Nourish and Flourish! Short yoga retreat in Nepal
Feel fabulous, look fabulous and think fabulously!
Taught by: Nutritional chef Nicola Orr with Annie Seymour teaching yoga
Location: Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Pharping, Nepal
Cost: USD $295
Join us for three days to feel fabulous, look fabulous and think fabulously! We’re holding a Nourish & Flourish 3-day retreat, hosted in a stunning Tibetan Buddhist Monastery. It is packed with tips for a happy healthy lifestyle, with cooking demos (chocolate balls, banana ice cream, smoothies – we’re about vitality, not diets :-)), vinyasa flow yoga, mindfulness practices, and in a setting to make your spirit soar.
The physical practices of yoga can make you feel great. By moving your body in mindful ways and in synchrony with your breath, the postures experienced on your mat can make us more compassionate, kinder and happier with ourselves and with others around us. And the way that we nourish our bodies can enhance – or undo – that.
The health of our body, influenced by the movements we make and the way that we take care of it, has an enormous impact on our minds, and through this on our relationships, outlook and decisions. For all the work that we do to shape our lives, we are under tremendous influence of the food that we eat, the food that we don’t eat, and the way that we use this body that houses us.
This very special retreat is a chance to explore how yoga and nutrition can help us to become more centred and balanced, so that the way we live our lives can improve the way we experience our lives. And with guided meditations and mindfulness practices, set in the extraordinary location of a Tibetan Buddhist monastery nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, we take time to tune in to the heart of you, and learn how the daily choices we make can help us to live more truly and more in harmony with our Self.
Mindful nourishment
Many of us know that our diet can help us to experience more balance and harmony in our lives, but it can be hard to know how. And even when we have the information, it can be hard to integrate it as a practical – or appealing – reality in our lifestyles. Sometimes we don’t even realise we are out of balance until something big happens and makes us stop and take stock.
Topics will include:
- the food groups and what balance in these means
- what different vitamins and minerals do and how to include them in your diet
- identifying foods that harm and heal
- how we can eat healthily in a busy on-the-go lifestyle and be more conscious about our cravings
- how our diet affects our emotions and our emotions affects our diet
- how we can develop habits that create a more pleasurable, healthy balance
Putting the theory into practice, we will enjoy delicious, nutritious and varied meals throughout the retreat (a substantial brunch and mouth-watering dinner, with time to try healthy afternoon treats). Note that this retreat is not about diets or detox! Here we learn to enjoy real food and a healthy, life-enhancing relationship with what we eat.
We will also try our hand at preparing some dishes which you can easily enjoy back home – including muffins and seed-bread full-of-goodness (but no gluten!), raw desserts and no-fuss superfood snacks like beetroot hummus and chickpea crunchies.
Energising movement
Each morning will begin with joyful and dynamic Vinyasa Flow yoga, a time to get into our bodies, to celebrate them, and to use movement with breath to enhance how we experience ourselves.
The retreat will also look at the relationship between the physical practices and the mind, and give you the space and time to experience how the suppleness and openness of the body can create a softness and joyfulness in our hearts and attitudes.
Calming contemplation
We will include guided meditations – both seated and walking, to give you space and time to get away from your mind and into your Self.
There will also be time for you to relax, rest, connect with yourself and the surroundings. If the weather and time supports us, we will take a walk through the paddies to enjoy our great foods in a picnic near the extraordinary caves of Guru Rinpoche’s enlightenment.
The teachers
Nutritional chef: Nicola Orr
Having begun her career as a microbiologist, Nic realised that her true path was in sharing her greatest passions: food and yoga. With a huge calling to see the world, she used her skills to work around the world, discovering new ingredients, recipes, techniques and nutritional ideas on her journey. Consolidating this on her return with an intensive year in culinary school, she then became the chef for the Quiksilver surf team, where she was introduced to ‘clean’ eating, gluten free and dairy free – which rocked her world. Since then, she has specialised in clients requiring specialist nutrition and complex diets, and has loved developing delicious new recipes for healthy wholefood living. Her passion for the benefits of this style of eating led her to study nutritional medicine, and to share her knowledge to empower others with the joys of choosing real food which nourishes the mind, body and soul.
Yoga asana and philosophy: Annie Seymour
A warm, passionate and joyful teacher, Annie seeks to create a practice environment where each student feels safe, welcome, and free to release and explore. Her hands-on teaching of Vinyasa Flow builds strength, stamina and flexibility, with integrated philosophy to ground the physical practice into the wider Yoga tradition of mindfulness, compassion, intelligence and love. Together we will enjoy daily morning practice as the sun rises over the Himalayas, with themed yoga philosophy sessions and gentle restorative stretches throughout the retreat. For Annie’s background and full bio, click the link at the bottom of the page.
The venue
For Tibetan Buddhists, the hills of Pharping where we immerse for our training is considered as sacred as Bodhgaya in India, as it is where is where the second buddha Guru Padmasambhava (“Guru Rinpoche”) attained the state of enlightenment, before going on to establish Buddhism in Tibet.
The monastery which is our home during the retreat makes important contributions to the preservation and sharing of the Buddhist teachings, and our stay there helps to fund education for the many young monks from remote areas of Nepal. The lovely guesthouse in the monastery grounds has spacious and modern rooms, comfortable beds for deep and refreshing sleeps, all with contemporary attached bathrooms and hot showers (and many with balconies). The yoga space overlooks the rice paddies of the Kathmandu valley, and – when the weather is clear – gives us stunning views of the sunrise over the Himalayas.
It is the perfect place to go within and study.
Practicalities
Follow the link below to book your place, or email us with an enquiry.
Cost per person: USD $295 all inclusive. Payment and deposit information will be sent with your joining details on receiving your booking.
The cost includes all retreat teachings, transport to and from the monastery from Kathmandu, 2 nights of twin share accommodation in the delightful guest house in the monastery grounds, full board of delicious vegetarian meals, use of mats (although you are welcome to bring your own) and of the kitchen equipment and ingredients for the cooking session, guided walk to the caves.
If you are participating alone, we will match you with a lovely fellow (same-sex) student for the twin share accommodation. For those preferring their own room, there is an additional single supplement of $60.
We will depart from our meeting point near Thamel (Kathmandu) at 9.30am on Friday 6 November, and return on Sunday 8 November, arriving into Kathmandu around 7pm.
