CYCLE BOUND WITH BRYAN VOLTAGGIO + DUFF GOLDMAN

This May, 300 notable chefs and food industry professionals will come together for the annual Chef's Cycle for No Kid Hungry. The third annual ride includes a number of your favorite chefs, and as many are in training mode now, we took a moment with to chat with James Beard Award nominee Bryan Voltaggio of Volt, Voltaggio Brothers Steakhouse (MD) and Range (MD) and Charm City Cakes and Food Network's Duff Goldman to see how they came to participate, their training and what they eat when they need a boost.

AM: How long have you worked with No Kid Hungry and why?

BRYAN VOLTAGGIO: I have been working with No Kid Hungry since 2004, and I began by hosting fundraising dinners for them in Washington, D.C. when I was working for Charlie Palmer. As a chef, we are asked to do so much work with different charities. That’s when it really clicked for me -- as I moved forward in my career, I wanted to attach to something measurable and achievable, and No Kid Hungry helped me do that. Feeding our country’s kids is something we can actually accomplish; I cook for a living as well, so I feel like I have a stake in the game. I am not a doctor, scientist, or politician. I cannot cure diseases, but I can help end childhood hunger in America. Since deciding to focus my efforts on one goal, I have had the opportunity to see change happen, be a part of the conversation, and meet some incredible people who share this same passion. Billy and Debbie Shore (cofounders of Share Our Strength, the organization behind No Kid Hungry) have remained the humble champions of this movement and have managed to put together a force that will certainly see the end to this problem. It is their leadership and commitment that is so inspiring.

DUFF GOLDMAN: I've been working with No Kid Hungry for almost 10 years. What's most important to me is that we are chefs, and our job by definition is feeding people. No Kid Hungry works to feed hungry kids, so the fact that so many people in the culinary community actively support them isn't surprising. Most of the work I do on and off camera is with kids. Kids not getting enough to eat, especially in this country with our vast resources, is appalling to me, so anything I can do to get kids fed so they can focus on being kids is the most impactful thing I can do as a chef and as a person.

AM: How long have you been in Chef Cycle and what are you excited about?

BV: This is my third year riding in Chefs Cycle for No Kid Hungry. I am by no means a veteran and or pro at this. I bought a bike before the first Chefs Cycle ride from NYC to D.C. in 2014, and I put maybe 100-200 miles on the bike before heading up to the start. We left NYC that first morning, and I asked myself, "What the hell are you getting yourself into?" I somehow made the trip -- the whole trip -- and I have never felt a better sense of accomplishment in my life. I became hooked. This year, I look forward to seeing more first-timers and sharing my story in hopes to inspire them to make the trip. I want to see everyone hit their expectations and goals,  and if I can lend a hand, that will be the most rewarding.    

DG: This will be my second year participating in Chefs Cycle for No Kid Hungry. It's amazing how in just a year I have been consumed by riding my bike. I've always loved riding bikes as a kid, but I am the farthest thing from any kind of endurance athlete. Road biking was always a mystery to me, but now that I have been doing it regularly, it has changed my life. Mentally, I always do better on days when I've ridden. Riding centers me, allows me to daydream and work stuff out, and gets me out of the kitchen/studio and into the sunshine. Physically, I've dropped about 30 pounds since this time last year, and I've noticed a significant improvement in my cardiovascular fitness. I have more energy, I'm in a better mood, and my body just craves good food. When I'm riding every day, I eat clean effortlessly. The thought of a cheeseburger right now is almost gross...almost.

The other thing I love about cycling is how welcoming the other really good cyclists have been. Jeff Mahin, Bryan Voltaggio, Chris Cosentino, and Jason Roberts are all really good cyclists and far from being elitist, which is a fear I think lots of people have etting into cycling. Don't believe it. Everyone at the bike store is really cool, I promise. My best memory from last year's ride was when I was struggling to get up some hills, and Jeff and Jason took turns riding next to me with their hands on my back and helped me up. It was really amazing to see how cycling can be a team sport. Last year, I had no expectations of how well I would do on the ride, and I ended up completing just shy of 100 miles in three days. As I've been training this year, I've gotten close to 70 miles in a day, so I guess I would say my goal this year is to get to 200. That may not sound like much to the really good cyclists out there, but for me that would be a monster effort.

AM: What do you listen to in training?
 
BV: I am currently training in the basement of my home. I live in Maryland, and right now it’s wet, cold, and we could get snow. So I cheat a bit while riding on the trainer and catch up on ESPN and or watch a movie, since my actual human trainer makes me ride for more than an hour and a half at a time. 

DG: Zeppelin. Lots of Zeppelin. Also Junip, Flaming Lips, Aesop Rock, ATCQ, Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, Jose Gonzalez, Fu Manchu, QOTSA, Coltrane, Fela Kuti. RATM and, some other stuff.

AM: How are you training for this ride and are you an avid cyclist?

BV: I can’t call myself an avid cyclist -- I call myself a “want-to-be” avid cyclist. I want to incorporate riding into my daily schedule and commute more this year. I work so much that I cannot go for those long to stay on the bike daily and ride shorter – two to three times per day maybe. 

DG: I'm not following a specific training routine other than riding my bike for as long as I can as often as possible. So far, I've been sticking to the beach where it's relatively flat, but once I am doing good strong 50 mile rides consistently, I'm going to be tackling hills. Yay. 

AM: What is the best Power Breakfast you can eat when you're about to ride?

BV: I have shakes with fruit and protein in mornings -- my wife encourages that. On some days, eggs simply on a couple pieces of whole grain bread and avocado do the trick. 

DG: For me it's two eggs, turkey or fish, and mixed fruit. Usually pineapple, oranges, mangoes, apples, watermelon, a quart of water, and a big ol' coffee. 

AM: What on the go snacks do you eat when you're looking for energy?

BV: I like to make bars with dried figs, nuts and seeds that I can pack easily in my kit. I also really like Justin’s packaged nut butters. The flavors are great, they are easy to eat on the ride. I want my nutrition on the bike to be as delicious as possible. I like to mix it up.

DG: I always ride with a backpack on, so packing heavier stuff isn't an issue. I only eat fruit on a ride. I like oranges, because it reminds me of soccer games when I was a kid, and also I get a nice break peeling the orange as opposed to just sucking on some gel. There's also a great poke joint in Venice Beach that I sometimes treat myself to.

AM: How do you stay fit in general?

BV: Fit, hmmmm how do you define that -- HA! I spend as much time on the bike as I can. I hate to run, even though I played soccer for 14 years of my life growing up. Maybe that’s why I was the goalkeeper...

DG: I love lifting. All the sports I played in High School and college were very explosive. Football, ice hockey, and lacrosse, so lifting has been part of my life since I was 14. But adding cycling to the routine has been incredible. I feel much more balanced, and my workouts in the gym have become much more effective because my muscles give out before my lungs do. That's huge.

AM: How do you juggle your busy schedule and take time for yourself?

BV: It’s most important for me to figure out how to juggle my family life with everything I have going on. Work is easy to balance, because while I have a bunch of restaurants, I also have a great team that supports them. I am lucky to have a great team that helps ease the stress of operating a business. Working as a chef means that I am working while most families are have dinner together, so I make sure to carve out special time with my family and fit in time to stay on the bike. That is why in 2017, I plan to commute more via two wheels. I have spent time in Copenhagen, Denmark, and if they can do it in that climate, I can do it here. 

DG: It's almost impossible, but the only way is to be disciplined in your allocation of time. If I let work have me, it will take every waking moment. It's just a decision that you have to make to take the time to get on your bike. The snooze button is the absolute enemy. When that alarm goes off...GET UP.

Read more from the Jan Issue.

VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT GUIDE 2017

VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT GUIDE: FOR HER | STERLING FOREVER Gold Solid X Layered Ring | ISOLA Rose & Vanilla Cream Perfume Body Oil Set | RALPH LAUREN FRAGRANCE GIFT SET Ralph Lauren Romance Fragrance + Dylan's Chocolate Gift | DEEPA BY DEEPA GURNANI Chantel | LATIGO Kick | COLDWATER CREEK Scarf |

VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT GUIDE: FOR HIM | LULU DHARMA Argyle Weekender | HUCKLEBERRY 18K Satin Brushed Yellow Gold Black Diamond "Lucky You" Horseshoe Ring | THE BODY SHOP Maca Root Rescue Kit | DOLLAR SHAVE CLUB Subscription Kit |

VALENTINE'S DAY GIFT GUIDE: FOR THEM | GOOP Fragrance Edition 01, Winter l | ILUMINAGE  Skin Rejuvenating Eye Mask | PIKOLINOS Bolsos MHA | TULLIANI Desire Sunglasses | AMARTE Max2 |

Read more from the Jan Issue here.

VALENTINE'S DAY | SUITE MOMENTS AT THE FAIRMONT HOTEL IN DC

When it comes to Valentine's Day, it's the perfect day to be extra loving to one another (not to say that you don't always show your love). Take dinner and a movie to the next level by making your way to Fairmont Washington, D.C., in Georgetown. This hotel recently completed a $27 million renovation to their property for their guest rooms, suites, lobby and courtyard. Our Co-Founder and Style Director, Kimmie has been a fan of this hotel for a number of years - this past weekend she spent 24 Hours in Washington D.C. and of course stayed at this hotel which you can read more about here. There is nothing like coming to this historic city and being tucked away in the neighborhood of Georgetown. 

Find out how our Style Director spent 24 Hours In Georgetown at the Fairmont D.C.

SUITE MOMENTS PACKAGE

This Valentine's Weekend, this hotel is offering their Suite Moments Package which includes breakfast for two and a complimentary Fairmont Classic Perfect Cocktail in the stunning lobby lounge - which is classically romantic! Your suite will receive 10% off of the daily rate starting at $368 per night. For reservations, call 202.429.2400 (or toll free at 866.540.4505)

VALENTINE'S ROMANCE PACKAGE IN THE Lobby Bar & Lounge:

Whether you're staying at the hotel or not, you can enjoy this romance package for two which is $135++

• 1 Btl. Of Moet & Chandon Imperial Champagne
• 1 dz. Oysters
• Platter of Chocolate Covered Strawberries & Truffles

VALENTINE'S OFFERINGS IN THE LOBBY BAR & LOUNGE:

The perfect cocktails are those that you can share with your significant other. Fairmont D.C., has a His & Her Valentine's Day cocktail that is $15 each. For her, Cupid's Arrow has Grey Goose Le Citron, Tuaca, Fresh Raspberries, and Fresh Lemon. For him, the Gentleman's Elixir has Gentleman Jack, Honey Syrup, Fresh Lemon, Angostura Bitters, and Orange Peel. 

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The newly renovated lobby at the Fairmont Washington D.C., in Georgetown

FAIRMONT WASHINGTON, D.C., GEORGETOWN

2401 M Street, NW

Washington, D.C., 20037

Read more the Jan issue here.

I WANT YOUR HEART

Our cover shoot took place at DOGPOUND, NYC's hottest new gym. This boxing haven brings celebrities, Victoria's Secret Angels, models, athletes, and those that are truly enthusiastic about perfecting their look. DOGPOUND has become the prime location where this all comes together through their focus on training members through personalization of their individual goals.

After spending the afternoon shooting here for our anniversary issue, we had some questions for this temple of fitness. What started from a group of workout buddies, has grown into DOGPOUND founded by Kirk Myers.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Can you tell us how DOGPOUND came to be before coming to your present location in Tribeca? 

KIRK MYERS: DOGPOUND was originally called Kirk Fitness. I was working as a personal trainer, but my business started growing really rapidly. It was then I met Breylis Pena, who wanted to become a trainer, and we formed a group in the morning made up of clients who wanted to workout but didn't have a lot of time during the day. We started calling ourselves DOGPOUND. At the time we were renting space out of multiple gyms, but it wasn't long before we outgrew the spaces--even getting kicked out. So, we decided to build our own. 

AM: What is DOGPOUND and what is the meaning behind the name? 

KM: Some of our clients started bringing their dogs to the workouts. 

AM: What is your background and what led you to create this studio? 

KM: I was a chunky kid, but my health took a pretty big downturn when I suffered from heart failure. I knew I would need to make some pretty serious changes. I started working out, I started to see the results, they wanted to work out with me. My training business started to grow. I started at 23, and I've always been an independent trainer. I realized that in order to be the top trainers in the world, we needed our own home base. 

AM: It's clear that beyond being a studio and a method, that it is a culture - what about it has made it a destination for models, celebrities, etc as a place to get the physique that your members want? 

KM: I think there's a couple reasons why. It's because we are so passionate about what we do, and people see that and recognize it. That type of energy is infectious. We are in an up and coming neighborhood, we want our clients to feel safe and comfortable in the space and we are results oriented. We've created a community, so most of the celebrities and models who workout here, their friends workout here too. 

AM: On the same note, how do you select trainers that you onboard to the DOGPOUND family? 

KM: We hire passionate and positive trainers. That's our number one and number two. Our roster of trainers is pretty diverse. It is not really about what you've accomplished, but where you want to go. You really want to be a trainer, you really want to help people? That's the kind of trainer we want. We can develop the trainers and give them the education they need. We have our entire boxing program. No one ever boxed before the program, but we brought someone in who was a world class boxer and he taught us how to box and now we have a boxing program. You have to want to learn. Some of our top trainers weren't trainers when they started. We look for trainers who want to constantly seek improvement. Just like our clients come here to be a better version of themselves.

AM: We like that those who are members of your gym have the ability to be trained by a number of your trainers, what was the thought process behind that and how do you feel that that is beneficial to them? 

KM: Because it’s always been my own business, I've had long term clients. The issue is that they can get bored working out with only one person. Not only do the clients get bored, but the trainer gets bored. When you have a team, you can offer strengths that you don't have personally in your service. It creates variety. Just today, I had a client who likes boxing, but I don't box, so I had him warm up with some boxing techniques with another trainer. Another client has a knee bothering him so I had a trainer that has more physical therapy background work with him. Workouts don't get stale. And, simply for a time standpoint, it allows for clients to make sure they can fit their workout in. If a client want's to workout but their only availabilty is at ten, but I'm booked at ten, they can work out with someone who has an opening at that time. Here you can always get into workout with somebody. 

AM: Besides the location at Tribeca, are you planning additional locations? 

KM: Yes. 

AM: Do you sell apparel that is branded with DOGPOUND or other brands? 

KM: As of right now, you can't really get apparel unless you come directly to the location. It's available only at the gym. 

AM: What types of workouts are offered at DOGPOUND? 

KM: Boxing, HIIT, Strength Training

AM: How important is offering nutrition as a service? 

KM: It's extremely important. I think nutrition is 70% of your fitness goal. 

AM: Clearly, you're a busy man, when you're not working, what can we find you doing on your "off time"?  

KM: Relaxing and snuggling with my Pooh Bear. Oh, and watching the Raiders. 

AM: When did you introduce the Machine Gun? 

KM: Four years ago. 

AM: What does the studio look like? Any signature decor? 

KM: It was designed by Fabien Baron. Black, white, and concrete. Very sleek look. 

AM: I know you have a varied clientele but could you generalize a bit and give me a brief description of the folks who go there? 

KM: There are finance guys and girls, artists, athletes, celebrities, models and a lot of people who just want to get results. 

AM: Can you be more specific about how the various disciplines are combined? Are you going from holding a yoga pose straight into a resistance exercise straight into a jump squat? 

KM: Just want to paint a clearer picture of the progression of the class.  The only class we offer is boxing, but we always start a one on one session with a dynamic warmup, but the workout is specific to each person's goals. All of our one on one programs are individualized. If you are a dancer, there will be more flexibility, toning and core work, but if you are looking to join the 1000lb club, there is going to be more strength training and heavy lifting.

Read more from the Jan issue.

ATHLEISURE LIST | THE ROPE & THE DANCE NYC

Originally from Ohio, Amanda Kloots has had a number of roles in New York, that have included being a Broadway dancer, Radio City Rockette and a head trainer at Body by Simone.

When methods are created, they focus on a concept. Amanda created the jump rope method after years of finding different ways to stay in amazing shape.  The jump rope became her focus when she realized that it's the quickest, most effective way to a full body workout. She also spent a number of years finding ways to use the rope for more then just jumping! 

The Rope NYC is a class designed by Amanda K as it is completely original and new! This interval based class has you use the jumprope to tone your entire body with moves created by her to use with the jump rope to keep your heart rate up.  

Amanda is the sole creator and instructor of The Rope and she also teaches a dance cardio class called The Dance. These two classes plus her one-on-one training complete her fitness brand, Amanda K. Her classes are a mix of dance and cross training, with a primary focus on form and details. This creates a unique and fun workout that will leave you drenched in sweat in minutes. Both classes are taught at Studio B at Bandier and Dance Workshop NY. Keep an eye out on additional venues that these classes will be held in 2017.

When taking her class at Studio B there are towels, toiletries in the bathroom, and the first level of Bandier is filled with an array of workout clothes for sale to shop from before or after class!

It's worth noting that Amanda K will have her own apparel as well as her own rope.

This class is high energy and is taught by Amanda, whose creativity is seen through her energy which is contagious and maintains a positive vibe through the workout. 

ROPE NYC

STUDIO B. 
164 5th Ave NY, NY 10010

Read more from the June issue

WELLNESS TRENDS 2017

Last month, we talked with Jason Wachob of mindbodygreen and his Annual Wellness Report that looks at trends taking place in 2017. We also interviewed those who work in those fields. We took a moment to chat with Craig Elbert, Founder and CEO of Care Of. We talked about how he conceived of the company that focuses on vitamin/supplement personalization, and more! 

Last month, we talked with Jason Wachob of mindbodygreen and his Annual Wellness Report that looks at trends taking place in 2017. We also interviewed those who work in those fields. We took a moment to chat with Craig Elbert, Founder and CEO of Care Of. We talked about how he conceived of the company that focuses on vitamin/supplement personalization, and more! 

CRAIG ELBERT: Prior to Care Of, I worked at Bonobos which is a men's apparel brand here in NY and I had the joy of joining it when they had 10 people and then growing it to over 250 people by the time that I left. One thing that we were really bullish on was how do we grow a great customer experience in a category that was stagnant in the case of that brand, it was men's khaki pants. There was nothing more boring than men's khaki pants but we wanted to make it more interesting.

While there, I had an interesting experience to purchase vitamins and supplements as I was getting them for myself and trying to get things to be healthier and to also purchase pre-natal vitamins for my wife. The experience of going into the vitamin stores it was just a bad consumer experience it felt bad and it was confusing as well as overwhelming. It felt just a little bit of a manipulative situation. So what we wanted to do was to take a look at how we could do something that was more consumer friendly - giving people the advice that they needed and to ultimately give them the knowledge on what was right for them.

For me, my experience in a brick and mortar store, there are thousands of products on the shelves. I didn't know which ones would be right for me and the store clerk who was just being paid above minimum wage - didn't give me great confidence that he/she could provide the right information. So we spent just about over a year working with experts (nutritionists, naturopaths, doctors, academics) who were focused on the space to figure out what are the different use cases for vitamins and supplements and what the use cases behind them and how do we help people to figure out what is right for them. That's how I, as a consumer who was trying to shop for the products myself, came to this.

AM: This is so true. I have been going to places like GNC since I was in highschool as I know the types of vitamins/supplements that I need. Or if I was thinking of something new to try that it was a bit overwhelming to select from the choices. 

What struck me about your website is that you have a clean interface as well as descriptions of what it is as well as how it is beneficial to your body.

How do you guys go about deciding what types of items will be offered for consumers?

CE: One of the things that we found and started seeing in our research, we initially found was that we were only going to offer items that had scientific research and strong scientific support. One of the things that we found early on was that some things have scientific support and others don't. There are products like Vitamin D and Folic Acid that doctors have a lot of date and support that it is good for your body and that you have something like Fish Oil which has good science but there are some studies that show it's a bit of a mix. Then you have probiotics which have a lot of promising research, but it's still early on.

So we realized that there is a spectrum, and that for our product offering we wanted to focus on anything that had at least good science and we basically cut out the things that didn't have great science and started with ones that had good science for traditional usage and that were ones that could be used for common human goals, whether that was for stress, energy or something more long term like heart health and bone health. So we tried to just cover things that people are looking for and cross referenced that with scientific support.

AM: So over the course of the year, whether they met your criteria - will you be adding more supplements/vitamins into the mix?

CE: So we do plan to add more. Our goal right now is that we launched with about 30 products - we'll get up to about 50 with different doses. We never want to have thousands of products as we feel that it is overwhelming and so we do plan to add on products as we have our pre-natal, which we have worked on for a long time which will launch in Feb or early March. We have a probiotic that launched this month and then we have turmeric and elderberry that is also launching this month. So we do plan to continue to introduce products but we don't plan on having thousands of them.

AM: I liked seeing that you are adding in turmeric and elderberry as those are two products that I use in addition to fish oil. Tumeric is on trend this season as a flavor that we will see a lot of as well. What is the process like for someone who is new to the site when they are picking products for their monthly subscription box?

CE: We wanted to keep it simple. We have them take a little personalization quiz, where we ask about their goals, their diet, their lifestyle and their values. Based on that we cross reference it with the research that we have done as their recommendation. They are able to see that and then adjust to their pack as they wish. They can take something out, add in or leave it as it is. Then they place their order and each month in that box, will be 30 daily packets all personalized for that individual with their name on it and the products inside. We try to make it easy as well as a bit of fun. The survey takes about 3-5 minutes and it helps to guide all the recommendations. 

AM: What drew me is that the packets have the person's name on them which I think is so cute and in an age of emailing and faceless activity it was a nice touch. With people who are busy or who travel a lot you can just see something that reminds you of home and you can seamlessly add it into your daily life.

CE: Yeah, one thing that we talk a lot about in personalization is the combination of technology as well as human empathy. We are building a brand that is focusing on using technology to make things easier so having the human touch factor is key. From having your name on it to having our customer experience team led by Amy here who is awesome in terms of responding to customers and ensuring that we have a good dialogue that feels humanly and not just a scientific laboratory. We wanted it to feel human, warm and empathetic, which is important for the brand.

AM: What are things you're looking to do as Care Of grows in 2017?

CE: We are definitely looking to build an app this year and are a little tight-lipped on what that will be in terms of features. Down the road, our goals are to focus on the business of personalized health. That could be vitamins and supplements and then additional products. We want to wade through the information that is out there and to make it easy for our customers for personalization which is a nice broad growth opportunity for us over time.

Right now we recognize that we are a new brand and we have to be able to execute and connect with customers on these first products that we have with these vitamins and supplements. So far it has been a lot of fun!

AM: Why do you feel that personalization in this field as well as in general is such a major trend that a lot of brands across various categories are looking to implement as we continue into 2017?

CE: As people, we're all very different and I think that we like to have this recognized. Realistically, we can live healthier if we focus on our individual needs. What's fun right now is that technology is making that possible. We're looking to unlock that technology to be able to build something that people always want to recognize that difference and being special and to have something that is unique for them which we can do for them with the technology that we have. 

Nutrition is an ongoing trend that we see from year to year. We caught up with Amanda Bacon of Moon Juice to learn about how she helps people's body and skin from the inside out. This was initiated by her own journey in food as a chef, food journalist and finding her way to her best self through her diet.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Can you tell us about your background?

AMANDA BACON: I traveled a lot through Europe and South America - living in Italy, then Uruguay for a while. These experiences stirred a love not only for the preparation of food, but in tracing ingredients back to their purest forms. When I came back to the states, I went to study at the New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, working at local bakeries and dairies. When I landed in California, I was fortunate to cook under Suzanne Goin at Lucques for a number of years. I truly found a mentor in her. I then moved into food journalism, reporting for LA Times Magazine when it launched. 

In 2006, I began studying the power of raw, medicinal foods to heal the hypothyroid condition I had had since I was a teen, in addition to my severe allergies to wheat, sugar, and cow dairy. Although I was still working as a chef in fine dining, at this juncture my whole diet changed. I ate primarily vegetables and legumes from the farmer’s market, and foods that would serve as hormonal adaptogens. Within a few months, I noticed a radical shift. My next round of blood work revealed that my thyroid hormone levels were back to normal.

Working in fine dining was amazing, but my own transformative experience – backed up by extensive blood tests, the scrutiny of several physicians, renewed feelings of vitality, and a shift in my personality, immunity, appearance, and thought – inspired me to create Moon Juice. These live, medicinal foods changed me from the inside out.

AM: Why do you like sharing about the power of medicinal foods that could work for you from the inside out?

AB: Food can be powerful medicine and no one has experienced its effects more dramatically than I have. Before I began to cook and eat in a way that allowed me to thrive cosmically, my thyroid was slow, allergies were rampant and I had the general feeling that I wasn’t optimizing this life and the body I was traveling in. There’s nothing I love more than talking to people about the ways that they can use food as medicine. The Moon Juice Cookbook is one of the ways I can help people.

AM: Why did you create Moon Juice?

AB: I created Moon Juice for people interested in a new way of living. Not a way where you have to erase your past, but a way fueled by excitement to help yourself live better. Our only intention is to add goodness and beauty to your life.

AM: What are the benefits that one may feel by including this in their dietary regimen?

AB: Being so clean on the inside that it shows in your skin. Having a complete makeover on your life outlook. Being a part of a movement that is changing the way food is produced and consumed. And no dishes! 

High functioning, bioavailable, potent, medicinal whole foods are packed with exceptionally high levels of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and enzymes turning them into tools we can use to tone, nourish and empower our bodies. These foods heal your cells, protect against oxidation, slow the aging process and support your immune system by stimulating and supplementing your bodies disease and infection fighting properties.

AM: We always enjoy a great drink and towards the end of last year we were introduced to Farmer Willie's, which is an alcoholic ginger beer drink that's not only refreshing but will definitely be a great beverage to enjoy during the summer!

We talked with the Co-Founders Nico and Max of this brand. What was your background and how did that lead you to working with one another, and what's the story behind creating Farmer Willie's.

NICO ENRIQUEZ: I first met Willie Fenichel 11 years ago on a beach in Cape Cod. I was this little kid who saw a makeshift beach volleyball game down the beach and asked to join. Turns out that the league of volleyball misfits was an every day thing. Little did I know that after that first game I would be hooked to a degree that I would literally try and spend every hour of sunlight during the summer playing with this crazy group. 

Willie's sister was the unofficial official league commissioner (she started the tradition and is in charge of bringing the net and ball to this day). I started eating dinner at their farm every day after games. Soon the Fenichel family became my second family. 

After getting to know Willie over several years he began sharing his home-brewed ginger beer recipe with me. It was amazing. I was always an entrepreneurial kid, I was trying to figure out ways to live the Cape life with the Fenichels all summer and not have my parents disown me as a beach bum, so I began dreaming, and told him we had to try bringing the ginger beer to the farmer's market in Ptown and see if we could make a living off it. Willie was in. 

Fast forward several years, I was about to turn 21 and I was sitting in my best friend's dorm room at Brown University. I started telling him about my dream to sell this alcoholic ginger beer with Willie. Max Easton (my best friend & business partner) had grown up working in the restaurant industry in London because his mom ran several bars and restaurants. He was an adventurous soul and I was an overly enthusiastic salesman, so he joined the cause without ever trying the ginger beer.

MAX EASTON: I spent most of my life on the other side of the pond in London, England, and grew up working in the restaurant industry as my mother started & managed several pub & bar companies in the UK. I was interested in coming to the US for college as I had no idea what I wanted to study & the UK university system really makes you focus on one major from the beginning. I had heard amazing things about Brown because of its reputation as a great academic school but partnered with a much cooler, less intense student body. I applied early, fortunately got accepted & headed to Brown after taking a gap year.

Nico and I met because he lived around the corner from my ex-girlfriend and I loved hanging out with him because he was always so happy & optimistic, and I found our times together hilarious (and still do) because we have polar opposite personalities. To characterize, I am the buttoned-up Brit and he's permanently got sand in his hair. 

We became closer & closer friends and one Spring night Sophomore year we were chilling in my room chatting about things we were doing or interested in. We both loved the idea of starting our own thing as both our parents were entrepreneurs, and so we started throwing out ideas. This was the moment when Nico mentioned Willie and his legendary ginger beer: as far as I remember, his words were: "I know this guy named Willie, who lives out on the Cape and he makes this amazing alcoholic ginger beer. I always thought it could be something. What do you think?" To be honest, I had no idea what to think, but after I said why not, Nico applied to this small Brown accelerator program to get us some funding & mentoring. We pitched the idea (without me having tried the product or met Willie) and we were accepted. That was definitely the start, but it only kept going because it was all hilarious and we enjoyed learning the steps you took to starting a business. We had both planned to start our own businesses some day, so why not learn about it while doing something fun? There was just no downside to us giving it a shot, so we kept taking small steps until it ended up being something pretty legit.

AM: When did Farmer Willie's launch?

NE: We launched May 22nd of 2015 at the Farmer's Market in Provincetown- a little under 2 years ago. We spent the 1.5 years before that day preparing, interviewing, working canning lines, filing legal papers, raising money, etc.

ME: The moment Nico mentioned Willie & his ginger beer in my dorm room was Spring Semester of Sophomore year. We kept working on it our Sophomore & Junior years - we brewed small-scale test batches, worked out where we could produce, sorted out the legal framework of the company, designed our logo & can, did more start-up competitions, talked to people in the industry etc. - and we had everything set by the end of our Junior Year so we decided to start selling it commercially. As Nico described, we started selling at the Provincetown farmers' market after our Junior year finals & lived out on the Cape at Nico's grandma's house for three months self-distributing cases to around 50 bars, restaurants & liquor stores. So, in terms of proper selling, we have been selling for just over a year and a half, but we have been working on Farmer Willie's for almost three years now. Many small steps!

AM: Ginger is an ingredient that has not only been on trend as a flavor for a number of years, but is definitely a core one when you think about wellness, what was the thought behind combining it with alcohol?

NE: Willie started brewing his ginger beer because he was bored in the winter living on the Cape and his mom was making beach plum wine, so he decided to try something different. He loved ginger and began seeing what would happen when he grated fresh ginger and added lemon juice, cane sugar, and yeast (to ferment it and add carbonation). Needless to say, the home-brew was spectacular. Fresh, simple ingredients go a long way. 

ME: We didn't! It's was all Willie. But the ginger trends were definitely one of the things that got us excited when we first looked into whether we could make Willie's ginger beer into something. It's exploding in bars & restaurants with cocktails such as Moscow Mules & Dark n' Stormies, juice bars & farm-to-table restaurants. So the idea that we could create a fresh, dry & seasonable alcoholic ginger beer that you can drink straight out of the can just seemed awesome. We drink it all the time and it's like nothing else in the ginger beer space.

AM: What are the health benefits that one can enjoy while consuming Farmer Willie's and how is it different than other beverages that are in its category or related categories?

NE: We can't ever say our beverage is healthy because it still contains alcohol and the FDA would do terrible things to us. That being said, what sets this ginger beer apart is that we use real ginger and it isn't so damn sweet. 

If you look at the mass produced ginger beer everyone drinks or even the specialty supermarket versions those ginger beers have anywhere between 30-60g of high fructose corn syrup which is 3X-6X more sugar than ours (and we use cane sugar). This means that other ginger beers have 170-200 calories in their cans - all from sugar. We have 150 calories in our can - 110 which come from the 4.5% ABV. So basically you can have a real fresh, dry ginger beer with alcohol and still consume less sugar than your average non-alcoholic ginger beer. To us, it's a no brainer (unless you are under 21, of course!).

We use simply prepared, real ingredients, such as cold pressed ginger, lemon, nutmeg, molasses. None of the "natural flavoring" crap. Ginger is a superfood, lemon gives you vitamin C. I don't know what nutmeg does for you but its a spice. Molasses doesn't do much but it sounds good haha.

ME: You grow a ginger beard. But seriously, we can't say that there are health benefits as we will get into trouble, but compared to other ginger beers, there is no comparison. As Nico said, there is a reason we are a much fresher, much more refreshing ginger beer.

But, in general, we're a fresh, low sugar, gluten-free alternative to beer. You are drinking something that lifts you up and you can drink it straight out of the can so you can bring it anywhere without an issue.

AM: Tell us about how you came upon the design of the can, as well as the logo as we love how distinctive it is.

NE: The can was designed by a legendary girl named Juliette Weiss. She is our head of design. We met because when we were studying at Brown, Juliette was down the hill, studying at RISD (Rhode Island School of Design). Our entrepreneurship professor Danny Warshay introduced us. We told her we wanted a clean, but quirky can to reflect our weird story and real ingredients. 

On our second meeting, Juliette came in with the idea that we make the front of the can into Willie's ginger beard so people could get the beard while they drink and post photos online. Obviously we had to do it. Especially because everyone knows puns and hipster-ass beards are the key to a Brown student's heart. Juliette absolutely killed it on the design and we ended up winning a prestigious package design award the next year. 

ME: The legend, Juliette Weiss. She's a beautiful, wonderful, pain in the ass - and we are so lucky to have her on the team. 

AM: Where is Farmer Willie's sold and where would you like to see it?

NE: Farmer Willie's is sold in MA and RI. Specifically in MA, we are sold on the North Shore, Boston, South Shore, Cape, and Islands. There are a ton of places that we would absolutely love to see Farmer Willie's sold. We love the sea and the ginger and lemon kill it with seafood and clean fresh ingredients so obviously the Matunuck Oyster Bar in RI, the Beachcomber in Wellfleet (out on the Cape), Branchline in Watertown (that place is literally fire), and The Poynt in Newburyport. Also, it's light and refreshing as hell straight out of the can so the spots, where we dance like idiots in Boston like Middlesex Lounge or Middle-east would be absolutely primo. Regardless, if you do not see Farmer Willie's in your local liquor store or bar and want it there, please ask them to ask for it because that truly helps us build this.  

AM: Will Farmer Willie's have any brand extensions into other categories, flavors etc?

NE: We are working on some absolutely awesome flavors to compliment our approach of fresh ginger and low sugar. I can't say what specific flavor twists yet though... 

AM: How is Farmer Willie's aligned to Athleisure Culture?

NE: We believe in having a damn good time but taking care of yourself at the same time. Basically real ingredients, low hassle, adventures for days. Also, the only thing that keeps us sane as we work 80 hour weeks building this thing are the mind-clearing runs.

AM: Will Farmer Willie's be involved in events, tradeshows, promotions etc that will take place this spring/summer?

NE: Absolutely, we are planning some speakeasy parties around Boston this Spring for people who follow us on social media each month. We are trying to organize some beach volleyball games outside the Beachcomber this summer.
Also we will be doing plenty of brewfests and tastings every Friday and Saturday night... anyone can send me an email nico@thefarmerwillies.com to ask which tastings/fest may be in your area if you want to meet anyone on the team.

AM: As co-founders when you're not running the brand, how do you take time for yourselves?

NE: We both dance like fools whenever possible. 

Sundays, I go for a hike or super long bike ride to explore the area around Boston. I find the air clears the head and slows down your thinking and there isn't the impact of running so I can give my knees and ankles a rest. Last adventure I found a crazy 200 ft rock quarry and got kicked out then lucked on some old WW2 forts on the north shore. Sunday night I go home to my parents house and chill with the fam, read the Sunday paper and eat the home cooking... Not gonna lie I bring my laundry home. 

Max loves running as well, nice food, bit of whiskey & chilling with his girlfriend. He also loves building up his music playlists & finding new music, which is awesome for me. He's the kind of man who takes over the music at a party, but honestly it is always for the better because people tend to dance a bit more. He knows how to read a party for sure. 

ME: It really depends on my mood, but I really do love running to shake off any stress or clear my mind. Got that from my mum & Nico. But if I have more time, I love finding new music, going for an awesome meal or going for a great walk with someone chill. Anything where you can come back feeling refreshed. 

AM: Nico, we heard that you run marathons, how did you prepare for it, what was the training like and when is your next one?

NE: I grew up just off Heartbreak Hill so I always wanted to do the marathon. The year I turned 19, I ran it but it was the bombing year and I was on the final stretch of Boylston when the bombs went off so I felt I really had to do it again. 

I run 5-7 miles every day and don't really have time for more so my training was just that. I had super slow times and the two days after the races were always painful and I was so stiff that I had to walk down stair backwards, but it was always more about proving it to myself then anything else. The next one is definitely on my radar- I want to do NY and others, but no idea when I will have the time or the stupidity to forget the pain of haphazard marathons of the past. 

See more from the Jan Issue 

N3W YOU

KATRINA SCOTT + KARENA DAWN

FITNESS TRAINERS + CO-FOUNDERS

TONE IT UP

THE GOOD

We have our Tone It Up Challenge going on right now (you can sign up HERE for a free starter pack!). It’s basically 6 weeks of total body toning workouts paired with the day-by-day 6 Week Meal Plan to bring fitness results to the next level for 2017! 

THE BUZZ

We have something really big coming up in late 2017 that we’re getting super excited about! We’re announcing all the deets in March, so make sure to follow both of our Instagram accounts @KarenaKatrina and @ToneItUp for more info to come ;)

We also came out with 8 brand new workouts called BODY LOVE and 3 of them are with one of our fave fitness icons Jillian Michaels!! They’re absolutely amazing routines that kick some major booty and torch calories.

KAITLYN BRISTOWE + SHAWN BOOTH

THE BACHELORETTE

THE GOOD

2016 was a BIG year. We moved to Nashville TN as a newly engaged couple. Living in music city, I was able to meet many talented song writers, and singers who have helped me pursue my passion in singing. It led me to hosting on the red carpet for the 50th anniversary of the CMA’s where I got to meet incredible  artists.

We have also been fortunate enough to start CitySTRONG, an indoor/outdoor group workout that takes place in cities all across the country. We’ve teamed up with our good friend Erin Oprea, who is also a well known trainer here in Nashville TN. It’s all about getting a good workout, but more importantly, having fun! A portion of the CitySTRONG proceeds go to a charity called “Creativets” which we are very passionate about. It helps soldiers overcome PTSD when they come back from overseas by pairing them up with song writers to help them create music. We are proud of that and have met some amazing people from that organization. Our platform has allowed us to have a voice with many different charities, meet incredible people who make a difference, and hear a lot of inspiring stories.

THE ADD

I think when it comes to resolutions, one that stands out to us is being more in the moment. We are all so caught up on our phones, and dealing with the pressure of being a public figure, that we always feel “on.” I think another thing we would love to do is work with more charities and make the world a better place. That is the stuff that evolves and makes us happy. Instagram is fun, but making a difference is rewarding. I know we love to say we will plan a wedding this year. But again, we don’t want it to be because of the pressure or expectations we are under from being on TV. We want to make sure it's when we are ready. Just because we don’t have a date, doesn’t mean we don’t love each other any less. We are busy. And hopefully in 2017 we can start to plan. 

THE BUZZ

I’m excited to announce my podcast. I have been brainstorming, and plotting for a while now on how to make it unlike any other. I always have a lot to say, and I like to make people laugh. I feel like I am meant for it. Who knows who will show up on there, but I’m hoping some people I've always wanted to get to know. I have also been co-writing songs, and recorded my first one the other day. I am proud of it and can’t wait to share it with everyone who believes in me. 

Shawn has been working SO HARD on his fitness and being the best trainer he can be. He is getting new clients all the time, and is also training for an IRONMAN that he will take part in this year. Now THAT’S an ambitious goal for 2017. I've never seen someone so dedicated in my life. You can tell it is his passion. He is extremely knowledgable when it comes to nutrition, health and fitness. Shawn has his own meal plans that he customizes to each person who orders one. It's not about a fad diet, he creates a healthy and achievable lifestyle. Whether you are a mom on the go, someone doing fitness competitions, or even just wanting to live a healthier life. There is something for everyone. 

He has been working every single day on his website that will be coming out soon for people to get on board. His passion for fitness is what inspired him to start CitySTRONG.com, where we get to meet people across the country and inspire them to be their best selves. 2017 is going to be a great year.

DAGMARA WOZNIAK

TEAM USA OLYMPIAN 2016 RIO BRONZE FENCER

THE GOOD

2016 was a memorable year for the books for so many reasons. It was a combination of the best moments in my life as well as some truly difficult times. I was able to qualify, compete, and medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. At the same time all this was going on I was going through some of the worst injuries I have dealt with in my career. It was an emotional rollercoaster, but that's life and instead of getting upset and feeling defeated, I never stopped hustling and never stopped putting one foot in front of the other. It was a time in my life that I felt I was tested emotionally and physically and it just made me grow more comfortable with who I am as well as understanding what I’m capable of.

THE ADD

This year I have decided to train and heal differently by slowing down. Athletes think stronger, faster, harder is the best way to go but at some point your body will shut down on you. One goal is to focus on clean eating that will help my body recover and heal faster from intense workouts and practice. Another goal is to improve my ability to be more self aware and strengthen my mindfulness in such a fast sport like fencing if you are worried about what has happened or what will happen, then you lose and I think that relates a lot to everyday life. You can’t be worried about losing a job for example or not getting an interview if you didn’t try to go for it. People tend to focus on beach body mode or losing weight for event and end up freaking out and binge eating. If you just take it one meal at a time, one meal at a time, one workout at a time, one becomes 2 and that becomes 5. Before you know it you went consistently for a month eating healthier and working out more. Making plans is necessary, but when taking steps towards it be in the moment and appreciate the handwork and everything that is going on at that point in time.

THE BUZZ

I recently got signed to Nike and I’m IN LOVE. I have always loved the company and its clothing so now to be a part of the family feels right. I got some things in the works so I can’t disclose them yet, but keep following me and check out my road to success! As of now, I’ve committed myself to training for 2020 Tokyo and I can’t be more excited about it. I love being an athlete and representing the US and I plan on doing it for as long as I can.

EDM TWIN DJ'S MIRIAM + OLIVIA

NERVO

THE GOOD

2016 was ace! We were able to travel the world on many exciting tours through The America's, Asia, Australia, and all over Europe, played around 200 shows at some of the biggest festivals and nightclubs in the world, hosted our own NERVONation shows at Ushuaia in Ibiza and SLS in Miami, continued our biggest residencies in Las Vegas at Omnia and Wet Republic, and Ushuaia, Ibiza. We were able to connect with so many incredible fans that showed their love and support at every single show and also towards our releases.  We launched our own record label GOT ME BABY! Records, had a Billboard Dance #1 with People Grinnin’, released so many special songs, explored a virtual reality 3d music video with “Did We Forget”, had exciting collaborations with Timmy Trumpet, Kylie Minogue, Savi, Amba Shepherd, and Nicky Romero - among others, and reached the DJ Mag top 100 poll as highest ranking females.  On a personal level, we have become very close with the team of people we work with, creating our own little family and we were lucky enough to to take our brother on the road with us for three months where we built some everlasting memories. We can only hope 2017 is as special and we are very grateful for the good times in 2016!

THE ADD

Any creative person will tell you that they struggle with evolving and balance. You see, our jobs are all encompassing so we are “on” 110% of the time. This can work against finding down time, but we need this “down time” to come up with new ideas, so I guess you could say it is a constant battle. In 2017, we will keep trying to find the perfect balance. 

Like every year, we will continue to keep pushing boundaries, to keep growing musically and explore different genres.   We are releasing a more pop record in February through BigBeat, Warners, which may or may not connect with our fans, but to us, we are excited about trying something new. Prioritizing studio time is also super important for 2017. We need to set aside time to be creative in order to fulfill our creative aspirations so this will be a major focus for us.

Giving back to charity is also a goal for 2017. In the past we have been involved in Breast cancer charities. We chose Breast Cancer because our mother survived it, but we are also interested in some other charities which we hope to work with this year. 

THE BUZZ

2017 is going to be another very busy year for NERVO!  Aside from working up our label - GOT ME BABY! Records, we have some special collabs coming with DVBBS, Danny Avila, Quintino - to mention a few.

We teamed up with some people in the business to launch our own management company called 25Eight Entertainment and we will be announcing some new artists and clients that we are working with in 2017 and beyond.

Our NERVONation shows will be back at Ushuaia in Ibiza, as well as Miami for Music Week and also taking it to the slopes in Austria, Solden.

From March onwards, we are back on a heavy touring schedule and are super excited about playing Lollapalooza in South America. 

LACEY STONE CELEBRITY FITNESS TRAINER + 

CELEB TRAINER ON E! 's REVENGE BODY WITH KHLOE KARDASHIAN

THE GOOD

This year was a huge year for me professionally. I got cast on Khloe Kardashian’s new docuseries REVENGE BODY, set to premiere on E! January 12th, 2017. I’ve been working in the fitness industry my entire adult life and I’m so excited for the world to see this show, because it’s not about extreme weight-loss it’s about health and being the best you can be from the inside out.
 
I traveled to Fiji for 2 weeks and spent that time meditating, reconnecting with my heart, and enjoying some long overdue quality time with 3 of my best friends. Being successful is RAD, but if you don’t take time to celebrate and reflect on your successes you miss  
out on the joy of achieving them.

My program 8 Weeks To Change Program has helped so many people find big time fitness results and increased happiness in their personal and professional lives. Because of this the Program has gotten a lot of national attention from The Steve Harvey Show, The Doctors, & E!

THE ADD

In 2017, I’m looking to expand 8 Weeks To Change Programs across the country and create a virtual environment which allows me to help people in all parts of the world find their inner athlete and the courage to be who they were born to be. 
 
I’m also looking to complete my first book and continue to spread the message that fitness isn’t about the scale, it’s about finding health from within.

If I were to choose one word to describe how I’m looking to live my life in 2017 it would be FEARLESS. I'm going to actively work at being the best I can be everyday, forcing myself to live life consistently outside of my comfort zone. Being fearless involves tremendous courage and to be courageous you must be confident in the unknown.
 
In order to grow my business and stay on top of what’s hot and what’s not, I’ll be hiring several more people to work on expanding my brand. That involves me learning to delegate and not be such a perfectionist control freak (hahahha). 

THE BUZZ

Some of my personal resolutions involve not being so hard on myself and learning to be more flexible and adventurous outside of work.

Last year Khloe Kardashian selected me as one of her go-to celebrity trainers on her new E! Show Revenge Body. The show premieres January 12th on E! 
 
I’ll being doing a fitness retreat in Bali with 14 lucky people looking to change their lives from the inside out. 
 
I’ll also be doing some clothing collaborations with Carbon38, which will launch in February 2017.

See more from the Jan Issue 

THE ART OF THE SNACK | GREENS ARE KEY

Lifestyle holistic guide and host of the onine cooking show, Eat with Intention, Cassandra Bodzak has a new book that illustrates her focus on wellness - EAT WITH INTENTION. It combines recipes, a bit of background on them and meditation together, which makes for a balanced book to refer to as you make a number of the tasty treats. It's a book that definitely focuses on the mind, body and soul while leaving you great items to share with family and friends.

 
GROUNDING SALAD

When we are ungrounded, it feels like chaos; all the thoughts in our heads are swirling, we don’t feel solid or at peace, and we don’t make the best decisions because we’re not thinking clearly. By connecting back to nature and eating more root vegetables and warm foods, we bring ourselves back to a steady, more powerful place. Roasting vegetables—especially root vegetables—gives them a grounding energy, which has an incredible power to connect us back to the earth’s core. This salad is a great balance of both: it not only quenches the desire for the greens of a salad, but it also includes hearty roasted veggies, such as Brussels sprouts, carrots, and potatoes, along with lots of great spices, to bring you back down into your root chakra.

DOWN TO EARTH MEDITATION

Ideally, you would do this meditation on a nice patch of grass or perhaps sitting on the beach; however, you can still connect yourself to the center of the earth in just a few minutes right in the comfort of your home. Find a comfortable place to sit in easy pose close
your eyes, and start focusing on your breath—in through your nose and out your mouth. Bring your attention to where you are sitting on the floor and imagine a thick rope extending out of your being, all the way down and around the core of the earth, anchor-

ing you to it. Feel that rope crystallize and strengthen, all the way from the base of your spine into the earth’s core.  Take a moment to really embrace this connected, anchored, and supported feeling, knowing that you are being held so powerfully by this planet, and then carry that with you throughout your day. Sit anywhere from 3 to 20 minutes. When you are ready to re- lease and end the meditation, gently move your fingers and toes, rub your palms together, and place them over your eye sockets as your slowly open your eyes and expose them to the light.

Yield: 2 Servings 

Ingredients

5 tablespoons (75 ml) extra-virgin olive oil, divided
4 baby potatoes, sliced (I prefer the
colored ones, but any kind will do!)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons fine sea salt, divided
2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
2 teaspoons onion powder, divided
½ cup (44 g) quartered Brussels sprouts
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
1 shallot, thinly sliced
¼ cup (31 g) sliced carrot
2 teaspoons slivered almonds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 cup (68 g) chopped kale
1 cup (29 g) spring mix salad

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C, or gas mark 7). Lightly grease 2 baking sheets with 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil and set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine the potatoes, oregano, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil, and 1 teaspoon each of the salt, garlic, and onion powder and mix until thoroughly coated. Transfer the potatoes to one of the prepared baking sheets and roast for 10 minutes, or until the edges turn crisp and golden brown. 

3. Meanwhile, combine the Brussels sprouts and 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil in a small bowl and toss with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, garlic powder, and onion powder. Arrange them on the other prepared baking sheet and roast in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes, or
until the edges turn crisp and golden brown.

4. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and shallot and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant. Add
the sliced carrots, almonds, turmeric, curry powder, and ground coriander, reduce the heat, and lightly sauté for several minutes, until the shallots and garlic are browned.

5. Divide the kale and spring mix between 2 individual serving bowls. Add the roasted potatoes and Brussels sprouts, and then finish with the carrot mixture.

FOCUS POTION

Distractions are everywhere these days, especially with smart phones and social media vying for our attention throughout the day. My daily focusing weapon is always my meditation and reciting what I’m here to do. What’s your mission statement? I’ll give you a hint: For all of us, at its core, it is being a living example of love incarnate. When we adjust our focus through our divine purpose, we have a lot more power when it comes to steering clear of mindless distractions. This potion is a bit of a secret weapon of mine for days when shiny objects are getting the better of me. The sweet combination of grapes with the alkalizing punch of kale and celery perks you up while magical rosemary focuses all that good energy in the area you need it!

DIVINE PURPOSE VISUALIZATION

Sit in easy pose with your eyes closed and focused on your third-eye point (the space between your eyebrows). Take long, deep breaths in through your nose and out your mouth. Feel your body come into a calm balance. Now, bring what your purpose on this planet is to the top of your mind. If you are unclear of what your purpose is, use “I am here to be love,” because that is all of our main purpose. Allow it to be your mantra for a few moments, letting it roll around your head, down your spine, and through your breath flow. Now bring to mind what this would look like to you. How do you behave? How do people around you feel and act? What’s the ripple effect in the world? Allow these images to flood your mind for the next 3 to 5 minutes before bringing yourself back to your original purpose statement, taking a deep breath in, holding it, and releasing it.

Yield: 1 Serving

Ingredients

3 celery stalks
2 cups (134 g) baby kale
1 cup (150 g) grapes
3 drops rosemary essential oil
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, to garnish
1. Put celery, kale, and grapes into a juicer and juice into a large glass. 
2. Stir in the rosemary oil, garnish with sprigs of rosemary, and serve immediately. 

RADIANCE JUICE

Roald Dahl famously said: “If you have good thoughts, they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.” I couldn’t agree more. Beauty starts from within and permeates outward. Thinking thoughts that nourish your soul and eating foods that nourish your body are more effective than the most luxurious makeup money can buy. You can’t fake true radiance. This juice is packed with nutrients that will get you glowing from the inside out! Pineapple juice promotes healthy skin and helps prevent acne; watercress is also great for your overall health with its high levels of vitamin C; and cucumber has cooling and moisturizing properties.

RADIANT HEART MEDITATION

In this exercise, we are going to pull energy into our heart center and allow it to saturate every cell of our being, filling us with light and allowing our inner radiance to pour outward as it overflows.

Begin by sitting in easy pose and breathing long and deep. Close your eyes and focus on your heart center while using your hands to slowly and steadily pull the energy surrounding you into your heart. Your hands should stay at heart height and move from the sides of your body inward, as if you are catching a ball and bringing it into your heart. Feel the light in your heart expand and grow brighter with each motion. Continue for at least 3 minutes, gradually building up to 11 minutes. Take a deep breath in and bring your hands into your heart, right palm on top of left. Feel the energy pulsing through your heart center and allow it to distribute throughout your entire being. Imagine it filling up each cell with its loving light energy. Exhale.

Yield: 1 Serving

Ingredients

½ cup (17 g) watercress
2 cucumbers, peeled
2 limes, peeled
1 cup (166 g) pineapple chunks

1. Starting with the watercress, juice all the ingredients into a large glass. 

2. Lightly stir and serve immediately

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Cassandra Bozak

See more from the Jan Issue 

ALMOND BEAUTY

Almonds are a great treat, but they are also a gift for the skin, whether your product has almonds in their entirety, essence or just the oil. We have a roundup of some of our favorites to include in your beauty routine as we come to the end of the year.

| DOVE ADVANCED CARE Clear Tone Sheer Touch | TRILOGY Age-Proof Active Enzyme Cleansing Cream | L'OCCITANE Almond Supple Skin Oil | NUDE SKINCARE Replenish Daily Moisturizer | PHOTO CREDIT UnSplash

RESOURCES FOR BETTERING YOURSELF

by Ed Maguire

How do you become smarter, healthier, happier, more successful, wealthier, more fulfilled? What tools, systems, insights or advice are most useful?

The category of self-help and personal improvement books and videos available numbers in the hundreds of thousands – a quick search of Amazon’s self-help category reveals over 546,000 books that fall under the self-help category. There are many resources to help people deal with illnesses, tragedies, additions, stresses, difficult life circumstances. These are typically focused on solving specific challenges (often enhancing or substituting for therapy, counseling or support, not groups.) That's what I am referring to here.

Self-improvement literature has been a personal interest of mine for quite a while. This is a particularly American genre, with origins that extend back to Ralph Waldo Emerson and the Transcendentalists in the mid-19th century. Tony Robbins is perhaps the most successful and best known American self-help guru, but there are loads of others that specialize in helping improve mind, body, being more successful at work, being happier…There’s an element of frontier spirit in the idea that anyone can improve themselves, or start afresh through self-empowerment.

One of the first books of this genre I read was Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People” which I first read as a teenager. In this book written in 1936, Dale Carnegie illustrates his lessons by telling his own stories. The crux of the book is that being interested in others, and getting them to reveal their passions and interests is the quickest way to find common growth with people, the first step toward building relationships and trust. This is a book that in my view should be required reading for anyone making their way into the world.  It’s a fundamentally optimistic book, a quick read,  with immediately practical tips that are relevant for a lifetime. Another one of his books is How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. This is a book that I’ve found useful to return to from time to time when I need a mental boost or find myself feeling stressed.

I started digging deeper into the genre in 2007-2008 as I was listening to some Tony Robbins recordings he made reference to a number of his own sources that had helped him develop his own philosophy of self-empowerment.  The granddaddy of them all is Napoleon Hill’s “Think and Grow Rich” which was written in 1925 and has remained an essential classic to this day. Napoleon Hill was a fledgling reporter who got the chance to interview the legendary industrial baron Andrew Carnegie, who made him an offer to follow him around for a year, with no pay or guarantee of any remuneration, in order to learn the lessons of success from him – and over 500 others that he interviewed. Hill’s wisdom has proven powerful and enduring. Using a folksy, homespun style, Hill laid out methods and processes to help people become successful.  You can see him in this 1954 video here.

In my experience, there’s a common thread that emerges from a lot of self-help literature: “what you think becomes real”. It’s a simple concept, explored in literature, religion and spirituality and increasingly in hard science. A recent popular example is Rhonda Byrnes’ “The Secret”. It’s what you think about, and where you focus that manifests in other parts of your life. Thinking about the right things, in the right way, is the “hack” to improve your life.

So my two recommendations for anyone starting down the path of self-improvement would be  (if you haven’t already) to read “Think and Grow Rich” and “How to Win Friends and Influence People”. These are time-tested, clearly written and inspirational.   You’ll be better for it. 

Ed Maguire has worked as an equity analyst covering the technology sector since 1999 for a variety of firms including CLSA Americas, Merrill Lynch and CIBC. Previously he led sales for independent music distributor Twinbrook Music while working as professional musician performing on bass, violin and keyboards, composing, arranging and producing a variety of styles of music. Ed holds a B.A. in Music from Columbia and an M.B.A. from Rutgers in Finance and Management Information Systems. He lives in Millburn, NJ with his wife Lily, their two kids and the dog Spock.

CARPETS, CARE & CHIC WITH ZURI HALL

We sat down with Emmy Winning journalist, E! News Correspondent and TV Personality, Zuri Hall. We chatted with her about family, her recent partnership to shed a light on MS, what awards season is like and her sense of style, as well as staying balanced in the industry. 

ATHLEISURE MAG: You're a busy lady! As we know you're constantly on air, we'd like to know about your connection to this survey about MS.

ZURI HALL: I was excited to partner with Genentech as my Aunt was diagnosed with MS 3 years ago and for me, it was my first personal connection to the disease. I had done a human interest story about this for a local news story – so I was getting a little familiar. But it wasn’t until it hits home that you started to say, “what does this mean, what does it do.” 

So she was diagnosed and over the last few years her symptoms have delveloped and progressed, and unfortunately, have gotten worse. When  I partnered with Genentech, we found that MS Mindset Survey – a lot of their findings reflected what I was seeing my aunt go through when it came to her symptoms. My big takeaway from the survey was the unpredictability of MS symptoms. Some of the things she is dealing with is wobbly legs. Sometimes it's cognitive issues, blurred vision, and she’s hit with fatigue. So she knows roughly what she’s dealing with, but she doesn’t know when they will pop up. So since it is so unpredictable, it’s hard to know or plan around those things whether you are directly dealing with it or are the caregiver that is involved. You can’t plan a week in advance when you have no guarantee of how you will be feeling tomorrow. 

So one of the big findings was that about 85% of those with MS have said that they have missed social engagements because their symptoms have come into play when they didn't think that they would. 87% oddly enough, a higher percentage of support partners and caregivers, have also missed out on events because their partner had a flare up or had an issue. 

For example, my aunt told me that she went to a baseball game once and it was a big venue, so while she was excited to go out with your co-workers and friends she had to commit to it. She gets to the field and then 30 minutes in she realized she had to go because she sensed that she had issues with her wobbly legs as they had been giving out over the previous days and that anxiety of not knowing if that would happen during the game was something that she was dealing with. She would rather remove herself completely from this social situation that she was looking forward to then risking something that she couldn’t predict to happen during the game and having to explain herself or to create a socially awkward situation to those that were there. There are also issues with urinary problems, like not being able to control your bladder – she’s nervous when it hits, then she has to go. For her, it’s not just about being awkward for her but she doesn’t want it to be weird for others and having to have them figure out how to talk about her disease. She is an independent, small and feisty woman and we love her. So it’s interesting to see how this disease begins to dictate the social decisions that she makes. 

Another finding that this survey focused on is the day to day activities which hits home for us. She is the person who loves to host and she has a beautiful home that she has decorated with love and she invites all these people and we are a massive group. Brothers, sisters, cousins and more – we come over, she cooks, and cleans. She is the domestic goddess as well as a corporate goddess. Nowadays, this is really hard for her. We’re going home for Thanksgiving and I don't know why she is going to do this, but she wants to do all the things that she has always wanted to do. She loves hosting our family and dinners. I love her because she refuses to let this disease get the best of her but it does steer the decisions that she has to make leading up to doing so. For me, I look inside and figure out what I can do to support her to make things easier. 

One of the findings in the survey was that more than 80% of the people that live with MS were asked how they could be helped and what service could be offered to them, the top takeaway was that they wanted someone to help them with groceries, in the kitchen, household chores, etc. I think a lot of us, me included, underestimate the impact that this can make. You sit back and say, “really you just want me to put a box of cereal away for you?” But for someone who is dealing with fatigue and is exhausted – it helps. She has told me that mixing a bowl of dressing for more than a few minutes tires her out depending on the day. Her muscles don’t do what they used to do and they don’t act the way they used to. 

There was a time when she visited me in LA this summer. She was teaching me how to make her baked bean recipe and she went to check on it in the oven and accidently flipped the pan and the beans went everywhere.  It was sad because she was frustrated in that moment and she doesn’t want to show signs to the disease and we had had amazing days together with her husband (my uncle) and everything was fine and things were great. It felt great as you know she had the disease, but you felt like not really and then it comes out and reminds you. It lets you know that it could happen at anytime and you have to deal with it.

Some of the things that I want to encourage other people to do is to be patient and understand what your loved one is going through and the symptoms. This way, when it happens you know what they are going through and you can be considerate. When the beans happened, there was a moment when I thought about the beans, but then I had to remember this is what my aunt is going through because we’re not at a point where there are daily constant reminders. I caught myself and knew it was beyond her control and so I came from a place of love and patience and I let her know that I would clean it up and we’ll buy more beans, take a seat etc – it let’s her feel more comfortable and less of an awkward situation. I don’t want her to feel that she is a burden and it helps. She says that she feels like it is her own burden to bear as she doesn’t want people to pity her. But I have found that offering my help and services in specific ways – she takes me up on those offers. 

During the holidays I will be offering to put the dishes away, to run out to Kroger or the grocery story to get something that she has forgotten. I will say, "Aunt Mel, take  a rest." I was talking with one of our nurses yesterday and she was saying that the big things to keep in mind that asking “what do you need” is not enough as it’s so open ended. For fiercely independent people they don’t want to give you a laundry list. But when they are specific asks it helps and gives them the time. Plus we take this for granted. 

The survey, after diving in, lets me see how much the findings there are mirroring my aunt’s experience as well as my own. With the holidays here, this encourages support partners and caregivers to be more proactive during this time as well as all year around. 

AM: What is your partnership like in terms of your role in this initiative?

ZH: For me the partnership is about this moment, this time and getting people to understand the results of the MS Mindset survey. Don’t just end there with the info, but this survey is telling you what people with MS need and let’s do something about it. It's about sitting down and encouraging support partners/cargivers to what they can. Many times, you forget about the other party. There is a person who is there dealing with MS and so of course you’re not thinking about the support person; however, they are there and they need to be educated. People should go to your local support groups, advocacy groups and learn more via National MS Society.

AM: Obviously, I was aware of MS, but not the depth of it until a few months ago, when I styled one of my clients who is an entertainer and although she performs, is on stage etc – behind the scenes there are a lot of struggles. It’s amazing that she is able to stay on tour, hit the road, dance etc with the unpredictable nature of this disease!

ZH: When I sat down with Tamia (R&B Singer) who is very public about her disease, so many people are dealing with this and we are all so close by just a few degrees to someone who is. It’s ok to know that you don’t have everything figured out as you can’t really prepare for it as things get dumped in your lap. But to know there are resources is the most important thing. There is education to be had across the board from those with MS and those who support or are the caregivers to someone who is. 

AM: What was your journey to get to E!?

ZH: Getting to E! was a long winding road. I started out winning a competition to be the face of a local TV station in Indiana. I was there for a year and MC’ing for the Pacers and then that opened the door to another job in Ohio and I was hosting another show which allowed me to anchor the evening news down in Texas and that got me to NY to host a show for Fuse (music countdown show), which led to MTV and then E! It was all over the map. The last year and 3 months at E! have been like the best. They chal-lenge me in really good ways. My skillset makes sense for what they need and what they want. Everyday is different. We just launched a new daytime show, E! News Live recently. Exciting times.

AM: How do you prepare for your celeb interviews?

ZH: It’s really about – I mean for us being that we’re E! and they’re celebs, so we want the scoop. I tend to know a lot about their personal lives and what is going on. Because I come from a creative background I actually really appreciate the art in what they are creating and what they are there to talk about. I feel that most celebs, musicians, etc appreciate and recognize those that appreciate and recognize that. So they are more likely to open up about the extra stuff if they believe that you care about the stuff that you should be caring about, and I do. So my preparation is understanding what the film is about, why they took on a certain project – have they had past ones that led them to this point and what it took for them to get into a certain character. Reading any article or interview surrounding that project before I talk to them. Because the last thing that they want to do it to regurgitate the same thing that they have said about 73 times during that junket. They want to be challenged and sparked and they get excited. They’re working but they prefer to enjoy it and it makes it fun!

AM: And for the Red Carpet?

ZH: Red Carpet is chaos and I just get stressed when I think about it. It’s one of those things that you do as much as you can and then you just throw it out the window – you go with the flow. You have so much talent – Brad Pitt for one second and then you have Angelina Joli and you have her and all these people bottle necked. As you talk to Brad, you  have George Clooney walk by and the publicist is pulling people and you only have a few questions that you can ask as you’re getting wrapped as you start. It's a high pressure situation. So it’s one of those things that it’s just like I know a little bit about a lot – so you go with the flow, you make moments as you can’t really tackle issues there. You just want people to toast champagne with you or to make a joke or slip up and say something silly. Carpets are about moments and they make great content for the internet.

AM: How do you stay balanced during this season?

ZH: For me I need to get more into the fitness side, I'll be honest – I’m lazy and I have my mom’s genes which works for me. I am getting to that point where you feel it - you walk up the stairs and realize that it takes more time than before - just a moment guys. So I go to the gym with my boyfriend every now and then as he is healthy. For me, it’s about mental health honestly and I’m really into and value mindfulness and trying to be present and balanced. I’m reading a book right now – 'Present over Perfect' because especially in my line of work I am open to public scrutiny and waiting for people to judge you, Instagram you etc. You post a photo I’m waiting for comments, likes etc. I go on E! News I’m going to get tweets from people - maybe they liked what I wore, what I said about Rhianna etc and you get caught up with not being in that moment. We do these carpets and awards shows and I have to look back and say wow you were at the Oscars – my pictures tell me what my last year has been. I have started to dedicate time for me. I will carve out 60 minutes to say I’m busy so that I can not be busy and take time for me – mindfulness above all so that I can be happy/peaceful, whether it's taking time to read or whatever it takes to get to my happy place.

AM: What is your personal style versus what you wear on the show which we love?

ZH: Thank you! I would say that personal style is casual chic - I know that that sounds generic! I'm a midwest girl through in through - I'm from Ohio and I like to be super comfortable, you will never see me wearing heels that I don't have to be wearing. Because comfort over everything is key for me. So I'm a jeans and T-shirt girl. I feel the most confident and sexy and in control when I am in a fitted pair of high wasted jeans with a loose v-neck t-shirt and bootie. If you see me in a bootie, then you know that I'm trying. If I'm not on a red carpet, I'm in sneakers at this point.

I would say overall, E! News - Urban Chic with a dash of glam. My style is very much influenced by my years in NY as I was here for about 2.5/3 years. So definitely I appreciate the leathers and dark colors. I appreciate the black on black on black. My stylist is convincing me to put color back into my wardrobe.

For the glam, I'm in LA now - come on it's E!, The Kardashians you have to have a bit of glam. I like to do the full face, the hair, I let my glam come through in this area. The clothes tend to be more timeless, chic and classic. 

For the most part, I'm pretty chill and for the most part I LITERALLY love athleisure and I'm not just saying that because you're here as I don't work out. But I just discovered gym wear and it's a whole new world! I just discovered Fabletics and I love Kate Hudson's line. I tried it for the first time when I met her and I was like, "this jumpsuit is amazing." I can move and I'm so free! So they  sent me more stuff and now I just pretty much live in athletic wear.

AM: We always say that athleisure can be broken down into core, essential and luxe. Core is that which is meant to hit the gym (sport bras, tap shorts, etc), essential items that are a hybrid that can be worn in the gym and out (the capris,  tanks, etc mixed with layers or not) and then luxe which are the jetset components that include your leggings paired with a fun cashmere and a leather jacket which allows you to hit the ground running once you touch down.

ZH: Absolutely - so many ways to style it and again it's so comfortable. At this point in my life, comfort is key girl!

AM: We love your #AlphaBabe movement. We're a huge proponent of it but can you tell our readers about this  and what made you want to do it?

ZH: For me when I first have a vision for #AlphaBabe, I wanted a place where young millennial women could go to support one another and to develop tools where they could navigate the first few years of their career. 

I got where I got to by the grace of God and stumbling into things and figuring it out as it went. Looking back, I felt like it didn't have to be that hard honestly. If there had been just one person to tell me about the right way to make a demo reel, to craft a resume, or the right way to go to my boss' office to ask for a raise - certain things would have been easier. 

For me it is a place where we can celebrate substance and style. You don't have to choose. That's what I'm trying to get across with the message. You can be Alpha and strong and unapologetic as a leader - a boss in your work environment and you can totally be a babe. There is nothing wrong in saying that. You're pretty, you can style yourself up and these two things can co-exist. That's exciting when you find that balance and it doesn't need to be one vs the other which is really hard in a culture of comparison (via social) where people tend to focus on the babe part. At the end of the day the likes, re-tweets - it doesn't really matter. This is a place where you can be both and it's great to be so!

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Zuri Hall

Read More from the Dec Issue

LA BIENVENIDA A GUATEMALA

Read more from the Dec Issue

WELLNESS MIND BODY SOUL TRENDS 2017

The Wellness space continues to change with innovations, its players, and new findings. With so many offerings out there, you want to enjoy what you've been using and doing but it's also nice to check out what is the upcoming trend. We took some time to talk with mindbodygreen's Founder and CEO Jason Wachob about how he came into the space, his company and their Annual Wellness Trend Report 2017 (as seen recently on Dr. Oz). Following this interview, we talked with some of the people and brands that he highlighted to share with you as we head into 2017 with this new knowledge.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Can you tell us about your background and what led you to creating MindBodyGreen?

JASON WACHOB: I am 42, I played basketball at Columbia a long time ago and became an equities trader. This was the 90’s, there were no startups. I always joke that people did one of these three things when you graduated, if you had really good grades and wanted to help people, you became a doctor or you went to law school and if you were looking to increase your wealth, you went to Wall Street – which is what I did. I quickly found that money did not buy happiness as 9/11 happened – I was a block away when it happened. I left and became an entrepreneur. I worked at a few startups that didn’t work and I found myself flying 150K miles domestically in one year. 

An old basketball injury compounded with stress (I’m 6’7” in a coach seat)  - I had 2 discs pressing on my sciatic nerve – my right leg was like a lightening rod with excruciating pain. I went to the doctor and he said that I needed back surgery and I got a second opinion and he said the same thing. Then as an afterthought he said, “maybe yoga could help.” I started doing yoga and saw things differently by changing my sleep, environment, and nutrition. It was a big part of it and I was completely healed and never had to do surgery. I was like “holy cow” there are so many people that have things wrong  and are looking to heal, lose weight, and change. There are so many ways to do this from spiritual, nutritionally, and physically – it’s all connected. So I decided to launch the site, MindBodyGreen – one word in ’09.

AM: What can readers who are first time visitors expect to get when they come to your site?

JW: I think that they will find something good for them wherever they are at in their life. I talk about those pillars: mental, physical, spiritual, emotional and environmental. Wherever you are, no matter your age, fit, whatever is going on – you will find something that resonates and inspires you to live your best life and to provide you with the content and inspiration to do so.

AM: What led you to creating the Wellness Trend Report? How many years has this been out, how do you go about finding the data and ultimately choosing what is on this list?

JW: I think we have been doing it for 5 or 6 years! It just started to become apparent that we would see things before they happened and it is a blend of art and science – looking at the data of what is trending and what people are reading combined with all the entrepreneurs that come through our office. We sometimes get the first look 6 months to a year before they come out and we have 10M readers and 5K contributors that are tapped into what is going on. This tells us what’s going to happen before it happens. 

AM: Of the items that you were able to uncover, what are some of the standout trends for 2017 that stuck out to you? 

JW: I think on one hand, it’s sort of interesting that sobriety is a trend and that the other one is alcohol is as well.

AM: We were struck by that too!

JW: It’s super interesting, on one hand people are not drinking and on the other hand there is this liquor which a lot of people in terms of health benefits think it’s bad. But this plant based liquor which is gluten free and has a spiritual element to it – which allows it to trend the other way. To me, it’s very interesting

AM: I liked in reading your report, that you included Daybreaker, which I have attended a few this year as I am also the Fashion Editor of DJ Mag. The first time that I went, I didn’t know what it was and couldn’t believe that attendees get up to attend a 7am party which includes dancing, yoga, etc and there is no alcohol there – it’s a wellness party – this is definitely in the trend for sobriety.

JW: Yup! It speaks to this idea that there isn’t a one size fits all for people. For some people sobriety works and for others it doesn’t.

AM: Do you feel that these trends are more apt to be seen in cities like here in NYC, LA, and Miami or that they do roll out to other cities that aren’t on the coasts?

JW: I think it tends to start on the coast, but what I have seen lately is that things are picking up in the middle of the country pretty fast. Like Atlanta is one of our fastest growing cities in terms of our audience. So I think that things start here but because wellness is seeping into the mainstream in a really big way – we talk about this in trend 11, you have some pretty big brands like Target, IHG (hotel group), and Whole Foods. The fact that you have some pretty big brands making this accessible in terms of price point, they are changing the landscape where 15 years ago this would have been exclusive to LA, San Francisco, Boulder, NYC. Things that start here but they spread pretty fast.

AM: What are the trends that you felt would be on this list but didn’t make it or do you feel that everything did make it?

JW: I think that everything we thought would be on here did make it on here. We look at a lot of stuff and we felt really good about everything that was on here.

AM: Who are some of your favorite contributors on your site in general and how do you go about selecting them?

JW: You know, I think it’s like picking your favorite child, we have so many – we have feature contributors. Anyone can be a contributor. If you’re a celebrity, a doctor or a wellness enthusiast – it’s very much so a democracy. It comes down to whether you’re sharing something that’s quality content. We don’t publish everything that we receive and we turn down way more then what we publish. To me, I don’t necessarily have any favorites as I love a number of our celebrities, doctors and enthusiasts. We love all of them but they all have unique perspectives which are equally important.

AM: What trends that are on the list are you looking to adopt into your routine now?

JW: Good question! Well, the women only spaces would not be for me as they wouldn’t allow me in. The personalized nutrition one is something that I want to try out for sure. That is interesting to me and purports my belief that there is no one size fits all aspect to wellness or to life in general. To have this amazing new science to validate that is something that I am going to test this year. Nutrition is very exciting and it really shows the future of this movement that merges east and west as there is real science saying this is why you need to eat Brussel Sprouts or on the flipside that it could be terrible for you.

AM: This is also true. In the last year alone, we have learned that there are a number of workouts, and foods that you thought were good for you and you find out that they’re not. There are so many interesting trends that are highlighted for 2017 that MBG has pointed out which you can see in the full Annual Wellness Trends Report. 

We went through the Annual Wellness Trend Report and reached out to a few movers in these categories to find out more about what they are doing and why we should be aware of it. 

MINDBODYGREEN ANNUAL WELLNESS TREND REPORT 2017

1. Personalized Nutrition
2. The Age of Fashion Minimalism
3. The Sobriety Movement
4. Wellness Is More Than Yoga & Meditation: It's A Sensory Experience
5. Ugly Greens Take The Spotlight As Restaurateurs & Brands Take Steps To Fight Food Waste
6. Mezcal Moves To The Top Of The Cocktail Menu
7. Communal Gathering And Women-Only Social Spaces Are The New Wave In Wellness
8. See Ya, Acai: Medicinal Mushrooms Are The New Superfood Staple
9. Infrared Saunas Are The Trendy New Spa Treatment
10. Affordable, Accessible Wellness Is Starting To Go Mainstream
11. The Ketogenic Diet Becomes The Diet Everyone's Talking About

AM: mbg listed Mezcal in its Annual Wellness Trend Report as a cocktail that is moving to the top of the cocktail menu. Tell us how you decided to embark on this particular business and what is your background in this space which ultimately created GEM&BOLT?

GEM&BOLT: We (Elliott and Adrina, co-founders) are both artists that grew up together in a bohemian outpost in the mountains of Virginia. For many years, we collaborated together as artists which eventually took form as a speakeasy in the Bay Area, which we called GEM&BOLT. We served mezcal infused with various superherbs which people loved! When we started serving mezcal with Damiana, we were amazed by the dynamic of the two together. It had perfect synergy. Our growing interest in Mezcal led us to Oaxaca to explore the origin of Mezcal and it's surrounding culture. Everything about Oaxaca stole our hearts immediately. Within two months, we closed down our California project and re-located the GEM&BOLT speakeasy to Oaxaca where we began hosting similar music and arts events. Little by little, we immersed ourselves in the world of mezcal. One day we chanced upon the origin myth of mezcal, which speaks of a lightning bolt striking the heart (gem) of the agave, roasting & fermenting it's sugars into what became known as mezcal. The serendipity prompted us to embark on a brand of our own. The whole process and growth has been very organic.

AM: How is Gem & Bolt differentiated from other alcohol offerings in the beverage space? 

GB: GEM&BOLT mezcal is distilled with Damiana, a lovely herb that brings a subtle botanical element to the mezcal. Damiana is mythically believed to elevate and enhance... People call it a heart-opener. 

AM: What are the benefits of Mezcal and why did you focus on this as opposed to tequila? 

GB: There was never a question in my mind between mezcal and tequila as we walked down this path. Mezcal called us for it's spiritedness, it's honesty as a product. It's hand-made, with patience, integrity and intention. From the first sip to waking up the next day, you feel the cleanness of mezcal in every respect.

AM: Why is Mezcal slated to trend for 2017 in the area of wellness? 

GB: By nature, as an artesanal product, mezcal is very clean and free of additives. In the same way people seek clean, high-quality food, there's a growing interest in high-quality small-batch craft spirits. For me, it goes hand-in-hand with the slow-food, farm-to-table movement. People want to know where their products come from and the story behind them.

AM: Womens-only spaces are a trend highlighted in the Annual Wellness Report. Can you tell us about your backgrounds and what led you to entering this space?

MELISSA WONG: When Sandra and I met, we were introduced because we both had our own organizations for women. She ran GIRL PARTY events, focusing on a range of topics like body + sex positivity, entrepreneurship, skill building workshops and I ran Up Speak, a peer mentorship groups for women. We met at the beginning of this year and after learning that we both believed in the power of in person gatherings, we decided to embark on a one month pop up. Eventually that month snowballed into a year-long lease after a space presented itself and we realized we wanted to grow a community beyond a months time. We each have a background in hospitality and events and had similar office based experience in tech and advertising, so we were easily able to speak the same language and get on the same page for this project. 

AM: What is New Women Space?

MW: New Women Space is a project cultivation and community event space, placing the ambitions of women of all experiences at its center. We believe that through conscious event design and warm hospitality that we can help create a supportive space for women to connect with each other and grow their projects. We operate from the standpoint that women have not had equal access to resources like space, mentorship, and encouragement. We aim to help create a positive environment for women to realize all they are capable of.

AM: What are the benefits of being a member of NWS and why would one be in this space as opposed to other options of this nature? 

MW: We don't currently offer membership at New Women Space. We wanted our programming to be accessible and inviting and didn't want to create any sort of in-group feeling at the space. We hope that women would be attracted to New Women Space based on our diverse programming, our approachability, attention to intersectionality, and opportunities to interact with other women in an intimate setting that feels more like a home away from home where you can instantly get comfortable and feel at ease. 

AM: What community and interests does NWS serve and will you expand?

MW: We serve women who wish to learn and connect with other women, who believe that through collective conversation and action that we can create a more welcoming and empowering reality. We offer programming that will nourish your head, heart and spirit - from professional development to wellness classes, accountability programs that help women make progress in their work to carefree nights like our all women's comedy night. 

We don't have any plans for expanding to an additional space just yet. We want to ensure that we grow with intention and thought and tend to the space and community we are seeing evolve everyday.

AM: What requirements are involved to be a member at NWS and what amenities and services do you provide?

MW: We don't have any requirements to host an event at New Women Space. We entertain all kinds of ideas and ensure that each woman who submits an idea for a workshop or event receives support and attention to see how best we can accommodate them in the space. 

Our ground floor is bright and open and steadily growing a plant collection. Our basement floor is cozy and intimate, ideal for hosting wellness classes or performance based events. We have seen time and time again how the energy and ideas of the women that come through our doors fill up the space and make it come alive without the need for any fancy amenities.  

AM: Why is this a community slated to trend for 2017? 

MW: We didn't open New Women Space because we foresaw a trend or wanted to jump on any bandwagon. Yet, since we opened a few months ago we've already been included in several articles that address a growing number of spaces dedicated to women. It is clear that there are other women in the NYC area and across the country who have made supporting women their mission. 

We heard from many women after the election results that they were so grateful that we existed. I think it's an important time for women to feel that someone is looking out for them, carving out safe space for them, and trying to create opportunities for them. We're honored to be a part of any movement that aims to do just that.

AM: We're always looking to up our game when it comes to our beauty treatments and are intrigued about your backgrounds and how you came to embark on this particular spa treatment which is in this year's Annual Wellness Trend Report in MBG?

HIGHERDOSE: Lauren and Katie met almost two years ago through a mutual friend.  Lauren had just left a startup called Aloha and was inspired to bring infrared to health/fitness based on what she learned from doctors/health experts while working there. Part of her job was to seek out health trends, but no product on the market made her feel the way the infrared sauna did. Once she researched the benefits of infrared for an article she was writing. She knew it was going to be the next big thing in the space.

Katie had recently left an executive role at Tough Mudder and was consulting for a detox center.  Lauren told Katie her idea, so Katie tried the infrared sauna, and was immediately "hooked" and gung-ho to launch the company with Lauren. Their backgrounds are very complimentary (Lauren as a nutritionist/health coach; Katie as a financier/entrepreneur), so they make a great team.  

The girls started off by installing infrared heating systems in yoga studios (which was Lauren's original vision).  Along the way, they were convinced New York needed a spa dedicated to infrared saunas since 1) they're in love with the product, 2) New Yorkers are so stressed and need to chill, and 3) because these types of places are doing well on the West Coast.  

AM: What is and the purpose behind HigherDOSE?

HD: HigherDOSE is a lifestyle brand that aims to change the way people think about health & wellness. Instead of focusing on achieving a certain or mile time, we focus on ways to get high naturally (especially through infrared and other next level therapies).  In fact, DOSE stands for Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin, and Endorphins, which are your four main happy chemicals.  We promote a lifestyle centered around healthy ways to up your DOSE.  We believe this captures the zeitgeist of our generation, as millennials are investing more in their own personal happiness vs. short lived highs of the past....

AM: What are the benefits of this treatment as opposed to a traditional sauna?

HD: Infrared heat is very gentle. The experience is similar to lying in the sun on a warm day and feeling the heat radiate to the core of your body. Unlike traditional (hot rock or steam) saunas--which operate at well in excess of 200°F--infrared heat has the benefit of being effective at a more comfortable operating temperature of 100°-150°F.

Traditional saunas heat the air vs. the body directly which can make the experience unbearably hot and difficult to breathe. Because infrared heat penetrates human tissue vs. simply heating the surface of the skin, infrared saunas are seven times more effective than traditional saunas at detoxifying the body. By raising the body's core temperature, infrared saunas can produce a sweat composed of 20% toxins vs. only 3% toxins with a traditional sauna.

AM: Do the four colors of lights provide specific benefits to those who use this service?

HD: There are actually many colours in our chromotherapy and each colour works on mood, chakara's and different alignments within the body. LED light's are super powerful and are used to grow healthy cells in plants and does the same for humans.

In a nutshell - Red is energizing, Blue is calming, Yellow is awakening, Orange is galvanizing, Green is healing and promotes creativity and Violet promotes spirituality. 

AM: What role does music play in this treatment?

HD: We love music!  Who doesn't really?  The reason is listening to music, and even the anticipation of listening to music, releases dopamine in your brain (the pleasure/reward happy chemical which is also released through food and sex).  Our saunas are equipped with soundsystems so clients can play their favorite music and get the dopamine flowing (which is what our brand is all about).  We also make sure to play cool, vibe-y, burning man style DJ sets in our lounge to get you feeling good before and after the treatment.  

AM: Why is this considered a natural high?

HD: Because it's designed to up your DOSE!  You release DOSE in every session, for example - Music and knowing you're doing something good for yourself releases Dopamine, enjoying the sauna with a friend, lover, or colleague releases Oxytocin.... even if you go alone and take the time to appreciate your body (or even admire your sauna selfies), this also releases Oxytocin. Infrared itself releases Serotonin and downs cortisol, because infrared also increases your heart rate to the space of a light jog, Endorphins are released.

So it's pretty much the perfect natural high, which explains why the hashtag #addictedtoDOSE is so popular with our clients. 

AM: Why is this a service that is slated to trend for 2017? 

HD: We feel our offering spans many major trends, ncluding: reinventing the sauna/spa experience; rise of meditation and focus on mental health; athletes focus on recovery; Millennial's are looking for experience instead of product; and people want to feel good which equals looking good!

AM: What is your background and how did this lead you to creating DayTwo?

LIHI SEGAL: I have an extensive background in business positions at various start up companies. Over the years, I’ve been the CFO and COO of companies specializing in communications, semiconductors, and healthcare.

After I first became involved in healthcare (at a company called dbMotion, which specialized in information exchange and analytics, and was later sold to Allscripts), I knew there was no going back and it became difficult to consider taking a position in a company that isn’t involved in this area. Working in healthcare ignited a feeling of purpose in me that I haven’t felt in previous positions - we were touching people’s health, helping prevent disease, and improving their lives.

I later joined up with Yuval Ofek (former CEO of dbMotion) and Marius Nacht (founder of cybersecurity firm Checkpoint, among many other ventures) to found DayTwo. This came about after we were all fascinated by new gut microbiome research conducted at Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science and its potential to improve people’s health and prevent disease. With our background in various tech companies, we hold a strong belief that using big data is the new way of developing effective healthcare solutions, and this ties in nicely with the Weizmann Institute research.

AM: What is DayTwo?

LS: DayTwo is the world's first provider of health improvement and disease prevention solutions based on Gut Microbiome research. Its first product, based on groundbreaking research led by Prof. Eran Segal and Dr. Eran Elinav from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, and exclusively licensed to DayTwo, is a personalized nutrition platform. It aims to normalize blood sugar levels and reduce risk for metabolic diseases like obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, leveraging the world's largest and most detailed microbiome database. DayTwo's product pipeline includes additional microbiome-based diagnostic and therapeutic solutions.

AM: What is the gut microbiome?

LS: The gut microbiome is the collection of all microbes that exist in each person’s digestive tract and help us digest food. In our gut alone we have around 100 trillion microbes, similar to the number of cells that we have in our entire body! Each person’s microbiome is unique to, and influences the way, our body reacts to different foods. Unlike human genetics, we can change and manipulate our microbiome over time.

Microbiome research revealed that gut microbiome also affects our energy levels and our immune system. Recent research even showed that dieting may affect the microbiome in such a way that might lead to rapid weight gain once normal eating habits resume.

Since our gut microbiome is tied to so many different aspects of our health and well-being, it is extremely important to base our nutrition on our own unique microbiome composition.

AM: What are the benefits of using this and how does it enhance your lifestyle?

LS: People have been struggling to come up with a definitive answer to the question “what is the best diet for humans?” For many years, dietary trends have come and gone, and still, there is no clear answer.

The groundbreaking scientific research at the core of DayTwo’s personalized nutrition algorithm shows that we have been asking the wrong question. The right question is “what is the best diet for ME?”.

By basing our personalized nutrition recommendations on individual gut microbiome, as well as an extensive review of each customer's lifestyle and health, we are able to provide a plan that aims to normalize blood sugar levels.

DayTwo is not a diet, but a lifestyle and

wellness product. Maintaining healthy and normalized blood sugar levels can lead to better weight management, higher and more consistent energy levels, and, most importantly, can help reduce the risk of symptoms and diseases related to high blood sugar, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and more.

We encourage keeping a healthy and active lifestyle to go along with clean and balanced eating, based on our personalized nutrition recommendations.

AM: Why is this a service that is slated to trend for 2017 as you were included in this year's Wellness Trend Report? 

LS: With genome-based personalized medicine being a hot topic of conversation, and new revelations on how our microbiome affects multiple aspects of our well-being published often, our product is at the forefront of these health trends.

Personalized nutrition that is specifically tailored to individual gut microbiome and meant to help balance blood sugar levels also addresses some of the most worrying health concerns of the past few decades, namely the rise of obesity to epidemic levels, and the growing number of individuals classified as either diabetic or prediabetic.

It is our strong belief that the path to a better, healthier life starts with better nutrition, and we are certain that in 2017 and beyond, more and more people will look to a tailored solution to improve their overall wellness.

 PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | IMG 1 UnSplash | IMG 2 MindBodyGreen | IMG 3 Dr. Oz | IMG 4 Gem & Bolt Mezcal | IMG 5 New Women Space | IMG 6 + 7 HigherDose | IMG 8 Day 2 |

Read more from the Dec Issue.

NEW YEAR, N3W YOU

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I think watching my son grow up is a beautiful thing, watching him develop. Internationally, I was just in Finland with a partnership I'm working on there. Being approached by Care Bears was very dreamy for me.

I’m working on a podcast so I hope to have that checked off. Then also just expanding in licensing into a few more countries. 

Care Bears is in the first quarter of 2017 and in the second in a big way. My Colette partnership in Paris is another major buzz as I brought Care Bears In for that. 

STACY IGEL | FOUNDER, CREATIVE DIRECTOR & DESIGNER | BOY MEETS GIRL | Photography Courtesy Stacy Igel

I'm looking forward to spending more time chanting and reflecting, to get really grounded and clear-minded for 2017.

I'm really excited to offer one Latino chef from New Orleans a scholarship to The International Culinary Center in New York. It can be difficult to work your way up the ladder from dishwasher or line cook to executive chef. There aren’t many opportunities for aspiring chefs, especially from the Latin community, to get to that next level in my opinion. The scholarship, which is part of the John Besh Foundation and its Chefs Move program, is necessary to overcome financial barriers. As part of the scholarship, I'll mentor the winner and take him/her with me to Mexico. I hope to eventually give out multiple scholarships in one year.

AARÓN SÁNCHEZ| CHEF/OWNER JOHNNY SANCHEZ + TV PERSONALITY ON FOOD NETWORK | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY AARON Sanchez

One of the things that made this year so special is how I realized the growth of my brand and the ability to clearly see how far I’ve made it in my career. A huge moment for me was when E! reached out for me to be on Revenge Body By Khloe Kardashian. Being on television training people and helping them was something I has spoken into existence around November 2015. Seeing the lives I've changed helped me to be more confident and helps me to push forward. This was a major moment of affirmation and understanding for me how powerful your words are, the lives I’ve changed, it's helped me be more confident. Traveling to Spain for two weeks with my first NBA client was also special this year. It was there we really sealed our bond. I never thought I’d be working with an NBA player, yet alone traveling the world. The trip allowed me to reflect and put my journey into perspective. 

I can double down on my discipline. I believe that in everything you do there must be discipline. when we fall short on our discipline, we make make mistakes and mistakes mess up our game plan. In order to stay focused on my goals, discipline is key and it’s something I have to truly work at.  

Timing! Using time wisely can can help achieve all my goals this coming year. We always like to say we don’t have enough time, but that’s  impossible. We have 24 hours a day to take care of everything we need to take care of. We have to have the discipline to make time to do the things we have to get done.

I'm super proud to announce I just launched my new website CoreyCalliet.com, where I'll be uploading videos, workout plans and showing a different side of me with my blog. My blog will discuss how to stay motivated, eat right and even give a little relationship advice! I’m also working on my athleisure line and preparing for more television appearances. The goals for 2017 are to continue transforming more bodies and building my brand.

COREY CALLIET | CELEBRITY FITNESS TRAINER + TRAINER ON E!'s REVENGE BODY WITH KHLOE KARDASHIAN | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY COREY CALLIET

It was a great year for women! Team USA's women won the most medals this year in Rio, seeing Serena Williams come out with such a strong voice this year and even Hillary Clinton's run for president.

I am really excited to share more about myself! A lot of times, when the Olympics are over, people wonder what  we do, how we train, and our recovery from injuries. KristiCastlin.com will do this so that they get to know more about me, “Hollywood,” which is my personal style and my road to the Olympics for 2020 in Tokyo.

I'm starting to work with brands in terms of my sponsors/endorsements in 2017! 

KRISTI CASTLIN | USA 2016 OLYMPIAN 100M BRONZE HURDLER | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY KRISTI CASTLIN

CRAIG: No doubt the biggest blessing and game-changer for 2016 was Sybil Ann Melvin who burst onto the scene November 5th. She and our 2 1/2 year son fill our days (sometimes long) and nights (sometimes short) with laughs. I didn't believe the countless people who warned us about how fast it goes, but they were right. It's flying by. We used to cuddle up at night and watch shows. Now one of our favorite hobbies has become watching the lightbulb in our son's head go off almost daily now as he gets something for the first time or creates a clever new way to challenge us. Lindsay and I spent a fair amount of time reflecting on our dating days in Washington, DC and marvel at how that turned into this. 

LINDSAY: Overall, I'd say the blessing of good friendship is a big one for me. The gift of our new daugher has given me more time to focus on and get to know the amazing women I normally don't have time to hang with much because of how busy my work schedule is. It's been moments like listening to a girlfriend's story at a coffee shop or walk at the beach that has meant a lot.

A place that started off our year on a great note... A magical trip to Sedona, Arizona. We went there last Feb. to Enchantment resort. I think about it all the time. Such wonderful amenities in the most serene and relaxing setting.

CRAIG: This time last year, I resolved to be more present so I could enjoy some of my special moments more. I did it.... for about three weeks. I'm recommitting to putting down my phone for large swaths of time, occasionally cutting myself off from the digital world, and rediscovering the great art of conversation. I'm going to text less. There are also the annual pledges to work out more and eat and drink less. Thinking there's a greater chance for a digital detox. We'll see. 

LINDSAY: My goal for 2017 is to allow creativity to play a more dominant role in my life and my career. This is the year I'm going to create something. It may be as random as the perfect eyemask to promote sleep (something we could all use more of) or as consuming as a new show but damnit, it's gonna happen. 

Getting back to writing more and living a less "cluttered" lifestyle is certainly a resolution that will make myself and my husband happy :)

I'm going to spend more time living in the moment and not worrying about what is or isn't ahead and relishing in my kids discoveries and happiness is key. I am committing to worry less and to get away with my husband to a place we've never been.

CRAIG: As for upcoming awesomeness, look for me in places outside the news space. Perhaps some sort of fantastic project or venture with my favorite collaborator...my wife. We're doing well at making babies. Maybe it's time to see what other compelling content we can create.

LINDSAY: Stay tuned...exciting things ahead this year, but besides things I'm looking forward to career-wise, I'm excited about stepping outside of my comfort zone working on some passion projects that will challenge my creativity and also spending more time doing work to helping others. I'm looking forward to cohosting the leukemia lymphoma ball in Washington DC with my husband this spring and working to raise money for cancer research impacting both adults like my Dad as well as kids battling pediatric cancer.

HUSBAND AND WIFE POWER COUPLE |

CRAIG MELVIN | MSNBC NEWS ANCHOR + CO-HOST TODAY WEEKEND

LINDSAY CZARNIAK | ANCHOR ESPN SPORTSCENTER | PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY CRAIG MELVIN + LINDSAY CZARNIAK

Wrapping another very successful season on “The Biggest Loser” was an amazing way to start my year! Of course it felt good to have my contestants win both the at home and championship prizes, but I was so proud of all the contestants. Their courage continues to inspire me and others to consider what can happen when you believe in yourself. Another big moment for me this year was being named the face of women's fitness for Reebok! As a global ambassador for the brand, it's my responsibility to help more and more people take those first steps of fitness, so that's exactly what I'm going to do. On a personal level, this year was particularly special for me because I had the privilege of officiating two of my best friend’s weddings. Such incredible and proud moments for me. And to top off an amazing year, I adopted my rescue dog Hank!

In the midst of this beautifully, crazy year I have lost my way when it comes to taking care of myself. It's ironic to say as I'm the one that teaches this to people, but this is my reality so I intend to embrace it. I freely and passionately love to give to others, but it is my resolution to work on balancing that output with more input... more time and joy for myself. 

My first book, DIET RIGHT FOR YOUR PERSONALITY TYPE, will be on shelves February 7th! I just had to write this book... finally an eating guide that's customized for the reader, honoring their strengths and personality. This book will prove what an asset they are in their lives and help them lose weight in a healthy sustainable way. As of the New Year, I will also be a featured columnist each month for Shape Magazine and have joined their board of directors. In addition, I have been brought on to be the North American spokesperson for California Almonds.
 
I believe we must all be accountable for our own greatness. As I teach others to do it, I will walk the walk and do it for me as well. Promise! 

JEN WIDERSTROM | CELEB TRAINER +  COACH ON NBC'S BIGGEST LOSER | PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS JEN WIDERSTROM

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE 2016

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE: FOR THE COMMUTE | ARAMLEE Hana Convertible Bag  | MONDAINE Helvetica No 1 Bleu Marine Light (26mm) | TECH21 Evo Check | SPORTO Dena Cold Weather Duck Boots  | WAFF Medium Notebook with Blank & Letter Cubes |

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE: CHASING THE SUN | MICHAEL KORS Allie Mixed Media Sneaker Sierra | TANZEE The Original Fake Tan Sheet Protector | EVEN EARPHONES Earbuds |

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE: FOR YOUR STOCKING | THE BODY SHOP Olive Body Scrub | BEEKMAN 1802  100% All Natural Goat Milk Lip Balms | BLISS Zest Wishes | EOS Lip Balm Sphere | PATCHOLOGY Travel Size FlashPatch Eye Gels | COMPARTES x J CREW Chocolates |

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE: #ATHSPO | L*SPACE BY MONICA WISE Sierra Top + Runaway Swim Capri Pant | ADIDAS Stan Smith | HAVAIANAS Mini Bags Black | PRESSED JUICERY Spiced Almond | TRIGGER POINT THERAPY Grid Foam Roller | DECLÉOR Hand Cream |

See more from the Dec Issue!

DEC ISSUE IS LIVE

The Dec issue is live - our last issue of the year! It's so exciting to have this issue which is filled with a number of great interviews from Boy Meets Girl - Stacy Igel, NEW YEAR, N3W YOU from celebrity trainers, fashion designers, Olympians and even wellness trends. Check it out below!

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT | Paul Farkas

Top Beverage Flavor Trends For 2017 | Turmeric, Coconut and Spice

As we close one year, we look towards the next for trends that we can expect to see in our lifestyle. Every category has something worth noting and Flavorman, a known beverage architect firm has generated their forecast for this year. Last year, Ginger, Orange and Lime were top flavors. The flavor forecast for 2017 includes healthy and clean spices that are old favorites and exotic. Turmeric, a herb and kitchen staple known for both its distinctive flavor that is mildly aromatic with a sense of orange and ginger and health benefits is the top trending flavor for 2017.

Known as the "new" ginger, Turmeric has a sharp taste with powerful benefits that include reducing cholesterol to controlling diabetes. In addition, it has antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. You can find this in teas and smoothies as it fights colds, the flu and is great for a cleanse.

Coconut continues to be on trend as it is a tropical flavor and is the "tree of life". It's known for its subtle sweetness, and hints of butterscotch and caramel. It is known as a nutritious source of meat, juice, milk and oil. Its benefits are vast but include treating asthma, kidney stones and tumors.  

Spices in general have been a mainstay in the flavor scene and are popping up in non-traditional ways including, distillers using it within their line extensions of classic spirits. You'll find spicy rum, bourbon and whiskey to find its way to your stores. 

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Flavorman

DJ DREZ | JOURNEY OF SOUNDS

Whether he's on the stage or in the studio - DJ, producer, musical director and sound ambassador DJ Drez is about the journey into sound. By cutting and composing original tracks his sounds assist the body's movements when dancing or doing yoga asana.

He integrates elements of hiphop, world music, soul, funk, jazz, and reggae into his signature sound. He has worked with a number of top artists, including KRS 1, Black Eyed Peas and Macy Gray, as well as brands that include Adidas, X Games, and ABC to name a few. We talked with Drez to find out more about his style, his recent solo work and Alpine Swift.

ATHLEISURE MAG: How is a Yoga DJ different then other DJs that we're familiar with?  

DJ DREZ: I actually don’t consider myself a “yoga DJ.” In that I dj all kinds of music in many different kinds of venues which include everything from a hip hop club and world music festivals to yoga studios and yoga festivals.  I do play a huge range of world music that is appropriate for a practice.  I think the fact that I practice yoga and have many related spiritual practices adds to my ability to connect the students and teacher in any given environment.   If anything, that's what makes me a very good “yoga DJ.”  

AM: What music do you focus on for yoga?

DJ DREZ: I play a lot of instrumental world music. I also produce specifically for the practice and again I draw upon my own experiences on the mat. Practicing yoga has helped me tremendously in how I am able to support students and teachers sonically. It is actually a careful play of energy between us all. I never have a set play list and instead let the music flow organically with what is actually happening in the room.

AM: What styles of music do you play/produce?

DJ DREZ: I come from a hip hop, soul, jazz and world background. So this always heavily influences anything I play and produce. You can hear my roots in the music I play. Even if it has elements of Africa or India you can feel the hip hop and soul, Vice Versa.

AM: 'Alpine Swift' recently dropped. What was its inspiration?

DJ DREZ: My literal travels, my mind travels, my family and my art. I realized how often I am on a plane, train or in a car.  Starring out of a window. Meditating or imagining.  Always in flight to create and do what I love, which is make and share music. My art. Traveling has been a big part of my career and journey, with pockets of touching down here and there. I wondered if there was a bird like that, always in flight and Alpine Swift came to mind. Did you know that bird can fly for hours, days, and months, while sleeping, and eating mid-flight.  Its not by choice for me, but part of the unglamorous road I have to walk in order to do what I love to do and make a living. Now can you imagine what that feels like sometimes? Can you imagine what that might sound like? Alpine Swift.

AM: What other artists have you worked with and do you have a genre you like to work in?  

DJ DREZ: I love working with my wife Marti Nikko. She is an amazing singer and we released an album last year called Dreaming in Sanskrit which is a sweet, boomin' mantra album supported by hip hop and reggae beats.  It's really something special. We have already started working on its follow-up. I also work with many MCs, singers and some super fresh musicians. I really enjoy collaborating with others.

AM: What's your favorite music to listen to?  

DJ DREZ: Thats difficult to answer. That's like asking which child do you love more. I love what I love, especially what is really done well.   I don’t worry about boundaries and categories so much. If it sounds good, is well made and moves me then I can listen to it. I do come across music that sometimes isn't for me, but I can appreciate i because it's well done. No matter what, it has to have soul.

AM: With your busy schedule (solo projects, collaborations) of being a family man, working with a number of artists and sought after organizations, how do you stay grounded and balanced?

DJ DREZ: Yoga, mantra, breath, good nourishing food and great yummy sex!  Those are all super important.  I wouldn’t be able to work it at this level without those practices supporting me.

AM: When you're not working - what do you when you have time for yourself?

DJ DREZ: I try to spend my off-time with my family and in nature. I nurture them and they also nurture me. It's one of the reasons i do what I do. They inspire me to be the best me.  Nature supports these qualities too, helping me to feel the earth under my feet. To be in quiet when I am alone and with them. I even hear my son differently in nature. So we try and take many nature walks and spend a lot of my off time at the beach or hiking up our mountain. Included in this are practices of yoga, mantra, breath, good nourishing food and great yummy sex!

1. Sound Ambassador - Anahata Ether

2. Bombay Dub Orchestra - Dust (Pigment of Your Imagination Mix)

3. Marti Nikko - I Am Love {Plum Mood edit)

4. Sound Ambassador - Anahata

5. Moby - Memory Gospel

6. Bonobo - Terrapin

7. DJ Drez - Light Me Up

8. Trevor Hall - Who Ya Gonna Turn To

9. DJ Drez - Sugar Drop 77

10. Domonic Dean Breaux - Morning

Read more from the Jun Issue.

HARD ROCK HOTEL RIVIERA MAYA MEXICO

As someone who is constantly on the go, you know that it is essential to check in with yourself in the way that suits you best. Earlier this year, our co-founders were invited to the Hard Rock Hotel, Riviera Maya in Mexico. The primary purpose was to enjoy and share the Rock Spa which includes a phenomenal treatment that combines a deep tissue massage, music, and vibrations on the massage table. While there, they were also treated to staying on the adult side of the property know as Heaven as well as enjoying a phenomenal suite. At the time, our Style Director covered this trip for a Time Inc publication as well as another story that she ran in DJ Mag (as she is the Fashion Editor of the top EDM global publication).

It's being shared here today as we all love a #TBT and why not at a place that mixes the need to have a good time through music and partying, great food as well as proper relaxation. While on this trip, a number of pictures were shared through our Style Director's Instagram.

The Hard Rock Hotel is an all-inclusive resort that caters to families, singles, couples etc. It is highly suggested that those who have adults in their group should book to stay on the Heaven side as there are no children on this side, you have your own pools, restaurants, etc and if you would like to venture to the other portion of the property, you can do so! Upon arrival, the guide escorted them to golf cards for the Heaven check in (which was a nice way to see the property and to get a bit of a tour with our guide) - and at the check in area, they were able to see who would be performing while there, special events, book additional amenities that were not included in the all-inclusive package etc.

At this resort, all-inclusive means that you have your wet bar in your room with an assortment of non-alcoholic, beers, and well spirits in your room. In this case, both stayed in a suite known as the Deluxe Platinum Sky Terrace that has access to a balcony (which most rooms seemed to have) as well as an entire second floor terrace (perfect for couples, girlfriend getaway trips) above with a jacuzzi. In addition to being able to being able to have room to spread out, it was optimal for spectacular views outside, people watching and complete disconnection.  This also includes meals at the restaurants (as many times as you want whether you have breakfast, lunch, dinner and have snacks by the pool - or decide after dancing that you have t to hit the buffet). It's always a good idea to check about making reservations as many times you do have to let them know in advance for places that may have greater traffic flows and of course, you can go to the bars and pretty much select whatever you wish to drink without additional charges (unless it is a premium beverage). 

Throughout your stay, there are activities during the day and at night that are apart of your package while also having others that you may have to pay an additional amount for in terms of renting gear for certain water activities. Of course, one of the biggest reasons to go to this property is just to veg. One of the things that sticks out is the fact that a number of the places by the pool had chairs that were also in the water which makes for a very peaceful time - easy access to the water, the ability to be that much closer to the swim up bar and more! At this resort, having music constantly pumped into the rocks, paths and more is truly an immersive experience and it always allows you to feel like you're in a state of zen. If you're not looking to be so close to people, there are a number of cabana areas that are tucked away where you can still have the experience without feeling like you're in a large group while only being an eye glance away from one of the attendants who can ensure that you will still have your beverage or lunch!

This trip's focus was about experiencing the very anticipated Rhythm and Motion Synchronicity at the Rock Spa which is a 50 or 80 minute treatment. When entering the zen f this portion of the facility, you are taken into an ornate lounge where you can enjoy the hydrotherapy pools before any of your selected treatments. These 3 pools are meant to bring your body from its current temperature, to a very cold one, to a hot one and then one that is moderate. The attendant walks you through the experience and upon completing these areas you can rest until you are brought into your room or enjoy infused waters and light bites. It's such a contrast the pulse and constant motion of the property outside of the walls. Here you're able to turn inward in anticipation of the treatment.

Once called upon you are led into the room which has your massage table and a dome that is over your head. The treatment is a Swedish massage which really gets into your muscles. There is a soundtrack that is selected (depending on the theme of the property) that will pay during the session. What makes this so amazing is that as the masseuse works on your body, you are stimulated with the scent of the oils, the rhythmic nature of the massage that is set to the beats of the music as well as the table which enhances the beat through your body and the dome ensures that the music stays overhead. The volume, beats etc are perfectly placed that your mind goes on auto-pilot and you are transformed into a different state!

At the end, when you leave your room, you sit at a table to enjoy a specially made beverage which ties in the experience that just took place. Guests of the treatments can go back into the area to enjoy the pools, lounge area etc. Upon leaving - you can literally float back on your walk through the property to your room, the pool etc. The ability to have the mind, body and soul come together in such a perfect way is a feeling that will leave those (whether you're a veteran of massages or a newbie) ready to book this again!

When staying at Hard Rock Hotel, there is a major draw for those that are a fan of music and of course, when you're in the common areas, your room etc there are elements of memorabilia, musical aesthetic and so much more. It's highly encouraged to take some time while waiting for dinner, coming back from one activity to the next to see what is curated from jewelry by Hendrix, Blondie's outfits and so much more!

There are a number of destinations in Hard Rock Hotel's portfolio and although they all focus on music, unwinding, spa treatments and more - each location has something that is unique that ties back into the area! Take some time to check out what city speaks to you and enjoy a vacation on your own terms.