THE COURT IS HIS | TYSON MCGUFFIN
Last year, we had enjoyed seeing our cover star, Tyson McGuffin play pickleball at Lifetime Fitness alongside Andre Agassi, Collin Johns, Ben Johns, and Anna Bright. It was the first time that we had seen the game in person as we were introduced to it like many during the pandemic on TV. Once we got to know more about the game, we realized that 5X Grand Slam Champion and 4X National Champion!
No wonder he loves the game and is passionate about it. Not only does he play it, but he infuses the passion of the game to others through teaching others to play it. Since we had just spent 4th of July Weekend watching Major League Pickleball Tournament on Randall's Island at John McEnroe's Sportime, we knew that we wanted to know more about him and the game. We took some time to talk about how he got into the sport, giving us background on it, why he loves it, and more.
ATHLEISURE MAG: I know that Pickleball was invented in 1965, but for us, it was the pandemic that introduced me to it and it seems like it has been gaining awareness exponentially! How did you come to the sport?
TYSON MCGUFFIN: In 2016 I was a Tennis Pro at a club in Yakima, WA and one of my members kept bugging me to try this silly named sport. I told him no several times. He started waiting to ask me after each of my lessons at the club. I finally gave in. I showed up at a beat up YMCA gym floors. I thought as a 5.5 Tennis player I could easily hang with the 4.5 top court. Long story short I couldn't, I got my butt kicked by a few 55+ guys. I went home that night consumed as much Pickleball content I could find on YouTube came back to that next week and found success. That same member with a group of others encouraged me to play tournaments. I learned quickly I could hang with some of the top players in the country. My 1st year I was offered a paddle contract and the rest is history.
AM: Our first Pickleball match was when we attended the one at Lifetime here in NYC where you are on a panel with the Johns brothers as well as Anna Bright and Andre Agassi. It was also the first time that we watched you play. When did you realize that you wanted to play it professionally?
TM: After just one tournament at 4.5, I realized I could compete with the 5.0/Pro players. So my next tournament I gave it a shot and landed a sponsorship. There was so much competitive spirit left in me after years of Wrestling and Tennis, I couldn't pass up a chance to reignite that fire.
AM: We enjoyed watching the MLP NY Tournament over the Fourth of July Weekend as we saw a number of the franchises playing. For those that are not familiar with the sport what are the similarities and differences to tennis.
TM: To start, the court size is much different. You can fit 4 Pickle courts on a Tennis court. You can essentially have 16 people playing in the same amount of space. It's loud, has more of a backyard feel and the overall barrier to entry is lower. It takes 6 or more months to be decent at Tennis, in Pickle someone can play their 1st and find success. They say Pickle is making Tennis courts fun again. Pickle wouldn't be where it is today without the Tennis community. There are plenty of similarities, court positioning, techniques, and tactics. Most all of the pros on tour have some sort of Tennis background.
AM: You play in the PPA as well as the MLP for the Phoenix Flames. For our community who is newer to the sport can you tell us a bit about each of these organizations - the PPA and the MLP?
TM: MLP is newer to the sport. A team based (originally rally scoring) format. It's rowdy, loud and has other similarities to team-based franchised sports. PPA is the original tried and true, similar to ATP format. A tour with rankings and points individually based. This format shows who the best of the world are.
AM: You compete in Men's Singles, Men's Doubles, and Mixed Doubles - how do you approach playing Singles versus Doubles?
TM: Singles has had my heart from day one. I don't know if it's the inner wrestling me, but that never say never isn't over until it's over mentality does well in Singles. I would say Singles is more physical and Doubles has a different strategy in many situations. I've come a long ways in the Doubles side and now see the art in Doubles as well.
AM: Does Pickleball have a season what are the months that it is played in terms of a tour perspective?
TM: Professional Pickleball is pretty much year-round. The tour is starting to change this slightly. MLP will essentially become a summer league with PPA taking the majority of the summer months off. There will also be a break at the end of the year.
AM: What is an average week like for you in terms of training for your next match and during the off season, what is that like.
TM: I am a reps guy. My preferred week would be at home. On a daily basis, I'm up training by 6am then I head to hot Yoga. After dying for an hour or more there, I typically head to strength & conditioning training with my man Craig. After training there I'll either get another practice in or a round of golf. Whatever I can fit before picking up my kids from school. From there I'm in 100% husband/dad mode until 8pm where I'm in bed prepping to do it all again the next day.
AM: Pickleball is obviously a total body sport, but what are 3 workouts that you do to optimize yourself in the sport?
TM: Hot Yoga, strength training, & fast twitch functional training.
AM: In addition to being a player, you are also a major advocate for the sport and pushing its awareness! You are an IPTPA and PPR certified coach. You also created the McGuffin Signature PB Camps and TM PB Coaching. Can you tell us about both of these companies that you have built?
TM: I taught mostly Tennis & Pickle for almost 8 years before starting my own camp business. For me teaching and growing the sport helps me give back to the sport that's given me plenty. TM Signature PB Camps is one of the best in the business. We believe the game is evolving and our teaching has to evolve with it. Personally I enjoy the learning curve at an amateur level. It'd take me months maybe even years to swe a player's level change in Tennis, in Pickle I can witness a camper go up a full half level in two 5 hour days.
AM: In addition to all of the work that you do, you have your own podcast, The McGuffin Show what can you tell us about this?
TM: I started The McGuffin Show out of a desire to make sure we were doing things others were not. It was a place for me and my co-hosts to be ourselves and talk about the wild ride we're on with the sport. Amateur and professional side are both growing at such a rapid pace we need media to help everyone keep up.
AM: We have been watching a few of your episodes of Making McGuffins - why did you want to create this series?
TM: My wife and I started Making McGuffins again out of a desire to stay ahead and do something nobody else was doing. We thought at worst case we'd be documenting the craziest time of our lives. It's also a way to showcase my wife and kiddos. My wife is my true hero and helps in every department of my life and business.
AM: As someone who travels a lot for the sport, what are 3 things that you like to have with you to make your hotel feel a bit like home?
TM: We typically stay in Airbnbs, laundry is must with how much I sweat. We also bring our whole team typically 2+ kids, Nanny, and sometimes trainer & videographer. A house is a must with our crew.
I travel with my cold plunge and all of my Hyperice recovery devices. This is a must to try to stay in routine.
Last, but not least my family. Keeping them on the road for me reminds me what's really important at the end of the day. It lowers my ego. Kids don't care what your results were, you're still expected to be Dad whether you win or loose.
AM: When you're not focused on Pickleball tournaments, training, educating etc, how do you take time for yourself?
TM: My wife & I love to travel. We also enjoy good food. Music is big for me, I like attending festivals a few times a year. Mostly though, our family loves spending time outside. We live in beautiful North Idaho with so much to do outside. I love to golf and spend time by the lake.
AM: You are a 5X Grand Slam Champion and a 4X National Champion - what do you want your legacy to be in the sport?
TM: I want to leave a legacy in the sport giving back as much if not more than it's given me. I want to help insure its continued growth all around the world. I've witnessed Pickleball transform lives, including mine.
AM: For those that are starting out and want to play, what are 3 pieces of advice you have to get them into the sport?
TM: Put yourself out there it's hard to find a more inviting sport. Find a local find a more inviting sport. Find a local park or look up your local ambassador they'll show you how to play. When you get comfortable playing identify who you are as a player. The beauty of Pickleball is there isn't just one way to play. Figure out your strengths and build your game around them. Lastly go to Tyson McGuffin YouTube page and take advantage of all of our free instruction. Once you're at a 3.0 level or above take one of our camps listed on TysonMcGuffin.com.
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16, 22, 25 Sye Williams | PG 19 - 20 Jay Valeriano | PG 26 Mad Rabit |
As we mentioned in our cover interview of Tyson McGuffin, we had the pleasure of attending MLP's New York City Pickleball Tournament at John McEnroe's Sport Time that took place July 3-6 as guests of Dulce Vida Tequila. On the day that we watched the matches, we enjoyed being able to watch teams that played in the Premier (Carolina Hogs, New York Hustlers, Miami Pickleball Club, Columbus Sliders, Orlando Squeeze, Brooklyn Pickleball Team) and Challenger (California Black Bears, Bay Area Breakers, Las Vegas Night Owls, Nashville Chefs, Florida Smash, D.C. Pickleball Team) Leagues.
As we sat in the sponsor tent we were able to enjoy watching the matches on both sides of the tent while also being able to meet various teams' ownership/management. We also enjoyed sipping cocktails and being able to see the athletes up close, as well as to get to know more about them through their play as well as being able to see the fans enjoying their favorite pickleball player!
We enjoyed seeing the match between the Nashville Chefs and California Black Bears which kicked off our morning. D.C. Pickleball Team and Bay Area Breakers was another great match - both of those were on the Grandstand Court for the Challengers League.
On the Championship court, the Premier League teams played. Our favorite match from that game was the last one of the night where we watched the Orlando Squeeze and Brooklyn Pickleball Team play. Brooklyn Pickleball Team was the host for this weekend's event and the energy was next level as the fans cheered on the Brooklyn team and we loved seeing the flags and signs - the fact that they won was definitely a great end to seeing the matches throughout the day!
We'll be back for the MLP Finals that will take place here at CityPickle at Wollman Rink in Central Park August 22 - 24th as guests of Dulce Vida Tequila and tickets are still available!
We can't wait for next month and you can see some great moments from this great weekend earlier this month.
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT | PG 29 Dulce Vida
Read the JUL ISSUE #115 of Athleisure Mag and see THE COURT IS HIS | Tyson McGuffin in mag.
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9PLAYLIST | TYSON MCGUFFIN
Read the JUL ISSUE #115 of Athleisure Mag and see 9PLAYLIST | Tyson McGuffin in mag.
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63MIX ROUTIN3S | TYSON MCGUFFIN
Read the JUL ISSUE #115 of Athleisure Mag and see 63MIX ROUTIN3S | Tyson McGuffin in mag.
PHOTO CREDIT | Sye Williams
ATHLEISURE MAG #115 | TYSON MCGUFFIN
In this month’s issue, our front and back cover story is with 5X Grand Slam Champion and 4X National Champion in PPA and MLP’s Pickleball, Tyson McGuffin. We talk with him about how he came to the sport, his passion for it to those who play it and coach it! He also tells us more about this sport as we as the projects that he is involved in.
We also recap MLP New York Tournament that took place 4th of July Weekend. We provide sights and sounds from this 4 Day event as we were guests of Dulce Vida Tequila and we can’t wait to share the Finals with you which will take place here in NY at Central Park in the AUG ISSUE #116 which drops next month.
We always look forward to Taste of Tennis which is a kick off event ahead of the US Open where the world’s best tennis athletes play at Arthur Ashe Stadium. We sat down with Penny Lerner of AYS Sports Marketing who created this event that brings the culinary world along with tennis stars together! It’s an evening of tasting phenomenal meals, seeing athletes compete in culinary, and more! She spoke with us for the 2nd year in a row to talk about the organization, purpose of the event, and what we can expect this year! We also talked with Aqua Restaurant Group who will be participating as the hosting venue with Aqua New York. We wanted to know more about this restaurant and why they wanted to participate. Next month, we will recap this phenomenal event along with interviews from the red carpet.
We made our way down to Tribeca to MM Kitchen Studio where we created a Summer Editorial Menswear shoot with Chef Marc Murphy who has opened a number of phenomenal restaurants, is a TV personality on Food Network on such shows as Chopped, Guy’s Grocery Games, and Beat Bobby Flay. We talked about his career, his approach to his food, upcoming projects, and more.
We made our way to Greenwich Village this month to chat with Chef Dominique Ansel about the newly opened Papa D’Amour as well as to enjoy a 9TASTING of some of his key dishes of sweet and savory items! Our culinary editorial shoot allows you to see what you need to enjoy upon your next visit.
We headed to NoMad to share 2 eateries that should be on your radar when you’re in the neighborhood. For lunch or dinner, we suggest Handroll Bar Rolling and chatted with the owner, Olivia Youngmi Ham who opened this restaurant due to her passion in this industry as a restaurant designer and consultant. She talks with us about dishes we should try, the ambiance, and upcoming events taking place there. In terms of a sweet treat, we love the innovative ice cream menu that Honey Kim of Honey’s at Bear Donut offers. She talks about her background prior to coming to this eatery, her creative process, and what we should have when we come in.
Matt Steffanina is not only one of the Co-Founders of the DNCR Academy and a choreographer who has worked with a umber of phenomenal artists including Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor, and Jason Derulo to name a few. He is also a DJ who has been dropping songs that are feel good in nature. We talk about his creative process and upcoming projects that he is involved in.
We headed to Big Sur to Treebones Resort and in this month’s The Art of the Snack, we took a seat at Wild Coast Sushi to find out about this omakase style restaurant in a yurt! We also found out about the resort as well.
This month's Athleisure List comes from Forza Pilates in Nashville where you can enjoy Reformer Pilates. We also head to Todas Santos in Mexico to Desierto Azul which is a wellness resort that we can imagine decompressing in.
This month's 9PLAYLIST comes from our cover star, Tyson McGuffin. He also shared his 63MIX ROUTIN3S on what he enjoys having, doing and being Morning, Afternoon, and Night. Matt Steffanina also shares his 63MIX ROUTIN3S with us as well. This month we also have a 9CH3F ROUTIN3S from Chef Toraik Chua. Our THE 9LIST 9M3NU comes from Papa D’Amour’s, Chef Dominique Ansel and Selva’s Chef Giovanni Orellana who share their 9CH3FS with us and Marc179’s Chef Marc Murphy who shares his 9B-L-D.
Of course, we have a number of roundups that you can also check out our must-haves!
Read the JUL ISSUE #115 of Athleisure Mag.
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PICKLEBALL POWER
We were invited to Life Time at PENN 1 for an exclusive event for their VIP Pickleball event that allows us to see the unveiling of their 7 courts at this location in Midtown, NYC! The event kicked off with a conversation with the company's founder, Bahram Akradi, Founder and CEO as well as tennis icon, Andre Agassi, with 60 ATP Tour Wins, 8 Grand Slam Titles (Singles – Australian Open 1995, 2000, 2001, 2003; French Open 1999; Wimbledon 1992; US Open 1994, 1999), and Team USA Tennis Olympic Gold Medalist for the Summer Games in 1996. This tennis champ has been passionate about pickleball and won $1M and the Pickleball Slam 1 2023 with his partner Andy Roddick against John McEnroe and Michael Chang. This year, he won the $1M purse and Pickleball Slam 2 with his wife, Steffi Graf as they beat John McEnroe and Maria Sharapova.
Andre was recently announced as inaugural chair of the Life Time Pickleball and Tennis Board with the goal of expanding access, enhancing programming and building community.
In addition to the Q+A we saw both men play exhibition tournaments with JOOLA Pros Anna Bright, Collin Johns, Ben Johns, and Tyson McGuffin.
LIFE TIME: Ladies and Gentleman welcome to our VIP Pickleball Event that is launching the 7 gorgeous new pickleball courts that we have here at Lifetime Pickleball in the heart of NYC! Today, we’re also partnering with JOOLA Pickleball as they recently launched their Generation 3 line of paddles with JOOLA Pros’ Anna Bright, Collin Johns, Ben Johns, and newcomer to JOOLA, Tyson McGuffin. All of them will be joining us in just a few moments.
Before that, I’d like to introduce 2 dynamic men! An ambassador in the world of health and fitness, along with being champions of the JOOLA and Life Time brands. One of these men is the Founder and CEO of Life Time, the other, career highlights include the winner of the first ever Pickle Slam partnering with Andy Roddick, side note is that he also won 8 Grand Slams and has an Olympic Gold medal! Let’s have a round of applause for Andre Agassi and Bahram Akradi.
So Andre, pickleball, what’s the first thing that you thought when you heard that word for the first time?
ANDRE AGASSI: I thought, why that name? Then I took 15mins to just sit with it and it took about a 20min learning curve and I fell in love with it.
LT: How about you Bahram, the first time that you heard of pickleball, what went through your mind?
BAHRAM AKRADI: At first I thought that it was just a sport for very, very, very, old people.
LT: So what is this sport, who are the people that play, and now we’re here in NYC specifically, talking about pickleball. So Bahram, when you first played, you said that we had to get more of this here at Life Time. And now, Life Time is the biggest provider of pickleball courts in the country. What was your vision for pickleball at first and has it come to fruition?
BA: Yes, so, I remember playing tennis in some of our other clubs and I saw these taped lines on the courts and I found it was because people were trying to play pickleball on them. Then people just started asking for us to have courts that were specific to this game. So I thought, well if I give them courts designed for pickleball, they will stop putting tape on my pickleball courts!
So we took one club and we took 1 tennis court and make it into 4 Pickleball courts and we did that to another tennis court. So then I thought that that would be the end of that! Then once I started playing it, I did it for 2 hours and I got hooked. I started with doubles, and then I began playing singles and that’s when I saw the opportunity for this sport! I saw how all kinds of people at all kinds of levels could play. We had the opportunity to have people come here with our large facilities, we have quickly grown to become the largest owner and operator of permanent pickleball courts, topping more than 680 permanent courts nationwide (including the most in New York City with nine), and serving as a host site for multiple MLP and PPA tournaments nationwide in addition to its own Pickleball Classic. So we wanted to take a run at it and I think that we have done that!
LT: To you Andre, what about your process of being a pickleball player as well as looking at your phenomenal tennis career?
AA: First of all, I just want to know with everyone that’s here, how many of you have played pickleball? Look at all these hands – why are you asking me this question haha?
For me, what I really appreciated so quickly about it separately from inside the lines is when you’re playing tennis, you have to spend a 1-2.5 years before the game opens up to you. It’s that feeling that you’re not so concerned with what you are doing with the ball – you’re thinking of what you are trying to accomplish. With pickle, you’re able to get out there and connect quickly and there is a low point of injury involved.
Then there is the dynamics of family as my extended family as well as my wife’s who are from Germany when they come, we can all play together and we’re all different levels. I would say that we would all be out there – aunts, uncles, cousins, etc and no one had their phones out for 2 hours. The phones are on the side.
For me, what the hell can I do at this age that I can actually get better at? I mean I have gotten better at so many things in my life already – except for pickleball and I am getting better! You know, I’m a tortured perfectionist and when I think about playing pickleball versus tennis, the thrill of having to unlearn some of the sensibilities that I had as a tennis player right? But I also had to maintain some skills right? I am able to put my mind to the task and I get the reward of seeing all of that come together and I can only see this sport continuing to grow as it has. I feel that if we have X amount of people playing right now, we’ll be able to 10X that in no time at all!
LT: Andre is long on pickleball, I love that!
Now, you had mentioned that you have been playing with your family – your wife – I mean she’s major! Do you prefer playing with her or against her?
AA: I mean, she has crossed some finish lines in her life!
LT: A lot of us have significant others, spouses, that we play with so it’s always interesting to know!
AA: I like playing on her side because we are connected and that’s how you start to really understand what your partner is like and what you can and can’t do and to start morphing into their game. It’s cool to be on the same side of the net and that way you won’t feel guilty body bagging her! I mean, she has a few shots that are unique and then there are other things that don’t translate so well. She wants to play everything pretty traditionally. She’s always expressed her energy and her blood pressure through physical output so she was like a racehorse on the tennis court, but for me, my energy was always shot making when I was on the tennis court. It was about taking the ball and doing something with it.
So some things translate a lot easier when playing pickleball, but it’s fun watching her get past that first part and then seeing her get into her stride in this game. She just started playing singles after starting with doubles and you know, there’s one thing I don’t know how this sport works with someone who struggles with their knees. So she’s being careful and she has a cyst in her knee so once that thing gets drained and her knee feels good, she wants to play singles.
LT: Andre, just so you know, that was also a singles challenge right there for Bahram to play Steffani in singles. Are your kids approaching you to play pickleball or are you approaching them?
AA: Well, my kids – my son is a senior at USC and our daughter, thank God still lives with us at home as education and school wasn’t her thing. She’s artistic and does her own thing, she’ll get out there and play. My son plays baseball so when he hits something, he’s not thinking about it staying within a certain perimeter.
LT: He likes to be out there with the foul balls!
Bahram, how did you and Andre meet and what makes you excited to bringing Andre on board as the Chair for Raquet and Paddle Sports here at Life Time?
BA: We started working together 15 years ago and we continued to grow as really close friends. I have all the love and admiration for his intelligence and athleticism. I have always loved Andre and I have always hoped that when the right time came, that we would be able to partner together and to do something good that would be for the greater good. Life Time is the largest provider of pickleball and we wanted to be able to continue to deliver and offer tennis and pickleball and there was no better person that I could imagine to be the chair of our tennis and pickleball board. With his vision, his insight and I called him and asked what he thought about this. When he told me about his vision and how it would utilize our platform, it was a no-brainer for me.
LT: Andre, we are approaching the 30th Anniversary of you winning your very first US Open. What kind of memories does that bring back for you?
AA: Well, I had hair.
LT: Where were we then? Was it touching your shirt?
AA: The hair was going past the shirt!
You know, it’s such a profound place in my professional journey as well as in my personal journey. You guys not only watched me grow up, you helped me grow up. You really did. I was 18 years old playing Jimmy Connors at night giving him the beating that he deserved! Someone yelled out, “Jimmy, he’s a bum, you’re a legend!” and I remember thinking that I got the legend part, but what? Then fast forward and I got into something that I had done my whole life in front of those people and then down the road after my journey, saying goodbye when I finally retired.
LT: Well I mean, we have an exhibition coming up shortly today!
AA: Yeah, I was told about that! I’m ready!
LT: On that note, let’s bring in our 4 JOOLA Pros, Anna Bright, Collin Johns, Ben Johns, and JOOLA newcomer, Tyson McGuffin! Come on down here! So we’re going to ask our pros a few questions right now so that we can get to know them a little better and then we will head down to the Life Time Pickleball courts as we have a a whole stadium court set up. I wonder if you thought about that this morning Andre?
AA: Ok, I’ m nervous enough!
LT: I mean, it’s almost like a US Open crowd!
So starting off with Anna since you have a microphone in your hand, what excites you the most about pickleball?
ANNA BRIGHT: I think you know, it’s so cool that everybody is here to experience the joy of pickleball and to see us and to watch it! What I love most is the growth of it and not knowing where the sport is going to take us! When I first started playing 2 and a half years ago, I never thought that I would be here in NYC to play a tournament here to meet people and to talk about this game! There’s on way to really know how this game will look in a year or 2 years especially since you have the Pro level and I feel like we’re always kind of being pulled around on a chain by the powers that be, but it’s crazy to see the growth of the amateur game and I hope that we will be back here next year and will need more seating! I’m kind of excited and I don’t even know for what specifically, but I can’t wait to see where it goes in the next few years.
LT: Bright future, Anna Bright! Hopefully we will need more seating and have more people in here next year.
Tyson, I’ve watched you drill on the courts and a 2 hour session turns into a 3 hour session and I think that your T-shirts were more wet than is humanly possible. What are you working on to improve your pickleball game? More specifically, to beat these 3 people around you actually and to beat up on Mr. Agassi today?
TYSON MCGUFFIN: Yeah I think that for me, I have lost some top matches this year. So I think that walking in and raising the level mentally and being a little tougher in those moments. I think that at the highest level, we are all really talented and it’s just about that when the going gets tough and your back is against the wall, you just have to mentally lock in and dial in. I want to say thank you New York and let’s go New York Knicks!
LT: Collin, you’re a professional pickleball player. There was a time when you were not a professional pickleball player.
What advice would you give to somebody that is trying to be a professional pickleball player or what's one thing that was really integral in your path as you went Pro?
COLLIN JOHNS: Um, being Ben’s brother probably is a good start. The tennis journey, I did that for many years and then coming over to pickleball, I think that that just let me witness that I was playing a different sport. There are certain things that are going to help you as background significantly, but there are other things that you have to learn how to change. If you look at the players that have had the most success, especially relatively rapidly – they are very open to learning the game and that was really good for me. It was certainly a credit to the guy on my left that helped me along the way. But, the event today and one I did yesterday, it’s just amazing to see where the sport has grown since I started playing. I’m very excited about being here today.
LT: Speaking of the guy to your left, Ben, you’re the middle of 7 children! What was it like growing up? Was it constant sports and competition of those 7 kids? Who was the most competitive?
BEN JOHNS: Yeah, I grew up as 1 of 7 kids, but also 1 of the 2 boys as we have 5 sisters so it was primarily just sports with this guy. Pickleball is the only thing that I ever won. So, I’m really just taking my sweet time with it! He is 6 years older and it was very competitive. So when you have someone that much older than you, you just get used to losing at everything! But it was a great upbringing and I wouldn’t do it over in any other way. I was very grateful and it all led me here!
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Life Time
Read the MAY ISSUE #101 of Athleisure Mag and see PICKLEBALL POWER in mag.
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ATHLEISURE MAG ISSUE #101 | CURTISS COOK
In this month’s issue, our front and back cover story is with Showtime star of The Chi, Curtiss Cook. We sat down with him to talk about his approach to acting and how he connects to his characters, the success of The Chi, the importance of mental health and why it is important to him, as well as upcoming projects. We also enjoyed spending time with him in Chelsea at Selina Chelsea Hotel as we shot his cover at Creatures at Selina Rooftop and Music For A While listening lounge with key menswear looks for your next outing.
Earlier this month, we headed to Lifetime Fitness for the unveiling of their 7 Pickleball courts as well as to see legendary 8X Grand Slam Winner and 60 ATP Tour wins, Andre Agassi. We enjoyed a fireside chat with him as well as the founder of Lifetime Fitness, Bahram Akradi. We enjoyed hearing him talk about playing as a tennis star and how he has transitioned to enjoying pickleball. In addition, we were able to watch him as well as fellow pickleball stars Anna Bright, Tyson McGuffin, Collin Johns, and Ben Johns play in a series of exhibition games.
This month, we also caught up with 2x Team USA Swimming Medalist Lydia Jacoby ahead of the Summer Games in Paris to talk about her sport, swimming for the University of Texas at Austin, what her average week of training is like, and what the weeks ahead look like as Paris 2024 approaches. .
We enjoyed Season 1 of Outer Range and with Season 2 available on Prime Video, we enjoyed talking with Showrunner and Executive Producer Charles Murray to talk about how he was drawn to storytelling and why he enjoys doing it. We also talk about how he came to this neo-western and the power of secrets. We also connected with actors Tamara Podemski and Isabel Arraiza in this series to find out about their characters from Season 1 and what we can expect from Season 2.
Part of a story and its characters coming together takes place in its costume direction as it says a number of elements that are not necessarily in the script, but round out the picture! Costume Designer Allyson Fanger has been storytelling through costumes in films and television from Wild Things, 10 Things I Hate About You to Grace & Frankie, Shrinking, Apples Never Fall, etc. We caught up with her to find out how she got into the industry, her journey, how she approaches her craft, the difference between styling and costume design, and upcoming projects.
We're back for our 7th year as Media Sponsors for PRIDE NYC which takes place throughout the month of June here in NYC. In advance of this, we wanted to share what you can look forward to this year in our pre-coverage and next month we will have more details on events that we attended.
Bar Convent Brooklyn takes place next month Jun 11- 12 as it's a time for those in the bar/beverage, and hospitality industry to come together to meet new spirit brands and sample launches as well. Ahead of us attending the trade show as well as related events, we wanted to connected with the Event Vice President, Jackie Williams to find out how this event came to be, an overview of its 6 years, and what we can expect this year for attendees and exhibitors in Industry City, Brooklyn. Next month, we'll share our thoughts on what we saw and enjoyed so that you can keep an eye out for new brands and launches.
In an already busy June ahead, Governors Ball will return to Flushing Meadows on Jun 7 - 9! We give an overview on what you can expect and what we look forward to as this music festival kicks off the summer season. Next month, we'll share what we saw and who we interviewed in our JUN ISSUE #102.
This month's The Art of the Snack comes from Heritage Grand Bakery, Heritage Grand and Restaurant and Pizza Bar in Bryant Park. We wanted to know more about this eatery that allows you to have a number of options to go if you're ordering from the bakery for breakfast and lunch and bites in between. We also liked knowing more about the restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch, dinner, and is a great happy hour spot.
This month's Athleisure List comes from The Thinking Traveller, luxury rentals villas in Italy and Greece that are perfect for you to truly enjoy your family with the ability to include premium add-ons to personalize your stay. We also have Hot Bones a Detroit wellness studio that has hot yoga as well as pilates! They are also known for their bone broth that guests can enjoy as well for a full holistic approach.
This month’s 9PLAYLIST comes from EDM group Swedish House Mafia and VASSY. This month we have our 9PLAYLIST MULTI from our cover star, Curtiss Cook who shares songs, books and podcasts/TV/films that he is enjoying. Our 9LIST STORI3S comes from Costume Designer Allyson Fanger who shares her must-haves in beauty, style, and fitness. Our 63MIX ROUTIN3S comes from 2X Team USA Swimming Olympian Lydia Jacoby and actor, Joey Lawrence. This month's THE 9LIST 9CH3FS and THE 9LIST 9B-L-D comes from Chef David Seigal of The Lobster Place, Chef Seadon Shouse of Halifax W Hoboken, and Chef David Rose.
Read the MAY ISSUE #101 of Athleisure Mag.
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