Lauren SLater
Originally hailing from sunny Encinitas, CA, she was exposed early on to the yoga philosophy and meditation practices of Paramahansa Yogananda at the Self Realization Fellowship and Ashtanga Vinyasa sequences with Tim Miller, an original student of Sri Pattabhi Jois. Lauren has been teaching yoga for 20 years and Pilates for 10 years; first in her spiritual home of Yoga Tree San Francisco, and now in her new home of Seattle.
Bringing 25 years of experience in practice, teaching and training to her students, she strives to create a warm, playful, and safe environment in which to learn, grow, and heal. Sharing the life-changing practices of asana, coupled with deep core work, pranayama, and fluid, intelligent sequencing, Lauen’s style is dynamic and precise while embracing the joyful flow of embodied movement. She is focused on proper alignment and educating her students on how to respect our ever-changing bodies for a lifetime of practice.
Lauren discovered yoga at age 17 as a support, mentally and physically, for the demands of being a professional dancer; first in ballet, and later as a modern dancer and burlesque performer. She understands the desire to feel fit, limber, and grounded in life, and strongly feels the path of coupling yoga and Pilates is a lifelong partnership supporting all stages of this journey. Empowering people in healing injury and physical traumas is her lifelong work.
Complemented by her education in Classical Pilates (Metropolitan Pilates in Seattle and The Pilates Center of SF),she has her 500 E-YRT from Yoga Tree SF, and a BA in Dance and Exercise Science from UC Santa Barbara. Lauren empowers her students to move thoughtfully from the center outward; learning proper alignment to protect and heal the body, heart and mind from the rigors of life, athletics, and play.
Outside of nerding out about anatomy and biomechanics, Lauren’s passions include music and record collecting, world history, fashion and design, cooking, gardening, the natural world, backcountry trekking in the Cascades, and being in and on the water anywhere! She lives in beautiful Columbia City with her husband Doug, and feels grateful to call Seward Park her playground.