BIO
"Serenity is contagious. If we smile at someone, he or she will smile back. And a smile costs nothing."
- Patanjali, The Yoga Sutras
Lara has been practicing yoga since 2000. She has lived and practiced in Miami, Dallas, Vancouver,BC, Norwich, UK, Chicago, IL, and currently teaches in San Diego, CA.
As a former runner, the vigorous nature of Ashtanga immediately appealed to Lara. Her dedication to the practice, however happened more slowly, as she found practicing yoga cultivated a sense of comfort and stability that was often missing in the world off of the mat. Therefore, Ashtanga is a practice that she passionately adheres to, but adapts her classes to various experience levels and physical conditions. Lara's philosophy is to make yoga approachable, to help students realize untapped possibilities, and to facilitate the reaping of yoga's endless benefits. Through a fusion of breath, dristi, and asana, one can learn to live in the moment and to find peace even in the midst of the circus called life!
Lara is a registered Ashtanga yoga teacher and completed her 200 hour RYT training at Namaste Pacific Yoga in San Diego and her 500 hour training through My Vinyasa Practice. She has studied under many wonderful teachers, her mentors being Chris Van Der Merwe, Daylene Christensen, and Lily Eslahjou. She has her B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in Art History and likes to incorporate her enthusiasm for history into her classes through the reading of excerpts from historic yoga texts at the end of her classes.
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​ASHTANGA YOGA
Ashtanga is a style of yoga founded by the late Sri Pattabhi Jois in India. "Ashta" means "eight" and "anga" means "limb", so ashtanga yoga can be roughly translated as "eight-limbed" yoga.
Ashtanga is a dynamic and challenging form of yoga that is is the inpiration for offshoots such as vinyasa or power yoga. It is meant to create strength, flexibility, and endurance to the mind and body. Each limb is meant to help the practitioner reach a state of peace and calm. It can be practiced by all experience levels as modifications are provided! Try it out!