Got YOGA? Let’s Travel

Interview with Charde Evans, 200hr Yoga Instructor

By Erica Mestyanek, Editor, Dallas Yoga Magazine

When did you start practicing yoga? I began practicing yoga in 2009 while attending college at The University of Texas at Arlington. A friend was very into yoga and suggested we should do yoga before we worked out; I agreed. I began yoga just as a pre-stretch to my actual workout, not getting much out of it. It didn’t take long for me to discover the mental benefits from the experiences that have kept me practicing all these years.

When did you know you wanted to become an instructor? I’m not sure there was one specific “lightbulb” moment in particular that made me want to lead yoga. Over the years, having excellent yoga teachers who held space for me, that helped me push my limits, and grow spiritually was something I aspired to do for others. With all the chaos going on in the world, when I practice yoga I feel a sense of peace and an overwhelming understanding that everything is going to be okay. Being able to provide that experience for others is a pleasure for me.

What advice do you have for other yogis on the path to become an instructor or find their niche? Just do it! I struggled initially with pursing yoga teacher training because I felt like I wasn’t flexible enough, strong enough, skinny enough, or just not enough; which I now see was a waste of my energy. You don’t have to be this perfect person or yogi, you just have to have a willingness to learn. The teacher-training course I took was so insightful because it really hammered in the fact that the physical practice of yoga is only an eighth of what yoga is about. There are so many other layers to this practice, so worrying about what you look on the outside has nothing to do with the internal practice that is yoga. I think if anyone is interested in learning more about yoga they should take a course with the intention to learn more, not necessarily to teach and see where they find themselves.

Where has your journey with yoga currently taken you? 

Since graduating from my yoga teacher training, I knew I wanted to travel and teach yoga. I had heard about YogaTrade.com and decided to give it a try. YogaTrade allows yoga teachers to travel all around the world and teach yoga in exchange for free food & accommodation wherever you work. I was pretty open about where I wanted to go, so when I got my first opportunity in Cambodia, I quit my job, sold everything in my apartment, and took a leap of faith! I lived in a bamboo bungalow on the river in southern Cambodia for 3 months before getting my next YogaTrade opportunity in France. I went from Cambodia to southern France living in a castle with 20 other yoga teachers, teaching and renovating the castle to become a yoga retreat.

I am so thankful that yoga has taken me all over the world and allowed me the opportunity to meet people from everywhere and learn so much about myself.

How can our readers keep up with your adventures? As I travel around, I blog on my website NamasteConCharde.com and constantly post on my social media platforms @NamasteConCharde.