A home-based retreat
As the end of the year approached I felt the need to take some time to rest, both physically and mentally, to reflect on where I was and how I’d come to be there, and to centre myself for the year ahead. I’d managed to schedule just over two weeks without client appointments, but still had a significant amount of business development, administration and programming to do in preparation for the new year. I’d wistfully searched the Internet for retreats, and getaways, but knew that travel just wasn’t a possibility for me at this time. So, amongst the craziness of Christmas and New Year, and ongoing demands of small-business, I carved out a day for a home-based retreat.
I will preface this by saying that I do not see myself as a spiritual person, I’m not an avid yoga practitioner or proponent of a particular religion. I do see value in learning from people and groups who see the world differently to myself, and choosing the parts that resonate for me. I hope you can take a similar approach when reading this post.
In preparation I had planned out an agenda for my day, not to be dogmatic or prescriptive, but to alleviate the need for decision making while on retreat. I’d identified some podcast episodes that I wanted to listen to, and guided meditations to follow. I’d planned my meals for the day, shopped and prepared what I needed, so they just needed to be plated and eaten. I’d let those close to me know that I would not be available on the day, so that I wouldn’t be faced with conflicting demands, or guilt over not replying to calls or messages.
On the morning of my retreat I woke without an alarm allowing a calm start to the day in response to my body. After rising I dragged on some sweatpants and a t-shirt and went for a short walk around the neighbourhood without sunglasses, allowing the early light to act as a zeitgeber, supporting my circadian rhythm. I intentionally walked without music, focussing instead on the sounds, smells and sensations around me. I noticed how my body was moving, the tightness in my right hip and shoulder, the slight irregularity in my step.
On my return 30 minutes later I was ready for breakfast, my usual protein smoothie. I showered and dressed, and then settled in for my first guided meditation for the day, a short YouTube offering by Michelle Chalfant. I found it hard to drop in and engage with this, but it still brought up some interesting thoughts that I spent time journalling about afterwards.
I then did some meditation while listening to solfeggio frequencies, however, this resulted in me falling asleep. While rest was on the agenda, this wasn’t really what I was hoping for. So, I did some gentle movement and balance exercises for around 15 minutes, before watching an episode of Jack Kornfield’s Buddhist podcast, Heart Wisdom. I found this surprisingly interesting and journalled for quite some time in response to this, and it actually brought up my key takeaway from the day – “water the seeds of goodness”.
Lunch was a chia pudding with fruit and nuts which I ate mindfully, no scrolling, television or music, just focussing on the flavours, texture and sensations of the food. I then popped in my earphones and went out for a longer, faster walk around my neighbourhood hills, to improve my blood glucose regulation and avoid an afternoon slump. On returning home I then spent half an hour sweeping my back courtyard, another exercise in mindfulness, being present with a seemingly mundane task.
It was then time for another guided meditation, followed some silent meditation as I focussed on who I wanted to be. I then journalled on this, and updated my goals for 2025. Some dynamic stretching exercises followed, before eating dinner – poached chicken with leafy greens, tomatoes and a Mediterranean lentil salad. Post meal walking again, but this time barefoot on grass at the local oval, a grounding practice known to reduce stress, and to strengthen the intrinsic muscles of the foot.
I finished off the day with a longer shower, and my usual pre-sleep routine. I had planned a bath, but it was a warm day, and a cool bath just wasn’t that appealing. I gave myself a foot massage (there was a fair amount of walking today!) before journalling about my experience of the day and settling down to sleep.
Overall, it was a quiet day, having not spoken aloud, avoiding social media, television and the Internet, with the exception of my pre-planned podcasts and meditations. There were moments when I had wanted to reach out and message a friend, but I didn’t and had instead sat with my own thoughts. There was a strong sense of calmness, and although I quite frequently had to consciously redirect my thoughts away from work or other things I had to do. I’d started noting these things down on a list, so that I didn’t keep holding them in my mind and could attend to them later. I thought about booking in for a massage, or visiting a pool but I had decided that I didn’t want to drive anywhere, and that making my retreat very much home based was my goal.
I feel more centred and more at peace with myself. I slept soundly for over 10 hours the night following. I have spent much less time mindlessly scrolling and have included more movement in my day. No, it wasn’t life changing, but it was the reset I was hoping for. You might find other activities or materials more to your taste. As a personal trainer I find self-directed movement comes easily to me, so you may prefer an online yoga or exercise class. If you have children, maybe a whole day to yourself isn’t realistic, and an afternoon maybe more achievable. But I hope this inspires you to look at ways in which you too can create a home-based retreat.