KIZUKI the Podcast

Mae reflects on a sudden realization: smartphone addiction is quietly consuming people she loves. In this clear and compassionate episode, she offers three small but powerful shifts to help you return from dissociation to presence—the practical way.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India in 2006. Her work bridges Eastern and Western traditions, shaped by profound life...

Mae reflects on a profound moment that uncovered an old survival pattern: the belief that joy must be earned. Speaking directly to the part of us that doesn’t know how to rest, she shares a personal realization—and a collective truth—that we are allowed to receive joy simply because we are.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga...

Amid escalating conflict in the Middle East, Mae reflects on the history we rarely learn—and the reckoning required for real peace. From global politics to her own relationship with her teenage son, this episode invites listeners to begin where they are, with truth, humility, and heart.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India in 2006. Her work...

Over dinner with old friends, Mae is reminded how often we lack real tools to process or prevent stress. She shares the conversation that inspired her to name her own go-to methods—and invites you to do the same. Whether you’re in reaction mode or building better rhythms, this episode nudges you back into conscious care.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the fo...

Mae reflects on the subtle ways our bodies resist what we most long for—especially when it feels unfamiliar. Through a vivid dream and a childhood memory of a hotel closet in Hawaii, she explores how cultural coding, family dynamics, and emotional safety shape our capacity to receive love, space, and abundance. She shares what it looks like to gently rewire the nervous system, expand into new territory, and begin to let goodness in—not just conceptually, but somatically.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powe...

Mae shares a powerful train ride moment with her son that reveals how unfiltered honesty—especially about grief—can shake social norms. Through the eyes of a child, she reflects on how truth, even when uncomfortable, is what connects us most deeply.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India in 2006. Her work bridges Eastern and Western tradit...

Mae explores the hidden ways we cope with overwhelm—especially through busyness and workaholism. Drawing from personal stories and cultural insight, she reflects on how productivity can mask deeper pain, and why even our coping mechanisms deserve kindness.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India in 2006. Her work bridges Eastern and Western traditions, shaped by profound life...

In this reflective episode, Mae shares a powerful kizuki sparked by the words “forgive before you see error.” Through the lens of parenting and the nature of unconditional love, she invites listeners to question the old paradigms of forgiveness, judgment, and emotional boundaries. What if forgiveness came first—not as a response, but as a way of being? This gentle meditation offers a new way to walk through the world: with openness, spaciousness, and unending love.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self...

On an ordinary day, a small gesture—a train horn in response to a child’s wave—becomes an unforgettable kizuki. In this tender reflection, Mae revisits a story her father once shared, and pairs it with a real-life letter from a Tokyo train driver. Through both perspectives, this episode explores the quiet power of small moments, unseen gratitude, and the profound connections we often overlook.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal developm...

In this quiet yet piercing episode, Mae explores how our social selves, shaped by culture and conditioning, often lead us to adjust, strive, and “be good”—at the cost of being real. Drawing on Cory Muscara’s insight and Martha Beck’s concept of the essential self, Mae unpacks how performance—even in spiritual practice—can subtly sabotage our presence. What remains when we let all that go?

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal dev...

In this follow-up to The Slow Death of the Do-er, Mae explores what it truly feels like to “just observe” when fear arises. She reveals how real surrender isn’t about silencing fear, but meeting it with gentle awareness—kizuki. This honest reflection offers a step-by-step glimpse into moving from fear-based doing to soul-aligned flow.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pioneer in wellness and personal development, Mae was the first Japanese woman authorized by the founding school of...

In this deeply personal episode, Mae reflects on what it actually feels like to live inside the spiral—not as an idea, but as a lived, looping journey. She shares a recent kizuki around the subtle performance of surrender, and what happened when she finally allowed herself to stop trying and just soften. An invitation to all of us who are tired of striving: maybe your softness is already the return.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae Yoshikawa is the creator of the Kizuki Journaling MAE Y method™, a powerful tool for self-awareness and transformation. A pion...

In this episode, Mae reflects on her spiritual development through the metaphor of the spiral, exploring the quiet shift from mental mapping to simply being—letting go of the personality’s need to plan or perform. A journal entry from two years ago reveals she’s been here before, contemplating surrender. But this time, it’s different. The episode gently invites listeners to recognize their own patterns not as stuckness, but as a sacred rising into a new level of awareness.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006...

Mae reflects on a lifelong narrative she’s carried about her parents’ divorce—and the realization that the deepest wound wasn’t the event itself, but the unintended self-blame that followed. Through this powerful kizuki, she explores the difference between pain… and the pain we cause ourselves in reaction to pain. A gentle but profound invitation to release what no longer needs to be carried.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in In...

In this quietly powerful episode, Mae shares a raw, present-moment realization: that surrender isn’t one grand moment, but a hundred tiny ones. She speaks tenderly about what it means to soften, to be shaped, and to keep walking—through storm, grace, and even breaking apart. A deep, human reminder that we’re never alone in the unraveling.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Y...

Have you ever witnessed a moment of silence so brimming with meaning that it stayed with you, even without words? Such was Mae’s experience when she watched a young man hold his own next to another who was puffing himself up—at his expense. True confidence isn’t about proving or reacting but about staying deeply centered. In this episode, Mae explores how we cultivate that quiet, unshaken presence—so that when the world challenges us, we’re prepared.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became...

Mae explores the tricky nature of fear—how it subtly creeps in as she moves toward big changes. She shares her personal realization (kizuki) that fear is often a habit, something her system has used to fuel hustle and survival. Now, she is choosing a different way—one that is softer, kinder, and more powerful. Instead of letting fear hold her back, Mae learns to honor its presence while continuing to move forward.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be a...

We rarely question the idea of “mine”—my body, my time, my life. But during pregnancy, Mae experienced a profound kizuki: the realization that the life inside her was not hers to own, but a gift to nurture. This led to a deeper question—was her own life ever truly hers? In this episode, she explores the illusion of ownership and what shifts when we see life as something entrusted to us rather than possessed.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to...

This episode explores the power of quitting—how letting go can be more transformative than starting something new. Reflecting on two of the hardest things that Mae ever quit in her life—cigarettes and self-criticism—it highlights how quitting creates space for what’s next and invites listeners to consider what they might be ready to release.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga Peopl...

In this episode, Mae unpacks the concept of empathic guilt—the tendency to feel responsible for others’ confusion—and explains how to let go of it. She discusses honoring your clarity, holding your frequency, and stepping fully into your sovereignty.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known as the face of...

Mae explores the unseen reciprocity in giving and receiving. Through a recent visit to a beauty salon, she discovers that what seemed like an occasion of receiving was also a significant moment of giving. This episode invites listeners to notice the quiet flow of exchange that is always at play.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social...

Mae reflects on what "Thank You for Being" truly means. Through a period of deep grief, she discovers that our worth isn’t tied to doing—it’s inherent. A schoolgirl’s laughter outside her window reminds her that simply existing is enough.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known as th...

Mae reflects on being called chibi (the little one) and how she unconsciously accepted that role in her family. Over time, she realized that being the youngest didn’t mean being the smallest. In this episode, she explores how shifting the story we tell ourselves is the key to stepping into our full potential.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award”...

Mae explores Bhakti, the path of devotion, and why it once felt inaccessible to her. She shares a story of feeling out of place at a kirtan in New York—until she found her own, quieter way into devotion. In this episode, she reflects on how making devotion a practice can bring more richness and beauty to life.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded th...

Mae reflects on the profound nature of thresholds—those transformative moments when life shifts irreversibly. Through personal inquiry and journaling, she explores what it means to cross into belonging, truth, and destiny, and shares her poem, The Threshold.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known as the face of adida...

Mae explores the universal topic of love and reflects on the futility of trying to measure it. Through two powerful stories—one about an Indian milkmaid and another about the Samish people in the Arctic—Mae shares her kizuki that true love is immeasurable and must be approached with honor and humility.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remark...

Mae sits down with Jesse McCrindle to explore the traps of overthinking, the tension between awareness and ignorance, and what resilience really means. Together, they discuss why choosing the “happier route” can transform fear into freedom—and why, sometimes, “one option sucks.”

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known as the fac...

Mae sits down with her nephew, Jesse McCrindle, a neuroscience graduate, to explore how our perceptions, unconscious priming, and confirmation bias shape our thinking—and ultimately, our happiness and growth.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known as the face of adidas yoga as well as being the founder...

In this episode, Mae reflects on her biggest lesson of the year—persistence. She shares how persistence has shown up in her life, not as force or rigidity, but as a consistent act of love and devotion. This episode is a reminder that persistence isn’t about pushing harder—it’s about listening, learning, and showing up again and again with presence and trust.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India...

Mae shares a surprising lunch conversation overheard in Tokyo, where talk about kids and Santa Claus sparks reflections on belief, doubt, and mindful self-awareness. She explores how learning to question your own thoughts—especially the negative ones—can transform your relationship with yourself.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known a...

Mae dives into the art of self-knowledge and the joy of truly attuning to your preferences. She reflects on the difference between recognizing what sparks joy when given choices—and discovering what you want when there are none.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field. She is known as the face of adida...

Mae reflects on one of the first major kizuki moments that transformed her life. Struggling with depression and feeling stuck, she found it impossible to “follow her excitement” as advised. But when she flipped this equation and asked herself what she could quit that didn’t excite her, everything began to change.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkab...

This episode explores the conditions that foster the next kizuki—a moment of greater awareness. While a kizuki cannot be forced, Mae delves into the key elements that prepare the mind for one. This same readiness, she explains, is what opens the door to the next chapter of your life.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social i...

In this week's episode, Mae looks back on an incredible experience from her freshman year in high school that was ... highly stressful. Might this be an episode out of the TV series LOST? Or something out of The Hunger Games? And what did Mae learn from the experience?

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the...

This week, Mae shares her take on a fun word-usage from colloquial modern-day Japanese. Similar but different than any English version usage of the term, Mae challenges you to incorporate this word into your mind to acknowledge and emphasize the "God Moments" of your daily life.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellne...

Mae reflects on the #GetToKnowMe challenge on Instagram that she recently took on. To present to someone "Who You Are" takes a little bit ... or a lot of knowing yourself. But, to be known by someone is a whole other feeling; a feeling of love.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” for her remarkable social impact in the wellness field...

Do you ever catch yourself trying too hard? And then knowing that you’re trying too hard but not quite being able to stop yourself? Well, there’s only one answer. STOP. In this episode, Mae reflects on the simplicity of this answer and what that looks like in a day in her life.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized by the founding school of Ashtanga Yoga in India. In 2016, Mae was awarded the “Yoga People’s Award” f...

The perks of hitting rock bottom are hard to talk about because no one wants to be there. But it's true, there are some. For Mae, the most notable of these has been her ability to re-create her sense of identity by moving beyond who she thought she was and into ... the unknown. The unknown is the ever-present realm of nowness where she gets to discover and reinvent who she is, moment to moment.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman...

Is our quest to be smart getting in the way of our happiness? The modern-society rat-race often has us striving to rise to the top by being smarter than others. But if the question "Would you rather be smart or happy?" is posed, most of us would answer that we would prefer to be happy. In this episode, Mae explores what true smartness is and how to align it with happiness.

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher, and mother. In 2006, Mae became the first Japanese woman to be authorized...

Have you ever noticed that some of the issues you're dealing with in your life didn't even start with you? It might be surprising at first, but it's true that you're shaped more by your upbringing and DNA than you may realize. As you begin to identify these generational patterns, you gain the power to break free from them. In this episode, Mae reflects on your ability to rise above such patterns and the healing that comes from "giving what you didn't get."

Mae Yoshikawa

Mae is an author, yoga & meditation practitioner, teacher...