When I first booked the Gen Zen Summer Wellness Retreat, I felt a flutter of apprehension alongside the excitement. Three days away from life commitments? Spending a weekend with some strangers? What if I couldn’t switch off? But I also knew something had to give. I was stuck in a cycle of procrastination with my creative projects, feeling pressure to constantly achieve, and my body felt heavy with stagnant energy I couldn’t quite shift. I needed to step off the hamster wheel, even if just for a weekend.
Arriving in the Yorkshire Countryside
The Gen Zen Summer Retreat is held at Westwood Retreat Centre near Huddersfield, and the moment I arrived, the rolling Yorkshire countryside gave my whole body a big exhale. The modern shared apartments were comfortable and spacious, and there was something reassuring about knowing that for three days, I wouldn’t need to think about what to eat or what to do next. It was all taken care of by the facilitators Dan Conneely and James Baylis at Gen Zen Meditation.
What struck me immediately was how down-to-earth and relaxed everyone was. Dan and James had this wonderful quality of being welcoming, friendly and personable just like they were one of us experiencing the retreat themselves – whilst guiding and leading each activity in a way that looked effortless. Their approach was simple: “You do you.” Every activity – whether meditation, breathwork, yoga, or the cacao ceremony – was an invitation, not an obligation. Take what resonates, leave what doesn’t.
A Shared Experience
Gathering together we realised we all shared one thing in common – we all felt a pull toward something: connection with nature, with each other, with that quiet space inside ourselves that gets drowned out by notifications and to-do lists.
Over three days, we enjoyed group meditations, breathwork sessions, and yoga classes. We painted, we stretched, we breathed.
What surprised me most was how quickly I felt lighter compared to how I walked in. We spend so much time resisting our stress – distracting ourselves with our phones, drowning in our to-do lists, doing things for everyone else. But when you’re given permission to simply feel, to breathe, to let your body release what it’s been holding onto, the relief is found.
The science backs this up, too. Breathwork activates the parasympathetic nervous system, meditation literally changes brain structure over time, and yoga helps process emotions stored in the body. We don’t neccessarily need the next trendy wellness gadget. The tools are already within us – we’ve just forgotten how to use them in our daily lives.
We Can Let Go
By the end of the weekend, I felt uplifted, light, and airy – like I’d been cleansed from the inside out and recharged.
Here’s what I realised: like a balloon, we don’t always need to keep adding air. Sometimes we need to decompress, to let go of some of that pressure we’re carrying. We chase dopamine hits, consume endlessly, take on more work, say yes to everything. But our bodies, like nature, are designed to release, to exhale, to create space for something new.
When I practice meditation, breathwork, or yoga now, I think of it as taking a big exhale. I’m creating spaciousness – room to create, to receive, to serve from a place that isn’t depleted.
A moment for the food
Honestly, heading back home to my usual meal plans felt like a hard crash back to reality after three days of being utterly spoiled by James Baylis at Invigorate Catering.
Every meal was fresh, wholesome, and flavoursome and completely plant-based. Whether you were plant-based, flexitarian, or a committed carnivore, everyone found themselves reaching for seconds. There’s something about food sourced intentionally and prepared with care and intention that just tastes and hits different. My body definitely felt good for being fed and nourished so well and I went home feeling inspired to eat more colourful, wholesome foods.
Would I Recommend It?
Absolutely. As one fellow retreater put it, “Surely weekends don’t get any better than this.”
Whether you’re familiar with these practices or completely new to them, the Gen Zen retreat offers something rare: permission to pause and the space to be held. To let go. To connect with yourself, with others, and with the natural world in a way that feels increasingly difficult in our fast-paced, notification-laden lives.
I left feeling lighter, more bubbly, with a new zest for life. And perhaps most importantly, I remembered something I’d forgotten: that resilience, creativity, and joy aren’t things we need to chase or achieve. They’re already there, waiting for us to create the space to welcome them back in.
The next Gen Zen Summer Wellness Retreat runs from 24-26 July 2026 at Westwood Retreat Centre near Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. For more information and to book your place, visit the Gen Zen Meditation website.
