HELLO!'s Arianna Chatzidakis shares how a life coaching retreat taught her to quiet her busy brain
As someone who enjoys fitness and looking after my general wellbeing, I’ve always been a big fan of wellness retreats. I find they help me relax and reset.
So, when I embarked on the AliKats Summer Flourishing retreat in June, I expected to come away feeling rejuvenated. But what I didn’t anticipate, was just how impactful the trip would be for my personal growth and mindset.
Unlike traditional wellness retreats which mainly focus on a timetable of activities such as hiking, spa treatments, nutrition lessons and fitness activities, the AliKats retreat took a unique approach, combining wellness, mindfulness, and life coaching.
This retreat was a four-night trip led by Caitlin Cockerton, a professional life and leadership coach, founder of Great Heights Pathways, and our retreat facilitator. But my experience began before I even touched down at the beautiful AliKats’ Ferme À Jules flagship chalet in the French Alps.
My first port of call was an introductory video chat with Caitlin, where we set out my intentions for the retreat, discussing what was important to me and areas of my life that I’d like to develop.
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Setting intentions was something I had never done at previous wellness retreats I’d embarked on, and encouraged me to fully commit and surrender myself to whatever Caitlin had in store for me...
What happened on the retreat
I travelled alone to the retreat, but there were six other guests in the group – strangers who immediately made me feel comfortable and at ease.
Our itinerary was made up of primarily group activities, consisting of exhilarating daily guided mountain or forest hikes, a yoga or qi gong session, wild swimming and life coaching tasks. We also got some downtime, where we could make use of the chalet’s hot tub and sauna.
We would start each day with a locally sourced, vegetarian breakfast whipped up by the incredible AliKats team, who also prepared an energy-boosting lunch and snack box for our daily walks.
The unspoilt nature in Morzine was spectacular, and just being amongst it immediately made me feel calmer. Caitlin accompanied us on each hike and would often pair me up with other members of the group to discuss thought-provoking topics as part of our personal development work.
Walking and talking about aligning our inner values and external goals, whilst being surrounded by nature, was a very simple, but impactful experience.
Some hikes were physically harder than others, but each just a fulfilling, as we spent time fostering connections with ourselves, each other, and nature. On our walks, we would often stop to forage wild strawberries (a skill we learnt after our foraging lesson with an AliKats chef).
Every evening was a gourmet delight. The plant-based produce we ate was keeping in harmony with the seasons, with everything locally sourced or homegrown – like wild garlic soup and vegetable pakoras. On our last night, we were treated to a phenomenal seven-course meal, awakening our tastebuds.
We were also provided with ‘Wild Guides’ which detailed all the wholesome ingredients the kitchen is accustomed to working with, and I came to learn that nettle is an underrated yet delicious ingredient that can be used in a variety of dishes – even tea!
What did life coaching teach me?
This life-coaching retreat taught me some important life tools that I’ve taken forward with me now that I'm back.
During our one-to-one session on our final hike, Caitlin and I discussed my personal strengths, values and potential areas for growth, and we set some intentions for my future.
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This was followed up by a two-hour post-retreat coaching session where Caitlin checked in on my progress. She also recommended that I share my intentions with someone in my life who can hold me accountable for seeing them through – another simple but effective suggestion.
One tool I learnt that I found very helpful can be implemented by anyone, anywhere. One of our life coaching tasks was to hone in on our senses, one at a time, when we were embarking on one of our hikes: listening to the water trickling down a nearby river; noticing the varying shades of greens on passing leaves; smelling fresh air and damp soil.
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This act of mindfulness, I realised, taught me to quieten the chatter in my mind and to re-focus on one thing at a time. It’s an easy tool that you can try in your day-to-day life, and it's something I was keen to incorporate into mine on my return to normality.
I also realised that something so simple as being amongst nature, even for a few minutes a day, really did make me feel happier. Now, I try and go for a daily walk after work at my local park, leaving my phone at home (something that Caitlin recommended we did during the retreat) to reflect on the day.
Putting myself outside of my comfort zone – which I did on a few occasions of this trip, such as during our wild swimming sessions – was an act that left me feeling proud and happier within myself, knowing that I was capable of pushing my boundaries.
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Finally, listening to, and learning from the other group members on the retreat was super insightful, and I came away with a changed perspective on what happiness and success means, more clarity on what things bring me joy and a renewed sense of energy to do more of those things.
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