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A Day at Reebok World HQ!

20 May

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?! :-D

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

14 May

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! :-P

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?

Easter 2012: Party at Mi Casa!

11 Apr

We have a great group of family friends that get together for every major holiday (every major excuse we can find to get together, more like it) to eat, drink, chat, laugh, play, and just enjoy each other. We all moved up to CT from Florida, so we have that common bond, even if all the parents don’t still work at the same company like they used to.

Oh that moment before a photo is taken...

You may have read recaps of past shindigs:

There we go! Can you find me?

My family decided to host the Easter get-together (because we knew there’d be one) at our house. Perhaps that’s what inspired me to become a chef for a day and contribute a dish!

Mr. Pereda contributed the above (delicious) Chilean Merlot.

I also enjoyed several small glasses of different wines, and even a sampled a few beers (more on that to come…)

Hanging out on the deck with my wine! Isn't the little glass cute?

I also got to hang out with my friend Andrea, who I hadn’t seen in forever. We’ve known each other since our sophomore year of high school, when we were seatmates in AP Bio (shudder…I was so bad at that class). Her boyfriend’s aunt lives in my neighborhood (I used to babysit for the family, small world right?) and the two of them were there for his family’s Easter party, so I asked them to stop by.

Andrea and her boyfriend enjoying a dessert at the end of the party!

My mom had some tasty apps set out and ready for our guests’ arrivals!

I know I have a lot of guac-lovin' readers!

The sweets were present from the beginning!

Our friends brought some good apps too!

Essential veggie/hummus plate - don't you just LOVE the colors?!

Mrs. Aubuchon's famous deviled eggs - I had one and it was all I could do to not fill up on them before dinner. AMAZING!

Time flew as I caught up with old friends and before I knew it, dinner was served.

My sister (right) leads a prayer.

Mashed potatoes and a cheesy corn casserole.

A mini-salad-bar on a plate of sorts, and a whole grain side salad!

Everyone dug in and was certainly hungry. We did not have that many leftovers, when you consider how much food we had!

Can you spy my mom overseeing it all?

We had many meats – grilled chicken and pork tenderloin! My mom accidentally bought 8 tenderloins instead of 6, so she froze 2 for our family to use later. Turns out she should’ve had my dad cook them all up…we ran out of meat completely!

My apologies to all non-meat-eating readers ;)

My mom used the rub I got in my last foodie pen pals box when prepping the meats – so thank you so much, Loy! It was delicious!

My FAVORITE dish of the party, prepared by my madre, was the amazing cold salmon platter above with dill, capers, asparagus, red onions, and tzatziki on the size. Meg, I know you’d have died over this. I did too. It was the only thing I had seconds of because it was the only thing I wanted seconds of, I just loved it so much!

First plate!

Damn sun ruined this shot, but I went for everything except the mashed potatoes and corn casserole (those make me too sleeeeepy).

People brought a seemingly endless supply of cupcakes! Cupcakes are cool but I can take them or leave them. I was more interested in one of the things pictured below…

Above left is some kind of berry crisp, but above right is Mrs. Aubuchon’s famous chocolate Coca-Cola cake. Yes, Coca-Cola is an ingredient! This is the only time you will find me consuming soda :-P I had one of those nice corner pieces (corners are the best!)

Great job, mama!

What a fun party – everyone had a blast and we only just finished the leftovers last night! Or shall I say, I only just finished them last night :-D oh, I also passed out after this thing at about 8:30PM. THANKS WINE.

Cupcakes – take them or leave them?

Pieces of cake – aren’t corners the best?!

What’s the best thing you ate on Easter Sunday? Even if you weren’t celebrating Easter!

Orlando – Day Five

8 Mar

My fifth full day in Orlando (last Thursday) followed my gym-tan-eat-tan-drink-eat-sleep routine (and trust me, I wasn’t getting sick of it) – but with another Connecticut-infused twist.

I woke up still feeling blah in the stomach area, just nauseous, but I was SOOO ready to be back at the intense cardio and decided to run a 5K on the treadmill. I was psyched to see they each had a TV but then saw that neither treadmill had a working one – bah! There was a big TV in the overall gym though, and it was empty in there (I mean, it was about 8am…) so I grabbed the remote and flipped channels while I pounded out 3.1 miles in 27 minutes! Once I started running, my nausea actually disappeared and I felt fantastic and full of energy. I like setting a distance goal as opposed to time because it motivates me to run faster – so I can get off that dreadmill faster! Works every time.

What do you know, another Connecticut friend was in Orlando when I was – Kelly! Her family are big fans of the parks (unlike mine) so most days she was Disney and Universal-ing, but she did have one pool day (well, morning) and I headed over to her hotel to join her and her mom. It was so great to hang out!

After Kelly and her fam left the pool for Epcot, I went to a nearby Whole Foods to grab lunch. Even though I have a location in my town, I love checking out different Whole Foods for the regional differences in the food offered at the hot and cold salad bars in state to state.

Healthy foods photograph the prettiest!

Well OK, that mac n cheese looks pretty golden and beautiful too.

Amazingly fresh Florida seafood salads.

I was a cheap-o and didn’t purchase any of the above ($10.99/lb…) but the seafood lover in me was remorseful later – right Meg? ;-)

Hello there!

OK, so we do NOT have fish like that in my Whole Foods. No sir. I was also on a mention for seafood or meat for the next night’s grill-out dinner (the joys of staying at a place with a kitchen and grills!) and found just what I was looking for in the Seafood Department, thanks to a very helpful employee – hello if you are reading! (I gave him my card).

Just what I was looking for! I took home two Spinach & Feta Salmon Burgers, one Wild Salmon Burger, and one Shrimp Burger. I was already looking forward to the meal, and I hadn’t even had THAT night’s dinner yet (or the day’s lunch, for that matter). Story of my life.

Um, Whole Foods has a bar?! Don’t mind if I do! This location is the only one in Florida with a bar that serves beer and wine. The wine section itself was amazing! Need proof?

I snuck in on a tasting of Concannon Conservancy Crimson & Clover, a red blend (included one of my favorites, petite sirah). This wine was AMAZING, one of the best reds I’ve tried in awhile, and I was shocked at its affordable price tag. Also a fun side note on this International Woman’s Day, Concannon Vineyards hired the first professional female winemaker in 1950!

I was poured the above glass and then some, which I did not finish since I wanted to make it home alive.

Words cannot describe how excited I was to be having dinner that night at Seasons 52, a “blogger hot-spot” that I have seen on Meghann, Gina, Caitlin, and Julie’s blogs. I was rockin’ a new dress from the occasion, a Black Friday purchase (I know, it’s bad news bears when you’re wearing things for the “first time” in March and bought them in November) from Kohl’s LC Lauren Conrad Collection. You can’t see them well, but it has one of my latest obsessions, pleats!

I was blown away by our view! I had no idea Seasons 52 (we were at the ORIGINAL location, by the way!) offered gorgeous outdoor lakeside seating. Pleasant surprise!

After our little photoshoot, we finally took our seats and checked out the drink menu. It was very dark out on the patio, and my mom had to borrow a light from our waiter to read the menu! Silly mom.

I ordered the Organic Sunshine Martini: orange-infused Prairie organic vodka and agave nectar. However, it was not what I was expecting.

I chose this martini because the description made it sound like it would just be vodka made with a bit of agave, but after it arrived I could see that it had also been made with some kind of orange juice, a bummer because anytime drinks are made with juices they taste too sweet for me. Sure enough, it was too sweet, but our amazing waiter Garrett was kind enough to take it off the bill without my even asking – thank you Garrett!

Ugh, flash.

Instead of a martini, I decided to go with red wine and helped my parents out with the bottle they’d already ordered, Gascon Malbec, which was actually quite excellent! I made a joke that Gascon was an appropriate wine to drink when in Orlando, home of the creators of Gaston.

Source

Surprisingly, Garrett had NOT heard that awful pun before!

Thankfully I didn’t have a tough time deciding on a meal because that night, a special was being offered that was made for me.

Mahi? Mediterranean? Shrimp? Tzatziki? SOLD.

Aaaand I DIED. What a fantastic dish. I’m a chronic dish modifier at restaurants and this was made for me – I did not have to order with ANY modifications. The fish was perfect, the shrimp tabouleh was perfect, the tzatziki came on the side without me even asking, and a nice surprise was included that wasn’t mentioned on the menu, olives!

My mom got the same dish and she was a bit bummed that the olives weren’t called out on the menu because she HATES them, but she picked them out and I finished them off for her. Before her meal, she got the Organic Baby Spinach Salad: sliced pears, feta, and toasted pine nuts on spinach. She couldn’t stop raving about it! My dad loved his meal too – despite the fact that it came with lots of veggies. Eat up Dad, they’re good for you!

We were too full for dessert so I did not try any of the famous Mini Indulgences that everyone raves about, but next time I will have to! What a great last dinner out in Florida.

Have you ever been to Seasons 52? If not, have you already heard about it thanks to the “blog world”?

Do you run on treadmills for distance or for time?

What’s the coolest thing you’ve ever seen at a Whole Foods?

CW’s Chops ‘n Catch: NewCastle Beer Dinner

8 Feb

Jeff, Evan, and I have been quite the busy foodies lately. A few weeks before our oyster and white wine adventures at Max Fish, we hit up CW’s Chops ‘n Catch, a Corey Wry restaurant Jeff and I already loved, for their NewCastle Ale Beer Dinner. Don’t worry, fellow winos – there was a wine option for the beer-averse patrons like me! The price was right at just $40/person, and with a Corey Wry meal always guaranteed to be amazing, I pounced and made a reservation the second I found out about this dinner.

Yes, I know I’m super late recapping this. Would you expect anything less from a girl who still has some highlights of my December Florida trip to share? Someday…

Most of the beers being served at this dinner were part of the brand new seasonal line of New Castle and had never been tried in the state before. Good news for Jeff and Evan!

I was quite pleased with the fact that my name was written on our table’s place card (I made the reservation). It may or may not be hanging in my cubicle right now.

We started with passed appetizers: chimichurri beef skewers, which were served on an awesome cutting board with a map of Manchester (the restaurant’s location) carved into it! The beef was cooked very well and not too chewy.

We were also served Cabot Cheddar/New Castle Summer Soup Shooters, which were AMAZING and rich.

Pensive soup tasting.

Jeff and Evan were absolutely in love with these, but I think I liked the beef just a little bit more.

Dainty shooter sipping.

Our first course was a salad of steamed Cherrystone clams, arugula, lemon gremalata, EVOO, and shaved red onion. Unfortunately while eating this I got a chunk of arugula stuck in my throat that would NOT go down, so that kinda ruined my experience with this course. The arugula made a disappearance by the time it was over though.

The greens were delicious, when they weren’t getting stuck in my throat, and the clams were perfect. I LOVED that crunchy bread that came on the side – Jeff was kind enough to trade pieces with me since his bread was way more toasty than mine.

I was (finally – it had been a long day ;-) ) served my vino pairing, a Pinot Grigio. Evan smugly guessed from one sip (before we knew what kind of white it was) that it was a Pinot. He was pretty proud of himself.

But the boys were more partial to the beer pairing, the same New Castle Summer IPA that was used as an ingredient in the soup shooters. The New Castle rep present at the dinner explained that this IPA had a citrus bite (I tried a sip and could taste it, but it was WAY too hoppy for me) and wasn’t quite as hoppy as other IPAs (could have fooled me but I have a SUPER low hop tolerance). It was paired with the salad because of the lemon and parsley ingredients, which did actually compliment the citrus in the beer well, I’ve gotta admit!

Oh bros and their beer...

The wine was a bit oddly spaced out during this meal. I arrived and they didn’t give us any drinks until after the salad came. Then, before the second course even came around, I was given my second glass of wine. This resulted in a double fisting situation.

I dealt with it.

Oops, first wine is gone!

The second course was served with Twisted Cabernet (a “good brand” of cheap wine that my parents know well) for wine and New Castle Brown Ale for beer.

This round of food was great! Buffalo style hot wings served with pickled cucumbers. Did somebody say pickles?!

Corey is a pickle god in my eyes – his Catsup and Mustard half-sours are excellent. These were no different.

The wings were perfect – not very spicy at all (a bit of a bummer for Jeff and Evan, who enjoy spicy food) and the bleu cheese sauce was some of the best I’ve ever had. Can you tell?

I actually really liked how the brown ale’s cool caramel undertones paired with the savory taste of the wings. I <3 contrast pairings.

In between this course and the entree, which was taking longer to prepare than the others since each person did not choose what he or she wanted until arrival, we were served CW’s signature garlic knots with garlic butter. OH WOW. This was amazing. The garlic freak in me was very, very pleased.

From left: cheddar brats, chorizo, knockwurst.

For the entree, all three of us passed up the Beef Tenderloin Tip Stew for the Housemade Sausage Mixed Grill with crushed Yukon potatoes, jalapeno jelly, and Cipollini onions. It’s safe to say we made the right choice. The jalapeno jelly was so, so amazing and natural tasting. The potatoes were awesome and every sausage was great, especially the chorizo. I loved how the knockwurst tasted with that mustard – I LOVE MUSTARD. Can’t have a Corey Wry dinner without catsup or mustard present right?

The beer served with the entree was New Castle’s newest, the Winter IPA, with a strong citrus taste that included notes of grapefruit. I was poured the Vina San Esteban Malbec, which was my least favorite wine of the evening. It was just very not-memorable? The sausage stood out and totally overshadowed it – not much of a pairing.

Last but not least…dessert! This one knocked my socks off: Chocolate Espresso Creme Brulee with Biscotti.

The biscotti was only OK – I definitely don’t prefer chocolate varieties – but the homemade whipped cream that topped them was to die for. I did not want the creme brulee to end. Eating the top was like eating a perfectly roasted, espresso-dusted, chocolate coated marshmallow.

I was served a sparkling wine with dessert, but the carbonation hater in me ended up sending it back for another glass of the Twisted Cab. That wine was just TOO sparkling! The boys had a beer called New Castle Werewolf Red Ale, and I really liked how it paired with the dessert. This brew had notes of berries, blood orange, and spice. I had been curious as to how beer would taste with creme brulee, and since it was the most interesting pairing, I think that’s why I liked it. It was designed to cleanse the palate and the spice notes were a nice counter to the sweet dessert. The fruity notes gave the beer a flavor that also made it well suited as a dessert course choice.

Luck was on our side that evening – each attendee got a raffle ticket with entry, and Evan won a New Castle shirt!

I smugly (and wastefully) won the biggest prize of the evening – a Krups BeerTender!

I was pretty psyched. That thing was bigger than me – I could barely hold it! I was more psyched to have won than about the actual prize…a beer device is wasted on me.

So it turned into Evan’s REALLY lucky day…take good care of the BeerTender, Evan!

Jeff was clearly jealous.

We also received traditional New Castle Ale glasses with the check.

Hello, wine.

The event was wonderful and I hope that Corey does another one soon! The food and drinks were well worth the price and I had an amazing time. It was another special way to spend a Monday indeed.

Looking awkward.

The three of us have now established a tradition (OK we’ve only done it twice, but still) of taking a foodie pic after each event. Yay!

Which of the dishes I sampled would you want to try most? Would you have gone with beer or wine?

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