Sally Mitchell, Yoga Instructor, ChiRunning/ChiWalking Instructor, Massage Therapist, Reiki Practitioner, Nutrition Health Coach
Bryn Randolph Milton, Yoga Instructor, Running Coach, ChiRunning/ChiWalking Instructor, Massage Therapist, Reiki Practitioner
Join us for an energizing yoga, running or hiking and wine tasting weekend getaway in beautiful Sonoma wine country! Improve your health and fitness, destress from your every day life, and connect with other like minded active runners and yogis!
Learn injury-free and energy efficient ChiRunning and ChiWalking, for all levels of runners, wannabe runners or hikers, making running or walking effortless by letting gravity do the work. Blending principles of Tai Chi with running and walking, you move from your core muscles, allow gravity to assist your forward momentum, and let your legs relax. This reduces impact and eliminates the cause of injury, helping you to run or walk more safely, for longer, feel lighter and more relaxed, run or walk faster, further, and enjoy running or walking for a lifetime! You'll learn proper alignment and posture, injury prevention and energy efficiency techniques, efficient breathing, and mindful and meditative running tips.
The yoga classes will be mostly Vinyasa Flow for all levels, linking movement with the breath, moving your body through both power and restorative poses, and there will be Yin classes offered as well, that include deep stretches for active recovery after running or hiking. With creative and balanced sequences, strengthening and lengthening, detoxing and pranayama, you will experience a strong, safe and supportive practice. Modifications and options will be provided for different abilities.
Important COVID Policy - The venue now requires that all participants sign upon arrival to state that they are either fully vaccinated or have a negative COVID-19 test, taken within 72 hours prior to the retreat start date. By registering for this retreat, you are agreeing that you will sign this upon arrival in order to be accepted onto the property. All attendees must also comply with the Sonoma county COVID rules at the time of the retreat regarding wearing face masks and social distancing during all retreat classes and activities, meals and around the property. Yoga will be held on an outdoor wooden deck unless it is raining or too cold in which case yoga will be indoors and all participants will be required to wear face masks.
Connect mind, body and soul. Transform your running and your self!
All levels are welcome and encouraged. We will have multiple run/hike leaders for the runs and hikes to assist with varying distances and paces.
"An inspiring weekend with amazing women from across the U.S. The setting was serene and quiet and allowed for learning, self-discovery and new friends. Highly recommend!" ~ Patricia, Aug 2015
"Eye-opening to realize that there is a different form to running! Had to re-learn everything. Sally was very patient with us in taking us through the workshop." - Tamami
"My running injuries are healing well thanks to you and ChiRunning. I can even run on pavement without further damaging my body. Also, bruising on my toes are almost gone. You are a miracle worker!" - Rowena
"Running does not hurt your body. It's the way you run that does the damage and causes pain." ~ Danny Dreyer, founder of ChiRunning and ChiWalking
"The true runner's high is a zone that we enter when everything seems to click perfectly, when time stands still, and when we can run almost without effort." ~ Amby Burfoot, Winner of 1968 Boston Marathon
"The Chi Running Retreat is the fourth retreat I have attended by Sally. It was much needed to realign my body back into running without knee pain. What I love most about Sally's retreats are the amazing and relaxing locations away from my busy life. I feel I am gone for a week when it's been only a weekend. Sally meticulously plans each retreat to balance enough activities with enough time for relaxation. I love that all the retreats are unique and different and held at different locations. Although I have not attended any other types of yoga retreats what I think makes Sally's retreats most unique is the sense of community. I have made amazing friends at her retreats. And the yoga always rocks!" - Elisa, August 2015
The retreat will be held at a beautiful venue in Sonoma, California, just 1 hour drive north of San Francisco and 5 minutes drive from Sonoma plaza, in the heart of breathtaking Sonoma wine country.
The venue has a lovely rural feel and nestles amid stately oaks, surrounded by rolling grass hills and vineyards in Sonoma's Valley of the Moon. There is an onsite outdoor pool and hot tub soaking and relaxing after yoga or hiking. Delicious fresh, local, nutritious, sustainable and hand-made farm to table vegetarian food will be served 3 times daily, by wonderful cooks of the highest caliber, artists in their own right.
The closest airports are Sonoma County Airport (30 mins drive), San Francisco (SFO), Oakland (OAK) and Sacramento (SMF) Airports. SFO, OAK and SMF are approximately 1.5 hours drive from the retreat center. If you do not wish to rent a car, airport bus schedules from SFO and OAK to Sonoma county can be found here. The nearest bus station to get off at is Petaluma or Sonoma County Airport, 30 mins taxi or Uber to/from the venue. Coordination of transport to/from the retreat is not included. Driving directions will be provided a few weeks prior to arrival.
Sally is the founder and leader of Body Flows Retreats. As well as teaching yoga to all levels at Body Flows yoga retreats, Sally loves helping runners stay injury-free and run more efficiently with effortless and energy efficient ChiRunning and ChiWalking, using gravity for propulsion and relaxing the legs. Sally has been teaching yoga and ChiRunning for 10 years and works with runnners, wannabe runners, walkers, and those just looking to improve their health and fitness.
To help speed up recovery and prevent or heal sports injuries, Sally treats her clients through therapeutic and sports massage, assisted stretching, and Reiki energy healing, and teaches them how to use Trigger Point Therapy equipment for self recovery and myofascial release. Sally is passionate about teaching mindfulness and meditation to runners to help them stay present with every step and every breath, tap into their natural running flow state, and run with a mind of meditation.
She loves to share her knowledge and experience of the practices that have helped her to heal her own body after experiencing many injuries while training and racing as a competitive runner and triathlete. Sally has been running for over 25 years, and qualified for the Boston marathon and the Olympic and 70.3 Triathlon World Championships. When not teaching yoga or leading yoga retreats, Sally loves to trail run and hike on local Sonoma running trails in nature and travel to the mountains. Read more about Sally here.
Fitness and running has always been a big part of Bryn's life, with fun runs as a kids, high school cross-country, track and field, NCAA D1 women's soccer, teaching step aerobics classes, running with the New York Harriers, and loving every minute of it. With her "no pain, no gain" motto, Bryn was destined for overuse injuries, until she found ChiRunning and became one of the first certified ChiRunning instructors in 2004. Her experience of running was truly transformed.
Bryn has led ChiRunning workshops in NYC, the central coast of California, and in her hometown of Bakersfield, CA. She loves when participants experience relaxed running for the first time. It's as though a light switch comes on! Bryn became a certified ChiWalking instructor in 2006 and a yoga teacher in 2007.
Her passion for wellness has led her down many paths including Reiki, massage therapy, sound healing, and most recently piloting a program called GoGirlGo where moms and daughters come together to discover mindfulness and wellness practices that promote the best version of themselves.
A typical day for Bryn now includes living and learning with her husband and daughters (8 and 12), loving on their 4 dogs, 3 cats, 2 rats and 80lb African Spur tortoise, teaching yoga, and getting a run in if she wakes up early enough! Bryn tells her daughters that wellness is a mountain with no top, so you'd better enjoy the climbing! She looks forward to meeting you and helping you with your running or walking!
Please bring: Yoga mat, optional yoga props (blocks, strap, blanket, bolster), comfortable clothes for yoga, running or hiking, running or hiking shoes, face masks, water bottle, flashlight, bathing suit for pool and hot tub, sun lotion and sun hat, and warm and waterproof jacket or sweater for cool or wet weather. Optional items: cash tip for your massage therapist, shampoo, conditioner and hair dryer if desired (there are no hair dryers and no shampoo/conditioner in the rooms).
Will be Provided: Body wash and soap is provided in the rooms.
Not Permitted: Dogs and other pets are not permitted on the property. The only animals that are allowed are certified service animals, accompanied by a person with a disability.
The cabin rooms are colorful, and country style, and contain 2, 3 or 4 beds, with a private bathroom per room. Each cabin has adjustable heating and air conditioning. Body wash and soap is provided. Please bring your own shampoo, conditioner and hair dryer if desired. There are 2 yurts available with 2 twin beds in each, and 2 glamping style tents with 1 bed in each, with shared bathrooms approximately 20 yards walk outside from the yurts/tents. There are heated blankets in the yurts and tents.
"What a great retreat, Sally! Many, many thanks for all the creative energy and attention to detail that you put into making such a great experience, and for bringing together such a fabulous group of people. Looking forward to crossing paths again!" ~Sara, satisfied customer
All prices are per person.
All participants must be 21 or over.
A $250 deposit is required to secure your spot or you may pay in full. The balance is due 2 months prior to the retreat. If you registered before Dec 1, 2020, you will be notified a few days prior to the balance due date, with a link to make payment online. If you registered on or after Dec 1, 2020, your balance will be automatically charged to your credit or debit card on the balance due date. You will be notified by email a few days prior. If the retreat is less than 2 months from the date of registration, the full amount is required.
In order to comply with social distancing, and the latest CDC guidelines, shared rooms are only permitted for family members from the same household, or fully vaccinated friends who are traveling together. Please mention on your registration form that you are signing up with a partner, family member or fully vaccinated friend and would like to share a room.
There are 18 private cabin rooms available, and 2 private yurts available. All cabin rooms and yurts have a private bathroom.
Massage Sign Up: 60 min or 90 min massages may be booked at the time of registration or up until 7 days prior to the retreat, subject to availability, by logging into the booking system and paying for a massage add-on. Refer to the instructions here. All massages will be scheduled on the Saturday between 1pm and 4pm. We will attempt to schedule you at the same time as your friend(s) if you have signed up with friend(s), however it's not guaranteed as it's a tight schedule. The final massage schedule will be provided at checkin.
We look forward to meeting you!
Read our client testimonials and feedback.
View photos from previous retreats.
Please read our Body Flows Cancellation Policy.
Please purchase Travel Insurance (with the "cancel for any reason" clause)
Important COVID-19 Policy - By registering for this retreat, you are agreeing to sign upon arrival that you are either fully vaccinated or have a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours prior to the retreat start date in order to comply with the venue's policy, and you are agreeing to comply with the local COVID rules at the time of the retreat regarding face masks and social distacing.
