While many people wish they could go on a week or two-long yoga retreat to Costa Rica, Mexico or Thailand, it isn’t always in the budget, financially or time-wise. Enter single-day yoga retreats! One day retreats offer the benefit of real rest and relaxation—maximum benefit for minimum investment. Of course, participants will have to be ready to lean in and tune out to get into the flow of the day. These retreats include offerings such as in person yoga classes, meditation sessions, pose workshops, and lots of sharing and fellowship. Single-day yoga retreats also sometimes include cacao ceremonies, music/kirtan and sound bath sessions which help participants to fully immerse in the experience. Such retreats may be run by yoga studios or popular teachers who collaborate to make the activities varied and all lend their expertise.
I’ll elaborate on some of the concepts above for those who are not familiar. Think of cacao as an enhanced cocoa. Unlike coffee, which contains a high-concentration of caffeine that stimulates the nervous system and can make you jittery, ceremonial cacao contains theobromine and can give you the feeling of a warm and uplifting “hum”. Theobromine, which translates to “food of the gods”. Cacao also contains tryptophan, which makes people feel calm and relaxed. It is no more of a “drug” than coffee and is much gentler on the system.
Kirtan is derived from the Sanskrit root meaning to call, recite, praise, or glorify. Modern kirtan often does not include a specific denominational praise, but is a general call to higher power and rejoicing. Modes of expression may include poetry, dance, call and response singing with or without instruments such as a harmonium or guitar.
In a sound bath, participants passively “soak in” the benefits of sound. Participants are immersed in the vibrations of, for example, gongs, rain sticks, crystal bowls and bells while lying comfortably on mats and blankets.
All in all, one day retreats are the ultimate getaway right in your own neighborhood or town and you will feel rested and rejuvenated as if you had travelled the distance to a remote location.
Lisa Terenzio is a Health Coach and Yoga Therapist teaching at Niantic Yoga Studio and by appointment. One-day retreats will be announced on https://lisaterenzioyoga.
