Growing up in South Africa, a junior school headmaster encouraged every child to try as many sports as possible. Lauren embraced that philosophy wholeheartedly - tennis, netball, hockey, athletics and cross-country - and discovered something that would stay with her for life: moving your body should be fun, and being strong matters.
Running continued through university, followed by years in the gym and, eventually, a passion for strength training. But it was during one of the most difficult periods of Lauren's life that fitness took on a much deeper meaning.
After moving with her family from South Africa to rural Canada, Lauren's husband became terminally ill. Looking for work that would allow her to remain close to him and their children, she turned to something she genuinely loved. She qualified as a fitness trainer, created a gym at home and began training people in her local community.
At the same time, her own training became an important source of resilience.
“The stronger I felt in my body, the stronger I felt in my mind.”
That belief still sits at the heart of everything Lauren does today.
Her Canadian country gym was anything but conventional. Tractor tyres were flipped up hills, transmission poles became training equipment and Lauren even built her own outdoor pull-up bars. Her clients ranged from everyday men and women to competitive athletes, but the objective remained the same: help people become stronger for the things they wanted to do in real life.
Following her husband's passing, life eventually brought another major change. Lauren reconnected with a childhood friend and moved with her two children to the United States - packing a U-Haul with, among other things, as much of her beloved gym equipment as she could bring.
She rebuilt again.
Starting with one client in late 2024, Lauren's training practice grew to more than 30 clients, divided between her private home studio and an exclusive wellness center. She also began teaching balance classes for older adults.
Working closely with her clients increasingly shaped Lauren's purpose: helping people stay strong enough to keep living the lives they love.
Whether that means playing with grandchildren, gardening, hiking, traveling, getting up and down comfortably or simply maintaining independence, Lauren believes strength becomes more important - not less - as we age.
Her work with women approaching and going through menopause also highlighted the relationship between muscle, bone health, nutrition and healthy aging. Wanting to offer her clients more, Lauren added nutrition coaching to her qualifications.
Her philosophy is refreshingly simple.
Eat well. Move your body. Rest. Stay connected, curious and engaged with life.
There is no magic pill, perfect diet or single exercise that changes everything. Lauren believes in doing the basics well, enjoying the foods you love, finding movement you genuinely enjoy and, above all, being consistent.
“It doesn't have to be perfect. It just needs to be consistent.”
And that philosophy eventually led Lauren to another passion - skincare.
For Lauren, wellness shouldn't stop with how we nourish and strengthen ourselves on the inside. Her creative side inspired her to develop handcrafted lip balms, body butters and bath salts - simple products designed to nourish and care for the body from the outside too.
It all comes together under Lolly B Wellness: fitness, nutrition and skincare, built around one uncomplicated idea:
Love your body in more ways than one.
Today, Lauren combines personal training, individualized programming, nutrition coaching and handcrafted skincare with a highly personal approach to every client.
But her greatest measure of success isn't how much somebody can lift or what number appears on a scale.
It's hearing someone who once struggled to open a jar say they can do it again. It's watching someone regain movement in a painful shoulder, become stronger through their knees and hips, or rediscover the confidence to do something they thought aging had taken away.
And perhaps most rewarding of all is regularly hearing her clients say four simple words:
“You changed my life.”
For Lauren, that's what wellness is really about - not chasing perfection or trying to stop the years from passing, but building a body and a life that allow you to keep doing the things you love for as long as possible.