Category Archives: Fitness

Tone It Up in Times Square!

Huge thanks to fellow Fitfluential Ambassador Carissa for featuring me on her and her husband’s blog, Fit2Flex, as part of their “5 Questions With…” series! Check out my answer to her five questions here!

Thank you for all the positive feedback you guys have been leaving on my recap posts about the big events I attended two weeks ago. I can’t believe it’s already been that long! In case you missed anything:

In the Meet & Tweet recap, I mentioned that after our time at Fitness Magazine HQ, Heather, Bess, and I trekked ourselves and our swag (commence viewing of silly vlog by Heather here) through the streets of NYC to the Oakley Store in Times Square for an event that meant a lot to my two blends – the Self Magazine Tone It Up Meet-Up!

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The event didn’t disappoint! We arrived early enough (among the first 50 guests) to be gifted with more swag. And how appropriate for the event to be held in the Oakley Store, after we’d just received a pair of their fabulous new active wear sunglasses!

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In our gift bags we found a $10 Oakley gift card, a copy of SELF, an Oakley towel and reusable water bottle, TIU’s Perfect Fit Protein Powder (not a user of powders so I gave mine to Heather), and best of all, a copy of their much-raved about Beach Babe DVD! Heather, Bess, and the rest of the TIU ladies I’ve met through blogging just LOVE these quick and efficient workouts. I’ve already tried HIIT the Beach, Long & Lean, and the abs segment. I really like how I can just pick segments and put them together based on what I’m feeling each day. I’m taking this DVD with me on a trip this coming weekend for potential hotel room workouts…and will also be using it this fall, once my night classes start back up, to get in quick morning sweats that will replace my usual evening gym trips!

Waiting in line!

Heather shows off her DVD – I love this pic!

Mattie joined us soon after we arrived. We got many questions from fellow line members about the eons of stuff we were dragging along with us. We’d (practically) sing out in chorus “We’re bloggers!” in response

So much stuff. The Vera flower gym bag was already mine! Haha

Our electronics were dying slow painful deaths, and Mattie had the brilliant idea to bust out her Mac and turn it into a portable iPhone charging station. Desperate times, desperate bloggers.

The event progressed very smoothly and in what seemed like not much time at all, we were at the front of the line and just moments from meeting Karena (in love with that spelling of that name, by the way) and Katrina.

Heather met the girls first, which seemed appropriate to me given the fact that they and their program have played such a huge part in her life, both personally and blog-related. Seeing her meet them was so much fun for me because I could tell just how much the chance meant to her! Sappy moment, but I just love seeing people happy.

The TIU trainers seemed to be all about the hugs!

Cannot help but notice some similarity in arm tone-age there! Go Heather!

Karena and Katrina even featured Heather and a recipe she made with the Perfect Fit Protein Powder on the TIU Facebook page after the event!

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Next up it was time for Bess to meet the trainers! Bess is also a huge part of the Tone It Up team.

Dying over the outfits!

Mattie got some q-time in with the girls as well!

Three lovely ladies!

Then it was my turn! I have to say I was in awe of these two women. They are so, so beautiful and really radiated warmth and what I can only call a sort of “light”. And no, it wasn’t the camera flashes going off!

How much do you love the pink carpet?!

I felt totally comfortable giving both Karena and Katrina each a big hug and telling them how excited I was to finally try their Beach Babe DVD after I’d heard so much about it from Heather and Bess. They seemed genuinely touched and happy to hear it! Also, they signed my DVD…so now my copy is extra special 😀

Such a fun event to attend…I felt so swept up in the atmosphere of the city and the opportunities that I felt were awaiting me around every corner. I didn’t want the day to end. And luckily, it wasn’t going to!

Next up on the agenda for Heather and I was a meal of a lifetime at Pure Food & Wine, which as fate would have it, was right next to where our car was parked. So, she and I hopped in a taxi (no more swag-lugging for these girls), and set off for some clean eats…to be continued!

Have you ever heard of Tone It Up and/or tried any of their workouts or recipes?

Have you ever met a “celebrity” of the fitness world in person? What was it like?

Reebok: Fitfluential Fashion

If you didn’t get a chance to see my recap of my day at Reebok World Headquarters with FitFluential, you can check it out here!

I’m a sucker for all things fashion-related, even when it comes to working out. Nothing gets me going at the gym like a cute new workout top or some sweet yoga pants. I swear, my performance in a group fitness class is improved when I wear a piece for the first time. It’s for that reason that I save the first-time wear of any workout gear for a day when I plan to take a group fitness class. Yes, I know it’s all mental, but I accept it and just let myself get that extra push from feeling extra-fly.

What do we have here?!

So you can imagine how enthusiastic I was after hearing that in addition to attending #RBKFITBLOG at Reebok HQ, we Fitfluential Ambassadors would be receiving Reebok gear to try, test, and tweet 😉 That became reality when the above box showed up on my driveway (no, not doorstep, Mr. Delivery Man apparently puts packages on driveways now!)

I adore pink workout gear. Call me Gym Barbie, I don’t care. I’ll take it as a compliment. I was so happy to receive the above Reebok backpack in PINK! I was also squealing with delight over the keychain. After the Reebok event, during which I toted my backpack-adorned-with-keychain with pride, I wasted no time transferring the tiny sneaker to my car keys. I don’t use the backpack everyday, but I do use those keys, and I want to be looking at that sneaker allllll the time.

It even came with tissue paper in it like a full-size shoe. Adorable.

I opened up the backpack and, cheesy as it sounds, couldn’t believe my eyes.

I should stop here and add that upon unpacking my loot and trying on the clothing, I discovered that some of it was too big. After mentioning this to Danielle Liss, who forwarded my request for new sizes to Reebok, I received a package with replacement sizes just a few days later. Now that is service! So kind of Reebok to replace the clothing with sizes that would fit me better – that way, I was able to give their clothes the most accurate test-drives possible. I simply brought my larger sizes with me to HQ the day of the event and handed them off to Johnice Graham of the Women’s Marketing Team – along with a huge THANK YOU!

Not just for carrying workout gear! Used my backpack to carry fashion magazines, my camera, snacks, and water to the beach on Saturday.

The gear below all fit, though! I love the Reebok CrossFit Racebrack Bra with removable inserts (I kept mine in). It’s really comfy and has taken me through a couple workouts by now. It doesn’t ride up either. The socks fit really well too and the material feels really high quality. They don’t ride down and bunch under my heel like workout ankle socks often do.

Really like the CrossFit tank with built-in sports bra as well. My girls aren’t in need of too much support, and any girl with a C cup or bigger would probably need a sports bra along with the one attached to the top, but for me the bra included did a good job supporting me through a Tone It Up Beach Babe DVD workout with Heather, which we completed the morning after our day at Reebok.

Also enjoyed planking in it while tweeting some #PROOF at the gym last weekend, after a spin class.

You may have noticed me wearing the Reebok Crossfit headband that I received at the event in the picture of my TIU outfit as well. I considered the TIU HIIT the Beach cardio segment of the Beach Babe DVD to be the ultimate test because of the plyometrics involved. I had high hopes that the band wouldn’t come off due to the gel lining on its interior.

Unfortunately almost halfway through the workout, my band slipped off my head. Heather’s made it through the HIIT workout as well as the ab and stretch segments, though it was close to the “edge” by the end there. After taking it through a test drive during spin back home though, I found that it did not give me any trouble, since spin doesn’t involve jumping around. I plan to definitely rock this headband during my non-Step or HIIT workouts, but just like all other workout headbands I’ve tried, it cannot survive one of my dance or plyo-based group fitness classes!

Band still in place after spin class! Ugh gross look.

I even threw on a cardigan after doing the TIU workout with Heather, though I know it didn’t match the workout gear at ALL, and wore it her favorite local cafe, Wildflour (more to come on that later), to do some blogging, coffee drinking, and scone consuming. I was quite comfy! And Heather was quite fashionable.

Heather and I decided to go all matchy-matchy for the visit to Reebok HQ (are you at all surprised?) and wear our Reebok Essential Short Sleeve Tees and Crossfit capris. I liked the pink and green color combo.

The tee is not something I would usually wear to the gym. If I wear a tee, I prefer either a fun, more laid-back style – literally a very plain t-shirt shape, not the slightly fitted shape of the below tee – or a very form-fitted top. This style was a bit too in-between for me. However, I can’t say it wasn’t comfortable – the fabric was soft and handled a of day sweat from two workouts and trekking around HQ very well. The slightly-fitted style is also one that I know many women do enjoy (for example, my mom prefers it), so I don’t doubt that it has appeal.

Being a goof at the gym in the pink tee.

The capris were pretty comfortable, though like the headband, they did not hold up (literally) during an HIIT workout. I don’t think that was the fault of the pants’ quality though, I think it was the fault of the fit. Most bloggers wearing them during the event were having no trouble, but I just felt like I had to readjust the waist several times during each cardio-workout-centric portion of our day. Yet again, I wore the capris to a spin class AKA not much jumping around, and they felt much better! I’m wearing them in the photo below.

We topped off the outfits (literally) with the Reebok Sport Essential Jacket. Like the tee, I wish the jacket had been more fitted. I prefer my zip-up hoodies to be very form-fitting and my non zip-ups to be very loose. Loved the soft built-for-sweat material though, and the color! Especially the bright yellow lining inside the pockets –  see it peeking out a little? Bright accents like that make me smile 🙂

After the Crossfit class we did with Reebok’s head coaches, we bloggers were pleasantly surprised to find Reebok drawstring bags waiting for us at the tables that had been set up for our lunch and focus groups. MORE workout gear?! We couldn’t believe it! Heather and I felt like the luckiest girls in the world.

Wore these to my favorite high-intensity Step class.

The above shorts were my first foray into the world of workout bottoms with built-in underwear-like liners. I wasn’t sure if these liners are meant to be a sub for undies or not, so I still wore them (TMI?) underneath the shorts. However, having two “underwear” layers didn’t bother me at all and the shorts didn’t inch their way up over my hips like I’ve found happens with cheaper brands (I like to wear my workout shorts resting around my hips, not up around my waist). I really love them!

I also received the above outfit in my drawstring bag. I once again used my gym’s high-intensity Step class to test out a portion of this gear – the Skinny Capris. It’s hard to tell on the website and in the above photo, but the blue on bottom is actually a mesh material that adds a really cute, feminine flair. The top portion also goes over the hips and hugs the stomach at a perfect level of tightness, which I believe is why they named the capris the way they did – they are meant to have a slimming affect through the stomach and hips. I just liked the design because they didn’t fall down at all and stayed in place quite perfectly despite the fact that during the Step class, I was bouncing and kicking all over the place. I haven’t gotten a chance to wear the blue top to a workout yet but it’s the same pink and yellow one Ilyse Baker wore in my cardio dance pics in my recap post, just a different color.

These are the shorts I received.

If you read the recap or followed my tweets the day-of the #RBKFITBLOG event itself (shame on you if you didn’t :-P) you may remember hearing that I won a $100 gift card to the Reebok HQ Store during the event’s closing – and everything was already 50% off for us that day. I went a little crazy as a result! I got myself the above tank top in two colors. I haven’t worn the pink version yet, but I did wear the other color (see below) to spin and weight-lifting on Sunday.

I spy a Reebok shopping bag!

So comfortable! The siding is mesh and made the top VERY breathable during a sweaty cardio workout.

I know what you’re thinking. This post is about Reebok. WHERE ARE THE SHOES?!

In the package shipped to my home I received the above reusable Crossfit water bottle and RealFlex Transition sneakers. They fit perfectly and I wore them all day to the Fitness Magazine Meet & Tweet. Even for my first time wearing them, they were so flexible, breathable, and comfortable for a full day on my feet. I also wore them during both the Crossfit and cardio dance workouts at Reebok HQ, and am pleased to say that they performed as promised.

The RealFlex Transitions are really ideal for an all-around fitness girl like me who likes to constantly switch it up. I may run once in a blue moon, but mostly I’m spinning, lifting, and taking cardio classes. I’ll also do the standard StairMaster fare – you just never know. In fact I often don’t know what I’m doing workout-wise until the afternoon of, so it’s great to have one sneaker I can pack and know it will function for whatever I choose to do once I get to the gym.

We also received a pair of the RealFlex Transitions in hot pink at the Meet & Tweet. Yayy Gym Barbie! The sock liner in these sneakers is made of poly-urethane (PU for short – ha, a pun that Reebok’s merchandising team did not even realize existed!) to cut down on stench. This design (not necessarily color) is Reebok Women’s key shoe, and its most popular.

Creepin’ on Heather in her hot pink RealFlex.

It provides neutral support for those with normal to high arch feet. Of course I’ve already worn mine to Group Step (see below, taken pre-class). If you’re more of a runner, you can still take advantage of RealFlex technology and go with the Optimal design.

Finally, we have the ZigNano Fly II sneakers, which utilize Reebok’s Zig Technology. I gave you guys a sneak peek of these during my recap. This is Reebok’s running platform. The wave design is meant to propel a runner forward and toe-off as fast as possible. This is also a great shoe for the versatile woman, but is specifically a better choice for runners than the RealFlex. As I recapped on Sunday, even if you’ll be training for any race, no matter the distance, you should really be wearing a runner shoe. This is advice straight from the mouths of Reebok team members!

Puuuurty.

I’ve worked out in these shoes twice, during the previously mentioned TIU workout with Heather and last night during that go-to Step class. So far each time I’ve put them on, I’ve literally breathed a pleased sigh as it felt like a cloud was encasing my foot. I can tell they’re built to keep the foot safe from jarring, whether from the pavement or plyometrics. I was doing the latter in class last night, and felt well-supported in the foot and, most importantly, in my ankles.

Before class began.

Whew…there you have it! Everything you needed to (and wanted to, I hope :-D) know about Reebok Women sneakers and workout gear. Be sure to check out the online store and please contact me if you have any questions! If I don’t have the answers, I can certainly try to get in touch with the appropriate parties at Reebok, or other FitFluential Ambassadors, to find them for you!

And to cap off this round-up with a little fun FYI – the blue Reebok jacket I coveted at the Fitness Magazine Meet & Tweet, worn by one of the Fitness Magazine fashion session models, is ON SALE on Reebok.com right now. To buy or not to buy…

Have you ever found a workout headband that will stay put during a dance or plyo cardio workout?

Anyone know if workout shorts with built-in underwear are actually meant to be worn without “real” underwear?

Which of the three sneakers I received would you want to wear most from a fashion standpoint? How about functional?

Same question as above – except with the clothes!

Where’s your favorite place to get workout gear, be it a brand or just a store that sells all different kinds? Gotta admit I’m in love with TJMaxx or Marshall’s to find affordable and cute sports clothes!

A Day at Reebok World HQ!

Oh my goodness. WHERE HAVE I BEEN?! I’m sorry that I haven’t been blogging…work has been crazy this week and in my down time I have been spending time with friends (old and new) and family, wine tasting, restaurant-ing, and working out. I’ve been doing the things I love when I’m not at work! Don’t get me wrong, I love blogging, but I get LOTS of computer time at my desk job. Being PC free is the way-to-be (ha) sometimes.

The kind hand-written note Reebok sent me before the event, along with an agenda of the day and some fashionable goodies!

But now I’m here and finally ready to tell you about the #RBKFITBLOG event I attended at the Reebok World Headquarters! The brand invited FitFluential Ambassadors to come learn about how current products are made, what new products are coming out, and even how the shoes hold up in a workout (yup, we got shoes, and yup, we got to workout with Reebok trainers!)

Random workout challenges were spread all about the campus, including on a row of 10 pillars – #9 was my favorite! You can probably see why!

I headed to Heather’s house in MA the night before the event so that the next morning we could wake up and drive there together. It was so convenient and I loved being able to visit her house for the first time! She and I arrived (albeit a bit late…oops!) at Reebok World HQ in Canton, MA and were greeted by the fantastic intern we spent the day with, Kathryn Lewis, a Crossfit junkie and an extremely hard worker. We were led upstairs to a VERY impressive meeting room that we came back to throughout the day. I was aching for some caffeine and I got it…the coffee was amazing and the breakfast spread looked great!

Our meeting room was set up with Crossfit boxes for chairs – so cool! Each seat also came ready with a notebook and pen to write down all we’d be learning throughout the day, and a Reebok Crossfit headband (I plan to do an entirely separate post on all the Reebok fashion related parts of the day so stay tuned for my thoughts on this and more!)

My Crossfit box seat, headband, writing utensils, caffeine, water, wireless info…basically, all set!

Can you spy any of your favorite bloggers in my photos? Just like at the Fitness Magazine Meet & Tweet, I was given the chance to hang out with some of the women who inspire me and have been doing so for years! I saw Julie, Courtney, Tina, Anne, Maria, Bex, Nicole, Cat, and Sarah again.

But I also got to meet some lovely ladies that hadn’t been in NYC the previous Wednesday – Sarah of Skinny Runner and Ashley of Healthy Ashley! I was a bit of a nerd when introducing myself to Ashley, gotta admit it. She is just so strong and has overcome so much…and I’m a big sap (thanks, Heather ;-)) and adore her love story. Sarah is just as funny in real life as she is on her blog and was really cool! She has the same laptop as me and, like me, hers often can be found to have a ton of food in the keyboard. Sorry, technology.

Our nametags – we got to write why we loved fitness and blogging!

Johnice Graham, Reebok marketing manager (I mentioned her in my Fitness Mag recap because she was at that event too), kicked things off welcoming us, thanking us for coming, and giving a great overview of the brand’s history and how it came to be where it is today. Reebok started out being VERY big with Step aerobics, which is currently my favorite form of exercise! My mom used to teach Step and she still remembers loving all the Reebok clothes and wearing their trademark white sneakers while she taught. Now, Reebok is focused on a broader category – FITNESS. I love that idea! It’s smart of them to keep it broad because really, anything can be fitness. Different activities are fitness to different kinds of people. Everyone has a form of fitness they enjoy or can find and enjoy.

My blogger brain is a sponge! Ready to learn!

Then we got to watch some videos that got us REALLY pumped up and ready to go try Crossfit. We learned about Reebok’s involvement with Crossfit specifically, and saw several montages and commercials that communicated a clear brand image. I felt so truly inspired! From a marketing POV, I really respect the creative minds behind those pieces that we viewed.

Next, off to Reebok’s Crossfit box. Yes, they have one on campus! I am actually completely envious of all the fitness options the HQ has for its employees. Classes are going on ALL the time. Heaven for a group fitness junkie like myself! The gym is also gorgeous.

Off to the box!

You may be wondering where we all got the fabulous workout gear we’re wearing in our pictures! And how we all got the same clothes! Well as I mentioned before, I’ll be going more into the fashion-aspect of this in my next post. After all, I love fashion, and thought that everything I wore before, during, and after this event DEFINITELY deserved its own post.

That’s Kathryn (the great intern) on the left!

I was nervous to try Crossfit at first, but the Reebok top Crossfit coaches Austin Malleolo and Caleb Diebolt did an excellent job easing us into the WOD (Workout of the Day) with demos and chances to practice two of the workout’s three portions – kettlebell swings and pull-ups with bands.

It quickly became apparent to me that anyone can do Crossfit because there many modifications available to make each WOD accessible to anyone. For example, bands of varying thickness could be looped around the pull-up bar and then around our feet to assist us. Check out this video from Kelly Olexa to see what I mean – Heather and I are in there doing our pull-ups!

The ladies circle around Caleb…we didn’t need much convincing!

 The kettlebell swings were also easy to modify because of the different weight levels available to use. Caleb demonstrated the proper form to us, but only after we had all practiced some squats first. Owww.

Listening to Austin’s instructions.

Aside from the swings and pull-ups, our WOD (a partner work-out) started with a 200 meter sprint. Heather and I became partners and formed our team Cait Plus Kale – what do you think?! 😀

We did three rounds of sprinting, swinging, and pull-up-ing.

I liked the cardio and strength interval aspect of Crossfit, as well as the varying kinds of moves. I like a workout that switches it up and gets a lot done in a short period of time!

I was pretty satisfied with Cait Plus Kale’s performance, especially for first-time Crossfitters!

Reebok did a great job making sure we were well-trained and well-versed in the Crossfit ways. I learned a lot and would totally do it again!

Badass by the box.

Wait…can we just look at this close-up?

Oh yeah. I went there. Apologies to Julie, Sarah, and Heather.

And this photo (and video) are obviously my favorites of the day:

Caleb Diebolt Fan Club

We walked back to our central meeting place, where snacks awaited us so we could re-fuel.

I had a banana, and felt another caffeine craving. Kathryn kindly offered to grab me some coffee, but I had no idea she’d have to go down to the basement, where Reebok’s Starbucks is located, to get it for me. I was blown away! Reebok seriously treated us like queens the entire day and I am so thankful. I was certainly not expecting that!

Thank you Kathryn! The coffee was amazing!

And things only got better – on each of our seats was a bag of more Reebok goodies! I couldn’t believe it – I’ll go more into detail about what I received when I do my fashion-related post, but here’s a sneak peek!

Reebok ZigNano Fly II sneakers!

Nicole and I rockin’ the goody bags!

If you were watching my Twitter during this next part, you may have seen my live-tweeting everything we were learning from Kate Young, the US Women’s Merchandising Manager, about Reebok sneakers.

  • Reebok’s Crossfit shoes were the first built purely for function – the colors and styling came later.
  • U-Form technology is pretty amazing – any shoe possessing these capabilities has a U-Form logo. Just hold a hair dryer to it for 20 minutes (you can prop up the hair dryer and let it run), and when the logo shows up on the tongue, that means the shoe is ready for molding. Just put it on and it will mold to your foot for fit-perfection!
  • The last of a shoe is its mold, and every shoe has one. This includes characteristics like width and toe spring.
  • The Oly is Reebok’s Olympic lifting shoe. Just holding one of these was an experience – the heaviest sneaker I’ve ever held! Certainly not meant for running. It’s designed to encourage keeping weight in the heels.
  • Sneaker liners can be molded or di-cut (flat).
  • The drop of a sneaker is very important. It’s the difference in height between the heel and the forefoot. A zero drop would be a barefoot shoe. A flatter drop is the best for strength training, because a lifter wants his or her feet planted firmly on the ground. That’s why you may often see people lifting weights in barefoot shoes!
  • Overlay is anything stitched on top of the mesh of a sneaker.
  • For any race you train for, even a 5K, you should go for a running shoe. That’s because since you’ll be doing training runs, you’re more likely to be running more often, even if for shorter distances.
  • To determine your foot type, try either looking at your sneakers to see where the most wear is, or try getting your feet wet and walking on some newspapers or a brown paper bag. The majority of folks are in the “normal” space.

For more about the sneakers I received, stay-tuned for that fashion post!

LUNCH!

Then it was lunch time, and the lunch was seriously amazing. While we ate, we participated in a focus group, which had me totally nerding out. To be the subject of interest for a company like Reebok was, and still is, surreal! This was the point when we got to see stuff that isn’t even out yet – even up to a year out in terms of launch timing! All I can say is, keep your eyes peeled, because starting in July you’re gonna be seeing some great things from Reebok.

I made myself a spinach salad beast with steak and chicken, accompanied by a veggie wrap, whose innards were promptly emptied on top of my salad.

After lunch and the focus group we went downstairs to Reebok’s labs to learn about the path of the sneaker from idea to shoe. Bill McInnis, head of innovation, used to work for NASA! I was amazed by the room we were in when we listened to his presentation. The shelves were full of medical textbooks and models of the foot, ankle, etc. Whenever I look at shoes I see fashion and function, but it never truly hit me until that moment how much science goes into the functional portion of a sneaker.

Reebok’s sneakers are tested for 200 to 300 miles before they are released. Gotta know how they’ll hold up in the long term! Bill passed around a model of a human foot to show us how complex it really is – the foot has just as many bones as the hand, about 26, yet most people probably think of the hands as being more complicated because they do so many nimble things like play the piano, type, etc.

Goofing off with a foot, because that’s what I do.

Then we headed to check out the CAD technology behind designing each shoe. We use CAD where I work, so it was cool to see it applied to sneakers!

Next we donned safety goggles and headed to the lab where the design on the screen you see above becomes reality – or at least some form of it!

Eek! Watch the eyes!

Many a geeky goggle photo was taken.

A good luck for me and Julie, yes?

Reebok actually took on the challenge of creating a sneaker for Igor Vovkovinskiy, the tallest man in America – he’s 7 feet, 8 inches!

Paul Bates, head of the CAD department, showing us the machine used to make Igor’s shoe.

The computer we saw previously sends a design to the above machine, which then gets to work actually making it, using 100% recyclable plastic. It used to be a highly inefficient process – before the “digital age”, a design would be faxed overseas, where it would be interpreted visually by a human and made into a mold. That would be sent back and, usually, several rounds of back-and-forth corrections would have to be made due to misinterpretations. Now we have computers that know exactly what to send and machines that know exactly how to read it!

All of these were spit out by the machines you’re seeing here, after the CAD technology sent the design their way.

Another type of machine, but this one does the same thing.

The Reebok employee below works with this technology on a daily basis and even used it to make a scary-accurate rendition of…himself!

Which one is human?! 😉

He also made us some cool little gadgets to take home – reminded me of a Rubix cube, only nothing to solve, just plenty to play with!

Psyched!

Last but not least, it was time for my most anticipated part of the day…a cardio dance workout with the creator of Dancinerate and Reebok Global Ambassador, Ilyse Baker!

Ilyse gives us her background and gets us pumped to dance.

Ilyse was gorgeous, so skilled, and a fantastic teacher. Plus, she’s from California. I see so much of what I would like to be in her! She views fitness as a community and loves how social media plays so well into that. Sounds just like what Reebok thinks of fitness as – and me too!

Each combo was broken down for us and easy to catch on to. I was VERY into this class. I think I was a little too into it – people seemed a bit shocked! I just tend to get lost in anything dance-related 🙂

To viewt a lot more of our dancing, check out Sarah’s video recap of our day. It’ll make you feel like you were there and give you a better idea of the kind of dance we did!

JAZZ HANDS!

Thanks to Ilyse for coming all the way from LA to teach us bloggers how to break it down!

Sweat = smiles!

Sadly, our day at Reebok was coming to a close. It ended with some special Paleo cookies though, which is always good. They were so hearty and full of nutrients!

The lovely cookies, and other snacks too!

Johnice gave some closing remarks, thanked us for coming (um…thank YOU!!!) and drew two names out of a shoe (how appropriate!) to win a $100 Reebok gift card to the HQ’s store, which was already 50% off for us that day.

And guess who won the second gift card??

YAY!! What a perfect ending to a perfect day. I used the card to get myself a couple of tanks (will review in my Reebok fashion round-up), and I purchased presents for my family and Heather as well. I got my sister the top Ilyse was wearing during our dance class!

Oh my gosh. What a day. Was that recap long enough for you? It would have been longer if I had started babbling about the clothes and shoes! Don’t worry…that’s coming next!

Thank you Reebok for hosting this #RBKFITBLOG blogger event, treating us so well, and showing us such a fun time. I am so grateful to have been included with all the amazing women who were also invited!

Would you have wanted to try Crossfit or a cardio dance workout? Do you already do either or both?

Which of the facts about Reebok that I shared here do you find most intriguing? What did you learn?

Did you spot any of your favorite bloggers in my photos?

Fitness Magazine Meet and Tweet

What a whirlwind the last several days have been! Thanks again for being so patient with me while I have been busy living life to the fullest 🙂 now it’s time to share my experiences with you all! Or at least, one of them!

Starbucks bold with a splash of steamed skim and cinnamon powder. Kthxbye.

On Wednesday, my best blend Heather and I stopped at Starbucks for caffeine (she let me try a sip of her black Blonde Roast – didn’t think I’d like the lighter brew, but surprise, it was PERFECT black!) and hit the road for the NYC Fitness Magazine Blogger Meet & Tweet!

Heather decided to be completely normal and make her choc protein pudding oats in the car 😉

This is a normal blogger thing to do!

The last hour of the ride was a bit of a nightmare since a) we had to pee and b) my butt had become completely numb from sitting for so long and c) we were moving at a crawl thanks to rush hour. Seriously, the body is NOT meant to sit for that long!!! Once Heather and I parked (I used a Groupon for the parking, $16 for the entire day, had to brag about it), we begged the attendant to let use use the employee-only, toilet paper-less bathroom. Desperate times, friends.

Ahhh much better!

Before we were able to relieve ourselves, Heather shot a silly vlog, which I begrudgingly agreed to be in for about .02 seconds. For your viewing pleasure…

Swear I’m not a tourist.

We were so excited to finally arrive! My heart was poundingas I entered the building – I could hear all the chatter going on upstairs, and could hardly believe I was about to walk into this amazing event.

We got our name tags, picked up our (first) bag-o-goodies, and set out to visit the booths that had been set up by the event sponsors.

Awesome display by Reebok, including spot to try on their RealFlex Transition sneakers!

I stopped by Reebok’s table first and was excited to meet Johnice Graham of their marketing team. Hello, dream job! She was so kind and told me I’d be seeing her in a couple days at their #RBKFITBLOG event! Of course I had to take a picture, which you may recognize from the blog’s Facebook page(new default!)

Next, I was BEYOND spoiled by Oakley!!! They had a booth set up where we could try on some of their new active wear sunglasses. They’re made for the active woman who likes to keep things fashionable at the same time – pretty sure that’s almost every female FitFluential Ambassador! Then the awesome ladies at the booth informed me that I could take home a pair of my favorite style. WHAT?!

Is this real life?

And a special shout-out to Jaclyn, an amazing PR girl I met at the Oakley booth. She was so cool and down to earth. I hope we get to hang out again soon!

Thank you Oakley!

I was also spoiled by Birkenstock! They gifted me a pair of their Madrid sandals in brown. I was honestly skeptical at first – I wasn’t sure if they would really be my style. However, my favorite pair of brown leather sandals broke a few months back, so this timing seems pretty perfect! I’m excited to break them in and will update you guys on how comfortable they feel on my feet.

Thank you Birkenstock!

Grain Foods Foundation, a non-profit, had a gorgeous spread of carb-y deliciousness set out for all-day snacking. The organization aims to spread awareness of the importance of grains and bread in the diet. Though some may avoid certain grains for dietary restriction reasons, I think it’s good that a non-profit like this exists to spread word to those that may avoid grains because of the “carbs are bad” notion that I myself have fallen victim to in the past.

Nut butter and jelly party!

Cream cheeses and veggies! I combined cucumber with the lox cream cheese – awesome.

Water and juices, mini pitas and naan, as well as plenty of toasters for those who like their carbs accompanied with carcinogens (me).

My favorite part – hummus, tzatziki, guac, pesto, and bruschetta spread!

One of the coolest parts of the event was hanging out with the grains as well – soccer champ Mia Hamm! Heather, Bess, Mattie, and I waited anxiously to meet her.

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Mia was so kind and gracious. I thanked her for inspiring girls everywhere to get out there and be active, and she signed a soccer ball for me!

I also had the chance to interact with some other brands! I sampled the strawberry banana V8 V-Fusion Smoothie flavor, and liked it, surprisingly! Usually those kinds of drinks are way too sweet and fake-tasting to me, but this smoothie tasted natural and didn’t make me feel like I was drinking a dessert. I also checked out the new Schick Hydro Silk razor at the Schick table, and was pretty excited to hear I’d be receiving one in the end-of-the-day goodie bag. It even has a little imprint right above the head for your index finger to rest, and the blade itself points at an upward angle when the razor is resting, so that it doesn’t come in contact with the surface of your shower. Little attention to detail like that impresses me!

Of course you know I’m going to talk about the lunch spread. Well, it rocked my taste buds off. OK, so I’ll be a little more descriptive.

Fresh salmon with dill and lemon wedges!

Fruit salad; house salad with cucumber, radish, shaved asparagus, and green goddess vinaigrette; farro salad with grilled peaches and hazelnut vinaigrette.

Love this shot of an iPhone salmon tweet happening!

I helped myself to salmon and the house and farro salads! I’d rocked fruit for breakfast that morning so skipped the fruit salad.

Despicable. Absolutely horrendous.

Thanks to Gina for modeling the signature drink of the day, a fresh lemonade!

After the last info session, I was pleasantly surprised to see that another wave of food had been set out, this time in the form of  artfully-arranged snacks!

You know me…I have to try everything! So I helped myself to one of each type of the below pictured healthy snack “cones” – veggie crudites and apples with brie!

My favorite part of the day was the MEET part of this Meet & Tweet. No, it was not the free stuff. Not even close. How often do I get the chance to meet SO many friends for the first time in one place? And how often do I get to chat with the faces behind the blogs I’ve been reading for, in some cases, years?

Heather, Julie, and I

Peanut Butter Fingers is one of the first blogs I ever started reading, and Julie was kind enough to help me write my blog’s disclaimer back in September when I first got started. That fact alone should have been enough to assure me that she would be incredibly sweet and down to earth, but if it wasn’t, I was completely convinced the second we said hello. The voice Julie’s readers follow each day truly IS hers!

Courtney, me, and Meredith

I’ve also been reading Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life for a very long time, but I’ve gotta say, even the longest of readers could not realize how BEAUTIFUL Courtney is until he or she met her in person. Seriously, this girl is so put-together and an incredible beauty! Photos on the Internet do not do her justice. Meredith writes a newer blog, Dare You To, with a really unique concept. Each post DARES her readers to try a different challenge, and whether it’s something completely foreign to them or something they already may have been doing, it’s still extremely inspiring and a great source of discussion! I was glad to get to meet Meredith in person so that I could tell her how much I admire the idea – and just hang out and chat! We had so much fun. Check out this GORGEOUS photo taken of her during one of the panel sessions (by Fitness Mag photographer Steven Meyer).

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

I’m also kicking myself in the face (if I really could do that it’d be pretty impressive, no?) for not getting a photo with the CEO of FitFluential, Kelly Olexa. How humbling and awe-inspiring to FINALLY meet in person the woman who brought me into this Ambassador program and made so much possible. THANK YOU KELLY!

Me, Heather, and Meredith

I had the pleasure of eating lunch with Jill, Natasha, Heather, and Danielle, who I seem to be determined to pull towards me with all my might in the below photo .

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Me, Heather, Natasha, and Jill.

Jill is a YouTube superstar (I envy her composure and poise in her videos), and Natasha does social media for Physique 57. I fangirled hardcore when she handed me a pass for two complimentary classes. A must-try next time I’m in NYC!

Me, Katie, and Heather.

Where do I begin with Katie? Seriously…where? I’ve been a Healthy Diva Eats reader for over a year because she writes a blog that is fun, fabulous, and fit. Well, the writer behind the blog is all three of those things and more. I have never met someone I felt so comfortable giving a HUGE hug to right away. I could have hugged Katie about a thousand times more than I got to throughout the day. She is such a kind, genuine, HAPPY person with an infectious personality. I already miss her! I’m so thankful the Fitness Mag photographer captured our first hug!

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

And another example of a beautiful human being, inside and out, is Carla Binberg. After finding my first blog ever, Kath Eats, I literally googled “healthy living blogs” because I was so excited to find more. MizFitOnline is one of the first that popped up, and I’ve been a follower ever since! I have always been attracted to Carla’s style of writing and REALLY hope she comes out with a book ASAP so I can bury my nose in it for hours. She has always been so willing to help out other FitFluential Ambassadors by connecting them with brands, giving them advice, and just delivering inspiring messages every day. Carla does blogging in her own instantly-recognizable-as-Carla’s way. Her readers will never find another blogger out there like her. I felt like I’d known her for years the second I introduced myself.

Yay!!!

Throughout the day I ran into Nicole, Michele, and Cassandra. Nicole is a talented baker and soon-to-be mommy who blogs at Making Good Choices. She is beyond adorable! So is Michele, an already-and-soon-to-be mommy who blogs at NYC Running Mama. I’ve been chatting with her in the FitFluential Facebook groups for awhile so saying hey in person was surreal! Finally, Cassandra shares her genius recipes at Breakfast to Bed. I literally said, “Oh my God! You’re a genius!” when I met her, before even saying hello.

Heather, me, Nicole, Michelle, and Cassandra.

Shout outs as well to Christy and Maria, both amazing women who I didn’t get pictures with 🙁 but if you guys have some please send them my way?!

Last, but CERTAINLY not least of the people I met…the Editor in Chief of Fitness Magazine herself, Betty Wong! Telling people who do so much, especially careers that you are interested in, is a beautiful and special thing. Even if Betty hears it all the time, I still feel good knowing that I’ve told someone I admire exactly why I admire her and how she inspires me. And what’s even cooler…Betty also seemed very admiring and thankful to Heather and I for being there!

Betty, me, and Heather.

There were many informational panels going on throughout the day. I spent most of my time meeting and tweeting with bloggers and brands, but did catch a couple of the sessions. Fitness Fashion Director Argy Koutsothanasis presented an array of ensembles that combined fitness and street fashion. I was essentially obsessed with the blue and yellow Reebok jacket and pencil skirt combo (pictured below), and got a chance to awkwardly tell its model that very fact while waiting in line for the bathroom.

We also heard beauty tips from Fitness Beauty Director Eleanor Langston and the very funny Laura Geller. I can tell Laura was an actress – she’s a true entertainer!

My very favorite panel of the day was easily the last one, with Carla, Kelly, Julie, and Tina – How to Turn Your Blog into a Business.

Obsessed with Julie’s sneakers.

Very interesting tidbits I learned during this session:

  • Jessica Simpson reads Julie’s blog!
  • It’s not worth your time to get TOO into catering your blog to be SEO-friendly. There are little tips and tricks that always help, but inserting keywords in certain places on purpose or constantly changing your structure and wording to attempt to manipulate Google is not worth the time since their algorithm changes a ton.
  • Tina feels the same way as I do about the best part of blogging – the FRIENDS!
  • Carla’s number one freelancing tip is to pitch something that only YOU would be able to write. Make yourself valuable to brands!
  • My favorite simple quote from Kelly during the panel – “Be who you are!”

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

I did my best to live-tweet the panel’s advice using the #fitblognyc hashtag!

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

After the panel wrapped up, there was a Kiwi Sweat Pop-Up Fitnesss workout called Tabura planned, but Heather and I decided to head out to Time Square’s Oakley Store with Bess and Mattie for a meet-up with the Tone It Up trainers. I heard the workout was really fun though!

We hopped in line to wait for our swag-bags. Heather looked cute, while I decided to pass the time by making awkward faces.

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Finally it was our turn!

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Just a glimpse of our bag’s exteriors made us very happy girls.

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Can you believe how much Fitness Magazine and the event sponsors hooked us up?!

I’m essentially obsessed with the bag by Sonia Kashuk. You can get her stuff at Target! On our way to Times Square, Heather, Bess, and I got a ton of questions about where we got our bags.

Reebok RealFlex Transition sneakers – in my favorite color!

I can’t wait to try these bad boys out. Everyone knows I love hot pink workout gear!

Sensational swag in-my-bag!

Ahhh – look at it all! My swag bag also included:

  • SunMaid Raisins, Pure Protein and Nature Valley bars, and Lipton Tea & Honey packets
  • FiberOne 90-calorie brownies (I can’t wait to try these in plain Greek yogurt, there’s a choc chip and a brownie flavor!)
  • the latest issue of Fitness (my sister is reading it right now and gives it two thumbs up!)
  • Element AM & PM Yoga for Beginners DVD – looking forward to using this when I need a wind-down or a good stretch to supplement a workout
  • “Drop Dead Healthy” book by AJ Jacobs, who was at the event during a panel – I plan to read this, but I think my parents want to first!
  • two CamelBak bottles, one with a built-in filter and one without – I gave the one without to my sister, and she is VERY impressed and in love! I plan to do a giveaway for the one with the filter because even though I know they’re worse for the environment, I prefer to drink out of recyclable plastic water bottles. Nothing else will do for me!
  • Blow Pro Faux-Dry dry shampoo
  • Dogeared star necklace – this one made my sister pretty jealous and I felt bad because I’d never heard of this brand before, but it’s so pretty!!! I can’t find a photo online but will tweet it when I wear it!
  • Hand in Hand Orange Blossom sustainable soap – after getting my first piece of sustainable soap at CT Veg Fest recently, I can’t wait to use this!
  • Vichy lotion – gave to my sis, not my thing at all, a caffeine-containing lotion meant to make cellulite less severe and firm the stomach. However inside of box has creative packaging – diff ab moves printed on the inside! Glad to see a company not putting for the illusion that their lotion alone will “work miracles”.

As I mentioned briefly above, some of the bag’s contents are honestly not my thing so be on the lookout for a giveaway or two coming soon!

OK, but this band definitely IS MY THING. Heather got Sweaty Bands in her bag but I didn’t get any in mine, and after hearing I’ve always wanted to try them (especially after I watched Maria ROCK hers at #RBKFITBLOG), she was kind enough to give me the one I’m wearing above. THANK YOU HEATHER! Another goody my sister is very envious of.

Crazy bag lady – I walked from Fitness Mag to Times Square with this stuff!

I’ll definitely be doing a giveaway for the yoga mat I’m holding above, because I already have a yoga mat! This one is brand new and was gifted to us by New Media Strategies, the partner firm that helped put on the event. They were the world’s first social media marketing firm…true innovators! Samantha Pepi, the Senior Promotions Manager for NMS that helped keep us bloggers informed about the event, did an amazing job and chatting with her at the NMS table was very fun. I hope it was fun for her too, since we kept making her take pictures for us! 😛

And then…Heather, Bess, and I were off to the Tone It Up meetup in Oakley’s Times Square location! The whirlwind day was only just getting started! MORE TO COME!

What part of this event would you have enjoyed the most? If you attended, what DID you enjoy the most?

Have you tried or ever wanted to try any of the products mentioned in this post?

What question would YOU have asked the members of the blogger panel?

#RBKFITBLOG and Guest Post!

Some of you may remember that I announced that I am attending an event at Fitness Magazine HQ in NYC with other FitFluential Ambassadors on May 9. Well, the good news just keeps rolling in. I’m proud to share that in the same week, on May 11 (thank goodness I have vacation time left!), I will be heading to Boston with my road trip buddy Heather to join other FFAs at Reebok World Headquarters!!

Pinch me. Will I really be THERE?! Source.

In the days leading up to the event I will have the chance to test out and review Reebok apparel and sneakers, and at the event itself I’ll be meeting Reebok executives, trying out new workouts and products, and fangirling over bonding with bloggers I have been following for years. PINCH ME.

Source.

After the event, I’ll be heading back to Heather’s and staying there so that we can spend Saturday together. I’m hoping for the chance to have her kick my butt in one of her Mind, Body, Barre classes. Visiting her favorite local spots, Wildflour and Garden Grille, is a given.

I feel so grateful for the success I’m seeing so early in my “blog career”. Thank you to everyone who has supported me and who keeps reading!!! I’m proud to be a part of the FitFluential community and the overall blog community in general. I can’t say it enough, so I’m going to stop now 😉

Note the Chobani creepin’ in the corner…

I’m out for today (when it comes to posting that is), but please take a second to head over to Katie’s blog, Healthy Heddleston, and check out the guest post I did for her on SMART goals! I actually put something I learned this semester to use in “real life” 😀

What is the biggest opportunity that blogging has brought you? If you don’t blog, what’s the most recent big opportunity you’ve received?

Beer Tasting – Yes, This is Still Caitlin

I’m having a great day so far! I woke up at 5:30am for no reason, feeling ready to go, so I had time to hit the gym for a workout, something I often don’t get a chance to do on Thursdays since I have class after work (and refuse to get up at 5:30am to work out unless it happens on its own). Did not bother to put in my contacts, though.

Rocking my ALA Stair Climb shirt for a stair-climbing workout of course!

I did 20 minutes of HIIT on the StepMill and the following bicep and tricep workout from Heather. Ended with some oblique #PlankADay, of course!

Heather continued to make my day by notifying me that I won her Naturebox giveaway! They send out a monthly box of new snacks – it’s like Birchbox for food! I don’t know how I didn’t know about it. I can’t wait to get my box of snacks and share my thoughts with you all 🙂

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I also enjoyed about 15 minutes of sun time before clouds rolled in during my lunch break (I’ll take what I can get) with a new book that is super-weird, but also super-interesting. Has anyone read it?

The coffee is a new flavor from a local cafe, Almond Joy! Another day-brightener.

Let’s move on to the surprising part of this post – I hosted a beer tasting at my house during our Easter party. Yes, me, as in I, as in Caitlin. Just had to clarify that. I’m not shy about the fact that I’m not a big fan of beer. I know many of my readers, particularly the runners, feel differently. I find that so many runners I meet just love their beer! My mom is no exception. But I’m also an adventurarian, so I went to the best possible source for beer advice and suggestions, Elliot of Sonoma Wines & Spirits.

He helped me pick out the above selection of seven different beers (at Sonoma, if you buy six you get 10% off!) – the Sierra Nevada holder (is there a proper name for those?) is just what they had on hand. I was “sitting on them” for about a month, and decided the Easter party was the perfect time to do a tasting because plenty of people could join in! I wanted to try them all at once but needed enough other people around to help me finish them.

The beer tasters (well, not all of these youngsters had beer).

We all tried different beers at different times, I didn’t bother trying to keep any “order” to it. My sister was kind enough to pick up a bunch of cups at the store the day of the party.

I’d already heard of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, but since I’m so carbonation-averse, I wasn’t really expecting to enjoy it. It was better than I thought it’d be though. I can see myself getting used to it. My friend Stacy’s dad LOVES this beer – he wasn’t even gonna participate in the tasting until he saw this was involved. Then his eyes got very wide and he asked for a cup!

This Smuttynose Robust Porter was more my style for sure! Less carbonated, though not TOO heavy. Think of it as a lighter Guinness. I was one of the few who enjoyed it, probably because I’m one of the few who doesn’t care for carbonation – or most beers in the first place.

The Konig Ludwig Weissbier was a crowd favorite! Seriously, no one disliked it. I think everyone was doubly impressed as well because no one had ever heard of it before. I’d call it a nice middle-ground beer. Just a medium body, not too hoppy, not too heavy either.

Elliot referred to the New England Brewing Co. Elm City Lager as a much-classier “college beer”. What those New England preppy frat boys drink, ya know? Too light and hoppy and Bud Light-like for me – and many who tasted it. Though it was thought of as a good beer for a boat ride on a hot day. Of course, I don’t know when my next boat ride on a hot day will be. I wish I did! Anyone know?

A lot of those who sampled the Boddington’s Pub Ale had already heard of and/or tried it, so it was not received as warmly as some of the other selections. More of a “meh, this is fine”.

The Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA was definitely the hoppiest – and rarest – of the beers in this tasting. However, I think I can definitely appreciate its high quality because despite the fact that it was very hoppy and, as Andrea called it, “intense”, I enjoyed it more than the other pale ale I tried from Sierra Nevada. You’d think I’d go for less bubbles, but this beer was just quite cool! Who knows, maybe its “rare-ness” went to my head, but I don’t think so!

I saved the one I was most excited to try, and knew I’d like the most, for last in this discussion. The first beer I asked Elliot to recommend to me was the best chocolate beer he knew of, and this was the one he mentioned without a second’s hesitation – Southern Tier Imperial Chocklat Stout (FYI I next wanna do a tasting with ALL the beers on that page – YUM). It was so good!!! I even had half a cup with my chocolate cake for dessert. I was one of the few who liked this beer. All the other tasters were fairly regular to very seasoned beer drinkers and since this tasted least like beer, they liked it the least. More for me?! What’s also cool is that you don’t have to worry about finishing this guy in one sitting (it’s a bigger bottle) because it actually keeps pretty well in the fridge for a few days after opening if you stop it up with a wine cork!

Nice, Mollie.

Thanks to my beer tasting companions – and observers – for joining me on my quest to become more adventurous with my alcohol! Because that’s SUCH a necessity, right? 😉

Are you a beer drinker? Have you ever tried any of these beers, and/or attended a beer tasting?

Why I Didn’t Go To Church Today

Sorry I’ve been MIA for the last few days, folks. There’s been a lot of exciting, fun things happening in my life. I may not have won any of the categories I was nominated in for the Websters (but a HUGE THANKS to those who took the time to vote for me – and the winners totally deserved it!), but I was invited by FitFluential to attend an amazing event in NYC next month. It’s hosted by Fitness Magazine! I will join other FitFluential Ambassadors (including Heather, we are driving to the city together, YAY) at Fitness HQ, where we will get to meet editors and other staff, preview new products and fitness/nutrition trends, have a special lunch, try out a pop work-out class (um, RIGHT up my alley), and – best of all – learn about blogging from a panel of four ladies that I admire in a HUGE way!

I will also get the chance to hang out with so many amazing bloggers that I have been wanting to meet for ages. I’ve been reading these blogs for almost three years, and meeting their authors is so important to me. I’m fangirling like mad right now, but I don’t care!

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So as you can see, big things are happening for Cait Plus Ate! I am so thankful to you guys for sticking with me since I started this blog in September and being interested in what I have to say. Every moment like this seems more and more surreal and just makes me stop, take a deep breath, and feel extremely lucky.

Example of my great luck – an amazing dad!

That segways a bit into the title of this post, because I recall hearing a Sunday School teacher tell me when I was very young that there is no such thing as “luck”, because that implies something just happened by chance, when God is the one who determines everything that happens in our lives. I’ve always considered myself a Christian. After all, I celebrate all the holidays like Easter and Christmas. And by “celebrate”, I mean my family observes them in some way. I guess I can’t really say that I myself technically observe in a religious way, because I didn’t go to church this past Christmas Eve, and I didn’t go to church this morning. I actually left the house today to come blog at La Petite France right after the rest of my family left for church.

La Petite France has a fabulous new barstool area!

But why didn’t I go to church when my family asked me to join them? The answer is pretty simple – I didn’t want to. I didn’t think I’d get anything out of attending the service. I never have. I wonder sometimes if I should consider myself a Christian, because at times I feel like religion doesn’t play any role in my life at all. I’m not an Athiest, and I don’t even know if I’d call myself an Agnostic – that implies to me that I don’t care. Clearly I do, because every time I listen to a friend’s opinion on religion, whether it be one of deep spirituality or one of extreme atheism, I ponder my own views and wonder where religion fits in for me.

I’ve never gotten comfort out of a church service, a powerful sermon, a moment of prayer, or a Bible scripture. You know, your typical “church things”. Nothing like that has ever resonated with me. Instead, the things that resonate with me and provide comfort and a sense of purpose are, for example, my own accomplishments, a good deed a family member does for me, a moment when I feel like a friend understands EXACTLY what I mean before I even explain, or a particularly well-written passage from my latest pleasure read. The little things. And I know someone could turn around and say to me – well, God created those things and those moments. So you can find comfort in the fact that He created them for you.

But did He? I just don’t know if I buy it. Sometimes I wish that I could close my eyes, pray, and find strength in moments of weakness. But it just doesn’t work for me. Instead, I call my mom. I text my sister. I take a walk. I immerse myself in “the little things”.

A big carnival ride can be a little thing.

So maybe “the little things” are my religion. I wonder about all this, but then I always end up taking a step back without answering my questions about what religion means to me, because the little things seem like enough. When times get rough, at least I know what makes me happy, and at least I know what gives me inner strength. It may not be God, or a church service, or a prayer, but at least I know what it is and can use the little things when I need them.

I was feeling particularly insightful today folks – blame it on the 1.5 hours of thinking I did this morning while sweating buckets during Bikram Yoga. 🙂

Do you consider yourself a religious person? Do you associate yourself with a religion?

What gives you comfort and inner strength – religious or not?

Please let me know any other thoughts in the comments – I’d love to hear feedback on this post!

Feelin Blah and ION (Not At All Related)

Happy Hump Day, or as I’ll call it this week, Happy Thursday, because I don’t have work this Friday! Does anyone else have the day off?

Yesterday I was feeling blah. I was supposed to head out to eat with Rachel for one of our foodie dates, but ended up kinda crawling into an anti-social shell from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep. Ever have days like that? I didn’t sleep well the night before, had a group project presentation in which I helped team-teach our two-hour class, and had to stay after class to get feedback. It was just a LONG day (first world problems). I wanted nothing more when I left campus than to go home and watch last week’s “Smash” with my mom (so glad we’ve found a show we can enjoy together). So that’s what I did, while enjoying a delicious dinner of Moe’s black beans, leftover roasted Brussels sprouts, and Newman’s Own frozen veggie pizza, baked to crispy perfection in the oven on a pizza stone.

Recycled photo, yes I’m wearing PJ’s.

I was super bummed yesterday to discover that when I went to do my usual Tuesday morning Yoga Works Body Slim video on Hulu, it and all other Yoga Works videos were GONE! I am so bummed. I loved that video and I ended up with a lame substitute from Exercise TV. This only contributed to my crappy mood. I have P90X Yoga to do tomorrow as I usually do on Thursday mornings before work, but I don’t want to give up on Yoga Works just yet. Does anyone know where I can access Yoga Works videos for free? I couldn’t find them on their website and a YouTube search did not prove to be fruitful.

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I did want to take a moment to do a quick review of It’s Only Natural, a vegan/vegetarian restaurant that I’ve been to a couple of times, including with Heather of For the Love of Kale when she came to visit. She even did a write-up of her opinion and our experience.

Located in Middletown, Connecticut’s newly-developed downtown area, It’s Only Natural (ION) has a cozy, chill vibe and quaint decor. It’s a place where no matter who you are, or what your eating philosophy may be, you are bound to feel comfortable and welcome.

The tabletops even double as chalkboards! Each table is well-equipped with plenty of multi-colored chalk. So much cooler than the whole draw-on-a-paper-tablecloth concept (sorry, Macaroni Grill).

The menu has something everyone would love, even the most avid meat-eaters. Unique craft beers are also offered, in addition to a pretty good wine selection. During one of my visits I had a Tempranillo that was yummy.

I’m a chronic decision-avoider. Decisions stress me out, even ones from menus. This is why I love sampler platters. Thank goodness for the ION Tribute, a sampling of the cajun tempeh, cajun crab cakes, and potato spinach pierogis. The waiter even put up with my annoying side-subbing habits.

I went for sauteed greens and pinto beans. This meal was beyond amazing. The vegan “sour cream” and “tartar sauce” were both fabulous. I’ve had bad experiences with too-salty tempeh before, but my tempeh-aversions are now completely gone thanks to ION. I can’t say enough good things about this dish. I think the tempeh crab cakes were my favorite part though I honestly was all over the pinto beans.

I really think a visit to ION is incomplete without ordering these fresh-cut sweet potato fries with homemade ketchup. Honestly, the best ketchup I’ve ever had and also quite possibly the best sweet tater fries too. The ketchup has tomato chunks in it, that’s how fresh it is.

I went sweet potato crazy when I went to ION with Heather, finishing her sweet potato fries for her 😉 (least I can do) and ordering the sweet potato enchiladas with vegan “cheese”, pinto beans, and veggies for myself. Had to get the beans again! Just as amazing as the first time and the enchiladas and vegan “cheese” were more than I could ever ask for in a unique meal. Not to mention the veggies were seasoned to perfection and not super oily like so many restaurants prepare them.

This dessert was sent out to our table during my first visit, courtesy of  The Sexy Carrot, the voice behind ION’s social media. All I can say is THANK YOU! ION desserts are no joke. This vegan coconut cupcake blew me away. The icing especially was a winner. I’m an icing freak. I could’ve eaten a tub of it.

My companions also ordered a slice of the vegan coconut cake, which was essentially the cupcake in cake form, except it came on a plate garnished with some kind of tasty apple butter. 

Can you spy The Sexy Carrot?

I can’t wait to go back to ION again and again. I’m not lying when I say I want to try everything on the menu.

Have you ever been to a vegan or vegetarian-only restaurant? Is there anything like that offered close to your home?

Do you ever get in those blah moods that bring you down all day? How do you snap out of it?

ALA Stair Climb 2012

Running a bit behind today. Busy, busy! But it’s OK because it’s a four-day week! Anyone else have Friday off?

The American Lung Association hosted their annual Hartford Stair Climb at the Hartford 21 Tower this past Saturday, and I participated for my second year in a row. ALA New England has done a ton for me – not only am I very, VERY anti-smoking, but they provided me with amazing market research and social media experience when I was an e-Philanthropy Intern for them in the Summer of 2010.

The old crew after happy hour at Margarita’s in East Hartford at the end of the summer!

One of my supervisors that summer, Britney Martin (in the black pants, above), was my team leader (we were the misFITS) and also organized the entire event! She did an AMAZING job. Britney is also a talented writer – check out her work!

Pre-climb #PlankADay #PROOF

I woke up before I had to head out for the climb, and took advantage by doing a home upper body and ab workout. 30 minutes later I was done, and finished it off with a little FitFluential #PROOF – of course 😉

I nommed on a banana with PB&Co Mighty Maple PB, and headed out to pick up my co-worker, Kasie, who kindly agreed to join our team after I started my fundraising efforts at work. I swear, I am still blown away by my co-workers’ support for me in this climb!

The event was extremely well-organized. Kasie and I checked our coats (boo for cold, rainy, dreary weather headed back to CT) and lined up to climb. Climbers were staggered by 20 seconds, and we were to climb 36 flights of stairs. For a StepMill lady like me, should have been no problem! And it wasn’t.

Had to cheese it while climbing.

I finished in 6 minutes even. I have no idea what my time was last year, so I can’t compare. However, I’m sure I was faster this year. How? Well, last year I was actually the most hungover I’ve ever been in my entire life and coming fresh off a rough night, in which I lost my driver’s license at a bar. You’ll be glad to hear I have not had another night like that one since!

Proof I made it to the top! (35 floors plus one "ground/lobby" floor).

I was glad I had Kasie to hang out with at the event. We took a photo at the top to share with our co-workers!

Rocking my shirt from last year!

Before we left, we of course had to go get our 2012 Climb shirts. We both wore them to work today! I love wearing “race shirts” right after a race. But I have to be honest – I don’t often wear them again!

Headed to work this morning – yes, we have a very casual dress code.

Whole Foods was also there handing out plenty of goodies. I LOVE FREEBIES! I’ll be tweeting how I like these.

Of course I hung my number up in my increasingly-decorated cubicle! Right next to my 5K PR number from the Santa’s Run in December.

Thanks to Britney and the rest of ALA New England for putting on a great climb for a good cause!

Do you keep your race numbers? How about race shirts – do you actually wear them ever again?

Have you ever done a climb of any kind?

Happy Birthday Kelly Olexa!

Monday, April 2, will be Kelly Olexa’s birthday. Who’s Kelly? She’s the CEO of FitFluential, the awesome community for which I am a FitFluential Ambassador. She’s also a fabulous go-getter, an amazing people person, and a confident businesswoman – all things that I work towards becoming every day!

Danielle Liss (CMO of FitFluential and Kelly’s road trip partner-in-crime) came up with the excellent idea to do a blog carnival, or a big link-up post that guides its readers to tons of links about one topic. In this case, that topic is HAPPY BIRTHDAY KELLY!

So join me in wishing this very FitFluential lady a happy, fabulous day 🙂

Meet Caitlin

I’m a 28 year old full-time working girl living in Boston (previously lived in Connecticut). I’m passionate about food/drink, restaurants, self-love, fitness, and the ever-present search for balance. I write about that journey on this blog – I hope you enjoy!

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Design Credit

My header was originally designed by Mai Le and later tweaked by Chris Roggi to match this theme, which he helped me customize. He also moved me over to self-hosting! Both can be contacted through their sites for design & development work!

Disclaimer

I am not an RD and do not have any official training, certifications, or degrees in nutrition or fitness. This blog is a way to write about my life. Any views I express are mine alone, based on what works for me, and should never be taken as medical advice. Always talk to your doctor or a trained professional before starting a new diet or fitness plan. In addition, this blog and its content are in no way affiliated with Kate Gosselin, “Kate Plus 8”, TLC, or any related affiliates.

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