A women-only ‘week away’ in Puglia designed to nourish and rejuvenate through the practice of pilates and learning the Italian art of being present.
Join Randi for eight days spent on a masseria, a fortified farm converted into a beautiful hotel surrounded by olive groves, where you will observe a ‘slower’ approach to place and time. Each day will begin with pilates followed by activities that embrace this practice's approach to nourishing and strengthening the body.
Along with Randi and your fellow travelers, you will visit nearby vineyards and savor their wine, cycle between seaside towns, create ceramics with local artisans, taste fresh olive oil from zero-kilometer producers, learn traditional Puglian recipes in cooking lessons, and sail the emerald waters of the Ionian. Yet there will also be time to unwind—whether by the pool, among the olive groves, or over fantastic food, wine, and candlelit dinners with friends.
Practicing pilates in Puglia will introduce body and movement awareness while daily activities will encourage the art of living in the moment. Throughout this week you will have a unique opportunity to encounter the individuals whose daily lives embody the life and soul of what it means to be Pugliese all while enjoying the stunning beauty of Italy.
For those seeking to disconnect from work, technology, or the constant noise of modern life, this week in Puglia will provide an opportunity to embrace the daily rhythms of Puglia. Grounded in the practice of both Pilates and the 'dolce vita' the goal of this retreat is not just to get away but to strengthen both body and soul, to let exterior voices grow quiet, and to return home stronger, and more present to yourself and to those you love most.
Self care doesn’t just mean pampering, it means intentional practices that will keep you healthy far into the future. Pilates trains your body to make intelligent movements that support your body all day, every day. Travel encourages a perspective of vulnerability, of stepping into the new and beautiful in order to rediscover the new and beautiful within yourself. From this perspective, an experience of the ‘importance of place’ in Puglia is equally to realize that connectedness within yourself.
After arriving at your Pugliese masseria, operating as a farm from the 1700's, you'll check into your room and be free to relax by the pool with a glass of wine or visit the spa. At 4:00 pm you'll gather for an orientation to Alithea's style of slow travel in Puglia while meeting the ladies you'll be hiking, cycling, and relaxing with over the coming week.
This evening you'll have dinner together at the masseria—your first taste of Puglia's hospitality and the pleasure of being connected to nature through food and wine.
At 8:00 am your day will begin with an hour of Pilates led by Randi, followed by breakfast.
Mid-morning, you'll set out for a day of cycling as you cover the territory that reveals the DNA of Puglia in the traces of Greek and Byzantine history, beautiful seaside towns, and medieval castles and marvelously frescoed churches. While moving at the speed of a bicycle you’ll have more time for conversation, observation, and the feeling that slowing everything down means seeing more of the world around you, not less.
In the late afternoon, you’ll return to the masseria in time for a slow flow Pilates session with Randi followed by a free evening.
Biking: ~ 4 hours
After your morning of Pilates and breakfast, you’ll give your glutes a rest with a day dedicated to ceramics and wine. Your first stop this morning will be a ceramics workshop where you’ll have a chance to throw clay with a local potter before heading out for a late lunch at a nearby vineyard where you’ll taste the great Pugliese wines.
You'll be free for dinner this evening, either at the restaurant of the masseria or in town a twenty-minute walk from the farm.
Bus time: ~1 hour
After a morning of Pilates dedicated to body-awareness and the practice of intelligent movements, you’ll set out for a day of hiking and swimming along the coast.
In the late afternoon you’ll return to the masseria for a cooking lesson where you’ll learn to make orecchiette, i maccheroncini, e le sagne ncannulate, the home made pastas of Salento, followed by dinner.
Hiking: ~ 5 hours
After Pilates and breakfast, you’ll depart for nearby Lecce, the jewel of Puglia, as rich in baroque architecture as in its thousands of years of history dating back to the Trojan War.
This morning you’ll walk through the civilizations from the Greeks, Romans, Normans, to the Holy Roman Empire and modern Italian state with a walking tour through the city followed by free time for lunch.
In the mid-afternoon you’ll return to the masseria in time for a slow flow Pilates session led by Randi and a quick swim or aperitivo by the pool before dinner.
After pilates and breakfast this morning, you’ll head to the Ionian coast for an afternoon of sailing.
Gliding at the speed of the wind, you’ll take in the coastline and sea caves from the water, with plenty of time to swim and to savor Pugliese food and wine.
After a workout with Randi and breakfast together, you’ll hop back on bikes to cycle to a nearby farm where you’ll learn to make mozzarella and ricotta with your own hands,.
Your next stop this morning will be a traditional frantoio where you’ll experience an underground olive oil press operated by a local farmer that still speaks the endangered language of griko, the ancient tongue of Greek settlers.
This afternoon you’ll have some free time to relax by the pool or visit the spa before the evening’s celebrations, where you’ll learn the traditional song and dance of Puglia, the pizzica, performed by live musicians in folkloric vernacular.
Biking: ~1.5 hrs
This women’s retreat concludes with a final Pilates practice and breakfast. Your guide and pilates instructor will be available to help with the next leg of your journey as you continue to practice the intentionality of movement and the art of being present everywhere you go.
With over 25 years of experience helping people move with strength, ease, and confidence, Randi brings a rare blend of expertise, intuition, and joy to every session she teaches.
Before becoming a Pilates instructor, Randi spent years on stage as a professional dancer with River North Dance Company and Joseph Holmes Dance Theatre in Chicago. After a significant back injury, she discovered Pilates at The Pilates Center in Boulder, Colorado — an experience that transformed her body and her path. She went on to complete their world-renowned teacher training program and returned to Chicago to open Frog Temple Pilates, a welcoming studio known for intelligent instruction and a warm, supportive atmosphere.
Randi has worked with professional athletes, weekend warriors, expecting mothers, teens navigating scoliosis, menopausal women rediscovering their strength, and determined 80-year-olds who fully intend to stay active forever. Her teaching style is clear, encouraging, and grounded in the belief that every body can feel better than it does today.
Now, she brings her passion for mindful movement to Italy—leading Pilates in the heart of beautiful Puglia. Her classes blend precision, alignment, and a touch of playfulness, creating an experience that leaves guests feeling stronger, more connected, and deeply restored.
Whether in her Chicago studio or overlooking olive groves and the Adriatic Sea, Randi’s intention remains the same:
to help you feel at home in your body—vibrant, aligned, and fully alive.
For further questions don't hesitate to reach out to us directly.
For further questions don't hesitate to reach out to us directly.
