When Lola Berry first signed up for yoga classes, she only had one goal in mind – to lose some serious weight.
‘I got into it for weight loss purposes, I wanted to look hot in a bikini,’ Lola told FEMAIL, admitting that it wasn’t until she started practising regularly – three to four times a week – that she began to feel other, more spiritual benefits.
Now, Lola is the Australian nutritionist, author and yoga teacher behind The Yoga Body – her new book which is as much about building a yoga body as it is what the practice can do for you.
Lola sat down with FEMAIL to discuss the benefits of practising yoga, both for stress levels, physique, mental clarity and more.
She also shared the poses you can try, whether you want to prepare for a date, de-stress or reduce sadness.
Lola Berry (left and right) said that while she got into yoga to ‘look hot in a bikini’, she ended up getting so much more from the practice in a spiritual sense
Lola (pictured) shared with FEMAIL the benefits of yoga, from flexibility to lowering your blood pressure, helping with stress and building bone density
According to the 32-year-old, she first took up yoga at the age of 23 because she wanted to lose some weight (left, before, right, now) – she said she was 20 kilos heavier than she was now
According to the 32-year-old, she first took up yoga at the age of 23 because she wanted to lose some weight.
‘I was around 20 kilograms heavier than I am now, so knew I needed to do something about it. I took up the practice and paired it with a Paleo diet. Before I knew it, the kilos were dropping off,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
But it wasn’t just weight loss benefits that Lola soon saw. She said that she also soon began to feel calmer in her mind and more positive:
‘There’s a saying in yoga, about how it calms you and makes you feel more clear and positive,’ Lola said. ‘Yoga was a gift I gave myself.
‘If you haven’t tried yoga before you might think it’s lot of meditating and hippy jazz, but if you practise the asanas (the yoga poses), it does wonderful things for your body – it improves posture, flexibility, strength and even aids weight management.’
Lola shared the various poses she swears by to reduce sadness, stress and more – she said that backbends (pictured) and cracking open your heart space have huge benefits
‘The single best pose you can do to calm down and de-stress is a forward fold,’ Lola said – it helps to eliminate all sorts of troubles
And according to the author, there are countless poses you can try in different areas of your life, whether you’re stressed and need to relax, preparing for a big date or just want to tone up.
‘The single best pose you can do to calm down and de-stress is a forward fold,’ Lola said.
‘Even if you’re stressed at work, just get up from your desk and try it. You’ll instantly feel as though you’re letting go of baggage.’
If you’re feeling sad, Lola also has several poses she recommends to clients – whether it’s the ‘corpse pose’ or the pose most yoga classes finish with when you’re lying on your back on the floor, or the camel pose – which is her own personal favourite backbend.
If you find yourself nervous before a date, Lola also said it’s a good idea to ‘crack open your heart space’ and do a backbend.
The wheel pose is another great progression to help bring ‘lucky love vibes’, while putting your legs up the wall and feeling the blood rushing to your head can prepare you for sleep and relaxation.
The wheel pose is a great progression to help bring ‘lucky love vibes’, while putting your legs up the wall and feeling the blood rushing to your head can prepare you for sleep and relaxation
Speaking about her diet these days, Lola said it’s all about wholefoods, and nourishing from the inside out – she follows a partly Paleo diet
Speaking about her diet these days, Lola said it’s all about wholefoods, and nourishing from the inside out.
‘A typical day on my plate might see me have an activated black charcoal smoothie for breakfast, with some activated nuts, then a quinoa salad with sweet potato at lunch and salmon, avocado and green veggies for dinner,’ she said.
‘I try to eat with the seasons and include plenty of anti-inflammatory foods like turmeric and ginger.
‘Super foods don’t have to cost the earth. Chilli flakes help to speed up the metabolism, ginger and hot water is a great digestive and lemon and hot water is a fantastic cheap liver detox.’
Nowadays, Lola swears by yoga – and still practises several times a week, while also teaching her clients
Her new book, The Yoga Body (pictured), is out now
Nowadays, Lola swears by yoga – and still practises several times a week, while also teaching her clients.
‘Yoga helps me to feel “whole”,’ she said. ‘It’s like I’m putting forward a kinder, happier, more heart-filled version of myself.’
Her new book, The Yoga Body – The Ultimate Guide to Detoxing, Building Strength and Eating Mindfully, aims to show what it can do for you too.
The Yoga Body by Lola Berry is published by Pan Macmillan.
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