Yoga & Restful Retreats with Emma Polette

14/08/2026

What if the most disciplined thing you could do for yourself is to be consistently kind?

Not speaking cruelly to yourself
Not abandoning yourself when you’re tired
Not turning every physical limitation into a personal failure
Not making yourself “earn” rest
Not treating yourself as a project that needs constant correction

What if that’s the discipline?

P.S. if you’d like to create some self-kindness “discipline” in your life, you might like my Calm Body Sunday class - a 90 minute gentle yoga class with journaling and meditation. The next one is Sunday 23rd August. Comment below if you’d like me to send the link.

12/08/2026

It’s so nice to be home - Albany is so special. (Bali is too, just different)

I’ve felt a little bit strange since I got back and after trading voice notes with a friend I realised that I miss having my dog to come home too.

So shortly after taking this photo at this place I spent so much time with him, I had a little cry.

Something I’m learning as I age is that joy, relief, sadness, safety, contentedness and grief can all co-exist. They are all life.

11/08/2026

This video gives a real world example of how a mindfulness practice can help reduce stress in an every day situation.

Let me know what you think 🤔

10/08/2026

This is the thing I keep thinking about from the Bali yoga retreat (well one of the things anyway)

I keep thinking about how a daily yoga practice helps us accept ourselves on the good days and the bad and also reminds us that even if there are bad days, good days return.

Over the past month or so I’ve recommitted to a daily practice - let me know in the comments if you’d like me to show you my 10 min morning sequence.

08/08/2026

A student said something to me years ago that I think about a lot.

We were chatting after class, rolling up our mats, when she looked at me and said:

“I said to a friend that the reason I like coming to your classes is because you’re not flexible either.”

I had to laugh, because it’s entirely true.

After teaching more than 900 yoga classes, I still can’t put my foot behind my head. I have stiff mornings, a tricky hip injury, and a belly that gets in the way of everything. My qualification to the women who walk through my door isn’t that I have a gymnast’s body—it’s that I inhabit a normal, real, human one.

Because yoga isn’t about bending ourselves into pretzels.

Yoga is simply any way we reconnect with ourself after living with stress, anxiety, and the general overwhelm of a busy life.

Sometimes that happens on a mat, spending an hour moving gently to quiet a noisy mind. But it also happens when you stop to look at a pink sky, sit quietly with a hot cup of tea, or walk beside the ocean. It’s about presence, not performance.

If you’ve been avoiding a movement class because you think you’re too stiff, too old, or too out of practice, I promise you: you’d fit right in here.

We are all just normal bodies learning how to breathe a little deeper and judge ourselves a little less.

Classes return on 24th August. I hope to see you there 🩷

View yoga classes in Albany WA with casual and block booking options. Gentle, accessible classes across multiple Albany venues.

06/08/2026

If you’re a busy woman who gets sh*t done for everyone else, who’s caring and loving, you’ll find these two things much harder than the yoga on retreat!

1. Letting other people take care of you
2. Not filling up your days with activities

There’s no judgement from me if that’s the case, because as women we’ve been conditioned to look after everyone else and we need to be busy to get it all done.

But watching the magic that happens by day 3-4 is my favourite part of hosting retreats - that’s when the true relaxation kicks in.

It’s a beautiful thing to witness. 😍

04/08/2026

Because I want women to feel completely safe to move, wobble, rest, cry, laugh and simply be.

Some of the most beautiful moments on retreat aren’t meant for social media. They’re meant for the women who are living them.

If you’re curious about experiencing it next year you can register your interest via the link in my bio or send me a message 🩷

02/08/2026

I’ve realised something.

When people ask me what happens on my Bali retreats, I usually tell them about the yoga, the breakfasts, the beautiful villa, the free time…

But that’s not really what they need to know.

What they need to hear is this:

For so many women, a holiday still means being responsible for everyone else. Organising. Planning. Remembering. Making decisions. Looking after people.

You might change the scenery, but you never stop carrying the mental load.

My retreats are designed to be different.

Once you arrive, you don’t have to organise anything. You don’t have to decide what’s for dinner or make sure everyone else is happy.

The biggest decision you’ll make all day is whether to have a massage, go for a swim, or curl up with your book.

That’s the retreat. (Yes there’s yoga & meditation too)

It’s not about escaping your life.

It’s about remembering what it feels like when someone else takes care of you for a change.

🩷

01/08/2026

I don’t recommend going all hard core if you want to get fitter. I recommend finding exercise you can imagine doing for the next 20 years.

I just want to say, it’s normal to make a sudden decision to feel healthier and to think a hard core regimen is the best way to get that done. But not enough people realise it’s often the thing that prevents ageing well.

Injury, burn out, muscle soreness, not having enough time to complete the complicated program - they all lead to set backs and not feeling great about oneself…

I recommend finding movement that you like & that you can imagine doing forever.

Here’s what I do -

- 10 mins of yoga first thing in the morning
- resistance band workout for 25 mins twice a week
- boxing once a week
- a walk once a week

Will I be able to run a marathon? No! Will my body appreciate what I’m doing now in 20 years. Definitely!!

Have you fallen for the “go hard or go home” trap?