Next Level

About This Class

In this Q&A and lecture session, Bryan Kest makes the case that power yoga is the most complete exercise system available, addressing the full fitness paradigm — strength, flexibility, balance, cardio, and stamina — while also touching every part of the body. But Bryan quickly pivots to argue that the physical dimension is, in fact, the more superficial layer. Drawing on research about the "blue zones" (Ikaria, Sardinia, Okinawa, Loma Linda), the teachings of Jesus, Buddha, Gandhi, Mandela, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King, and modern medical findings that up to 95% of physical disease stems from mental stress, he makes a compelling case that mental state is the primary driver of health and longevity. He explains how power yoga trains practitioners to stay calm under challenge, quiet the mind through breath focus, break reactive thought patterns, and develop benevolent qualities like compassion, gratitude, and acceptance. Bryan also introduces the yogic concept of Maya (illusion/dream) and the law of attraction to argue that our outer reality reflects our inner mental state. He closes with a meditation on non-attachment — explaining that traditional yogis sought to break attachment to aesthetics, youth, and outcomes — and lands on yoga's core intention: not to change you, but to care for you gently, because nothing is wrong with you to begin with.