Bent Into Shape, Yoga Keeps Couple Focused, Energized
January 24th, 2007 by Anne
Publication: Palmbeachpost.com
Author: Jodie Wagner
Date: 24 January, 2007
JUNO BEACH — Just 6 months old, Ethan McLaughlin is years away from joining the family business.
But his parents, Todd and Tamara McLaughlin, are making sure their son gets plenty of exposure to their line of work.
Nearly every day, the Palm Beach Gardens residents bring Ethan to Native Yoga Center, a Juno Beach yoga studio they opened last summer.
The couple, both of whom studied yoga in India and completed Thai massage certification training in Thailand, were co-directors of a yoga studio in San Diego for three years before moving to Palm Beach County in 2005 to start their own business.
“It was a dream come true, that we were able to combine all of our talents in the sense that Tamara and I have both gone to Thailand to study Thai massage,” said Todd McLaughlin, 33, a Jupiter native. Tamara, 34, is from California.
“We also went to India and studied a style called Ashtanga yoga. Now, we’re combining everything we’ve learned from all that. We wanted to be back here. We moved back from California because the family’s here and we wanted to have a baby. We were really excited to be around our family.”
Their family - Todd’s parents Bob and Pat McLaughlin, sisters Katie McLaughlin and Meghan Lilly and brother-in-law George Lilly - felt likewise.
All five are yoga enthusiasts and regular visitors to Native Yoga Center. Katie, 28, also is a part-time instructor there.
“Everybody all chips in,” Tamara McLaughlin said. “It’s the most amazing thing. I don’t think we could have done it by ourselves. It would’ve been really tough. It’s been amazing. We’ve had huge support from everybody. We cooperate and enjoy each other.”
Pat McLaughlin, 60, a registered nurse, licensed massage therapist and co-owner of Alchemy Massage in Jupiter along with Todd and Katie, was the first in the family to try yoga.
Stressed by her job and seeking relaxation, she signed up for a local yoga class. Within weeks, she was raving about it to her husband and children.
“One day she said, ‘You’ve got to come and try this out,'’” Todd McLaughlin said. “Ever since then, I was hooked on it.”
After meeting Tamara and introducing her to yoga, she became hooked too, as did his dad and sisters.
“I enjoyed the relaxation and quiet and how it made my body feel,” Bob McLaughlin said.
“If it weren’t for yoga, I wouldn’t be here,” added Meghan Lilly, a 29-year-old Jupiter resident who had suffered from an auto-immune disorder before trying yoga seven years ago. “It’s great for stress relief.”
It’s also good for weight loss and detoxification, and helps increase flexibility, improve concentration and boost physical fitness.
“A lot of people think yoga is just sitting and meditating,” Katie McLaughlin said. “People are surprised to hear that you get a cardiovascular workout.”
“It makes you feel really good,” added Todd McLaughlin. “You get an amazing aspect of increasing your flexibility, so everything in the body starts to feel a little bit better.”
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