about.

Hi, I’m Jess Gumkowski. I’m a long-time yogi and endurance athlete living in Southern California and author of Awake Athlete: When Mastery Is Your Only Option.

I am an overall wellness and mindset coach, podcast host, and retreat leader. I work primarily with athletes who, like me, see mastery as their only option and are curious about the teachings of yoga as the pathway. However, the work I offer in this world is not exclusive to athletes; like the teachings of yoga, I am inclusive, and many clients over the years who I still work with today do not identify as athletes. Life, I believe, is the biggest endurance event for us all, so athlete or not, a well-trained mind benefits all.

Commonly mistaken as solely its physical poses or asana practice, yoga is the eight-limbed science of the mind. Known by many as the supreme science that originated in ancient India. Its disciplines and practices are widely used in this modern-day to gain control over the mind and heal the body. The purpose of all yoga practice is to make the mind tranquil no matter the circumstance. I utilize the limbs of yoga, primarily concentration and meditation, to train the mind to be the tool and not the master. I also incorporate evidence-based material science, quantum physics, and metaphysical law to further the education of what is attainable when we train our minds.

One-on-One Mindset Coaching, Wellness, and Yoga services with me are available through YogiTriathlete.

Regarding the book…
Awake Athlete: When Mastery Is Your Only Option
…it was the spring of 2020 when it all began to move through me at a fierce pace.

The world had shut down within days due to the pandemic, and in the halting of that momentum, I felt a solid directive to slow down and go deeper into my meditation and mindful practices. I stopped waking up to an alarm. Instead, I allowed my body to wake up naturally, and I returned to my yoga mat daily with a higher level of devotion. I sat on my cushion twice a day without fail, and it wasn’t long before I tapped into a stream of intelligibility which I quickly harnessed as the entity Awake Athlete.

I began writing, and the stream kept feeding me. I knew the information needed to be released as soon as possible. After being the host of the YogiTriathlete podcast for years, it felt natural and exciting for me to get this knowledge out into the world through the medium of podcasting. So I climbed into a small closet in the loft I share with my husband, BJ, and dog, Clark, and hit record.

Season one of the Awake Athlete podcast dropped to the world in August 2020, season two in April 2021, season three in May 2022, and season four in October 2023. Each season has 11 episodes, with the first season having three bonus episodes, including a yoga nidra class which is particularly beneficial for athletes.

Thank you for visiting.

There is so much good waiting for you.