Episode Transcript
[00:00:11] Speaker A: Welcome to deep in your practice. I'm Lauren Leduc, owner of True love yoga, and I have a guest with me today that I'm so excited to introduce to you, if you don't already know them. I have with me today Sedona Alvarez, who has been teaching at True love yoga for nine years, since the day the doors opened.
And.
Yes, yes. So I'm so excited to chat with you today. One, I don't get to see you as much as I would like to. You're one of my very favorite yoga teachers and I want to dive into your journey and some offerings that you have going on right now. So welcome.
[00:00:47] Speaker B: Thank you so, so much for having me. I'm so grateful. And, yeah, any excuse I get to just hang out and chat with you, love. So, yes, thanks for having me. Yeah, blows my mind that it's been nine years. Most of my teaching journey, literally.
[00:01:04] Speaker A: I know, I know we started around the same time, and I don't know if I've ever asked you this before, but I would love to know a little about your yoga love stories. How did you fall in love with yoga?
[00:01:17] Speaker B: Well, I mean, it really, really started Westport yoga when we meth, that I don't know if a lot of our students know, but we kind of share a similar lineage. We met at Westport yoga all those years ago, right, when we were both little baby teachers. And yeah, we just kind of followed each other's teaching journeys. But I think that I should start at the very, very beginning when it was a little more crunchy and a little more gritty. How does that sound?
[00:01:46] Speaker A: That sounds perfect. I just let all of that out in a previous episode, so I want to hear yours.
[00:01:52] Speaker B: Did it feel cathartic?
[00:01:54] Speaker A: Always.
[00:01:55] Speaker B: Yes, always. Okay, so I'll start at the beginning. I started doing yoga not even in, like, a yoga studio. I started doing yoga just kind of like, shooting in the dark, asking myself, like, how can I feel better in my body, in my mind?
So this was back when YouTube was kingdom, back in, like, the 2010s ish.
So, yeah, I was in college. I was doing my little victory lap at KU. It was kind of a year that felt very lost, I want to say. This was like 2012. I was feeling just overwhelmed with life. A lot was happening, and I was not coping well. I did not have the tools or the resources to stay resourced and in my center. So I really self medicated a lot in that time. I self medicated with drugs, alcohol. So I was feeling bad, long story short, and decided to take to YouTube. And ask YouTube, how can I feel a little bit better? So I think what I initially typed in was I was just feeling weak, weak sauce all the way around. So I typed in, like, core strengthening, just the most random thing, and I came across Sadie Nardini, her core strength vinyasa yoga. And so, like, literally, blinds shut, dark room. No one could see me. It was just me and Sadie on YouTube, like, in my living room with my cats. That was really my first true yoga experience where I really felt connected to a teacher, and I felt like I had the permission to just be really gritty and show up as my whole self.
These were just little, like, 20 minutes YouTube videos, but that really sparked my love of taking care of myself and diving a little bit deeper. Of course, it took me way longer to really address the root of my issues, which was a lot of alcohol abuse and drug abuse.
But really it started there on just, like, peeling back that first superficial layer, and then I continued to peel and peel, and it all really just started with those little videos on YouTube.
[00:04:20] Speaker A: I love that. It's funny, I haven't thought about Sadie Nardini in a long time, but she really, like, had a mohawk, and she.
[00:04:28] Speaker B: Was punk rock cursed.
[00:04:30] Speaker A: And, you know, she just showed up, really, as herself, which was really, really stood out at the time, especially among all the other yoga teachers online. So I can totally see how she resonated with you and how that gave you permission to really start looking inward. I think it's important what you said, too, because yoga is not really a band aid for any of these things. It's not really the solution for a lot of these things, but it can help us self examine, and I think be quiet enough to start understanding what might be going on behind the scenes of our own psyche, 100%.
[00:05:04] Speaker B: And it was just a jumping off point. It felt like I was just, like, in the right place at the right time, even though it all felt like life was very overwhelming and I didn't know how to cope, and I felt really, really bad. You know, that was exactly what I needed. Just a little dose of yoga from the right person, because I don't think it would have landed quite the same if it was anyone else. Like, there was something about her authenticity and her, like, show up messy, drink your wine, and then come back to the mat and, you know, just keep coming back. That really resonated. So, yeah, Sadie, if you're out there, I love you, girl. Like, you really.
You sparked my flame. And then from there, like, I hadn't even gone to an in person yoga studio. Well, I think I did one, but my memory of that was a little fuzzy because I just remember, like, having the teacher press on my back and downward facing dog, and I let out, like, a very awkward yelp and pretty much left immediately after that and, like, smoked a cigarette. So I didn't really give yoga studios a chance until way later. Way, way later. So, yeah. And it's not cure all by any means, so it just is something that really has helped along my journey. You know, we now are medicated and we go to therapy and all of that as well. But yoga has been a consistent resource in my life ever since then and just really keeps me coming back. Whenever things do get hard and gritty, I just keep on coming back, and it's like. It's my compass, you know? Yeah. So I just keep on keeping on. And we use yoga as, like, the. Like, my teacher, Gina, always kind of described the yoga teacher as, like, a tour guide. Like, the tour guide is showing you everything around you as, like, you know, you might. This might not be illuminated to you yet. Like, maybe darkness all around. And the guide just has that illuminating light showing you your blind spots. And so that's what I just keep on coming back to. The teaching really keeps me grounded more than anything else in my life at this point.
[00:07:25] Speaker A: So, Donna, I love that you're grounded in your own practice. And I wanted to mention, too, that you are an amazing artist, too.
In fact, yeah, you're welcome. For anyone who's visited the studio, one of Sedona's murals is on the studio wall. I'd love to know. I can guess. I feel how art influences your classes. You always have awesome playlists and really strong themes, and you're really great at weaving a theme into a class. I'd love to know, though, in your opinion, how does your art influence your yoga? And how does your yoga influence your art?
[00:07:59] Speaker B: I love this question because for me, it's all, like, very intertwined.
Yeah, I love that you asked that. So they both art and yoga really helped me to process my big emotions. Like, for me, making art is less about making a product. It's more about processing what's going on a little bit deeper. It's my way of just allowing myself to be vulnerable and to let my intuition kind of guide me. So I love. I'm a painter, and I love to kind of use different mediums in my artwork. So it's really all about, like, getting messy and throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks and seeing what doesn't and what resonates. And there's just a lot of intuitive play that goes along with it. And it can feel, like, very emotionally heavy sometimes. And it can be a way for me to kind of get through, through some of those murky waters. So yoga is very much, it's similar in the way that it's always there to help me process and decompress and just feel a little bit lighter. Like I'm not carrying the energetic load of all that B's, that, you know, the old tired stories I tell myself that it lets me let go of the inner critic and my limiting beliefs and all of that. So, yeah, they really kind of weave into each other. I feel like I approach my art making. Like, I approach my yoga practice and my teaching practice. I go in and I kind of, like, you know, put my finger in the air and I see, like, which way is the wind blowing. And I kind of, I go from there and I really let my intuition lead. I'll go in. You know, loose structure is good for me, like, with a strong idea of where we're going. But a lot of the times when I'm teaching, it's a lot like my art process. Like, it depends on what I have available, who shows up to class. It depends on what the vibe is, what songs playing. I love that you mentioned the playlist because, like, that's a huge part of my class. Like, that's. I really, like, dig deep to try to access my, my inner radio dj, and I just, like, I sometimes build a whole class off the playlist.
So it's all, it's about building that, that vibe for me and that bava, that kind of, like, energetic feeling state. And then beyond that, it's kind of like a co creation. It's like, it's not just me that's creating the class. It's everybody who shows up and we all just get to kind of collaborate together. So it's very magical.
[00:10:36] Speaker A: I love that you've always had that vibe to your classes, but I would love to know, how do you think your teaching has evolved in the last, let's say, nine years, but eleven years, that's how long we've been teaching, I think. What's changed?
[00:10:49] Speaker B: Okay, so, man, so much has changed. I think at the beginning, when I got my first teacher, when I did my first teacher training, my 200 hours, it was at this big corporate gym. Like, imagine me in a corporate gym, and it was just a very different atmosphere. And I kind of felt like the odd duck of the crew, but my people found me, you know what I mean? I think back then, it was definitely a little more ego based. When I started teaching, I felt like I had something to prove in that environment. You know what I mean? I felt like I had to prove something, not only to everyone around me, but to myself. I had, like, mad imposter syndrome at first. I was like, okay, wait. Who am I? Who am I to be telling these grown adults what they should be doing? What's going to help them feel better? And, you know, a lot of that was self inflicted. A lot of it was, like, some judgy looks from people who maybe didn't understand why they should be taking advice from me. And, you know, that's okay. I found very accepting places to teach. That's great. But it was very much a trial by fire. Nowadays, I try to remember that it is not about me. It never has been about me. It's about trying to help my students and my community feel resourced. And it's about, you know, coming together in this very special way so that we can all feel better and more readily share our gifts.
And, yeah, it's not about.
I'm very lucky to have a job that really supports me mentally, emotionally, in all the ways beyond that. It's really not about me as a teacher. It's about me trying to help others access their inner teacher. So that's probably the biggest one, is I'm not on an ego trip as much anymore. The ego's still there because we're human, but it's less of what I lead with, I think.
[00:12:56] Speaker A: I love what you're sharing about the maturity that comes and less ego in the teaching because it's so hard to become a yoga teacher. I think just on a internal level, and you've seen a lot of our students go through yoga teacher training. All of our students right now are getting ready to graduate and become this thing. And it is this challenge to the ego, I think. But it's interesting. I think with more experience and time, how we realize it's less about us and more just about the teaching, and we're the vehicle for it. But, man, it is. It is quite a process. So I love hearing about that part of your journey. And it's funny, I still get in my own way when I'm teaching. I still get nervous, even though, you know, thousands of hours later, here we are. But I think it's probably a good thing.
[00:13:51] Speaker B: Yeah. Sometimes you'll just come in and have one of those funky days where you just feel off and in your own head, you're like, man, have ever taught more of a stinker? But then I'm always surprised because someone will come up to me at the end of class, just like, that is exactly what I needed. Like, thank you. That was a great class. And, like, I don't know if they're trying to make me feel better about myself, but, you know, it's a good reminder that, like, okay, we're all just human beings in our own heads all the time, and my reality isn't necessarily the same as someone else's. And the best I can do is just keep reminding myself that I. Like you said, that was perfectly put. I'm the vehicle.
[00:14:36] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:14:37] Speaker B: Get out of my own way.
[00:14:38] Speaker A: Yeah. I'll shift gears a little bit. You are. Well, you have a couple events coming up at true love. One being pop up yoga, which is this Saturday from when this is airing.
And then we're going to be celebrating the autumn equinox together. So you have a workshop called Autumn abundance on September 21, and I want to know what that's all about.
[00:15:04] Speaker B: Oh, this one is one of my favorites to teach. So I love offering workshops around season changes. So I like to do the equinox and the solstice.
Autumn is just. It's my vibe. It's my time. It's when I feel most alive and creatively inspired. So this one kind of, like, holds a special place in my heart. It is a two hour workshop that I started as a yoga and journaling workshop. That was, like, the primary focus was the journaling aspect, where I would give a few journaling prompts, and we would have time to kind of meditate on them, to just kind of have a brain dump and just write down everything that came up without censorship, without judgment, a little bit of asana and meditation woven in. Now, it evolved to happen around those seasonal shifts because I think that that is, like, a very potent time when everything is so obviously changing. You know, everything is constantly in a state of flux, but our awareness of those shifts is heightened around these times. So an invitation to kind of honor that. That downshift that happens when we start moving from summer into fall, we're moving into the darker seasons. It's an opportunity to really honor the darker aspects of our being, because without that dark, there would be no light. Can I get an amen?
And so that's what the autumn equinox one is all about. It's all about shadow work. It's about deep diving into those murkier waters. It's a lot of juicy stuff, so it'll be well rounded practice. I'm glad I get, like, some extra time to really focus on the. On the physical asana so that we can really prime our minds and our bodies and our hearts to really process what's moving through us and what needs to come out. So there will be a few journaling prompts, and then we'll use a good, like, half hour to have a sit and chat about it and just an opportunity to give voice to the things that are moving through us, which I think can be really powerful for some people. It can also be really powerful to keep things to yourself, have a little secret, a little mission that you're working on. But for those who are really ready to kind of process externally and have a conversation about the things that they wrote down and they'll continue to revisit through the season, it can be just a really potent practice to set intentions and connect with community. I always find that there tends to be themes that come up when people share. It's like we're all going through the same stuff all the time.
It's just very reassuring when, you know, you see that person on the other side of the circle seeking their truth and maybe you're going through something similar. There are certain themes that are showing up in your life, so it's just always really special.
[00:18:10] Speaker A: Yeah. I find that taking a moment to mark the change of seasons and to take, like, an internal inventory, let's say, can be really powerful because it's easy just to move through life at a quick pace and to really never stop.
[00:18:26] Speaker B: Yeah, just autopilot?
[00:18:28] Speaker A: Yeah, just go on autopilot. And it can be really beautiful to look back and, like, see, where did I struggle? Where have I grown? I'd love to know, like, what types of prompts you want to dive into for this particular workshop and how do they coincide with the autumn season?
[00:18:45] Speaker B: Ooh. So these prompts will be kind of around internal struggles you've been dealing with. Like I said, it's a lot of shadow work. So turning inward and looking at maybe those parts of yourself that you've shunned away or the parts of yourself that you reject and kind of bringing those up to the forefront, those maybe more intense emotions like anger and frustration and even grief, we invite those feelings in to sit with them in meditation. I mean, they're going to come up in meditation usually, no matter what. One of the beautiful things about meditation is that, you know, when we sit in discomfort, this is why I love yin yoga, too. We sit in discomfort. Those things are going to come up whether we like it or not, because the body feels uncomfortable, and then the mind starts to react to that discomfort, and then our emotions chime in and say, oh, I don't like this. Get me out. Get me out. So we have a chance to really sit with some of those. Those parts of ourselves which make us whole and kind of offer those parts of ourselves loving kindness. So I'm not going to totally give the prompts away, but a lot of the journaling prompts are around that work of, you know, what emotions are you sitting with? And what tired old stories are you ready to kind of throw on our autumn equinox bonfire, you know, and then from there, where can we start to shift? Where can we begin to send ourselves loving acceptance? Where can we start to focus more on our growth edge? You know, what we're moving into, what we're stepping into for the next season. So, yeah, there's some intention setting going on. So you'll leave the workshop feeling hopefully resourced with, like, a path to forge and a purpose.
[00:20:40] Speaker A: That all sounds wonderful. And I'm kind of cracking up to myself because I love with yoga people, people who are invested in emotional growth. How we talk about shadow work in this way of, like, oh, I'm so excited. I'm so excited for this shadow work. But the reason, I think, after you've sat through this discomfort and gone through these types of processes so many times that we do feel, I guess, excited about it in a way, is because we know how much better we're going to feel afterward. And to me, it's kind of like cleaning out a closet or something like that. Like, I really don't want to. There's a lot of crap in there that, like, I don't want to sort through. But when I'm all done, I want to, like, open that closet five times a day and look at how great.
[00:21:24] Speaker B: It is, how sparkly and shiny and organized.
[00:21:27] Speaker A: Yes, exactly. And, like, knowing that I put the work into it makes it all the better. So I don't know if that metaphor is helpful for anyone listening, but it.
[00:21:38] Speaker B: Is good with me. You know, often when I'm teaching yin yoga, I'll say, we're going into the junk drawers of the body, we're giving them a deep clean. We're gonna pull everything out, maybe do a little dust in, and then, you know, put everything back nice and neat, and it's gonna get disheveled again because we're human and we're, you know, imperfect and disorganized sometimes, and we're gonna mess it up. And that's what yoga meditation is. It's just continuing to come back over and over again, and it's tedious. It's just repeating the same stuff over and over and over. But that's. That's the work. That's what keeps us grounded and. And keeps us coming back.
[00:22:21] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, I'm excited for it. We will link to the. The workshop in the show notes for anyone who would like to sign up. I would love to ask you. So, this podcast is called deep in your practice. And part of my intention behind it is that I think as teachers teaching asana classes or physical classes, we do our best to add in depth, to sprinkle in philosophy to theme. But, you know, oftentimes it's 60, 75 minutes, and we have a lot to do in that amount of time. We realize that's a lot. Yeah, exactly. So I want to ask you, what would be your advice for a yoga practitioner who wants to deepen their practice?
[00:23:01] Speaker B: I would say don't be afraid to step out of your living room to pull the shades, let the light in, get off YouTube like I did, and step foot in a yoga studio, preferably true love, because, let's be honest, we are the best.
That is funny, but no, no joke at all. This community is so special and lovely and diverse, and I'm literally in love. That's why I've been teaching here for nine years. But I would say, I mean, Covid brought about, like, this resurgence of doing yoga at home, which is wonderful, and it's great that people can access that, but whenever you can get outside to do yoga, get in your community, because for me, that's been the missing piece. Like, when I stepped out of my living room and started connecting with other humans, going through the same stuff, that was just mind boggling and eye opening, because I guess I just spent so many years in this inner world where I wasn't enough and just kind of fixated on my own imperfection so much that I didn't realize that others were also dealing with the same things. So, yeah, that just having this community connection has been the biggest thing that's helped to deepen my practice, for sure.
[00:24:20] Speaker A: Yeah, you really, like, hit the nail on the head there. I talk about how doing or practicing yoga more help me go deeper and make a lot of positive changes, but I haven't fully connected that personally, like, to community. And when you're saying that, I'm just like, oh, yeah, that is totally one of the biggest puzzle pieces there and how I really developed, like, this love story, really, with yoga, because, yeah, I did it in my living room for years. Crunch fitness, VHS tape, Rilana DVD, and some PBS show, like, anything I could. But it wasn't until I could really get into a space with other people on a regular basis that things got a lot deeper. And I love opportunities, like your workshops to go deeper as well, because, like you said, we are. We all go through stuff. We all have difficult feelings, we all have losses, victories, etcetera. And when we're able to, like, really sit down and be honest about them and give voice to them, usually what we hear is, me, too, me, too. Me, too. And there's something, not that we want to delight in other people's suffering or something like that, but there's something so healing and just knowing we're not alone.
[00:25:34] Speaker B: Yeah. Just so human. And I feel like that's a missing puzzle piece for a lot of the wellness world. A lot of it is geared toward individualism. Like, you're the creator of your own reality, you know? And I feel like that rhetoric can just keep people disconnected and keep people in this headspace and heart space of, like, what I do doesn't matter to the outside world because that's not me. This is me. And so the only thing that matters is keeping myself pristine and pure and all of that. And that just has never really resonated with me.
Life is a lot more real than that. And it, you know, like, connecting with others helps us to remember that. Like, we are literally all one. Everything we do affects everybody else. And that really comes to life in teacher trainings and workshops and things like that, where you get to peel back more layers and share, and you're sitting across from someone who's sharing similar story to you and you realize, this person is me. I am theme. So it's a way to be seen and really, truly heard and known in a way that I don't think is really possible. If you're just kind of doing yoga with your vhs tapes or on YouTube, which that's a great jumping off point, it got me where I am today, but I am really, really glad I stepped out of my living room and into the world, because here we are.
[00:27:10] Speaker A: Yeah, exactly. Even though I'm sitting in my living.
[00:27:13] Speaker B: Room right now, I know we're using the Internet to have this conversation.
[00:27:18] Speaker A: I'm so happy to have this conversation with you. And I'll just remind our listeners in Kansas City or not. Sedona teaches several classes a week at true love yoga that are in person and several online as well. So no matter where you are, you can join us. And then you have pop up yoga, which is September 14 at the Kansas City Museum. It's totally free for anybody in the area who wants to experience Sedona's classes in a beautiful environment and go see really cool piece of Kansas City history as well. The museum is free and you can go for it as well. I'd make an afternoon of it. And then obviously your autumn abundance workshop, which is on September 20. How else can people get a hold of you or follow you?
[00:28:03] Speaker B: Well, I'm all over the interwebs. You can go to my website if you would like. My website is sedonaalvroseyoga.com. that's for all my yoga biz. I have a separate website. That's my art. It's just sedonaalvarez.com if you're interested. And then you can get a hold of me through the gram. I'm just Sedona Alf and then Facebook. I'm on there as well. Check out my Spotify playlists. I have like over 100 at this point. I never throw anything away. So yeah, you could go on a deep dive if you're, if you want to, you know, do your yoga in your living room. For now, I've got you hooked up with playlists for that. And, yeah, other than that, I'm at true love yoga five times a week. Y'all can tune in online or come visit me in person.
[00:28:55] Speaker A: Yeah. Well, Sedona, it was so lovely chatting with you today. And it's been really cool feeling so linked with you, I think, through this journey of practicing yoga, for sure, but teaching, because we did start right around the same time, in the same place as little baby yoga teachers. And look at us now, still trying to figure it out.
[00:29:15] Speaker B: Still figuring it out. I think we're doing all right. It's honestly, it's been so amazing and helpful to, I feel like we've been there for each other through pretty much this whole journey, you know, from when we started yoga teaching. And it's just like, extra magical to have someone on your team and on your side that sees you and has, like, you know, gone through all the, the hills and valleys of teaching in this community. So I just hope you know that I love you and appreciate you.
[00:29:46] Speaker A: Well, I love you too. And thank you, everyone, for listening. We'll be back next week with another episode. Come see us at true love yoga.
Om Shanti Om. Peace.
