About Dr. Tal
“My entire life has been focused
on studying, embodying,
and teaching movement.”
Dr. Tal Barnston, D.C., is a chiropractic kinesiologist who has spent 17 years helping people become the healthiest, strongest versions of themselves — in body, mind, and spirit.
His Embody Health approach blends chiropractic and Applied Kinesiology, myofascial integration, functional strength and mobility training, Budokon martial-arts-inspired movement and yoga, animal locomotion, somatic movement, and dance.
Known for his intuitive understanding of the body and his grounded, heart-centered presence, Dr. Tal meets each person where they are and helps them move at their best, feel at home in themselves, and live a deeply fulfilling, empowered life.
He sees patients at his Laguna Beach office, at the Cohn Health Institute Monday through Thursday, and in Santa Monica on Fridays.
My Movement Story
My entire life has been focused on studying, embodying, and teaching movement.
In search of a deeper connection to my soul, I spent ten years traveling the world to study under masters of yoga, dance, martial arts, naturopathic and Chinese medicine, chiropractic, permaculture, and bio-construction. In Thailand I studied Tantric Hatha Yoga intensively, learning to use asanas to connect to the chakras. I went on to earn my B.S. in Kinesiology from San Francisco State University, and spent more than a decade as a personal trainer focused on functional movement, mobility, rehab, and self-expression.
Dance called me next. I traveled through Colombia and Europe to learn Afro-Cuban salsa, and its rhythm and joy showed me what freedom in the body and mind can feel like. A year-long apprenticeship in Budokon Mixed Movement Arts — an integration of martial arts, yoga, mobility, and yogic and Zen philosophy — gave me the movement range to dance professionally with Jacob Jonas The Company for two years.
For four years I studied with a mentor who was a doctor of naturopathic and Chinese medicine, a Diplomate of Applied Kinesiology, and a yogi. He taught me medicine woven together with meditation and a connection to the source of all creation. That path led me to earn my Doctor of Chiropractic from Southern California University of Health Sciences.
Dance Alive is where it all came together. Its practices — including the Art of Relating — gave me practical tools to love myself and my life, lead, live with integrity, commit deeply, play on a team, and express who I really am. It took me out of performance and into authenticity, and now I teach others to do the same.
Today I bring all of it to my patients and clients: chiropractic care, movement, strength, and the skills to relate, lead, and feel at home in your own skin. I live in beautiful Laguna Beach with my wife, Natasha, and we're expecting our first son. I spend my days with patients, teaching classes and workshops, coaching one-on-one, dancing, and enjoying the ocean and nature.
I look forward to moving with you!
Specialties
Applied Kinesiology (AK)
NeuroEmotional Technique (NET)
Myofascial Integration
Budokon Mixed Movement Arts · Martial Arts · Yoga · Mobility · Calisthenics · Acrobatics
Functional Strength & Mobility
Athletic Performance Training
Somatic Movement Training · Dance Alive
Embodied Leadership Training · Dance Alive
Meditation
Education & Licensure
Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.), licensed in California — Southern California University of Health Sciences
B.S. Kinesiology, Movement Science — San Francisco State University
Athletic Training — Santa Barbara City College
Certifications
Budokon Yoga Primary Series
Budokon Mobility Levels 1 & 2
National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) — Certified Personal Trainer
Kettlebell Level 1
VIPR (Vitality, Performance, Reconditioning)
TriggerPoint Myofascial Release Therapy
Functional Movement Systems (FMS)
First Aid, CPR & AED — American Heart Association
