Home Page

Steps to Health

for a printer-friendly PDF version of this page click here

Learn the Essentials of Macrobiotics with David & Cynthia Briscoe

Join us along with other students each day of this full 5-day course at The Macrobiotics America Study House in Northern California to learn the basics of macrobiotics. This is the only 5-day macrobiotic course currently offered on the West Coast of the USA.

A Steps to Health course is held each month.

The course includes the following:

Hands-On Macrobiotic Cooking Classes
Learn all the basics of selecting and cooking healthy macrobiotic foods, including whole grains, organic vegetables, miso soup, sea vegetables, condiments, pickles, and beverages. You won't sit and watch someone demonstrate cooking, you'll do it with us, hands-on style, each day.

Natural Desserts
Macrobiotic desserts are delicious! We'll show you how to make desserts that are suitable for your current health.

What's For Breakfast?
This frequently-asked question will be answered daily when you are served a simple but satisfying macrobiotic breakfast.

Printed Recipes & Handouts You will receive printed recipes for all of the cooking classes. There will also be handouts for other classes.

Menu Planning
Learn creative and practical methods for making balanced and nutritious macrobiotic menus.

Learning and Discussion Sessions
Daily talks are full of important information for improving your macrobiotic understanding. You will receive numerous handouts and readings and be given your own personalized binder for keeping all handouts and recipes. There will be plenty of opportunity for asking questions and addressing your personal needs. Daily learning/discussion sessions will cover the following:

• Acid-Alkaline for Improved Health and Vitality
• How to Prepare and Use Helpful Home Remedies
• Special Macrobiotic Foods and Their Unique Properties
• Utensils and Cookbooks for the Macrobiotic Kitchen
• Understanding the Macrobiotic Diet
• The Big Balance and How to Maintain It: Consumption & Elimination
• Basic Menu Planning
• Understanding Your Personal Health Condition from a Macrobiotic View
• What to Expect When Healing
• How to Bring Macrobiotics into Your Own Schedule & Lifestyle

Mid-Day Do-In, Qigong, or a Guided Walk
Each day before lunch, we will walk to the local historical park to do light and revitalizing movements based on Do-In and Qigong. These exercises are suitable for all ages and levels of health. In place of the exercise, students may sometimes be taken on a guided walk to a nearby park, though the local neighborhood, or along the mountain-fed Feather River. The easy exercises and movements will be chosen from the following:

• The Eight Silken Exercises
• Tsubo & Meridian Tapping Techniques
• "Gentle Rotation" for improved breathing
• "Removing Turbid Ki" for liver health support
• "Standing Home" and "Unlocking" for vital circulation
• "The Turtle Exercise" for refreshing the nervous system
• "Belly Massage" to aid digestion and eliminate fatigue

If weather doesn't permit outdoor exercise, we will do them indoors.

Daily Meals
Enjoy three complete macrobiotic meals each day plus a few surprises now and then. Students are contacted in advance so that we may adjust our meals to suit the individual needs of each student. Students eat most meals with the instructors, providing additional opportunity for discussion and questions. On Friday we'll give you extra food to take with you for your trip home.

Allergies and Sensitivities

We are respectful and understanding of each student's unique needs. Please contact us prior to attending the course to discuss any allergies and/or sensitivities you may have. Students are asked not to wear perfumes or other fragrances during the course.

Monday-Friday Daily Schedule

8:15am Breakfast

9:00am Learning Session (usually a lecture/discussion)

11:00am Home Remedies Demonstration

11:45am Mid-Day Do-In, Qigong, or a Guided Walk

12:30 Lunch

1:30 - 3:30pm Student break time for sightseeing, shopping, laundry, phone calls, relaxing, etc. Teacher preparation time for the cooking class.

3:30pm Hands-On Cooking Class

6:00pm Dinner

Evening: Free time for relaxing at your motel, self-guided touring of the Northern California countryside and/or practicing do-it-yourself home remedies

The schedule is subject to change and adjustment.

The program begins at 8:15am Monday morning with Breakfast and ends with "Certificates & Farewell" after Dinner on Friday. We suggest that you plan on arriving at your motel by 9pm Sunday, and check out the following Saturday morning.

Packaged food for your travel back home will be available at no extra charge.

Optional Private Consultation
For an additional USD$275 fee, a Private Consultation with David Briscoe can be scheduled for an evening during your stay. For more information, please contact us.

Travel (for maps showing Oroville's location, click here)

By Air: Fly into the Sacramento International Airport, then take The Airport Transportation Service or the Blue Van Super Shuttle to Oroville. We suggest calling the Airport Transportation Service or Blue Van Super Shuttle BEFORE making your airline reservations in order to coordinate your flights with their pick up and return times.

Airport Transportation Service: (530) 891-1219 This service will drop you off and pick you up at their announced location in Oroville.The motels listed below are within a very short walk of the drop-off location. The round-trip cost is $57 per person. This is the airport transportation service used by the majority of our students.

Blue Van Super Shuttle: 1-800-258-3826. This much more expensive service will drop you off and pick you up at your motel's front door. The round-trip cost is $158 for the first person, $16 per additional person in the party up to 7 people. Private Super Shuttle service is $222 round trip.

Yellow Cab Taxi Service in Oroville: (530) 532-3333

Motels in Oroville, CA
The motels listed below have been enjoyed by our students in the past. Each is within a very short 5- minute walk of our study house. It is the student's responsibility to make all room arrangements with the motel prior to arriving for the course.

Motel 6 (530) 532-9400

Comfort Inn (530) 533-9673

Please call the motel for current prices.

Car Rental in Oroville, CA
(It won't be necessary to have a car if you stay at one of the above motels, unless you plan to tour the area during your free time or need a car for other reasons.)

Enterprise Rent-a-Car: (530) 534-8891

Hertz: (530) 534-8655

Camping & Sightseeing
There are many camping areas in the Oroville vacinity. For more information visit the following site: Oroville Camping.

The Oroville area is rich with Old West and Gold Rush history, in addition to the many beautiful natural settings within a short drive. At orientation students receive a notebook containing sightseeing information, and many enjoy touring the area during their free time. If you'd like to know about the sightseeing possibilities before you arrive, please use the following link:
Things To Do In Oroville

Dates for the Steps to Health Course

2006

January 9-13

February 6-10

March 6-10

April 3-7

May 1-5

June 5-9

July (no course this month)

August 7-11

September 11-15

October 2-16

November 6-10

December 4-8

Dates are subject to change.

We accept a maximum of 6 students per course. If registration for a class is full, you may request a place on the waiting list. We suggest registering well in advance in order to get the date you want. We hold the course even if one student is registered, so sometimes it does happen that a lucky student gets a private course!

Tuition:

Save $200 when you register 30 days in advance!

Tuition: Includes all lectures, cooking classes, meals, notebook, handouts and printed recipes: USD$995 per person if registered 30 days in advance; USD$1195 after that date. Please note: Tuition does not include a private consultation with David or Cynthia Briscoe. Please see the "Private Consultation" section above for more information.

Registration:

Deposit: a $250 non-refundable deposit will reserve your place in the course at the early registration price when received 30 days in advance. Balance due on arrival.

Refund: We will make a full refund of any amount paid beyond the non-refundable deposit when notice of cancellation is received no later than 24 hrs. prior to the first day of the course. After that time we cannot make a refund no matter what the reason for cancellation may be. However, credit will be given for attendance at a future Steps to Health course that takes place within 3 months.

Accommodations: Room accommodations are a separate cost. Reservations are to be made by the student with a local motel. (See our above list of nearby motels.)

For more information or to register for Steps to Health, call toll-free in North America: 1-877-622-2637; from all other areas please call (530) 532-1918

email: info@macroamerica.com

_________________________

What is the "Macrobiotics America Study House?"

      In the early days of macrobiotics in the USA, students studied in small groups at the home or "study house" of experienced teachers. It was a strong, personal and friendly atmosphere for learning. Many respected teachers, and some of longest-practicing macrobiotic people in America today, received their macrobiotic foundation from the study-house style of learning. When macrobiotic schools with large classes opened in the 1970's, study houses unfortunately disappeared. Recently, David & Cynthia Briscoe opened their home in the study house tradition, once more affording students this unique opportunity. Students from around the world can now come here to benefit from this legendary way of learning and developing a macrobiotic practice.

     The personal study-house way of learning is not presented in an institutional, medical, or swank setting. It is in our humble, relaxed and welcoming home in a friendly, middle class neighborhood of Northern California. You will be in a small group of no more than 6 students with a full daily schedule, learning in down-to-earth, family-style surroundings with two personally attentive and experienced teachers who will be happy to share macrobiotics with you. This opportunity for learning, in such a small group and in such a personal way, with highly respected macrobiotic teachers who have taught all over the world for more than 30 years, is a rare and unique offering.

     The Macrobiotics America Study House also hosts community gatherings, including monthly potlucks, "Ira Briscoe Memorial" Sponsored Classes for Young People, and serves as a macrobiotic resource for the surrounding community.
return to top

___________________

NEW! Have Your Own PRIVATE and custom-designed course at The Macrobiotics America Study House tailored to your individual needs.

We'll plan with you prior to your arrival to design a complete Mon - Fri course that addresses your special needs such as cooking for children, teenagers, allergies, medicinal cooking, cooking on busy schedule, restaurant-style cooking, etc. We can design a private course to cover any personal need and interest. As our PRIVATE student, you will get all of our attention during the daily schedule. You may also send a person to us to be instructed the style of macrobiotic cooking that a counselor has recommended for you. A PRIVATE course can be arranged anytime during the year. Please call for more information. The private course tuition and meals: $1695 per person. Room accommodations are a separate cost and arranged by you with a local motel. See the list of motels above.

return to top

Contact Us Macrobiotics America P.O. Box 1874, Oroville, CA 95965 Toll Free in the USA & Canada: 1-877-622-2637 Outside North America call 530-532-1918 Fax: 530-871-2100 Info@macroamerica.com