Why I am obsessed with Yoga Retreats (even though running them is my job!)

I have a confession. I am obsessed with yoga retreats.

Yes, I run them for a living, so you may think that after spending so much time at retreats, I'm tired of them and, after 5 years of running a retreat business, am over the concept.

Oh no, my friend, that's far from reality...

Think I'm crazy and wondering why? Well, here you go....

I've just come back from a blissful week at a yoga retreat, this time as a guest, not a host. 

Why is she spending her free time at a yoga retreat when it's literally her job to run them, I hear you ask...

Well there's no other way around it, I am OBSESSED with yoga retreats and want to spend as much time at them as I can. 

While attending a retreat on the same island that I host them may sound a bit crazy to you, I wanted to experience for myself what our guests do. And my goodness, I did not regret it, everything was dreamy, and I relished soaking up each and every moment. 

Did I go on a retreat to spy on the competition or get ideas on how to make our retreats better? Absolutely not, actually, I barely thought about our retreats the whole week I was there. 

Hanging out in a paradise location with a beautiful community of fellow yogis while being served delicious, creatively designed, nourishing food was a dream come true, and I returned feeling inspired in my yoga practice and grateful for life. 

I have only been on a few yoga retreats as a guest before, it's been a while, and I'd forgotten what it's like to be on the other side...usually I'm running around thinking about a million things at once, in organisation mode. I completely forgot it's possible to relax in a retreat setting hehe.

If you've never been on a yoga retreat before and are curious about what they entail, here are a few of the reasons I am so totally in love with the yoga retreat concept: 

Community vibes 

I spent a couple of years living in community, while I was a live-in yoga teacher at many hostels, hotels, and colivings around the world, and while sharing space with lots of others long-term can have its challenges, the pros far outweigh the cons.

Even if you aren't an overly sociable person and need your alone time, there's something to be said about sharing meals and conversations with a group of inspiring people. 

On the second night at this retreat, one of the other guests said to me, "It's meeting people like these that reminds me there's so much good in the world." And I was like YES. That's it, that's why these spaces are so special. Strangers coming together from all walks of life with different stories to share, who simply want to embrace human connection.

So while the world's media tries to make us believe that the world is only full of poison and hate, gathering with a bunch of strangers with similar values makes you realise that at the end of the day, we're all just human and want the same things from life; especially connection, meaning, love and safety.  

Another thing to be said about this particular retreat was how inspiring the participants were; they were all making their own rules, following their own paths, and living on their terms, and I loved that. I was one of the younger participants on the retreat, and seeing people who were a couple of decades older than me killing it in their asana practice, showing me how it's done, and sharing their wisdom was nothing short of inspiring. 

Being cooked for

One of our favourite returning guests always says at our retreats, "If I were rich, I'd hire a chef who cooks for me like this every day". And she's right.

Having someone take away the mental load of planning, shopping for, and preparing nourishing, delicious meals should not be underestimated. We ate like royalty at this retreat, and I've been dreaming about the food every day since 🤤

The meals were balanced, creative, and delicious and we were all mind-blown by the love and attention to detail that had gone into every creation.

From homemade tacos with the most decadent fillings to dehydrated banana rolls, homemade chai, fresh juices, turmeric granola, vegan tiramisu, and freshly baked vegan cinnamon buns, we were nourished and spoiled with healthy sweet treats, and I loved every minute of it. Drooling just writing about this!

Going deep into yoga

I have a very consistent yoga practice, with some sort of asana, pranayama or meditation finding its way into most of my days, but I never take several hours at once to practice. This is the beauty of a retreat, you have tiiiiime for your practice. 

Time to learn, time to question, time to practice, and not worry about needing to rush off somewhere or the need to think about your day's to-do list. 

You learn things that you'd never get to grips with in a standard 75-minute yoga class at a studio.

I loved being able to spend three hours practicing every morning and enjoying the most divine shavasana with music and singing bowls, taking me to another dimension. 

Stopping time

The leader of this retreat always says, "To practice yoga is to stop time," and I love this concept. When you get into the flow of your practice, you have no idea how much time has passed or what the time is.

A retreat is a chance to slow down, stop time together as a group, and soak up every single moment without distraction. You have nowhere else to be apart from at your retreat, in the present, and this is such a refreshing luxury. 

Self-reflection 

On the point about slowing down, going on a yoga retreat is an amazing opportunity to reflect. 

People will give you new ideas, you will have time to look deep into your mind and write down what you're really thinking. Without distraction. With such an intense daily practice, of course things will come up.

You have the chance to reflect on them, "Why did this trigger me?" "What was it about the way that person behaved that upset me?", and you'll come out the other side feeling so much better from that reflection.  

The luxury of time gives you a chance to think about what it is you reeeeally want and how you're going to go about getting it, and I love that. 

Even though I had my baby with me on this retreat, I had the time to sit down and think thanks to everything else being taken care of and not having anywhere else to be.

On this retreat, it kept coming up that I need to put myself out there more if I want things to go my way. Things won't just fall into my lap, and I need to make more effort to reach for the things I want and to grow as a yoga teacher.

Stepping away from the everyday 

We all have habits, some good, some not so great. I find myself slipping into some bad habits when I'm living my day-to-day life - overeating, staying up too late, spending too much time staring at my phone, you know the drill. 

Having the chance to step out of your familiar routine and out of your comfort zone is an amazing way to reassess what's important, giving you a chance to pause and press reset.

I came back from this retreat feeling energized and inspired to be more disciplined around my bad habits. 

Spending time in nature 

Most retreat settings are beautiful, I mean it wouldn't be called a retreat if you weren't retreating from the real world to somewhere extraordinary.

This time, I was lucky enough to retreat to Finca Naranjas in Tenerife, which is the most stunning location built from natural materials and perfectly integrated into the plants and trees surrounding it. I loved waking up every day and seeing cacti and palm trees from my window. 

I could spend a lifetime retreating in the forest or up the mountain, being connected to the source, Mother Nature. The natural world holds so much wisdom and knowledge, and can teach us so much about life. We so often take it for granted, which is why going on a retreat in nature is such an amazing opportunity to reconnect with our roots. 

The end of my ramble on yoga retreats

Ok, so I just wanted to get down on paper (well screen) all the reasons I blooming love retreats so much while it was still fresh in my mind. Caveat..I wrote this back in April when I had just finished the retreat, and now it's June, and I can't tell you where the time went. 

I would love to tell you I was meditating and connecting deeply with nature, but alas, I was doing boring day-to-day stuff like feeding my family and paying bills. 

Now I'm back in my role of retreat host, and it's such a privilege to provide our guests with an experience like the one I had in March, and doing so brings me so much joy. 

I would love to host you at one of our retreats in Tenerife, so why not join us in November? Spoiler...it will be at Finca Naranjas where I had the beautiful experience I just shared with you.

I hope we get the opportunity to stop time together and experience a little slice of retreat magic. ✨