

Come join us for a retreat focused on aging gracefully and maintaining your strength, mobility and agility for your highest quality of life. Learn how to let go of resistance to change, which causes suffering, and the illusion of control over all things. Become more adaptable and flexible in mind, body, and spirit for a healthier and happier you!
- Schedule and Class + Workshop Descriptions
- Instructors
- Pricing
- How to Register
- Contact Us
- Learn More about Yoga Retreats at Lake Junaluska
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Workshops and classes will each be led by the amazing instructors from Waynesville Yoga Center. The retreat takes place at scenic Lake Junaluska, a peaceful conference and retreat center a short drive from Asheville. Retreat lodging and meal packages include not only the workshops and classes but also accommodations at historic Lambuth Inn at Lake Junaluska plus meals from dinner on the first night through breakfast on the last morning.
Event Details:
- Date:
- September 25, 2022–September 28, 2022
- Categories:
- Retreats, Spiritual Renewal, Yoga Retreats
SCHEDULE


Sunday, September 25
- 6:30-8:00pm: Opening Circle: Welcome and Easy/Accessible Chair Yoga with Tara Scarborough, ending with an intention setting for the retreat


Monday, September 26
- 7:30am: Breakfast
- 9:00am-Noon: Adaptive Yoga for Seniors with Jay MacDonald
- 12pm: Lunch
- 1:30-4:30pm: Nutrition At Any Age + Yoga At Any Age with Sara Lewis
- 5pm: Dinner
- 6:30-8:00pm: Candlelight Yin and Yoga Nidra class with Natalie Lembeck


Tuesday, September 27
- 7:30am: Breakfast
- 9am-Noon: Restorative Yoga and the Nervous System with Amber Kleid
- 12pm: Lunch
- 1:30-4:30pm: Self Care with Lynda Saffell
- 5pm: Dinner
- 6:30-8pm: Candlelight Gentle Yoga and meditation class followed by a closing circle with Jay MacDonald


Wednesday, September 28
- 7:30am: Breakfast
- 11am: Checkout
CLASS + WORKSHOP DESCRIPTIONS
Sunday, September 25
Opening Circle: Welcome and Easy/Accessible Chair Yoga
6:30-8:00pm | with Tara Scarborough
Come together for an easy and accessible chair yoga class, ending with an intention setting for the retreat.
Monday, September 26
Adaptive Yoga for Seniors
9:00am-Noon | with Jay MacDonald
As we age, a sedentary lifestyle can cause a loss of strength, stability, and mobility in our bodies. We have to fight harder and work harder at keeping our bodies strong and mobile so we can do the things we love with ease and comfort! The first 75 minutes of this session will be a workshop on the importance of keeping an active and mobile lifestyle at any age and overcoming any fears including falling or getting injured. There will be time for Q&A after this workshop.
The class with Jay will address common age-related issues such as osteoporosis, joint replacement, problems with balance and coordination, and much, much more! Immediately following will be an adaptive chair yoga class that focuses specifically on balance and stability –accessible to all levels!
Nutrition At Any Age + Yoga At Any Age
1:30-4:30pm | with Sara Lewis
Whatever your age, it’s important to eat a healthy, balanced diet. In this workshop, we will discuss nutrients and tips to keep in mind to maintain energy and strengthen your immune system as you age. For example, sufficient vitamin D is critical to prevent bone loss, and the requirements for calcium and B12 increase as those nutrients are not as readily absorbed from food as you age. Also, iron and fiber become more important. In addition, there are certain foods and drinks you should avoid as you age.
Part of any yoga practice is to accept yourself where you are at any point in time. Some of you may be returning to yoga after many years, just beginning or continuing a regular practice. Wherever you are on your journey, you are not too old! Some of the many benefits of yoga, at any age, include: better mobility, increased energy, stronger bones, improved blood circulation, better sleep and improved flexibility, posture and balance. The latter is especially important to age gracefully. A regular yoga practice increases proprioception (ability to feel what your body is doing and where it is in space), which improves balance. The yoga practice in this session with Sara Lewis will combine a series of gentle yin and balance poses. Yin yoga poses target connective tissues such as ligaments, joints and even bones. You will leave the class feeling calm, balanced, and energized.
Candlelight Yin and Yoga Nidra
6:30-8:00pm | with Natalie Lembeck
This class will consist of easeful stretching, accessing the connective tissue in addition to the muscles, and long posture holds. The class will be restorative and soothing to the nervous system with soft lighting. Natalie will guide the class through a blissful Yoga Nidra to promote ease and comfort.
Tuesday, September 27
Restorative Yoga and the Nervous System
9am-Noon | with Amber Kleid
As we age, change is inevitable. But the saying goes, “Change is not painful, only the resistance to change is painful.” In this workshop with Amber Kleid, you will learn the importance of the nervous system and how to keep yours healthy and happy so you can be more flexible and adaptable as life circumstances change and evolve.
The workshop will be followed by a yummy and soothing Restorative class designed to calm and soften the mind and body.
Self Care
1:30-4:30pm | with Lynda Saffell
Self care is important at any age but it is critical as we age to keep up a self-care regimen that keeps us healthy and happy. In this workshop, we will explore a range of self care options to keep you youthful and energized. These options will include massage, yoga, social interaction, and many more. The class will introduce self massage and yoga poses accessible to all levels.
Candlelight Gentle Yoga and meditation class followed by a closing circle
6:30-8pm | with Jay MacDonald
This Gentle Yoga class is a slow-paced, soft and nurturing practice supported by props. Set under soft, candle lighting, this class will be the perfect way to relax and restore at the end of the retreat. Following the class, Jay will lead a centering meditation and closing circle.
Meet Our Instructors


Tara Scarborough
Tara has been a student of yoga for almost 25 years. She studied and has been influenced by the Iyengar, Anusara, and Ashtanga lineages. Tara completed her RYT 200 training at Anahata Yoga Center in Mason, Ohio.
Her style now includes mindful alignment cues that focus on opening and releasing to leave you relaxed, aware and free. On her days off, you can find her up in the mountains hiking, in her boat kayaking or mountain biking the local trails. Tara is also a registered nurse having worked in a pediatric ICU, and now in pre and post-operative care and has recently graduated from massage school.


Jay MacDonald
Jay MacDonald is the owner of Waynesville Yoga Center, a Yoga Alliance E-RYT (Experienced registered yoga teacher), a YACEP (Yoga Alliance Continuing Education Provider) and has been teaching yoga classes for over 16 years. She started practicing yoga over 30 years ago after a back injury in her college days and hasn’t stopped since because yoga has kept her healthy and sane! Jay believes that all of us stay healthier and happier by staying mobile and active as much as we can in whatever form that takes.


Sara Lewis
Sara Lewis is a RYT-200, certified holistic health coach, and instructor at Waynesville Yoga Center. She has been practicing yoga for over 15 years and has been teaching yoga since 2014. After a 25-year career in international public health, Sara began a second career as a Certified Holistic Health Coach. Her passion for food led her to yoga when she began studying the connection between mindfulness and stress eating. Sara emphasizes alignment and posture in all her classes.
Her flow classes, which are fun and energetic, focus on lengthening the spine and improving balance and strength. Sara’s yin classes focus on pranayama (breath work) and deep relaxation.


Natalie Lembeck
Natalie responded to her call to yoga over four years ago and finds that the practice of yoga is transformational. Within the first month of practicing yoga asana, she knew she had found something special and was immediately inspired to bring her knowledge to others. She’s a 200 hour Yoga Alliance Certified Yoga Instructor and thrilled to be sharing her passion of yoga with the Waynesville community. Her teaching style ranges from faster-paced, alignment-focused Ashtanga and vinyasa classes to more mellow, fascia-focused yin classes.
Beyond the yoga asana, she incorporates mindfulness and breathing techniques into her classes and makes use of essential oils, incense, and some reiki to promote a soothing, welcoming environment.


Amber Kleid
Amber (RYT – 500) is a Yoga & Mindfulness Mentor whose passion is helping women reconnect with themselves through movement, meditation, and the practice of setting sacred boundaries. She is driven by her own transformation that yoga and mindfulness helped unfold when she stepped onto her mat in 2013 after being diagnosed with an auto-immune disease.
When joining her for a Slow Flow or Restorative Yoga class, you’ll be invited to explore the infinite possibilities that good self-care can provide both on and off the mat. Amber is a 500 hour certified yoga instructor who brings her silly sense of humor, creative sequencing, and everyone-is-welcome attitude into her classes for a refreshing experience from head to toe.


Lynda Saffell
Lynda Saffell (LMBT, RYT200, PRYT Yoga Therapist) followed her dream to serve others in a healing capacity. She attended Bhakti Academe for Intuitive Massage and graduated in August 2004. She gained her pain management experience working two years in a Chiropractic clinic specializing in neck and back injuries. Lynda has elevated massage to an art with her fine-tuned skill of “listening” to your body and the body’s energy. She practices a combination of relaxation massage, deep tissue therapeutic techniques, and healing energies to release tension and emotional stress and bring your body into balance.
PRICING
Aging Gracefully Yoga Retreat with Meals and Lodging – $882 (single/double occupancy)
The retreat with meals and lodging includes:
- Three nights of lodging at Lambuth Inn
- Meals from dinner on Sunday, September 25, through breakfast on Wednesday, September 28
- All retreat workshops and sessions
Aging Gracefully Yoga Retreat – Program Only – $395
The program-only option includes classes and workshops but does not include meals or lodging.
An early-bird discount of $40 is available if paid in full 60 days prior. For more information about the discount and pricing for yoga retreats at Lake Junaluska, download the registration form.
Registration Questions
Download the registration form.
Call 800-222-4930 or email [email protected]
Program Questions
[email protected]