Gentle Yoga and Meditation: Ditch Your Stress Weekend Retreat
Friday, June 26 – Sunday, June 28, 2020
Reconnect with yourself over this weekend retreat.
This weekend has a focus on mindfulness practices aimed at permanent stress reduction.
You’ve probably heard of the Fight, Flight or Freeze response to stressful events. Throughout the COVID19 pandemic this has been the predominant way people have been affected. In daily life this shows up in less dramatic ways than you may typically imagine. Freeze can show up as difficulty making decisions or procrastination. Flight can look like getting lost surfing Facebook or YouTube. Fight can look like yelling at the people you love, or being defensive and quick to argue. This weekend is a chance to invoke the Relaxation Response – the opposite of the stress response.
Emerge from the pandemic and take time just for you, lose some stress, feel more centered and able to deal with whatever life presents. Just being in the Sugar Ridge environment is a peaceful experience, but in the warmth of June we celebrate the songs of birds, colours of blossoming flowers and eating on the patio! Listen to the birds, the breeze, feel your heartbeat, your breath. Enjoy whole foods and nourish your soul at the same time.
Learn to better cope with the stresses of daily life and more fully experience life in the present, rather than getting caught up in worries about the future. Explore all aspects of yourself – what you eat, how you eat, how you feed your mind, and how you feel in your body. Cleanse and nourish your body with yummy organic vegan meals.
Come into physical balance with Yoga classes (socially distanced outside) that will flex your muscles as well as your mind and spirit. Create your resilient emotional balance with vipassana meditation. Celebrate the emergence of spring hiking the forest and enjoying fresh maple syrup.
Throughout the weekend you are invited to explore various forms of mindfulness meditations including sitting, walking and eating as well as mindful movement through gentle outdoor yoga and hiking.
No experience with yoga or meditation is necessary and this retreat is perfect
if you’re curious about it but not sure how to start or what to expect.
Everything during the retreat is completely optional. If you need to sleep in then skip the early morning yoga session. If a massage is the nurturing you need, we can book that for you. Allow this time to be the kindest gift you could ever give yourself and honour your needs.
SCHEDULE
Friday
3 – 4 pm arrive and settle into your cabin
4 – 5 pm welcome + retreat introduction
5:30 pm intro to mindful eating
6 pm dinner
7 pm movie – documentary about the stress cycle
8:30 pm Yoga Nidra (guided relaxation)
Saturday
7:30 am Yoga class – or sleep – do what you need!
9:00 am pancake breakfast
10:00 am hike the forest
12:30 pm lunch – yummy for your tummy!
1:30 pm group discussion: The science behind meditation – how does it help with stress?
3:00 pm free time – go climb a tree, have a nap or play outdoors!
4:00 pm free time or join a cooking class with Liz – we’ll discuss how diet influences stress while we cook
5:30 pm dinner
7:00 pm guided relaxation – yoga nidra
Sunday
7:30 am yoga class or sleep – do what you need!
9:00 am breakfast & free time
10:30 am walking meditation – inside or out, depending on weather
11:30 am group closing discussion
12:30 pm lunch – Mindful Eating
You are welcome to stay and enjoy the trails, the ambience & your new friends. Depart at your leisure.
This retreat is perfect for you even if you have physical limitations to movement, little or no meditation or yoga experience. Beginners will discover how to sit comfortably and experienced practitioners can deepen their practice. No need to sit on the floor if that’s not comfortable – chairs are always available.
Facilitators
Liz Frost M.A. Ed, RP, is a mindfulness coach, certified yoga teacher and Registered Psychotherapist (RP) in the Midland, Ontario area. She has studied with Jon Kabat-Zinn and Saki Santorelli of the Centre for Mindfulness, Norman Feldman, Lee Lesser and most recently with Shinzen Young.
Liz was introduced to meditation in the early 90’s and found yoga as a form of meditation. With a foundation in meditation and somatic based psychotherapy, she incorporates mindfulness into yoga practice. She is co-owner of Sugar Ridge and devotes her time and energy to making the world a more peaceful place.
Registration Details
$465 + HST shared accommodation, all meals, classes – up to 4 people share a cabin
$535 + HST semi-private accommodation, all meals, classes – 2 people share a cabin
$645 + HST private accommodation, all meals, classes – private cabin all to yourself
If you are attending the retreat on your own please select the private rate. If you are attending with others in your social or family circle and can share accommodation, please choose the pricing option appropriate for the number of people you register with.
In respecting the current gathering restrictions the group size is limited to 9 people. Yoga will be done outside, but meditation and guided relaxation will be in the studio – lots of space for social distancing.
To read more about what we’re doing for COVID precautions please have a look here.
Call for more information or to register 866-609-1793 or email [email protected]
Reconnect with yourself over this weekend retreat.
This weekend has a focus on mindfulness practices aimed at permanent stress reduction.
You’ve probably heard of the Fight, Flight or Freeze response to stressful events. Throughout the COVID19 pandemic this has been the predominant way people have been affected. In daily life this shows up in less dramatic ways than you may typically imagine. Freeze can show up as difficulty making decisions or procrastination. Flight can look like getting lost surfing Facebook or YouTube. Fight can look like yelling at the people you love, or being defensive and quick to argue. This weekend is a chance to invoke the Relaxation Response – the opposite of the stress response.
Emerge from the pandemic and take time just for you, lose some stress, feel more centered and able to deal with whatever life presents. Just being in the Sugar Ridge environment is a peaceful experience, but in the warmth of June we celebrate the songs of birds, colours of blossoming flowers and eating on the patio! Listen to the birds, the breeze, feel your heartbeat, your breath. Enjoy whole foods and nourish your soul at the same time.
Learn to better cope with the stresses of daily life and more fully experience life in the present, rather than getting caught up in worries about the future. Explore all aspects of yourself – what you eat, how you eat, how you feed your mind, and how you feel in your body. Cleanse and nourish your body with yummy organic vegan meals.
Come into physical balance with Yoga classes (socially distanced outside) that will flex your muscles as well as your mind and spirit. Create your resilient emotional balance with vipassana meditation. Celebrate the emergence of spring hiking the forest and enjoying fresh maple syrup.
Throughout the weekend you are invited to explore various forms of mindfulness meditations including sitting, walking and eating as well as mindful movement through gentle outdoor yoga and hiking.
No experience with yoga or meditation is necessary and this retreat is perfect
if you’re curious about it but not sure how to start or what to expect.
Everything during the retreat is completely optional. If you need to sleep in then skip the early morning yoga session. If a massage is the nurturing you need, we can book that for you. Allow this time to be the kindest gift you could ever give yourself and honour your needs.
SCHEDULE
Friday
3 – 4 pm arrive and settle into your cabin
4 – 5 pm welcome + retreat introduction
5:30 pm intro to mindful eating
6 pm dinner
7 pm movie – documentary about the stress cycle
8:30 pm Yoga Nidra (guided relaxation)
Saturday
7:30 am Yoga class – or sleep – do what you need!
9:00 am pancake breakfast
10:00 am hike the forest
12:30 pm lunch – yummy for your tummy!
1:30 pm group discussion: The science behind meditation – how does it help with stress?
3:00 pm free time – go climb a tree, have a nap or play outdoors!
4:00 pm free time or join a cooking class with Liz – we’ll discuss how diet influences stress while we cook
5:30 pm dinner
7:00 pm guided relaxation – yoga nidra
Sunday
7:30 am yoga class or sleep – do what you need!
9:00 am breakfast & free time
10:30 am walking meditation – inside or out, depending on weather
11:30 am group closing discussion
12:30 pm lunch – Mindful Eating
You are welcome to stay and enjoy the trails, the ambience & your new friends. Depart at your leisure.
This retreat is perfect for you even if you have physical limitations to movement, little or no meditation or yoga experience. Beginners will discover how to sit comfortably and experienced practitioners can deepen their practice. No need to sit on the floor if that’s not comfortable – chairs are always available.
