybody and a one one-size-fits-all because we all know that each and every one of us are unique. So I think that that's really important that you're sharing, really tuning into yourself. I think that's so critical.

Yeah, we're all individuals and we're all in a different stage and phase of life. So for example, I'm in the perimenopausal years. And so anytime I'm moving through a different phase of life, not only am I trying to find the best education about what I can do for myself, but because of what I do, I also want to take notes and learn and like dive deep. How can I help others through this phase as well? And so what I'm finding, especially with women my age, is that they're being told, oh, you should take estrogen, or you should take progesterone, or you should take this other thing. And I'm like, oh my goodness gracious, um, let's start with a blood panel and let's see what you actually need to take instead of Instagram being your doctor.

Yes, that is such an important point to make. And yeah, I think a lot of people think that they can self-diagnose and, and get information from sources that may or may not even be credible. That's the other thing is to really look at with AI now and, you know, all of the information out there, fake news, social media, um, it— all of this technology can be used for good, but you're right, you have to really go to the right experts and, and look at your own internal workings and your numbers to really see what you need, whether it's vitamins or supplements or, you know, nutrition, or if you do need some sort of hormone therapy, that's fine, replacement therapy, that's fine too. But yeah, know what you specifically need versus just a sort of blanket approach. That's, that's really, really important. Thank you for sharing that. So if you could share something about yourself that maybe not everybody knows, some unique, you know, trait or characteristic about you, what would that be, Desi?

So I think something that's unique about me is that when I, when I'm meditating, I'm meditating in English, Spanish, Sanskrit, or Hebrew. Like, I've had all of these different prayer practices shared with me in all these different beautiful languages, and I, I really love that truth is truth, you know, wherever it comes from in the world. And if there are power moves, if there are practices that can help us connect to a feeling of being purposeful in this world, of being of service and showing up for what our sacred duty is, then however you get there, I totally honor that. But for me, it's in 4 languages.

That is so cool. And it just really goes to show how authentic and beautiful your upbringing and your culture and just who you are, you know, it really— how it all is. It's amazing. So thank you for sharing that. And, you know, do you want to share anything else about your work? Any exciting things coming up that you want our listeners and viewers to know about and kind of, you know, what do they, what do you want them to take away from this conversation?

So I would really love for people to take away that there are always tools available. And for me, it's really important that I meet you where you are. So if you're a reader, I've got books. If you prefer videos, I've got videos. If you want the in-person experience, then come on retreat with me. But don't ever let time or price be a barrier. I am really committed to being of service. In any way that I can and showing up with my whole heart. You can connect with me through my website, through social, through all the things. But if it's not me, it's all good. You know, whomever the person is that's going to be the right guide for you, please follow some of their wisdom because again, we don't have to reinvent the wheel. We can learn from other people's lessons so that we don't have to go through the pain and the mistakes. Will there be mistakes? Yes, of course. Do we learn from them? Yes, of course. But we can avoid some. And I also highly recommend my friend Reena, who has amazing tools and gifts and programs as well. So whomever it is that you resonate with, you know, like on an energetic level, if I'm speaking your language, cool. If someone else speaks your language, cool. Go with it. Enjoy. Heal, go within.

I love it. You just said it so perfectly and so beautifully. And I agree. There are so many people that have gone through different journeys and they're there to share so that others can learn from them and hopefully not have to go through some of the challenges and pain points while each and every one of us does have to travel along our own journey. So I love it so much. And where can people find you, Desi? She's amazing, you guys. She's the real deal. You know, everything that she's saying is so genuine. Um, so I really highly recommend you follow her and check her out. And yeah, tell us where everyone can find you.

Uh, so it's my name, Desi Bartlett. You can find me at desiBartlett.com. I'm also very active on Instagram. My handle is MothersIntoLivingFit.

Wonderful. Well, I cannot thank you enough for taking time out of your busy schedule to chat with me today, Desi. I loved it. Every time we talk, I I just feel like we just have such similar energies and philosophies and purpose, which is just so wonderful to meet people that are like-minded. So thank you for being here today. And everyone tuning in, feel free to subscribe and rate and review. Tell your family and friends, and I will be back with another episode of Your Power Move by PassionFit soon. Thank you.