NEW YEAR, N3W YOU

THE GOOD

I feel so blessed that I’ve been surrounded by family since March. There were seven, and sometimes nine, people in our pod— three kids; two fiancé’s, my husband, our nephew and three to four dogs. We fought for office space but ate memorable meals and did at-home Peloton work-outs together.

I personally had no choice but to take it down a notch. I’m still not meditating but I did download the Calm app. I also said yes to Zoom panels, speeches and was able to virtually connect with tons of people — new and old.

The coolest thing was getting to launch my dream cosmetics company, JonesRoad Beauty, from the comfort of my home (with a few in-office days). Who knew the power of a young scrappy team mixed with a seasoned professional could simply just get it done.

THE ADD

Travel! It’s the first thing I’ll do when we can. My husband and I love our vacation time together and as a family. I miss the UK and Paris and had also promised my youngest son a trip to Tokyo as his college graduation gift. I miss the Bahamas, which is one of our favorite warm weather destinations, too. I also haven’t been able to see my family in Chicago and really want to see my 85 year-old Dad.

Two of our sons put their weddings on hold, so I’m really looking forward to those celebrations.

THE BUZZ

Jones Road s releasing 25 shades of face pencils and 4 shades of eye pencils in mid-January. We’ll also be fully back ins tock of our Miracle Balm, which we underestimated the demand for. There are a bunch of monthly launches in the pipeline after that.

My wellness brand, EVOLUTION_18 is releasing several delicious new products to support beauty from the inside out. Plus, new episodes of my podcast, Beyond the Beauty, with amazing founders. And hopefully, I’ll get a chill spa day with my sister, which we usually do once a year, or I’ll finally meditate...

IG @JustBobbiDotCom

@JonesRoadBeauty

@Evolution_18

PHOTO COURTESY | Bobbi Brown

---

THE GOOD

With the Covid 19 crisis making 2020anunforgettable year for all of us, it was a strange time to have the most successful year of my career. This year I have won the European championship (ELMS) the world championship (WEC) and the 24 hours of Le Mans. I became the youngest British winner of the Le Mans as wel las the youngest winner of WEC (World Endurance Championship). This year has felt even weirder due the races held behind "closed doors", closed to the public spectators. Covid tests proved me wrong in thinking nothing would enter that high up my nose, it didn't take away from a year where I won 6 of the 9 races I entered.

THE ADD

I said to myself that I was going to rekindle my German this year, 2 phone apps and the subscription page to an online language platform later I still haven't given it the time it needs. It's one of those things that won't make me a faster racing driver and therefore doesn't take priority, but then again that's exactly how I excused myself this year. Maybe next year will be the year.

THE BUZZ

Next year I am signed for another season of WEC, and ELMS with the same team as 2020 alongside both returning and new teammates. Another strong season next year is almost a make or break for my career with new manufacturers on the horizon to enter in 2023 and their development likely to start in 2022. Next years performance could solidify my name amongst the top to be first in line fora seat in one of the upcoming campaigns to win the top class of sportscar racing. The pressure is definitely going to be piling on over the winter months of training to make sure I'm in the best shape possible to hit the ground running where I left off this year.

IG @PhilHansonRacing

PHOTO COURTESY | Phil Hanson

---

THE GOOD

I think that on a very big level, there has been a massive awakening of people on the planet. There’s so much. Anytime there is an election year, the pandemic, the amount of variables that have been going on is massive. Where people saw protests, I saw people coming together. I saw so much alignment in a way that we haven’t had in my lifetime that I can remember as an adult. I thought that that was special.

For me personally, when things slowed down and got quiet, I had an opportunity to listen. It was a year for me to let go and listen. When you sit down and listen, the answers are there. I realized that there were people, places and things that I could let go of now. I wondered why I was holding and why I was chasing to-wards them which could take me off my path. Being still, I saw relationships that I could let go with love and without any drama. It also allowed me to see some of the most amazing people on the planet that I am able to call friends. That goes to my family as well. It’s been a crazy year. My brother’s fiancé passed away very early in March not COVID related and we have never been closer. He lost his fiancé, we've been separated by a pandemic, I’ve seen him once the entire year and you know my brother and I get to FaceTime and we’re closer now then we were 10 years ago so there are gifts within the loss and that forme was great. So relationships with my brother and others has been great.

THE ADD

There are a couple of massive things I’m really proud of! One being Openfit. It’s a brand that basically I’m going back to coaching. So we’re filming a massive program that will be out in the world and we will film it in Jan. It will go out in Feb. I want to be the modern day Richard Simmons - having great access to health. I can't dance as good as Richard but man, it's going to be fun and special. All this programming is so intense and there’s no place for people that are beginning or trying to get back in. So Openfit and I have built this wonderful program and I can’t wait to do it because I haven’t coached this way in years. It will be available in streaming and I’m really excited about it. It’s exciting that people will be able to bring me back into their homes and living rooms again.

The other big thing is my CBD company! I started GetUP, a CBD company a year ago.COVID was tough, I couldn’t do shipping and getting things out – it really helped me identify the purpose of what this was.I know that there are people who may not be familiar with it, but they trust me and this will be the people’s CBD. CBD is so expensive and this is going to be like, "hey pay what you can scale" and I will send it to you. I want people to have access to health and it shouldn’t be exclusive based on affordability. It’s a really big initiative that I have decided to put together and I’m really excited as that will be available in Jan. It’s a really good start to the new year. I wanted to demystify fitness and I did, food/nutrition and I did and now I want to do the same thing with CBD. I love the name because no matter how much you get down, you get back up and that’s the mantra of 2021.

THE BUZZ

I encourage people to sign up and go to my mailing list Widerstrom.com. I send an email out every week. Sometimes it’s what just in my head or little tips. If you’re getting that, you know about things that are going on with me, challenges that I’mlaunching, Transformation will be in there I’m sure and I have things like that happening but I always say get on the mailing list and we start from there.

IG @JenWiderstrom

PHOTO COURTESY | Jen Widerstrom

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see NEW YEAR, N3W YOU in mag.

THE PICK ME UP

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see The Pick Me Up in mag.

BEYOND THE CONDIMENT WITH CHEF BRANDON COLLINS

When it comes to food, we all have our favorites from sides, entrees, desserts, sauces and more. We caught up with Chef Brandon Collins who is the Mustard Sommelier of Maille, a heritage Dijon brand which also includes an assortment of mustards, vinegars etc. He told us about what his job entails, how he stays up on mustards and their variants as a whole and also shares the culinary history of this brand! He also provides insights into the healthy aspects of it as well as how it is more of a condiment and a phenomenal ingredient to use when cooking a number of your favorite foods or even enjoying it with quality ice cream!

ATHLEISURE MAG: So when did you realize that you wanted to be a chef?

CHEF BRANDON COLLINS: That’s a long one. I would like to say that I traveled to the South of France and I walked on the beaches and I had these amazing epiphanies, but honestly, the deal was, I grew up in the Midwest and I grew up in Dayton, Ohio. Basically, my Grandmother – both of them, were amazing cooks and I grew up eating really good food and realizing that at the worst times in my life, food kind of brought people together. That really ignited something in me and I realized that being around food always brought us from the farthest walks of life. If my family was away and nowhere near me, unfortunately, due to a death in the family or something – everyone could rejoice over whatever plate we were having regardless of whatever we were going through. That kind of really started everything for me.

Not a lot of kids in my area or in my school were going to culinary school to be a chef and the “rebel” in me thought that I wanted to do something that not everyone else was doing. I’m very stubborn, I get that from my mother. When I put my mind to something, I do it. So I started working at a concert venue back home called the Nutter Center which is attached to Wright State University. worked there and then I worked at Skyline Chili and I loved being able to work when I wasn’t behind a desk or a computer. That’s what really sold me 100% on it! I mean Skyline, I ate that way more then I should have –it’s good stuff!

AM: Um yeah, when you said the name, a smile and memories came together! We’re based in New York, but I had to tell the team about the beauty that is Skyline Chili. We’ve literally remade recipes to get that same test as most of our team is from the east coast so they had no idea what I was talking about!

CHEF BC: There’s something about Skyline Chili that people either love or hate– so the fact that I found another Skylinelover is a beautiful thing!

AM: Absolutely! So how would you define your cooking style?

CHEF BC: I would probably say honestly that from the get-go, I have always been very interested in the science of food. Understanding the whys and not so much the hows. So a lot of my style is driven by why do I do this and why do I do that? Why do I grill a steak as opposed to sear-ing it? Why do I like sous vide? Those are the things that are really really interesting to me. For me, it’s fundamentally driven, seasonal New American and I usually tend to focus on local and sustainable. I live in the Hudson Valley so I have an abundance, a bounty of produce and meats to work with. So that has always been the driving force behind everything that I have done culinarily.

AM: What led you to coming to Maille?

CHEF BC: So my background is in fine dining. I worked in fine dining prior to joining a company called Sodexo initially actually. That was because we had just started a family and I needed to go from working about 100 - 110 hours a week at my previous job to being able to make a kind of shift. So, I started working with Sodexo and the parent company, Unilever was my client. I then started a couple of years later working for Unilever prop-er and Maille being one of my brands, I had the opportunity to being able to start working with this Dijon mustard brand that I have been working with my entire career and it just so happened to be that I was almost at the right place and the right time. I had the confidence of my line managers who said, “hey, this is the guy for the job.”Luckily, I was given the job of MustardSommelier and having the ability to train and to figure out all of that!

AM: Can you give us some history about the brand? It’s been around since the 1700’s which is just amazing to think about!

CHEF BC: Basically, the brand truly started around 1720 with Antoine-Claude Maille and basically, the story goes, there was a plague and he was a Master Vinegar Maker. The idea was that during this plague there were these 4 thieves that had been captured and they realized that they had been utilizing a vinegar mixture that was allowing them to kind of go into people’s houses, steal from them and leave without them getting sick! What ended up happening and this is a part of the story – it’s hard to find the actual story to see if this is true, but as it goes, they were sentenced to death by burning and in order to get a lighter sentence, they gave up their vinegar recipe. Then they were actually hung instead of being burned. Which is always fun right?

Basically, he was given the rights to this and we began making “The Vinegar of the 4 Thieves” and it helped through the plague. In 1747, Maison Maille was actually founded and we became the official supplier of the court of King Louis XV at that point in time. We also opened the very first Maille Boutique in Paris during that time as well. In 1760, we became the very official suppliers in the courts of France, Austria, Hungary and Russia. That’s really cool. In 1830, we were also named the privileged supplier to the Queen of England. We were one of the very few non-British brands at that point in time, that were invited to be a supplier to the Queen. In 1845, we opened our boutique in Dijon and that’s whenever we started creating super creative storefronts and things along that line. As time has gone on and we were a supplier to Catherine the Great as well. It’s really cool because in our establishment in Dijon, we’ve been given through the division of antiquity through shipwrecks and things of that nature, actual mustard jars that were intended for Catherine the Great and Czars of Russia that had gone down. Whenever they had been found, they gave them back to us and it’s really really cool to be able to see the history and the different bottle shapes. To be able to see as we have gone on, starting out as a vinegar maker, becoming a mustard empire kind of cultish amazing high-quality brand. In ’96, we opened the boutique in Paris. We’ve been around for quite some time and it’s absolutely amazing to see all that we have been able to do. In theory, it’s 2 empires, 5 republics, 5 European conflicts, 2 World Wars and 5 currency conversions. It’s been a while!

AM: That’s so crazy! First of all, love a good True Crime tale and although I know this is more of an “as the story goes,” – the True Crime element was enjoyable and I didn’t expect you to come up with that, but that is fantastic! When you look at the website today, it has such a depth of an assortment from the vinegars, the oils, mustards, the cornichons and all of those things. How does the brand go about deciding what will be in the assortment from what will be in the main part of the line to other things that they may rotate in? Are you involved in any of that process?

CHEF BC: So, unfortunately, I’m not involved in any of that part of the process but my counterpart in Europe actually is. He sits with our leadership team so we have discussions along those lines on what is coming down the pike and do I have any input along that line. He actually overseas all of our boutiques and since we don’t have any in the US anymore, I’m kind of removed from that side of it. The main starter for any of those decisions that are made is quality. Is what we’re doing and what we’re purchasing or outsourcing, does it fit the quality and level of expertise that we are looking for whenever we launch a product. So if it’s an olive oil, ora mustard or a vinegar, we always make sure that everything we are procuring is of the best quality that we can find. We do that from our mustard seeds to our vine-gars and to our oil. As we process through the flavoring, a lot of what most people see from our boutiques in Dijon or in Par-is, our fresh from the pump mustards –from the truffles to the Sauternes wine– the rosemary honey – anything along that line, that my counterpart is in Europe and our R&S team which is based out ofChevalier. They are the ones that develop those mustards and they figure out flavor profiles and how they work as well as how it goes. Whatever is developed for the jar and is not a fresh from the pump product is going through what we see as trending, what are we thinking of for flavor profiles, what plays well with the mustard? We don’t want to create flavor profiles that are just out there and then they don’t taste well or play well with others. We go about that process the same way. Quality ingredients, how do we source them and how it tastes from day 1 to 50 to 150? It’s a really cool process and unfortunately, I don’t get to be a part of it as much as I would like to, but anytime that I’m in France – I do get to see what we’re going through and what we’re doing. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to travel this year.

AM: What is the difference between the mustards in the glass jars and the ones in the sandstone jars which are quite lovely to look at?

CHEF BC: The sandstone jars are our fresh from the pump jars. Those jars include mustards that do not contain any of our sulphites or anything along those lines. They are fresh and usually depending on the one it is, some are made from vinegar and some are made from wine. The spice in the fresh from the pump tend to be more intense and the flavor is a bit more intense that that which is in the glass jar. The sandstone jars are a whole other story of themselves. The manufacturer who creates the jars has been with us for quite some time and all of the jars are hand-made. The labels are put on by hand as well. It’s a really amazing man that owns the jar manufacturing and he’s an amazing human being. The talent that they have at the manufacturing facility is amazing. The fact that the labels are straight and perfect every single time, it’s mindboggling. It’s a cool story and they do amazing pottery to begin with, but the fact that we have been able to partner with them for such a long time which has been about100 years is amazing. The process is cool too. I believe that they have 50 employees and 33 work on the actual pots or some-thing of that nature. I’ve been there twice now and have toured the facility and to see them in action and it’s just cool. Even the color picking process is cool to see as each one goes with a launch of a specific mustard. The green was rosemary honey mustard, black is black truffle, off white is white truffle. You can also buy them individually as well.

AM: That’s really cool to know too! So you’re the Lead Chef and the North American Mustard Sommelier for the brand. What does that involve and what do you do day to day?

CHEF BC: Basically, I eat a lot of mustard! I think in general for me, I not only spread the love of Maille with who we are and what we do but also spreading the love of mustard in general. Being a Mustard Sommelier and the way that title came about, when Antoine-Claude Maillefirst decided that he would launch these boutiques, he wanted to have a Mustard Sommelier in every single boutique so that there was a specialist that could talk about the mustards. Whenever people came in asking questions, they could learn about the differences. So in my position, it’s about knowing mustards but also going through and developing recipes. Utilizing a recipe that not only uses mustard for a sandwich but how we can use mustard in a donut, mashed potatoes or any form of cooking with it as a seasoning and not just using it as a condiment. Research – I do a lot of it to find out whatever I can about mustard in general and understanding that it is referenced all the way back to the Bible and it’s the oldest known condiment that we have discovered that has been around for 3,000 years that we are aware of that has been found in clay pots in Germany. Understanding that side of it as well and understanding the subtle differences of the different kinds of mustards that are out there and why Maille is better and better from a Dijon standpoint. Dijon isn’t necessarily better than French’s or then Dusseldorf – a lot of it is personal preference. I find that all mustard has a place and a use, it’s just a matter of utilizing them correctly and I dofind Dijon to be the granddaddy of them all and hands down my favorite style of mustard.

AM: In many ways, you’re kind of like a mustard historian?

CHEF BC: To an extent. I do what I can. I kind of figure out as much as I can about the brand and about mustard in general. Understanding the seeds – living in the Hudson Valley, I don’t grow mustard because I have access to it that’s wild everywhere which is always awesome. I can walk anywhere in the fields and there is wild mustard strewn about. It’s being able to go and find that and to understand that I have friends who are wild foragers and they take me out in the woods with them to look for mushrooms and mustard greens and things like that. Again, it's making sure that I understand how it works so that when people ask me those questions, I can answer it to the best of my ability and be as educated as humanly possible.

AM: So what is the difference between mustard and Dijon?

CHEF BC: Ok, so Dijon is a mustard. Basically there are a ton of mustards in the world. You have your Dusseldorf, your hot mustards and then you have your Frenchs yellow which started originally as a creamy salad dressing. French’s was started because the man that created it thought there needed to be a form of mustard that was in the US. What actually sets Dijon apart from those other mus-tards is that it doesn’t have to come from Dijon, it just started there.

AM: Wow, I thought that Dijon was like Champagne.

CHEF BC: No, it’s not protected in that way. If you look at the back of Dijon mustard and if you look at the back of Maille, it has a simple set of ingredients. Some other Dijon mustards will include turmeric and other kinds of spices which isn’t really a true Dijon. As long as it follows by a certain set of guidelines, it can be considered a Dijon. So it has to be made with black or brown mustard seeds. That is the main mustard driver. Predominant-ly, you will find Dijon made out of brown mustard seeds because black is very volatile and they tend not to transfer very well in terms of shipping them. Then you use water, vinegar and salt. Originally Di-jon was made with verjuice which was the first press of the grape but it’s a very expensive ingredient and most people don’t make it with this anymore. We have made anniversary editions that have this in it, but it’s a lot harder to control and it’s like wine so it fluctuates a little more then vinegar. So water, vinegar and salt are crushed together. So it has to have 22%of that dry extract when all the water is removed and it can’t have more than 2%of the outer shell. So when you cut open a mustard seed, even if it’s brown – it’s still yellow on the inside. So think about mustard powder, they all look the same in general as the powder does. But it has to have less than 2% of that shell in there. Again the seeds can come from anywhere not just Dijon. One of the things that we do with Maille is that all of the seeds are non-GMO and we go through an extensive process to figure out which seeds are utilized. Other then that, that’s Dijon. So you take the seeds and you soak them in this water/vinegar/salt mixture so that they plump up and do their thing. They’re then processed to either be ground or in other ways as well. What ends up happening is throughout the process and especially with Dijon, that some of the spice is still intact. So when the grinding process is happening, the temperature is taken of the stones so that it’s not getting too hot and breaking down that spice. So heat is the enemy of heat if that makes sense. Especially when it comes to mustard. The way that we go about processing our seeds and the cool thing about it is that whenever you eat a spoonful of Maille, it will never make you cry or make you sweat. It will kind of come up through your olfactory senses and give you a little bit of a burn and dissipate back through your palette and that’s why we were so big in the courts in the 1700/1800’sis because a lot of the aristocrats wore makeup during that time and had wigs and the last thing that they wanted to have happen is to sweat through their makeup and cry in front of the commoners. The fact that we didn’t make them sweat or cry was a big bonus because of the way we process, our recipe and our ability to give them a well rounded Dijon mustard that was not overpowering and could be used in a number of ways.

AM: There seems to be a similarity in that wine has varietals and that mustard has various Dijons and mustards. In the wine world, there are set times for harvesting and picking. Does that exist for mustard as well?

CHEF BC: Well, it’s very similar to wine to a certain extent because we do have to wait for the mustard itself to go to seed.

We have a very determined window. It’splanted in the Spring it’s beautiful and yellow. Especially if you’re in the countryside of France or in Saskatchewan in Canada. Once it turns brown, that’s when you’re harvesting it in the fall. So you will get noticeable differences in regions depending on where you’re buying your seeds from. The higher quality Dijon is in Saskatchewan and in Burgundy. A lot of that is soil, temperature and things of that nature just like it is in wine. It’s one of the reasons why I think that Dijon goes so well with your Burgundy dishes. Because those dishes are heavier and being able to have this mustard cut through that is great. But when it comes playing with the flavor profiles, this will come into play because some seasons create a spicier mus-tard seed than others and there may be a different blending process that may have to take place. Different varietals of wine vinegars can change due to the flavor profiles of the mustard as well. But it’s not as drastic as a ’97 Bordeaux or a 2004 one or being affected by the California wildfires for example. It’s not as intricate as that but it can have slight variations.

AM: Obviously we love mustard on sandwiches what are some non-traditional ways that people wouldn’t think of incorporating Maille with?

CHEF BC: So people always freak out about this as my go-to answer. Really high-quality vanilla ice cream and a scoop of the Old Style Maille mustard on top of it. We don’t cut the seed as much it plays well and it’s a little bitter but it has to be a good quality ice cream. Mustard and chocolate go really well together – spice, vinegar, salt all play well with chocolate. Put it into your chocolate cake because the vinegar works well with the chemical reactions in there as well. Most chocolate cake especially when you’re doing red velvet, it contains vinegar anyways. There is some form of white distilled vinegar in there so using a white Dijon mustard as a replacement for that is something that I have done a couple of times. Also utilizing it as a seasoning which is a big one for me.

Think of Dijon as the same thing as a soy sauce, Worcestershire or a sea salt to an extent. If you add a teaspoon to a dish, itdoesn’’t necessarily have to taste like mustard. The goal is to wake up flavors and to help elevate other flavor profiles with-in a dish. Adding in some to your braises like if you are working with a short rib. Put a tablespoon into your braising liquid as you’re reducing it or after you have reduced it and see the difference in how it pops. I have added it to breads, once again not for it to taste like mustard but to give it a bit of something that makes you notice it and that there is something in there. Then there are times when you want it to taste like mustard. So I have braised chicken thighs in a whole jar of our Old Style with a little chicken stock, braised and placed in the oven, pulled them out and then put them on top of polenta or mashed potatoes. It’s absolutely killer! It’s not overpowering and when you have the fat of the potato, the stock, the dark meat of the chicken thighs – it plays so well and tastes so good. There is literally not a recipe unless you’re talking about certain desserts that I wouldn’t put mustard into. I have converted my wife into this and she says that never in a million years would she think that she likes mustard as much as she does now. Every time I make dinner she asks if Maille is in there. 9 times out of 10 I do and if I don’t, she grills me and asks if it would have tasted better with it. So then I have to go through the process of why was it that I just didn’t want to put it in there because I had had it 17 times this week or was it because I just thought it wouldn’t benefit the dish or was it that we should just put it on top? She’s been a trooper!

AM: As we’re in the holiday season, what are 3 dishes that you would do that for?

CHEF BC: Honestly one of the things that I love Dijon in is mashed potatoes and it makes everything on the plate kind of pop. Again, you don’t have to put a ton of it but it elevates every other dish on there. It’s killer as a ham glaze with Barley Malt Syrup which I have become obsessed with lately and it’s a random pick up at the grocery store. It’s a really cool molassesy – nuttiness. Those 2, herbs and chopped garlic can be rubbed on the outside of your ham once it’s about ¾ of the way done and place it on top. Let it caramelize – killer. The given is double eggs and putting it in there. Love it in vegetables especially the Old Style. You can just roast Brussel Sprouts and tossing that in there at the very end. For Thanksgiving this year, did Old Style Pickled Onions with champagne vinegar and a little bit of lemon zest and some thyme about 15 table-spoons of Old Style because it’s delicious.I had 2 onions sliced thin and brought the liquid to a boil, poured them on top of the onions. I let that set. I roasted the Brussel Sprouts with some chopped chestnuts and put that on top of it and then caramelized the vinegar mixture and added my last-minute seasoning on the Brussel Sprouts. It’s super versatile, you can put it on your stuffing or anything that you want. I’ve made compound butters to rub under chicken breast and turkeys before roasting them with our Old Style and our Originale. Our horseradish is really killer as well. Especially on the side of your charcuterie board right?

AM: It’s about lunchtime and I’m starting to think about having some myself!

CHEF BC: In talking about Athleisure and what you guys stand for, I’ve recently lost about 65 pounds and I utilized mustard a lot because it was a way for me to cut back on things that I would usually use butter or oil for. I utilized the mustard to get that flavor profile and that creaminess that I would have normally reached for a stick of butter to do that. So I went to a table-spoon of Dijon to get that flavor and its really healthy and good for you. It’s an anti-inflammatory and it’s anti-bacterial and things along that line as well. It helped me a lot in that journey as well as a means to lose weight and to eat smarter.

AM: I didn’t think of mustard as an anti-bacterial before but thinking back to the story that we started with, that makes sense!

IG @ChefBrandonC

@MailleUS

PHOTOS COURTESY | MAILLE

Hear Chef Brandon Collins on our show, Athleisure Kitchen - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multimedia companion podcast network! Subscribe to be notified when the episode drops. Listen on iHeart-Radio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, AmazonMusic, Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Beyond the Condiment with Chef Brandon Collins in mag.

STOLEN MOMENTS WITH NIECY NASH

We have been fans of Niecy Nash for a number of years. Whether it was when we first saw her hosting one of our favorite shows, Clean House on The Style Network, her comedic talents in Reno 911! or her dramatic roles such as Netflix's When They See Us or FX on Hulu's Mrs. America - Niecy always steals the show with her dynamic personality and ability to absorb her role. Like many, we're fans of TNT's Claws where she plays Desna Simms who roles with some of the baddest manicurists who create nail art along with navigating the underworld of Palmetto, FL. Throughout the show, we have seen her rocking dazzling styles in front of the camera and bringing us into the world of nail artistry as well as showing usher directorial chops behind the camera! With the final and fourth season airing in 2021, we caught up with her in New Orleans where they are currently filming. She shares the importance of Christmas, the 2021 Staycation that we have all endured and upcoming storytelling projects.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment that you realized that you wanted to work in the entertainment industry?

NIECY NASH: I was 5 years old and I was watching TV with my grandmother and I saw the most gorgeous Black woman that I had ever seen in my little 5 years of living. I said, “Grandmama, who is that?” and she said, “Baby, that’s Lola Falana.”I said, “Ooo,” and I felt that in that moment, that was definitely stamped on my canvas of my imagination and I was like, that’s what I want to do – that right there.

AM: You know, you’re involved in so many projects and you’re constantly on the move, why is the holiday season so important to you?

NN: The holiday season is so important because there is so much connective tissue there. There’s so much time and space to bring families together. But because we have all been in this mandatory 2020 Staycation when we have had to stay in the house, it has really become about curating moments and memories in the best way that we can given the circumstances.

AM: What are ways that we can curate those memories as we continue into the holiday season since we are spending so much time at home.

NN: Girl, I’m glad you asked! I want to tell so many people what I have stumbled upon and that’s HP Printables. I just got married and I was able to through HP, create my own holiday card they offer free crafts and activities. I thought this was so interesting because we can’t go out. I can stay in and involve my family and to have fun. So I found the most gorgeous tulle skirt, all the way down to the floor. Guess where I went when I wore it?

AM: Where?

NN: To my sofa girl! I went to the sofa, laid out and took a picture. I made it into a holiday card! It was absolutely gorgeous! I have to tell everybody about this because it is something that you can do with your whole family. We were able to change and do different looks as well as wearing our pajamas. It was so much fun!

AM: Are there other things that this printer can also do?

NN: Well, girl, you’ve got some good questions today! Here’s the other thing that I love about it. It’s the fact that HP has a subscription program called InstantInk meaning that if you’re in the middle of a crafting project, or your children are using it or if you have an important task that you’re working on – you will never run out of ink. This is because the print-er will let it be known and like magic, the ink will pull up to your house so you don’t have to worry about that! I feel like they are really thinking about families because in this time that we are in right now, the fact that you have services that are free is good, the fact that they’re accommodating families so we’re not making extra trips – that’s good. And listen, here’s the uptick. It’s so easy that you can let the kids sit down and do the crafting and you can go take a much needed break, if you know what I’m saying! That’s the most important part.

AM: How do you take time for yourself especially during the holiday season when itis so busy?

NN: You know, I have what you call “stolen moments.” It may not be where you can sit down and have an entire hour, but you can curate maybe 10 or 15 minutes here and 10 to 15 minutes there to do those things that make you feel restored and renewed. Whether that’s a little book on tape, making a phone call to a loved one, going into the bathroom and closing your door to pluck your eyebrows and put on your favorite song. You just have to find stolen moments.

AM: We have enjoyed seeing you on a number of TV shows and movies over the past couple of decades. Being able to see you on screen and representing Black women is something that inspires so many people with the ability to see ourselves. We know that right now you’re filming the final season of TNT’s Claws and although you can’t tell us too many details, what can you say about this show and what can you tell us about projects that we should keep our eye out for?

NN: I’m filming Claws right now and we’re in our fourth and final season. So with big promises to our fans of the show, they will leave completely satiated with our show. They will not be disappointed!

In addition to that, in 2021, right at the top,I am doing a project for ABC that Jay-Z is producing called Women of the Movement and we’re going to be telling the Emmett Till story. That’s going to be great story-telling!

IG @NiecyNash1

PHOTOS COURTESY | Niecy Nash

Hear Niecy Nash on our show, Bungalow SK - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multimedia companion podcast network! Subscribe to be notified when the episode drops. Listen on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Stolen Moments with Niecy Nash in mag.

THE FINANCIAL EXPERIENCE WITH GRANT SABATIER

As we continue into the holiday season and get prepared to transition into the New Year, it's time to think about setting our goals. We chatted with best selling financial author Grant Sabatier about how we can assess where we are financially in based on our happiness and our goals. He shares his tips, how we can stay on budget during the holidays and setting ourselves up for success.

ATHLEISURE MAG: How important is it for you to have a plan for your budget?

GRANT SABATIER: It’s very hard in life to get to where you want to go if you don’t know where you are starting out from and you don’t have a roadmap. A budget is a roadmap and it helps you figure out where you are today, how much money you owe, how much you have saved and even more importantly, it helps you outline the steps that you need to take to get you towards your goals. So a budget is essential for any financial plan. But there is a lot of different ways to budget. A lot of people think that there’s just kind of one way that you have got to track everything on a spreadsheet and that it has to be super boring. But there are a lot of ways you can save and build a budget.

AM: How do you focus on staying within your budget when navigating a pandemic?

GS: Yeah, I think it’s actually a great opportunity to look at where you’re spending your money and to ask yourself 2 questions. #1 How happy did this purchase make me and #2 is it worth it? As we’re all in our homes during this time and we have a little bit of extra time, it’s actually the perfect time to be more mindful about your money. So getting out those credit card statements or those bank statements and just go line by line. Pour a cup of coffee or pour that glass of wine and just look at what you have spent over the past year and I know that that can be a little anxiety-producing, but looking at it through the lens of did this make my life better and is it worth it, is often an approach that people don't take. They tend to just look at the dollars and the cents. Then they get upset when they have over-spent or in some cases get excited when they have underspent. But when you’re looking through that different lens, I find that it makes it a lot easier to evaluate purchased because you should be spending money on those things that make you happy and bring you joy and cutting back on all of those things that don’t.

AM: Do you have tips for the holidays?

GS: Thankfully, we live during a time where it’s never been easier in history to comparison shop and to find a deal. We’ve all become sort of master Google search-ers and researchers and so it’s very easy to spend 15 – 20 minutes just looking for lower cost alternatives whether you’re looking for a present for the holidays or even more importantly, you’re looking to reduce your recurring expenses. Those recurring expenses those things that we spend on every month, that’s 12 times a year. So things like, your cable bill, your subscriptions and your streaming bill and even your cell phone. This gets me a lot. Americans pay thousands of dollars more than they need to for their cell phones. We often sign up for a plan and stay with the same carrier for a very long time and the fees continue to go up and we don’t evaluaten the other options. Just like it's easy to comparison shop there are incredible, affordable, no contract wireless providers like Total Wireless that can help you save if you have a family over $1,200 per year. That's something where the quality of the service is super high and it's very easy to find lower rates and at Total Wireless you can get unlimited talk and text on the best network in the country over a lot of the best carriers in this country.

AM: As the bestselling author of Financial Freedom: A Proven Path to All of the Money That You Would Ever Need, what can you tell us about this book?

GS: So the book follows my journey and the steps that I took from going from 24years old, broke and living with my parents after being unemployed after college to financial independence in 5 years at the age of 30. When I say Financially independent, I saved over $1 million and had really a lot more time and space in my life. So through that journey, I learned that a lot of the things that I had been taught about money, a lot of the things that are shared in the personal finance world were not only outdated – a lot of them were just in-correct. So just the simple idea that time is money and money is time, we hear that all the time but that’s the biggest myth of them all. Money is actually infinite and you can make more money, you can start a side hustle, pick up an extra job, change careers etc but you can’t get back the time. So whenever we’re working for money, we’re trading something that’s finite – our time, for something that’s infinite – money. So being more mindful about that is essential. The book is a step by step strategy that I took to be more mindful about money. Anyone can use this no matter where they’re at in their own financial life to have to help make, save and invest more money to have more freedom in their life.

AM: What are things that couples can do to be comfortable talking about finances?

GS: I love this question. Often in couples, one of them is interested in money and the other isn’t or maybe both of them aren’t interested in money. One of the biggest mistakes that couple make is that they focus on the numbers first and so they often have to come to a money conversation with a lot of stress because their debt has gone up or they have over-spent or something wasn’t clear. There was a job loss or they’re paying for taxes. So there’s often this stress when couples talk about money and it’s actually the #1reason today in America for a divorce. So there's a lot of stress around money conversations. What I encourage couples todo and instead of starting with the money, think about the life piece - what are our dreams over the next 5 - 10 years together. What do we want to accomplish and then using that vision of the future as a way to look at your money as the lens to look at your money through. Because money really is a pathway to freedom for the life that you love and you can use it as a couple to get to where you want to go. So think about what life you want to be able to live, come together on that vision and then work together to make that happen through your finances. So talk about the life piece first and use the money to support it as opposed to the other way around where we often talk about the money first and then try to pack our life into it. Over time, money is almost like a friend, you need to build a relationship with it and this is no different than with a couple. Coming at it through that lens, It end to find is a lot more effective.

AM: What tips do you have to optimize financial goals in the New Year?

GS: Start planning now! As uncomfortable as it is, take 30 mins a week over the next couple of weeks to look at what you spent the past year. Ask yourself did these purchases make me happy and then think about the 4 big expense categories and how you can reduce them. #1Housing – the average American spends over 40% of their income on housing. Interest rates are low and even though the housing market is competitive and rents are going a bit higher, think about your housing situation. Maybe you're still in a lease or a mortgage, do you want to move somewhere where there is a lower cost? Look at your transportation expenses. Do you really need that new car? Can you buy a used car? Look at your food expenses. How much money have you been spending on all of these food delivery apps during this time? Finally, your recurring expenses. Look at if you have a cable subscription or a magazine subscription or even a gym membership something that is compounding every month and is adding to your bill.

IG @MillionMoneyCom

@FinancialFreedom

PHOTO CREDITS | Grant Sabatier

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see The Financial Experience with Grant Sabatier in mag.

THE ART OF THE SNACK | ALFIE'S BAR + KITCHEN

This month's The Art of the Snack takes us to Alfie's Bar & Kitchen where we find out about this organic and sustainable eatery. Chef Darren Pettigrew talks about what we should think about ordering from signature dishes to cocktails and how they have been navigating these past few months!

ATHLEISURE MAG: Chef Pettigrew, tell us about your culinary background and the influence for your style of cooking?

CHEF DARREN PETTIGREW: I studied at the best culinary college, the Dublin Institute of Technology for the Culinary Arts in Ireland. Earning a bachelor’s degree in culinary arts, I held a sous chef position at a young age at the National Yacht Club in Dublin. The menu changed daily, offering the best fish and seasonal game in Ireland. I went to London to stage at a couple of restaurants there but ended up working at the Da Vere Grand Connaught Rooms. I was lucky enough to be a partner in my own restaurant, Stella Maris, which I had for six years. I sadly lost it after Hurricane Sandy.

AM: What can guests expect when dining at Alfie’s Bar & Kitchen?

CHEF DP: Guest can expect to eat well and relax in a comfortable, casual atmosphere. We serve elevated comfort food and are very careful about where we source our products from. Our products are mostly organic and sustainable. Guests can also expect our service, staff, and drinks to always be on point.

AM: When creating this menu, can you tell us about where the inspiration for your dishes came from?

CHEF DP: My inspiration comes from the seasons. I always look to see what’s good and available locally and at the market. The menu lightens up for spring and summer, but a couple of staples will always remain on year-round. People’s eating habits do change with the seasons.

AM: What are 3 signature dishes that you suggest that we should enjoy during the week?

CHEF DP: Our Mac & Cheese is hugely popular. It has Narragansett burrata cheese, Fresno chili and toasted panko breadcrumbs. Our Fish and Chips with a tempura batter flies out the door as well. Lastly, I would also highly recommend our Steak Frites with peppercorn sauce and hand-cut French fries.

AM: Tell us about your brunch offerings.

CHEF DP: Our brunch is very popular and has been super busy since we reopened our craft beer and cocktail bar. We execute a delicious brunch menu on the weekends. Our goal has always to over-deliver and surprise our guests with interpretations of classic brunch specials. What makes us stand out is that we offer two to three outrageous, over-the-top brunch specials which we always sell out of. We’re definitely the best brunch spot in the area and would give any other restaurant boasting the ‘best brunchin New York’ a good run for their money!

AM: What are 3 appetizers and/or desserts that we should try when at Alfie’sBar & Kitchen?

CHEF DP: Everyone loves to share our Parmesan Truffle Fries with a black garlic and truffle aioli. Our hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip with organic blue corn tortillas are also delicious. For dessert, we serve a signature individual chocolateBanoffee tarts with brûlée banana and torched marshmallow fluff. It doesn’t really get better than that!

AM: What are 3 cocktails that you sug-gest we should have when visiting?

CHEF DP: We have some really cool cocktails. Marshall Minaya is our beverage director and chief mixologist from our sister restaurant, Valerie. I would suggest The Money Clip, The Birds and the Bees, and our Purple Rain cocktail. These libations cover whiskey, gin and vodka!

AM: During COVID-19, many restaurants have had to pivot on how they serve the guests and neighborhoods with pickups, delivery, reduce indoor dining, outdoor dining etc. – what methods are you do-ing to ensure that you’re available to your community?

CHEF DP: We adhere strictly to all the guidelines, so that we can make our guests visit as safe and memorable as possible.We also offer heated outdoor dining for those who are not comfortable eating in-side.

IG @AlfiesNYC

PHOTOS COURTESY | Alfie's Bar & Kitchen

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see The Art of the Snack | Alfie’s Bar + Kitchen in mag.

9LIST STORI3S | CHEF BROOKE WILLIAMSON

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST STORI3S Chef Brooke Williamson in mag.

9LIST

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST in mag.

ATHLEISURE LIST | CITYROW

Founded by Helaine Knapp, CITYROW's Signature class format combines rowing intervals with strength training for a total body HIIT-style workout. This 50-minute class launched in their first studio and expanded to its studios nationwide. Their philosophy is that you can get an incredibly intense, effective workout, without putting your body at risk, so everything is low impact and purposefully designed to build a strong, resilient body.

CITYROW GO offers HIIT, Endurance, Strength and even Yoga classes, in multiple lengths and levels. There is truly something for everyone. New classes drop every week, and there is a library of hundreds of on-demand classes. Both the on-demand platform and the at-home rower launched in 2018.

CITYROW offers two different connect-ed rowing machines which are similar to the studio model but are optimized for the platform. The CITYROW GO Max Rower has a 19.5" sweat-resistant touchscreen for a fully immersive experience, and the CITYROW GO Classic Rower, which has a Bluetooth-enabled LCD monitor that you can connect to your own device. The CITYROW GO Rowers allow you to take classes, view live performance data, track your progress, set weekly goals and earn personal record.

Both rowers use water to create resistance as you row, have a beautiful sleek design and can stand to store, taking up minimal space when not in use.

The CITYROW GO App is available for both Apple and Android devices and you can do the classes using any rower. The app can even connect to certain Water Rower and Concept 2 models to stream your rowing data in real-time. In addition, there is also a lot of off rower content which includes Yoga and HIIT classes.

For those looking to gift themselves or others, CITYROW's only sale of the year is currently live as both the CITYROW GO Max and CITYROW GO ClassicRowers are $250 off for a limited time.

CITYROW

Visit CITYROW for studio locations.

www.cityrow.com

IG @cityrow

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Athleisure List | CITYROW in mag.

#TRIBEGOALS

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see #TRIBEGOALS in mag.

BY INSTINCT WITH BENNY BENASSI

2020 has been quite a year and one of the ways that many of us have gotten through it is through music. We're so excited to have one of our favorite artists, Benny Benassi as our cover and to end the year with! Known for his hits such as Satisfaction and his single with Jeremih - LOVELIFE. Benny has spent this year in training for a triathalon, making great music and continuing to keep the positive vibes going. Our photo-shoot took us virtually to Italy and he gives us more insight into how he got into the industry, his love of music and what he has been working on!

ATHLEISURE MAG: When did you fall in love with music and want to create it?

BENNY BENASSI: I've always loved music and I’ve always tried to express myself through it since I was little.

AM: How do you define your music style?

BB: Eclectic and pretty wide-ranging, now. I guess the dictionary definition would be house music or electro house music. I work in that genre but I like to alternate a powerful dirty club sound with radio-friendly songs with lyrics and voices that inspire and move me.

AM: How do you stay inspired when it comes to creating new sounds?

BB: I listen to my old vinyls with my production team and I try to draw inspiration from them. Suddenly we hit upon a sound or a mood or just a kind of energy that gets us going and off we go to try to make some good new music that looks to the future while planting its roots in the past.

AM: What was your journey in becoming a DJ and producer?

BB: As I said, I've always loved music. I had this dream of becoming the DJ, the one selecting the music. But in the early days, I had to make do with being on the dancefloor for a while, not just dancing but listening and learning! I yearned to produce my own music and to find my own sound one day. So I asked my cousin Alle who was training to be a classical musician to give me a hand. We grew up in the same apartment block and we ended up producing music together right until 2018!

AM: When you begin a new project, what’s your creative process?

BB: The creativity is a team dynamic. The process is sometimes started by something we heard on an old record as we talked about earlier. Sometimes it’s a sound or a riff from one of the team, we build on it. Then we have listening sessions and just go through all the musical ideas we have on the boil, we analyze them together and decide which tracks to develop. The best ones make it all the way! We work a lot with songwriters from all around the world, too. They send us songs or we send them our music to write over.

AM: We're huge fans of Satisfaction and you have created a number of songs that are in our playlists from your remix of Bob Marley's Jammin', Chris Brown's Beautiful People and more. What have been some of your favorite songs that you have created/collaborated with?

BB: Skrillex’s remix of “Cinema” is one of them - his energy and talent played an important role in my artistic growth. Also, his remix recently hit 100million streams on Spotify, I’m really happy that he applied his amazing skill to this track! Also, Bob Marley is such an inspiration for all of us - he taught us to love life. I had the honour to remix Jammin’, it means a lot to me.

AM: What do you think it is about Satis-faction that people love so much?

BB: When you’re in the studio, you don’t really think about the destiny of the track you’re working on, you just wanna make good music. It’ll go wherever it needs to go! I was working with my cousin, Alle Benassi, and we thought Satisfaction would be a good house/club record, we never imagined that it would get so much love! I don’t know why people love it so much more than some other tracks from the same period but they do! And I’m thrilled ;)

AM: We have enjoyed your single, LOVELIFEwith Jeremih, how did this come about?

BB: About a year ago I was sent a demo of the song by the publishers of the original British writers and I immediately fell in love with it, so I started working on it with my production partners, now known as the BB TEAM! We wanted to give it an electronic vibe and when we got the production to where we wanted it to be we asked Jeremih if he would like to feature on it. We truly loved J's personal interpretation of the track. He really lights it up.

AM: How do you decide on new projects that you want to take on or those who you wish to collaborate with?

BB: I always try to follow my instinct. I try to focus on the things that catch my attention and add my personal touch!

AM: These past few months in quarantine as we do our part to lower the curve forCOVID-19, how have you been passing your time and how have you been connecting with your fans?

BB: I’ve been training to take part in a triathlon in Spring! and I've been working on new music with my team. We’ve been extremely productive these last months!

AM: With many of us hearing about vaccines, are you beginning to make plans or think of in-person events that you would like to do?

BB: I just hope that everything will get back to normal as soon as possible. When things get better, I’ll be ready to party!

AM: What have you learned about yourself this year as we have all had time for self-reflection?

BB: I reflected on the importance of understanding the value of what we have and helping out people who love us. And the importance of running. It helps a lot!

AM: We hear that you’re dropping a new album at the beginning of the year. Can you tell us about it and what we can expect to hear?

BB: We’re actually working with singles in harmony with the digital stores. I’m thinking about an album but we’re still making some adjustments.

AM: When you’re not creating music, we know that you have an interest in triathlons. What is it about this sport that draws you to it?

BB: It’s a really complete sport. It helps you improve your physical condition in an unbelievable way.

AM: As we approach 2021, what are you looking forward to as we head into the new year?

BB: I’d rather not make any predictions, too much responsibility!

AM: What do you want your legacy to be when people think about the impact that you have had in music

BB: I’d love to bring a smile to the face of everyone who ever listens to my music. I wanna convey my passion for house music and make a humble contribution to the keeping that culture alive. May it live for-ever!

IG @BennyBenassi

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's virtual cover shoot was shot by Co-Founder + Celebrity Photographer Paul Farkas. Throughout this shoot, Paul used an iPhone XS, iPad Air 2, Face-time and Clos.

IG @PVFarkas

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see By Instinct with Benny Benassi in mag.

9PLAYLIST | NERVO

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see 9PLAYLIST | NERVO in mag.

BINGELY BOOKS

TACO! TACO! TACO! THE ULTIMATE TACO COOKBOOK

Hatherleigh Press

Sara Haas

How can you not enjoy amazing tacos and pair it with your beverage of choice? We're loving this cookbook which has over 100 recipes so that you can take Taco Tuesday to the next level! This dish is very versatile and in that vein, you'll find recipes that include your classics as well as twists that include: Chicken Shawarma Tacos, Italian Meatball Tacos, BBQ Skirt Steak Tacos, Grilled Coriander Shrimp Tacos, Cumin Chickpea Tacos, Mediterranean Veggie Tacos, Pork Tinga Slow Cooker Tacos, Sesame Bok Choy Tacos, Cinnamon French Toast Tacos, S'mores Tacos, Yogurt Flatbreads, and many more that will keep your tastebuds guessing.

With its simple to read style, it will encourage you to think outside of the box as your create these dishes and allows you to get a bit inventive as well.

BETWEEN HARLEM AND HEAVEN: AFRO-ASIAN-AMERICAN COOKING FOR BIG NIGHTS, WEEKNIGHTS, AND EVERY DAY

Flatiron Books

Alexander Smalls, JJ Johnson, Veronica Chamber

Between Harlem and Heaven showcases the cuisine of Afro-Asian-American cuisine which has a major influence by the African Diaspora which has impacted global dishes. By illustrating that food transcends borders from a culinary period of time400 years ago, surviving the Middle Passage and its ability to be influences by Asian fare.

With over 100 recipes in this book, the authors showcase how African, African American and Asian foods have culinary intersectionality. This con-fluence of flavors found its way to Harlem. Recipes include mains, sides, sauces, marinades, punches and more than can be enjoyed every day.

LOVE & LEMONS EVERY DAY: MORE THAN 100 BRIGHT, PLANT FORWARD RECIPES FOR EVERY MEAL: A COOKBOOK

Avery

Jeanine Donofrio

Jeanine is known for her flavorful vegetable recipes and has compiled them in a book of more than 100 options that you can include in your next meal. She shares how they can be used in any meal starting with breakfast and ending in dessert.

With an approachable way to work with these ingredients, you'll also learn about eating healthier and being happy doing so. In terms of not wasting what you're working with, you'll learn how you can incorporate cauliflower cores, corn cobs and broccoli stalks.

You'll also find go to additions into your weekly meals like learning how to make essential vegetable broths. You'll also be able to navigate your meals with cooking tips that become your go-to, checking out alternatives for dietary restrictions and is a great bridge between those that are herbivores and omnivores.

Read Athleisure Mag Dec Issue #60 and see Bingely Books in mag.

BINGELY STREAMING

MA RAINEY'S BLACK BOTTOM

Netflix Originals

Netflix

Netflix Originals brings the story of the Mother of the Blues, Ma Rainey, to showcase how she trailblazed in the industry. Based on the play written by August Wilson. The film where Viola Davis stars as Ma Rainey as well as Chad Boseman's final film as Levee Green, the band's trumpeter. The film tackles artistic control, commercial exploitation, and racism in various forms from systematic to violent.

Most of the scenes take place in a recording studio in Chicago in 1927 where the band shares stories that lets you know about their journey, the lies, truths and how their decisions led them to where they ended up.

FROM NOW

QCode

Apple Podcast

We've been fans of QCode's podcast for awhile now so when we heard that Richard Madden (Bodyguard) and Brian Cox (HBO's Succession) would be starring in this scripted sci-fi podcast, we made sure to add this to our list. The first episode introduces us to the USS Hope a spaceship that vanished for 35 years and then came back to earth. The lone survivor leaves the carrier and is the same age as when he left! His brother, voiced by Cox and is his twin and has a one-on-one meeting with them.

The meeting allows them to reconcile and although it was a pleasant exchange, it turn a bit dark as they uncover information that can threaten their relationship from sibling rivalry, family loyalty, technological advances, the future of space exploration, climate change, human adaptation and how we process time individually.

CATFISH

Wondery + MTV

Spotify

We enjoy seeing Catfish where Nev Schulman brings interested parties together to find out if they are who they say they are, if they are compatible to stay together or if they have other issues that they need to figure out. Nev has also shown us how we can go about protecting our digital spaces and interactions so that we can safeguard ourselves from those that may not have our best interests as heart. If you've enjoyed seeing the movie that started it all and the weekly TV show, you can now listen to some of the most shocking episodes on this podcast.

MTV partnered with Wondery to take some of the best episodes from the TV show and to make it an auditory experience as we navigate those being catfished. As this show just began, we love that Max is in these episodes. In listening to the first few episodes, you can hear the best of the actual show as well as voiceovers to connect portions of the episode in terms of describing the person that they are working with so that you have a full picture on what's taking place.

Read the Athleisure Mag Dec Issue #60 and see Bingely Streaming in mag.

ATHLEISURE LIST | WINONA'S

Winona’s launched last month in Williamsburg, BK. With a nod to this fam-ily owned business with British roots. It has a focus on clean flavors and locally sourced ingredients.

They serve breakfast and lunch in the café with dishes such as Smoked Salmon Tartine with smoked whitefish spread, pickled beets, scallion crème fraiche and everything bagel spice on rye bread; Lamb Meatballs with harissa tomato sauce, feta, labne and cilantro, served with grilled flatbread; and Nduja Grilled Cheese, aged cheddar, gruyere and garlicky broccoli rabe on sourdough.

At night, they transform into a wine bar featuring small plates including Anchovy Toast with pepitas and parsley; Chicken Liver Pâté served with pickled red onion and grilled bread; and Lamb Belly Fritters with mint yogurt and Aleppo dust.

There are also vegan and vegetarian options! For Breakfast, their oat-meal is 100% vegan, as is the avocado toast which can be prepare without the feta, vegetarians can enjoy the Brioche toast as well as the BreakfastSandwich and have the option to add avocado if they desire. For Lunch, if a vegan guest would like the grain bowl, they simply leave off the egg garnish and it is good to go. Vegetarians can also enjoy our Mushroom Risotto and Little Gem Lettuce Salad as well as the Tortilla Espanola which is available all day (tip - this is in their 'secret all day menu' along with the Scotch Egg).

The cocktails are delicious and each have their own little vibe so it depends on what you're in the mood for or what your go to beverage would be. For those who are Negroni lovers and Mezcal heads, the Spice & Smoke - a beautiful marriage of the two - equal parts smoky, bitter with a touch of chipotle is perfect. Right now, their warm cocktails - the Chamomile Hot Toddy and the Brown Buttered Rum - are everything. All cocktails are classic in essence but with a little interesting twist which makes them feel fresh and exciting yet still familiar.

All of Winona's wines are 'natural' and they seek producers who are employing organic and biodynamic practices in the vineyard and low intervention from the time of harvest. They are constantly adding to their growing as-sortments of wine.

Winona's is available on Seamless and DoorDash (and soon on Caviar), people can also order directly from their website for pick up and during week-days. Their radius for third-party delivery apps extends into Williamsburg, Bed-Stuy and Bushwick. In addition, their wines, cocktails and beers are also available to go. Their full bottle list is available to view and order on their website and all wines are priced at retail.

WINONA'S

676 Flushing AveBrooklyn, NY11206

www.winonasbk.com

IG @winonasbk

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Athleisure List | WInona’s in mag.

STYLE FILES | SS21

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Style Files | SS21 in mag.

CONNECTION MATTERS WITH JEN WIDERSTROM

We've all had many stories to share about this year and looking into next year which is par for the course when it comes to this time of year. Of course with what we have gone through this year as a global community, stepping into 2021 in the most optimized way is definitely something that we're looking to do around the office of Athleisure Mag! That entails a series of efforts that combine mind, body and soul.

We caught up with one of our favorites Jen Widerstrom Celebrity Fitness Trainer, TV Personality, Best Selling Author, Entrepreneur and Fitness Expert who we have enjoyed since seeing her as Phoenix on NBC's American Gladiators, the undefeated trainer on NBC's The Biggest Loser, as a bestselling author and having the ability to take classes led by her in years past. Her approach to motivating people and joining her clients journey in their transformation is no surprise to us!

We're looking forward to taking her 60 day challenge with Transformation Protein beginning Jan 5th - Mar 5th to hit our goals and prepare to be our best selves in 2021. We talk with Jen about how she got into the industry, how she navigated the landscape, the importance of mentorship and being inspired and giving back to others.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We know that you love being able to engage and help people. Can you tell us how you found your way into the fitness industry?

JEN WIDERSTROM: You know, it was such an accident girl! I was always involved in sports growing up and we always had a set of weights in the basement. We still do! Movement was a part of my life and my parents who are in their 70’s have their own garden plot. They grow their own vegetables. Being physical was always present early on but fitness was different. I was working out for performance in a sport or to look good for TV for American Gladiators and stuff like that. What really happened was that I came to LA after American Gladiators in 2008, I said, "I've made it. I am famous, this is great." I was 24 and I was in the greenest pasture right now. The show went off the air and I didn’t have any money to stay. I started teaching classes at this local little fitness studio called Pulse Fitness Studio that’s here in Sherman Oaks. They’re still rocking and rolling. It was great because I could have a free gym membership as I couldn’t afford one in LA and I had no money. I needed to pay my bills and I needed a gym membership.

That was it. I started out of reasons for necessity – financial. Then, I just realized that i wasn’t just about the weight loss but the pride in being able to see the changes and the person that came along with movement. I saw them just being able to open up and just starting to see what a beautiful motivator this was right? The ability to accomplish and to do. Waistlines will always change as that’s a side effect of the real work and when I saw that, I never looked back. I thought, “oh my gosh, there’s an impact here that’s far greater then I have ever given credit for.” Doing the group classes in the valley, turned into doing DVD’s for Men’s and Women’s Health to being a MSN Health person to being on NBC’s The Biggest Loser. I’ve been very lucky and honestly, that’s just where it started.

AM: We remember when you were Phoenix on American Gladiator! How was it to be on such a physical show?

JW: Headline – dream come true! You have to realize that I was born in 1982. I mean we’re talking about Zap, Jazz – these fit strong women and then you’ve got Gemini and Nitro – who’s better than Nitro – Dan Clark was great! I was just obsessed and I always wanted to be a contestant – always wanted to be on the show. I think that I have been a Gladiator 3 times for Halloween. When I actually got to do the show, I really felt that I had made it, I could literally die happy and that I got to do everything that I wanted to be able to do. It was a blast and it was special for a number of reasons. I met some incredible people. Very few times does a cast and production meld so well together. Dave Hurwitz was our producer and he had been doing MTV’s Fear Factor and he was such a class act. All of the people like former MMA fighter Gina Carano, known as Crush (Deadpool, Fast & Furious 6, The Mandalorian) and Beth Horn known as Venom, Valerie Waugaman known as Siren – all the women were just wonderful people. They were great in the industry and everybody was somebody. Hollywood Yates known as Wolf, was a professional rodeo clown. We had stunt people and then there was me. I was like, “I’m a bartender in Chicago.” I had no idea how I got this job and I was excited.

But it was good and there was a lot of pressure! These were live tapings and you didn’t get redo’s. So you’re out there and you’re in the rings with contestants. If they get by you, you look dumb! There was real pressure and there was no faking it. We really got after it so it was a lot of fun, but it was a lot of intense competition – no doubt!

AM: Obviously on the Biggest Loser, why did you like being on this show? Once again, it was great watching you on this show as the amount of care that you gave and the fact that you were an undefeated trainer is mindblogging.

JW: It’s funny because it was a scary show. There was no other biggest show in our field. What I loved about it was the people – my contestants and also those that were on the other teams as well. I realized very quickly that I wasn’t here to fill Jillian Michael’s shoes, to replicate what Bob Harper has done – I had to do me. I mean talk about a formula for life – do you and that’s scary you know. Will you like me, will I be invited to the birthday party? Am I accepted for who I am and what I have shared? I was really scared because I had not been on TV in that way and I had never been in that scenario. The one thing that I knew was that if I put my people first, if they were my focus it would be right. If you ask anyone that I have trained in the decades that I have worked, ask anyone and they would tell you the same that my contestants would – they were my focus and I just knew that the rest would take care of itself. People were able to see my care and my heart and that came across the screen so clearly. I said, do whatever you want with the cameras. I still talk to them every day. I have group threads with all of my teams and we’ll do little challenges like Team Jen versus Team Jen. Colby and Hope Wright (Biggest Loser Season 17), they were contestants on the show and they were struggling to get pregnant before their show and they just had their first child. I love being involved in their lives and when I have had hard days, I can call them and they are truly family to me. That really comes down to the favorite part – the relationships that I made were real and now they’re in their own lives and the effects continue to ripple in their own communities of wellness and being able to inspire others.

AM: How would you define your approach or methodologies that you use when it comes to training your clients whether it’s in person or virtually?

JW: I think that for me, I don’t know when this happened, but at some point health and weight loss got hard and confusing. That happens in media because it’s sales and marketing and people want you to be able to buy their stuff and my approach is, take away the mystery, take away the fear and just really show people, base line health. It’s not very hard to take care of yourself and people get very nervous about failure and I just take the judgement away. There’s no judgment, there’s nothing to be afraid of and I really teach people to be students of the experience and of themselves. I start there because the rest takes care of itself.

Think about a kid learning to do a cartwheel. How many times do they do a cartwheel before they actually get it? They may never get it, but they never stop trying. They’re not judging themselves and I thought that we had to bring that back. The ability to say, “hey, I’m not a failure, I’m learning and I’m trying.” The way that I actually equate it which really helped me is that I used to be really fluent in Spanish and of course, I forgot everything. When I started to teach myself again, I was feeling stupid because my pronunciation was off or I wasn’t conjugating correctly or I said “la” when it should have been “el” – the fear of trying and looking foolish with the language became a light bulb for me with health and weight loss. They’re afraid of looking foolish and afraid to tell their friends that they are doing to do this now – going to the gym. People aren’t looking for you to fail but we get it in our heads sometimes that we are going to look dumb and that the failure is something that we can’t take it – why? Treat it like a kid during cartwheels. Keep trying. I always tell people that the great thing about the wagon is that I always let you back on it! Always! I think my approach is really putting a curiosity, the minds of the students in front to remove the judgment and just keep showing up. We all get stuck. I’m trying to normalize some of those bumps in the road. That’s what gives people the chance to learn. It’s all mental – it’s all behavior.

AM: We’ve had the ability to train with some amazing trainers. What’s your advice when it comes to people finding the person that they want to train with whether in person, via IG or virtually? What should they be looking for in terms of them opening themselves up to someone who will be working with them and directing them?

JW: It’s funny because my opening statement is find someone who doesn’t annoy you - #1. If they’re annoying, you’ll never go back. There has to be a likeability and then the connection will follow. If it’s an in person trainer, do they pay attention to you and do they make adjustments? Do they have a plan for the day? If you say that your knee feels weird and they don’t change anything, that’s a big red flag to me. A trainer is a beautiful job and we are in the service industry. Gunnar Peterson is a good friend of mine and he always says that effort is second. We love serving our people, we love being there and being that support system. So if you don’t have that support, that adaptation to your workouts, really asking how you are feeling – cut and run! You do not want someone that can’t adapt to where your body and your mind is that day. It’s just not possible. Adaptability to you is key, but when it comes to online, you want to find the people that when you leave their page, you feel good about yourself. You should keep going to that person’s workouts. If you leave feeling worse, then maybe don’t follow that person anymore. Since we’re digitally coaching and caring right now – even the challenge, I don’t keep friends that don’t make me feel good. Do the same with the trainer. There are plenty of us out there as Instagram shows you that will make you excited to go to their page and get your motivation on. Whether it’s the music that they play or the exercises that they do – whoever keeps you going is who you stay with.

AM: This summer while we interviewed Gunnar, we were talking with him about the early days of the pandemic and how we were early enough to fill in the equipment that we needed scouring through Amazon and other sites. We talked with him about how he assisted his clients in getting them what they needed. How did you do this with your followers and your clients?

JW: I felt this urge to be available. I was actually going to close all social media this year as a birthday gift to myself.

AM: That will be a delayed birthday gift ha!

JW: Exactly and when the pandemic hit, I was like well I’m a resource I care and I need to be there for them so I made myself available. That’s what was needed. There are millions of exercises on YouTube, social media all kinds of great resources, your magazine – there are all these great things. What people needed more then content was people and community. That is what I had them focus on. I said to find someone that they could be accountable to, FaceTiming, I was doing Facebook Lives 3-4 times a week and doing those workouts. Listen, I’m a good trainer and there are a lot of people that can tell you how to do push-ups and situps, but I’m GREAT at community. I wanted people to be able to know that they had time with me. They show up for you and they move as a result. So while they’re here, they might as well do the push-ups that I was talking about.

For me, it was an accountability. They knew that I missed them when they weren’t there. They needed people, support, a voice on the other line saying that I am here and that I feel what you’re feeling. That’s really it!

AM: What are your go to workouts that you really enjoy doing whether it’s for arms, glutes, abs or legs?

JW: You know it’s funny. I’m almost 40 and gravity is doing something weird to my body. My butt didn’t use to do that and anyone that reads this will just laugh and nod. Right around 39 ha! So I realized and it really hit me this year and I think part of it was not having a gym as well. I was doing more walking outside, I was in lockdown in Florida and thankfully the weather was great and it was warm so it was good for me spiritually. Man, my butt started to sink, there was a looseness in my arms. So what I really started to think was that weight training has always been in my life. As I said, I had weights in my basement. My go to exercises were those that allowed me to simulate muscle where I didn’t want to lose shape. I’m a big glute thruster person – whether you put a barbell on your hips or a dumbbell or a kettle bell on your lap. There are a number of ways that you can target it as a single leg or a double leg. Glute Thrusters to me especially when done correctly – which I can go into. A lot of people don’t realize that their chin, sternum and pubic bone all need to be in alignment. You want to keep that straight. I will see people who will try to sag their butt down because they feel it hurts their back but you have to keep that constellation aligned. It really loads your hamstring and butt. That’s been such a savior for my backside! I’m like, there you are! I needed it!

When it comes to upper body and what happens because I didn’t have a lot of equipment and people were in this position, I always remember that tempo training has been my go to. I was tempo’ing with the glute hamstring. Even an incline push-up which takes a little weight off of your body just go s-l-o-w. I’m talking, 5 counts down, hold the beats and 5 counts up. Let me tell you that your arms will start to change. It really brought the life back to my body. Using tempo for my arms and even my legs helps. And also, as far as core is concerned, I like having a toned stomach and not like abs because I don’t want to be ripped. But pilates for me, is my go to core work. Any type of pilates, sign me up! It keeps me long and I feel very connected in my lower core, it supports me in my other movements and I just love the shape that my body takes when I am doing pilates and especially in my stomach. So those are my go to’s if I had to pick one for each.

AM: We’re fans of pilates too and couldn’t agree more!

What is Transformation Protein and why did you want to partner with them?

JW: It’s kind of funny as I joked before that I don’t know who made me an expert. I think it’s because I try a lot, I ask questions, I give the truth and I lead people to things that work. Just live everybody else, I have questions! Are these supplements any good, is this product any good, does this company have integrity – just like any civilian looking at products. It was Gunnar – a dear friend of mine. I didn’t have a place to live so I was living in his backyard at his guest house. He’s the man that opens his door and his heart and his life to you and he’s such a great mentor and friend to me and he was working with it. I was really looking for a solution with collagen because it’s an incomplete protein and it’s sold in a way that you have to actually have a supplement with it to be affective and a lot of people don’t know that. I really wanted to look into what that solution would be for someone to get the collegen which is so critical as well as high quality protein. I remember I was at his gym literally just working out and mooching off his protein and I was like, “what is this stuff?” I started asking him and he was like, “this is Transformation.” He gave me the rundown over the summer and I thought that it was great and it tasted good, its plants and when I looked at the combination and the quality of the protein, I thought this is a really incredible thing going on. What company spends the time or the money to give you what your body actually needs. Usually it’s like, let’s take the leftover protein that’s shit and put another label on it and sell it to you by saying that it’s night time protein. The way that Brian Wargula (President/Co-Founder) and Transformation have sourced the ingredients and have found that combination is really some of the best that I have ever seen.

Ask any nutrition pro and I’m a nutrition specialist so ask anybody, they will tell you that there isn’t a better formula combination out there. The fact that there is probiotics – it’s really an all in one package. They have done a great job and they have spared no expense. But when you work with people that actually care, let’s put a ring on it and get married!

AM: We have tried a number of proteins and there are those that we like and those that we can’t get behind so we can’t wait to get ours. But we knew that Gunnar was a fan of it and also you, so we’re pretty pumped to include this in our routines and we knew it was legit!

JW: Oh yeah! I mean I had a hard fall, broke my foot, a week later, I got attacked by a dog and he bit my face. I put on about 10lbs. It was weird my body was just slower, I wasn’t training, I was doing what I could, but it was about getting enough food in. I just didn’t have an appetite and I started back with Transformation Protein and it really helped lean me out. I was getting enough good food in, my body was able to let go of the extra weight and it was critical for me.

AM: We love this 60 day Total Body Challenge and the fact that you and Gunnar are a part of it. Can you give us an overview about what this is and is it true that it’s limited to a set number of people only that can participate in this and why?

JW: Yeah and here’s why. Because I’m one person –

AM: Really? We thought you were 10?

JW: I know! I always keep my promise and what I mean by that is that my word means something to me and I want it to mean something to people that follow and trust me. When I took on this challenge, no one reads my emails, no one signs Jen for me, no one takes calls for me. When there’s quotes in magazines and press releases, those are my words and there is no one writing for me. It’s really important for people to know that when they sign up to work with this coach, they’re getting Jen. These days, there’s a lot of dishonesty around signing up for x,y,z coach and it’s actually not them leading you in the challenge at all. Because it’s me, I thought, what is my capacity to give and help that’s going to be the sweet spot of being able to have as many people as possible to be there without diluting my abilities to be there for everyone. That was that 100 person mark. I wanted people to be able to have me and again, it’s all digital. I’m creating the emails every week, I’m sending the videos, I’m answering the emails, I’m hosting the live meetings, I wrote and filmed every single workout. Part of me is like, “maybe I’m just really controlling and a micro manager.” But, I swear I’m not! This is what people deserve and I take pride in telling people that this is what a real coach does and I want to set the standard for them so that they don’t accept anything less in their lives whether it’s an in person training when things begin to open up or whether they want to do another challenge.

That’s really what it was and the 60 days as a timeframe was intentional! Because we’re after big transformations. We were talking earlier that of course you want to see transformations that’s the visual carrot and of course people are going to lose weight, that’s a blast but the transformation or me is the 6” between their ears and we all know that. I need that for that moment of time. I’ve done other challenges in the past, but I found that they did a 30 day challenge with me and then they signed up for the next one. So I’m like, ah they want more time, they need more time and that’s why we went with that.

AM: When this challenge is over, will people be able to go to other ones or will there be other things that are rolling out?

JW: What’s really great is, I don’t feel that I am separate from Transformation. It’s not like I get a check and do a few Instagram posts. I’m very part of the team. We’re really starting to allow it to be user generated content. People are wanting it to be more support around recipes, nutritionist support – so we’re building it. Putting in the blog that's around it, recipe support, our registered nutritionist that’s there. We want to be in a place that people can trust and come to. There will definitely be more challenges. I feel like I heard a conversation or an email where they said, “the next one,” and I’m like, “guys, I gotta get this one under my belt first.”

What we're doing is we’re kind of taking an approach like a bar. If you think about it as a 1 in 1 out situation. So we will have a waitlist and we’ll run another one and we will have other great coaches as well. It’s something that they have never done before and that’s why they’re really trusting me to take the reigns and runs with it. Based off of what I see in this challenge, I’ll know what I want to do and run with on it. That’s why it’s user generated so I’m not assuming what people want and feel. I need to know so that I can develop from there. You can assure your readers that there will definitely be more opportunities!

AM: We assumed. When you’re preparing to do a transformation whether it’s this challenge specifically or something else, you have to have the want to do it. But how else can people best prepare themselves in terms of maintaining the goal and sticking with it when they are approaching something like this?

JW: The #1 thing is that people just assume that there won’t be any roadblocks or obstacles. You have to make it different and I think we have to think about when you’re driving home from work and you hit a pothole and you say, “oh man, I hope my wheels still on.” We’ve all done that and then when you go home the next day, you know there is a pothole coming up and you remember. What we tend to do as humans is that we don’t want to address or to think about the pothole. So you hit it again and again as opposed to saying, “no I remember this. It was on this street and this street and I’m going to navigate around it.” People have to look at where there are going to be problems as there will be hard days, set backs, days where you pack your food and leave it on the counter – that’s ok. So instead of going into a panic mode and being like it’s all ruined and over, I just expect things to go wrong and I know that it won’t all be perfect. There will be some turbulence and when you know it and expect it, it kind of shocks you less and you can navigate it better. Go in with the interest to be ready for the change and the reality of knowing there will be some bumps. You’ll be ready for whatever comes and to look for them not in a pessimistic view but as a way to learn to adapt and to navigate. It’s a beautiful thing.

AM: How have you found ways to keep yourself motivated this year and as we head into next year?

JW: Man, good question. I care about where this road goes. I sometimes try to look at the destination and try to find my way back. This has not allowed me to do that. My motivation is that I have to practice what I preach. Am I learning, am I being curious? What’s really been fun is that I’ve learned how capable I am and it’s been a fun experience. I’ve hard weeks and I’ve had times where I drank every single day just like the rest of America! I’ve allowed myself to ask questions like why am I drinking every day this week? Am I bored – am I avoiding something? I’ve really let that motivation that I have in me at almost 40 to know that I have so much more to learn and that when I learn, I get to share! That’s the beauty of it. It’s not about being a public figure, being a celebrity like me, having millions of followers - it's what we do as humans. We get to learn and we get to share. My experience is I get to do this and to share it with other people. That’s the backbone. I love people and I love helping – I love being an everyday hero and that’s my heart. I had to learn the lesson first and I really had to do that by putting myself first. It’s changed my perspective in myself and the confidence that I have in myself as well. That’s the motivation because it feels great and I’m not going to stop doing this. I will tell you though, having people in your life – I’m always better with a teammate. I have a friend that we go on a walk together and she’s in Georgia. We walk and talk and I have my headphones in and we agree that on this time/that day, we’re going. I meet people – online for workouts. I have a few people that I’m potting with, I go in their backyard. I know I need the accountability and the other thing I would tell people if they are struggling to get motivated is create that accountability for yourself. It gets you going, it gives you that support and it’s a great thing to let them be there for you and it’s powerful. That’s what I have allowed the focus to be and it has just changed my outlook on the whole year. I had a great year. I don’t have young children, I’m not going through the school stuff and I feel that that is a whole other experience that I can’t even speak to or begin to understand what parents have been going through or how they have been able to cope. But I had a great year and I have used my time to get so much done personally and professionally. 2021 is going to be an excellent year for me regardless. I think that people need to feel ok in being able to ask for help when they need that support.

AM: Who are 3 people in your life that have inspired you to be where you are today?

JW: You know, I’ll tell you what. When it comes to life, I have won the lottery. I have been inspired by incredible people who have believed in me before it was cool to watch Jen Widerstrom. I’m going to tear up a little bit when I think about it. My parents are just such incredible people – they are incredible people. They have been married for 46 years. I look at my mom, she had a 4 and a 5 year old, 40 years old, pregnant 9 months with my brother and going with a full-time job in the inner city of Chicago, one of the most violent schools that there were. At night, my dad would drive her to Northern Illinois University at night so that she could get her Masters Degree. She wanted to work in higher education. She was so pregnant that she couldn't sit behind the wheel and drive any way and it’s like at least an hour driving each way! It was like, what if she has the baby in a cornfield so my dad’s driving her each way. Her commitment to her, their relationship, their love, their family – she took her finals early so she could have my brother, When people ask me about my work ethic, mom and dad they are incredible and they worked so hard to give us so much for us. We didn’t have a lot of money and we didn’t go on planes, but every year they saved up money to drive us to Florida or to get in the van and go to New Mexico and that’s what we did. It was really special. They still work, they still grow their own vegetables. They are such salt of the Earth and intelligent special hard working people. They inspire me and whenever I think that I have had a long day, I tell myself, “well you’re not 9 months pregnant with 2 kids and a fulltime job trying to get your Masters in night school!”

I think that the people who inspired me along the way. I had incredible teachers, I could just name a list of the teachers. I think back to my 7th grade science teacher, I was an average student, never talking and by the end, I had a 96% in the class and I was in the front. He taught me how to give a good handshake, he taught me how to feel confident in myself. My orchestra teacher Mr. Foley, he encouraged me to keep playing bass. I was playing sports and orchestra wasn’t cool, but he encouraged me to find a voice in music for myself. I look at my college track coach. I was a walk on in the rowing team and I was terrible. He saw me lifting and he said I should be a hammer thrower and I thought he was crazy and yet a year later, I was placing at the Big 12 Conference, earning a scholarship, winning the nationals to compete - he believed in me first! I use them as inspiration because the people along the way - people will say, how did you get here - what was it? It’s always the people. It’s the people that believed and saw something in you when you couldn’t believe it yourself. For me, that’s the legacy that I try to pass through those people.

I had a diving coach Steve Mazzerella – dear friend of mine until he passed away. He taught me how to see things in people and to help them let it shine. That’s what I do and I always joke, the waistline will change, bit it's the heart that I am really after and I know the difference that that will make. I know I can do that same difference and that's where I take it.

IG @JenWiderstrom

@TransformationProtein

PHOTOS COURTESY | Jen Widerstrom

Hear Celebrity Fitness Trainer, TV Personality, Best Selling Author, Fitness Expert and Entrepreneur Jen Widerstrom on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multimedia companion podcast network! Subscribe to be notified when the episode drops. Listen on iHeartRadio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Connection Matters with Jen Widerstrom in mag.

ROCK THIS WHEN YOU'RE NAVIGATING ZOOM SESSIONS

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Rock This When You’re Navigating Zoom Sessions in mag.

WILLOW BARK BEAUTY

Read the Dec Issue #60 of Athleisure Mag and see Willow Bark Beauty in mag.