THE PICK ME UP

Read the Oct Issue #58 of Athleisure Mag and see The Pick Me Up in mag.

ATHLEISURE MAG | #58 OCT 2020

In this month’s issue as we continue into the fall, our Oct Issue #58 is covered by DJ/Producer/Music Exec and Entrepreneur, Steve Aoki. Our virtual cover shoot showcases fall style within Fitness, WFH and Out + About. We talk about Steve’s impressive career in music, building his label DIM MAK, being an entertainer, the process of creating music and collaborating, Neon Future series, being a Tech Future Optimist and more. Music has definitely gotten us through these times and we took some time to talk with Ultra Record’s Icona Pop and SOFI TUKKER to talk about their newest single Spa, how they have been spending the past few months and how they connected to create this song.

This month, 4 X NBA Champion LeBron James shares 9 songs that we should listen to in this month’s 9PLAYLIST which inspired him as he focused on #RevengeSznCompleted. 30 Olympic + World Champion Medalist Simone Biles of Team USA Gymnastics shares her favorites and why in our 9LIST STORI3S.

Read the Oct Issue #58 of Athleisure Mag here.

HOW CBD CAN ENHANCE ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE

In a report published in the Hawaii Journal of Medicine and Public Health, people who use CBD experienced a 64 percent decrease in daily pain. CBD has become mainstream in the wellness world within a span of a few years, and it’s easy to see why. In fact, athletes have also said that CBD can make you feel relaxed, improve your mood, and alleviate stress. Considering athletes go through rigorous training, cannabidiol could be a potential therapeutic regimen for injuries, mental hindrances, and pain without experiencing the feeling of getting "high." But could CBD enhance athletic performance? Read on to find out. 

Control Appetite and Weight 

As an athlete, you are required to eat healthy foods and take the right supplement to boost longevity in the gym or racing track as well as enhance performance. For these reasons, it’s advisable to incorporate cannabidiol products into your diet. Unlike THC, CBD does not induce unhealthy eating, but instead, it controls your appetite. If you can’t stick to foods that promote peak performance or want to reduce weight loss, consider using CBD oil. It will make you feel satisfied after eating, so you don’t overeat, as it also improves insulin function.  

Boost The Immune System

A study by NCBI shows that cannabinoids have anti-inflammatory properties, which help regulate inflammation and the production of white blood cells. So when used, CBD can boost the immune system to fight infections and keep you healthy. The antioxidants present in cannabinoids also improve your cardiovascular health to ensure you perform well during sports activities. But for you to enjoy this benefit, you need to buy high-quality cannabidiol oils. Shopping for quality CBD oil entails researching reputable brands, understanding the different formats of CBD and dosage, and how to take it.  

Improve Post-workout Recovery

For athletes to achieve peak performance, they must continuously push their bodies during training. Since cannabidiol contains anti-inflammatory properties, it can help relieve pain during and after training. Whether you’re a weekend warrior, go to the gym regularly or a professional athlete, recovery is crucial to prevent delayed muscle soreness, injuries, and ensure you perform at your best. 

CBD is gaining popularity in the wellness and sports industry for various reasons. It offers athletes a new and effective way to enhance performance. After all, cannabidiol oil could mark a turning point on how athletes recover after training to ensure they perform at their best in the gym and during competitions.

PERSONALIZED JEWELRY AND THE POWER OF THOUGHTFUL GIFTING

When giving a gift, the phrase ‘it’s the thought that counts’ is often bandied about. While it is meant to reassure the giver that their choice of gift is less important than the act of giving itself, in reality it provides an excuse for people to actually think less about what they choose.

Here is a look at how truly thoughtful giving has real power and significance, and how personalized jewelry applies in this context.

PHOTO CREDIT | Pixabay/Pony_Up

The benefits of going bespoke

When it comes to thoughtful gifting, it is very much a case of opting for quality over quantity. You can shower a partner, friend or family member with as many hastily-ordered items as you wish, but unless you have put real thought into picking what you give, these tokens will be quickly forgotten.

Conversely, if you order personalized jewelry from a site like Diamondere.com, you will be putting your own stamp on the gift and ensuring that it is as memorable and meaningful as possible.

There is a reason that jewelry is such a popular product for gifting purposes, and it is that combination of price and personalization that gives it the edge over the alternatives. It also means that the recipient has something that they can wear every day and treasure for years to come, perhaps even passing it down to their offspring to extend the significance long into the future.

Matching individual style

Buying custom jewelry as a gift is not just about evoking meaning and showing that you care; it is also a way of overcoming the limitations of off-the-peg products that may not suit the tastes and stylistic preferences of the recipient.

Whether you buy a personalized ring, a bespoke pendant or another piece that is entirely unique, you will have the opportunity to pick an item that is attuned to whatever quirks or individual twists will best match the person who will be wearing it.

From the type of materials used to the ways they are shaped and combined, jewelry offers a surprising degree of customization. This will also ensure that it will be worn with pride, rather than gratefully received but ultimately left in a jewelry box, out of sight.

Making a statement

While it is perfectly possible to choose personalized jewelry that is subtle and suited to a more reserved personality, you can also go in the other direction and pick a piece that begs to be noticed and also reflects someone with an outgoing personality.

Whether the jewelry spells out their name, is engraved with a significant date, features a special message that is etched into the surface or has some other aspect that sets it out from the crowd, you will have a huge range of options for making a statement with this purchase.

Always remember to embrace the ethos of thoughtful giving and take real care to make sure the jewelry you order is suitable. If in doubt, try and find out what kind of pieces a person likes either by asking them directly or chatting to friends and family to avoid disappointment.

WINNING STRATEGIES TO HELP YOUR TEEN SUCCEED IN FALL SPORTS

As we shed the long, slow days of summer, many households switch gears to the grind of a new school year—adjusting to new schedules, enforcing earlier bedtimes, and preparing our children for a challenging academic year.  

And for the young athlete, gearing up for fall sports.

Field hockey, football, soccer, volleyball, each can create some of the most memorable experiences in your teen’s life. Embracing your child’s unique interests—helping to grow their athletic ability and confidence—supports a lifestyle of fitness, mental toughness, and competitive play to help them become a balanced, thriving adult.

As your child gets into the game this season, give them what they need to succeed, both on and off the field.

Power Their Practice

Most parents know the struggle for kids to buy into healthy eating habits. The right nutrition1 for young athletes takes knowing the fuel their body needs pre-, mid-, and post-workout. Adolescents are rapidly growing and developing, and the proper macronutrients, micronutrients, and hydration can optimize their performance. *

Every kid needs healthy nutrition and proper hydration to have energy for schoolwork. But sports require even more fuel in the tank—kids and teens who participate in all-day competitions or strenuous endurance sports may need to consume more calories during the season.

Replace processed drinks and snacks with whole foods that offer plenty of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals to build healthy bodies. Add a daily teen multivitamin to help support their nutritional needs.* 

Healthy Body, Healthy Brain

Foundational teenage years are the perfect time to teach your kids to enjoy regular exercise. Their developing brain is especially malleable to lifestyle factors, like aerobic exercise. Inspiring your child to embrace healthy activities today can boost future neural and cognition pathways.

Studies2 have found that regular, structured physical exercise enhances brain function. And while encouraging your adolescent’s interest in sports and physical fitness may add some stress to the family carpool schedule, it could pay off with a healthy boost to their GPA.

Support Lifelong Success

Physical activity and psychological well-being are essential to healthy development and quality of life in adolescence. Engaging in childhood sports is tied to lifelong movement, a more positive well-being, reduced stress, and less depression.

Here are a few ways to support your young athlete:

·       Be an active participant. Being supportive doesn't mean attending every practice, game, or meet. Your child will know if you are making a meaningful effort to watch them compete. Be present in their wins, support them through the heartbreaking losses, and everything in between. Your positive, encouraging feedback is vital to help keep them on track.

·       Maintain perspective. Be realistic about what your child can accomplish. Not every adolescent athlete will go pro, win a college scholarship, or become the captain of the team. Your role is to help your child deal with disappointments and celebrate wins. Remain positive, but pragmatic. Too many expectations can put undue pressure on your child. Simply participating in sports instills healthy and lasting life lessons.

·       Be a role model. Staying fit can be a lifelong struggle. Your young athlete needs to know that keeping their body in good shape will help them compete and reduce the risk of injury. And while practicing their sport with their coach and teammates is influential, healthy habits start at home. Eat nutritious meals as a family and exercise regularly. Plan workouts together—run team drills or let them teach you something they learned in practice.

Practicing a Balanced Life

Sports can have countless benefits for your children off the field, too. Establishing healthy habits early in life strongly correlates to future health and success. As you gear up for another action-packed sports season, focus on all the fun and memories you’ll make this fall.

You’re not only creating a balanced, healthy lifestyle for your kids, they’re also developing social skills, teamwork, drive, determination, leadership experience, and learning skills to organize and balance their time to help them succeed as adults.

Being a supportive parent may be a bit tricky a times, but the benefits3 of youth sports can give your kids an edge, both today and for their future. Now, get out there and cheer them on!

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

References:

1.      https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3805623/

2.     https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5973814/

3.      https://www.athleticscholarships.net/benefits-risks-youth-sport.htm

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6 STEPS - THE DAY YOU VOTE

Although a number of people have voted by mail or dropped off their ballots at designated areas, there are a number of people who are standing in long lines to make sure that their vote counts at polling stations. The CDC has been our go to place when it comes to how we can go about a number of our activities that are recommended to be the safest way to do them. Here is what you need to know

The more prepared you are, the more you reduce your risk of getting and spreading COVID-19.

1. People who are sick can follow CDC advice for when to be around others.

2. Bring your own supplies

• Use this checklist to remember things to bring with you when you go to vote:

  • Necessary documentation such as your identification (check with your voting site)

  • A mask

  • An extra mask

  • Tissues

  • Hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol

  • Water

  • Black ink pen

  • Bring prepared items with you (e.g., registration forms, sample ballots)

3. Wear a mask

You should wear a mask consistently and correctly in public and around people who don’t live with you.

• If you must take your mask off, use hand sanitizer before and after

• Have an extra mask in case yours gets wet or dirty

A few people might not be able to wear a mask because of a disability or condition.

4. Protect yourself when using transport

• Open windows if you can

• Wear a mask

• Avoid touching things if you can and use hand sanitizer if you do

• Stay 6 feet (about two arm lengths) apart from others if you can

5. Clean your hands often

• Wash your hands or use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol before entering and after leaving your place of voting

• Use a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol before and after touching items that many others may have touched, such as door handles

• Do not wipe down voting equipment unless you are told to do so

6. Keep your distance from others

• Stay at least 6 feet (about 2 arms’ lengths) from other people as much as you can

• Stay apart even if you are wearing masks

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5 WAYS TO TURN SEASON SAD INTO SEASONAL GLAD

With daylight savings time ending Nov. 1 and sunlit hours growing shorter, many people will be struggling with symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder. Veteran holistic physician and best-selling author Dr. Bradley Nelson shares how to beat the winter blues.

An estimated 10 million Americans struggle with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), and women are more than four times as likely as men to have it.

“As a mental health issue, SAD is more than just being down about the cold and gloom of the winter months — it actually tends to keep you down and affects you day after day,” Dr. Brad says. “If you suspect you might have this disorder, you should talk to your doctor about it.”

If you’re wondering how to beat those common winter blues, or looking for a way to improve your outlook (whether you have SAD or not), here are some things you can try:

1.       Stay Busy — While it may seem easier to hunker down in your cozy home, try to get out and get some exercise, run errands, and do something fun. You can also boost your spirits by helping others.

2.       Stay Healthy — The average weight gain during the winter months is 5-7 pounds. Stock your home with healthy food choices, and try to keep the processed foods to a minimum. While a little bit of comfort food now and then might serve a purpose, eating too much of it may only make you feel worse. Eating healthy food has a way of making you feel lighter, which may support a more positive outlook. Added tips: Stay hydrated and get plenty of vitamin C.

3.       Mind Your Emotions  — Starting the day with a positive affirmation can really help you keep your mind in a happy place for the rest of the day. Your morning routine could set you off on a positive or negative foot for the next 16 hours, so be mindful of how you begin the day. If negative emotional energy is hiding out in your body, you may be more likely to feel those emotions all the time. Energy healing with The Emotion Code® can help you let go of them.

4.       Stay Connected — Organize a “winter blues” group. Rotate locations and plan fun, uplifting events and activities. You could all learn to cook something new, invite new friends to an activity to get to know new people, or play games and have appetizers.

5.       Celebrate the Season — The colder season is chock-full of holidays that can bring you cheer. Use them as a time to have fun and celebrate life.

“It doesn’t take much to power yourself through the cold season,” Dr. Brad says. “Through a little mindfulness, gratitude, imagination, creativity, and courage, you can turn the winter blues into beautiful memories.”

TIPS AND TRICKS WHEN IT COMES TO THE LIFE OF YOUR BRA

PHOTO CREDIT | Unsplash/Alexandru Acea

There are a number of questions that people have when it comes to taking care of their bras and the fit that is best for them. The bra specialists at French lingerie company, Empreinte shares some tips and tricks you need to know when it comes to the life of your bra.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What is the best way to measure one’s size for a bra?

EMPREINTE: We strongly recommend getting fitted by a professional fitter in a store. However, there is a way to get an idea of your actual size in the comfort of your home. First, measure your rib cage under the breast keeping the measuring tape parallel to the floor, then round up to the next even number (ex.: 31 rounded up to 32). This gives you your band size (ex.: 32). Then measure your breast where it is the fullest while wearing a non-padded bra, again keep the measuring tape parallel to the floor. Round it off to the closest round number (example: 36 ½ rounded to 36). When you subtract the band size from the breast size, the number will give you your cup size: 1-inch difference = A cup, 2 inches difference = B cup, etc. (ex: 36-32 = 4; size is 32D).

AM: How do you know that a bra is not fitting properly?

E: Main signs that a bra is not fitting properly are: back is riding up, breast is spilling out of the cups, there is a gap between the breast and the cup, breast is slipping under the wires.

AM: How should the straps be adjusted?

E: Straps should be adjusted regularly so they feel snug on the body but not too tight. You should be able to put a finger between your shoulder and the straps.

AM: How long should one keep a bra?

E: This depends on the frequency the bra is worn. A bra that is worn every day should be replaced after about 4-6 months. We recommend having a few bras on rotation to make them last longer and give them some rest between each wear.

AM: What is the best care for your bra to keep its shape?

E: Best care for your bra is hand wash with mild soap and hang it to dry. Padded bras should be stored flat on top of each other.

THE IMPORTANCE OF TRAVEL FOR MENTAL HEALTH

We’ve all had our day to day lives and extended plans dramatically changed as we have hunkered down on various levels during this pandemic. As we adopt new routines and hopes to getting closer to the new normal, we have to remember the importance of mental health. We talk with psychotherapist and author Dr. Mike Dow to talk about the importance of travel for mental health.

ATHLEISURE MAG: For a moment, imagine that we have not been living the past few months in our bubbles, social distancing etc. How important is a routine and how does it impact mental health to have this?

DR. MIKE DOW: Routines are vital. So many of the processes affect brain health and physical health like our Circadian rhythms are really associated with our moods as well. Isn’t it so interesting that our brain, our sleep/wake cycle, our melatonin rising at night and something called a Cortisol awakening response in the morning where those two hormones take place - everything is about routine. Getting up at the same time - we know that people who have healthy sleep cycles are less likely to overeat, less likely to be depressed, be anxious and it‘s having a place to go, getting out the door at the same time - it gives us that energy. If you don’t have those routines, my advice for so many people is to create them. If you wake up, take a shower, put on your clothes and walk around your house and then say, “now I’m at work,” even if you’re right back in your house. It really primes the brain for creativity or productivity. It’s just a really vital process for all of our brains and bodies.

AM: You’re a bestselling author of Brain Fog Fix, Healing the Broken Brain and Diet Rehab and are known for your focus on brain health and nutrition. How important is it to think about these two areas as we have all navigated the past few months of quarantine?

DR. MD: It’s absolutely vital because what we’re seeing is that people are eating a lot more frozen foods, takeout, Postmates and what we know is that frozen and processed foods create a lot of inflammation for the brain and sugar shrinks the brain. Looking at just those two things - inflammation and shrinking the brain isn’t it so interesting that soybean oil which is in all processed foods is very high in Omega 6’s which creates inflammation in the brain versus Omega 3’s that decreases inflammation in the brain. Sugar and flour not only spike your blood sugar but can also lead to diabetes, obesity and heart disease - but they also can accelerate the hippocampus in the brain - that’s also what we see in dementia, depression and other mental illnesses. So it’s more vital than ever due to the stressors that have taken place because of the pandemic to eat more healthy than ever. But a lot of people are caught between a rock and a hard place because the pandemic makes going to a healthier place or going to farmer markets a little more challenging right now. But we know, that in the past few years research has come out that depression can be treated by a Mediterranean diet. So it’s not just a preventative strategy, but for some people, it’s even a treatment. It’s extremely potent and there’s no one decision that every person makes every day than what is at the end of your fork for breakfast, lunch and dinner and it’s an incredible tool for brain health.

AM: How is staying at home during this pandemic wearing on our mental health?

DR. DM: We look at rumination. In cognitive-behavioral therapy, we know that people who ruminate - it’s like a thought pattern that gets stuck like a broken record right? When you’re in a mundane setting and you’re not changing your surroundings - there’s no novel environment, it’s sort of like those experiments when you have a rat in the cage and you don’t have a wheel and you’re not able to move out and nest to do different things. When you give that rat or mouse a novel environment, their brains get better and there’s more stimulation. Looking at ruminations, it’s good to change your thought patterns and your feelings. If you’re stuck in that ruminative thought or feeling, just change where you are automatically shifting your brain out of that and sort of moves the needle from that broken record. So it’s a really potent antidote and a behavioral piece in that behavioral cognitive therapy.

When you’re feeling depressed or anxious in your thoughts - it’s taking an action, for example a quickie getaway to a local drivable destination. I personally book Hotwire Hot Rates. I’ve saved $1,800 on my 2 quickie getaways. Having that change of scenery for me in Palm Springs and Santa Barbara, I live in LA - it really allowed me to boost my creativity, get out of my little bubble and really have a breath of fresh air.

AM: 62% of Americans haven’t had a vacation day since the start of COVID-19. Is this a concerning statistic and why?

DR. MD: It is concerning because we know that Americans in general, we are notorious in our country in terms of not taking the vacation days. When you look at Europe and other countries where they have higher happiness levels, they really make vacation a priority. I think in the beginning of the pandemic, people were really scared and now we know that there are a number of ways that we can travel safely and we can balance the physical health with the mental health. For me, it was looking at Hotwite and seeing the cleanliness badges that certain hotels had. It’s taking your masks to the hotels and there are so many ways you can do that. It is concerning because if you’re in your home all day and it’s your kids classroom, the office, it’s that grind and the brain was meant to take a break. Even sleep, that nightly break, it’s designed to really allow the brain to sculpt itself and to not use the facilities and neurons that it doesn’t need. It prunes and it can also grow right? On a larger scale, that’s what vacations can do. It can create more neurogenesis the birth of new brain cells as we’re making new mental maps. We certainly don’t want people to be stuck and not to challenge themselves and to be stuck in these little rooms - these little apartments because it’s not great for long term brain health.

AM: How important is it to change your physical environment?

DR. MD: We know that sitting is the new smoking. If you’re sitting on the couch all day with your laptop and then it’s 6pm and you switch over to Netflix and begin to binge watch things for hours, we know that that greatly increases the risk of all sorts of diseases for the long term. It’s important for 30 year olds and 60 year olds and 85 year olds. When you change your environment and take a quickie getaway and you walk around the mountain or the beach that that hotel is on, it’s really helping you combat the new smoking which is sitting all day. It’s been associated with all sorts of physical health as well as brain health.

AM: How can people stay safe while traveling?

DR. MD: I think at the beginning of the pandemic, there was a lot of shaming, but it is possible to both take care of your mental health by taking a vacation while also being able to stay physically safe at the same time. Again for me, it was having hand sanitizer, a mask and when you look at Hotwire.com, the cleanliness badge is telling you is there a plexiglass installed at check-in? That was the case at both of my Hot Rate hotels in Santa Barbara and Palm Springs. There are also other things that you can do. In my research on Hotwire, we found that driving destinations were another way to stay safer because you’re in your own car and you’re not exposed to other people such as in an airport gateway boarding area. So I think that if the pandemic was only 30-60-90 days people would have waited, but now that people are realizing that things may not be getting back to normal for a very long time - we’re going to be dealing with this throughout 2021 and maybe through 2022 - at this point, it’s not about not being responsible when it comes to COVID-19. But it is about, doing everything from going to the grocery store to your quickie getaway that’s safe so you can mind your mental health at the same time.

AM: For those that are engaging in outdoor dining, what are tips that people need to know for these situations?

DR. MD: In outdoor dining, just be really cognizant when you take off your mask and you get really comfy, I think our guard goes down. I was on a quickie getaway with my parents and I just saw them last week for the first time and we were at an outdoor restaurant in Palm Springs and we had some guacamole. The first inclination was, “oh my mask is off so I’m going to go back to all my old practices.” You just have to be cognizant and stay safe. Be prepared, but not scared. So we asked for a clean spoon and some serving plates and we took the guacamole and had our little piles on our own plates. It’s about distancing and doing everything that we know works. If you have your mask off, you know your server needs to have his/hers on and just don’t forget that this is still a concern?

AM: What are the positive effects from a mental standpoint when we shake up our routines during these times?

DR. MD: So many benefits. In research, we know that changing your surroundings can lead to boosting creativity, energy and a boost in attention span. Just being out in nature if you’re looking at more of a secluded hotel which is what we’re finding for a lot of Americans as they’re taking a quickie getaway - it can have a lot of benefits from fighting depression, anxiety, just allowing you to have that resilience that we all need now more than ever. So many research benefits and if you’re on the fence, I’d say to go to Hotwire or the app and just see what local quickie getaways are available for you to boost your brain health.

MENTAL HEALTH SELF-CARE TIPS DURING COVID-19

Self-care has become a term that we use a lot to talk about what we do to maintain a positive balance within our mental health. Although this is an essential process, now more than ever we find ourselves at the confluence of a number of traumas, stressors and anxieties. This has resulted in people feeling like they are struggling, isolated, hopeless and more. Licensed Clinical Psychotherapist Erin Wiley, MA, LPC, LPCC believes that there is a necessary synergy between for our mental and physical health during the pandemic. She believes that, “Self-care can help us remain emotionally stable and healthy during stressful times.”

She shares 5 Self-Care Tips To Begin Practicing Now for Increased Well-Being:

1.       Work to better understand and manage our emotions.

2.       Take care of our physical health (sleep, exercise, nutrition).

3.       Maintain and nurture relationships.

4.       Find ways to calm down that are enjoyable and healthy.

5.       Work on developing healthy daily habits that will keep us on track with regular self-care.

Learning to develop encouraging self-talk as opposed to shaming self-talk can make a big difference in creating and maintaining new healthy habits, Erin adds.

“Now more than ever we should be adopting and practicing sound mental health habits,” Erin recommends. “Being able to manage emotions at times of high stress is a great predictor of resiliency. In times of stress people tend to go into survival mode, and they struggle to maintain healthy habits.” She fundamentally believes that we need to develop encouraging self-talk as opposed to shaming self-talk can make a big difference in creating and maintaining new healthy habits.

4 TIPS ON HOW TO DO A PERFECT HANDSTAND

If you have been an athlete for most of your life, if your balance is amazing and your core is strong, and if you don’t have any problems spending your time upside down, then I have a question for you. What on Earth are you doing here? It seems to me that you already know how to do a handstand and I’m pretty sure that you don’t need my tips. Well, alright, I get it, you might want to perfect your technique and that’s why you’re searching for tips.

While you might get some perfecting tips here, I have to make it clear right from the start that this post isn’t made for the professionals who already know all the basics and even some more advanced tricks. It’s aimed more towards all of those adults who haven’t really spent their whole lives upside down and who are perhaps finding it all a bit scary at the moment, but who want to do their best to finally learn how to do a perfect handstand. If you are already a pro, however, you can definitely keep on reading and brush up on some of your skills or fill in some gaps in your handstand knowledge if those exist.

Now, let’s get back to our topic. Have you ever just lied around at your home and it suddenly occurred to you that doing a handstand is an amazing skill that you would wish to learn? You might have remembered the time when you were a child and when this might have been a piece of cake for you and that must have made you stand up and try to do it now, as an adult. Oh, boy, I hope you didn’t hurt yourself there.

You probably didn’t, though. Most likely, you just put your hands on the floor and never even got to lifting even one leg off the floor. Do you know why you never got to that part, though? Well, partly because you are in fear and that’s making you clumsy, and partly because it takes some skills, tips and tricks in order to learn how to do this. You can’t just wake up one day and do it as if you were doing it your whole life.

As nice as that would be, waking up and knowing how to do a handstand is practically impossible. That is, unless you have a magic wand that can turn you into a flexible, strong and professional athlete in no time. Since you probably don’t have a wand, though, you will have to do some reading and a lot of practicing. As you can see at How To Handstand, this is a process that takes time and practice really does make perfect. So, let me give you a few tips on how to do the perfect handstand and use those tips while practicing in order to finally be able to master this amazing skill.

Keep The Abs Tight

I am going to assume that you know the basics and that you do engage in at least some physical activity, because doing a handstand requires you to have a strong core, as well as strong arms. In fact, your whole body will need to be strong so that it can work towards achieving that upside down position that you are dreaming about. Don’t worry, though, this doesn’t mean that you will have to go to the gym every single day for a couple of hours and build huge muscles in order to do a handstand. Still, some level of physical activity and strength is certainly required.

So, since you probably already know the basics, let me skip right to one of the most important tips that you have to keep in mind while trying to achieve this position. Keep those abs tight at all times. If you don’t pay any attention to your abs and if you don’t squeeze them, you are most likely going to arch your back and fall down. On the other hand, if you keep the abs tight, you will get to keep your body perfectly straight, your back flat and maintain the necessary balance.

Squeeze The Bum

You probably already know that you will need to squeeze your butt while standing upside down, just like the abs. This is one more way for you to maintain your balance and keep your whole body firm and upright. Did you, however, know that you should actually activate these muscles before you kick your body upwards? Yes, that’s right. You should squeeze before the kick and then keep those muscles tight throughout the whole handstand.

I know this might be a bit difficult to do at first, especially since you are trying so hard to concentrate on not falling down or hurting yourself. Still, if you really want to master this position, then you will have to think about those butt muscles and keep them activated throughout the handstand. Practice focusing on these muscles, as well as the abs, instead of worrying about not falling down, because this is exactly what you need to do in order not to fall down.

If you need some more basic tips than this, here’s a nice read: https://ashotofadrenaline.net/perfect-handstand/

Lock The Arms To The Ears

In addition to squeezing your abs and your butt, one of the most important things that you will need to do the moment you kick up is press your arms straight by your ears. This will help you form a straight line right from your fingers all the way up to your toes. Your arms will be strong and solid when kept in this position and you won’t have that hard of a time balancing and staying straight.

Point The Toes Up

Notice how I mentioned above that pressing your arms to your ears will help you keep a straight line from fingers to toes. Imagine that position for a second. Yes, you’ve got it. Instead of simply letting your feet wobble and sway, you will have to keep your toes pointed up towards the sky in order to do a perfect handstand.

INITIATIVES IN ART AND CULTURE | ETHICS & SUSTAINABILITY IN GOLD AND DIAMOND ENTERPRISE

Every year, we have enjoyed seeing the Initiatives in Art and Culture (IAC) conference that focuses on a number of industries within the jewelry industry. IAC educates diverse audiences in visual culture, including the fine and decorative arts.

This year marks their 10th anniversary and although attending events in person is something that we can’t do right now, we’re excited to see that on Oct 28th, they are running a conference (entire program below) that will allow industry experts to gather virtually and to talk about Ethics and Sustainability in Gold and Diamond Enterprise. This day will include panels from industry experts that focus on this topic and will explore the evolution of responsible practice over the past 20 years. It will also honor Anisa Kamadoli Costa, Chief Sustainability Office, Tiffany & Co. with its Award for Leadership in Responsibility Practice in Jewelry.

Check out more information about the panels and make sure to get your complimentary tickets here:

PROGRAM

• 11:00–11:10AM | Introduction and Welcoming Remarks. Lisa Koenigsberg, President / Founder, Initiatives in Art and Culture

• 11:10 am–12:15 PM | No Going Back: Vision and Leadership in Supporting Responsible Mining Artisanal and small-scale gold, diamond and colored stone mining takes place in approximately 80 countries worldwide with approximately 40 million artisanal miners globally, and significant attention to meeting established standards. Large-scale mining also has agreed upon global standards that drive best practices. This conversation brings together representation from mining companies, refineries, and NGOs, as well as thought leaders, and jewelry designer to explore how the production and the demand sides of the supply chain can work together. Panelists will discuss the formalization of ASM, and how opportunities can be captured to facilitate its growth and continue to incentivize and support the development of responsible mining and sourcing practices.

  • Moderator: Christina T. Miller, Co-founder, Ethical Metalsmiths & consultant,Conny Havel, Head of Supply Chains and Markets, Alliance for Responsible Mining (ARM)Cristina Maria Villegas, Director of Mines to Markets Program, PACTFeriel Zerouki, Senior Vice President of International Relations and Ethical Initiatives, De Beers GroupVirginie Bahon, Head of Corporate Affairs, ValcambiUte Decker, Founder, Ute Decker-sculptural jewelryMonica Gichuhi, Founder, African Gem Exhibition and Conference

• 12:15-12:25 PM | BREAK

• 12:25-12:30 PM | Introduction Remarks

• 12:30–1:30 PM | Leadership in Responsible Practice: Celebrating Twenty Years of Sustained Commitment

  • In honor of Anisa Kamadoli Costa's receiving Initiatives in Art and Culture's Award for Leadership in ResponsiblePractice in Jewelry on behalf of Tiffany & Co., and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Tiffany & Co. Foundation, she will be joined by other trailblazers in this realm to discuss how the field has progressed over the last two decades, considering issues ranging from certification and standards, to artisanal mining to traceability.

  • Anisa Kamadoli Costa, Chief Sustainability Officer, Tiffany & Co.Mark Hanna, Chief Marketing Officer, Richline Group, Inc.Michael J. Kowalski, Retired President and Chairman of the Board, Tiffany &Co.Stephen D’Esposito, President and CEO/RESOLVE In conversation with Lisa Koenigsberg, and Christina T. Miller, Co-chairs, Committee for Initiatives in Art and Culture's Award for Leadership in Responsible Practice in Jewelry.

• 1:30–1:45 PM | Presentation of Initiatives in Art and Culture’s Award for Leadership in Responsible Practice to Anisa Kamadoli Costa

  • Lisa Koenigsberg and Christina Miller

For complimentary registration to attend “All That Glitters” click here. To learn more about Initiatives in Art and Culture.

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

LIVING IN THE MOMENT WITH GIANNI PAOLO

Since 2014, Sunday night's meant watching the latest episode of STARZ Power which is co-created by Courtney A. Kemp and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. As season 6 came to a close for its series finale, we were already anticipating the promise of a series of spinoff shows that would continue to follow an array of characters as well as a prequel to show us how it all started. Power Book II: Ghost launched its first episode on Sept 6th and has already been greenlit for a second season. STARZ has also greenlit Power Book III: Kanan and Power Book IV: Force.

This month, we caught up with Gianni Paolo who joined Power in seasons 5 and 6 and is one of the leads of Power Book II: Ghost. In addition to shooting him in fall style for our virtual shoot, we talk about being a hockey player professionally, pickup hockey games, his experience being in Ma, reading for Power, joining the cast and how his character continues in Ghost. We also talk about how he's looking at his career and how he is engaging with various projects.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Before we delve into your acting career and being on Power, you were a hockey player for a lot of your life! What drew you to this sport?

GIANNI PAOLO: Honestly, I don’t even remember starting playing hockey. From what I can remember of just being alive, hockey was apart of my life. My dad was a big hockey fan so he wanted us to play. So all 3 of us, my 2 brothers as well, were hockey players. I literally started skating when I was 2 or 3 maybe and it’s all that I can remember, just my dad being the one that put us in.

AM: Then you got drafted and continued to play! What was that moment when you realized that just as much as you loved hockey, you actually wanted to do acting?

GP: I was kind of juggling with both of them and kind of struggling with the idea of both of them probably my whole high school career. So I got drafted to the Quebec Junior Hockey League when I was 16.

It was so funny because everything would keep drawing me towards acting and not hockey. Just small things would happen every single month, week – where I would fully immerse myself in hockey and then things would just get sidetracked. It just kept pushing me towards acting and when I got drafted, I was like, “ok this is what I’ve gotta do and my parents have put so much money into this,” but then there were so many things that just kept pushing me towards acting. So it just became something that I just had to do. It wasn’t like I was like, “I like this” – it was something that I just had to do.

AM: Do you still play? I know that you don’t play it professionally, but are you still involved in the sport?

GP: Yeah, I’m in NY right now because we’re still shooting. When I’m in LA, there is a Monday night league with CAA which is a talent agency which also represents a bunch of NHL players. I pretty much have a friend on every NHL team.

I play with probably 50-60 guys that are the top NHL players right now. So I get tickets to any game I want and it’s great. So they come out and skate too because CAA represents a lot of them as well. There’s also Jerry Bruckheimer (Bad Boys, Top Gun, The Amazing Race) who skates and other actors like Michael Rosenbaum (Guardians of the Galaxy, The Neighbor, Smallville) – people who are actors but there is this whole entertainment industry hockey league which I love! So I play every Monday night and also I play a lot. I play 3 times a week if all of the leagues are going at the same time. My manager who is also a hockey player, he has a team on Thursday nights that we play and then there’s another director that I know and he has a team on Tuesday nights and he was like, “whenever you can play, just come by and play.” So, I play a lot and I’m still pretty involved in the sport.

AM: That’s crazy. Yes, people all over the country play it, but you never think about people doing it in LA and at 3 times a week!

GP: I know! No one thinks of hockey like a pickup game – basketball yes, but not hockey and there is a HUGE hockey community in Los Angeles as well as in the entertainment industry.

AM: You’ve been in a number of shows and movies. I know that Ma came out last summer. What was it like to be in that production?

GP: Honestly, when we were filming that movie, it was the best month and a half in my entire life! Then we were told that we had reshoots because we had to shoot a couple of more things. So I was like, “yeah we have to go back.” Basically, we lived at the director’s Tate Taylor’s (The Help, Filthy Rich, The Girl on the Train) house and every night, we’d wrap and we’d sit around the fire and he’d make food and the whole cast Octavia Spencer (The Help, Hidden Figures, Self Made) and Juliette Lewis (The Act, August: Osage County, Natural Born Killers) – it was the most incredible experience of my life. And then actually, I wound up being able to stay as we did the reshoots in Nov and I stayed another week with Octavia and everyone so we had Thanksgiving there. You can see it if you look him up in Architectural Digest on YouTube – you can see his house and it’s just this massive house with ATV’s and woods and hunting. It was just like one of the best experiences in my entire life. Filming it was really the joy that I had in it. It’s hard to not look at the final project and say, did this do everything for me that I wanted it to do – so I just take the bigger experience from filming it as part of it!

AM: In prepping for your shoot, we talked with our friends in the industry letting them know that we were working with you. Of course people were excited as they couldn’t say enough things about how much they loved Power as well as Power Book II: Ghost." What was it that drew you to Power the show and then ultimately, the character?

GP: It’s actually really funny because I almost wasn’t going to audition for the show because I had already booked Ma and it was only a co-star and it was only 1 scene in season 5. That was all it was. I wound up calling my mom saying that I had this self tape to send to NY because they cast in NY and I was in LA. I told her that it shoots around Christmas time and I knew that Ma was coming out and I wanted to be prepared for when we were going to film that. It actually worked out because the episode was shooting at Christmas time and I’m from Rhode Island so it made sense to just do it because I was going to be home anyways. My mom also loves the show so she said, “please just do it. I love Power.” I had not seen the show at that point. But for some reason, it was a show that was on my list. So I said, “ok fine, I’ll read for it.” I sent them a self tape and heard literally the next day that I got it. Since it was a local hire, I had to fly myself out there and put myself up. I had to do all that and we wound up shooting the scene and the director said, “how’d that go?” Hernan Otano was the director of Power as well as Ghost. I said that it was good – the character was this cocky lacrosse player. I was like, “sure, I get this stuff all the time.” He wound up saying that the next 2 takes were mine and that I could do whatever I want. I ended up improving a ton and being funny and just really went for it because I knew that the next 2 were mine and I was going to do it. So he let me have fun and when I watched the episode, all the improv made it and the stuff that was written, didn’t. I knew that they really liked what I did and then thy ended up calling me back for season 6 and gave me a storyline. And then, as season 6 happened, 50 ended up giving me a hit and said, “you guys are going to takeover." I didn't know what he meant because when Power finished, I had only done 4 episodes in season 6. I was like, “50 lied to me – he said we’d take over and the show is ending.” I wound up getting the call and hearing, “no, you’re one of the leads in the spin-off.” I was like oh my God – yes! It was literally a co-star that turned into a recurring role that turned into a lead of a whole spin-off. It’s a crazy story!

AM: That is a crazy story! For those that may need to catch up, tell us about your character Brayden Weston and what do we get to know more about him as we’re watching "Ghost?"

GP: Brayden comes from a wealthy family and he winds up meeting Tariq at Choate, a boarding school that Tariq is sent to because his sister wound up getting killed. He winds up being Tariq’s roommate and they get close because they find out that they both like money. We start selling drugs together at Choate and then Tariq gets kicked out – so you don’t see Brayden anymore. In Ghost, Brayden winds up reconnecting with Tariq. We’re at the point right now where they’re getting back into business because Brayden, even though he is privileged and grew up with money, he loves the streets and the thrill of selling drugs, money and that’s just what Brayden loves. That’s kind of the character – this kid who loves the thrill of selling drugs, money and power and that’s just kind of where he’s leaning right now. What I have been thinking in my head and have been telling people is he’s a lot like Walter White in a sense. He’s this green guy that gets involved in the drug world and he loves it. As much as Walter in Breaking Bad would say that he is doing it for his family, you wind up seeing him say, “I liked it – I was good at it.” That’s kind of how I see Brayden in a sense. He is truly good at it and loves to do it.

AM: The show launched in Sept earlier this month and you guys are still in production. What has filming this show been like in terms of it being this spinoff show. What’s it like being on this set?

GP: I honestly love it so much! Michael Rainey Jr. who plays Tariq, the show is about him after his dad dies. He is my best friend in the world. We hang out every night and I get to go to work with my best friend every day. I really love the entire cast and there is not one person that I don’t hang out with – we all hang out together. With Power, it was already a family that I was coming into and everyone had already met as they worked with one another for 5 years. I came in new and didn’t really know anyone. Michael and I connected kind of in season 6, but really when I came back to film Ghost that’s when Michael and I got close and now I go to work with my best friend every day. It’s good with everyone coming in, besides me and Michael, there are 2 other people that were in Power as well – everyone else was kind of new or newer to the show. So we were all coming in new together except for a couple of people. But with Power, it was already a family for 5 or 6 years when I came in.

AM: I know that you’re a fan of 50 Cent and it must be amazing to work with him. What advice has he given you that you have really embraced in being able to work so closely with him?

GP: I can’t believe that I get to work with 50 Cent everyday! I had hip hop posters all over my room and it’s all I listen to! It’s just crazy. When I see him, I’m like, “nah this isn’t real! That’s not 50 Cent.” Something that I really take from him is truly that he doesn’t care at all what people think about him. You see the things that get picked up in the media it’s 50 Cent this and 50 Cent that. He says whatever he wants and does it in a smart way where obviously he’s promoting. Contrary to what people think, he’s not just starting beef for no reason. He’s starting beef because every time his show is coming out, he’s in the news all the time. It’s genius if you think about it!

What I got from him is that he will say what’s on his mind and what he thinks. Obviously with me, I don’t have as much leeway – I didn’t get shot 9 times! I’ve gotta be careful. He truly does and says what he wants. He doesn't cater to the industry. That’s also something that I don’t do. I’m not going to post or say something because that’s what people want me to do. That’s not who I am and not who I will ever be, do you know what I mean? That’s how a lot of people are in this industry because they want to work and I get that, but that’s not who I am. 50 is truly that person where I’m like, this is how I want to shape myself so that I can live my life and not be scared to say what is on my mind or how I feel.

AM: In looking at your Instagram, clearly being in the gym is a big part of your routine. Why is health and fitness so important to you?

GP: I don’t know. I think it’s because I was in the gym every day playing hockey. This is kind of what I equate it to. When I moved out to LA and I stopped playing hockey, it was very sudden. I stopped playing hockey with a rigorous schedule and a week later, I was in LA and I wasn’t playing competitive hockey ever again. The next week, I’d eat so much because we’d be burning 3,000 calories a day just skating on the ice and then we’d go upstairs to the gym and we’d be burning so many calories that I’d just eat all day long. So when I got to LA, I was eating the same but I wasn’t skating like I was and I was like, “oh My God, this is a problem. I have to take things seriously.” I didn’t get overweight, I mean maybe a little because I worked at a restaurant so that’s pretty easy to do. But I knew I had to take my fitness more seriously. That’s when I truly fell in love with it. I didn’t know how much I loved fitness when I played hockey because it was like a job. You go to the job. When I started working out, I started boxing and doing Jiu jitsu. I started weight training. When I did it for hockey it was specific. We would do squats and things like that and I hated that. Now, when I’m in the gym, I get to work out on things like my arms and my abs which makes me look good. I truly don’t go to work to film until I have gone to the gym. I have to workout before I go to work. I’m crazy about it. It’s literally my number one thing before I go to work to film, production, a TV show etc I make sure that I know the local gym, where I will be working out, how I will get from the gym to set – that’s literally the number thing that I worry about. It’s the one thing that makes me truly happy. If I workout and get a good lift in, I know I will feel great and have a great day on set. If I don’t get a good lift in and don’t eat right, I’m gonna have a rough day. So, I’m tuned in with my body and self so that I know it’s the most important thing in my life.

AM: What’s a typical workout with you like?

GP: I have one of my best friends who is also a trainer who sends me a lift every morning so that I wake up to it. We do this consistent/inconsistent thing where we do the same thing for a couple of weeks and then totally change it up. It’s kind of a lot of chest, shoulders, biceps, triceps when I’m going to be on camera with my shirt off. Honestly, my legs are so big now that I can’t fit into any jeans now because of skating for 18 years. My thighs are so muscular and massive that I could never do legs and they would still be great. So I never have to do legs anymore. I do a lot of cardio - we’ll do bike sprints, a minute on 11 on the treadmill, a minute at 5 for a light jog. We kind of do the high intensity workouts as well. A lot of heavy weight lifting, cardio and abs. Not so much anymore with legs.

AM: What do you eat in terms of staying in shape and what are the splurge foods you enjoy?

GP: I have a protein shake every morning with collagen and I put some creatine in there for some size and a nice little egg white protein – that’s my morning/post lift drink. Then I will have 4 eggs and a little bit of turkey bacon to put some meat in. I’m a huge fruit eater. I eat it all day throughout the day and maybe it’s not good for me because it has a ton of sugar in it, but I eat a ton of fruit. I just love it and I didn’t realize how much I love it until I realized that I would rather have that over candy at this point. For dinner, I’m a big protein and meat eater so a pound of turkey or a pound of beef I’ll eat. Then obviously, I try to go low carb. I tried keto for a little bit, but I thought I was going to die so I stopped doing that. I feel like I need a little bit of carbs for my workouts to be up to par. I try to go low carb/high protein as best I can.

My splurge food – I love Chinese food – I love fried chicken, it’s my favorite. Last night, it was Michael Rainey’s birthday and we went to Philippe’s and I went to town. I had Lo Mein, we had chicken satay, spring rolls. Last night was kind of my night, it was his birthday and I splurged. Today, I was back in the gym in the morning and sweating it all out and I’m back to normal!

AM: We love podcasts and are a huge fan of True Crime. I know that you love stand up comedy and you were a talent broker and co-producer for Theo Von’s (Road Rules, Last Comic Standing, Reality Bites Back) podcast This Past Weekend as well as the talent booker for Andrew Santino’s (I’m Dying Up Here, This is Us, Friendsgiving) Whisky Ginger. What drew you to being involved in podcasts in general?

GP: When I moved to LA, The Comedy Store it’s one of the greatest places in the world. You go to The Comedy Store and the best comedians go back-to-back like 10 of them! Like one of their tickets when they’re on the road is $200! I would go and Chris Rock would drop in and he’d do his Oscars monologue and then I’d see Kevin Hart drop in out of nowhere. I saw Daniel Tosh – all these guys that don’t ever tour – they come in and do 15-20 mins. Dave Chapelle – it was crazy! So when I first started going to The Comedy Store, I have always been into standup comedy, but not until I went there did I think it was insane. One day, I came and I saw this comedian, Theo Vonn, and I thought, “oh man, he’s so funny, this guy is going to blow up.” I started listening to his podcast which he was doing in his kitchen. I went to go film Ma and I was listening to his podcast in my trailer and one of the PA’s came in and I knocked on my trailer to tell me that they were going to bring me to set. He heard me listening to Theo and it was funny because Theo didn’t really have that big of a following at this point and it was a cult thing. The PA asked if I listened to him and I told him that I thought he was great. He said that Theo grew up on his dad’s farm and that he would connect the two of us if I went back to LA. I went back to LA and it was kind of slow for a few months after filming so I hit up the PA and said that I wanted to help Theo with his podcast to help him with social media as well as to book some guests. The next day, I met with Theo and cut to a year later after booking guests, working on his social media and all that stuff – he went on Joe Rogan and blew up – he has a million and a half followers. The podcast – we get millions of listens a month. I saw him at The Comedy Store and I knew that he was funny and knew he was one of the funniest people I had seen in my whole life.

Obviously with filming, it’s tough for me to be able to juggle both and that’s why I stepped away for a minute. I did a lot of work with Andrew too to help him with his social media and with guests during quarantine and the COVID-19 stuff that was really tricky too. I helped him because I met all these guys through Theo and they know who I am and how I work and how I am able to figure out social media in a way because I’m younger and these guys are 36-40 year old. They don't know as much so I kind of figured out a way to maneuver through it. I have been helping out a lot of these guys do a lot of the social stuff. I don’t know what drew me to podcasting. I listen to a lot of Inside the Actor’s Studio, Off Camera with Sam Jones, Hollywood Reporter stuff. I like podcasting personally because it’s not Jimmy Fallon – there’s nothing wrong with that. You go on Jimmy Fallon and you’re asked to tell a story about this shark that bit you. It’s like, ok cool I can tell this pop corny story. But when you’re on a podcast, you’re going indepth with a person and you’re really getting to hear what they want to say as opposed to a pre-interview that’s like 5 minutes and then they’re like, “ok let’s just say this.” I think that the podcast is more of what I love and the crime stuff is good and I listen to a ton of podcasts. I think it’s just the realness and the uncensoredness. I like raw comedy.

AM: You should keep an eye out for Showtime’s The Comedy Store!

GP: YESS! I did see that. That’s a documentary and they actually did a scripted show I’m Dying Up Here and Santino was on that too and was one of the lead characters as well as Erik Griffin. That was a cool shot to watch!

AM: Do you have charities or organizations that you’re apart of that you give your time to that you like to bring awareness to?

GP: I post a decent amount to my Stories. The way I work, it’s not that I don’t like it. I just feel like when people go on their social media and say go to this place and donate to this cause. Some people do it in a gross way in my opinion. They’re saying do this or do that and in a sense, it makes people not want to do that. I know for me, I’m like no – I’m not doing that. It’s like your guilting people. The way I am, I say, “this is something that I love. You don’t have to like it, I love it and if it is something that you would like, here is the info.” So I go live on Tik Tok sometimes and people can send you money through Tik Tok live. All the money that I get, I send to the Toucan Rescue Ranch. I love this organization, they're in Costa Rica and I like the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. I love animals to be honest! There’s nothing that animals can do about their situation. I love wildlife. They’re so interesting to me. That’s why I’m geared towards that. I am a person who is involved in it but silently. I know I have a platform where I can make more money but I don’t like when people throw things in your face to say look at what I am doing. It’s not how I am. Sure I’d love to help the cause but if you don’t like toucans, that’s fine on you. I was supposed to do stuff with the California Wildlife Center when I got back from filming but we stopped filming for COVID-19 and they had all these restrictions. I think that doing more towards my career actually in turn helped my career. I was taking 10 classes a week writing all of these scripts so that when I did more stuff that I loved – playing hockey again and getting more into stuff like that – it gave me room to actually grow instead of choking so much. It’s something that I have learned over the past couple of years.

I also love cars so people post them all the time. I’ll post a Porsche or something as I’m a huge car enthusiasts and then the next post will be about toucans or the ocean and people will be like you can’t love cars and the ocean! I’m like why? I can like the ocean and cars. They don’t think it makes sense. People want you to be one way or the other, but I post what I like.

AM: Are there other projects that you want to take on? You have had so many things that you’ve been involved in that you have been able to do – what’s next for your portfolio?

GP: I want to do a franchise so bad! I went to Comic Con for a panel last year for Ma. It was the coolest experience in my life. I had never been into comic books and that world. When I went there, it was incredible to see the fans screaming for these shows and movies.

I was like, “these people love these movies and shows that much?” They have a massive fan base. I truly want to be apart of a Twilight or something cool that has a big fandom. It’s something that I want to be apart of. Obviously, I want to be able to do the A24 movies and the indie movies like a Safdie Brothers movie would be incredible. I want to do a franchise. The good part is that you make your money from the franchise and you get that fanbase and you can do whatever you want to do for you. That’s when you can do the A24 movies, the indie movies. The Spectacular Now is one of my favorites. Doing those movies that are not for a big audience, but when you have a name and they see that you can man a franchise, then they say, ok we’ll give him this project and see how he does and he can bring his base over there. You can prove yourself on how good you are on acting. That’s the things that get me excited about the future.

AM: We can see you in a Fast & Furious movie.

GP: Oh I would love that! I’m racing cars and I’m saving toucans!

AM: Who are three people that have influenced you to be where you are in your career?

GP: It’s so funny because when I go back and look on who I said a year ago – it always changes. Someone who I consistently look up to is 100% Mark Wahlberg. He’s everything that I aspire to be. He gets up – he has that gym and I want that gym that he posts in his house on his Stories everyday. It’s incredible and I want this massive gym in the house that I can go with boys and lift in the morning. Business wise, the guy is a genius. He has all of these businesses that he has been a part of. Career wise, I probably wouldn’t pick the same kind of movies that he has – some yes definitely. Others probably not but him in general and the way that he has maneuvered his career is someone that I look up to.

Also, obviously Leonardo DiCaprio who everyone looks up to. I would do every single movie he has ever done as they’re incredible. Obviously when you get to a certain point, you get to pick and he knows exactly what he wants to do and what he likes as well as to try. So that’s someone I really look up to.

Someone that I really liked when I moved out to LA and I was watching Sons of Anarchy, right when I finished hockey and I had started acting, Charlie Hunnam (The Gentleman, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, Pacific Rim) is just a badass. He in a sense wanted to play that role and moved out to LA. He was a big part of my influence to move out to California. I’d say those 3.

Other actors that I’m loving right now would obviously be Robert Pattinson (Twilight franchise, Tenet, Harry Potter franchise) who is doing so well and is blowing up. Bill Skarsgård (It, Deadpool, The Divergent series) from It – those are the guys that I try to look for right now when they have things coming out.

IG @GianniVPaolo

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's virtual shoot was shot by Co-Founder + Celebrity Photographer Paul Farkas. Throughout this shoot, Paul used an iPhone, iPad, Facetime, Clos, 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 & GROOMING CREDITS

Athleisure Mag's Celeb Fashion Stylist, Co-Founder/Creative + Style Director Kimmie Smith and Groomer Bruce Dean share what they used to create this fall menswear style editorial.

LOOK I | OUT & ABOUT STYLE

PG 37 - 41 | ALO YOGA Traverse Pull Over + Polar Moto Joggers | REVO X JEEP Aviators | ATHLETIC PROPULSION LABS Techloom Wave |

LOOK II | FITNESS STYLE

PG 42 + 45 | ALO YOGA Polar Moto Joggers | ATHLETIC PROPULSION LABS Techloom Wave |

LOOK III | AFTER WORK STYLE

PG 46 | PROUD Be Creative Zipper Polo | MAVI JEANS James Ink Williamsburg | ATHLETIC PROPULSION LABS Techloom Chelsea |

LOOK IIV | LOUNGE STYLE

PG 50 + 52 | AVIATOR NATION 5 Stripe Hoodie + Sweatpant Charcoal Set | ATHLETIC PROPULSION LABS Lusso |

GROOMING | M.A.C. Cosmetics | Aquage Hair Care |

IG @Shes.Kimmie

@BruceDeanBeauty

Hear STARZ Power Book II: Ghost, Gianni Paolo on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - 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 iHeart Radio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Living in the Moment with Gianni Paolo in mag.

HOW DOES A FOOTBALL CONTEST PROXY WORK?

Football contests are now more of a reality than something that we just dream about. Many people are actually getting into football and earning money at the same time. It is really very cool to see how much competition is happening in the field and how it's becoming more and more popular.

If you want to win money, then you have to join up with an organized company that strategizes sports events and promotes high winnings. This is not difficult at all because of the availability of the Internet. The Internet is full of all kinds of sports related sites, which will surely be able to help you find the contest you want to participate in. You will be able to find thousands of different sports related sites. You will also be able to find those websites that specialize in sports that are most useful to you. 

It really all depends on what game you enjoy the most, and how much you understand how the contests work. There are multiple ways for someone to play and win these contests. There is even a way to play the contest without even being in the same country or state. To participate in a football contest without actually being in attendance to the game, or even in the area, you would have to call in a proxy.

What is a Proxy?

A proxy is someone, either a specific person or agency, who represents you when you are unavailable to be in attendance. This individual or company acts as your substitute with all the authorization that you would have if you were actually on site.

When it comes to football gaming, a proxy stands in for you to place your bet on a particular team or person. This becomes vital if you want to join a game, but you can’t physically be there to enjoy it in person. Calling in a proxy helps facilitate your game playing. For instance, it is quite simple to contact a football contest proxy in Las Vegas to answer your questions, set your wager, and play your game.

Since football is a very serious sport for many people, the stakes can be high when it comes to mixing football with winning money. This is why it is important to pick the right proxy. This person, or agency, must be reputable, credible, and trustworthy. Their service must also offer you the best advantages. These refer to their fees or prices, their cut off times to make your pick, their guarantees or assurances regarding their wagers, and the recommendations of others who use their services. When choosing a proxy, all of this information must line up and be beneficial for both parties.

So how does this proxy work? There are approximately four steps involved in this process.

1.     Pick Your Contest

The prime goal is to pick which contest or which team you want to wager on. The choices are available for you on their website. In regard to most sites in Las Vegas, these games may include the Golden Nugget, the Westgate Super Contest, or the Circa Sports. Other games will depend upon your particular interest.

2.     Contact the Agency

Once a contest has been chosen, it is time to contact the actual agency or proxy server. Check out their site with all their credentials. Then call them to schedule an appointment. Ask all the questions that you need answering and sign up.

3.     Meet with the Proxy

If needed, meet with the proxy for payment and any other verifications. Receive all the paperwork and sign all the necessary papers.

4.     Let the Games Begin

Log in to start picking your teams through the proxy’s website. This can last as long as the season does. Enjoy yourself as you sit at home or somewhere on vacation. Play the game and win the prizes. It's all up to you.

Football contest proxies have become extremely popular because there is big money to win, and these substitutes know how to play the game.  People have won thousands of dollars by jumping into these contests that are supplied by the proxy agencies.

In the state of Nevada alone, even the handicapping contests have exploded in admiration and acceptance. Not only is this type of wagering legal, it’s producing revenue and audience participation. One of the games has already grown in its reputation and esteem more than eight-fold since it first started more than 15 years ago.

Conclusion

People like football. People love to win money. With all the football contests available to play, it's inevitable that the two should come together. It doesn’t matter if you are too busy or too far away to actually attend the football game, there is an option for you to participate. Just contact a football contest proxy to stand in for you. Then watch the game, wherever you are, and wait for your money to come in.

9LIST STORI3S | Mike Piazza

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST STORI3S in mag.

YOUR VOTE COUNTS WITH KAL PENN

As we get closer to the election (national, state and local), we've all been thinking about the issues, what we want our next 4 years to be and who will get us to where we want to go. This month's cover is Kal Penn who we have enjoyed in House MD, Designated Survivor and of course the Harold and Kumar movies. Kal has always had an interest in civics and even took time from acting to serve during the Obama Administration as the Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs.

We were excited to hear about Kal Penn's new show that launches on Sept 22nd, National Voter Registration Day on one of our favorite networks - FreeForm. In Kal Penn Approves This Message, he talks about the issues in this non partisan show to get voters prepared and empowered to vote. We find out more about this show that he hosts and executive produces, how it ties into FreeForm's larger PSA focus and what he was surprised to learn.

ATHLEISURE MAG: We know that you’re the Co-Executive Producer and the host of Kal Penn Approves This Message. Before getting into the show itself, why did you want to create this 6 episode series?

KAL PENN: That’s a great question. Over the last few years, I’ve had different producers and folks reach out and say that they had this political show and they were looking for a host and what I thought of it. Those shows were fine, but they were a little more vitriolic and polarizing than I would have liked. It’s not really my thing and so when we had this window of time during this pandemic, my writing partner Robin and I were brainstorming and we thought about shows that we liked. I liked the Daily Show and I love CBS Sunday Morning – so what if we combine the two and had a show that was funny first and comedy morning. The monologue instead of talking about the 24 hour news cycle, what if we made the monologue about a particular issue? It’s funny, but it’s nonpartisan and it’s issue based. That way your field piece which is very funny, would be an extension of that which is around the issue and then your guest instead of someone who comes on to sell a book - and there is nothing wrong with that as I hope to be able to do that one day soon BUT for now, what if your guest was someone who was an expert in their field as opposed to someone who needed to sell the book or the movie which is the traditional guest bookings. In that case, your interview should end with some sort of call to action that people could take regardless of their political views if they care about a particular issue. Leading up to the election, it seemed like the best way to couch that for the miniseries leading up to the Nov election. If we’re lucky enough to get extended beyond that, then it would be on civics things broadly. So that’s kind of how it all came together.

AM: That’s very cool!

KP: Yeah, thank you.

AM: How important is it to tackle the issues of the day to empower Millennials and Gen-Z voters when they’re hitting the polls?

KP: Very important! I think that you look at of course the Presidential Election takes up a lot of the airwave space. There are so many local and state elections like school boards that people are voting on and a lot of those things have an impact on our communities much more than who sits in the White House on a day to day basis. They all go hand in hand though.

Some of these elections are being decided on by just a handful of votes. That’s the difference between whether you and your 8 friends showed up to vote or not. It can be pretty critical. Even in terms of the Presidential Election, of course if you live in a battleground state, your vote is weighted so much more than if you're a NYer or in Oklahoma. But even in NY or in Oklahoma, we get this question a lot – “I’m a Conservative in NY or I’m a Progressive and live in Oklahoma, my vote doesn’t really matter right?” It’s like, no it does because if enough people with your point of view even move the needle to where you see, "wow we have a 2 or 3% uptick of Progressive voters in this district in Oklahoma or vice versa with Conservative voters in NY”, the people in positions of power have to take that into account. They have to decide, “am I going to represent these people or will they get replaced one day because I’m not,” with this district moving into a particular direction. It’s all those reasons. So man, it’s so important for those couple of reasons that make a difference.

AM: Was there a specific issue that you guys will focus on in these 6 episodes where you learned something surprising in that episode or something that you hadn’t thought about previously?

KP: There’s a lot yeah! Even in our first episode, it’s about the youth vote in general and how the voting age got to be 18. So we were like, “ok how did the voting age get to be 18?” I remember it’s the 26th Amendment and it was passed in the 70s right?

AM: Right!

KP: Ok, there was that, but then it’s like, how did that happen? And the point of origin for that is after WWII all of these service members were coming home and they were 18/19/20 years old and they had just fought the Nazis and they come home and they’re not allowed to vote because they’re not 21. So they start this movement to get the right to vote at 18 – the age that you could go off to war to die for your country. It took decade just for that to become the 26th Amendment and that’s insane that it took that long. The reason why we talk about it is that it is an opportunity to recognize why we all have the right to vote at 18 to begin with. Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat or a Third Party person - it's all still relevant. The point is, you should vote when you turn 18 because you have that right and a lot of people worked very hard for a very long period of time to get us that right to vote.

AM: How excited are you as we know this show launches on National Voter Registration Day to be apart of this movement and this ongoing campaign that FreeForm as a network is doing in terms of PSAs to get this awareness out there?

KP: I love it because the FreeForm PSAs and stuff have been very uplifting, jokey and it’s not taking things too seriously, but it also is underscoring the real opportunity here for young people to participate. And that’s what I like about our show here too. Our set is essentially a celebration and we have a pinball machine and some fun jokey stuff, but there’s also a lot of books on the shelf from icons of American History. Everyone from Angela Davis to Ronald Reagan. Now you don’t think of Angela Davis and Ronald Reagan in the same sentence often, but the point of both of them is that these are people in American History who as things get more and more polarizing, one person may be more familiar with one of those humans than the other and they both played such a pivotal role in who we are today and why. The other pieces of the set are things that we celebrate. There is a whole bunch of imagery around women and science, astronomy and all of those things are because people decided to vote for candidates who used our tax dollars to fund these things. So those things belong to us. We should celebrate them. That space station is ours! I mean we share it with other countries so maybe that’s a bad example, but you know that stuff is stuff that we created together as Americans and we should be celebrating. To me, I think that that tone works really well with the tone with FreeForm and obviously Hulu which we air on the following day. It’s celebratory and that’s what we want. We want to be able to make people laugh, come together and to understand the issues a little bit better.

IG @KalPenn

PHOTOGRAPHY CREDITS | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16-25 Freeform/Robbie Fimmano | FRONT + BACK COVER, PG 16-19 + 25 Editorial Design by Athleisure Mag |

Hear Kal Penn Approves This Message Executive Producer and host, Kal Penn on our show, #TRIBEGOALS - 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, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Your Vote Counts with Kal Penn in mag.

TURNING NEGATIVES INTO POSITIVES WITH SUZANNE SOMERS

This month, we caught up with one of TV's favorite sitcom actresses who also made an impact in the fitness world as an icon. We talked with Suzanne Somers about how a series of events took place that got her into the industry, how she nabbed one of her most known roles as Chrissy Snow of Three's Company, how leaving this role created an opportunity for Thighmaster as well as her focus on women living their best lives as the navigate the process of aging. She shared her insights as well as the negative moments that she forged into positives and her ultimate success.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment when you realized that you wanted to be in entertainment and to be an actor?

SUZANNE SOMERS: There was no moment. You’d think that there was a moment and you’d think that there was a dream. But I am a recovering Catholic and I got pregnant the first time that I had ever had sex. I was 17 or 18 – I was very young. The other day, my granddaughter said, “you got pregnant and lost your virginity on the same day?” I said, “yep”. So at that time, it didn’t matter whether you liked the boy or not, you were going to get married. I found myself walking down that aisle that I didn’t want to walk down in an outfit that I hated. My mother and I went to buy it and I remember her saying, “it shouldn’t be too white.”

What came out of that was this baby. I mean at 18, who wants to have a baby – I didn’t I’ve been very honest with my son about that and said, “who wants a baby at 18? I didn’t know you.” When I delivered him, I looked at these little eyes that were all bunchy and out of my mouth came this statement, “I promise that I am going to make a good life for you.” I did. I figured it out. I got pregnant at 18, I gave birth one month after my 19th birthday and I got divorced from the father and it was just me and my son against the world. I was never going to stay with the father, I knew that. I was the first person in my family to ever get a divorce and the first person in my hometown who ever got that divorce and I kept that promise.I didn’t know how to be a mother. My son never got into drugs, he never got into alcohol. I believe that we’re hard wired and when I had my baby, I knew I was going to make it right and I had the wisdom to know that part. I am so proud of him. He’s a good father, I wish that I had had a good father like him. He has 2 little girls that are now in their 20’s. They’re not screwed up although they are entitled – because that generation is. I did my part!

AM: Growing up, many of us remember seeing reruns of Three’s Company and then as we got older, seeing you on Step by Step. What was it about taking those roles and being on those shows that you enjoyed being part of them?

SS: By the time that I got to Step by Step, I was pretty ensconced in that world of sitcoms. But honestly, when you’re talking about the lead up to all of that, then it goes back to when I got the lead of Guys and Dolls in high school. I played Adelaide and I didn’t know that I had any talent. I tried out because the rest of the classes were too hard for me. But I did love Fine Arts. I loved music, singing, acting. I got a scholarship to college and there was no one in my family that had ever gone to college and no one in my hometown that I knew had gone to college.

I got a music scholarship and do you know what I chose? I was so dumb. I chose a Catholic girls college – that was the worst place that I could choose to go to college. Then 2 months into college, I got pregnant. Here I was, the first person in my family to go to college and the first one in my family to have that opportunity and I got pregnant. I thought that all my dreams were out the window. The last night of the show, that guy came and at the time, I didn’t know who he was. He was really well known in radio and his name was Walter Winchell – he had a trademark look of a beige raincoat and a pork pie hat. He walked up on stage that last night and he went right to me. He walked up to me in his NY accent which I had never heard before in my small hometown of California and he said, “you’re going some place sister.” That was fortuitous. Then when I got pregnant, I felt that my college dream was over and I had to go to work and I felt that I didn’t have any talent or skills that I knew of. I’m trying to make a living so I got a job as an extra, the lowest rung on the whole showbiz totem pole – you couldn’t go any lower. I made $32 a day and that was how I was able to survive.

My childhood was actually terrible. I look at people who have had negative things that happened in their life and I tell them, use it – make this be your asset. My father became my asset. The fact that he told me growing up that I was a piece of crap all the time, that I was a nothing, that I was a zero, he would make his hands shape into a big “o” – he would tell me all this stuff. So you believe how you are programmed and that was my programming. So when you ask me, “what was your dream and how did you end up in this business?" I'm an accident and I had talent that I didn’t know that I had. I now encourage people that come from a negative to use that as your opportunity – because you want it more then the average person. Every time my dad would say these things, I would think to myself, “I’ll show you.” One night, I was on stage and I was headlining a concert in Vegas at the biggest room in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand, he was in the audience and it wasn’t revenge or anything. I called him up on stage and if ever there was a moment where I had the “I’ll show you,” it was that night. He was so proud of me. I sang him a song – “you made me love you, I didn’t want to do it – I didn’t want to do it.”

AM: Wow

SS: Kind of poignant right? The negatives are the positives. So I had another thing that happened. After I divorced my husband who I never wanted to marry in the first place, I fell in love with Alan Hamel (Anniversary Game, Wedding Party, Lou Grant). I had taken an extra job and you know I walked into Studio C in ABC San Francisco and I was hired to be the prize model. It was like Vanna White but not as glamorous and all. I would open the refrigerator and pull the drawers out and show that it just wasn’t any kind of refrigerator but it was a refrigerator freezer.

When I walked into that studio, I met Alan Hamel and my knees felt weak. I had never felt like that. It was almost like we had known each other in another lifetime. So we started dating and I would meet him at his hotel. Everything that my mother would tell me not to do, I didn’t care. I felt like, I’ll show you. I’m in love with this guy and there is nobody like him in my hometown. I owned my power although at the time I didn’t see that. I did anything that I could to have a date with Alan Hamel.

I’m reading the trades one day and they say, there’s an interview for a guest starring part on a sitcom called Lotsa Luck with Dom DeLuise (Blazing Saddles, The Muppet Movie, Smokey and the Bandit II). The description was, small town girl doesn’t know who she is and doesn’t know who she wants. I thought, that’s me. I tell Alan and he says that’s great, I’ll pick you up at the airport. So I gather together 50 bucks – probably sold a jacket or something that I owned. I flew to Los Angeles and he picked me up. The whole reason I wanted to fly is because of that kiss he would give me in the car. It was this romantic kiss that I just couldn’t believe that you could feel like that. He drives me to Burbank for the interview. I didn’t know that you needed an agent, I didn’t know that you need them to set up an appointment. I just thought that you just go over there and had to be there at the time. I walk in and they ask me why I’m there and I say that I have an interview for the Dom DeLuise talshow. I had never had a professional part before as I was just an extra. I didn’t know that the one extra part that I had had when I was in the Thunderbird would catapult me and I was a writer at the time.

I see the girls walking in, signing in and receiving their scripts under my lashes. I read my part for a guy that I would end up doing sitcoms with, he said, “very nice.” I said, “I know that I’m exactly who you’re looking for because I’m a small town girl, I don’t know who I am and I don’t know what I look like.” He said he would give me a call back. I thought great and I went to reception and told them that I had a call back and she said that was great and I asked her what it was. Johnny Carson walks in. I look up and I’m like that’s Johnny Carson. He’s looking at me and walks over to me and says, “hey little lady, what are you doing here?” I proudly said that I had a call back because I now know the lingo. He asked for what show and I told him and he said that Dom DeLuise was a great friend of his and he wished me a lot of luck. I gave him my little book of poetry and didn’t realize that on the back the only credit that I had listed was that I was the mysterious blonde in the Thunderbird of the movie which I hadn’t seen because I couldn’t afford to go to the movie. I knew that it was a dumb credit and I didn’t know who George Lucas was. I eventually did do a one woman show on Broadway 10 years ago called, The Blonde in the Thunderbird – I didn’t know anything.

I guess when he went back to the office on Wed, he read the back of the cover and saw the credit. I was booked on the Tonight Show for that Fri – can you believe it? I didn't have a dress to go to the show. But I guess, I wrote a bag check or whatever you do when you're desperate – desperate people did desperate things. I always had the mentality of “I’ll figure out tomorrow what I did today.” I bought a one shoulder long gown to the floor - I should have worn a short one as I didn't realize that my legs were my asset. Fri night, Alan drives me over there as I couldn’t afford a taxi. I’m standing behind that famous curtain in that aqua dress – I’m the mysterious girl in the Thunderbird and I don’t know that that’s anything and I hear Johnny Carson say, “we’ve all wanted to know who the mysterious blonde in American Graffiti was. Well we found who the mysterious blond was and it’s Suzanne Somers.” I was so nervous and thinking, “you were?” The curtain opened and I walk out to an audience who was cheering and I didn’t know what that was for. I go out there and he liked that he had never met someone so naïve about Hollywood – he liked me. He was from Iowa – he liked simplicity. He was so nice to me and so good to me. I sit down after the applause stopped and he let me know that they didn’t get that kind of reaction from guests very often. I wasn’t acting like anything. He started having me on once a month to read from my book of poems and my little book of poetry became the best selling book of poetry in America from all the Tonight Show appearances. He was so great, they would place an isolated camera on him so that as I read my poems, he would have over the top reactions to go along with it.

One night, after so many appearances, a guy by the name of Fred Silverman who was the president of ABC Television had already casted Chrissy Snow and neither of them had tested very well. They knew that they had a hit with the show, but this one part was not testing very well. Fred later told me, “I got the girl. I’ve seen her on the Tonight Show all the time. So I get called in for an interview for a sitcom that I have never heard of and no one had because it hadn't been heard of called "Three's Company." The rest is history and you know. I got it and I was the most surprised person in the world to find myself on the #1 sitcom. That’s how I became who I became and I guess because I had natural talent, I was able to play the ping pong game with John Ritter (Hearts Afire, Bad Santa, Child’s Play). I didn’t realize then that he was the most talented physical and comedic actor. He was so good and I recognized that when I would watch him and I could see how talented he was. I learned by watching him. Within a year I understood comedy. Even though I didn’t study comedy, I understood the music of it and comedy is musical it’s set up – set up – beat. The writers got that and when they started writing John and I, it created a tension on the set with Joyce DeWitt because she had studied under scholarship, she was under contract. I had never had an acting class, had never studied and it made her so angry with me.

AM: We see you in that part and to see all of the happy accidents that took place to make that happen!

SS: I think for your readers, it’s a story to know that no matter where you come from and it’s about using the negative things in your life as positivity and that’s what I do. I’m looking outside right now on the 93 acre land that I live on watching sheep chase each other and I grew up living in a closet hiding from my father’s temper. We had a lock on the inside of the door so that no matter how hard he kicked at it – he couldn’t get us.

AM: How did you partner with ThighMaster? That’s a fitness icon right there!

SS: Right! I get these huge opportunities that come into my life. I get on Three’s Company which shoots to #1 at a time when it really mattered. Our show had the highest demographic across all television. I had the highest demographic of all women at that time and I had never heard of demographics. When I signed onto Three’s Company at the time, I was like where should I sign and just signed! I didn’t have a lawyer, I didn't care about how much the pay was, but by year 6 when my contract was up, I recognized that monetarily, I was worth something. It pisses people off when they realize that you know their worth. At the time, the men were making 10-15 times more than the women. I now recognize my worth and I wanted to be paid what they were being paid. Laverne and Shirley had just renegotiated with ABC and they gave them a colonic as I like to say so they were ready for my husband when he came in. They had already decided that the next big female star that would try to get paid what they were worth, would be made an example of. When my husband walked into the meeting with all the men, all the lawyers and all of that they decided as my husband says, “that you were fired before the moment that I walked in.” He said that I wanted to be paid X as that is what the men were being paid. I was waiting at home because he had left that morning – there were no cellphones there.

I can tell by the fact that he’s not running up the stairs and there’s not that long of a way to walk. He meets me where I am, looks me in the eyes and says, “you’re out.” I asked what he meant. He said you were fired before I walked in. I wasn’t getting a raise and I wasn’t going to be on the show he said, “you’re O-U-T out.” I died inside. The greatest job that I had ever had, I made a jewel and I figured out Chrissy Snow myself. I created this character where most people don’t like dumb blonds and I took this person from a small town, who didn’t know what she was or what she looked like and created someone that is beloved to this day. Wherever I go even in Jerusalem and Warsaw, Poland – people point out Chrissy Snow. Not only was I out, but it became this thing where not one woman backed me up and they all felt like, “who does she think she is?” Everyone was afraid to talk and I don’t hold it against them, but it was to their detriment because in not supporting me, I could have made life a lot sweeter for all of them.

Now, I had to find a job because we were living a life of means because we thought we could afford the house that we had just bought. My husband was very well known in Canada and ironically could become the Johnny Carson of Canada because that’s who he was up there. He had the late night talk shows – at one point he had 11 series on at the same time. So Alan made a deal for me at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. I knew that I could sing and that I could dance a little because of Guys & Dolls. People said, what's your credit and I said, “well I had the lead in Guys & Dolls in high school.”

Some people came to me and pitched us ThighMaster. It was originally called The V-Bar. My husband and I always debate on which one of us named it as he thinks he did and I think I did, so I just say we both did.

AM: You mutually named it.

SS: Yes we mutually named it. We both said, you put it between your knees and squeeze and that became the byline. Oh God, Johnny Carson loved it, Jay Leno loved it, David Letterman loved it and comedians loved the name and the byline! That’s what we started doing. After we sold 10 million – again no plan. Life is a journey and it’s about following the flow and life will take you on the right road. ThighMaster started us on the road and we became and we’re seen as brilliant marketers. So I lost one job and got another job and then I got another job with Step by Step. I was just talking to Patrick Duffy (Dallas, The Bold & The Beautiful, Welcome to Sweden) this morning – the other great husband that I have had in my life. He is the most kindest, funniest and we got along great. He is very humble, doesn’t care what he looks like, where he comes from and he simply loves to work. His wife passed away and that was the saddest thing as he so adored her. He and I got along so great – that’s what led me to what I now do. In this pandemic, I have thrived during this time. Do you want to know why?

AM: Yes.

SS: I fractured my hip. I’m on a crutch and I’m having a hard time moving. Alan and I have been doing the Facebook Live Show that people love! When the pandemic started, I invited everyone to bring their own tequila, salt and hors d’oeuvres where I tell people about my products and I just finished my 27th book called A New Way to Age and I don’t know how or why but when you write 27 books, you learn something. I have interviewed so many doctors and they trust me. I’m able to speak for them in a language that my followers understand. By the time I interview a doctor, I verify everything and get approval on their interview so that they can learn about hormones, how to replace what you do when you’re aging. I love the way I look and how many people when aging feel this way? I have a great sex drive and aging is about worn out parts. You have to understand that your hormones wear out at a certain level and they have to be replaced and to understand how to replace them through lab and blood work and to have your doctors analyze where this is and how to put back what you have lost in this process. It includes what you need. Aging is great – just know what you need to do to put those items back. The women who love me, have learned so much from me and that’s what we do every Tues and Fri night. 25 million of my books have sold globally and they have the opportunity to learn a lot, have fun with me and to see my husband and I who have been married for 50 years. That’s what happens when you replace worn out parts. It’s my proudest achievement. I loved Chrissy Snow and treated her demise like a death in the family and then I made that negative work for me and I made falling in love with Alan Hamel work for me and my baby who I had at a young age I turned that for me. I live a happy and blessed life that I can be proud of.

IG @ SuzanneSomers

PHOTOS COURTESY | Suzanne Somers

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Turning Negatives Into Positives with Suzanne Somers in mag.

STAY ON TRACK WITH JILLIAN MICHAELS

We took some time to chat with fitness icon, Jillian Michaels who is always working on a number of projects, keeping people motivated to live their best lives with no excuses on getting their goals while also ensuring that we are mentally and nutritionally on the right track as well. She talks about her career and navigating a number of elements with it, suggests routines that we can do to include within our workout as well as how we can take what we do to the next level!

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

JILLIAN MICHAELS: To be honest, I fell into it very organically. When I was 17 I was training for my black belt. And people would see me working out and assume I was a trainer. So they began asking me to train them. At that time I was making about $8 bucks an hour delivering pizza, so I thought I wonder what this training gig would pay? And I began charging $15 an hour to train people and thinking I was killing the game. Fortunately, my mom had some common sense to suggest I might need some actual credentials to work people out and she helped me pay for my first training certification. And the rest is really history.

AM: Where does this passion come from to empower others to be their best self?

JM: As a person who struggled with weight as a kid, I was very fortunate to fall into karate at 12 years old. My transformation did NOT happen overnight. It was gradual and the first thing to change was my mind. I began to notice that accomplishments I had in karate were translating to a greater sense of self worth and confidence. I noticed that as I began to feel stronger physically I began to feel stronger and more resilient in all facets of my life. Then, when I began feeling like I was playing a part in someone else’s journey towards empowerment and transformation it brought a tremendous amount of meaning into my life.

AM: You have been a trailblazer in the industry as someone who has used your platform to integrate your presence from hosting TV shows, creating your fitness app, being on covers as well as launching lines – how important was it to diversify your presence and to utilize all of these areas?

JM: As a business woman it’s critical you are omnipresent in all forms of media and synonymous with fitness in general. Even if there isn’t a fitness modality I consider myself to be the best at I work with someone who is the best to create a premium program for the consumer. Whether it’s yoga, corrective exercise, running, meditation, prenatal workouts – I will find one of the top experts in the space and have them co-create programs with me to ensure they are as good as they can be and as effective as possible.

Therefore, making sure you are a consummate pro who is always learning from the best of the best is critical to becoming a go to resource in your field. By being that go to resource you ensure you are the premium go to brand. So if Samsung is looking for a brand to auto install on all their tv’s they come to me, because I have built credibility in the space that has spanned well over a decade now.

AM: What are 3 pieces of equipment that you think are essential to have at home and if you have to make a substitution due to being unable to purchase them, what would the substitution be?

JM: Your body weight is really the ONLY tool you need. If I get three other things in this article though – I’ll take em! A mat is important. You can use it for yoga of course, but it’s nice for floor work if you don’t have a soft carpet to do floor work on. An adjustable set of dumbbells. I love powerblocks, but they are expensive. Again, bodyweight is all you need, but having dumbbells just makes things a bit easier for back exercises as rows are a lot easier for people than pullups or even assisted pull ups. Plus, while you can focus on time under tension with your leg workouts and do 100 reps of an air squat it is a bit more consuming. So if you are a more advanced athlete and you want to get a killer leg day in having the added free weight can help you save time. There really isn’t anything else that is needed, so at that point if there is something you love I would say grab it. For me I love my jump rope – even though I can simulate jumping without one. Some people love an indoor piece of cardio equipment for days they just want a brainless calorie burn – again this isn’t necessary at all to get cardio in, but it’s nice if you want to simply row, walk, bike without having to think about your training.

AM: How do you encourage those that know that they need to get back into their fitness routine or are feeling overwhelmed with doing so due to the current times of uncertainty?

JM: Ideally, we all have our reasons “why” we want to get in shape that serve as motivation. Be it getting ready for a wedding, running a 5k to raise money for breast cancer research, being a role model to your kids, wearing a certain brand of skinny jean you are obsessed with – it doesn’t matter how superficial or how profound your reasons as long as they matter to you. Beyond those things - I really can’t think of a more important time to get in shape. I see people spending so much time and energy being afraid of Covid and I understand that completely, but take that energy and channel it into the things you can control like your health and wellness. I keep telling people, we began dealing with this in March. It’s September now. Had we started in March imagine how much healthier you’d be now over 6 months later. It’s never too late. Make your health your priority! And I don’t mean to belabor the point – but I got covid and I was sick for 4 days. That’s it. While I know it affects healthy people, we also know that healthy people fare far better with it. So don’t wait. Do it for you. Do it for your family. Start NOW.

AM: As we’re navigating these times, many of our readers want to know about how they can stay in shape. Do you have 3 movements for abs, 3 movements for legs and 3 movements for arms that we can do to incorporate into our workouts?

JM: There are literally so many different ways we can workout at home – I have literally over 1000 body weight exercises alone in my app. For example here are just a few:

Lunges – forward lunges, stationary lunges, backward lunges, side lunges, weighted lunges, jumping lunges, pendulumn lunges

Squats – air squats, weighted squats, chair squats, jump squats

Core – plank, side plank, reverse plank, superman, table, crunches, reverse crunches, bicycle crunches, toe tap crunches

Cardio – Jumping jacks, jump rope (without or without a rope), mountain climbers, marching in place, side to side hops, burpees

AM: What are 3 foods that you suggest eating before and/or after a workout?

JM: This really isn’t a thing. These are the general guidelines around food and fitness:

Don’t eat a normal size meal within 60 minutes of exercise. Not only can it cause cramps while you exercise, but blood circulates to the stomach and intestines after we eat in order transport the nutrients of our meal to relevant systems in our body. This causes a heart rate increase and blood vessel constriction in order to maintain your blood pressure. Why does this matter? Because when you are working out we want the blood circulating to our muscles so we can best deliver oxygen to them while we train. And adding insult to injury an elevated heart rate and constricted blood vessels only makes it that much harder. So wait at least 60 minutes after a meal before training. A SMALL snack is ok, but not a meal.

Ideally, eat something 1-2 hours before you train. Get a little of each macronutrient in their cleanest form if you can (clean protein, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats, and complex carbs) - an apple with almond butter for example. The carbs give energy. The fat and the protein help to sustain that energy and keep you from getting a blood sugar spike that might come from eating carbs alone. Plus the protein might help encourage protein synthesis (potential improved muscle recovery).

As for a post workout meal – this is also not necessary. You don’t NEED to eat after you train. Eat every 3-4 hours for 4 meals a day – breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner. Then try to create a 12 hour overnight fast for your overall health and immunity. When you do eat, again try to get some protein, fat, and carbs in for optimal energy and protein synthesis. If you want to get a little crazy you can supplement before and after as well. I take an organic pre-workout with green tea, beets, and coffee bean before I train for the caffeine and the nitric oxide as they give more energy and help to get oxygen to the muscles. After my workout I take whey protein with branched chain aminos. Personally I like the Alaya brand, but you do NOT have to do this. Eating regularly is totally fine.

AM: Can you tell us about the Oxidizer quiz? What is it’s purpose and why does it focus on the ratio between Proteins, Carbs and Fats?

JM: Ok, this is a bit of a long answer, but I will do my best to keep it quick. The two universal rules that apply to everyone when it comes to weight loss are calories in vs calories out. And, the quality of the food matters for overall health and wellbeing. HOWEVER, insulin (among other hormones) does play a part in not just our overall health, but also our BMR (basal metabolic rate). So we want to consume foods that don’t spike insulin and eat a balance of macro nutrients (protein, fat, and carbs) that give us sustained energy. Scientists have noticed that not everyone has the same insulin response to the same foods. We believe that this has to do with each individuals unique microbiome (gut mircrobes).

Why this matters is simply to help people identify which ratio of carbs, protein, and fat they might consume to give them lasting energy, keep their blood sugar and subsequently their insulin from spiking. So the oxidizer / metabolic type quiz teaches people how to identify their ideal ratio of macro nutrients. Again this isn’t necessary, but if someone wanted to really drill down on their health – maximize energy levels, metabolism, hormone balance etc. this is the way to do that. It’s essentially a series of questions that look at how certain foods make you feel and certain physical attributes that might indicate the rate in which you turn your food into energy.

AM: With people being a bit more anxious during these times, are there foods that we can eat that will help reduce this?

JM: The first thing we want are foods rich in magnesium. Magnesium is a natural muscle relaxer and can help you feel more relaxed. Look to incorporate avocado, nuts and seeds, legumes, whole grains, leafy greens, and bananas into your diet on a regular basis.

Fermented foods and fiber rich foods to help support microbiome (all those tiny little microbes that live in our gut). A healthy strong microbiome is directly connected to overall health from immunity to metabolism and brain chemistry is just another one on the top of the list. So choose fermented foods like yogurt, tempeh, miso, kimchi, kefir, cottage cheese to keep the good bugs flowing. And be sure to feed those little critters with plenty of fiber – so lots of fruits and vegetables!

Zinc also seems to be a big one. Studies show that people with diets low in zinc are prone to depression – plus zinc is great for boosting your immune system. Foods rich in zinc are beef, lamb, oysters, shrimp, scallops, mushrooms. Foods rich in Omega 3 fatty acids. So, ideally we would get some fish into the mix here… Wild salmon, pecans, flax seeds, walnuts, sardines are all good sources!

AM: Bloating is also an issue that many look to fight. What foods can we eat that will assist with this and are there specific workouts we can do to remove this?

JM: It really depends on what type of bloating. There is bloating from water retention – in which case you drink more water (the more you drink the less you hold) and consume less sodium. No more than 2000 – 2300 mg a day unless you are an advanced athlete that sweats a lot.

If it’s a tummy thing – obviously I would be super irresponsible if I didn’t recommend that you see a gastroenterologist. I can recommend you check for any food allergies or sensitivities. And try foods rich in digestive enzymes and probiotics (fermented foods like kefir, yogurt, kimchi, tempeh, miso and tropical fruits like pineapple, mango, pomegranate are loaded with fiber and digestive enzymes to help promote good gut health).

AM: Can you talk about the relationship between Intermittent Fasting and the Microboime and the benefits to this?

JM: To be honest, the connection isn’t incredibly clear, but we do believe there is one. Some think it’s associated with potential better sleep. The fact that when we don’t eat before bed we sleep better, which improves microbiome. What I can say for certain, is that intermittent fasting has been shown to help fight aging and boost immunity. This is because we know that it optimizes something called autophagy – which is a process in which our bodies cull dead and senescent tissue (VERY IMPORTANT). And, it helps to resensitize people to insulin, which we know is related to many dangerous health conditions like type 2 diabetes for example.

AM: Tell us about the Jillian Michaels Fitness App. What can subscribers look forward to on there in terms of modalities as well as are there any challenges specific to this month or time of year?

JM: Well, we are now calling it The Fitness App by Jillian Michaels because we are just now starting to add new trainers to the mix. Which is really exciting. So the purpose of the app is to customize someone’s fitness and nutrition in order to give them all the tools to achieve their personal goals. So no matter what your current fitness level, no matter what equipment you do or don’t have, whatever type of workout you like from yoga to lifting, walking to kick boxing, your program is created just for you. You can literally show up and use any of my dvd workouts which are all in the app, or you can have me create a workout on the spot for you. You can use it on any device from streaming to the TV, you tablet, phone, watch etc. And, there are hundreds of recipes of all kinds – created by chefs and registered dieticians. So whether you are vegan or paleo, gluten free or omnivore your meal plan is totally customized. I can even change the recipe in the app based on how many servings you want to make of that particular dish. The calories change based on your unique fitness goal and body type. So basically – your fitness and nutrition are completely personalized to make it work for you.

AM: You also have your podcast, The Jillian Michaels Show, what do you talk about on hear and who are some guests and topics that you’re really excited about (whether they are coming up or are in previous episodes)?

JM: We have a series coming up with Dr. William Li who specializes in eating to beat disease and will be speaking on different ways to eat to fight cancer, boost stem cell production, combat covid and more.

AM: How do you stay engaged with your community?

JM: I engage on multiple platforms – so we have the forums on my app where I can take questions from users. I have a private facebook group that provides a safe place for people to connect as well and I often go in there and check in. I also and pretty engaged on Instagram in the comment section.

AM: How have you been spending your time during this quarantine?

JM: I have kept my focus pretty streamlined. My priorities personally are my health and the health of my family. And while kids generally don’t struggle with covid, I worry about my kids mental health as they haven’t been in school or in any of their usual social and physical activities. SO I try to get them outside to bike, surf, hike. Professionally, my career focus has been as great as ever. More people are working out at home so I have been in overdrive mode adding new things to my app so people constantly have new content. We just recently added meditations to the app. And a 30 Day yoga challenge all of September with Dashama (one of my favorite yoga experts). We have an all new audio workout section coming to the app as well. And we are adding slides, kettlebells, and booty bands this fall.

AM: We know you have a new book coming out next year. Are there projects that we should keep an eye out for?

JM: For the Jillian Michaels brand - I focus all efforts in constantly evolving the app. Be it new trainers, new workouts, new ways to get healthy like mind body meditations etc. As a business woman I am constantly investing in other companies that I believe have better for you products. So whether it’s an organic nitro cold brew company like Lucky Jack, or an organic supplement company like Alaya I love supporting great companies who are doing great things.

AM: What philanthropies are you involved in?

JM: Currently I am working with the UNHCR – which is the United Nations Refugee Agency. I am also very passionate about health related charities and animal welfare causes, but my primary focus for the last several years has been to raise funds and awareness for refugees as this is literally the greatest humanitarian crisis of our time.

AM: How you do you take time for yourself to ensure that you replenish your energy?

JM: Here is a strategy I employ to find the time for my self care. It’s called the 12 our rule. So - if there are 168 hours in a week and you prioritize sleep - which is critical to wellness - and take 8 hours a night for that - you’re left with 112 waking hours in your week.

If you have the most difficult scemario and you are a working single parent - and you designate 50 hours a week to run the household (take dog to vet, scoop dry cleaning, run kids back and forth to appointments etc.) and the other 50 hours you designate to work/ career that leave you with 12 remaining hours. Those are YOUR hours. Schedule them accordingly. So I usually take 2 hours a week toward fitness (four 30min workouts at home), one date night, one friend visit, one medical or hygiene appointment (dentist, hair cut, check up etc), a couple hours for a hobby, and this usually helps me over the course of the month stay fit, sane, social. It’s not perfect, but it works. And I schedule those 12 hours weekly. come hell or high water.

AM: When you look at everything that you have accomplished, how do you want your legacy to be defined?

JM: This is gonna sound so cheesy, but it really is true… I want my kids to be my legacy. As I watch my kids grow and become their own unique people I realize what a gift it is to help shape that and guide them to be the best version of themselves. And then I think – maybe this is what I’m actually here for… to be a conduit for a greater thing. A stepping stone in the evolution of something greater.

IG @JillianMichaels

PHOTOS COURTESY | Jillian Michaels

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see Stay on Track with Jillian Michaels in mag.

9LIST

Read the Sep Issue #57 of Athleisure Mag and see 9LIST in mag.

5 REASONS WHY BIKING IS THE LIFESTYLE CHOICE YOU NEED TO MAKE TODAY

During the pandemic, lots of gyms stay closed. Even if your local gym opened up again recently, you may not want to go back. You might wear a mask, but you know that’s not always one hundred percent effective.

If you’re young and healthy, you might decide to risk it. If you have an immunocompromised condition, though, you’ll probably want to stay away. Besides, gyms cost money, and you may not have much of it right now.

You want to stay fit, and biking might make the most sense for you. If you learned how when you were younger and own a bike already, this could be an ideal solution for dropping some pounds.

Let’s look at five compelling reasons why you should take up biking in 2020 if you haven’t done so already.

You Can Keep Things Casual, or Enter a Bike Race

If you’re a competitive individual, you probably know that there are all kinds of bike races every year. You may decide that you want to enter one. When you do so:

• You can dominate the competition

• You’ll have a goal on which to focus

Of course, you don’t have to be a competitive biker if you’d prefer not to be. There are millions of regular cyclists on the road who don’t want to do anything more ambitious than explore their neighborhoods. That’s perfectly fine as well.

You’ll Work Several Muscle Groups

Another reason why people like biking so much is that it works many of your major muscle groups at once. When you go biking, you’re working:

• Your core

• Your arms

• Your legs

You engage the most muscles while biking if you tackle a more ambitious route. If you have several hills to traverse, that’s when you get your blood pumping and start to burn off some calories.

Biking through hilly terrain for an hour or more is every bit as challenging as any class you’d take in your local gym. As you map out and attempt longer and more strenuous rides, you’ll feel proud of yourself when you complete them.

Other Than the Bike, It’s Free

Many people have lost jobs this year, and others have depleted their savings accounts. The economy will probably recover slowly.

If you buy a bike, along with a helmet, those are one-time purchases. You can get a bike rather cheaply if you don’t get a top-of-the-line one.

A bike and helmet cost a fraction of what you’d pay for a Peloton or a Mirror. You also don't have to shell out a monthly gym membership fee if you get a bike.

With money tight this year for so many people, that’s good news. You can often get years of use out of your bike if you treat it well. The only money you might spend is on occasional minor repairs.

You Can Go Biking as a Group

You can see if you can get some family members or friends involved in your rides. Fitness is always easier if you can do it with others. You can show solidarity and motivate each other.

You can usually convince at least a few people to do it with you. If it’s not friends or family, maybe some neighbors will express an interest.

 You can go biking as a group while still wearing masks and socially distancing. That’s much safer than working out as a group indoors where you’re all breathing in recirculated air.

You Can Get Out in Nature

One more reason to think about biking as your new exercise form is that you can explore some public parks. In most towns and cities, there’s a space nearby that should have some bike trails.

It’s autumn, and in many regions, you can enjoy the leaves changing colors. You might spot some flora or fauna, like deer, chipmunks, wild turkeys, etc.

This can calm you down if you ever feel anxious or stressed. It can be like therapy for you. You can pass some moments of meditative silence.

When you get back home, your problems won’t seem anywhere near as bad. You will feel calm and serene, ready to tackle the routine again.

Biking is great for fitness, camaraderie, and to save you some money in this challenging year. If you don’t know how to bike, or you’ve forgotten since you were a kid, find someone to give you a refresher course. You can always find videos about it on YouTube as well.  

PHOTO CREDIT | Photo by Mabel Amber from Pexels/Photo by Mabel Amber from Pexels