raves

On June 21st, Athleta was the headlining sponsor of Solstice in Times Square put on by Times Square Alliance for it's 13th year. This is the yearly event where yogis come together right smack in the middle of Times Square to celebrate the day the sun is at its highest position in the sky for the longest period of time. I was there front and center at 9am. What sets this year's event apart from the last few, aside from the bearably cooler weather, was yoga-preneur Lauren Imparato leading the highly publicized morning class. I've known Lauren since I founded Mizzfit.com. She was one of my first yoga studio reviews and continues to pioneer athletic style yoga. Her practice of I.AM.YOU. yoga is not easy. It's challenging, modern, music-oriented, and doesn't follow all the yoga rules you're used to. It's simply amazing, so I was thrilled to see her join what has become a yogi cult favorite summer event. Before Lauren jumped on stage to lead hundreds of yoga fans...

If you follow me on Instagram, you've seen me wearing this t-shirt a lot lately. Well, there's a reason for it. I completely fell in love with it! I got in touch with the designer, Geneva Peschka from SunandDaughtersCo on Etsy, to find out more about the inspiration behind the shirt. She told me that over the last few years she's been doing a lot of self work and stumbled across Spirit Junkie by Gabrielle Bernstein. Spirit Junkie and the book A Return To Love by Marianne Williamson really helped open her mind and heart to all the amazing possibilities that can happen when someone chooses love over fear. Such a good lesson, right? But not always so easy either. Fear can be a huge obstacle to kick over. Geneva bravely decided to act on the lessons she learned through these books and noticed her life change drastically for the better. She told me: "I am definitely a LOVE ambassador in all that I do, and I decided I wanted to create something to remind myself and others of...

There's no place like Hawaii! My plan is to visit a different Hawaiian island every year until I've been to them all. I traveled to Oahu last year. Going to the Big Island this past February was my 3rd time back to the wonderous state and I used a new online travel guide service called Localfu to navigate my way around like a local. If there's something you should know about me it's that I avoid tourist traps at all costs! I like to uncover the healthiest and most active things going on in the places I travel to, and I always prefer to go off the beaten path. I'm a curious cat, which often gets me into the thick of things. That's me picking a noni fruit...unaware that they're the most disgusting of Hawaiian fruits to eat raw. It was a sour experience unlike the rest of my trip. What follows are my Big Island, Hawaii chronicles with Localfu... The way that Localfu works is really quite simple. You create an account and then enter your travel location. It helps if...

Yoga is the best excuse to see my friends. It's one of the easiest invitations to extend because no one has time--including me--to workout and see their friends unless it's happening simultaneously. I make yoga dates with my girlfriends constantly because I feel like I get the most quality time with them during this workout than any other. Forget the high intensity stuff--it's far less intimate. Yoga's the one activity where even though you're not talking, you're still connecting with each other while on your mats. In this case, it's imperative that your mats are side by side so you can visually bond with your friend. This is Nicola Yvette, my longtime friend who teaches yoga & pilates (check her out here). Oh look, she's wearing my socks! Last night we went on yoga date to Laughing Lotus Yoga NYC and it was pretty awesome to experience her energy and soulfulness right beside me. I saw a side of her that I don't always get to see in sit-down...

I’m all about outdoor workouts but lately it’s been TOO COLD. Check out my favorite winter workout that lets you skip the cold and will instantly heat up your muscles. It’s Pilates but a different kind of Pilates approach than you’re used to seeing at the gym. The workout is called Flex Pilates and it's taught at Flex Studios in New York City. Flex Pilates uses the Pilates reformer to combine classic Pilates and strength training for 55 minutes that don’t go by too quickly (sorry, clock watchers). Let’s just say you feel every minute of this workout because the motions are often pace-­controlled and require you to activate your core while pulling it up and in. Some moves happen slowly and some quick depending on how you’re using the reformer. To show you several of my favorite moves, I asked Jenn Seracuse, director and instructor at Flex Studios, to guide me through a session. As much as I love this workout, I’m not advanced enough to do it on my own....

A wellness "scene" has emerged. There are workout cliques, fit celebrities and even healthy parties that are impossible to get into. Like what happened to my invite to Athleta's 2014 NY Fashion Week Show??? Guess their short list is getting shorter, but that's how it goes these days. Wellness isn't just nutritional, science-y and medical anymore. It's SOCIAL. Everybody's reading Well + Good and fitness companies are dying for a mention. Not only is there money in the health category, there's also status. Pretty soon we'll be rubbing elbows in gluten-free strip clubs. Ha! Anyway, you get what I'm saying. Wellness is cool and ADDICTING. Our time has arrived and we can be more unapologetically excessive than ever. Today's round-up of TRENDS was inspired by my addiction. These things make it easier for me to get my fix. 1. YourGuru - Because you only want the BEST SH*T around and the only way to get that is to ask your friends in-the-know. They might be "dealers" or...