THE BACHELOR S25. E12. | THE FINALE PART II

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Part II of the Season Finale kicks off with seeing the aftermath of the life between Hannah Ann and Peter. We can’t believe that yet again, someone is not exactly sure about their choices. Even though he became engaged to Hannah Ann, we learn that Peter wanted to have closure with Hannah B, still had feelings for Madison and he couldn’t give his whole heart. We also saw Hannah literally share everything that she thought about everything - especially since he broke up with her. We have been on the fence with her, but love how she methodically held him accountable. We also get so many faces from Mama Weber as we can see that she loved Hannah Ann. At the end of the day, he didn’t want to make a decision and even when he brings Madison up (Chris visited her and let her know that although he asked Hannah Ann to marry him, they broke up), we don’t know the status of their relationship. We also learn that she kept his family waiting for 3 hours, didn’t want to meet them and flat out told his mom that she wasn’t in love with him. Mama W also let us know that Peter has no support by his family or friends in regards to Madison.

What can we say about a season that literally had drama in every week, saw Peter not really making decisions and people being moved to the next round that shouldn’t have been? It’s been a wild ride and we’re glad that we were able to tweet with you as well as to get some of the insider information with Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14).

We’ll be back for the next season of The Bachelorette and can’t wait to hear your thoughts as we tweet by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give our commentary on what’s taking place!

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LAST EPISODE

Peter got engaged to Hannah Ann.

WEEK 11 PART II

Peter got engaged to Hannah Ann and then broke it off about a month later. He is with Madison on some level - only time will tell.

MADISON

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S25. E11. | THE FINALE PART I

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Part I of the Season Finale kicks off with Hannah Ann and Madison. Each of Peter’s final women have a chance to hang out with Peter as well as to meet his family in Australia. Peter’s mom says that seeing her son and Hannah Ann reminds her of how she and her husband looked. During tonight’s chat on Twiiter, @Bachelor.Spoilers shared how Peter’s mom and Hannah Ann looked and the resemblance is pretty uncanny!

We thought that the family would really like Madison and it seems like she’s not exactly winning over the family. Peter’s mom asks the hard questions with Madison asking about her religion and values and lays it out that she doesn’t want him to try to change Peter. She appreciated the religious nature of Madison while stating that Peter is a spiritual person, but he likes to party. His mom shares that she prayed for the right person to be able to meet him and lets him know that Madison is not for him. When Peter’s mom, Barb, inquires where he is leaning to, she cried as she passionately lobbies for Hannah Ann. He politely takes it in, but eventually tells her and his family to stop. Although we think Hannah Ann would make the most sense, we can appreciate how he stuck to his guns.

Peter takes Madison on a 1-on-1 date and it hits her that it’s time for her to walk away (although we think the whole Fantasy Suites scenarios said everything that needed to be said with her ultimatum that went unheaded). She shares that their faith and lifestyle are different and that she wouldn’t want either of them to change in order for it to work. We definitely feel that Barb has been a factor in some of Madison’s statements due to their conversation a few days earlier. With that, she says that she is not the right girl for him.

We come back from break and see Chris Harrison sit down with Peter. Apparently, Peter still feels that there is a future and it seems like he’s not letting Maddie go (even though his mom said that she would have all the love in the world for Hannah Ann) - but then he also said that he has love for Hannah Ann. While he debates what he will do, Hannah Ann, walks into the desert for her date. He puts on a good face and prepares for their final 1-on-1. Their date takes place at a kangaroo sanctuary where they can feed the joeys as well as to see the adults as well. We’re definitely feeling bad for Hannah Ann as she has no idea on what took place; however, she does say that she feels that something is off when she looks in his eyes.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

Peter chose Hannah Ann and Madison. We said that we wanted him to pick Madison.

WEEK 11 PART I

Peter has selected Hannah Ann and Madison! Watching the dates, we’re changing our minds and going back to Hannah Ann!

AND THE FINAL TWO

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E10. | THE FINAL 2 & THE WOMEN TELL ALL!

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

And we kick off the episode to see who Peter Webb will pick as we head into the final episode of the season! At first, we don’t even know if Madison will even be there as she was upset finding out that Peter had been intimate during the Fantasy Suites dates. We see both Victoria F and Hannah Ann waiting for him and shortly after, Madison makes her appearance. Ultimately, Madison and Hannah Ann get the rose and Victoria F is sent home. Madison makes a toast and says, “we’ll see if love can really conquer all.”

We roll straight into the Women Tell All portion of the show which is bound to be filled with accusations, clarity and hilarity.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

Last week, Peter emerged from Hometowns with Hannah Ann, Madison and Victoria F. We’re hoping that Madison ends up being asked to marry him - but as always there is a lot of drama in the mix

WEEK 10

Peter has selected Hannah Ann and Madison!

AND THE FINAL TWO

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA (Copy)

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E9. | ONTO THE FANTASY SUITES

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

We start with tonight’s episode with Madison pulling aside Peter. She tells him that she won’t feel comfortable if he uses the Fantasy Suites with the other girls - at this point, he doesn’t know that she is a virgin. Personally, to put the whole situation into context, she should have also shared this portion of the story. In an interesting switch it seems like all 3 girls will be staying together (usually, at this point everyone has their own places). Interestingly enough, everyone will know who ends up using it - clearly the producers are all about the twists this season to add to the tension.

The first date takes place with Hannah Ann and we know that he is falling in love with her. Of course, their date goes well. We expected to see the crazy train again between Victoria and Peter - although there were possibilities, they ended up having a regular date. Both of these dates resulted in the use of the Fantasy Suite. Madison told Hannah Ann that she felt that Peter should abstain from having sex with anyone. So of course, we can’t wait until Victoria is looped into this ultimatum.

Of course, Victoria and Hannah Ann talk about how Madison told Peter her thoughts without expressing that she is a virgin. Madison and Peter sit down to dinner to talk about open issues that have been hanging over them. Madison shares that she is a virgin and couldn’t imagine being with someone that had intimate relationships with others and then being asked to marry him. This leads both parties feeling uncomfortable. With 3 ladies left, it’s interesting to see who he will send home.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

Last week, Peter emerged from Hometowns with Hannah Ann, Madison and Victoria F. We’re hoping that Madison ends up being asked to marry him.

WEEK 9

We’ll have to see what happens with Madison next week!

AND WE’RE STILL WAITING FOR THE FINAL TWO

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

VICTORIA F

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E8. | HOMETOWNS

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

One of the best parts of The Bachelor/ette is getting to Hometowns and tonight we see Peter head out to Hannah Ann’s family in Knoxville, Tennessee. We don’t know about his axe throwing skills to impress her dad, but we do know that her father doesn’t seem to be too impressed. He suggests that Peter shouldn’t say that he is falling in love with her unless he really means it along with everything involved in it.

Of course, he tells Hannah Ann that he loves her and we all cringe as clearly he didn’t take her dad’s warning. Hannah Ann lets him know that she is in love with him and not just falling in love with him. Clearly, she feels that they had a great date,

We move right into Des Moines, Iowa with Kelsey where they try their hand on making wine by stomping on grapes and then making their own blend. We can’t wait to see what Kelsey’s family is like as she’s quite a lot and we can only imagine that it comes from somewhere. She lets him know that she is in love with Peter - we don’t know where Peter is just yet, but he says that he loves her honesty. We meet Kelsey’s family and honestly, between Peter not knowing what a Crab Rangoon was, watching the interactions with Kelsey and her family - it’s a bit awkward - we really wonder if she and Peter are a good fit.

Although Madison was not someone that stuck out to us initially, we have grown to like her. So Peter makes his way to Auburn, Alabama and of course, we see a fun video of Charles Barkley telling Peter to treat Madison right. We also meet the head coach of Auburn who her father coaches under. Seeing this part of Madison made us love seeing her even more and getting to know more about who she is as a person. Madison’s family is what we expected and her mom asks her if she has shared the fact that she wants to save herself for marriage to Peter. Once again, Peter sits down with another father who isn’t too pleased to hear that he is falling in love with his daughter when he knows that there are other experiences happening over the weeks. Interestingly enough, Madison doesn’t say that is falling in love with him and you can tell that she is weighing so much between what she wants, what she wants to say and what her parents are feeling.

So Peter continues onto Victoria F. which we liked initially until we started hearing about things that she has been doing in her life. We suppose that they gave them another country musician date with Hunter Hayes and clearly she didn’t date him formally. They have a great date; however, an old friend who is his ex (Merissa) sees him and warns him that he shouldn’t stay in a relationship with Victoria. So many thoughts and yet we can’t disagree with her.

Peter lets Victoria know about their conversation and of course she just melts down. He questions whether she has ever fought for anything that she wanted and that he feels like he is always talking her down. We can totally agree with him on this; however, he can’t get enough of her no matter how childish she acts. Peter doesn’t meet her family, but does talk with her the next morning.

We’re at an airport hanger and all the ladies assemble to see who will advance. Peter gives out roses to Hannah Ann, Madison, and Victoria F. Kelsey does not receive a rose (and although we didn’t think Kelsey was a great fit, we actually would have been ok with her over Victoria F.)

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

Last week, we found out that the remaining 4 Hometown contestants were Hannah Ann, Kelsey, Madison and Victoria F.

WEEK 7

Hometowns is always a fun time to get to know more about the friends and family of the contestants. As always, each week has been filled with drama and we don’t see it ending any time soon.

With that said, Peter gave roses to Hannah Ann, Madison and Victoria F. We hope that hw will pick Madison ultimately.

THE FINAL THREE

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

VICTORIA F

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E7. | The Bachelor Rolls Onto Lima, Peru

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Tonight’s episode continues onto Lima, Peru! This episode also marks the final one before Hometowns so we’re expecting tons of drama as this is a pretty key week. As the girls pow wow, Peter swings by saying how important the week is. The first date card arrives and Madison snags a 1-on-1 with him to find out about their vibe. We can appreciate Madison being blunt about how important her faith is to her. Peter agrees; however, he says he has struggled with the strength of his face. Although it seems like there should be more to say here, he changes the conversation and shares that he is falling in love with her. They both seem to be happy about where they are and she takes the rose and she prepares for Peter to see her family during Hometowns. This date is interesting because Madison got the first date with him when she went to his parent’s renewal in the first episode of the season.

While Madison is on her date, Natasha finds out that she is getting a 1-on-1 date as she has yet to have one at all! When Peter and Natasha go on their date, we're not going to lie, there is a lot of ground to cover. Natasha has never had a 1-on-1 date with Peter although, there have been a number of times when he has sought her out to check in with her. Their date is definitely easy; however, is it enough to take it to the level of advancing to Hometowns or is it merely a great friendship?

While Natasha is on her date, the next date card pops up as a 3-in-1 with Victoria F, Hannah Ann and Kelley. Although Peter picked up the rose while talking with Natasha, he tells her that he can’t give it to her. We can’t think of anything more cruel than picking up an item that symbolizes moving forward and then telling someone that it isn’t for them.

Kelsey and Peter hang out on ATV’s and hang out on a mountain. Now that dinner is starting, both want to dig in to the nitty gritty to find out about one another. Through it all. Kelsey got her rose. Onto the 3-on-1 date. I never knew that Kelley had a bit of a negative side as she goes in on Hannah Ann and Victoria F (not to say that we don’t see what she is talking about) and even says that she “hates” that she will have to throw them under the bus. In her confessional she talks about the fact that their young age doesn’t make them eligible to truly be competition and doesn’t think that she should be on this date with them. I guess it’s good that this is the last time that everyone will be together as she definitely isn’t building a community among these ladies.

Once again Victoria F’s time with Peter is always filled with angst. She’s always either stomping off camera, rolling her eyes, being passive-aggressive and just being annoying. If only she could be honest as opposed to hiding a number of things - we think it would be easier for everyone involved. When Peter comes back to the 3 ladies, he announces that he doesn’t need to have a dinner to figure out who he will go to Hometowns with.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

Last week, we were treated to 2 episodes which of course continued with more drama than you can imagine. We predicted that Madison, Natasha, Kelley and Hannah Ann would make it to Hometowns. We also felt that Madison would ultimately be the winner.

WEEK 6

We’re convinced that every week is going to have an issue. With that said, we still see Hannah Ann, Kelsey, Madison and Victoria F. are heading to Hometowns with Peter. This week, we think he will choose Madison to ask for her hand in marriage.

PETER’S HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

KELSEY

MADISON

VICTORIA F

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E6. | DRAMA FINDS THEM IN CHILE

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Tonight’s episode kicks off in Chile! The girls toast to leaving the drama behind and focusing on their relationships. Of course, everyone begins talking about MyKenna making a mini party to force time with Peter. She defends her decision and the girls find out that Hannah Ann gets a 1-on-1. Tensions are high as the girls wish her well on her date - Hannah Ann gets her rose.

Hands down, this was one of our favorite group dates - the Novella that seemed to be never-ending! It’s interesting that whether you’re a die-hard soap opera fan or not, people have a soft spot for them even if it’s a memory of watching it with a family member! As they enjoy the cocktail party, Peter ends up sending Victoria P home - which was a bit of a shock as he bluntly stated that he didn’t see her as his wife. Although we totally get it, maybe he shouldn’t have let her sit on his lap as that seemed a bit awkward. In the beginning of The Bachelor, Tammy was someone that we liked; however, over the past few weeks, she definitely has been on a mission to belittle the other contestants. Her focus should be on Peter as opposed to the other girls. Picking on the other women is definitely a strategic position for her - we can only imagine who her next target will be.

From the group date, Peter goes on a second 1-on-1 date with Victoria F. On their last 1-on-1 date, her ex Chris Rice serenaded them which made it a bit awkward. So on date number 2, at least they’re riding horses in Chile and being low key. This particular relationship has been such an issue to us due to a lot of things that have come up about Victoria F’s modeling career. Interestingly enough, her date begins to bring up red flags which also makes us think of other things we have heard in terms of her dating life prior to the show. Her behavior at the dinner was questionable at best; however, Peter still gives her a rose even though he admits that this is the first time he has given one with doubt on his mind!

As the girls get ready for the cocktail party, Peter requests a 2-on-1 with MyKenna and Tammy - which means that someone is going home. Although we feel that both of these women are annoying, this pair has been an odd mix. Tammy seems to be unhinged and there’s a point where filling Peter in on all the details that are going on in the house, needs to be tempered. There’s a fine line between being informative and being a tattle tale. Tammy is sent home (MyKenna is not given a rose at this time, but is able to go to the cocktail party) and he continues with the cocktail party to find out more about the other women. He chats with Natasha, Sydney, Kelsey and Victoria F (although she has a rose already).

Going into the rose ceremony, Hannah Ann, Madison and Victoria F have their roses. 3 additional roses are up for grabs - 2 additional people will be heading home. Kelsey, Natasha and Kelley receives a rose. We’re seriously shocked that Sydney didn’t receive one - we’ll hold out hope that she comes back maybe? After all the drama, they’re jetting off to Lima, Peru.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

On Monday’s episode, we felt that Sydney, Natasha, Madison and Hannah Ann would make it to Hometowns. We also felt that Sydney would ultimately be the winner.

WEEK 5 (2nd of 2 episodes this week)

We’re convinced that every week is going to have an issue. With that said, we still see Hannah Ann, Madison, Natasha and Kelley heading to Hometowns with Peter. This week, we think he will choose Madison.

.

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

KELLEY

MADISON

NATASHA

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Columbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E5. | THE DRAMA HITS THE FAN

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Week five begins with the continuation of the drama that took place at the end of last week’s episode! Alayah was given a rose, but then it was time for him to send her home. It’s kind of strange for him to invite her and then to send her home - especially since he said that he did like her. Either way, there was a lot of humble pie served his way and we walked away loving Natasha even more then we could have imagined as she always tells it like it is!

The rose ceremony at the beginning of the night sees Alayah, Deandra, Kiarra and Savannah leaving. He announces that they will be heading to Costa Rica. With hopes of being able to leave the drama behind, it seems like it could be a clean slate (which is obviously wishful thinking).

Sydney gets the first 1-on-1 date in Costa Rica with Peter and it was great getting to know a little more about someone who we feel is mysterious in the best way possible. Hearing her back story really makes us like her even more. Back at the house, the girls are seriously freaking out about how they can stand apart from one another so that he can get to know them.

Tammy makes a good point when attempting to talk to Kelsey about the fact that as much as it’s crazy, they signed up for this. Apparently this truth kernel fell on deaf ears. We continue to the group date where the ladies have the chance to be on the cover for Cosmopolitan Magazine. They will also get to shoot with him - that can’t be drama waiting to happen. The women and Peter find out that they will be able to do a feature shoot in Cosmopolitan’s March Issue. The winner who brings it the most will be able to win a digital cover with Peter. Of course Kelsey who is on the date is upset about how the girls interact with them. Victoria F wins this; however, as many know now, due to Victoria F’s modeling with a highly problematic site, Cosmo announced that they were pulling Cosmopolitan’s Digital Cover as she was the winner.

The new drama exists between Tammy and Kelsey which is bound to suck everyone into yet another round of feelings. Peter takes Kelley on a 1-on-1 date to find out more about her. Although he was intrigued as they met at a mutual venue weeks before filming, he wants to make sure that she is a fit as he isn’t as connected to her as he would like to be due to her reserved nature. Ultimately, Peter gives Kelley a rose.

The rose ceremony becomes another dramatic time as there is no cocktail party and they go straight into selections. With the next round of women selected, we can’t wait until this Wed’s show.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST WEEK’S EPISODE

Since there wasn’t a rose ceremony last week, we will continue with our picks: Hannah Ann, Madison, Sydney and Victoria P. We thought Victoria P. would ultimately win The Bachelor’s heart.

WEEK 5 (1st of 2 episodes this week)

This week shows that the drama will continue throughout Peter’s season without a doubt! We’re still loving our faves that include Sydney, Hannah Ann, Madison and we’re bringing Natasha back into the fold as we liked his heart to heart with her. Sydney will definitely go all the way.

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

NATASHA

SYDNEY

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Colmbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E4. | GLOBAL TRAVEL BEGINS IN CLEVELAND

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Week four begins with the contestants being told that they are about to do some global traveling and kick off in Cleveland, OH. Victoria F’s date is all about anxiety from what taking their love to “new heights” can mean all the way to seeing her ex. It feels like each week that Peter can’t just have an easy date let alone an easy week! But even with all of the mini-drama that took place in her date, she came away with the rose.

We move onto the team date which has everyone playing football - pads and all for The Bachelor Bowl. The Eliminators vs The Bees Knees make the game interesting with fumbles, tackles and scoring touchdowns. Can we say that Deandra is the MVP of this game! Shiann also had an amazing performance during the game. Since they tied, all the girls on that date got to come back to have time with Peter. Unfortunately, Alayah came back and Peter allowed her back into the house by giving her the date night rose, even though she didn’t even compete in the game. As opposed to tucking in, she caught up with her two besties in the house Mean Girls style and asked what was going on while dishing on Victoria F as well as her ex. The night ends without a rose ceremony.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST WEEK’S EPISODE

We were all about Hannah Ann, Madison, Sydney and Victoria P. We thought Victoria P. would ultimately win The Bachelor’s heart.

WEEK 4

This week was a rocky one to watch; however, there were standouts in terms of who we think will continue onto Hometowns. Although we thought that Victoria P. was taking it all the way, this week changed our opinion on that front. Tonight’s episode will continue onto next week - we’ll have to see how the Rose Ceremony is next week. For now, we’ll maintain our Week 3 picks and carry them over.

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

SYDNEY

VICTORIA P.

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Colmbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E3. | CAN WE GET BACK TO THE DATES?

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Week three starts off with of course #ChampagneGate - is Hannah Ann a “champagne stealer”, does Kelsey even like champagne (it was Dom which tends to be something that everyone is able to consume without an issue) even though she held onto it for a year for a special moment, how does the rest of the house weigh in on this and more importantly - does Kelsey need to have a course on what bullying entails? Thankfully, we get to head out to a bit of line dancing with Peter and Victoria P to see their energy as well as to hear about her backstory - which was heartbreaking and is giving us a bit of the feels! Of course back at the house, the drama over champagne has continued with Sydney letting all of us know what we have been thinking, Alayah isn’t exactly on our list of people we would hang out with and a few people cosigned the sentiment.

The night took on quite a twist when it came to the afternoon party. With Peter coming to terms with comments that were said about Alayah, he ended up leaving to assess what happened. At he Rose Ceremony, he even had Chris Harrison remove one of the rose to send a total of 4 girls home that he didn’t feel were there for him. It seems like at the end of each week’s episode, Peter has yet to have a smooth one. Hopefully, the upcoming weeks won’t continue to be as crazy as they have been!

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST WEEK’S EPISODE

We were all about Hannah Ann, Mykenna, Natasha and Sydney. We thought Sydney would ultimately win The Bachelor’s heart.

WEEK 3

This week, we definitely loved Victoria P for her one-on-one date with Peter and then being vulnerable enough to share where she came from. They look absolutely adorable and can’t wait to see more of who she is as we go throughout the season. Although we have seen Hannah Ann a lot and she continues to be involved in the aftermath of #ChampagneGate, the chemistry is definitely there. Sydney came out swinging by standing behind being truthful about Alayah and opening the door to others in the house weighing in privately. Unfortunately, Mykenna and Natasha aren’t in our picks of who will continue onto Hometowns, we are bringing in Madison as Peter has a lot of synergy with him as we continue into the season.

Ultimately, we think that Victoria P. could win Peter’s heart.

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

MADISON

SYDNEY

VICTORIA

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Colmbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL;

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

HER RECIPE FOR SUCCESS WITH CAT CORA

This month's cover is graced by the first female Iron Chef, Restaurateur and TV Personality, Cat Cora. In addition to our photoshoot for our Holiday issue, we sat down with her to talk about her trailblazing career, her mentors Julia Childs as well as Regynald Washington, a number of exciting projects that she has coming up as well as her latest TV show - ABC's Family Food Fight.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment that you realized that you wanted to be a chef?

CHEF CAT CORA: I think that I really realized that when I was about 15 years old and I had always been around restaurants. My grandfather has restaurants, my godfather had restaurants. I had amazing cooks: my father, my mother, my grandmother all around me - cooking different things. My mom and grandmother could bake and it was very global cuisine. My dad was Greek-American so we learned Greek food and of course, I lived in the South in Mississippi so we had good southern food. So I think that being around restaurants my whole life and growing up around them, it was really in my DNA. So around the age of 15, I thought, “I really want to do this.” I love the vibe and energy of a restaurant and kitchens. I thought that I would want to go in and pursue this lifestyle and this way of living through my career. Again, I thought that I was just born to do this even though it seems like it sounds a little corny.

AM: We love this. So where did you train and where did you go to school, what were various kitchens that you started in before opening your first restaurant?

CHEF CC: Well, I started by going to the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. I got my degree in Exercise Physiology and Nutrition with a minor in Biology and I really thought that I was going to go Pre-Med and then I took a detour because I loved health and wellness so much. I thought, “this was great.” I loved being fitness and health-oriented.

It was a perfect fit for me and really after graduation, I backpacked around Europe to 9 countries and just fell in love with food again. When I went back home, I said, “I know I have this degree and it will be great to fall back on, but I think that I want to go back to that first love and that’s food and restaurants!”

So I started working in restaurants and went onto training at the Culinary Institute of America. I was lucky to meet Julia Childs who became a mentor of mine at Natchez, Mississippi at a book signing. I felt that was like the planets aligning for me. I went to see her and was able to get advice from her and she mentored me. She told me to go to the Culinary Institute of America which is the Harvard of culinary schools and I applied pretty much the next day! I went there and graduated with honors and I went to France and cooked in 2 and 3 star Michelin restaurants at a time when women weren’t really allowed in French kitchens. They weren’t welcome there and that was about 20 years ago – which isn’t that long ago. I got 8 or 10 rejection letters in a row from 3 starred Michelin chefs and finally, I got 2! One from Georges Blanc and one from Roger Vergé. They were legendary chefs and I took both of them. I couldn’t choose as one does very classical French and one does Nouvelle Cuisine which is a newer French style – so I took both. One was in the south of France and one was in the northern part of France. They’re very different regions, different foods and ingredients as well. It’s an experience that I would never change for the world. It was very tough, especially as a female as I was the only one in the kitchen at the time. It was very daunting for a lot of chefs and many wouldn’t do that, even male chefs because they knew that French kitchens, and especially 3 starred Michelin kitchens, were very distinguished and very tough.

I did it, I got through it and came back to the US to a lot of job offers and I settled in NY for a little while for about 5-6 years. Then, I got a job offer in Napa Valley as an Executive Chef at a restaurant called Don Giovanni and then the rest was really history because I started working in kitchens as an Executive Chef and just worked my way up into opening my own company. I decided that I wanted to work for myself and be an entrepreneur as I had always had that entrepreneurial spirit and so, I did that and started Cat Cora, Inc. I started TV by chance and got an offer by Food Network by chance because I was on a local channel at the time. I opened Postino at the time where I was an Executive Chef and partner in the Bay Area. They ended up calling me a month later to audition me for my own show and to do guest appearances and that was in 1999.

I’ve been doing TV ever since – 20 years of television and it has been amazing. It’s been such an incredible journey and being able to do various things in this industry has been such a gift and a blessing. I feel that I love having restaurants, I love doing television and creating. My wife, Nicole who is an amazing producer in her own right, and we’re starting to get behind the camera to create shows, producing, doing cookbooks – and this world is so heady and beautiful. It has been such a blessing and here I am – here with you guys! It’s been great! To do this photoshoot and your magazine is so beautiful and to be able to do a high fashion shoot like this is just something that I love. I love fashion, I love jewelry, I love styling and having that from head to toe – whether it’s a pair of sunglasses like we talked about down to the shoes and everything in between! It’s so exciting to me and I love it and I love fashion. This has been such a blast!

AM: We love having you as the cover of Athleisure Mag’s 48th Issue for Dec as well as having this interview available for our podcast show Athleisure Kitchen! We know that you’re a perfect fit for our issue as a trailblazer with a number of accolades including being the first female Iron Chef, the first female that was inducted into the American Academy of Chefs Hall of Fame, your career in TV, restaurants and more! Hearing you speak about Julia Childs – what an amazing opportunity to have her as a mentor! What is a piece of advice that she gave you that you still use to this day as you continue to navigate your empire?

CHEF CC: I think that the best piece of advice that she ever told me was to always pay it forward – no matter what you do. My parents also told me that in a different way. They were always giving back to people. My mom was a nurse and my dad was a school teacher. We didn’t have a lot of money, but they always gave back to people in charitable ways and I think that that was ingrained in me as well as my siblings at a really young age.

When I met Julia, she said the same thing! She was so generous with her time and her advice – she did so much nurturing with me and the one thing that she said, was that she did this for me and that it was my turn to do it for somebody else. I think that she saw a passion in me and that it was really what I was meant to do, my destination and my fate.

That was pretty powerful for me and I have done that ever since. We have a women’s empowerment culinary internship that we started where we take one intern a year and they come to my house and are really embedded in our company and our lives for a week. They stay with us, we cook together, they spend time in some of my restaurants. Nicole and I will spend time with them on the business end of it to teach them what we do as a business and to teach them those skills. I think that that is important in this day and age that you have a business sense as well as that creative which goes hand in hand. I think that has been really powerful. I started Chefs for Humanity 15 years ago that is all about emergency feeding relief. It’s about helping to end hunger in the world, fighting hunger and it’s also about nutritional education so we are kind of a three-fold mission that’s been really amazing. We have done programs with Michelle Obama when she was in the White House and I spent time with the Obamas as well and they were so about creating programs that bettered everybody whether it was school feeding – Chefs Move to School, Let’s Move – which was about getting active when they realized that there was an obesity epidemic and other initiatives.

We’ve done multiple things not only here in the US, but globally. So those are the kinds of things that I do to pay it back and I try to do it every day! Whether it’s to young professionals that are looking for advice and on our social media, we’re constantly having questions from people asking if I can mentor them, answer a question or them, give them advice and direction, where they should go to culinary school, what road they should take now and what their next step should be. I feel like I’m constantly and I love giving advice to people and helping them to understand the next step – the way that Julia helped me. My next step for me was that she basically took me by the hand and said, “you’re next step is that you’re going to go to the Culinary Institute of America and get a culinary degree.” I was able to tell her again later, that I was going to go to France and was able to come full circle with her again.

AM: She must have been so proud of that!

CHEF CC: Yeah, she was – she was very happy!

AM: How would you define your style of cooking?

CHEF CC: I would say, very Mediterranean oriented. I can cook almost anything at this point of my career and I mean that in a very humble way. It’s just that I have been trained and especially with Iron Chef, every single battle that I did – it was a different cuisine so that taught me and gave me an ability to research to really understand that cuisine, that region and that country. I got really adept at different cuisines and throughout my cuisine whether it was Asian, Italian – obviously, I grew up in the Greek Southern heritages.

I think that different cuisines from around the world – I love to learn so much about each one of those and it’s like I’m a sponge and want to know more and be curious about things. I think that that gives you an edge and keeps you on your toes and you should always have a curiosity about something else. You’re never done learning. But if I had to answer what is my soul food, Mediterranean food. Foods of the sun and living that lifestyle. The Mediterranean diet is the healthiest diet on the planet and we know that – research has shown that. Extra Virgin Olive Oil, fruits and vegetables, lean meats and those types of things. Lots of fish with all of those Omega oils and that’s what I grew up on even though we were from the south – we indulged in southern food too. There was good fried catfish, okra and biscuits and all of that!

Mostly, I grew up on the Mediterranean diet of steamed artichokes and olive oil and lemon – lots of citrus. It’s so good for you and I think that those types of foods really draw me in. It keeps bringing me back to that and my roots – it’s really strong in the way that I cook as I cook from that Mediterranean perspective in that way.

AM: We could eat hummus every day!

CHEF CC: I think I do eat hummus every day!

AM: It’s so good! What are your 3 favorite ingredients that you like to have on hand when you’re in kitchen with Nicole and the kids?

CHEF CC: I always have citrus. I always have a big bowl of citrus so I pull from that a lot. I always finish dishes with a little squeeze of lemon, lime or tangerine – whatever it is depending on what I am cooking in terms of the style. Garlic is a big part of our cooking and I cook with it every day! It’s so good for you and heart healthy and I love really good Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Those are 3 staples that you will always see in my kitchen. You will never not see good Extra Virgin Olive Oil and it doesn’t have to be super expensive. It’s a little mind boggling how many olive oils there are to choose from these days. So I think that if people look for Extra Virgin always because that’s the first press and you’re going to get the most nutrients and then you look for Cold Pressed which means that there is no heat in the processing of it because that takes away from all the nutrients you’re trying to get when heat is involved. Those are 2 tips for your listeners and readers when they are looking to pick out their Olive Oil.

AM: When you opened your first restaurant, what was that like coming from other people’s kitchens to being in your own space to run it entirely?

CHEF CC: I mean when I opened my first restaurant, Kouzzina by Cat Cora in 2008 – which was 3 years after I started Iron Chef as I started that in 2005, we went for a lot of seasons and it was still going and there were a number of reruns. But in 2008, I started my first restaurant in Disney at the Boardwalk in Orlando. Kouzzina means kitchen in Greek and it was this gorgeous restaurant. We had a wood burning oven and we had this olive oil bar where we olive oil bar where we poured the different kinds that we got all over Greece. It was just a gorgeous restaurant and I think that as my first, I was nervous, but I was super excited. I really did things differently and unorthodox. Most chefs open their first restaurant and then they build from there. They get their TV show and they do their books. I kind of did it the opposite and and it’s the way that it felt and it worked for me. It was a better fit for me to do television, to get all of the experience from a lot of amazing chefs when I was coming up in the industry. I was able to hone my style if you will and who I was, my identity as a chef and then went on to create my company, did television, did my cookbooks and things like that. I kind of did it all and then had a restaurant, but that worked and that was the higher plan.

I think it was amazing. I would have to say that I was in a place where I was more mature, more seasons and able to take on multiple responsibilities and to juggle multiple things going on because I had the experience to do so. I had an amazing partner in Disney. When you’re picking partners and day to day operators, you have to have amazing brands that they always want to succeed and their goal is to be the best. Their standard of excellence and quality is as high as you can get which Disney is and I still have a great relationship with them to this day and we have done multiple things along the years and I think that it is just a fantastic way for me to start my restaurant.

AM: In looking at your restaurants like a portfolio, you have those that you have done in the resorts, the curated version that you did with Weight Watchers at the Barclay Center and then your partnership at Aramark which is beyond ridiculous – how do you go about deciding the kinds of restaurants you will do and the kind of partnerships that you do?

CHEF CC: Yes, again – I had this amazing mentor, Regynald Washington who started my first restaurant in Disney World and he was with me when we started that and he left to go to HBF (Hojeij Branded Foods) which now owns all my airport restaurants. He called me and said, “you gotta do airport branded restaurants with us.” I couldn't resist and we have done some amazing things – 6 airport restaurants around the country. Then it just kind of expanded and I have my partnership with Aramark and we’ve done these beautiful stand alone restaurants, corporate dining, but also 600 pop-ups around the country. Then it just kind of expanded and I have my partnership with Aramark and we’ve done these beautiful stand alone restaurants, corporate dining, but also 600 pop-ups around the country as well.

Then we have Mesa Burger which is in Santa Barbara, Montecito and Goleta and we’re going to expand that out all over the country. It continues to be beautified. My restaurant in Singapore was just phenomenal and it was great to have an international presence and I learned a lot from that experience. There are these amazing things that continue to grow and it's so organic. It happened organically from the very beginning. The Walt Disney restaurant, was just organic and then it expanded from there.

I like that and I also love the idea of putting restaurants – I mean I love stand alone and we’re doing them as well, but I like building those that are in the landscape of America in places where whether it’s an airport, amusement park, national park, corporate dining – places where people really needed healthy cuisine and you were at the mercy of what was there. Stadiums are a good example of this as they have changed dramatically as you’ve seen. People are like, “wow, I can get a healthy meal here while I am watching a concert or a ball game!" If my flight gets delayed, I love that I can go to Cat Cora’s Kitchen and sit there and have an incredible healthy breakfast, lunch or dinner. I think that it’s giving people that access to health and wellness and that foundation where we’re not even saying that we are a health and wellness restaurant. Our foundation is based on health and wellness and we cook great food! That’s where for me, I felt that I was given a service that really I wanted to give but it was unexpected. It happened so organically. I mean, before my restaurants, when I was traveling in airports, I couldn’t get an egg white omelet anywhere. Now, that’s what I offer to people and if you want an American breakfast, you can get that there too! I like to offer that healthy option and I think that that is what was missing.

AM: We always like asking people about their 3 signature dishes at their restaurants and as you have a number of them, we’ll let you choose what restaurants you would like to include in this mix!

CHEF CC: I would say that if you’re in Santa Barbara (Montecito or Goleta) whether you’re already flying in or just making your way to Mesa Burger because it’s worth it – we have amazing Craft Burgers. I’d say our signature is probably the Montecito Burger which is this chefy burger that has this truffle aioli on it and very umami yumminess. We also have great craft burgers with Brioche buns – very umaminess and we have one of the very best vegan burgers that you will ever have. We also do gluten free buns and we do lettuce wraps around a burger so it’s a fun place to go. There are great craft beers and wines so you can just have fun.

At Cat Cora's Kitchen, you gotta try my Spicy Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons – delicious for any of the airports you’re going through!

At my Wicked Eats and Olio concepts that are more of a Mediterranean Bowls so you can get quinoa, a salad, a pita and you can put it with different toppings, sauces and things! I love the Salmon Bowl with quinoa and some of the lettuce and different sauces and toppings on it that are so delicious and very healthy as well. It’s very health forward, but so delicious that you won’t even care! You’ll just know that it’s delicious and yummy. Those are some of the things that we have been doing.

AM: We’ve been talking about your TV work today and one of our personal favorites was BRAVO’s Around the World in 80 Plates!

CHEF CC: Oh thank you! I love that show and it was so fun shooting it.

AM: I can only imagine! And obviously being a judge in a number of shows like Top Chef and the numerous appearances you’ve had in other shows. Did you ever say when you first started that your brand was “x” and these were the things that you were going to do to get to where you ultimately wanted to be?

CHEF CC: I think you always have to be strategic the way that you want to represent your brand. You have to make sure that what you do moves the needle and that you have to be conscious as that’s important to be that way in business as well as socially. It’s important to us. My philosophy with restaurants and food is sustainability – it’s important as well as health and wellness. We want to make sure that we are taking care of people and the Earth. In business I think that having integrity, morals, being honest and kind – it’s sometimes hard to do because it is business and sometimes you have different opinions than your business partners. At the end of the day, it’s about rising above that and being super conscious about how you go about conducting yourself and business dealings. It's really about making people happy and that’s what you’re here to do. It’s important to make money, enriching your business and going in a direction that is successful with your business financially, your messages and how they affect your brand.

I think that we’re strategic. We don’t do anything in a vacuum and I think that I learned that from my wife who is an amazing producer, creative director and so many other things with Universal Music and then I got her and thank God because all of these artists that she blew up all over the world you know and had this amazing effect on and her genius – I got that! For me, it’s about taking that and she taught me to not do things in a vacuum and to be strategic and thought out. It's got to be well executed and you have to be passionate about it and it has to make you happy in the morning. You have to be happy about what you are doing in the world and for every action there is a reaction. There is cause and effect and each of us is a big part of that. We have to be very conscious about how we go about moving in our lives.

AM: So ABC’s Family Food Fight, how did you decide that you were going to be a part of that and what drew you to this project which has a great group of people with yourself as well as Graham Elliot and Ayesha Curry.

CHEF CC: It was such a fantastic opportunity. I love Ayesha, I adore her and her family. Graham – I’ve known him for years and he is like a brother as I’ve known him for 20 years. We’ve been running in the same circles and have been doing the same events. I have a lot of respect for both of them and the respect was mutual around the table with all of us. We had the best time on that show and I think what drew me was food and family.

At the end of the day, where I’m at my life today and where I have come from to now – I look at the most important thing thing at the end of the day is food and family and family and food. I look at our children, our 6 boys, my wife, our extended family because that is what you have. That’s what real. You can always look to your family to ground you and to bring it back.

That is what grounds you and I look to my family as a beacon so that I know my direction. I think that that’s why I wanted to do this show. These families came together, they cooked together all the time and they competed together because yes the money was big. It was important and life changing for a lot of people, but they also wanted to do it so that they could compete together and say that they did it with their family and to make them proud. Each of the families were so different as they were a melting pot of different heritages and cultures, recipes and personalities. That was so special to that show and made it so enriched for us. It was so fascinating and wonderful!

AM: We live in an age of social media where it’s so important to be able to utilize it to show who they are as a person beyond being in the kitchen as well as their skills. How important do you think social media is for chefs to show themselves in a 360 way?

CHEF CC: I think that’s super important and has been great for us. There was a time when there was no social media and it wasn’t even two words that we knew. It may seem strange for some people to hear this but there was a chunk of my career where this didn’t exist. You know, telephone, text, computer, email – things like that is how we communicated. I think that this has been so much fun to learn about social media and continue to learn and each day, there is something new to learn. But there is something about being able to go directly into people’s homes and right in front of them. To be able to say, here I am and this is who I am. I’m doing this today and cooking with my kids making pasta and join us. Like, really it’s such an amazing one on one interaction while you're being able to do so in front of a million people. It's one on one in the moment for all of us even when I am looking at something or someone’s video that I admire.

That’s what I think is cool because we get this one on one interaction and it’s such an intimate connection with people that you really admire. You get to see their lives and it’s very voyeuristic because you get to see them in their and what they do when they’re not an actor on the screen or a musician and not a chef when they’re at home. It’s just seeing them at home with their family and I think that there is something really special about that and it makes the world smaller in a good way. I think it brings all of us from around the world together in a place, intimacy and connection that you wouldn’t have otherwise. I find myself stopping for selfies and stopping for this or Instagramming my food you know. A lot of interaction, but I think it’s really beneficial for connecting with people around the world.

AM: You have a number of cookbooks under your belt. Is there anything that you are working on right now that our readers can find out about that we should keep an eye out for or check your social media for?

CHEF CC: Yeah, I have 3 cookbooks and a memoir. We are working on a cookbook which will be out next year. We can’t tell you what it is yet, but it will be good when you see it and I’m super excited about the concept and think it’s a great idea. When you see it, you’ll love it. I think it will be a little disruptive which is cool and is a good thing. You guys need to just check out my Instagram for any updates which will be coming out next year.

AM: Licensing is a massive component to a business and we know that you are in business and we know that you are involved in that. Do you have any new products that are coming out or partnerships that you can talk about?

CHEF CC: We are definitely doing some partnerships. I just launched a caviar line with California Caviar. I just did Rachel Ray today and we’re doing something really cool around it so check that out. I just launched it and it’s called Crème by Cat Cora. A beautiful caviar that’s American white sturgeon caviar and its farm-raised. It’s in partnership with American Caviar and a women-owned company which I think is super amazing. They’re so dynamic. I’ve always loved caviar, but I never knew how it was made really. They brought it to our house. We made caviar and I have so much of a bigger appreciation for how it is made and harvested because it’s very time consuming in how it is made. You’re talking about very little eggs and you have to be really delicate with them. So it takes a lot to make a tin of it or even 3 tins made and you’re like wow the process is incredible. It’s a sustainable product which I am proud of and much more approachable for people. One of the reasons why I wanted to do this was to make it approachable for people as I think that some people have this idea that caviar is too fancy and that they wouldn’t be able to afford it and that they can’t use it. That’s why I was so interested in doing this not just because of the company’s history and that it’s a woman-owned and run company, but it’s a beautiful made product that is done sustainably that people can enjoy.

AM: That’s so exciting!

CHEF CC: With caviar, I don’t know if people know this but there are so many amazing omega oils in it. 2 tablespoons have 7 grams of protein and it has only 5 grams of fat. It’s a lot of incredible vitamins and minerals that you get from that because of the fish oils – very healthy and beneficial for people.

AM: We had no idea that it had protein in it. We love eating it on our salads as well as on potato chips.

CHEF CC: Potato chips and sour cream is one of the best ways to eat it!

AM: You have so much going on with your business, your wife, family and more – how do you make sure that you check in with yourself and give yourself the time that you need to make sure that you’re ok?

CHEF CC: I work out everyday. It’s one of my things. Because of my degree in Exercise Physiology and Nutrition wellness has always been in my life. In college when I put on the extra 10 - 15, I was like I have to do something about this because it’s not working. Getting in shape became a lifestyle and I feel that it is a lifestyle for me. Just like I get up in the morning to take a shower or to go to my meetings, I know that I will schedule when I need to workout. Part of my job is to stay healthy for my family. I just look at it like that and if people looked at it as something that they needed to do that wasn’t just a luxury or an add on – it’s something that you can add into your day. You don’t have to do it all day. You can literally walk for 30 minutes.

I got into shape by walking. I didn’t go out and hit the elliptical or the gym. It was literally me going out and walking. I got into shape, lost the 15 pounds and I just got into it. I stay regulated. I really enjoy myself and I really believe in the 80/20 rule for myself and we live by that. It’s 80% of the time – sometimes it’s 90% or 70%/30% if I’m on vacation. I try to stay in that 80/20 where I’m eating clean 80% of the time and then I have fun where I’m enjoying myself where I can have an indulgent and enjoy myself. If you can give yourself permission to enjoy your food and still make smart choices 80% of the time – you’re ahead of the game.

Exercising and eating healthy go hand in hand because you can’t exercise a bad diet. But you also need that hand in hand exercise – so eat healthy and even if it’s little baby steps that’s great! I love to workout taking bubble baths and I take a lot of them when I can. I always try to find a semblance of balance. There is a real need for us to slow down and take off half a day or a full day - even 2 days if you can. If you get the weekends off great although we’re always working so that may not always happen. I tell Nicole that since we work together – I ask her when we’re scheduling our next day off. Are we getting a massage, a mani/ pedi, taking a walk or even a museum just to do something mindless and to see beautiful art which is something that we would like to do. Or it can be a theater or a nice dinner! Tonight, we’re going to have date night and we can unwind, rejuvenate and come back to that balance and that grounded place.

AM: What are your favorite methods that you like to do when you work out?

CHEF CC: I like to mix it up. I have been working out for many many years so I find that my body and I think that exercising is individual to each person so there isn’t something that works for every body. I find that if I exercise in one mode like the elliptical, after 5 days my body gets used to it and I have to get off that and go for a run instead or do crossfit or go do Soul Cycle with my wife. We will mix it up. I have a road bike that I love to do road cycling with and I don’t have the time to do it as much as I would like, but I love to do it when you can. Your body does get used to exercises and it becomes not as effective. It doesn’t mean that you can’t go back to it but you do want to change it up so that your body is thrown off in a good way. It will find a new muscle to work on.

AM: You clearly travel a lot. What are 3 items that you like to carry in your carry- on that makes your flights easier or to feel like you’re at home?

CHEF CC: I always have my earbuds – always. I always have a nice comfy pair of socks to throw on. I always have a good book just in case. I like to have one and I like how it feels to flip that page. Even if I don’t get to use it then, if I can read a few pages it's nice to do! Number 4 that I had to throw in. I always carry a cooler bag with healthy snacks. Even if we’re flying First Class and getting meals, I still like to carry my almonds, fruits, berries, protein bars – I always carry a lot of healthy snacks and just go. I want to stay cognizant and have brain food because we’re on the go constantly and that we have something that’s healthy as an alternative. If you pack a few healthy things then you won’t get off track and have empty calories. You don’t want to stay dang, “why did I eat that?” When you’re hungry, you get irritable and your energy drops tremendously. But when you have healthy snacks, it keeps the energy up, you’re happy and it works better. When you know you have something yummy that came from your refrigerator, that’s also a comfort from home too!

IG @CatCora 

Hear Chef Cat Cora on our show, Athleisure Kitchen which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

We photographed our cover story and recorded our podcast at 498 West End Ave #12A. We sat down with broker, Louise Phillips Forbes of the Louise Phillips Forbes Halstead Team to talk about this property as well as the neighborhood that it is located in.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We enjoyed shooting in 498 West End Avenue’s penthouse and for this shoot in #12A, it was a lot of fun due to the layout as well as the way that natural light that comes in this space – can you tell us about the features of this unit?

LOUISE PHILLIPS FORBES: You nailed it! The layout and light in this apartment are truly amazing, plus it has outrageous scale. The home is nestled in a corner unit on a high floor with 4,120 sf across 5-BR and 5.5-BA with three exposures and stunning Hudson River views. Newly renovated and reimagined with designer details by CetraRuddy Architecture, this home is a rare combination of prewar craft and contemporary artistry, perfect for entertaining!

With 56-feet of frontage along West End Avenue, the kitchen, lounge, and living/ dining room are bathed in natural light. Custom-color solid oak, rift-and-quartered floors throughout all public spaces are a modern twist on the parqueted floors found in the grand homes of Newport, Rhode Island. The living areas are distinguished from the kitchen by custom-designed French sliding doors. The doors feature an ingeniously recessed sliding mechanism for ease of use – all framed in an artfully articulated molding.

The kitchen is a chef's dream that embodies a level of craft and workmanship that exceeds the highest standards. From the outstanding millwork in custom chocolate-stained oak with contrasting cream-colored ceruse, to a single-slab marble hearth wall that conceals the range hood, every facet of the kitchen is designed to deliver equal portions of elegance and functionality.

Every bedroom provides an en-suite experience. Every room also features brandnew, energy-efficient windows and a superbly orchestrated medley of subtle colors and unexpected textures to create a serene sanctuary. The exceptionally spacious master bedroom includes a luxurious bathroom with a steam shower, soaking tub, mosaic marble floors and custom glasswork, furniture-like, shagreen textured vanities, and an eclectic mix of metals.

AM: What amenities are offered in this building for the residents?

LPF: The building itself is a beautiful turn of-the-20th-century piece of architecture offering a 24-hour attended lobby, private and bike storage, a fitness room and children's playroom. From the broad leafy streets outside, to its proximity to Riverside Park and bustling Upper West Side venues, 498 West End Avenue is nestled in the heart of one of New York's most desirable neighborhoods.

AM: Tell us about the neighborhood that is directly around this building and what neighborhood this is considered?

LPF: Flanked by two beautiful parks, the Upper West Side is one of the greenest neighborhoods in Manhattan. A favorite with families with its great elementary schools, safe streets and plethora of playgrounds. The vibe of the Upper West Side is relaxed, yet lively. There are plenty of bars and restaurants to frequent along Amsterdam Avenue, and Broadway. The wide, tree-lined streets also host many mom-and-pop stores, some of the best Jewish delis in the city, Zabar’s and Levain Bakery. Culture's abounds as this coveted neighborhood is the home to the American Museum of Natural History, the Children’s Museum of Manhattan and the West Side Community Garden.

AM: For those interested in this unit, how can they get more information?

LPF: For more information on this home please head over to louisephillipsforbes.com. As the exclusive broker for new development in this building my team represents new units as they become available. The pristinely designed Penthouse is set atop this landmark. It’s a 3,646sf 5-BR, 4.5-BA newly constructed full-floor duplex with an expansive wrap-around terrace, at its longest spanning close to 90 feet, which makes for a covetable outdoor space ideal for lounging as well as hosting cocktails and dinner parties against the backdrop of an exquisite panorama of the Hudson River. We also recently launched a fully renovated 2,093sf 3-BR, 2-BA residence on the 8th floor with the same designer details and notable interior features.

AM: Can you tell us about the artwork that is featured in this apartment?

LPF: The artwork throughout the two-story home has been thoughtfully curated by an interior designer to help highlight its architectural features and, of course, the views.

AM: Where can readers find out about properties that you represent?

LPF: To learn more about our listings, the team and the concierge-style services we provide, head over to www.louisephillipsforbes.com.

AM: You always have a number of amazing developments and properties in your portfolio. With 2020 around the corner, are there properties that you can share with us that you are excited about here in NYC and in The Hamptons for our readers to keep an eye out for?

LPF: With 30+ years of experience and over $4B in sales we always have some unique and exciting things on the horizon. Follow us on Instagram @louisephillipsforbesteam to keep up with us in 2020.

IG @LouisePhillipsForbesTeam

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's cover story was shot by Paul Farkas, using Canon Mark IV; and selected Canon lenses: EF 50 f/1.2 L, EF 24-70 f/2.8 L II, and EF 70-200 f/2.8 L II.

IG @PVFarkas

STYLE, MAKEUP & HAIR CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's Celeb Fashion Stylist, Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director Kimmie Smith, MUA Jessica Bonilla and Hairstylist Lea DeLoy share how Cat Cora's look was created for the cover editorial.

LOOK I | FITNESS

BACK COVER + PG 16 - PG 25 | BEYOND YOGA Heather Rib Cropped Tank in Navy Heather + Graceland High Waisted Midi Legging in Nocturnal Navy/Horizon Blue | COLMAR Research Metallic Jacket in Rich | KIMMIE VINCENT Collins Ave | THE9THMUSE Cleo Earrings | SALLY HERSHBERGER X REVO LIMITED EDITION CAPSULE COLLECTION X2 in Gold Frame with Champagne Lenses | SPERRY Maritime Repel Suede Snow Boot in Sand |

SKINCARE | The base was applied from a filming that took place earlier that day | Skin touched up with RIMMEL LONDON Stay Matte Concealer “Linen” | DANESSA MYRICKS BEAUTY Dew Wet Balm “Morning Dew” to freshen the skin | JOUER COSMETICS Highlight “Skinny Dip” | BRONZER | FENTY BEAUTY Sun Stalk'r Instant Warmth Bronzer “Shady Biz” | BLUSH | STEVE LAURENT Blush “Rosè All Day” | EYES | URBAN DECAY COSMETICS Naked3 Eyeshadpw Palette “Nooner” dusted all over the eyes | JOUER COSMETICS Highlight in the inner corners to open the eyes | L’ORÉAL COSMETICS Mascara "Carbon Black" | LIPS | COVER GIRL Sultry Sienna “250" |

HAIR | Hair was prepped with THEURGY Bohemian Bounce to smooth and to add body | Before curling, THEURGY Out Of Body volumizing spray gave the curl hold, memory and heat protection | After brushing through curls, THEURGY Shape Shift texturizing spray applied mostly to the root area to give the style a more voluminous undone texture and make the hair easy to go from one style to the next |

LOOK II | BOSS LADY VIBES

FRONT COVER + PG 26 | SMYTHE Long Shawl Blazer in Pewter Lamé | BLUEBELLA Avia Bodysuit in Black | MAVI Tess Super Skinny in Zipper Fly Black Jeather | TALIA JEWELRY Aria Charm Necklace | MAISON MIRU Large Celestial Illusion Hoops Earrings | LAGOS 18K Caviar Gold Diamond X Ring | SJP BY SARAH JESSICA PARKER Trois in Grey Snake |

EYES | The eyes were changed to a bolder look using KKW BEAUTY (Kim x Mario Palette) “Loyalty" | To deepen the outer V, added a black liquid | LIP | MILANI COSMETICS Color Statement Lipstick “07 Best Red” |

HAIR | Boss lady vibes were created with a deep side part, pinned over side of the ear, and soft waves for a bold sexy edge |

LOOK III | GLAM LOUNGE

PG 29 - PG 32 | AFFFAIR Bodysuit + Beaded Bomber Jacket | OLIVA VON HALLE Bella Bella Envy Short | THE9THMUSE Flow Earrings | LAGOS 18K Caviar Gold Diamond Tassel Ring, 18K Caviar Gold Ring + 18K Caviar Gold Stacking Ring |

EYES | A little shimmer on the lid with BH COSMETICS Shaaanxo Palette "Champagne Shimmer" added | LIP | FENTY BEAUTY Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer “Fussy” |

HAIR | An effortless look was created by just pulling a bit of the hair back, and channeled her inner Bridget Bardot |

LOOK IV | DATE NIGHT

PG 35 - PG 39 | OLIVA VON HALLE X MALEFICENT Aureta Grace | BLANK NYC Collarless Blazer in Cosmic Charge | TLR JEWELRY Focus on Your Earrings | TALIA JEWELRY Opus Charm Necklace |

EYES | The eyes have a bold effect using PACIFICA BEAUTY Beachy Punk Mineral Eyeshadow "Tomboy" | “Rebel” used all over the crease, lid, and bottom over the crease, lid, and bottom lash line | NYX COSMETICS Glitter Primer was applied to the lid | Primer assisted INGLOT Glitter Pigment “Blazin Rose” to stay on the lid | A black liquid liner was added and more mascara | LIP | COVER GIRL Sultry Sienna "250" added | To create an ombré effect, concealer was placed on the center of the lips and FENTY BEAUTY Diamond Milk |

HAIR | Soft waves were pinned to the side for this modern day Boho Cinderella | A layer of THEURGY Enchantment Mist was sprayed through the hair for ultra shine and to block out any humidity from ruining the style | Finally, THEURGY Retrograde Spray, a light workable hairspray was used to complete each look |

IG @Shes.Kimmie

@Laniidoa_Cosmetics

@HairByLeaDeLoy

Read the Dec issue of Athleisure Mag and see Her Recipe For Success with Cat Cora in mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E2. | A FAUX PAS

If you have yet to check out this week’s episode, stop reading this and catch it on your DVR or On Demand as below we have spoilers! If you have watched it or just enjoy reading recaps, then continue on!

Week two continued with a bit of a cliffhanger which involved intimate moments between Hannah B and Peter, sitting on his lap and bringing up the past. Although it seems like they decided to move on with their lives, we can’t say that we don’t believe that she has completely moved on or that Peter is truly ready to focus on the women at hand. We can say that we can appreciate that he was shocked with his feelings, took some time to settle himself and came back in with the intent on the ladies who didn’t get the day time date.

Tonight’s episode had PLENTY of drama including people feeling as if they didn’t get time due to Hannah B being in the mix, Champagne Gate, post rose ceremony antics, a runway showdown and the aftermath of Champagne Gate - which included accusations of bullying! Through it all, we’re taken on quite a ride with Peter and the potential ladies who will share this journey to win his heart.

As always, every episode of ABC’s The Bachelor is tweeted by (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to give their commentary on what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) who continues to provide more scoop on what’s going on and what they anticipate happening in the next episode!

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LAST EPISODE

We were all about Hannah Ann, Kelley, Natasha and Lauren. We think Lauren will win the Bachelor’s heart.

WEEK 2

This week, we’re shaking it up a bit with the ladies who we think will be heading to Hometowns! We continue to include Hannah Ann (how much of a part she played in Champagne Gate, we can’t tell, but there is definite chemistry between her and Peter) and Natasha (we like that she definitely read him and let him know that his behavior was not ok in cutting off the group day date and only having the night one) from our first post This week, we add Sydney who gave us some back story on who she is and Mykenna. This week we said goodbye to one of our faves, Lauren. who was eliminated earlier in the episode and although Kelley is still in the running, we just didn’t see it this week.

Ultimately, we think that Sydney could win Peter’s heart.

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

MYKENNA

NATASHA

SYDNEY

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Colmbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL;

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

9PLAYLIST | PRETTY LITTLE LIARS, YOU, DOLLFACE AND FOUNDER OF BEIS, SHAY MITCHELL

Read the Dec Issue of Athleisure Mag and see 9PLAYLIST | PRETTY LITTLE LIARS, YOU, DOLLFACE AND FOUNDER OF BEIS, SHAY MITCHELL in mag.

THE BACHELOR S24. E1. | LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

Tonight is the night - 3 hours of just focusing on those looking to win The Bachelor’s heart, Hannah Brown and of course Peter! Moments ago, we just finished tweeting the season premier of ABC’s The Bachelor which you can join in show (@AthleisureMag + with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith @ShesKimmie) to see what’s taking place!

Each week we will let you know who our faves were last episode and if we’ve changed up since then as it pertains to who we think should go to Hometowns if we were choosing right now! We will also say who we think should take it all.

We also suggest a podcast that we’re newly obsessed with, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay (contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) and co-hosted by Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) talking about the 30 women for this upcoming season as they had just received the imagery as well as the bios!

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LAST EPISODE

We were all about Courtney, Eunice, Natasha and Tammy. We had Eunice as the winner of Peter’s heart! Eunice will take it all.

WEEK 1

This week, we continue with Natasha from our initial post and added Hannah Ann, Kelley and Lauren. We think that Lauren could definitely take it all.

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

HANNAH ANN

KELLEY

NATASHA

LAUREN

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Colmbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL;

TAMMY, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

GOLDEN GLOBES 2020 | NOMINEES + WINNERS

The 77th Annual Golden Globe Awards took place last night to kick off the official Awards Season. Check out the winners below.

As usual our predictions (bold), winners (italicized) and predictions that became awards winners (bold italicized).

BEST MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA

1917

The Irishman

Joker

Marriage Story

The Two Popes

BEST MOTION PICTURE - MUSICAL OR COMEDY

Dolemite is My Name

Jojo Rabbit

Knives Out

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Rocketman

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA

Cynthia Erivo, Harriet

Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story

Saoirse Ronan, Little Woman

Charlize Theron, Bombshell

Renée Zellweger, Judy

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA

Christian Bale, Ford v. Ferrari

Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory

Adam Driver, Marriage Story

Joaquin Phoenix, Joker

Jonathan Pryce, The Two Popes

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE - MUSICAL OR COMEDY

Awkwafina, The Farewell

Cafe Blanchett, Where’d You Go Bernadette?

Ana de Armas, Knives Out

Beanie Feldstein, Booksmart

Emma Thompson, Late Night

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE - MUSICAL OR COMEDY

Daniel Craig, Knives Out

Roman Griffin Davis, Jojo Rabbit

Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Taron Egerton, Rocketman

Eddie Murphy, Dolemite is My Name

BEST DIRECTOR - MOTION PICTURE

Bong Joon Ho, Parasite

Sam Mendes, 1917

Todd Phillps, Joker

Martin Scorsese, The Irishman

Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

BEST SCREENPLAY - MOTION PICTURE

Noah Baumbach, Marriage Story

Bong Joon Ho and Jin Won Han, Parasite

Anthony McCarten, The Two Popes

Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Steven Zaillian, the Irishman

BEST FOREIGN - LANGUAGE FILM

The Farewell

Les Miserables

Pain and Glory

Parasite

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM

Frozen 2

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World

The Lion King

Missing Link

Toy Story 4

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE - MOTION PICTURE

Alexandre Desplat, Little Women

Hildur Guonadottir, Joker

Randy Newman, Marriage Story

Thomas Newman, 1917

Daniel Pemberton, Motherless Brooklyn

BEST ORIGINAL SONG - MOTION PICTURE

“Beautiful Ghosts” (Cats) - Taylor Swift + Andrew Lloyd Webber

“I’m Gonna Love Me Again” (Rocketman) - Elton John + Bernie Taupin

“Into the Unknown” (Frozen 2) - Robert Lopez + Kristen Anderson-Lopez

“Spirit” (The Lion King) - Beyonce Knowles-Carter, Timothy McKenzie + Ilya Salmanzadeh

“Stand Up” (Harriet) - Joshuah Brian Campbell + Cynthia Erivo

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN ANY MOTION PICTURE

Kathy Bates, Richard Jewell

Annette Benning, The Report

Laura Dern, Marriage Story

Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers

Margot Robbie, Bombshell

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN ANY MOTION PICTURE

Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes

Al Pacino, The Irishman

Joe Pesci, The Irishman

Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

BEST TELEVISION SERIES - DRAMA

Big Little Lives

The Crown

Killing Eve

The Morning Show

Succession

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES - DRAMA

Jennifer Aniston, The Morning Show

Olivia Colman, The Crown

Jodie Comer, Killing Eve

Nicole Kidman, Big Little Lies

Reese Witherspoon, The Morning Show

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES - DRAMA

Brian Cox, Succession

Kit Harington, Game of Thrones

Rami Malek, Mr. Robot

Tobias Menzies, The Crown

Billy Porter, Pose

BEST TELEVISION SERIES - COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Barry

Fleabag

The Kominsky Method

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

The Politician

BEST PERFORMANCES BY AN ACTRESS IN A TELEVISION SERIES - COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Christina Applegate, Dead to Me

Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Kirsten Dunst, On Becoming a God in Central Florida

Natasha Lyonne, Russian Doll

Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A TELEVISION SERIES - COMEDY OR MUSICAL

Michael Douglas, The Kominsky Method

Bill Hader, Barry

Ben Platt, The Politician

Paul Rudd, Living with Yourself

Ramy Youssef, Ramy

BEST TELEVISION LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Catch-22

Chernobyl

Fosse/Verdon

The Loudest Voice

Unbelievable

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Christopher Abbott, Catch-22

Russell Crowe, The Loudest Voice

Jarred Harris, Chernobyl

Sam Rockwell, Fosse/Verdon

Sacha Baron Cohen, The Spy

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Kaitlyn Denver, Unbelievable

Joey King, The Act

Helen Mirren, Catherine the Great

Merritt Wever, Unbelievable

Michelle Williams, Fosse/Verdon

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Patricia Arquette, The Act

Toni Collette, Unbelievable

Meryl Streep, Big Little Lies

Emily Watson, Chernobyl
Helena Bonham Carter, The Crown

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A SERIES, LIMITED SERIES OR MOTION PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION

Alan Arkin, The Kominsky Method

Kieran Culkin, Succession

Andrew Scott, Fleabag

Stellan Skarsgard, Chernobyl

Henry Winkler, Barry

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

BACK TO THE HILLS WITH WHITNEY PORT

This summer, many of us enjoyed seeing The Hills: New Beginnings which brought back our favorite reality stars from The Hills as well as new castmembers to continue this MTV classic. One of our faves that we have interviewed previously on Athleisure Mag is back on the show, Whitney Port. We wanted to know more about her decision to bring her personal life back to the screen, projects she's working on and how she continues to lead a normal and full life even when a migraine hits!

ATHLEISURE MAG: Like many, we were glad to see you in the reboot of MTV The Hills Beginnings. We were fans of the original and loved you on this current season. What was it like for you to come back and what was your decision to do so?

WHITNEY PORT: I honestly wasn’t so sure about it at first. I was nervous to come back and to put my life and everything going on with my family back on TV. Then I just thought, it sounds fun, I’m in a good place with everybody and why not reconnect and give people something that’s nostalgic and something that they enjoyed watching. I do think that I had some nervousness about not knowing what people were going to be like or to start – you never know with Reality TV people. Are they just going to start drama out of nowhere? You have to be nervous and you have to have your guard up a little bit. But ultimately, I felt that the show was a huge part of my life and that it was a platform that allowed me to do everything that I do now so I thought, “why not?”

AM: Well it was so fun to see you again and are there other projects that you have going on that we should keep an eye out for?

WP: Yes for sure! Today, I’m talking about Excedrin Migraine – not that it’s a project, but this condition is something that I have suffered with for quite awhile. I feel that it’s my duty to talk about Excedrin because it’s the one thing that I can do to make them go away so that I can be present and can take care of all the things that I want to do and am passionate about, you know? It can be hard, especially as a mom, when you’re hit by one. Recording my podcast or my collection with Rent the Runway coming out in April – so there all these exciting things that I want to do that are dreams, goals and passions and keeping myself healthy and that I’m migraine free is really important to me.

AM: There are a lot of people that suffer with them. Do you have certain kinds of triggers that kick in with you that you know that it’s going to happen? What makes a migraine so different then a regular headache?

WP: I mean a migraine is all consuming. I start to not be able to see straight, I get sweaty palms, a lack of energy, I just get a pounding pain in my head and when these things start to happen – I know it’s coming. If I can drink a full glass of water, take my Excedrin and get a little protein in me those are usually the things that help them to go away before it gets to a place where I just can’t handle it.

AM: Why did you decide to partner with Excedrin and why is it so good for migraine conditions?

WP: I decided to partner because it’s what I was taking. I talk about my migraine issues on my podcast and on my social. I would talk about Excedrin and that it was something that helped. Naturally, they reached out and said that they wanted to work together because they saw that it was something that was a part of my life in a big way. In terms of what is in it – I’m not a doctor. But I know that what is in there with its ingredients that when it comes together it’s combined strength allows me to function!

AM: In terms of your partnership with Excedrin, what does your partnership look like with them whether they are things on your social, events etc?

WP: You can read my blog post on WhitneyPort.com to find out how I use it and how other people should use it as well.

AM: As someone who is so busy, as a mom, wife, entrepreneur and Reality Star, what are 3 things that you like to do to take time for yourself?

WP: A couple of things I do for myself are: I take a hot yoga class. It changes my whole mood and it’s an hour to myself where I am sweating out so much – I’m energized and I’m ready to get back to the grind on my career as well as being a mom! I am a huge proponent of massages! I know that they are a luxury, but I use the App Soothe which comes to your house. Once I put Sonny down for the night, I will order a massage and it’s pretty affordable and I don’t have to leave the house and can do it while Sonny is sleeping. You can tell the therapist that you have a migraine issue and they can work on certain areas to help like around the jaw, head or neck. Then, another thing is just trying my best to fill my body with things that are going to be good fuel for it instead of just empty calories. I drink these really good smoothies from Kreation that have turmeric, Kreation Juice, coconut and all of these good anti-inflammatory type things. I try not to eat a lot of processed sugar and I try to have a healthy dose of greens everyday and definitely meat, protein etc. My husband in the morning before my yoga will scramble me 2 eggs with a little grated cheddar in there for some extra protein. I think that physical activity, something luxurious and feeding your body with good stuff will set you up for success. Also taking time to just listen to good music and taking some deep breaths can make a big difference. A lot of us have a commute whether it’s in cars or buses – putting in my earpods, listening to some calming music and taking some deep breaths can really ground me and put me back into a present mind space.

IG @WhitneyPort

Read the Nov Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Back to the Hills with Whitney Port in mag.

THE BACHELOR | MEET THE CAST

Next month on Jan 6th, ABC’s The Bachelor kicks off where Peter Weber looks for love with a number of amazing women. We’re still a few days away from being able to see how this plays out and if Hannah G (last year’s Bachelorette) will come back. Either way, we’ll be live tweeting (@AthleisureMag) each episode with our Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director, Kimmie Smith (@ShesKimmie) to see what’s taking place! For now, you can check out each of the ladies, think about the 4 women that you can envision will be going to Hometowns and click their names to get their bios from ABC and we’ll see you at 8pm EST!

Right now if we had to make our favorites for Hometowns, we’re thinking Courtney, Eunice, Natasha and Tammy. Right now, we think Peter and Eunice would be a great couple! Each week, we will share who has been eliminated, and who our 4 pics at the moment for HOMETOWNS are. We’ll also keep you in the loop on a number of other news that we come across as well as our favorite tweets during the night as we chat along with a number of people each week!

We also suggest a podcast that is new to us, Wondery’s Bachelor Happy Hour which is hosted by Rachel Lindsay one of our faves hands down - contestant on The Bachelor Season 21; The Bachelorette Season 13) who shares with their listeners all things Bachelor and Bachelor related! Earlier today, we listened to a new episode that was co-hosted with Becca Kufrin (contestant on The Bachelor Season 22; The Bachelorette Season 14) talking about the 30 women for this upcoming season as they had just received the imagery as well as the bios! They gave their first impressions and insight on what it’s like to be in the house as well! We’ll definitely be checking into this podcast to get more information as well as to see if there are other things that they will be able to let us know what’s taking place!

OUR HOMETOWN PICKS

COURTNEY

EUNICE

NATASHA

TAMMY

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ALAYAH, 24 - Miss Texas 2019; San Antonio, TX

ALEXA, 27 - Esthetician; Chicago, IL

AVONLEA, 27 - Cattle Rancher; Fort Worth, TX

COURTNEY, 26 - COSMETOLOGIST; Venice, FL

DEANDRA, 23 - Home Care Coord; Plano, TX

EUNICE, 23 - Flight Attendant; Chicago, IL

HANNAH ANN, 23 - Model; Knoxville, TN

JADE, 26 - Flight Attendant; Mesa, AZ

JASMINE, 25 - Client Relations Mgr; Houston, TX

JENNA, 22 - Nursing Student; New Lennox, IL

KATRINA, 28 - Pro Sports Dancer; Chicago, IL

KELLEY, 27 - Attorney; Chicago, IL

KELSEY, 28 - Professional Clothier; Des Moines, IA

KIARRA, 23 - Nanny; Kennesaw, GA

KYLIE, 26 - Ent Sales Assoc; Santa Monica, CA

LAUREN, 26 - Marketing Executive; Glendale, CA

LEXI, 26 - Marketing Coordinator; NY, NY

MADISON, 23 - Foster Parent Recruiter; Auburn, AL

MAURISSA, 23 - Patient Care Coord; Atlanta, GA

MEGAN, 26 - Flight Attendant; San Francisco, CA

MYKENNA, 22 - Fashion Blogger; Langley, British Colmbia, Canada

NATASHA, 31 - Event Planner; NY, NY

PAYTON, 23 - Biz Dev Rep; Wellesley, MA

SARAH, 24 - Medical Radiographer; Knoxville, TN

SAVANNAH, 27 - Realtor; Houston, TX

SHIANN, 27 - Admin Asst; Las Vegas, NV

SYDNEY, 24 - Retail Mktg Mgr; Birmingham, AL;

Tammy, 24 - House Flipper; Syracuse, NY

VICTORIA F., 25 - Med Sales Rep; Virgina Beach, VA

VICTORIA P., Nurse; Alexandria, LA

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW WITH NO KID HUNGRY'S JENNY DIRKSEN AND CHEF ELIZABETH FALKNER

Over the past few years, we have enjoyed sharing initiatives that No Kid Hungry creates in order to ensure that childhood hunger is not an issue that has to be a concern in this country. We caught up with No Kid Hungry's Jenny Dirksen who is the National Director of Champion Engagement and Chef Elizabeth Falkner and talked about No Kid Hungry, their initiatives throughout the year and with Thanksgiving and Holiday festivities underway, what we can find on their dinner tables this year! We held this in-depth conversation at The Flatiron Room in NYC.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We’re so excited to have both of you here as we have worked with No Kid Hungry for a number of years and sharing your chef’s stories as well as your initiatives with our readers. We’ve also been fans of your storytelling through food as well Chef Falkner so having both of you here during the holiday season is a treat!

Chef, we’ve seen you on a number of TV shows whether you’re competing, judging, or culinary events such as StarChefs which we just saw you at a few weekends ago in Brooklyn, can you tell us the moment that you realized that you wanted to cook?

CHEF ELIZABETH FALKNER: I never thought about cooking as a culinary profession until I was out living in San Francisco going to art school and working at Williams-Sonoma part-time. Really because what we now call the California Food Revolution was happening all around me. So it felt like an art and political and everything kind of movement. A handful of mostly female chefs were getting all of the agriculture sort of more exciting and most interesting product with more farm to table kind of stuff almost 30 years ago. So it kind of swooped me up. AM: What was the moment for you when you realized you wanted to work within the culinary industry. You have an amazing background as a chef and then being in a managerial role.

PHOTO CREDIT | Paul Farkas (L: Chef ELizabeth Falkner; R: No Kid Hungry’s Jenny Dirksen)

PHOTO CREDIT | Paul Farkas

PHOTO CREDIT | Paul Farkas (L: Athleisure Mag Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director and Co-Exec Producer and Host of Athleisure Kitchen podcast, Kimmie Smith)

JENNY DIRKSEN: I grew up loving food and loving mostly to eat! I took on self-imposed vegetarianism and really educated myself on nutrition and making my own meals. I don’t think that I understood until college that that could make a profession out of that. I was working as a barista at Heyday which is no more, but is like a Dean and Deluca which is also no more and I watched the folks working which were all dudes in the prepared foods part and I thought, “how do you get to do that?” That was the beginning for me and I did get to cook for a few years and I chickened out and went to the office side of the world.

CHEF EF: I wouldn’t call it chickening out, you probably said, “that’s not for me – I want to do something else.”

JD: I think that I had actually injured my back and I said, “I’m not capable of standing up at my station right now chef.” And I had the opportunity to work in the office of the restaurant and not realizing how much fun that would be in supporting everyone that was delighting the guests all day long. Through that, I had the opportunity to move into the executive office where I spent a good chunk of my time and learned that restaurants and chefs can create social change and that was the coolest to me.

AM: How do you define your style of cooking as I know you do sweet and savory and you’re so versatile.

CHEF EF: Well first of all, I don’t like to be stereotyped at all which is just a part of who I am. I love exploring everything through the medium of food. To me, food is a lot like learning languages and I am just really interested in storytelling as food evolves into different places at different times. I think of my style as much more explorative as opposed to a specific genre or ethnicity. I really like exploring everything and the more things that I don’t know, I like to know more about them.

AM: As the National Director of Champion Engagement at No Kid Hungry, tell us about the role you have in this position?

JD: I’m really fortunate as I work alongside our entire team that engages with chefs. So all of the ways that chefs help us to fundraise for the work itself - Taste of the Nation a broad scale tasting event, No Kid Hungry dinners – sometimes they’re intimate sometimes they’re galas, Chefs Cycle and we’re able to take all of these culinary professionals that have worked with us to help us fundraise and we say, “hey do you want to come to Capitol Hill and actually meet with your legislatures and talk to them about what you are fundraising for and ask them for legislative change or appropriations to support legislation that we’re really enthusiastic about? Would you like to lend your voice to media and tell others what we’re doing. Come see the work up close and bring them into schools to see how what we do works up close. I also am in regular touch with some of our most engaged culinary professionals to let them know what we are up to. There is so much nitty gritty in the work and those that say that they really want to know what we are up to, we get that message out to them. What we really want to do is to create a community of caring individuals who are passionate about ending childhood hunger and through doing that, they allow us to grow new fundraising platforms and also new ways of getting the actual work done.

PHOTO COURTESY | The Flatiron Room

AM: How did you decide that you wanted to be a part of this?

CHEF EF: Well a couple of things. First, I’ve been cooking for a long time and I have done events with No Kid Hungry and Share Our Strength many years ago when it first started on the cooking side of things. I do a lot of charity events still even though I don’t work in kitchens full time and that’s just because chefs have this power to influence and to just cook and raise dollars as well as awareness for a lot of things such as No Kid Hungry.

Chefs Cycle has been something that I have been wanting to do. I was running half marathons and the NY Marathon in 2016 and I was like, “how am I going to do both?” I was raising money for Team for Kids because I like for kids to exercise too! Then after last year when I was running 3 marathons, my doctor said, “I don’t think that you should run as much.” I was like, “Great! I’ll sign up for Chefs Cycle.” So I started to do cycling and that’s how it started! Because of that, that it’s not this simple thing to train for. Riding for 300 miles is no joke and training for that is no joke. So I just like the idea that I still like to cook for these kinds of events, but to also be able to do something athletic that’s way out of my comfort zone is also such a good message to show how important it is, but also a great message for chefs to do something like that.

I’m kind of one of those people that are always telling other cooks and people in general that being aware of what you’re eating and ultimately what you’re physically doing is going to help you in the longevity of your career.

AM: How do you train for that? I mean, it’s 300 miles!

CHEF EF: I mean what’s really cool about it is that this year, when we do the ride in Bend, Oregon next June – we’ve formed a team. Adele Nelson, Director, Chefs Cycle for No Kid Hungry, connected me with Jess Cerra a professional cyclist who just retired. So we just decided to form a team, Team Themyscira because that is where Wonder Woman is from. It’s not exclusively a team for women, but the focus is to get more women riding. Stephanie Izard (first female chef to win BRAVO’s Top Chef Season 4, Chef/Co-Owner of Girl and the Goat, Little Goat and Duck, Duck Goat in Chicago (and James Beard Foundation Award Winner) is also riding and actually just texted me last night asking if men could participate in this. Obviously, we’re not sexist, but it’s a team of really great women. Some have done this race before and Hillary Sterling (Executive Chef at Vic’s in NYC) said, “Hey I am going to be riding” and I told her she had to join my team! Duskie Estes (Food Network food personality as a contestant and judge as well as Chef/Co-Owner of The Black Piglet and Black Pig Meat Co) are also going to ride as well. It’s a bunch of really cool people.

What’s cool is we have a couple of professional cyclists on our team.

JD: Oh yeah, across the board! The cyclists are like, “Cool, we get to hang out with these chefs!”

CHEF EF: They’re already giving us tips and training if we want it. Like, I didn’t know that you’re not supposed to wear underwear underneath your shorts.

AM: Yup, you learn that real quick!

CHEF EF: I was like thanks, I needed to know that this year!

PHOTO COURTESY | The Flatiron Room

AM: When you have completed this race, what do you do after that? Does your body just feel incapacitated for like 2 days?

CHEF EF: By the time you have trained for it, you’re so amped for it. This year in Santa Rosa it was nice the first day and then it rained the last two days. I had never ridden in the rain before so I was a little scared about that as it was something that I hadn’t really done. I was like, I will try it, but if it feels scary, then I will stop. We ended up riding the whole day except for when I met this women from Canada who had a flat about half way in the day which is fine and we came back which I was fine with because it was freezing. Then we got rain gear and on the 3rd day, we were maniacs and we just didn’t really care and we were riding around in the pouring rain. But the camaraderie was just so much fun and everyone was so supportive and it’s a really great event and it raises a lot of money too!

AM: We were just going to ask how much did you raise?

JD: I don’t know the year by year count, but since we have started, we have raised $2.5 million just in the rides and we have about 4 or 5 under our belt.

CHEF EF: Like I raised, $8,500 last year and I’m shooting for at least that this year.

AM: How do you decide on your end what chef goes into what program and what is that process like?

JD: Again, I’m fortunate to have started at this organization which was 20 years in. There were a wealth of chefs that were already taking part. My old boss, Danny Meyer (Founder and CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group) had been on their board for years and years. Knowing people through No Kid Hungry had already been a connection point for me professionally. We’re very lucky that people come to us and that a number of people come through other chefs like when Elizabeth will say, “I did this crazy ride and you have to come do it too.” Sometimes we’re branching into a market that we haven’t been in before and I’ll ask the chefs who we work with who they know. We’ll do some reading. We’re thrilled to have chefs who have been reviewed and have received rewards, but that is not the starting line. I want people who are passionate about food and feeding others and wanting to make a difference. Those are our people.

AM: So non-chefs can also participate?

JD: Everyone has a role in ending childhood hunger! For my specific work, we talk about engaging culinary professionals because there is front of house, beverage folks, office types and those that are involved in making restaurants exciting places for eating and a lot of fun. We want all of those people working with us!

AM: With Thanksgiving, knowing that you guys do things year around, what are initiatives that are taking place during this season that we should know about?

JD: The Tuesday after Thanksgiving is known as Giving Tuesday and it’s a very big day for charitable giving whether doing it in person or online. That’s Dec 3rd this year. You can go to NoKidHungry.org to see everything that we are doing or following us online @NoKidHungry. I think that 2 things that are especially interesting are the generous community at Food52 is benefitting us in our work through their Food52 Holiday Swap which has gone on for years. You bake something and send to someone else and they kind of match make between the bakers and everyone makes a contribution to be involved. That is happening at Food52.com.

This year, we’re benefitting from a fun holiday auction that Bon Appétit is doing they issue a bunch of different covers to go with the Nov issue and you can collect them all. To do that, you can go to Ebay for Charity for No Kid Hungry on that page.

AM: As we head into the Christmas season, are there specific ones for that as well?

JD: I think that end of year giving is the big push at that point. Throughout the year we have these incredible culinary events that we have mentioned: Taste of the Nation, our No Kid Hungry dinners and you can find out more about this through our events page on NoKidHungry.org. Of course there is also Chefs Cycle and we look for folks to make a contribution and to support their favorite chefs at ChefsCycle.org.

CHEF EF: Yeah, you can just support a rider on the website or a team – like Team Themyscira.

AM: Just in case you wanted to know about one team in particular ha!

As someone who is out there whether you’re cooking to raise funds, being at events, charitable functions being on social media etc – how important is it for chefs to do this kind of visibility and activity in terms of their culinary careers?

CHEF EF: I don’t think that a chef has to do things like that. Some people may think that you have to in order to be more successful. I think it depends on where you are. I know a lot of chefs who work in their kitchens and they don’t have time to do stuff like that and I don’t think it’s a negative and you can probably see it in their food. You put that much more work into your food, it’s going to show! I think it’s great when people are showing stuff and the power of social media where people are able to show their food and what they are doing – I think that that is amazing and how that can go around the world.

AM: Will there be another restaurant?

CHEF EF: It’s not my goal to open another restaurant. I have already done that for a good chunk of my life. It’s not that it’s too hard work for me. It’s just that I’m so involved in food policy, food waste and I talk a lot about helping kids, teaching kids and speaking a lot more on all of these different issues. I’m constantly doing recipe development. I don’t even know how I would have another restaurant at this point in my life because I’m so busy!

JD: Well that’s a nice thing!

CHEF EF: Well there’s a lot to do!

AM: We enjoy seeing your social and seeing you do all of the things that you have mentioned and really just getting in there and doing the work.

CHEF EF: I learned a lot from the food business too and if you can do that in what I like to call a theater – the restaurant, but you can also take it on the road these days. I ended up cooking in China this year and I ended up cooking in so many places this year at all of these different places and I actually like cooking with ingredients from different parts of the world too because it helps me change it up.

AM: What are your 3 favorite ingredients to have on hand?

CHEF EF: Oh my goodness. I have to have Olive Oil, that’s a critical one. It changes, but I’m in love with some of the things that I experienced in Asia. I came back loving this fermented Broad Bean Paste which is slightly like fermented Chinese Black Beans which is more like a Fava Bean. It’s a fermented spicy Chinese Sichuan specialty that’s in Mapo Doufu for example. I have this obsession with Chinese food that makes me hungry just thinking about it!

Then I think having Meyer Lemons is kind of one of my favorite ingredients. I’m from California and I need that zest and I love citrus. I still try to sprinkle into my food whenever I can.

AM: What are your 3 favorite ingredients to have on hand?

JD: I’m a big stock person. My slow cooker is always going with chicken stock – I feel that it boosts us. Ginger so good – it’s great for external and internal. Cardamom is another one. It's so holiday to me.

AM: What’s for Thanksgiving this year?

CHEF EF: It’s so funny. I’m making breakfast for my brother and girlfriend for this Thanksgiving. Then they’re going to go to her parents house which I love going to. Her mom is Korean American and I enjoyed going there as she is a really good cook. It’s a cross between classic Thanksgiving dishes and a number of Korean ones and I think that I like all of the Korean ones better! So then I am working on a project right now so I don’t have time to really spend around Thanksgiving so much – so I think that I will just spend time making more Chinese food!

JD: I’m actually getting together with my neighbor and we’re going to brainstorm our menu as we are cooking together. Lots of things happening at the Green Market right now. I have one of those mega Brussel Sprout branches right now. The top sprouts are so huge it looks like Choi and the farmer told me that he actually had people taking it and slow roasting it whole with the stalk in the oven – I’m very curious and may have to go there. Lots of squash – love a red curry squash. There will still be turkey, there will still be pie.

CHEF EF: I feel like, unfortunately, that it’s put all on one day which is not how I really think about this time of year. I think Thanksgiving lasts from Oct – Dec because it’s all about this harvest.

AM: Is there anything else that you want to share with us?

JD: I want everyone to know that everyone has a Strength to Share in the fight against hunger. There are so many ways to get involved and make a difference. You can certainly donate online, host a bake sale, a personal bake sale that you do on your own, attend our events and find an opportunity to speak up on behalf of kids to your elected officials. Once again, all of that can be found on No Kid Hungry.org.

CHEF EF: I just want to say that every dollar helps and I don’t think that any kid should be hungry when they’re going to school or summer programs. How are you going to be able to think or do all the things you need to be a kid at school if you’re hungry?

JD: Elizabeth is right. Every dollar that No Kid Hungry receives, we can connect a kid with up to 10 meals so it’s really impactful!

IG: @NoKidHungry

@ChefFalkner

Hear No Kid Hungry's Jennifer Dirken and Chef Elizabeth Falkner this month on our show, Athleisure Kitchen which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the Nov Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Something You Should Know with No Kid Hungry’s Jenny Dirksen and Chef Elizabeth Falkner in mag.

9LIST STORI3S | HARLEY PASTERNAK

Read the Nov Issue of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST STORI3S with Harley Pasternak in Mag. If you’ve missed previous 9LIST STORI3S or other 9PLAYLIST - see them here.

SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW | MIGRAINE WITH DR. ELIZABETH SENG + LALA ANTHONY

When a headache hits, it makes doing the most rudimentary of tasks so difficult! All you can think about is the pounding in your head. For those that suffer from migraines, the affects are even more apparent and can really alter their day to day lives. Whether you or someone that you know is affected by this, we sat down and talked with Dr. Elizabeth Seng to find out about what migraines are, how they are started and why they are so problematic. In addition, we sat down with STARZ's Power and FOX's BH90210's LaLa Anthony to find out how she works through migraines and how she is able to cope when they take place!

ATHLEISURE MAG: What is a headache and what are the symptoms when one is coming up?

DR. ELIZABETH SENG: A headache is a neurological attack characterized by head pain. Depending on the headache type, there may be other neurological symptoms as well. Depending on headache type, the head pain can be caused by pain receptors in head and neck muscles or in the membrane around the brain and blood vessels. There are many different triggers for headaches and symptoms can vary from person to person.

AM: What is the difference between a headache and a migraine?

DR. ES: There are many different types of headache disorders. Tension-type headache, the most common type of headache, is typically a pressing pain on both sides of the head. A migraine attack typically includes a pulsing pain on one side of the head and is accompanied by a variety of additional symptoms from your average headache including pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light, sound, and/or smell. Anyone can suffer from migraine, but they are more likely to occur in women, ages 20 to 45. Three out of every four migraine sufferers are women, and roughly 39 million Americans suffer from migraine.

AM: What are the symptoms of a migraine and how do you know when one is coming on?

DR. ES: A migraine attack typically includes a pulsing pain on one side of the head and is accompanied by a variety of additional symptoms from your average headache including pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light, sound, and/or smell. For both tension-type headache and migraine, the factors that trigger attacks vary widely from person to person. Determining what triggers your migraine attacks can help you better manage them. Regular stress management and keeping a consistent sleep and eating schedule can help sufferers avoid a migraine attack. You should also keep an acute medication on you, such as Excedrin Migraine, to take at the first sign of a migraine attack could do that.

Migraine should always be diagnosed by a doctor, so if you think you are experiencing a migraine, talk to your doctor to get the proper diagnosis and treatment plan.

AM: What is it about a migraine that makes people have to miss events or even to change aspects of their lives?

DR. ES: Most of my professional research has a focus on head pain and specifically, migraines, and most people don’t realize that migraines can disrupt a person’s everyday life and pull them away from important moments. Some days my patients are completely bedridden due to a migraine and other days they’ll power through an event but won’t truly feel present even if they are physically there. That’s because while on the outside they may “look fine,” on the inside they are managing much more which pulls them away from being mentally present in the moment.

While not often discussed, unfortunately, this is very common. A recent survey from Excedrin found that nearly 9 in 10 migraine sufferers have had to miss an important event, like a wedding or graduation, due to a migraine, and 91% of people with migraines would like a second chance at all of the moments they’ve missed.

That’s why I’m excited to partner with Excedrin on Excedrin Take Two (Oct 7th - Oct 18th) to help shine a light on the physical and emotional toll that migraines can take, and to help sufferers relive the moments they’ve missed – this time without the migraine.

AM: In the category of migraines, are their varying levels?

DR. ES: Yes. The biggest category of migraine is different frequencies. About 10% of people have migraine that we consider episodic, which occurs on fewer than half of the days of the month. However, about 2% of people have chronic migraine, or migraine on which headache attacks occur on 15 or more days per month. Chronic migraine is particularly disabling. There are also different symptoms you can get with migraine: some people experience an aura prior to the head pain onset, which often manifests as visual symptoms like geometric patterns, flashing lights or possibly a shimmering effect (sort of like heat waves). If you think you have migraine, be sure to talk to a doctor to get an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan.

AM: Is there a number of migraines that one may have where a person suffering from them may feel that they need to visit their doctor to ensure that there isn’t something else that is going on?

DR. ES: We consider a person to have the disease of migraine if they have experienced five or more attacks in their lifetime. If you have experienced several headache attacks you think might be migraine, it is a good time to go to your doctor to get a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. There are two typed of migraine treatment: acute treatments are used at the moment of the attack to reduce the attack severity. Some people may use over the counter medication, like Excedrin Migraine, whereas others may use prescription medication acutely to treat the attack. All people with migraine, of any frequency, should have an acute migraine treatment plan. Preventive treatments are taken routinely to reduce migraine frequency, such as daily medications, injections every three months, or lifestyle changes. People with migraine who are experiencing 4 or more attacks per month should talk to their doctor about prevention options.

AM: What is it about Excedrin that helps those that suffer from migraines?

DR. ES: Excedrin Migraine is a combination of three components: acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine. Excedrin Migraine is an FDA-approved over-the-counter medication for migraine.

After chatting with Dr. Seng to find out about the differences between a headache and a migraine, how they start and the need to diagnose this condition, we sat down with LaLa Anthony to give us more information on how she handles this while living a busy life as a mom, actress and more!

ATHLEISURE MAG: We've enjoyed watching you in Power and I loved that you were in Beverly Hills 90210 Revival and hope that you and the show will be back for another season - what's your process like when you go about selecting shows that you will be apart of?

LALA ANTHONY: I like to pick characters that I’m drawn to and feel like I can bring to life. I try to look for different roles so I’m not always playing the same type of character. 90210 was definitely something that was different for me and I had a great time doing it.

AM: Being a busy mom and always having a number of shows and appearances you're a part of have migraines affected those experiences?

LA: Migraines have definitely affected many experiences and caused me to not feel present for certain moments. I always power through for work or to shoot – you have to because when you’re on set there is a whole production crew relying on you to show up. But there have been other days I can’t function or get out of bed.

I get really upset when a migraine impacts moments with my family. There have been events at my son’s school that I couldn’t go to because of a migraine and I had to rest in bed all day. Kiayn is in middle school now and with school, basketball practice and hanging out with friends, family moments are even more important. It's frustrating that migraines can get in the way.

Luckily, I’ve learned my triggers and to treat my migraine as soon as I feel it coming with Excedrin Migraine. It’s a brand that has really helped me get my life back.

AM: Many battle issues with migraines, what are your triggers when you know that it's coming on and what are you able to do to alleviate it?

LA: I know immediately when a migraine is coming. Changes to my routine including not sleeping, eating certain foods and stress will trigger a migraine and I'll be on edge all day. It starts off feeling like a mild headache but gets rapidly worse. I try to catch it and treat it right away with Excedrin Migraine so it doesn’t disrupt the rest of my day and I can continue to be present.

AM: Do migraines create situations where you're not able to participate in something or be at a 100%?

LA: All the time. I get a migraine about once a week and unfortunately, migraines can really leave me exhausted and with no energy. Even if I’m having a great day, a migraine can come on suddenly and make it difficult to feel in the moment. I was struggling with a migraine at a family reunion once and it was so hard to feel present. It was really disappointing since family reunions only happen once every couple of years and it’s something I was really looking forward to.

AM: What is the Excedrin Take Two program?

LA: This partnership with Excedrin was so authentic for me because, like I’ve said, it’s a brand that really does help me get back to myself when a migraine is trying to sideline me. And I’m not alone at all in that – in fact, almost 9 in 10 migraine sufferers say they have had to miss an important life event due to a migraine and 91% of them would like a second chance at their missed moments. So that’s what Excedrin Take Two is all about! Excedrin is giving migraine sufferers a second chance to relive and enjoy a moment missed by a migraine. All you have to do is share your story at for a chance to win a “Take Two!”

AM: As someone who spends a lot of time traveling, what are 3 things that are in your carryon or maybe a kit that you keep on set that you have at the ready to either make you comfortable or to feel like you have a bit of home with you.

LA: I always like to pack a candle and I always keep my favorite snacks (like trail mix / Crunch bars), and Excedrin Migrane, just in case!

PHOTOS COURTESY | LaLa Collection NY

IG @LaLa

Read the Oct Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Something You Should Know | Migraine with Dr. Elizabeth Seng and LaLa Anthony in mag.