Show notes
In this episode of The Meditation Podcast, Roy sits down with Jon Paul Crimi — Breathwork pioneer, celebrity trainer, and sobriety coach based in Bend, Oregon. Jon Paul shares how his late friend Matthew Perry first introduced him to Breathwork, how a single session sent him ”down the rabbit hole,” and how he transformed a niche, mystical practice into a grounded, results-driven method that’s now certified over 3,000 instructors worldwide.The conversation covers the science behind ”tetany” (the hand-cramping sensation common in circular breathwork), why Jon Paul’s mouth-breathing technique differs from nose-breathing methods like Wim Hof, how trauma stored in the nervous system gets released through the breath, and why he believes breathwork produces results comparable to psychedelics — without the logistical downsides. He also opens up about his own sobriety (26 years), his father’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis, his experience bringing breathwork into corporations like Nike and LinkedIn, and how to spot unqualified instructors in an unregulated industry.


