[00:00:00] Foreign hello and welcome to Deep in your yoga practice. I'm Lauren Leduc, the owner and founder of True Love Yoga in Kansas City, Missouri. And I'm excited for today's episode because I'm talking about yoga retreats. Small spoiler alert. And as I'm recording this, I'm getting ready to go on the retreat I'm leading in the Algarve Portugal and I've got this amazing group together. And just before the retreat is always such an exciting and sometimes somewhat nerve wracking time because we want to make sure everything is ready and perfect and that we mitigate some of the stress that can come with travel. So today I wanted to talk about the power of retreats. And before we go into this, I'll say that yes, I lead international yoga retreats in beautiful locations and to be honest, they're not cheap. And I know that it is not accessible for every single person. But if it's somewhat accessible, if it's on your bucket list, it's definitely something worth considering and prioritizing in your life because it can make such a tremendous impact. There are also wonderful people who lead local retreats and, and this might encourage you even to just spend a day to yourself focusing on your yoga practice. So whether you're traveling abroad or you're finding a little yoga staycation, this episode is absolutely for you. At the end of this episode as well, I'll be announcing my next retreat, my 2026 retreat. So definitely stay tuned to learn about that cuz I'm really, really excited about it. So first let's talk about yoga in everyday life versus retreat life. So. So there's definitely this different reality of practicing yoga day to day in life because most of us are householders, we have jobs, we might have kids or pets, we might have aging parents or other beautiful things that fill our lives, our times, our minds. And we use our yoga practice to give back to ourselves, to have a little bit of time to focus, to take care of our bodies and minds. But it's certainly not immersive in everyday life because we have different things that pull us in different directions. I've talked about this before, but my yoga practice has primarily been at home the last several years. I do love it when I'm able to get into the studio and be around people, but it's been at home a lot of times. My daughter is here and I'm stopping to get snacks and I'm stopping because she wants to flow with me and I'm stopping because I'm getting A call from work or something else is happening. And while the time is still incredibly valuable to me, it's definitely not without distraction. So the container of a retreat or staycation or whatever it might be can eliminate some of those distractions so that you can fully immerse into your practice and get so many benefits from it. On retreat, you're not fitting yoga in. You are living it. The meals, the movement, the silence, community, nature, the activities, they all align with yoga. And the yoga really enhances the rest of the experience so that you can be fully present, fully awake and alive in your sensory experience and able to connect so well with yourself and with others. So you're living this yogic path while exploring a beautiful new place. And practicing yoga in new environments can literally rewire your nervous system, making you more adaptable and, and present and receptive. And I often find, especially if you're mindful about it, that the benefits of it really can be carried back home and integrated into the rest of your life, typically helping you feel more calm, maybe having more perspective about things. Sometimes you have to get out of the picture to be able to see it fully and to bring in whatever insights you had, whatever you learned, whatever connections you made in into your daily life. So traveling for yoga retreats, to me, is a lot different than just regular travel. It's very structured. Typically you're with a group of people who all have similar intentions, and it's just a really specific vibe. It's very embodied and it's different. It's not about a big party. It really is this container of safety and trust and exploration and adventure that, in my mind, really can't be beat. So travel isn't just about location change. It's about changing your state of awareness, of perspective. Even so, new sights and sounds and textures and flavors activate your senses. And when you pair that with daily yoga, the effects are really amplified.
[00:05:02] So you might take time that morning during your practice to listen to what's around you, to smell your environment, to see the way the light shines in nature around you, to hear your breath and to feel connected with your center and yourself, but in a very different location. But it's amazing. Wherever you go, there you are, right? And I think yoga retreats can really bring that into perspective. You're not escaping your life. You're just practicing to be more alive and inside it and an active and enthusiastic participant. There is research around novelty, so new things and neuroplasticity. So the newness of a retreat, the new experiences, can help improve your Cognition, mood and actually long term memory. So there are so many long lasting benefits to taking these short, potent times out of your life to connect with yourself and experience new things. Like I mentioned earlier, oftentimes people who are on retreat together, they might appear quite differently, but they at least have one thing in common. And, and that, that's that they want to travel and do yoga. That's two things actually, right? This sense of adventure and this desire for travel that is more mindful. So being surrounded by others on that same path with these things in common helps foster connection, reflection and shared healing. And I often see the connections happen really, really fast. So this group of people might start off as strangers and, and by the end of the week, if that's how long the retreat is, there are a lot of close friendships that have been made, oftentimes with people who might appear really different from each other. And that's one of my very favorite things as a retreat leader is seeing these relationships form and sometimes they lead into long term friendships. Travel buddies Unlike solo travel, a curated retreat experience offers a mix of adventure and grounding, a of learning and rest and of exploration paired with inner focus.
[00:07:10] So to me it's a really balanced way to travel. You can still have a lot of fun, but you're always going to balance it out with those moments of self connection through the practice. And the experience is typically structured to support this deep level of transformation. Something that can be really hard to create if you're traveling solo. I will say traveling solo without a retreat or without an agenda can also be extremely valuable. But there is something really nice about having everything planned out for you. About not worrying where your next meal is coming from, about knowing that there are people you can connect with with if you want, but you can also be alone if you want of having really beautiful synergistic activities throughout the week. Really, it can't be beat. I just love retreats so much. So I am really excited to announce my next retreat which is in 20 May 31 through June 6 in Mallorca, Spain. As soon as I saw a video of the retreat center for this, I said yes, I wanted to be there immediately because it is so spectacular. So envision this. Mornings with yoga by the sea, evenings of tapas and conversation and so many ways to play, to rest, to taste, to learn and to be in this absolutely grace gorgeous location by the sea. This retreat obviously includes daily yoga with me, but also kayaking, wine tasting, cooking, costa rearing and exploring this area of Palma. It includes six nights at the Bon Sol Resort and Spa in Mallorca and we will really root into the experience with themed yoga every day so that you really get the most out of each and every day.
[00:09:03] This retreat is for absolutely anyone who wants to step into more joy and balance and connection. There is absolutely no advanced yoga experience required. I design the practices specifically for who is there in front of me so it is fine for a beginner or an experienced yogi to join and for all ages as well. Sometimes people who are in their 60s or 70s come, sometimes there are folks in their 20s. It really does span a wide age range. Men, women, etc it really is for anyone who is excited to be a part of this beautiful container that we're creating. You can find out more about pricing and sign up
[email protected] and I also have a discount code for the first 10 people who sign up and these usually fill up pretty quickly so you can save $200 off of your booking with the code. Save 200s a V E200 so I'll put all of this in the show notes but definitely go to the website and check it out. Reach out if you have any questions. It's going to be an amazing trip and I'm so so excited about it. This is absolutely an investment in your well being and presence. A trip of a lifetime and so so worth the investment. It's going to be so much fun, a beautiful adventure and an amazing opportunity to connect with yourself and others that carry through into all the other areas of your life. I hope you can join me again. Reach out if you have any questions. I hope to see you there with me and if you're not able to do this I hope you can maybe take a day for yoga staycation or maybe to go somewhere that's a short drive away and really connect with yourself without the distractions of everyday life so that you can feed back in to this beautiful life you've built. Thank you so much for joining today.
[00:10:59] Om Shanti. Om Peace. Until next time.
