Listen Now

You can still eat while fasting? If you've ever been interested in fasting but unsure why and how it's done, this is the episode for you. Ben Dessard, the main guide on our 5-day online fasting-mimicking cleanse, the Seasonal Renew, and Integrative Health Practitioner breaks down the science and sheds light on a topic with so many benefits that it seems too good to be true. Learn more about the Seasonal Renew cleanse Full show notes: https://aro-ha.com/podcast/fasting-mimicking-demystified/ Find us online: www.aro-ha.com

In this episode, we speak to the talented and grounded Wellington, New Zealand-based architect Hugh Tennent. If you’re interested in design. If you’ve ever felt there was something special in the spaces here at Aro Ha Wellness Retreat, or if you’re in the process of designing something yourself, then this is your episode. Permaculture-based, net zero energy, passive Haus inspired, localised, biophilic, and resilient, Aro Ha was an ambitious project. Hugh and Damian have a candid conversation about why Aro Ha was an interesting project for him to undertake. Hugh also connects the link between internal practice, design, and architecture, his journey in spirituality and business, his opinions on the future of building standards in NZ, and suggestions on how you, whether in your current home or new build, can artfully craft your space to tread lighter on the Earth. In the end, you will feel relaxed just listening to Hugh speak. What a pleasure, enjoy. For full show notes visit: aro-ha.com/podcast 

These days it's easy to feel fear, frustration, or fatigue when it comes to COVID-19.  In this episode, Damian speaks with Professor Grant Schofield to synthesise a refreshing perspective that helps us relax and steer ourselves through these transitional times.   Expect to learn what you can do to elevate your immune response, while appropriately assessing risk.   Grant is a researcher, author, public speaker, Professor at AUT(Auckland University of Technology), and director of the university’s Human Potential Centre (HPC) in Auckland, New Zealand.  If you’re interested in a bit of clarity around Covid, and you value an evidence-based alternative perspective that will help your family to feel vibrant and connected then it’s time to listen in. Go to the full show notes  DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for informational purposes only and not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of medical advice or treatment from a personal physician.

Prepare to discover an ability to turn the scariest parts of your life into the most valuable learning opportunities. This superpower relies on using relaxation as a portal to another way of being. Damian has a conversation with the powerful speaker, breath-work teacher, meditation facilitator, and leadership coach, Scott Schwenk. He will intrigue you with his unique ability to skilfully and playfully draw us into these practices making them relevant and accessible. Damian discusses with Scott how breath-work compliments meditation and who it’s for, plant-medicines and psychedelics, his views on tradition, advice for newcomers to meditation and breath-work, religion, and the value of play. If you’ve ever been curious about your potential to shift, this is the episode for you. If you are a teacher, educator, facilitator, or anyone that loves learning make sure to hang out till the end as Scott has generously given us a treat to offer you. Find full show notes at www.aro-ha.com/podcast Connect with Scott: Insta: @thescottschwenk Website: https://www.scottschwenk.com/ Facebook: @ScottPSchwenk

What passes our lips can create a vibrant life or accelerate our bad habits, allergies, chronic pain, or even more serious issues. Using her experience with food as medicine is Auckland, New Zealand’s Little Bird Organics founder, Megan May (@littlebirdorganics). She takes us back to the start of her journey into plant-based eating, gives a message to omnivores, and offers some advice on how to create your personal diet through investigating your most important values. Damian and Megan also discuss work-life balance, how to take rest as a full-time doer and maker, and the power of cleansing. Take a big bite of this yummy podcast with a chef that is challenging gastronomic norms. Insta: @littlebirdorganics or @mayandpepper Website: www.littlebirdorganics.co.nz/ Facebook: @littlebirdorganicsnz

Damian is back in the sauna this time with Apple Fitness+ instructor, Jiujitsu Black Belt, former pro-surfer, and co-founder of Melbourne-based Warrior One Yoga, Dustin Brown. This multi-talented ninja speaks about navigating the yoga world as a man, how he reframes growing up as a Jehovah’s Witness, what even the most complete yoga practice is missing, and how to ‘send it’ in running the business you desire. Tuck into a handstand because this one is sure to flip your world.

Damian delves deep into a conversation with Ben Warren, talking all things from the connection between nutrition and mental health to cultivating our spiritual landscape, and as Ben puts it, being in bliss. Explore our podcast homepage www.aro-ha.com/podcast for full show notes and gifts. 

In Episode 1 of Season 2 of the Adventures in Wellbeing podcast, Damian speaks with the neural-hacking, belief-busting, featured educator, Dr. Amanda Foo-Ryland. If you want to change your habits or behaviours, tune in as Amanda shares insight into her most powerful neural coding tools. Explore our podcast homepage www.aro-ha.com/podcast for full show notes and gifts. 

Greetings Whanau. Along with its diverse landscape and fauna, Aotearoa, New Zealand, has within it an incredible depth of Maori practice, language, and culture.  To explore this depth, we talk with the eloquent Makuini Tai and the skillful Atarangi Muru.   Here you'll get a glimpse into the expansive worldview of Maori, which in many ways aligns with eastern philosophy and mysticism. Makuini is a preeminent scholar of  Te Reo Maori, which is the native language of Aotearoa.  She was the inspiration and guidance for the naming of Aro Hā, and she currently teaches and shares IHI-REO, which she describes as "the eloquence and nature of language acquisition".  If the harmonics and depth of meaning behind language is something you're interested in, Makuini will delight you. Atarangi is one of Aotearoa's best known and exported Tohunga (healers).  She is an expert practitioner of Romromi, Mirimiri, Rongoa and shares her Whanau centric perspective on health, learning, and values.  From broken All Blacks to visiting A-Listers, Atarangi heals the world's weary.

In this episode, Damian speaks with one of the shimmering lights of American wellness culture, Catharina Hedberg. She speaks about what health means post-COVID and takes us back into the early days of The Ashram, where, alongside Anne-Marie Bennstrom a wellness cornerstone was founded. The Ashram has an enormously kind heart, pulsing so brightly at its core that the Hollywood lights are drawn in. You won't want to miss this chat with a legend.

If you want to elevate your immune function while still enjoying a wine or a coffee this is the episode for you. Michelle Chevalley Hedge is a wellbeing expert, nutritional medicine practitioner, and a best-selling author. She shares her story from corporate box-ticking to becoming an ambassador for nutritional transformation. Explore our podcast homepage www.aro-ha.com/podcast for full show notes and gifts. 

In this episode, Damian speaks with Integrative Medicine Doctor Dan Quistorff about COVID-19. He shares his frontline experience testing for the disease. He lets us know how to prepare for Coronavirus, how to reduce the impact of the illness, and when to seek medical help. You won’t want to miss this.

As a Holistic Nutritionist, whole foods chef, and wisdom teacher, Lee Holmes is a powerhouse who is shining light on the path.  She’ll be sharing with us about her self-healing journey through Fibromyalgia and Crone's disease.  We’ll touch on tips and tricks for improving immune function, traveling healthy, minimizing stress and striking a better work-life balance. Explore our podcast homepage www.aro-ha.com/podcast for full show notes and gifts. 

Last November we were joined by Dr. Molly Maloof, a silicone valley, biohacking, self-quantifying, boundary-pushing doctor. This Stanford-trained physician runs a bespoke practice that helps elevate the physical and cognitive performance of elite silicon valley engineers, designers, and investors. Listen in as we discuss optimizing one’s health through deep analysis of an individual's genetics, physiology, and psychology. Explore our podcast homepage www.aro-ha.com/podcast for full show notes and gifts. 

In this episode, Damian is joined by world-renowned Mindfulness expert Charlotte Thaarup for a dive-deep into what it means to be a wholehearted human and how Mindfulness plays an intricate part in becoming conscious of the unconscious. Explore our podcast homepage www.aro-ha.com/podcast for full show notes and gifts.