Sarah Bedard

The evolution of my yoga practice and becoming a yoga teacher has completely transformed my life in the most surprising of ways. I started yoga in college solely to “become more flexible.” I’d force myself through various types of classes and styles of yoga, desperate to match whatever pose the person was in on the mat next to me, and couldn’t understand why I was still struggling through classes after years of practicing. Fast forward to 2020, where I found myself healing from a serious injury that forced me to slow down in all aspects of my life, especially my fitness journey. 

When I was able to safely practice again, my practice looked drastically different than it had years prior. I had to modify almost every pose, and was frustrated at my inability to move like I used to. However, I quickly started to notice how good I was feeling after each class, despite being midway through my healing journey and practicing in different ways than my classmates. Was it possible that focusing on myself, and only myself, during class, and honoring my body with what it needed was actually what yoga was supposed to be?

I found myself enamored at my “ah-ha” moment, and was signing up for as many classes as I could. For the first time, my yoga practice was becoming my own; not comparing myself to others around me, or getting frustrated with myself if I could do a pose “perfectly” one day and then struggle the next. I also discovered just how much my breath was carrying through my practice more than any transition from one pose to the next was, and was amazed at both the mental and physical transformation I was seeing in my body. This led me to complete YTT at SWEAT in 2023, and I haven’t looked back since. 

Yoga is now a huge part of my life, but not only when I’m on my mat. Practicing yoga, and truly slowing down, has allowed me to speed up in so many other avenues in my life. I’m hooked on the freedom my mat has given me, and hope I can inspire even one other person to discover a similar feeling. 

Outside of SWEAT, I work for Amazon Fresh and am lucky enough to travel quite a bit for work (Fun fact: I have spent over 175+ nights in a hotel in the last 2 years!) I am also married to my wonderful high school sweetheart, have a Bernese Mountain Dog named Hazel, enjoy working out at the gym, and love cooking for family and friends. I cannot wait to SWEAT with all of you, whether leading a class or practicing together!