Inspired By Issue No. 13 - Lauren Taus, Life Coach, Teacher & Yogi

LT: I'm a California girl whose been living in NYC for 16 years! I went to Choate Rosemary Hall, a boarding school in CT, for high school before I moved to NYC for college. Always a seeker, I studied religion as an undergrad at Columbia University, and later went on to get my Masters in clinical social work from NYU.

I spent my formative years as a rhythmic gymnast, and dancer. Moving my body has always been important to me, but what matters more than anything is my family and my relationships. I'm lucky to have friends all over the world, which gives me a great reason to travel - and this is another major passion of mine. In fact, I'll be visiting friends in Hong Kong this week!

AM: What inspires you to stay active, what motivated you to become a life coach and yoga instructor?

LT: I stay active because I feel alive after a solid session of movement. I feel inspired, motivated, connected and then calm. There were times in my life where I was motivated by a drive to look a certain way, and I was usually aspiring towards a totally unattainable body type given my body's dimensions and proportions. I'm so happy that my priorities have shifted, and I exercise for healthier reasons.

I would say that my journey into health and wellness ultimately inspired my career. I became a yoga teacher almost immediately after I started practicing in 2000, but I felt that I needed to pursue work more aligned with my ivy league education when I graduated college. I worked in finance for years, and I realized that, though it was good for my pocket book, it never made my heart sing. Becoming a full time yoga teacher and life coach happened rather organically in 2008. I went to graduate school for social work, and I've spent thousands of hours treating a variety of mental illnesses. I prefer life coaching now because I make greater progress with my clients in a shorter period of time.

AM: We all have those stubborn last 5 pounds we'd like to lose, what's your best advice for making it through until the end and sticking with a healthy lifestyle?

LT: Honestly, it's all about diet. You can workout all day long, but if you're eating really poorly, you're weight isn't going to budge. I don't have any major secrets, but guess what? Nobody does! My big tips: Drink Water. Always eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. Lean proteins and healthy fats are necessary in each meal to maintain satiety for a longer period of time. Do your best to eat natural, not processed foods. Stay away from high sugar content and chemicals where possible, but don't be too restrictive. A piece of cake or a cone of ice cream could actually help you! I also would suggest that you stop obsessing about those "stubborn 5 pounds." Like really, does it matter?

AM: Are you all about juicing? If so, what's your favorite Juice Bar in NYC? If not, what are you all about? :)

LT: I LOVE juices, and my favorite ones come from Juice Press, Pressed Juicery, and Juice Generation, but juices are not meals to me. I rarely advocate for any client or friend to go on a juice cleanse because I find that the intentions for most are not truly aligned with cleaning the body, but are rather connected to weight loss. When you approach a cleanse in this way, it will backfire into overeating almost every time. So it's a sure fail. I advocate healthy, clean eating - lots of water, vegetables, lean proteins, and a treat from time to time! I encourage solid foods. And, for those of you who do juice, read the labels. Avoid juices that are overly packed with sugar!

AM: Which 3 foods are always stocked in your fridge?

LT: Oh lady! Living alone these days makes for somewhat of a sorry looking fridge. On a good day, I have eggs, spinach, gluten-free bread, peanut butter and lots of fruits!

AM: Which songs are on your workout playlist right now?

LT: Anything and everything Justin Bieber. :-) I love my yoga music: Krishna Das, Trevor Hall, MC Yogi, DJ Drez. I love country music, and I love to discover new tunes on Spotify or Sound Cloud.

AM: Tell us your top 3 workout spots in NYC.

LT: I'm a yoga girl really, and what matters more than the location to me is the teacher. My teachers are Kay Kay Clivio and Phillip Askew who you can find at Pure Yoga and Katonah. For other workouts, I think Circuit of Change, The Muse (with Angela and Yoni) for partner acrobatics, and the circuit training classes at Equinox.

AM: If you could, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self or a young girl today?

LT: I would tell my younger self that she's wonderful as she is. I would also tell her that she should relax and have more fun, make more mistakes and just play a little harder. I was really serious as a kid, and I wish that I wasn't. The good news is, I'm learning to let go now and I'm having a blast!

Check out Lauren's website for her Yoga class schedule, as well as information on her next retreat! And be sure to follow her on Instagram @lauren.taus, to stay in the loop!

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