QUICK FACTS
Bio: Laura Ehlers is the creator of LaurasNaturalLife.com, including the Crave-Free Cleanse and Clean Beauty Academy. She is a Nutritionist and Holistic Health Educator, with a Master’s Degree in Nutrition and Health Education from Hawthorn University. Laura is passionate about living a toxin-free life from the inside out – including beauty products, home products, nutrient dense foods and detox methods. When she’s not creating exciting things for Laura’s Natural life she can be found devouring an acai bowl and having one-sided conversation with her dog, Tedford.
Location: Wisconsin, USA
Connect: Laura’s Blog, YouTube Channel, Instagram, and Pinterest
As a wellness warrior, holistic health educator, nutritionist and green beauty enthusiast, it’s safe to say that Laura is a wealth of clean living knowledge. She is passionate about sharing her journey and creates incredible content through her YouTube Channel, blog and website, LaurasNaturalLife.com.
Laura has went above and beyond in providing resources to cover all your bases for living a greener lifestyle. If you are looking to learn how to eat healthier, Laura has created her Crave-Free Cleanse; if you are looking for adorable healthy lifestyle apparel and accessories, she has created a custom collection of items that are sold through her Etsy store, Shop LNL, and lastly, for those of you looking to clean up your makeup routine and delve into the world of green beauty, she has created an educational course called Clean Beauty Academy where she will help to empower you to learn about ingredients to decide for yourself which products best suit your needs — so, when I say she has you covered, it is no exaggeration! Laura has provided amazing resources to answer many common issues and questions people have when starting down the path to living a non-toxic lifestyle.
We are beyond excited to feature this clean living super woman on our blog today! She is answering our questions about her own health journey, what you can expect from her courses, and she is offering her advice on how to stick to those New Year’s resolutions. Read on below for our interview with Laura!
The Greenly Guide: Can you share why you decided to start using safer products in your home and cleaner health and beauty items? Was there one event in your life that made you question conventional products or was it a gradual change for you?
Laura: The answer to this all comes back to health. When my family moved to Georgia when I was in high school, my mom become ill with chemical sensitivity and Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (although, we didn’t know these diagnoses yet). She was very sensitive to chemicals as well as any strong scents and we started using more clean products in our home – at least in regards to cleaning and fragrance free products. She also started seeing a natural healthcare practitioner which led us on a path to better health. Later in life when I got married, I moved into a brand new home and the toxic chemicals from the building materials made me so sick almost instantly. At the same time, I began working at a holistic healthcare center and was working with air inspectors and building inspectors to help figure out how to combat these chemicals I was living in! During this time, I also learned that my bloodstream could absorb whatever I put on it. I assumed since I didn’t have a reaction to my products and they did not have a scent, they were safe. I was wrong! Since I was a beauty junkie, I knew I had to find alternatives, because going makeup free was not an option!
The Greenly Guide: Did your lifestyle change to using natural products spark your interest in holistic nutrition as well, or was seeking further education in holistic nutrition something that always interested you?
Laura: Absolutely! It was a snowball effect with everything happening at once. I was always into natural healthcare and really hated going to my western medical doctor, because growing up doctors told me my chronic issues were either “nothing” or “anxiety”. They were neither. I certainly didn’t know very much about holistic healthcare until I started working in a holistic healthcare office. I love learning about nutrients, supplements, dietary systems and seeing people’s lives literally changed for the better in front of my own eyes! It was there that I decided to pursue an education in holistic health.
The Greenly Guide: As a holistic nutritionist, you have shared your knowledge in the form of your program The Crave-Free Cleanse (formerly called the 10 Day Reset)–can you explain why you decided to create this and what benefits people will see from completing this program?
Laura: So many people are looking for a cleanse as a quick fix after the holidays or before a vacation. Most of these cleanses are crap! They leave you with very few nutrients and you feel horrible, not to mention they leave you craving ice cream, pizza and cake! 10 days is a perfect amount of time to clean out the junk in your diet, while teaching you how to eat healthfully. I have tons of information about healthy eating in there (not fad cleansing), as well as no restrictions on how much you can eat – as long as you follow the types of food allowed. Typically, someone experiences a realization that they really don’t crave a particular food they used to, or don’t even like it anymore. Some people experience less pain, better sleep, more energy and even some weight loss, but everyone’s body is different. The goal is to continue using what you’ve learned in the program and treat is as a building block to a healthy lifestyle change.
The Greenly Guide: With the New Year upon us and many people making New Year’s resolutions, what is your best advice for someone who is hoping to change their nutrition and how they can stay on course for the long term?
Laura: Treat your New year’s resolutions as lifestyle changes, not as a fad. If you are serious about changing something in your life, seek out real help that will keep you accountable. Also, be realistic about what you can do and how much effort it will take on your part.
The Greenly Guide: What are a few of your favorite healthy snacks for on the go?
Laura: Nuts, fruit, celery and carrots, Suja juices and Rx bars.
The Greenly Guide: In addition to your nutritional program, you have also created your Clean Beauty Academy – can you share what inspired you to create this course?
Laura: I often get asked “is _____ a clean product / brand?”. I realized that many green beauty users are relying on green bloggers or an app to tell them if a product is safe. I don’t think that’s right. I think every woman should know for herself how to read an ingredient label on her beauty products. The choice if something is safe or not should be hers alone! On a more global level, it’s one thing to say that you use green products, but if no one is trying to ban a particular ingredient, it will continue to be used. The marketing on beauty packages can also be very deceiving. I see so many woman buying products that are marketed as “natural” or “paraben-free” and are still full of carcinogens! Once you know how to read a label, you will never be duped by marketing again.
The Greenly Guide: If someone is new to green beauty and interested in enrolling in your Clean Beauty Academy to learn more about ingredients and products, can you briefly explain the format of the course and what they can expect to learn?
Laura: The course includes four video modules, consisting of 10 video lessons total. These lessons are broken down into beginner, advanced and purist, so that once you know all the big ingredients to watch out for, you can decided for yourself which ones you want to avoid. There are also printable ingredient lists so that you can take them shopping with you, a gigantic shopping guide of all the products I and my fellow beauty bloggers have used with details like price and skin type, as well as my Better Beauty Method workbook to systematically walk you through detoxing your own makeup bag and help you decide which products to upgrade to better beauty products. There are also fun bonus videos, too! It also can be done in as little as one weekend day!
The Greenly Guide: Along with connecting with your followers via YouTube and Instagram, you have also started a community through Facebook- this seems to be a great way to interact- what makes your group unique to other similarly formatted groups?
Laura: It is BUSY! Everyone is active and ready to answer your questions. We’re over 500 green beauties strong now and growing. In addition to help, you can also find encouragement.
The Greenly Guide: When you aren’t busy creating healthy living and green beauty content, what things do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Laura: I am obsessed with barre3 and practice several times a week. I also enjoy spending time with my family (especially my sweet dog, Tedford) and in the summer I really enjoy boating and golfing.
The Greenly Guide: What products would be included if you were short on time and only had 5 minute to do your makeup – specifically for Winter?
Laura: Gressa Minimalist Serum Foundation, Honest Beauty Brow Pencil, Lily Lolo Mascara, Nu Evolution Bronzer, Root Pressed Eyeshadow in Duke.
A huge thank you to Laura for taking the time to share more about herself and her health journey on The Greenly Guide blog today. Be sure to head over to Laura’s website to learn more about her Cleanse and her Clean Beauty Academy. We cannot wait to see all of the exciting new things that Laura will bring to the green community in 2017!