Beauty Tara Stiles Shares Her Beauty Routine
A rebel yoga guru behind the boundary-pushing fitness program Strala Yoga, Tara Stiles is always taking her practice to the next level. Tara’s motto is to teach a routine of wellness and fitness that can transfer easily between our ever-changing surroundings and circumstances, allowing us to be healthy, happy and have fun no matter where we may be. Tara knows that with every routine there must be some flexibility, so she’s tweaked her morning beauty regimen through her busy lifestyle, across her world travels, and now, into a new stage of life: pregnancy!
We asked the yogi rebel and mama-to-be about her morning beauty routine, from healthy snacks to essential products to every-day stretches.
Tara’s Morning Beauty Routine
I keep this routine and adjust depending on my environment. It can be fun and exciting to be healthy on the road, but you have to break free of ideas of limitation and create new habits. For example, empty a hotel mini bar, head to the grocery store and stock it with fresh fruits, juices and veggies.
Getting cozy wherever I am is essential. You don’t need much space at all for a yoga practice and I can do this practice wherever I am as long as I make the time. Honestly, I believe it’s about believing you can create the life you can thrive in, instead of staying stuck in a life of stress. In my experience, living this way has made everything massively better, including my productivity!
“I want access to my full self as much as possible.”
I’m up pretty early usually, depending on what events the day has in store. If I have the day available to schedule myself, as opposed to having to run to an event, this is how it usually goes. If I’m running to an event I’ll still go with a version of this but it might be a bit shorter.
The best part of waking up is a little yoga in bed to check in with how I feel and get myself physically and mentally energized for the day. I do a bit of rolling around, hip openers and easy stretches to open my body, and cap it off with a few minutes of meditation to calm and focus my mind.
I drink loads of water, keeping a big glass by the bed at night and keep guzzling in the morning. I like to add lemon or cucumber or fresh berries, depending on the time of year and what I have in the house.
After showering, I lather on the Embryolisse thick like a mask on my face and neck and slide on a healthy dose of coconut butter on to my body, arms, legs, hands and feet. My body soaks up the moisture and thrives like a happy jade plant in the sun.
For breakfast I mix it up each day depending on how I feel and what I have in the house. I’m a fan of salad for breakfast, tossing together tomato, greens, apple, and any other fresh produce that appeals to me that day. Squeeze lemon with a bit of sea salt and I’m good.
Other days I might blend my classic “Green Dream” smoothie which is spinach, banana, almond milk, or start with a more citrus blend of oranges and berries with ice.
If I’m feeling like something extra hearty I’ll whip up some oatmeal with maple syrup or fresh berries. The experience of nourishing is a creative one for me and I thrive on the time to create and experiment with the fresh produce I have around.
As for exercise, I really don’t like to start my day without it. The morning is a wonderful time to get things going physically and I’m cranky if I don’t move my body in a meaningful way first thing.
I’ll do at least 20 to 30 minutes of something, usually a freestyle yoga routine based on what I feel my body needs. If I’m somewhere near a warm ocean or a pool, I’ll jump in and swim around for a while. A nature hike if I’m somewhere appropriate is an occasional treat, but yoga, Strala style, is my every day go-to.
Tara’s 5 Beauty essentials
1. Embryolisse moisturizer
2. Shu uemura eyelash curler
3. Rosebud lip balm
4. Coconut butter and oil
5. Suave conditioner (random I know!)
Tara’s #1 WEllness tip:
Move easy with everything you’ve got, in every direction you can. I stand by this not only in how I move but how I do everything. We’re so stuck in linear and isolated exercise and behavior and it leads to stress, declined performance, and a block in creativity. I want access to my full self as much as possible.
If there was one word to describe my beauty style it would be: Hydrated.