The Liberated Woman Twerking Liberation Retreat (Image: undefined)
As the wellness industry has established a firm foothold in contemporary society, we’ve seen ancient yoga practices gaining widespread appeal, Pilates emerging as the preferred exercise regime, and now twerking is being positioned as the solution to discovering one’s “innate organismic life force”.
While it’s undoubtedly crucial women are prioritising their health and wellbeing, the ever-growing number of retreats, classes, clubs and online phenomena begs the question – when does it all become all too niche?
One woman, Daisy Featherstone, is hosting her own female-only retreats in the Wiltshire countryside, operating as a sexual liberation and pleasure coach. Although her credentials began with yoga and burlesque dancing, she has developed a retreat centred on a singular focus: twerking – specifically rebranded as ‘liberation twerking’.
While the dance movement’s roots can be traced to West and Central Africa, it subsequently permeated Black African American culture in New Orleans, where the twerk is believed to have originated, before later infiltrating hip-hop music culture.
However, imagery and video content from this retreat appears to predominantly feature white British women, employing the dance form as a means of reconnecting with their ‘sexual selves’.
The retreat is over the course of four days (Image: The Liberated Woman )
The brand’s website, The Liberated Woman, explains that Daisy is a certified Layla Martin VITA Sex, Love and Relationship Coach; a trauma-informed facilitator and a qualified Twerk instructor with a background in burlesque. It also details the purpose of this tailored course across five key sports.
The course aims to “awaken the fierce, magnetic energy pulsing in your hips” as well as “peel off the layers of shame” and allow women to “move in ways that feel delicious, rebellious, and utterly free.”
The opening day of the retreat centres on pelvis and twerk foundations, while the second day concentrates on ‘divine embodiment’, and the third on ‘sensual self-expression’. It is on this third day that participants are invited to “reclaim your erotic aliveness” in a space where “nothing is too much”.
The fourth and final day affords women the opportunity to perform the choreography they have learned throughout the week, which is then professionally filmed. Participants are able to keep the video as a memento to reflect on their journey and recall the women with whom they shared this intimate experience.
Perhaps the most striking aspect of this course is the extent to which former participants feel it has transformed their lives. One woman, in an emotional testimonial on the website, breaks down in tears as she describes how, since completing the course, “a portal has been opened”.
Some women say it has changed their lives (Image: The Liberated Woman)
Ever since leaving the retreat, she says: “I feel like I’m in a constant state of arousal.”
It does appear to offer a welcoming environment for women who have struggled with body confidence, enabling them to feel desirable and reconnected with their sexuality once more.
Another testimonial says: “I would recommend Twerk Liberation to any woman prepared to delve deep into their sexuality and sensuality and rip themselves wide open and just love every aspect of their body. It’s just so juicy.”
A recent Instagram post from @The. liberatedwoman even poses the question to her 3,000-plus followers: ‘What if the healing you need isn’t therapy but moving unapologetically with other women and shaking ass?’
Some women might argue this sounds like a typical Saturday night out with friends but others are willing to part with considerably more for the privilege.
That sense of self-acceptance carries a significant price tag. Participants sharing a ‘Sisterhood Shared Room’ for four days, meals included, are paying £999. A private room, dubbed the ‘Queen’s Suite’, is priced at £1,399, with further options also on offer.
Several additional courses are available through The Liberated Woman, some reaching as high as £2599 for the ‘VIP package’, and demand for the experiences appears to be strong.
Those seeking fresh ways to reconnect with themselves and their bodies may not have previously considered this style of retreat, but it undeniably delivers a one-of-a-kind experience.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
