Meet David Richards | Breathwork Facilitator, Yoga & Meditation Teacher

We had the good fortune of connecting with David Richards and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi David, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
Like many people after high school I attended college. I had great grades, received academic scholarships, was an honor roll and Dean’s List achiever. Learning new information was the part of academia that has always resonated with me, I love learning. It was the way in which our education system operates that I never fully understood. First and foremost, the cost alone of higher education is baffling. Also, the emphasis on memorization and an agreed upon curriculum that I never felt fully encouraged true curiosity, exploration of Self and the world around us, and things that are applicable to everyday life (personal finances, investing, loans, moving, taxes, the list goes on and on). I remember deciding that this route wasn’t for me after just 1 year of college and I withdrew from University. Working for myself for almost all of my adult life has allowed me the freedom to explore the things that I have discovered upon my path. As I have grown as a human being, I see my interests and world view expand, and having a career that has allowed me to express myself has fed into this expansion. I am so grateful for the foundation my businesses have provided me, from this foundation I have been able to go out further into the world to continue to develop as a human, which I believe has made me better in all aspects, including in business.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Cosmic Breathing is an exploration of Self utilizing techniques from the Himalayan Yogic-Vedantic lineage of yoga. These techniques include, Asana (yoga shapes with the physical body), Pranayama (controlled techniques of breathing that allow access to higher states of connection and consciousness), Meditation (calming the mind to enter a state beyond everyday thought), Mantra (using specific sounds and/or words to align to certain frequencies), and Mudras (specific hand/body positions to deepen meditation or work with a specific intention). These practices are offered in a variety of settings: in communal group classes, 1 on 1 work for specialized practice including developing a daily practice/working with individual based specific intentions, and on group retreats to different locations outside of our normal routines that allow for pause, reset and growth. I think what sets me apart from others is that my commitment to my own healing and expansion has been the root of why I teach. The modalities I employ, the techniques I practice, the continued deep dives into my own being to work through my blocks in order to be radically honest with myself about myself. This is why I teach, because if all of this has allowed me to change my life, then to give others this same opportunity is the most rewarding gift I can give. To share this potential for everything to be different, starts with one breath. It isn’t “mine”, it was shown to me as it was shown to my teachers by their teachers, by their teacher’s teachers and so on and so forth. The journey has not be easy. Looking myself in the mirror and acknowledging that a lot of the things I don’t “like about my life” are the direct effects of my own avoidance, fear and patterning is a hard place to begin. This is a scary place to start, but I am a huge believer in “jump, and the net will appear”. I didn’t know that what I would gain from my first yoga teacher training wasn’t simply a certificate that allowed me to teach in a studio. Instead, what I got was a new perspective to question every single thing I was doing. This is what Cosmic Breathing is all about, the potential to awaken to a new possibility of how our lives can be and how to walk forward into this new way of living. I hear the term “the work” all the time, and I understand all this encapsulates: self improvement, accountability, recovery, making changes, discipline, and so much more. And while this resonates and I see the importance of highlighting that it is indeed work to radically change our perspectives, practices, behaviors and lives, for me and Cosmic Breathing “the work” is healing. It is an expression of love towards our own being that is at the center of all that we do.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Los Angeles is such a great city with so much to do. When my friends come to visit I try and take them to each part that I think makes the city so special.

A lot of my friends are nature lovers, there are so many amazing hiking trails (a few lead to waterfalls!) in the Angeles National Forest, about a 25 minute drive from LA. If desert is more of your vibe, lets get in the car and head to Joshua Tree National Park, a little over 2 hours drive, which is home to the world famous Joshua Trees themselves as well as hiking and tons of cute Air Bnb’s to rent to stay overnight out in the desert. I have lived in Marina del Rey for the last 4 years and I think we have some of the best, well-kept, secluded beaches in all of LA! It is much quieter than some of the more popular beaches nearby, but you can walk the boardwalk from MDR all the way up to Santa Monica. So whether its ocean, desert or forest we got you!

I am always bringing my friends with me to take one of my classes or to practice alongside with me at either Shefayoga in Venice or Hot Yoga Los Angeles Marina del Rey! I have had the privilege of teaching at these incredible studios. Say hi to Leah owner of Shefayoga and Challyn owner of HYLA!

After moving our bodies so much I think we have earned something delicious to eat!
My go to’s are :
Coffee – 310 coffee in Culver City or Canal Market in Venice (hey Chris!)
Breakfast – The Butcher, The Baker, The Cappuccino Maker in West Hollywood is my favorite breakfast spot, everything I’ve ever ordered has been so delicious, plus there’s a huge outdoor section that can be so nice to catch up with friends and enjoy the weather, a meal and a coffee!
Lunch – Tacos Tu Madre has several locations throughout the city, and I would highly recommend! They have a cool fusion menu of tacos, burritos and more…everything with a really unique flavor that maybe we wouldn’t think could work together but it sure does!
Dinner – I can’t get enough of Baltaire Restaurant in Brentwood, its been my favorite restaurant in LA over the past few years. Everything from lives music some nights, a cool bar/lounge area in the front, everything on the menu is out of this world, and some of the best service I’ve ever had. A close second is Olivetta in West Hollywood, they also have an incredible ambiance and a delicious seasonal menu. You can’t go wrong with either! I say lets go to both while someone is visiting!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I have to give a huge thank you to my many mentors. I wouldn’t be where I am today without Francesca Asumah. Francesca taught me my very first yoga class: the Bikram yoga sequence, 90 minutes, 115-ish degrees at a studio in Downtown Los Angeles. The class had been purchased for me when I first moved to LA and I had no idea what I was in for. I will never forget that experience, the way she challenged us and also tended to and encouraged us. The duality of this intensity and softness has been the foundation of so much in my life. She taught me what it meant to show up for yourself, not because of pressure from family, romantic relationship, or a boss. But to give ourselves the gift of our own self-realization, of waking up to all that we are. I still practice this sequence of yoga, I teach it, and it has been the base of my entire journey into teaching other modalities of healing.

I am so grateful for Anand Mehrotra, another of my incredible teachers. Anand operates and teaches at his yoga academy, Sattva Yoga Academy, in Rishikesh, India. I have had the absolute privilege of completing multiple trainings at his academy over the last few years. His wisdom and teachings of the Himalayan Yogic-Vedantic lineage have profoundly changed my life. I teach breathwork and meditation from this Himalayan lineage and with such a full heart I say thank you to Anand and Sattva for all they have taught me, and the confidence they have instilled in me to share with all that seek truth and healing.

Some amazing books I would like to shout out are:
Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda,
The Untethered Soul – Michael A. Singer
The Book of Knowing and Worth – Paul Selig

Website: https://www.cosmicbreathing.online

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cosmicbreathing/

Image Credits
Photographer IG: @damicreator