Last summer, I was hosted for a wellness retreat in Austin, Texas. I was able to completely customize the activities I was interested in and the hosts worked with me to create an activity schedule and menu based off of my preferences. I didn’t originally plan to make a blog post but wanted to document and share this experience. I also want to add that these are not my best photos and I casually took them all with my iPhone!
~The Hosts
Meet Brittany, Bridget, Connor, and Ilya.
I have been watching Connor and Brittany's Youtube channels and have been a member of their website for years. They primarily focus on coaching and creating content centered around subjects such as living a minimalist lifestyle, polyamory, sex education, creating authentic relationships, acrobatics, natural health and alternative parenting. I was introduced to Bridgette through their social media. Bridgette is a badass holistic health practitioner who specializes in nutritional therapy, healthy hormones, adrenal fatigue, stress and self care.
Learn more about them here!
✨All the details✨
~ Accommodations 🏡
A private minimalist room with shared common spaces. Inside the room were the best goodies to play with during my alone time and included tarot cards, books, essential oils, an acupressure mat, a heating mat and a written retreat guide.
~ Activities 🏊🏼♀️
Since we are all big movement enthusiasts, we often started the morning with yoga, deadlifts, rings, box jumps, pull-ups, yoga and handstand training. I was pretty new to most of those moves but Bridgette and Brittany guided me through. Adventure wise, we hiked, climbed a treehouse, swam in the spring and creek, took a walk to view the sunrise in the meadow, and even saw some deer.
~ Coaching 🥗🤰🏻
My first coaching session was with Bridgette. After chatting about my dietary habits and preferences, Bridgette designed a nutritional eating plan that was aligned with my goals. She even put all the information into a presentation and emailed it to me in a PDF. This was so handy because I screenshot it on my phone for super easy access. I still use it to this day.
My second coaching session was with Brittany and we had our session outside on a blanket in the sunshine. Brittany has a lot of online content and a podcast going into depth about her natural pregnancy and at-home freebirth of Illya. If that interests you at all, I highly suggest you educate yourself on your options. That appeals to me greatly so I really enjoyed getting to pick her brain, run my concerns by her and learn about the process from someone who had also done her research, had experience ‘doing the thing’ and didn’t mind me asking her ‘TMI’ questions. I felt really at peace and excited to embark on that journey after our chat.
~ Massage & Meditation 🧘🏽♀️
In their family, they take turns giving and receiving massages and they included me in this routine. Each one of them gave a me a massage for 20 minutes totaling a full 1-hour massage. It was heaven!
For mindfulness activities, we did breathwork exercises (new to me and powerful) and Conor narrated a guided meditation that was so profound I fell asleep!
~The Food 🥑
If I am doing well, I prefer a mostly raw whole foods plant-based diet, so the menu reflected that. I had so much fun learning and trying new recipes. The menu included veggie spring rolls, raw raspberry cheesecake, herbal coffee, natural Gatorade, mamey sapote banana nice cream, big berry smoothie bowls with all the toppings, a tropical smoothie bowl, cauliflower crust pizza with salad, date balls, and banana date cinnamon rolls. I want to give them such a big thank you for making all these amazing meals and drinks for me.
I had a blast doing all my favorite things with some truly badass and inspirational beings. I have some pretty alternative interests and ways of daily life, so it was so nice to be around like-minded individuals. It’s so fun to collaborate, learn from others and see how others are cooking their food, playing, adventuring, even parenting. I can’t wait to see them again!