Conversations with Chris Sakowski

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Sakowski.

Hi Chris, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
My journey into health and wellness began after graduating from college. I worked for a year as a stockbroker at J.P. Morgan, during which time a deep desire to travel and better understand myself grew larger with each day I sat at my desk. The deep calling to be of service in ways outside of finance became undeniable, and I leaned into that inner feeling.

In 2012, I traded in my business suit for a plane ticket to Asia to study the intricacies of yoga, a practice I was introduced to in college and initially used to rehab a dislocated hip injury. While my initial foray into yoga was to reap its physical benefits, the mental clarity and overall sense of ease in my body afterward kept bringing me back to my yoga mat. I spent the greater part of the next seven years in India sharing the insights of my own personal wellness journey, and those of my esteemed teachers, with others seeking to better understand themselves.

During this time I became fascinated by the communication between body and mind, and how we can leverage this relationship to improve our physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. I taught interactive classes to understand anatomy and physiology, breathwork sessions to experience the breath’s ability to shift emotional and mental states, and music and dance sessions to celebrate life through authentic expression.

I was honored to share these teachings across five continents and at prestigious events, such as being one of two US representatives at the 2017 Global Yoga Festival. In addition to co-founding yoga schools (Smriti Yoga and Sacred Space Yoga) and training prospective yoga teachers from around the globe, I dove into the healing practice of Thai bodywork, Chi Nei Tsang (bodywork focused on internal organ health), and energetics.

I returned to the United States in 2019 and decided to couple the wisdom I’d learned from Eastern practices with Western medical knowledge, specifically in the emerging field of working with fascia. Training with one of the most renowned pioneers of fascia understanding, Thomas Myers, at the Anatomy Trains school in Maine, I discovered many parallels where new age science supports ancient teachings.

How we navigate through space, hold ourselves in postures, and interact with our bodies reflects an underlying conversation about our unique experiences in being human. Tom calls this “spatial medicine”, and it has many implications for how we deal with trauma, experience and alleviate chronic pain, and feel at home in our bodies.

The position of your bones paints a story of your activities and patterns, of where you find support and adapt to injuries, how you protect against threats, and where you reflect liberation. Each individual’s structure provides a blueprint for how to work with the soft tissues holding their shape, providing insights into what tools are most effective to help clients find sustained ease and leave sessions feeling empowered.

My goal in working with others reflects a mantra imparted to me by my teachers: “Treat people, not just their conditions.” By working with others, rather than on them, my goal is to educate and create an environment that allows each individual to tap into the innate healing capacity of their body.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The most scenic routes are more likely to have potholes. Living in Asia for an extended period of time had its challenges; some physical, such as recovering from Dengue fever, and others financial, such as trying to save money while earning a fraction of a typical Western salary. Adjusting back to life in the United States after living in a poor country contained a dose of reverse culture shock. It took a while for me to find a similar sense of community and my tribe of people interested in health and wellness.

In a field that is dependent on a continual flow of clients, there are fluctuating periods of being busy and not as busy. I strongly believe in a model of working with clients with the intention of them “graduating”; and getting to a point where my services are no longer necessary. I would rather a person see me four times a month and not have to come through the door again than be caught in a cycle of continual care where we manage pain and symptoms rather than discover and resolve the root cause of imbalances.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a bodyworker and wellness educator who specializes in helping clients discover and resolve the root causes of discomfort. I draw upon my work as a Structural Integrator, yoga teacher, Thai bodyworker, and Chi Nei Tsang (internal organ bodywork) and energetics practitioner to listen to client’s experiences, analyze their breathing and posture, and formulate effective strategies to build support and create release where needed. My personal brand is Madwa Yoga, through which I offer bodywork sessions, yoga classes, and wellness training.

My ability to synthesize the wisdom of Eastern teachings with the knowledge of Western medicines provides unique insights into working with people. Rather than looking at the body from one specific lens, this allows me to widen the aperture of awareness to investigate whether an imbalance results from suboptimal posture or biomechanics, restricted breathing patterns, past traumatic experiences, or other physical and lifestyle factors that contribute to our bodily experience.

I am proud to have helped thousands of people across many walks of life feel more at home in their bodies. I also take great pride in having taught hundreds of students around the world the practices that I have found most useful in self-regulating, taking care of my body and mind, and sharing loving kindness in the world.

The position of your bones paints a story of your activities and patterns, of where you find support and adapt to injuries, how you protect against threats, and where you reflect liberation. Each individual’s structure provides a blueprint for how to work with the soft tissues holding their shape, providing insights into what tools are most effective to help clients find sustained ease and leave sessions feeling empowered.

My goal in working with others reflects a mantra imparted to me by my teachers: “Treat people, not just their conditions.” By working with others, rather than on them, my goal is to educate and create an environment that allows each individual to tap into the innate healing capacity of their body.

Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
My favorite childhood memory is going crabbing on the Chesapeake Bay with my father and grandfather. Between the bushel baskets and nets, there was barely space to fit into my grandfather’s small boat.

We would head out to the water to catch the early sun’s rays and scoop the crabs in a net attached to a long pole before they dropped back down to the river’s depths. After, we would boil the crabs in my grandfather’s special spice mix and have a small crab feast.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.madwayoga.com
• Instagram: @the_wandering_warrior
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-sakowski-5120b33b/

Image Credits
TreeCasa and Peter Hoblitzell