It’s a Sunday night in London and my WhatsApp is pinging. Then it pings again. And then again. And then again. Here are my new best friends who recently met at Heartcore’s first resort in St Tropez and are planning a reunion. Returning from the trip—four days and nights of vigorous Pilates and yoga, with petanque, pastries, and French pastis for much of the rest—I was rejuvenated. But while Pilates is unquestionably excellent, ( a few minutes a day plus an hour of yoga) I owe my relaxing vibe, bouncy body, and rosy complexion Because of the connections I’ve made with the Heartcore community – people I’ve never met before. From a young corporate lawyer from Ukraine, to a sustainability expert determined to change the world, to a female founder dedicated to helping large corporations find their way to meaningful inclusion, my mind was stimulated the most. I have opened up and heard others open up, but no one has ever mentioned the word “therapy”.
If you’re reading this, as a fully paying member of… Well, frankly, this kind of positive response does feel normal. But for me, a person who lives in extreme fear of being invited to stag nights, limits visiting guests to a maximum of three nights, struggles with villa holidays, can’t wait for people in a hotel lobby without feeling resentful at their lack of respect To be on time, let alone do any activity with exercise, is transformative in a way.
It doesn’t take much amateur psychology to attribute my fear and loathing to the fact that I was a middle five year old who had a miserable time at a convent boarding school for girls A couple of years, (always picked obviously, team sports at the end), but it also stemmed from the realization that large groups were not my thing for a number of reasons, as not liking hearing only the loudest voices way (even if their ideas aren’t the best), don’t like the way I try to be the loudest and funniest version of myself for the sake of competition, and finally, tragically don’t like how I don’t, well… louder , or more interestingly. The easiest thing to do is just not do it. But in this case, I have no choice. A retreat with a group of people I didn’t know seemed like the easiest way to change the exercise routine I’d gotten stuck in after a frozen shoulder. What’s better than a healthy diet, a bit of the South of France, and an amazing teacher doing Pilates?
I have to thank those – my retreat attendees – who realized this a long time ago. Retreats with other like-minded individuals, stretching muscles while being intellectually stimulating in each other’s company, the mind-body connection gained has grown into a movement in which expressing ideas and sharing stories has become a primary pursuit The “beauty” of the task. While health in general is booming, according to the Global Health Institute, the global health economy generated $4.4 trillion in revenue during 2030 and is projected to grow at an annual rate of 7.7 % until
, especially retreats that capture our imagination.
