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Yoga holiday or yoga weekend
Are you looking for a yoga holiday or weekend? On Puurenkuur yoga retreats (or meditation retreats with yoga classes and yoga exercises) you’ll always be under the supervision of professional yoga instructors. Are you wanting to recharge, exercise your body and relax on a yoga weekend in the Netherlands? Or are you in search of spiritual retreats or yoga holidays in Europe or Asia? Whatever it is you’re looking for, Puurenkuur offers the best and most diverse portfolio of health and wellness resorts and spa hotels with daily and varied yoga classes and yoga workshops suitable for beginners and experienced students alike. We also have our own unique group yoga retreats at stunning resorts, in and among nature or by the sea.
Click here to see our schedule Retreats per month.Treat yourself once there with a range of wellness treatments. A yoga wellness retreat is perfect for relaxing and recharging.
Yoga retreats for beginners and experienced students
Yoga retreats are suitable for all! Experience is not necessary; nor is flexibility a requisite. Flexibility is not an objective of yoga in and of itself. Rather, it is a welcome side effect of yoga practice. Classes and workshops are suitable for both beginners and experienced yogis.
Yoga retreats in the Netherlands, Europe and Asia
Choose a yoga and Pilates retreat that suits you: intimate or large-scale, luxury or back-to-basics; far-flung to somewhere like Thailand or India, or closer to home in Spain or Portugal, for instance? Puurenkuur offers yoga retreats to the above destinations and many more in the Netherlands, Europe and Asia. The Puurenkuur wellness specialists would be delighted to help you find your perfect yoga retreat or wellness holiday. Puurenkuur offers the best and largest selection of spa hotels, health and wellness resorts worldwide.
What is yoga? Physical exercise or spiritual practice
To some, yoga is a form of exercise, while to others it is a spiritual journey. Both perspectives are completely valid. According to the roots of yoga, yoga was originally more than physical exercise. It is an ancient Indian philosophy, used to balance the body and mind and thus connect with something ‘higher’. The physical postures were merely one part of this philosophy. Proper behaviour, meditation, healthy habits and breath techniques were just as important. In the Western world, we perceive yoga as exercises on a mat. Whether you interpret yoga as pure exercise or as a spiritual practice is unimportant. Its therapeutic effects remain. Concentrating on the breath as you assume the various poses leads to a meditative state whereby everyday thoughts and feelings are diminished or even banished. Doing yoga creates mental relaxation through physical exertion.
The benefits of yoga
A regular yoga practice will help improve respiration, increase concentration levels and lead to a more supple body. It helps you relax – even in stressful situations – and leaves you feeling fitter and more energised.
Which style of yoga will suit me best?
Much like fitness, ballet or football, belong under the umbrella 'sport', 'yoga' encompasses many different varieties. The best style for you is mainly a question of how dynamic you would like the class to be.
Discover which styles are for you, here.
Hatha yoga
Hatha yoga is the best known style of yoga. This classical, calm style consists of standing, sitting and lying poses (asana). Breathwork (pranayama) plays a central role in this. Thanks to its focus on the breath, hatha yoga has a meditative quality, though some of the poses can be quite intense, especially if held for longer periods. Hatha yoga is the best known style of yoga in het West, and many other styles derive from it.
Iyengar yoga
Iyengar yoga focuses on executing the poses with as much precision as possible. A mixture of props such as blocks, bolsters and straps are used to help achieve the right alignment.
Power yoga / Vinyasa yoga
If you’re looking for dynamism, then power yoga (speaks for itself!) or vinyasa is the yoga for you. This style of yoga is often taught with music, and the poses flow from one to the next, fluidly.
Bikram yoga or hot flow yoga
Bikram yoga or hot flow yoga is physically demanding in a different way, as standing and lying poses are performed in a warm, humid room heated to between 34 and 40 degrees Celsius. The heat makes the body more pliable, making it easier to do the poses. But the temperature also makes you sweat a lot. This simultaneously detoxifies the body.
Kundalini yoga
Kundalini yoga uses intensive movement to stoke energy. The powerful ‘breath of fire’ (whereby the navel is drawn strongly inwards) is very important in this practice.
Yin yoga
Yin yoga is a very relaxed form of yoga. Instead of working to strengthen the muscles, it seeks to relax them. The opening poses are held for extended periods, sometimes using bolsters and blocks. The poses affect connective tissue and stimulate the meridians and organs.
Read this if you think you can’t do yoga
Yoga is for all: for beginners, people with injuries and those with limited strength or flexibility. Do any of the below reasons for not doing yoga apply to you?
1. I’m too rigid for yoga
Worried you aren’t flexible enough? Rest assured. Flexibility is not an objective of yoga in and of itself. Rather, it is a welcome side effect of yoga practice. It’s about doing whatever is possible for you. If this means that your hands don’t reach the ground in a forward fold, that’s totally OK. Yoga isn’t about how far you can go, but about discovering your own limitations – and everyone’s will be different. Besides, you’ll soon notice that, as soon as you accept your limitations, you’ll progress that little bit more. Those who regularly practise yoga will notice their bodies become or stay supple.
2. Yoga is hippy
Hippy, too slow, too intense, woolly: there are many different opinions on yoga. But those who practise it regularly know just what this exercise (or is it a philosophy?) can offer. If it’s a challenging workout you’re after, choose vinyasa/ power yoga or bikram yoga. A nice balance of workout and meditation would be hatha yoga. How you understand yoga – as exercise or spiritual journey – is up to you. Both perspectives are completely valid and yoga’s therapeutic effects remain.
3. Yoga is too much for me. I just want to relax.
Choose a style that isn’t based around strength. Yin yoga, for instance. This style strengthens the connective tissue and keeps the joints supple. It’s about taking time out to learn how to relax your body and muscles in the various poses. This is a wonderful style to practice in the evening due to its strong relaxing effects. A variety of Yin is Dru yoga, whereby you seek the stillness within from the heart.
4. A stubborn injury rules me out of yoga
Any good instructor will always ask after any injuries or conditions that need taking into account. And there are so many yoga poses and exercises that there is always an alternative available.
5. I’m only a beginner; that’s no good for a retreat
The wonderful thing about yoga is that it can be practised at any level and at any level, its therapeutic effects are still experienced. It is also possible to accommodate different levels in a single class. Beginners do one variation of a pose, while more experienced students go one step further in the pose.
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