86: From Personal Development to Yoga Leadership: Anthony Chavez's Journey of Impact

Meet Anthony Chavez as he shares his remarkable story. Beyond the impressive credentials—ultra endurance athlete, father of four, personal development coach, respected yoga leader—lies something even more powerful: a man who shows up with intention, humility, and heart, using his life as a canvas for transformation.

In this inspiring episode of Group X Appeal, Kimberly and Terry sit down with longtime friend Anthony Chavez to explore what it really means to leave a lasting imprint on everyone you encounter. 

Discover the unexpected moment that launched his yoga career, the unforgettable class where he proposed to his wife in front of 80 people, and why he believes teaching is actually about waking people up to what's possible for their lives.

Learn how Anthony stays relevant as he ages while his student base doesn't, why he now has to stretch before teaching (fellow instructors, you'll relate), and the legacy he hopes to leave behind. 

Whether you're a fitness professional or yoga teacher seeking inspiration or someone wondering what separates good teachers from transformational leaders, this conversation reveals the heart, wisdom, and responsibility behind a life dedicated to movement and connection.

Follow Anthony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/anthonychavezyoga/ and learn more at https://www.prolificpersonaldevelopment.com/.

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube - @groupxappeal.

Questions or topic ideas? Email us @ groupxappeal@gmail.com

Get your FREE Guide To Holistic Well-Being here: https://gxaguide.com/

Stay Connected with Kimberly:
- @kimberlyspreenglick on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube
- email: kimberly@theinspiredlifeuniversity.com
- website: www.theinspiredlifeuniversity.com

Stay Connected with Terry:
- @terryshorter on Instagram & Facebook
- email: terry@rippedplanet.com
- website: www.rippedplanet.com

Transcript

What do you call someone who's taught over 5,000 classes, completed Ironman triathlons, competed in ultra endurance events, and once held a 24 hour yoga session for charity? Well, we call him a friend. And today we get to share his story with you because beyond all those incredible accomplishments, he's a husband, he's a father of four, and one of the most grounded intentional leaders that we know. Absolutely. Today we are sitting down with our longtime friend, Anthony Chavez.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (00:31)
Hello friends, thank you for that sweet intro.

Kimberly/terry (00:38)
my goodness, we are here so excited. Terry Shorter here with... Kimberly Spreen Glick And this is episode number 86. And you know what, there are instructors and then there are those who leave a lasting imprint, a legacy on everybody they encounter. And Anthony Chavez is one of those people for sure. Cannot agree more. His journey spans decades of movement, growth and leadership. He...

fell in love with group exercise, yoga, teaching over 5,000 classes, and became a respective voice in both yoga and personal development. Yeah, but what makes Anthony truly special isn't just what he's accomplished, it's how he shows up with intention, with humility, with consistency, and of course with heart. He has a husband, he has a father of four, he's a full-time professional, an ultra endurance athlete.

and a leader, one of the kindest leaders I've ever met who uses his life as a canvas for his work. And today we are diving into the moments, the lessons and the legacy behind a life dedicated to movement and connection. Yeah. So welcome Anthony. What's up?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (01:50)
What's up,

you two? Thank you for having me. Seriously.

Kimberly/terry (01:53)
Well, thanks so much for saying yes and joining us today we've been we've been dying to get you online probably took us a minute But we did it we got you That's okay. That's busy people get stuff done, right? Do you need that tissue you do These guys have me laughing before we even hit record y'all. I'm not sure what to do. Just keep laughing

Anthony Chavez Yoga (02:00)
Yeah, we're busy humans, but we figured it out. Hand cranks

Kimberly/terry (02:19)
So we want to make sure that people get to know you like we do. ⁓ You know, for me, I had the pleasure and the privilege of getting mentored and going through my yoga certification, my YTT with Anthony leading us at the helm and learned so much and inspired me to not just learn yoga, but share it with others and have been doing it ever since. Do you know now it's been

uh 12 years 13 years now 13 years since you certified me incredible we still miss you anthony it sure does we miss you at laguna naga

Anthony Chavez Yoga (02:48)
Mm-hmm.

Time moves. I miss you all too.

And actually I want to, like let me start there. I just want to thank you, Kimberly, for that moment that was 12-ish years ago and you brought me into your life, into your fold and gave me an opportunity to lead in a way that I hadn't before. And it was one of those pivotal moments in my life. So thank you. And I know I've told you, but thank you here.

Kimberly/terry (03:19)
Well, we were truly,

truly blessed to have you for, we'd be blessed to have you for a day. So to have you for as long as we had you, and I know other things we're calling and you're doing such amazing work now we're gonna get to dive into, but the fact that we were able to cross paths and create anything together is a joy that I will always be thankful for. So thank you for saying yes.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (03:40)
Same, same. And

you know, it's one of the things that we get to do. I'm just going to break our path a little bit, having been leading classes, I think we're all close to 20 plus years at this point, which, you know, we're joking about the mustache and most of it being white, but having been able to be in front of rooms for so long, I feel like at this juncture in my career, there is this

obligation to pass it forward and to tap the next generation of leaders so that they can experience the things that we experienced and the life and the joy that you know that we've been able to lead. feel so lucky and blessed that a kid who grew up in LA in the 80s and 90s in a black and brown neighborhood gets to spend my career in a hot room jumping around talking shit and playing playlists for a living. Like it's just wild. it's it's part of of what I wanted to talk about and I just I love that we started there.

Kimberly/terry (04:17)
Mm-hmm.

Thank

Yeah

Anthony Chavez Yoga (04:38)
to be able to

pass it on and to tap the new teachers and to grow them and to give them opportunities that were afforded to me. So it's just a big ass thank you because without you tapping me on the shoulder 12 or so years ago, ⁓ yeah, I don't know where I'd be.

Kimberly/terry (04:41)
Mm-hmm.

Any any teacher or aspiring teacher that has an opportunity to learn from you which I'm sure Terry can attest to no There's always gonna be the better for it Absolutely 100 100 so going back I'm sure we're gonna be going back further than 12 years take us back to the beginning of your journey Anthony How did you get started with group exercise with yoga and what made you love it and today? Why do you still love it?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (05:22)
All right. Do you want the story that I tell in teacher training or do you want the story that I tell my friends?

Kimberly/terry (05:23)
Here goes.

The story you tell your friends. Come on now, that's a canned question. at us, look who you're talking on now, that's a canned question. Nobody's listening to us.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (05:32)
⁓ I'm gonna give them both to you. Nobody's

listening. So, and it's actually really fun to share it now, again, at this juncture where before I cared and now I think it's just part of the fun. So professionally at that time, I was ⁓ traveling the country as a personal development instructor. And I took my first class. And this is the part that I in the past have told TTers. I took my first class and it was this perfect.

Kimberly/terry (05:45)
Yeah.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (06:02)
intersection of physical intensity, was a yoga class, athleticism, heat, sweat challenge, and a lot of the topics and concepts that I had been sharing professionally as a speaker and personal development instructor. So immediately it was just like,

this is what I need to be doing. And then I, it was a class on a Friday. I signed up for teacher training that very next morning, that Saturday morning. I remember calling the studio 10 or 11 times till somebody answered. And I said, Hey, I was in there last night and I want to do this for the rest of my life. So that's how it started. was an intersection between my, all the parts that I love. And then ⁓ the newer addition to the story was that I was dating somebody who

Kimberly/terry (06:30)
Wow.

Mm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (06:50)
invited me to a class the week before and I was watching a Dodger game and I texted her like, yeah, I'll be right there. No fucking intention of going to some yoga class. I'm, I'm a real man. I was in, I didn't go. And then ⁓ she did not call or respond to a thing for an entire week.

Kimberly/terry (07:03)
Hahaha!

Anthony Chavez Yoga (07:10)
It wasn't until the very next week where it was roughly an hour before class and I was like, hey, second invite if you don't come lose my number forever. So I'm like, yeah, drove my behind over, took the class and then as they say, the rest is history and you know, she likes to take credit for

Kimberly/terry (07:18)
Wow, the ultimatum. Wow.

Hahaha

Anthony Chavez Yoga (07:31)
career. So.

Kimberly/terry (07:34)
could you share with us perhaps maybe an unforgettable moment from your teaching history? Maybe it's a goosebumps story or a hilarious mishap or just a time a participant changed your perspective. I'm sure you have many, but

Anthony Chavez Yoga (07:50)
Yeah.

The one that comes to mind is the one that has had the biggest effect on my life. And it's proposing to Nicole during a class that I was teaching.

I don't know if either one of you have heard this story before or not.

Kimberly/terry (08:10)
No. I don't think so. No.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (08:13)
So it was a class that I was gonna take and it was my mentor's class and she never misses class. And we had this whole thing set up because she knew that I was gonna be proposing. And what she basically faked like she was gonna be late so that I would have to step in and sub the class and Nicole and I were going together. So we showed up and I'm like, babe, it's wild. I'm gonna need to teach this class.

Kimberly/terry (08:37)
Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (08:44)
and I'm probably going to have to have you demo something for me." And she was so mad because the room was filled with a bunch of, you know, professional yoga practitioners who were all flexible and all that stuff. So she was like, why don't you ask one of the teachers here? Like, ask somebody else. Anyway, everybody knew about her. I think we had 80 people in that room. And ⁓ I call her up to come and demo Birds of Paradise. And she gives me this look of death.

Kimberly/terry (08:59)
Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (09:13)
She's like the side eye, because she's like, I told you not to call on me. Anyway, then I actually bring her up to the front of the room and I have live music that day. Somebody is singing and playing guitar. So she does birds of paradise. She comes back down. I'm behind her with the ring. I themed the class on defining moments. And I basically said something to the effect that like, this is a defining moment and you're my defining moment.

Kimberly/terry (09:14)
⁓ of all postures.

You

⁓ no.

You

Anthony Chavez Yoga (09:43)
Will you marry me? And then, yeah. So then we had a whole circle where my mentor did a rolling home and blessed the engagement. And it was awesome. And this is a part of why I will do this for the rest of my life. Because you just never know who you'll meet in that room.

Kimberly/terry (09:44)
Wow. That's beautiful. my gosh. Goosebumps. That's beautiful.

Mmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (10:07)
when I think about the friendships and the community and the camaraderie and all of the gifts of my life that have come from being inside of a group fitness room, it's unbelievable. Like in a separate conversation, it's funny, I was leading a training on Monday for somebody and I said, look at it, the product is not even the exercise. What we're selling, if you think about it,

is an empty hot room that sometimes smells funny and people are paying monthly for that. So I was like, we've got to take it off of that and look at what are we actually doing? We're creating experiences and building community and building lifelong friendships. We're teaching people how to be empowered, how to believe in themselves again, how to find catharsis. Like it's so much more. And if I just look back at what it's given me.

Kimberly/terry (10:46)
experience.

Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (11:00)
This is why I'll do this forever because of what it can provide for so many people. And the format for me doesn't even matter. Yoga, on a bike, dancing, jumping jack class, who, it doesn't matter.

Kimberly/terry (11:08)
Right.

Absolutely. Yeah. As long as that heart is in it, heart is in it, passion, right? We're just talking about it. That's fantastic. And so for you being in this industry for, for as long as you have and serving the, the, the amount of people that you had at the highest level so far, how do you stay inspired to continue teaching with passion and intention? How do you keep your, your, your cup full?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (11:24)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, it's a continuation of what I was just saying. It's staying really connected to my intention and to my why. I just believe and have seen it in thousands of people at this point, the impact that we can have while we're in that room. it, on a more serious note, it is a high responsibility because what we say in there, people do listen to, people will feel it. They're vulnerable. We're on a pedestal, deserved or not.

Kimberly/terry (11:49)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (12:13)
And there's a whole nother conversation that we can have about where people take advantage of it in the wrong way. But when you step into the fullness of the responsibility and you look at somebody's, you look at someone in the eyes and you say, Hey, I believe in you. You deserve better for your life, or you can have more, or you don't have to be this way anymore. People actually take it to heart and they change. And so that for me is, is the why that's what keeps me inspired in a

Kimberly/terry (12:16)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (12:41)
bigger, broader stroke, I believe that this is why I've been put on the planet, to help wake people up to what's possible for their life. And the delivery is sometimes one-on-one in a Zoom or in a boardroom and or in that sweaty, sometimes smelly room where we're all moving and breathing together with some badass jams. But that's what keeps me inspired. And if I pull some of my athletic, ⁓

background or not even that like inspiration. I'm gonna paraphrase this but Kobe Bryant was once asked about the number of games that some of the current professionals were sitting out and he said something to the effect of like I don't know who's there and if they've saved their entire life to be there to get that one moment of me like I'm gonna show up and give my heart and soul no matter what because it might be the only time that this little kid

Kimberly/terry (13:32)
Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (13:35)
will see me or this grownup who has saved for a year to come to the forum or the Staples Center. And I take that same type of approach every time I step into a yoga room or group fitness room or festival or anything. You just never know what people are showing up with. So when I say it's a responsibility, I mean that. Anyway, long as I answer your question, it's about holding that intention and that why close to my heart. And when I source from there,

there is an abundance of energy and I don't think it'll ever run out. It only runs out when I forget. And that happens too. And I'm sure you both can attest to it and you've been there. You've absolutely mailed classes in over 20 years of another chaturanga, but staying close to it keeps it nice and tight.

Kimberly/terry (14:26)
you know what I loved is when you said the word inspiration, I had a strong feeling we were either gonna hear something about Kobe Bryant or Bob Proctor. So I'm glad we heard about one of those. And I so appreciate what you said because I always think about that when I go into teaching no matter what I'm teaching, yoga, cycle, strength training, kickboxing, I look at those people and I'm like.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (14:26)
Got it.

Kimberly/terry (14:49)
I don't know what they did to get here. I mean, I don't know what they went through, what hoops they had to jump through, what they sacrificed, their to-do list, who they had to fight for a parking spot. You never know what they took just not only what they're going through in their lives in general, but just that day, that moment, what they went through to get in that room. And you have to honor that. Always. appreciate that you shared that. It's huge.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (14:52)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

I just keep that at forefront of my heart as much as possible. And know, some days are better. And as long as I'm connected to that, I have the inspiration. And then the second part of your question was, do I personally do? And it's staying connected to my practice and to the teachers who inspire

especially for younger people on this journey, it's to stay connected to the teachers who inspire you to keep practicing yourself. It's the first thing that I, as well as you have seen, teachers give up their own personal practice. And when I say practice, I'm not talking about yoga, it's just the things that.

Kimberly/terry (15:46)
Mm-hmm. Yep.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (15:52)
got them inspired to take the seat of the teacher in the first place. So it's to stay close to your teachers. It's to keep your teachers in your world. And then ⁓ the harder part, I think, is to not get callous or judgmental as you gain experience in this world. It's to stay curious. So those are things that help me.

Kimberly/terry (15:55)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (16:21)
you know, taking a brand new teacher's class in any format and really being curious and grateful that they would actually show up and be brave enough to do this. But on the other hand, I know when I find less inspiration, when I start to find, when I start to get flat, that's the first place I look at. And I'm like, I haven't taken a class in a week and a half. I should probably go do that. It's just pouring from the empty cup.

Kimberly/terry (16:30)
Mm-hmm.

Yeah, what I also know about you Yeah,

right what I also know about you from many many many moons ago and we talked about this a lot but the importance of always being a student first and one of the things I've always appreciated about you I never it just came up as a Facebook memory actually a picture of you taking my strike kickboxing class Yeah, and I'll never forget the day you jumped in there and you're swinging that bar around. I'm like I'm like

My yogi friend Anthony is taking my kickboxing classes as well. And that day, I don't know if you remember, but we had a conversation and you were talking about all these different, that's how I learned that you had studied like Bob Proctor and all these different personal development teachers and such. And I'm like, wow, I mean, the fact that you even beyond the yoga, which is something that we had shared in common, we had an interest in studying and being a student in all these other areas of personal growth and development and spirituality and different wisdom traditions. And you've always been.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (17:34)
Thank you.

Kimberly/terry (17:38)
such a lifelong learner in those areas. And I think the more people can realize that expanding into any area that you're passionate about and passionate learning about, it's going to help you be a better leader. And I think it's one of the things that catapults you to top of the top cream of the crop. Did I just seriously have a Dr. Seuss moment? sure did. Top of the top. Seuss all pop on pop. That's right. Wow. OK. But I do think that it speaks volumes. It does. I appreciate that.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (17:51)
Mm-hmm.

He did.

.

Thank you.

Kimberly/terry (18:08)
But that said, yeah, big time, still do. That being said, being a leader, being an instructor, doing what you do, it's not always easy. So what would you say in the role that you play, what has been your biggest challenge and how did you overcome it?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (18:10)
I love that we hold that in common.

⁓ I'll give you two answers. The inside answer, I don't know, they're just two answers. One of them is noticing that I'm getting older and our student base is not.

Kimberly/terry (18:43)
You're next.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (18:47)
or my student base at times, at times. So that was a challenge for a little bit. Just thinking about how do I stay relevant? How do I stay current? Am I too old for this? So like a lot of self doubt. That's the answer. was like for like a lot of like, am I still relevant to be doing this? And is actually a really cool learning moment because it's given me the opportunity to stay relevant, to stay current, to stay on top of things.

Kimberly/terry (18:47)
Yes. Yes. Sure.

Mmm. Yeah. Relevant. Yeah. Yeah.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (19:15)
in a lot of ways, it's keeping me energetically young and in the game. that, I remember that being a really big challenging moment. And I think it was when I, it was sometime in the 40s, I'll be 48 this year. think it was, know, 42, 43, 44. It was probably when this was like more white than black. And I'm like, ooh. And also, right, I've always been called somebody's yoga dad. And then when I noticed that,

Kimberly/terry (19:20)
Mm-hmm.

Now you're daddy.

Wait a minute. That took a turn. Listen, I hear it now too. I know what he's talking about and I don't have the mustache.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (19:45)
Yeah. Terry, what's up? Yeah.

No, but they I was like, ⁓ you're actually the age of my son. Like, actually, there's a 20 year age gap. Now this I'm like, Okay, this is cool. So how do I stay continue to share the wisdom that I've accumulated by doing everything wrong slash right over this 50 years on the planet and still make it

Kimberly/terry (20:03)
Sure, yeah.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (20:14)
land for a group that is outside of my generation. That was ⁓ a challenge that I've, I've like really embraced on on the back end. But I remember that, that that had me in a little bit of a choke hold for a minute. I'm like, Ooh, what am I doing? And then

Kimberly/terry (20:29)
That's a tight chokehold too.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (20:35)
This one just sucks, I don't know. You'll both get this. This is super recent. So I teach primarily vinyasa and I'll every now and then teach a sculpt, which is the yoga with weights. And I've recently had to start stretching before I teach. I'm like, ⁓ really? Yeah.

Kimberly/terry (20:39)
⁓

yeah. And after? And after too.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (21:01)
Because when I teach and I think both of you, you for the most part, I'm not doing, I'm walking around talking my shit, doing my thing. And I'm like, God, I gotta, I gotta fucking stretch before I do this now. Like I'm at a whole nother bracket of life. And I think it's hilarious because I do mobility. I'm in great shape, all that stuff. I'm like, I can't just go raw dog, that's sculpt class anymore. gotta, I gotta, I'm like, ⁓ yeah. So that's been a fun challenge.

Kimberly/terry (21:20)
Can't just go out there and wing it.

If

you have access to a power plate, we are both huge proponents. Every Tuesday, Thursday morning before he teaches his RIPPED, if I'm on the workout floor, I see him stretching on the power plate before he goes to teach. Before I do the warmup. Absolutely. Yes, I do the same thing. Absolutely.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (21:33)
Okay

before teaching. Yeah. So

youngins out there, don't take it for granted because you can be in the best shape ever and you're still gonna have to stretch before you put a microphone on and do nothing.

Kimberly/terry (21:49)
Wow

But here's the cool thing, Anthony,

is that you have embraced it and chosen to evolve. if that means I have to stretch before, during, after, next day. tonight? Whatever. I need to roll it out. Before I go to bed? Whatever I need to do, I'm gonna honor.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (22:05)
Mm-hmm.

Actually, I have

embraced it and I'm gonna be nerdy about it too, specifically when it comes to yoga, ⁓ right, without getting into a whole yoga conversation, the postures themselves are not that old. Like people have been playing baseball and driving forwards longer than we've been saying Starpost. So with that and with the way like I teach a modern dynamic vinyasa for the most part.

Kimberly/terry (22:18)
Nerd out.

Right. Yeah.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (22:38)
I will now have a lot of mobility style movements for hips and lower back. A lot of my programming inside of an asana class is designed to help mitigate injury for people outside of the room. And I think that's super cool. So my own practice has evolved in a lot of ways to take care of this thing. It looks different, but it's helping me, you know, as much as we're joking about stretching it before and after, it's just really helping me. I can also say this too with some...

Kimberly/terry (22:49)
Mm-hmm. Right. It's huge.

Mm-hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (23:07)
As a cautionary tale and with some pain in my heart that there is a big divide with people who are my age. Some of them, they're like us and we're out there living and running up and down mountains and chasing kids. And then there's other people who are exactly my age who are just really deconditioned and hurting. Yeah, and they can't enjoy their life or their children. And ⁓ so as much as we joke about having to stretch before we teach, it's super cool to be able to program that.

Kimberly/terry (23:23)
couching it up.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (23:36)
in and then to see it in real life where there's some people who are like, I should be grateful that I have to stretch before I teach sculpt.

Kimberly/terry (23:43)
Mm-hmm Exactly

absolutely and we always talk about the fact that we want to keep moving Throughout all these stages of life and if it comes to a point where we look at something we used to be able to do easily and And we could technically still do it now. We always have to follow it up with but what cost And then make a conscious choice right and you know what that's okay, yeah, that's okay

Anthony Chavez Yoga (23:52)
Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Yeah, it totally is.

One of my dreams that I will execute on is to be able to do an Iron Man with my youngest, with Jackson. He's six years old now. So 10-ish years from now, it would be really cool to run a big ultra endurance event side by side with him while I'm in my 60s. That would be super, that would be fun.

Kimberly/terry (24:17)
Hmm.

Mm-hmm.

And we cannot wait to have you both

both on the podcast when you both complete it. So that'll be awesome. That is I love love that you're looking ahead and future pacing like that. That ⁓ we got to envision it first, right? Speak it out and follow it up. It's going to happen. Absolutely.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (24:35)
That would be rad.

Mm-hmm. Everything begins with an intention. Look

around. Every single thing on this planet started with a thought, and then it was pen to paper, and then somebody made it. Mm-hmm.

Kimberly/terry (24:53)
For sure.

put into action. Absolutely.

No doubt. Well, good stuff. And from here, Anthony, you, you, you've led such a rich career, a rich life so far and let's kind of future pace. Like I was saying before, if we fast forward now 20 years beyond, you know, ⁓ that after you finished the, the, the iron man with your son, 20 years from now, what impact do you hope your group fitness career and your yoga career leaves behind? I mean,

Anthony Chavez Yoga (25:13)
Mm-hmm.

Kimberly/terry (25:26)
What do you hope that your participants will say about the experiences that you've provided?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (25:30)
Hmm.

Well, my wish is that people remembered who they were, that they remembered that they had everything they've ever needed right here and they went out and lived lives that were big and bold and free. Like that's really the wish. If that's what's on the tombstone, that would be cool.

Kimberly/terry (25:58)
that.

the privilege of a lifetime is to be who you are. And that is just one of my favorite quotes of all time. It's awesome. So good.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (26:03)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

That's

it though. Yeah, I love that perspective of it. That's another great way to say it. If people just remembered who they were and they went out and did that, that would be cool. And then the secondary one would be that people found their people as well.

Kimberly/terry (26:17)
Yeah.

Mm-hmm. Yeah, the connection. It's essential. Yeah.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (26:27)
Yeah.

And I think you two have been in the same boat too, but I've facilitated so many romantic relationships in that room and so many, you know, not all of them work out, but like also just groups of friends that they go on retreats together. They travel the world together. They're in each other's weddings. I think that would be a really cool secondary piece of the, of the hope of my career is that because we all got in a room and put our guard down.

Kimberly/terry (26:33)
Hahaha ⁓

Yeah, yeah.

Hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (26:57)
vulnerable enough to build lifelong relationships. That'd be like a part two of it.

Kimberly/terry (27:00)
Mm-hmm.

That's legacy. That's absolutely.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (27:04)
That's like us, you know? We've

been in each other's lives for a long time. And here we are.

Kimberly/terry (27:10)
We bit a

wee bit seems like yesterday though

Anthony Chavez Yoga (27:14)
It does.

Well, when I put you in a four minute plank, you don't soon forget.

Kimberly/terry (27:20)
Let's go. Nostalgia. And we can't talk legacy without bringing up prolific personal development. Right. Would you mind sharing a bit about that work that you do as well?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (27:23)
Mm-hmm.

Yes, yeah, so back to the beginning of my origin story, that was the work that I was doing prior to ever stepping into a group fitness room. And then the short, short arch of my career was that I've been able to put together my personal development and coaching work and group fitness and put them together into a career. So then fast forward in 2020 when everything got kooky.

I left the position that I was at and basically came back to day one and relaunched my coaching and speaking career. And I haven't, I haven't had a job since or haven't had a boss since. So, so the way that my life is structured now, it's, it's coaching, it's speaking, it's teaching trainers, it's helping different organizations, some small, some big.

Kimberly/terry (28:14)
Mmm. There we go. Good for you.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (28:28)
doing leadership development, culture development, and teacher development. And then prolific personal development is like the official speaking business, but it's so funny that you bring this up because just a couple of weeks ago, I'm thinking of bringing them all together because it really is. have people who I coach for who are in the financial services industry who will end up going on my yoga retreat. And then a yoga student who will hire me to go work with their company and build out their core values. So it's all...

Kimberly/terry (28:50)
Mm-hmm.

Yep.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (28:57)
the same, but that's it. Yeah, it is. It's just it's just all the same. There are just different entry points. But the birth of that company came when I stepped away from the position I had and said, OK, I'm essentially going all in on me and we're to build this. And it has been such an incredible ⁓ five and a half years of entrepreneurship. Yeah, I love it. It's a blast.

Kimberly/terry (28:58)
Interconnected. Yeah.

Sure.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm Yeah, changing lives

along the way for the better. It's nothing more. Nothing more fulfilling Not the easy path. No, not at all. We know from experience, but it is it is well worth taking and I love that have the logo on the wall behind you. Yeah It's cool. It's cool. So when you have you have an upcoming event You have a retreat that's coming up out in Monterey. Give us give us a scoop. How many are you doing a year? How can people connect with you as well?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (29:26)
Mm-hmm.

you

It's fun.

Yeah, okay, so the big things I have this year and ongoing, this year I have two yoga retreats, one in Tulum in September that I will be co-leading with my wife for the first time ever. So that's really special. She's been teaching for 12 years. So this is long overdue. And then I'm doing something fun and different that I've not done before. I'm doing an adult yoga summer camp here in Colorado.

Kimberly/terry (30:13)
⁓ sounds like fun. Wow.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (30:16)
Yeah, all

Kimberly/terry (30:16)
That's awesome.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (30:17)
of these yoga retreats, they're always at some fancy beach and it's like, yes, and I love that. And I said, you know what, let's go play in the mountains. Let's do adult yoga Summer we Camp So that's happening this July. And then ⁓ the one that I'm going on next week, that's more seminar work that is straight personal development. We do meditate, we do movement our bodies, but it's a deep dive into here. And that's a bigger thing. We have...

Kimberly/terry (30:20)
Right. Let's go camp.

Nice.

Mm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (30:44)
I 89, 89 attendees this year. Next year, we're probably gonna get it up to 150 and then we'll max out that property. that, it's probably a whole nother podcast. It is the center of how I operate my life. It's how it's what I learned there is, and what we create there is essentially the operating system for my life and how I parent, how I run my businesses. So it's huge.

Kimberly/terry (30:47)
Good for you.

Hmm.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (31:13)
Those three things are this year. And then the easiest way for people to hang out with me right now is through Instagram. I have my travel schedule there, all the cities I'm teaching in there. Plus that's the easiest way to get on my mailing list where you get all the details for everything fun.

Kimberly/terry (31:29)
And that is Anthony Chavez yoga, I believe, yes.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (31:34)
I have so many, I'm such a music geek. That was the hardest question that you sent me. I was like, no, I'm not gonna answer that shit. ⁓ Okay, so I've been a lot of Kendrick lately, a lot of Kendrick. I also have a playlist that is called The Closers and that's what some of the best closers in professional baseball run out in the field to.

Kimberly/terry (31:39)
But it's that one. Right? ⁓

Okay.

⁓ there we

go. ⁓ snap.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (32:02)
those songs have been firing me up, but they span

all decades from like Metallica to Bad Bunny. So yeah, but I would have to say over the last year, it's Kendrick Lamar.

Kimberly/terry (32:09)
Sir, sir. Wow, that's awesome. I like that.

All

right. All right. And do you have your closers playlist on on Spotify where people can grab it?

Anthony Chavez Yoga (32:20)
I do

my whole Spotify playlist is public. There's I think like over 500 playlists on there. So for students and teachers have at it.

Kimberly/terry (32:23)
All right.

⁓ snap. So there we go. And is it is

it under Anthony Chavez yoga as well? Okay. Perfect. Perfect.

Anthony Chavez Yoga (32:35)
Yes, yes. And yeah,

I don't know if we got cut off there. Easiest place to reach me is at Anthony Chavez Yogan Instagram, and then you can join my mailing list and that's where all the good things, you'll find out where all the good stuff is happening.