Lara Wellness & Yoga

07/10/2022

This account is being retired. Follow me - Thank you!

04/20/2022

Stir fry for lunch! Fresh veggies ‘fried’ in a pan with a little water. Topped with a peanut ginger sauce. What’s your favorite stir fry 🥦🥕🥬 veggies and sauce?

04/08/2022

It’s time! Are you ready for a mini spring cleanse and re-set?? I am! I will be prepping this weekend to start on Monday- who wants to join in??

04/05/2022

Tzatziki & Arugula Avocado 🥑 toast! Tastes like spring 🌱 for lunch today! What’s on your lunch plate?

03/29/2022

Zucchini & Black Bean Enchiladas - delicious way to get our Mexican food fix in a vegetarian dish! 🌶

03/23/2022

Vegetarian Tortilla Soup - delicious and just enough spice to make it a great dish for a rainy spring day- an Ayurvedic balancing meal for Kapha season. 🌶🫑🍲 What do you like to eat on a rainy spring day?

03/09/2022

Roasted vegetable Mexican lasagna- 😋

03/01/2022

Feeling a bit under the weather for the first time in a while- pulled out one of my self-care remedy recipes- includes garlic, turmeric, ginger and more! 🤧 So soothing-

.wellness.yoga.health

02/15/2022

Vegetable Bourguignon - didn’t miss the beef and needed bread to sop up the juice!! Rich Valentine’s dinner 😋

02/04/2022

Vegetarian 3 Bean Chili tonight 😋
inspired by recipe

02/01/2022

Yummy lunch leftovers! Broccoli, Peppers and Tofu with Peanut Sauce. 😋 What’s on your healthy lunch menu?

01/28/2022

I use an Indian Spice box - a Masala Dabba - to store my ingredients for Chai and Golden Milk! Works perfectly to keep my most used spices easily accessible! What’s your go to tea/spice storage method?

12/10/2021

Great gift idea! 🎄

Purchase Here: shorturl.at/vCEFL

10/22/2021

This week’s healthy meal highlights: Vegetarian Stuffed Pizza spaghetti squash and farm fresh tomato & arugula salad with egg. How are you fueling your body this week?

10/05/2021

Batch cooking for health! This weeks preparations included roasted chicken and Brussel Sprouts, vegetarian cauliflower chana masala and Mexican Posole. Rounded out with steamed vegetables and rice 🍚 (tip: make rice ahead and then package in single size portions and freeze for later use). These meals helped to fuel me for a long weekend leading yoga teacher training. Have you tried batch cooking? If so, what’s your facorite prep tip? Stay tuned for recipes and ideas.

10/04/2021

Fall vibes- transitioning to the inner spaces of heart and home!

10/02/2021

Come experience the benefits of yoga with us at Southern Lotus Yoga! New October schedule is out-🍂🍁

Autumn is in the air and October is a great time to begin a self-care routine. Make sure you get through the holiday season feeling relaxed and renewed with the practice of yoga!

Register Here: https://www.southernlotusyoga.com/class-schedule

Monday
10:30am Slow Flow & Meditation
10:30am Gentle
5:30pm Stability Ball
6:45pm Flow

Tuesday
9:00am Yoga for Strength
10:00am Align & Refine
6:00pm Yoga for Strength
7:15pm Classics

Wednesday
10:00am Core, Stretch & Relax
10:00am Chair
6:00pm Flow Techniques
7:15pm Evening Yoga

Thursday
9:00am Stability Ball
10:00am Restorative
6:00pm Power Flow
7:15pm Candlelight

Friday
9:00am Yoga for Strength
10:00am Classics

Saturday
8:30am Classics
9:45am Flow

Sunday
11:00am Donation Class October 10th & 24th
4:30 Core, Stretch & Relax

09/26/2021

A lot of the reasons here are why I added weight training to my health practices. Come join us and experience the added benefits of weight training to your health practices at Southern Lotus Yoga!

If you're trying to rev up your pandemic fitness routine, maybe it's time to mix things up with some free weights — or soup cans — and get your muscles pumping.

09/20/2021

It’s time for my annual fall 🍁 healthy reset! And after a fun vacation filled with dietary indulgences, I am definitely looking forward to it. Today’s first step, make a breakfast filled with super nutritious ingredients! Can you spot all the health boosts in my breakfast bowl? Hint: one is ground up very finely😉

09/02/2021

Today’s healthy lunch option featuring baby eggplant 🍆!
Baked Italian Style eggplant-
Recipe in Comments-

08/31/2021

Yoga’s real magic happens when you take it into daily practice off of your mat! 💜

08/13/2021

Today’s fuel for our Yoga for Strength Training class at Southern Lotus Yoga this AM. How did you fuel your day this morning?

08/07/2021

A healthy choice for getting more iodine without supplementation-

Nori contains nutrients that support thyroid function and provide many other health benefits. Thin slices of avocado, red bell pepper, and cucumber up the vegetable factor in these healthy rolls.

08/07/2021

Amanda uses natural ingredients and gives amazing facials!

The August Facial Special has arrived!

By August, I think most of us are over Summer and looking forward to cooler weather, less bugs, and kids going back to school. Your skin feels the same way as we acquire most of our sun damage during the summer months. With Summer vacations drawing to a close, it’s a great time to start treating, healing, and detoxing your skin from sun damage as well as your pores from months of greasy sunscreen and sweat.

This 90-minute facial is packed full of skin-healing, brightening vitamin c to help treat environmental damage. The Pumpkin Glycolic Enzyme Peel goes to work to even out tone and correct sun damage. The peel is available in 3% and 20% formulas depending on your skin's sensitivity. Extractions are included to unclog the pores, followed by the healing and corrective Potent C Superfood Masque. LED therapy is added to correct uneven skin tone on an even deeper level of the skin, while we go to work on the eye area leaving a youthful, glowing, and more revitalized appearance.

08/07/2021

Evening joys: roasted marshmallows via the fire table by the pool: Embracing the dark moon 🌚 and gratitude 🙏💜💜

04/25/2021

Want to go dive deeper into your yoga practice or become a yoga teacher? Check it out-

NOTE: Registration opens on April 5th.  Enrollment is limited to ensure each student gets personalized attention from the instructor. Registration will close once course is full. A waiting list will then be created

04/22/2021

🌎 Happy Earth Day! 🌳

How are you taking care of the earth?

Planting tress, Recycling, Using less plastics, Reducing Waste??? Share your ways in the comments below:

04/01/2021

Keep your gut healthy and your immune system strong!

We know that an impaired gut microbiome can be triggered by a number of things. ⁣⁣⁣
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These include a high-sugar, high-fat, low-fiber diet; impaired immunity; use of drugs, like antibiotics, birth control pills, and estrogen; and psychological stress.⁣⁣⁣
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Refined grains, and highly processed foods convert to sugar when we eat them and SUGAR is what FEEDS the bad bacteria. Anti-inflammatory medications, acid-blockers and antibiotics have been proven to lower the biodiversity of the gut flora. ⁣⁣⁣
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In a study published in Clinical microbiology and infection showed that the biodiversity was significantly lower in the participants taking more than one of these medications. ⁣⁣⁣
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The great news is that the gut microbiome can be healed. ⁣⁣⁣
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You can start healing your gut by first removing the bad and adding in the good stuff. ⁣⁣⁣
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Good bacteria love healthy whole, organic, plant-based foods, ones that are high in fiber and nutrients and contain no artificial ingredients. ⁣⁣⁣
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Focus on fibrous foods such as cruciferous vegetables, berries, garlic, onions, lentils, nuts and seeds, avocado oil, and olive oil. And supplement with probiotics. ⁣

03/16/2021

Don't forget your vitamins, inside + out. 🍊🥬⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Green drink, green masque - the best way to truly get your skin to glow from the inside out. Vitamin C is a powerful superfood and antioxidant to supplement and use in your skincare ritual. Give our Potent C Masque a try - a powerhouse of botanical green goodness - kale, spinach, green tea, CoQ10 and supercharged with 10% Vitamin C.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Glow ahead and get your green on - 'tis the season. 🍀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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01/27/2021

Ready to challenge yourself?

🎉 Two Months to a Healthier You Challenge - STARTS 2/1!🌟
Who's in???

I don't know about you but for me, I'm never fully ready at the beginning of January to get started on new health goals. By the last week of the month and the first week of Feb, I'm all rested up from the holidays, etc. and ready to get going. So even if you did get started or are now ready to get going yourself, join me for a 60 day challenge to create a Healthier You!

CHALLENGE INCLUDES:

🧘🏽A weekly 10-15 min video sent each Monday with a core/upper body strength practice to use during that week. (8 videos in all)

🚶🏻‍♀️Motivation and encouragement to complete daily video, attend in person/on line yoga classes and participate in cardio activity (walking, hiking, biking, etc) during the week.

🍎Weekly healthy eating ‘small wins’ challenge.

📈Weekly accountability and tracking tool.

📬Emails with health tips, tricks and recipes.

❓Free quick questions and answers via email on your health and/or wellness concerns: exercise, yoga, eating healthy, nutrition, herbs, routines, etc.

Program starts Monday! $39

REGISTER HERE: https://southernlotus.as.me/2021healthchallenge

12/31/2020

Join Lara for a Workshop designed to help you better understand your wellness needs and take a holistic approach to creating wellness plans and actions to bring about a healthier and happier 2021. Workshop includes an individualized holistic wellness plan addressing your goals, individual coaching, accountability tracking & follow-up; access to additional resources, group support and optional 60 day health challenge add-on available.

90 minute workshop, 20 minute private consult - $65
Offered in Studio and Live Streaming

January 14, 2021 at 11:30A (Recording Access Available for 48 hrs)

Click here to sign up: https://southernlotus.as.me/wellnessplanning2021

12/31/2020

Been thinking about trying yoga???

New to Yoga? Try our Beginner's Workshops

For all new students of yoga or new to our studio, come and learn the key things to know as you begin your yoga practice. Includes key poses, terms, what to wear and bring, what classes are best for your body & goals and general yoga information.

Come ready to move and be prepared to leave feeling comfortable to walk into your next yoga class. Workshop is 90 minutes in length. Our next workshops are scheduled for:

Tuesday, January 5th at 11:30A (in studio/live streaming) and Saturday, January 9th at 11:30 (in studio only).

To sign up register here: https://southernlotus.as.me/?appointmentType=19266500

12/17/2020

Check out our latest blog on Ayurvedic Winter Lifestyle Tips & Recipes -

southernlotuswellbeing.com/blog/winter-tips-amp-recipes

Winter Ayurvedic Lifestyle Tips As the weather turns colder and winter officially begins, we can look to the ancient holistic medicine practices of India to guide us information on how to best to eat and modify our lifestyles to match the season. Of course, you would also use your Ayurved

12/01/2020

❄️ New Blog Post: Keeping your Immunity Strong

These may seem obvious but here are a few basic things you can do to keep your immune system strong this season:

* Get plenty of sleep
* Try to avoid or at least mitigate your daily stress (think meditation, yoga, etc.
* Stay well hydrated
* Get some exercise (walking, biking, etc.)
* Eat a healthy diet that includes foods that support your immune system such as mushrooms! 🍄

For more tips and more foods to support your immune system. Visit our blog post at: southernlotuswellbeing.com/blog/keeping-your-immunity-strong

12/01/2020

Yoga makes a good addition to your health and wellness plans!😉💜

We use the MINDBODY scheduling program. It's easy to schedule online for our Yoga classes. Find your next Yoga class here!

11/26/2020

Being grateful is the route to instant Joy! Happy Thanksgiving!

Some people are grateful all the time. I’m not one of them.

I tend to be a striver, an achiever, a “what’s next?” kinda gal.
For me, gratitude has to be a ritual, otherwise it only happens on the rare occasion when something completely out of the ordinary whacks me over the head with the wonderfulness of this world.

So, as a Thanksgiving treat, I thought I’d share my super-easy gratitude practices (the ones I actually do.)

But before we get into the doing of it, let’s talk about why gratitude matters anyway.

It’s pretty easy to put gratitude practices in the trendy column and move on with your cynical life. But gratitude is a trend for a reason: your thoughts are rewiring your brain all the time.

This is important, so, one more time:
Your thoughts are rewiring your brain all the time.

Gratitude literally causes chemical changes in your brain, which causes a positivity chain reaction.

Gratitude:
• increases dopamine, the feel-good chemical;
• dopamine increases your level of happiness (this begins a positive feedback loop);
• dopamine turns on the learning centers in your brain, so happier = smarter.

My family started saying what we were thankful for as a way of beginning the Thanksgiving meal many decades ago. We’ve since added to family dinner “best of the day” and “best of the week.”

But I don’t have large family gatherings on a daily basis, so I’ve come up with some daily rituals (that I can actually stick with!) to keep my dopamine flowing:

1. Three Gratitudes Before Bed
I don’t speak these out loud or write them down. I just say them quietly within my own brain when I get into bed at night. Easy-peasy.

2. Giving with Both Hands
When I was traveling in Thailand, I was told that it’s considered rude to give or receive with one hand. This has stuck with me. When I pay my hairdresser or massage therapist, I use both hands and consciously remember to be grateful for the service and care they provided.

3. Remembering Happiness
This is cool: remembering a happy moment creates happiness. My moment was coming up over the mountains on I-84 in New York and seeing the sunset blazing over the Hudson River. My heart opened wide. I relive that moment a few times a week and can feel the radiating joy (and dopamine!) for hours after.

4. An Essential Pick-Me-Up
We all have scents that make us happy because smell is connected to our hind-brain, the most primitive part of us, where emotions are triggered. What’s your happy scent? For me, the scent is jasmine. An under-note of citrus (like bergamot or lime) makes it even better! When I need to go to my happy place, I put a drop on my hand, rub my hands together, and hold them over my nose or I put a few drops in my diffuser and scent the whole room.

Life’s gonna throw you curve balls. It’s what life does. It’s important to have a toolkit for happiness.

Having a gratitude practice puts you in the driver’s seat. You can’t control the world around you, but you can control how ready and resilient you are to receiving it.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What are you grateful for?

10/08/2020

Recipe of the month:
Fall Butternut Squash Soup:

🎃 Pumpkins and squash always mean fall🍂 to me and one of my favorite dishes to make and enjoy during the season is roasted butternut squash soup!

In addition to tasting delicious, butternut squash is packed with nutrition! With 6.6g of fiber, 1.8g of protein and 82 calories per cubed steamed cup, squash has a low glycemic index and is full of vitamins and minerals including Vitamin A, C, B6, Thiamin, folate, calcium, magnesium and potassium to name a few.

I hope you’ll explore adding butternut squash and other fall varieties of squash to your diet this season. This recipe keeps it simple and highlights the flavors of the squash and the season.

Recipe in Comments

10/01/2020

Great information and deals from our friends The Holistic Skin! 💜

For your body, Green Envee Products, Ingredients, Product Reviews, Recipes, SmoothiesThe Great Pumpkin Season is Here! October 1, 2020 It’s October! There’s a chill in the air and leaves starting to fall. The time of boots, flannel, bonfires and pumpkin-flavored everything is upon us! Pumpkin 10...

09/02/2020

Here’s my favorite go-to Sweet 😋Spice Mix to give some sweetness to my food instead of using sugar or other sweeteners.

Sweet Spice Mix

2 tbsp ground Cinnamon
1 1/2 to 2 tbsp ground Ginger (I use slightly less as the 2 tbsp can be a bit much for my taste)
1 tbsp Cardamom

Mix together well and place in a spice jar with holes for sprinkling. It’s great on breakfast grains, in baked goods and on top of whole grain pancakes or waffles. It’s particularly nice for fall and winter due to the spices warming affect.

🤩And these spices also offer some additional benefits as spices are also herbs. For example, in Ayurveda, Ginger is considered “the universal medicine” and among some of its benefits are the digestive and respiratory systems. Cinnamon is said to balance circulation and aid digestion as well. Cardamom also kindles the digestive fires (agni) and helps to stimulate the mind and heart to bring bring about clarity and joy.😄

As always, buy the best quality spices you can. I love the spices from Banyan Botanicals.✅

All these benefits and its tastes delicious. too! Let me know if you try it.

Original Everyday Sweet Spice Recipe from The Everyday Ayurveda Cookbook by Kate O’Donnell 🙏📚

08/29/2020

Great advice- mindfulness for the win!

Did you know that you can practice self care just from the way that you eat? 🍴
If we know that food is medicine 💊, then we need to show respect and gratitude 🙏 for the ritual and opportunity to heal-thy-self = healthy self! 🥰



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