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PrintHealth: Search for Serenity
In today’s stressful, fast-paced world it is essential to provide your mind and body with proper maintenance to make it in the long haul.
Prop wall at Arkansas Yoga Center
Photography by Ashlee Nobel and courtesy of Arkansas Yoga Center
In the November/December 2011 issue of AARP Magazine, Dr. Oz — cardiothoracic surgeon, author and talk show host — wrote an article, “Dr. Oz's 24 Hours to a Longer Life,” in which he maps out a 24-hour routine to keep your body in its best possible shape.
The day begins at 6 a.m. with yoga to reduce stress: “By the time you’re 50, your heart has beaten about 2 billion times — a lot of wear and tear. Yoga can repair some of the damage by helping lower your heart rate. It also relaxes your blood vessels and reduces stress, which is especially important as you begin the day.”
The team at Arkansas Yoga Center, spotlighted in the September 2008 issue of Vogue Magazine, couldn’t agree more with Oz’s theory. Owner Andrea Fournet has served northwest Arkansas physically, emotionally and mentally through yoga — she even developed her own style, VariYoga, a non-dogmatic teaching approach that melds many traditional yoga practices — since she opened her state-of-the-art facility in 2005.
The Arkansas Yoga Center, located in Fayetteville’s midtown area, is 3,600 square feet of “sanctuary-like” space including two large yoga rooms, a massage center and a lush garden and koi pond. What is most notable about the facility is that it is eco-friendly. Fournet followed many LEED-certified building techniques when designing the center — which she built on an overgrown parking lot — such as the inclusion of repurposed wood, radiant heat floors and recycled newsprint insulation. The serenity of the facility is only half of its appeal; Fournet and 17 other instructors teach more than 30 classes a week, including a wide variety of yoga, tai chi and meditation as well as certification courses in yoga instruction. “We have students ages 8 to 80, and can accommodate any skill level. There is really something for everyone,” Fournet said.
One of her most unique groups of students includes the Arkansas Razorbacks men’s basketball team. “When I first moved to Fayetteville in 1993, a lot of doors were shutting in my face — people just weren’t as open to yoga. After an article was published interviewing Kareem Abdul Jabbar, who said he practiced yoga daily to stay fit, my husband had the idea for me to call [then Razorback’s head basketball coach] Nolan Richardson and offer to instruct his team. I asked him to give me just one hour with the team. They loved it, and I continued working with them. That was the year Richardson led them to the championship!”
What was even more thrilling to Fournet was that then-assistant coach Mike Anderson remembered her when he returned as head coach of the team this year and called her out of the blue to come back and get his team centered.
“That was 17 years ago. Mike said, ‘I can’t believe you are still around here teaching yoga!’ I thought, that’s what I do, I wouldn’t be doing anything else!” Fournet said.
Katherine 
Friday, founder of the Starlight Ridge Retreat Center in Mayflower, Ark., also found her calling in matters of the mind, body and spirit. For years, she felt compelled to open a retreat center where people could come to find balance and harmony, and she began studying spiritual methods of teaching, nutrition, health and emotional balancing therapies. Friday is an ordained minister, certified yoga teacher and certified transpersonal hypnotherapist.
Starlight Ridge Retreat was designed by Friday using techniques of feng shui, which creates an immediate feeling of relaxation when you walk through the door. It is 3,800 square feet of serene living space that can host up to eight guests overnight. A large gathering room is at the center with vaulted ceilings and comfy furnishings to inspire conversation. Two bedrooms to the right are appointed with two twin beds each (more can be added if needed) and joined by a luxurious bathroom complete with shower, tub and wet sauna imported from Finland. Another bedroom and bathroom are located on the west side of the facility, as well as staircases on either side leading to two loft spaces — one serves as Friday’s office, the other as a library and children’s play space — each leading to a beautiful balcony, one facing the sunrise, the other facing the sunset. A 10-foot stained and etched concrete veranda, with inviting patio furniture and porch swings, surrounds the entire ground level of the home.
“I created this as a place people could come to listen to themselves. The mind and body are very intelligent; you just need to be calm, become self-empowered and give the body space to heal itself,” Friday said.
“Through wellness, I encourage natural methods of healing including counseling, nutrition and life coaching. Many couples, ladies’ groups, children and families come here. I have helped people who struggle with weight loss and smoking as well as counseled couples before they walk down the aisle.”
Friday offers many services including yoga, massage, counseling, energy clearing and hypnotherapy through positive suggestion. These are flexible depending on what the individual or group needs and are open to. Some guests just need a quiet meeting place — she has hosted and catered many company meetings and retreats — some find her to get to the root of personal issues, and some simply seek the Retreat for its beautiful, peaceful location to escape the stress of life if only for awhile.
For more information about the Arkansas Yoga Center, log onto aryoga.com; for more information about the Starlight Ridge Retreat, log onto starlight-ridge.com.
