YOGA NAMASTACY
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind.Yoga, lifestyle, and self-realization.
2021 IDEA World Instructor of the Year / Co-Creator of the First College-Accredited 200/500-Hour YTT / 2,000+ Trainings Delivered Worldwide
Get to Know Stacy
Stacy McCarthy is an Integrative Wellness expert, celebrated speaker, and yoga specialist known for transforming lives through a holistic approach to yoga, lifestyle design, and self-realization.
Named the 2021 IDEA World Instructor of the Year, Stacy co-created the first College Accredited 200- and 500-Hour Yoga Teacher Training and has delivered over 2,000 trainings to audiences as large as 1,000 people, speaking at events around the world.
A former full-scholarship athlete at Colorado State University with a degree in Exercise Physiology, Stacy spent years in the corporate world before answering the deeper call of yoga. Today she teaches women β at any age β how to have a powerful body and peaceful mind without dieting or excessive exercise.
Stacy lives in Rancho Santa Fe, California with her husband Tom, where she teaches at her in-person Yoga Nest and welcomes a worldwide community of students through her online platform.
“A lot of people find yoga intimidating.
My mission is to guide them past that fear.Β To give them the confidence to get on theirΒ mat and live their fullest life.”
On the Blog
The Class That Taught Me What 65 Really Means
A birthday wish, a room full of teachers, and the sequence that moved us allI have taught thousands of classes in my life. But I will remember this one for the rest of it. For my 65th birthday, I did not want a party. I wanted a practice. So I asked my community to...
The Vinyasa That Meets You Where You Are
A new way to flow, breathe, and belong on the matThere is a moment I will never forget. A woman in her early fifties walked up to me after class, eyes glassy, and said, "I think this is my last yoga class. I just can't keep up." She had been showing up faithfully for...
She Is All Around Us β A Mother’s Day Story That Will Stay With You
There was a season of my life that I will always hold as one of my most profound yoga laboratories. For six years, under one roof, three generations of women lived together β my mother, myself, and my daughter. Three women. Three seasons of life. One kitchen, one...
On the Gram
Nashville, we have arrived.
Checked in to the Hermitage Hotel and I am in architecture heaven. Beaux-Arts arches, a stained glass vaulted ceiling, marble everything. This beauty opened in 1910 as Nashville`s first million dollar hotel.
And the history in these walls. In 1920 this hotel was headquarters for the suffragists fighting for the 19th Amendment. Women strategized right here for the right to vote. I felt that the moment I walked in.
Then out into the music. Honky tonks with live music pouring out of every doorway.
And the food. This vegan girl found some wonderful plant based spots here. Plus the prettiest mocktails and a lovely alcohol free sparkling, Prima PavΓ©, that I am officially obsessed with.
Nashville, you are showing off.
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. β¨
Three years.
Three years since my mom passed. Before I tell you how she died, I want to tell you how she lived.
She lived in our house for seven years. Not tucked into a back room. Not on a schedule. Not being managed. She was at the center of our life.
She came on family walks in her wheelchair. She came to dinner. She came to Hawaii. She came to the garden when the roses were in. She came everywhere we went, because one of us does not get left behind because her body is folding.
On the walks, my son would push her wheelchair and pop wheelies. She would act like she was mad.
She was not mad.
You could see it in her face. The little gleam. The tightening of her grip on the armrests, half theater, half delight. The half-smile she could not hide even when she was, for show, scolding him.
My daughter brushed her hair and held her hand for long stretches without needing it to be a moment. My husband was the structural beam of the household. He never made her feel like a burden. Not once.
She loved Hawaii. She loved the garden. She loved the animals. She loved being part of everything.
That sentence, said simply, is the part of the obituary that does not get printed but should.
These are words from my new book. Writing them was how I learned to slow down and see the seven years before the hour.
I miss her. But I got to love her all the way to the end, in the middle of everything. There is no greater gift than that.
These are words from my new book, The Moment Everything Changes. Coming soon.
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. β¨
Nashville, here we come. π€
Cowboy boots: packed.
Curiosity: high.
It`s been decades since I`ve visited Music City, and I have a feeling it`s going to be quite the homecoming.
Tom and I are off to explore the country music capital, and I need your favorites. Where do we go? What do we see? Best live music, best vegan eats, best yoga, best hidden gems.
Drop your Nashville must-dos below. π
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. (And boots made for honky tonk.)
Two years ago.
Standing on that stage, looking out at a sea of faces, with hundreds more joining us online, I felt what I still feel in moments like these: gratitude. Wonder. Connection.
You came to learn, to move, to be reminded of what lives inside you. And watching the messages light up on the screen beside me reminded me why I keep showing up.
This work isn`t about giving you something you don`t have. It`s about waking up what`s already there.
Some moments don`t fade. They keep teaching.
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. β¨
π What`s a moment from your own journey that still teaches you?
π Yoga for Athletes: Basketball Edition
I`ve been fortunate to work with NBA teams and college athletes over the years.
And I had a front row seat watching my own son Tommy play point guard at Harvard.
If there`s one thing basketball asks of the body, it`s this: keep the shoulders, hips, and hamstrings open.
Tight shoulders change your shot. Tight hips slow your first step. Tight hamstrings shorten everything.
These are a few of my favorite simple warmups, perfect before or after a game. Nothing fancy. Just a few minutes that help the body stay long, mobile, and ready.
Save this for your pregame or postgame routine, and share it with the athlete in your life.
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. β¨
π Know a basketball player who needs this?
The garden is showing off. π
There`s a moment every autumn when the harvest starts rolling in and I can hardly keep up with the counter space. Persimmons ripening, avocados dropping, citrus piling high in every bowl we own.
I love this season. The light changes. The air turns crisp. And the kitchen becomes the heart of everything again.
And it means one very important thing: persimmon season is here. Which means it`s time for my favorite fall ritual, the Autumn Persimmon Smoothie. Creamy, warming, and made from everything this season gives us.
Here`s how I make it:
Recipe Alert: Autumn Persimmon Smoothie
3/4 cup almond milk (homemade or boxed organic)
1/2 cup organic coconut water
1 T coconut flakes or coconut butter
1 T goji berries
1 tsp maca (optional)
1 small persimmon or 3/4 of a medium / large one
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp yacon (optional)
1 T vanilla or plain superfood plant protein powder (I like Earthchimp)
1 T almond butter
3/4β1 cup ice
Blend together until smooth. Garnish with a sprinkle of goji berries!
πΎ Save this one for persimmon season.
And save the date: we`re kicking off fall together with Autumn Yoga in the Garden on October 31. π§ββοΈπ
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. β¨
π What`s your favorite way to welcome fall?
Meet the real bosses of this house. πΎ
This is Yogi, my Samoyed. He`s a giant fluffy cloud who sheds enough fur to build a second dog weekly.
And this little gentleman is Donnie D. Little D. DD to his friends. When we adopted him, his name was Don Corleone. Yes, like The Godfather.
One problem: Don Corleone is a tough-guy name. This sweet boy? Pure sugar. So Don Corleone became Donnie D, and honestly, it suits him perfectly.
Here`s the truth behind the cute photos: dogs are expensive. They are messy. They are a LOT of work.
And I wouldn`t trade a single muddy paw print. The unconditional love, the joy that greets me at the door every single day β irreplaceable.
And now, a confession: I was contemplating adopting another little rescue puppy. Just a baby. My heart said yes.
But then I looked at Yogi, eleven years old, my sweet senior boy, and I knew. He deserves a calm, comfortable house for his golden years. A baby puppy would be chaos for him, not joy.
So it`s a no. For now. Loving them well sometimes means knowing when your pack is complete.
Powerful Body. Peaceful Mind. (And two very good boys.) β¨
π Have you ever had to say no to something your heart wanted?
πββοΈ Yoga for surfers
I grew up a water girl in St. Augustine, Florida. I surfed at Blowhole almost every day, learning to feel the movement beneath me and find my balance again and again.
Thatβs what Eagle Pose brings back to me. The ground is still, but my body makes tiny adjustments through my feet, ankles, hips, and core. Eagle arms give my upper back and shoulders some welcome attention after all that paddling.
Swipe through the progression. Begin with the arms, bend your standing knee, then explore the balance. Keep your lifted toes on the ground if you like. The full leg wrap is an option, not the goal.
Where did you first fall in love with the water? π
