Athleisure Mag #43 Jul 2019

Jul 2019

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AthleisureMag.com

JUL 2019

@AthleisureMag

TM

PUBLISHER Paul Farkas

EDITORIAL Kimmie Smith

Co-Founder, Creative + Style Director

Paul Farkas

Co-Founder, Artistic Director + Tech Director

FASHION CONTRIBUTIONS PHOTOGRAPHER Paul Farkas | STYLIST Kimmie Smith

BEAUTY CONTRIBUTIONS GROOMER Bamike Ogunrinu

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info@athleisuremag.com

@ATHLEISUREMAG CONNECT + VISIT

E-mail: info@athleisuremag.com Website: www.athleisuremag.com Athleisure Mag TM , a Division of Athleisure Media LLC.

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table of contents

issue #43 jul 2019

STYLE FEATURES

102

STYLE FILES: RESORT

103

ROCK THIS LOOK WHEN YOU’RE HOME WITH FRIENDS OVER

109

HOW TO DRESS

16

CONTEXT + REPETITION

Our celebrity cover was shot in Ocean City, NJ. We sat down with ESPN’s Marty Smith of College GameDay to talk about the upcoming football season, his passion for sports and his upcoming book, Never Settle: Sports, Family and the American Soul.

BEAUTY FEATURES

74

TOMATO BEAUTY

77

THE PICK ME UP

107

ATHLEISURE BEAUTY

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Something You Should Know with Matthias Metternich

58

We talk with Matthias Metternich on Body Care, Kobe Bryant and Amazon.

The Art of the Snack LIFESTYLE FEATURES

68

ATHLEISURE LIST A ROOM AT THE BEACH

70

ATHLEISURE LIST CITY WINERY

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This month, we swing by Eataly.

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82

Bingely Books

92

This month’s must stream!

Jul 2019

In Our Bag

112

This month’s roundup focuses on what is in our bag when we are out of the office and out and about during the day.

PROPEL CO: LABS

122

We head back to the fitness festival that is known for having a number of celebrity fitness trainers, methods and of course, goodies. This month we chat with them to catch up.

Jul 2019

Athleisure Studio Tune into our podcast network, Athleisure Studio. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Stitcher, Google Podcast and more.

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#TRIBEGOALS

118

We’re getting work done after a great workout.

Here’s what we’re we’re using this month.

The 9 List

137

Check out our picks from this month’s Style, Beauty and Fitness finds that we’re loving.

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Our July cover story took us to Ocean City, NJ for a fun and inspiring day at the beach as well as insight to the fundamentals of life. Marty Smith, ESPN's Broadcaster/Journalist is someone who breaks down the game, brings his enthusiasm for the love of sport and is always exchanging energy with those on set as well as those that are off. As someone who began his time at the network covering NASCAR, he has grown into a number of areas which include: Sports Center, College GameDay, this fall's SEC Nation as a host, and the successful Marty & McGee. This interview not only includes Marty's journey to the successes that he currently enjoys, but also lets you reflect about what happens when you believe in your self, honor those that came before, acknowledge where you came from, and allow yourself to engage in powerful progression that you may not have planned for yourself!

ATHLEISURE MAG: What was the moment that you knew that you fell in love with sports?

MARTY SMITH: I would have to say I was a young boy and my father, he was infatuated with the Pittsburgh Steelers, back in the Steel Curtain days of Joe Green, Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris and those immortal – immortal Steelers teams, Lynn Swann and John Stallworth and all those guys. So, I was a little boy and I would sit with my daddy and watch the Steelers and my momma used to say that even as a four year old, I would be like, “that was a hold,” or “that was a clip,” and I’d call out penalties before the flags were thrown and what not. That’s when I kind of knew – the way that it felt just being in my father’s aura that way. I grew up in a small farming community in the Southwestern part of Virginia and all we had was ball. We played everything and there was no sitting inside. My parents were like, “get your ass outside and do something and don't come back until dark," and so football, basketball, baseball-

and I loved to compete. To this very second, I love to compete. That feeling of competition and that feeling of grinding your way to noticeable improvement against competition is something that’s intoxicated me forever. So I knew real young that I was going to be a sports guy.

AM: So can you share with us your sports background – what you played and how far you went?

MS: From four years old through my Freshman year of college, I was an athlete and I started with baseball as a little Pee Wee League guy and then when I was in 4th grade, I started playing Pop Warner Football. The same year, I started playing Little League Basketball so from 4th grade all the way through my Senior year of high school, I played all 3 of those sports and I played all year around. I played football from August until the winter time – December. From December until March or April, I played basketball and then I played baseball for my school teams until school was over or the season was over, and then I played either Rec League Baseball or American Legion Baseball all the way through the summer. And then we did football again. So, I never stopped playing ball and again, I grew up in a small community so my buddies that were my teammates and I went to school with them, they’re still my boys today. My best childhood friend since I was 4 years old basically, is the Tampa Bay Rays Athletic Trainer – how weird is that? We grew up in this tiny little town of very few people. Everybody were farmers or blue collar community and he and I both made our way out to pro sports – pretty crazy.

AM: What was that moment when you realized that you might be interested in pursuing professional sports?

MS: I wasn’t good enough. So when I got to college, I went to a small college in East Tennessee first. It was a Division

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II school athletically, called Carson Newman and they had a really good baseball program so I went there to play baseball. I stayed there 1 year and then I transferred over to Radford University from which I graduated and thought that I would easily make the baseball team – no question in my mind. I had no doubts. I went and they had a walk on tryout and they asked me to participate in that and I did that.

I hit and threw it ok – I was a middle infielder and didn’t have a good try out. So the coach who knew about me in high school - I grew up around the corner, he was like, “man, I don’t think that you’re good enough.” They didn’t allow me to play. So I will tell you this. God is funny. I was so devastated in that moment because I don’t care.

If you’re passionate about sports – I don’t care if your ceiling is high school, I don’t care if your ceiling is college and certainly for guys like Peyton Manning, Tom Brady or Drew Brees or these guys – the elite of the elite at whatever their passion is athletically. When it’s time to be done, you lose your whole identity because my whole identity, my whole life was athlete.

That was my identity and because truth told, I was a pretty good one in high school in the area in which I grew up, I had a decently celebrated career, we won state championships as teams – we had that kind of talent where I came from. So when I lost baseball, I’m not kidding y’all, there was a level of depression that I did not anticipate and I have never been a guy who’s down – I’m unstoppable, it’s how I’m wired and I was stopped. I knew a girl that dated a buddy of mine and she came in one day she said, “you know you need to get up off your ass and you need to come with me to the Sports and Information Office and you need to work because you have such a wealth of knowledge.” I’m like, “what, I’m not going in there and taking stats – I play ‘em – no.” After a substantial pity party, I got up one day and I said,

“alright man, let’s see what happens.”

Went in there, I fell in love with being around it again. Some of my best college friends were guys who played baseball, they played basketball – because the Sports Information Department gave me substantial responsibility immediately. As a Sophomore, I ran around with the baseball team took their stats, etc. As a junior, they handed me Women’s Basketball and I traveled with the Women’s Basketball team on top of my class load. Then, I got the greatest break you could ever ask for. I was offered a stringer position by the Roanoke Times which is the major regional newspaper in the area in which I grew up covering high school sports, the local NASCAR short track, etc. That’s when I realized that I was going to write for a living and that was what I’m gonna to do. As a Senior, I got to cover Virgina Tech Football as a stringer for the Washington Post.

AM: That’s insane!

MS: On top of my class load. So all of these people believed in me. I will tell you this, had I not gotten cut, I don’t even know if gotten cut is fair. Had I made the Radford Baseball Team, I wouldn’t be sitting with you now, guarantee you. Because I wouldn’t have had to make that shift in focus that I had to make because I wasn’t playing anymore. How about that?

AM: Wow. You’ve had so much in your career prior to ESPN, so what was that journey like as I know you were with NASCAR.com for awhile.

MS: So much of my career goes back to people who believed in me. And in that book, they wanted me to do the dedication page. Who do you dedicate this to? All I wrote was, For the believers. Most notably, Lainie, Cameron, Mia and Vivian my nuclear family – wife and children. But so many people have believed in me from coaches to mentors to all the way down to people that

work at ESPN, who don’t have to take the time to offer you guys this opportunity, to pitch you this opportunity, but they believe enough in me that they’re doing that.

When that believer, a guy named Ray Cox, who writes for the Roanoke Times, even still, he covered me in high school. So when I wasn’t playing anymore, he was like, “what?” I saw him at a Radford Basketball game. He said, “I think that you need to be writing for me. You have this factor that you’re so relatable to people and you connect with people in a way that you need to be writing.”

So I started covering high school sports like I said and that led to the local short track called New River Valley Speedway (now Motor Mile Speedway) at the time and I was a NASCAR guy as a kid because my daddy liked it. But my favorite driver was Davey Allison. Davey died in a helicopter crash July 13th 1993, I stopped loving the sport in that moment. My passion – I mean it was like lighting a bottle rocket when I went back to that short track. I went and I told her (Lainie), I know what I’m gonna do - I know what my path is – NASCAR is my way. It’s the fastest way to get through pro sports.

I covered it for the Lynchburg News – I had a job that may not even exist anymore. I made $12.80 in my first job out of Radford. I bought her engagement ring with it – you talk about broke as Joe! I started chasing race cars. I’ll never forget sitting in the Richmond International Raceway garage – sitting on the pit walls watching these cars go by. Dale Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Jeff Gordon – “holy smokes that’s really them, I’m on this side of the track.”

I’m inside the track and I can walk out there and talk to them if they’ll give me the time of day. I couldn’t believe it. I worked there for one year.

During that time, I wrote a story on a guy named Paul Brooks who was from

that town. His mother called me and said I needed to do the story. I thought it was Jim Bob Jordan the street stock driver down the street. Paul had been elevated to the VP of NASCAR. Called Paul, we hit it off, he liked the story and he sent me some desk furniture of the 50th Anniversary of NASCAR like a business card holder that you put the pens in. At the very bottom of the box was his stationary with his email on it.

I emailed him, “get me the hell out of here. I’ll clean toilets in Daytona Beach, Florida if you get me out of here. I got big aspirations, got big dreams – you can help me get me there.” They didn’t have any jobs, a few months later, a guy quit at NASCAR.com – he called me come to the interview, if I was good enough I would get the job – I got the job. I made it to $20K. Now I’m traveling around the country man. I went to San Francisco man, Napa, California and I got to cover race cars! Worked there until ’05 and ESPN called. They were coming back into the business of NASCAR. In ’07 they put together their whole broadcast team and I was going to be in the insularly part in a show for SportsCenter we had a show called NASCAR Now. AM: Great show.

MS: It was a great show! Jack Obringer – this is all in my book. Jack Obringer, the guy who called me who is still at ESPN now and is one of my greatest believers. He said that everybody who talks to me says your name – you know what’s going on in the sport and you know the drivers. I laughed and said, “hey man, I’m so flattered, but you called the wrong guy. There’s a guy named Marty Snider who’s a great broadcaster and I’m sure that that’s who you meant to call.” He laughed out loud and said I was the guy. He told me to go home and think about working with him. I went home to Lainie and I said, “you’re never going to believe this, I think that ESPN wants me to come work there." I'm a guy who

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would rather crash and burn and fail knowing that I can’t, then wonder 20 years from now sitting on that porch wondering if I could have. So I took the job. The first time that I was really on television was SportsCenter. Can you believe that? There are local reporters who are so talented, they work their asses off, they set up their own camera shots and dream of that chance and I was afforded that chance immediately.

That’s never been lost on me and I’m so appreciative. From there, the company let me grow. They let me make mistakes, they let me look like – I needed a lot of work. My story is just unorthodox because I was sportcentric for 7 years – really 8 from ‘07-‘14 those 8 NASCAR seasons. I got to grow and learn my voice and ESPN afforded me that voice and no one has ever once asked me to change it. They’ve never asked me to try to lose this accent because I have always maintained that you can be Southern and articulate at the same time. It worked because I was covering NASCAR. Then we lost NASCAR and I thought, ok what do I do now? Do I pursue another network maybe, do I bet on myself again? I went home and told Lainie that I needed to bet on myself again and I was ready to see what was out there and I signed my 3rd ESPN contract which was ’15’18 and bet on myself. My career has been beyond every fantastic dream that I could have ever imagined.

AM: You have covered so many different sports for the network. How do you prepare yourself when you’re reporting on College Football versus the NFL – is it the same for you?

MS: No. I’m voracious about study. I’m voracious about preparation and reading and listening and things that intrigue me, I put it in a document. Then I take that document and pair it down and then I study that document. Like, Tiger Woods. When I got the opportunity to interview him, I studied so hard and watched so much and I probably-

had a 40 question list and I paired that down to 15 and I studied those 15 until minutes before I was sitting in front of him and I crumpled the paper up and threw it away. Because I want to have a conversation with you. The best interviewers listen. Because the best question is more often than not, why, how, when, how did that come to be, what was your passion. That was most certainly the case with him. Can I tell you how I got there?

AM: Yes! MS: 2012 I think it was, I interviewed Jeff Gordon for a NASCAR Countdown Pre Race Program and I had this specific thing that I wanted out of Jeff and I kept interrupting him during the interview to try to keep him on task. It worked for what I was sort of after.

But after the race before which it ran which was New Hampshire, after that race – I was so proud of myself that I got this interview with Jeff Gordon man – 4X Champion – 80+ wins! After the race, I went out to interview Dale Jr. who is like my brother – we’re brothers – we’ve been through it together. The highest of highs and the most crushing of lows we’ve walked it together. I get out to his car because he wrecked and they’re looking all around the cars when they’re looking at the dings in it. He turns around and says, “come here, I’m pissed at you.”

There’s other reporters around so he takes me to the entrance to the truck that carries the race cars and says, “you need to stop interrupting people.” I was like, "what?” He said he watched the interview with Jeff and he wanted to hear some of the things that he said, but I kept interrupting him and that I looked like an asshole, “stop interrupting people.” I was so mortified. He cut me and do you want to know that it was the single greatest advice that I have ever gotten in this job? I completely changed my interview approach. I let people expound upon their thoughts and thereby, be-

ing able to tell me their story rather than trying to conjure something that you desire. I tell that story sometimes when he’s around and he’s like, “damn, let it go.” I’m like, “no. You changed me and only a real dude does this.” You’re on this high and most dudes would be like, “hey man that’s cool.” I am forever grateful to him for that.

That’s what I do. I study, study, study and then throw it away. Because I want to hear you and want to be immersed with you. It has proven to be very successful for me.

AM: So what are all the shows that you’re on at ESPN? MS: Wow. A lot of them! So SportsCenter, College Game Day, SEC Nation, Get Up, Marty & McGee – which is such a fascinating study. Marty & McGee is a Southern culture program almost more than a sports program. There was a lady named Cherita Johnson and for a time she kind of ran the podcast/ digital arm at that time. I called her one day and said I had a proposal as I had a buddy Ryan McGee (she knew him because they were PA’s together) and him and I had covered NASCAR together and felt that ESPN could produce a really cool piece of content with a podcast, we would be willing to go to a studio so we wouldn’t have to hire a bunch of people. We just wanted to do a podcast about NASCAR if she would let us. She wasn’t sure if there was a market for it and she asked me to tell her a story. So, 45 minutes later, I’m telling her all these stories about Dale Earnhardt, Dale Jr. and Jimmie Johnson. She said that I was so passionate about that she would go ask. She did and they greenlit it. The magic of Marty & McGee is the chemistry, we’re buddies and have been so for 20 years!

It went from a live radio show on Sat afternoons, then a few years ago they moved us to 7am on Sat! That’s when I said, “son, our lives just changed!”

That’s when everybody is going to get

the donuts and taking junior to baseball. It changed everything! Then, last year, they decide that the coaches in the South Eastern Conference they wanted to be engaged in a different way and they wanted the two if to make it happen. They asked what the set should like and I said, “a card table, an American flag and an eagle soaring by – I don’t know.” They built us that set. The coaches come in. They’re immediately disarmed. We’re laughing out loud with them. Nick Saban is talking about his dad, Nick Sr. had tears in our eyes. So they give us a weekly show on SEC Network which this fall moves to Weds. so that it ensures that it’s not pre-empted by soccer or a live program. We don’t even know what to make of it – we’re floored!

AM: What’s it like juggling all of these shows with your current schedule?

MS: It’s a lot and I’m afforded the ultimate blessing which is a patient, immersed, patient and loyal partner who appreciates all of this. She understands all of this and allows me to chase the dream. I can’t wait for people to read about Lainie in the book because they are going to see what a phenomenal soul she is. In this life, we meet people that are more successful, that may not have as much, we meet people who are more beautiful, we meet people who are the most blue collar downhome, people who grew up in the city all of that – all walks of life. Very rarely do you meat innate grace. Lainie has it. There is no way in hell that I could have this career, this life, have met these people that I am so fortunate to meet if she didn’t have that personality. I thank her everyday!

AM: Specifically during the college football season, what is your week like for that?

MS: We work every day. From now until mid January, we are gas on the throttle doing college football. Even

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on days off, we’re prepping. On days off, you’re reading, calling around, texting around, talking to coaches. Sports information people, in some rare cases – players. To make sure that you are at least ahead of the game but at least in the game. You go hard as hell man and I love every second of it.

AM: Who are you looking forward to interviewing this season from the college football side – what are 3 things that you’re pumped about?

MS: I’m blessed beyond what I deserve. We have a host and reporter who is among the most talented television professionals I have ever seen.

Her name is Laura Rutledge. Laura makes all of it look easy – it’s not and she makes it look so simple. She is going to have her first child this fall. As a result of that, she will go on maternity leave and will miss a portion of the season. While she is away, she is the host of a show called SEC Nation and it’s a phenomenal show. I mean Tim Tebow, Marcus Spears and Paul Finebaum are the panelists. They are all great friends of mine already - Tim is like a brother to me. In the book, I share his influence on me which is dramatic. So when Laura is on maternity leave, I am going to get to host that show. When ESPN called me and told me this, my initial reaction was Euphoria and it was also, “you know I have never done that before and you know it’s something that I am going to have to learn.” They understood all that and said that my passion was what they needed. I can’t wait, a live atmosphere with a live audience in the South Eastern Conference, with those 3 guys and a producer – Baron Miller, who's a brother to me anyway.

He has an artistic vision and unbelievable passion to help guide us through.

I can’t wait for the energy change. My best friend, Eric Church, always says that there is going to be an energy exchange tonight. There is going to be my energy and your energy. I'm going to give it every last damn ounce of ev-

erything I got and if you give it back to me, there is going to be a moment and it’s going to live forever. Well I get to drive that moment and I can’t wait! Tebow man, Spears – I’m not Laura – I’m not as talented and polished as her or Joe Tessitore the first gentleman who hosted that show, or Maria Taylor who also hosted that show. They’re better broadcasters than me, but I’ll never be out passioned. I can control 3 things everyday: I can control kindness, effort and passion. If I max those out, I’m going to be alright and I’m maxing. In every single facet of my life: fatherhood, husbandry, professionally, friendships – there ain’t nobody going to ever say that I didn’t leave it all out there when the Lord calls me home.

AM: One of the things that draws me to your reporting is your passionate storytelling and being someone who grew up in Indiana, watched Hoosier basketball growing up, graduated Indiana University and was glad to have been there during Bobby Night’s last year as coach, we believe in the concept of “Life is Sports and Sports is Life”. When college basketball happens, there is such a feeling that comes through which permeates all aspects of my life. Why does college football have that feeling for you that makes you so passionate about it?

MS: I was discussing this this morning.

There is a country artist named Justin Moore. I have known Justin his entire career now. This is his 5th album he is putting out this week and he’s only 35 and having a tremendous career. He grew up in a little town called Poyne, Arkansas. The Arkansas Razorbacks are their pro team. I grew up 20 miles west of Virginia Tech’s campus on a cattle farm. The Virginia Tech Hokies are our pro team. They are also our identity, they also brought a national brand to a farming community. Because of Frank Beamers’ Hokies Virginia Tech Hoakies, Blacksburg is known in Seattle, in California, Clearwater, Fl

and it’s known in Banger, Maine. Everybody knows Blacksburg because of those football teams. When I was a kid, we didn’t have a whole lot when I was real young. My daddy worked all the time and I didn’t get to be around him and he was a bit of mysterious and mythical figure to me. But there were some Saturday mornings when he’s wake me up and say, “boy get dressed, we’re going over the mountain.” I knew that meant we were going to watch Virginia Tech football. It was bad football. It was 0-8, 0-10, 1-9, 2-8 because Coach Beamer was still laying those foundation bricks to the amazing legacy that he built. But I got to go there with my daddy and I got to have a fountain coke and I got to have his attention and I got to feel his love and hope he felt mine and we got to watch Virginia Tech play football. To this second, I feel closer to him in Laine Stadium then I feel anywhere else. I lost daddy in ’08. When I go back there, I feel closer to him than anywhere else. My passion for it, is so much deeper than simply the game. It’s this father/son connection, it’s this family connection because so many little college towns take their identity from those athletic programs just like Bloomington does.

I get to go in on Fridays and Saturdays in the fall and I get to be there with those people. Whether it’s Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Columbus, Ohio, Blacksburg, Virginia, Ann Arbor, Michigan – those towns are those schools. I get to live it. Hell, they pay me for it! Wow – it’s unbelievable to me!

AM: With such a busy schedule, you have a book coming out August 6th, Never Settle: Sports, Family and the American Soul. Why did you want to write this book and what do you hope that your fans and those who read this book take away from it?

MS: I have wanted to write a book for a really long time. It’s funny, I wasn’t ready until I got the deal. I didn’t have

enough life experiences until last year.

Back to Tiger, I interviewed him and of course I put a picture up with us on the ‘gram. You’ve gotta do it for the ‘gram and I came home that evening and my son has a YouTube channel and we were skateboarding. So I said, “you know what man, let’s go down this hill.

I’ll be on my board and you’ll be on your board and I’ll kinda get crouched down and get a cool shot with my phone for you.” I put it on my Instagram Stories and this publisher saw it. I was blown away by that.

Long story short, the next thing you know, I’m meeting with this gentleman, a guy named Sean Desmond at Twelve Books, my publisher in NYC. Avenue of the Americas man, wow country boy comes to town. He talked about how his little boy who is 12 is fascinated by all the stuff that I get to do. Then he saw that and he was intrigued. How is this guy that was interviewing Tiger Woods in the morning and hanging with his son in the evening – he wanted that. He wanted my family in the book, he wanted Lainie, he wanted the husband Marty in the book, he wanted father Marty in the book. He wanted me to be so vulnerable and he wanted Tiger, he wanted Nick Saban and he wanted Cristiano Ronaldo in Shanghai, in Beijing. He wanted all of these experiences. He wanted me throwing a post pattern on the White House lawn. Thank God the Secret Service has a sense of humor!

It’s all in the book. I actually did that!

We were stupid, man. He wanted all of that and he pushed me throughout the writing process. Show me, don’t tell me. You’re telling me a good story, show me a good story. I loved that advice because it demanded of me to take another layer of veneer off.

Again, I have so many friends that are musical artists. They told me throughout time that anything worth its salt is vulnerable. But with that vulnerability comes a very unique emotion because

you are putting this layer of yourself out into and this energy in the world.

You have to be ok with whatever comes back good or bad. You’ve given this and holy crap it’s giving me anxiety and Lainie is like why? That was always my response to my friends too because they were putting out something good – but you’re putting this part of yourself out there and above all, I know it’s relatable and vulnerable. I think it will sing and I think that a lot of people will see themselves in that. I discuss things like the primal sorrow of losing my mom when I was barely an adult. She had breast cancer and died when she was 47 years old. My sister turns 47 in Feb so, Stacy and I go back and forth about what that’s like. Because when you’re 21 you don’t realize how young 47 is. When you’re 43, you think that she hadn’t even gotten started yet. I’d give anything – anything to be able to show her. She would be tickled and the coolest grandmother to these little people that we have running around.

My son has Tourette and so there is a lot that comes with Tourette. His tics, how people react to that. He’s used to people staring at him. Middle School is hard, he’s only recently gotten to a place where other kids sometimes aren’t nice. My mother, back to that innate grace, I never met anybody that was more Godly than my mom. She raised a lot of kids and I only have one sibling. She raised a lot of kids. I had a lot of buddies and she was there momma too. I wish she was here to see all of this and to be that for my kids. I go all the way into that primal sorrow. I write it in that way that’s really really raw. It’s a hell of a thing and I hope that people feel themselves in it. There’s a football coach that I have become very close with, Barry Odom – head coach of Missouri – Missouri Tigers. He wrote me the nicest text the other day. The 4th chapter of the book is about one of the most impactful people in my life. There is a Special Olympics athlete that I chroniled in '15,

her name was Olivia Quigley. It’s all in there – why she was so important to me and Barry read the chapter. I sent him an advanced copy. He was like, “dude – I knew you were pretty cool on TV, but this is what you need to be doing. It’s changing lives.” That was very cool for him to say.

AM: How long did it take for your to put the book together?

MS: I started almost immediately when I met with Twelve last May. My deadline was Jan. 15th and I was very naïve about the time – really naïve. I wrote a lot of it in Ocean City Coffee. I would get up before dawn every morning when we were here last summer.

I rode my bike down there and wrote until about 9:30am morning and then came back. Then, I thought I didn’t have to worry about being a present father or husband on airplanes and hotel rooms. But when you have covered a college football weekend, the last thing that you want to do is go to your hotel room and write! You just want a cold one and to laugh with your buddies a little bit, eat a meal and get on the pillow. I somehow managed to do it. That last week, I still had quite a bit to write. I came home from the National Championship in Santa Clara, California – immediately packed a bag, flew to NYC and spent 5 days holed up in the publisher’s office pounding on those keys. I’m not kidding ya, 5:30 on Jan 15th was when I needed to have that thing in and it was 5:30 on Jan 15th when I said, I don’t know if it’s done, hope it is - but here it’s yours.

AM: How did it make you feel when Eric Church wrote your forward as he’s your best friend.

MS: He’s my best friend. I was here – he called me about something else and he needed my opinion and perspective. We probably talked about it for 90 minutes. You get Eric Church on 90 seconds it's a miracle - we were on

the phone for 90 mins! So I said, “before you go, I have something else to tell you about. I hate to bother you with it and I know you’re busy. I’m writing my first book.” He said, “it’s about fuckin’ time.” Truth be told, he thinks I’m wasting my time doing anything but writing and he has always been a fan of how I write and the way I paint pictures. He’s a writer, that’s what he does. So we have that mutual energy exchange and kinship. I said, “I would be really honored and I don’t think it would be complete the way that I need it to be complete if you don’t write my forward.” He said that it would be the pleasure and joy of his life that I would pick him to do that. I will tell you that it showed up near my deadline because it’s Eric. I was kind of badgering him saying, “hey bro – I have to have this thing in.” He asked me when it had to be in. I’m sitting in Charlotte and he texted me that he had sent it via email.

Two other people had read it before he sent it, his most trusted confidentes in his life – his wife Katherine and his manager John Peets. I get my computer and Lainie is sitting next to me and I’m reading it and I can feel myself and she’s capturing it on video. I will tell you that it’s the most single kindest thing that I have ever read in terms of your impact on somebody. It made me belly laugh and ugly cry. He’s a real hard ass. He plays one for a living, he doesn’t suffer fools, he takes no crap.

He taught me that my passion is ok and that my way is ok. Even when the bosses tell you something, if you believe it do it. For him to write what he wrote about me, I can’t wait for y’all to see it. I want to talk about it so much but I want y’all to have to read it. It’s awesome. It means the world to me that he would take the time to do it.

Like Greg Sankey is the commissioner of the SEC and I gave him the very first copy that I had ever held in my hands.

McGee and I were interviewing him and he said he wanted one, but that I would have to sign it. So I sat down

right there and signed it and said it was like handing him my first child. He wrote on the Internet how good it was and that Eric Church had written the greatest forward that he had ever read in years – he was right. I could talk for days about him – my hero!

AM: One of the things that we were struck by is the amount of people on Twitter who were talking about how those who pre-ordered received FaceTime messages thanking them for doing so.

MS: I have 52 people left to call! I was trying to think of a way – I felt bad that the people that pre-ordered the book that they invested in me and I wanted to make it personal. I saw that Kurt Busch, one of the NASCAR drivers, had FaceTimed some of his fans.

So I thought that we should try that.

I thought it would be 10 people. Marty will call you or FaceTime you if you pre-order his book. It was a lot more than 10 people. To see the reactions from the people! One young lady called me and said, “you’re always talking about people who give you that passion and this life direction to help you have that perspective and to stay focused – you’re that person for me.” She was in tears. She can’t wait to have the book. It was very fulfilling for me as well. They’re so appreciative.

AM: I mean just from the comments, people running out of the meetings in their offices and getting so excited.

MS: One guy worked in the Library of Congress and he was so excited that my book was going to be there. Another guy worked as a Missouri State Trooper or a Detective. He pulled over and took a picture of us talking. I still have a few people to contact and I will get to them. One of them was my high school football teammate, we were Defensive Backs a long time ago. We won the state championship together.

AM: Do you foresee writing another book?

MS: That’s up to the publisher, but if they afford me the opportunity – hell yes! There are 25 chapters in this book and there are at least 15 stories that I didn’t even get to. I talked to Paul George about what it was like when he broke his leg in half. The way he felt and the way he saw his team react. The vulnerability and how stripped he was.

I talked to Anthony Davis – I was surprised it went down this road. It was in the middle of Black Lives Matter was such a movement in this country.

We kind of brought up race and here I am having this great conversation of depth with this gentleman who grew up in Chicago, African American a face for those other young man growing up in that neighborhood. He got out, you can do this. Being interviewed by a 40 year old white man from a rural Appalachian town and how we were connecting and what an example we can be together. It was a wonderful conversation. Stuff like that that’s not even in the book. I hope this book is received well enough that I get that chance – I would be honored.

AM: As someone who travels as much as you do, what are 3 items in your carry-on that makes you feel comfortable or have a sense of home?

MS: Everything is a carry-on I don’t check bags. Bose Q35 Noise Cancelling headphones are my life blood because I am such a music guy. Costa Del Mar are my sunglass guys – I always have them with me because of the injured eye. I like having it covered. Either Jordan 1s, 3s, 4s or 11s. I don’t ever travel without at least 1 pair of Jordans - ever.

AM: The Sneaker Duffle is going to do well.

MS: Yes thank you! ESPN watchers know me for my sneakers. When I was growing up, once again, my dad never

in a million years would have been like I would pay $140 for those shoes.

Hell no! When I was in 8th grade maybe 9th. I saved enough money from throwing hay bales in the summer to buy my first pair of Js. They were 5s.

The original pair of 5s, I don’t have any 5s in Ocean City or I would show you what I was talking about. The original 5s have clear bottoms – soles. The clear bottoms had the Jump Man in the ball of the foot. If you wore them outside, they would soil to this amber color.

I was not about to let that happen. I would carry my Js to school and then put them on when I got there. I never lost that. If you guys had any idea of how neurotic I am about my shoes.

All of my shoes are like that. I’m a Js guy and I love Air Max 90s the original Air Max and I am crazy about these. I would say those 3 things.

AM: How do you take time for yourself to decompress with all of the things that you do?

MS: Water. I grew up on a farm, I still own hundreds of acres in Southwest Virginia that is still farmed. When I was a little boy, I was always captivated by the beach. So we bought here 5 years ago I believe our families bought this home and last July, Lainie and I bought a home on Lake Norman in Charlotte and that’s where we live full time. It allows me to really reflect, be vulnerable and to consider who I want to be. It also allows my children to get away from their phones and for me to get away from it and get away from everything.

It allows me to be a dad that is creating memories. That’s so important to me to be a present father and husband when I’m not on the road – to be here.

I try very hard. It’s hard for any driven professional. I do my dead level best to demand that of myself. Last night, we sat on the beach. I didn’t have my phone other than to play music on a Bluetooth speaker from 3 o'clock in the afternoon to 10:30pm. I bet I had 50 or 60 text messages. Don't judge

me – you promise – I have 193 unread text messages! When I’m here, I purposely don’t get on my phone. Tomorrow I will be in Charlotte for our college football seminar for the next 2 days, the day after that I have to shoot something for Marty & McGee all day for the SEC network, the day after that I’m in Clemson, SC all day covering the first practice for the Tigers and we’re kicking off August 24th. And I have a book coming out!

You know one thing that you will never hear me do – complain. I won’t do it.

Do you know how many people would sever fingers – I’m aware. I’m very protective of my time in a demanding industry. But, I’m a grinder man.

AM: When you’re in Ocean City, where can we find you grabbing a meal, go shopping or working out?

MS: Kessel's Korner 28th & Asbury. We eat there that’s our spot. Express Pizza is right around the corner here too.

They both have grilled buffalo wraps – grilled chicken buffalo. I’m a buffalo sauce freak show – I love it. I don’t only get the grilled buffalo wrap, I get extra buffalo on the side because I dunk it in there – buffalo sauce is my deal man. I go to the local gym and I’m also an endurance athlete. I was supposed to run the New York City Triathalon but they canceled it because of the Heat Index hitting 115 degrees. I was supposed to do the running portion and to be apart of a trio it’s called Challenged Athletes Foundation. Bob Babbitt one of the godfathers of triathlons in this country asked me to participate. There was going to be a double amputee as our swimmer, a world class cyclist as our cyclist and I was going to do the run in Central Park. I run the boardwalk all the time it’s 5 miles. 2.5 each way and I do it all the time.

Lainie gets on the Internet. She got all of our school supplies from Target. 7th Street Surf Shop is another one that

we enjoy. Heritage Surf Shop is another one because I love surf T-shirts, big brim hats because I am super pale.

AM: We’re all about #TRIBEGOALS – people who inspire us to be our best selves. Who are those 3 people for you?

MS: Not to say that I want to be overwhelming about the book, but it’s one of the reasons why I wanted to write it. I wanted to champion those people.

My parents would be one answer. I am so fortunate and I’m that guy who's an angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. My momma was an angel and my daddy battled my demons.

I got both of them inside me. I am so fortunate that I had them. They were very present for every game I ever played, they were very demanding, I was one of those guys that if I wasn’t on the honor roll then I didn’t get to play. I’m so thankful for that. I got spanked if I did something wrong and I got wooped – there were no time outs.

I’m thankful for that. Everything I said about Eric applies here. It’s because he showed me through our friendship and through his approach to be absolutely unmitigated to be who you are. Be passionate, reach through that camera lens! I knew that when I was covering NASCAR working for ESPN on a Sat morning SportsCenter in the fall when people were ready to watch college football – you may not be interested in NASCAR but you will listen to me during that 2 months because of how much I love it. He helped me realize that that would be ok! Then my wife, Lainie is such a special person. She’s selfless, graceful, she don’t take no crap, she is my single greatest sounding board and will tell me the truth the whole time. That’s why she is reading the book for the first time. She is so astute and I am so appreciative of that. She also made me more selfless. @MartySmithESPN

Our shoot took place in Ocean City, NJ which meant that we enjoyed showcasing menswear looks that are perfect for the beach.

FASHION CREDITS LOOK 1 PG 16-25 | LE TIGRE Polo Shirt | KENNETH COLE Shorts | SPERRY Gold Cup Collection | TIMEX Watch | NAGICIA Bracelet | COSTA DEL MAR Sunglasses | LOOK 2 COVER + PG 26 - 35 | KENNETH COLE Shirt | MAVI Shorts | SPERRY Gold Cup Collection | TiMEX Watch | CLEAR VISION OPTCAL/REVO Sunglasses | HEX BRAND Sneaker Duffle | JORDANS Sneakers | LOOK 3 BACK COVER PG 37 - 49 | MAVI Denim Shirt + Shorts | TIMEX Watch | KENNETH COLE Sneakers | CLEAR VISION OPTICALS/REVO Sunglasses | EARTHCRUISER Bike |

You can hear the full interview with ESPN's Marty Smith in August on our show, #TRIBEGOALS which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW with Matthias Metternich

We've always been a big believer that when it comes to selecting products that you bring into your home, office or additional space, it's a good idea to know about where it sits in the marketplace, the related founders and of course, why you should care about the products function. This month we sat down with Matthias Metternich, one of the Co-Founders and CEO of personal care brand, Art of Sport who also has Kobe Bryant and Brian Lee (as Co-Founder of Honest Co., LegalZoom and ShoeDazzle.com) as Co-Founders, to talk about the brand's approach, the need to service across a diverse socioeconomic demographic, the the conflict that can exist when there are brands looking to be natural versus chemical, and the rise of the third lane which adopts aspects of natural while looking to safe chemicals to ensure integrity of performance.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Tell us about your background prior to the Art of Sport MATTHIAS METTERNICH: I began my journey as a coder and a designer as a kid. I started very young when I was 9.

My parents bought me a computer and I moved around a lot so I was in some very far flung places. As a result, I didn’t always have a big crowd of friends and lot of fun things to go and do at night – but then I was also 9 so I wasn’t going out clubbing either.

AM: We were just going to ask what you would be doing at 9 ha.

MM: Right. I’m sure I had an interest in going out and couldn’t go out, but I ended up spending my time in front of computers. Through that, I fell in love with video games as one does as a kid. I started building my own video games. That’s what led me down the path of making things. I was terrible at coding, but it wasn’t like it was so sophisticated that it needed to be so complex. I realized that the games were terrible because I didn’t spend my time in the storytelling part of it. Creating something that captivated

people or myself for that matter as I was the only one playing it. Design was the canvas on which to create the art, story, passion, love and whatever it was.

Design became the more important factor in my life. I continued growing up and playing with computers. I started building companies at 14. Out of necessity there wasn’t a computer lab at my high school. I found away to get a bundle of computers and then sold it in bulk to my school. I did that with other schools too. That was better than pocket money for my parents. I continued to build things so I started a digital agency in college. I then worked for a couple of really big ones and serviced some pretty cool clients. We worked on cool projects like creating a F1 Racing Team for Richard Branson. A lot of neat things and a great place to design at scale. You couldn’t afford to make a lot of mistakes. If your client is Nike, they expect projects to work globally and to be perfect at launch. You also have to think 360 when you’re designing. What does the website look like, social, apps and retail environments.

That fluidity in thinking became innate to the way that I approach problems.

I’m really not limited to a particular kind of channel or particular type of business. From there, I have gone onto build a number of companies in apparel, in software and now in skincare.

AM: What perfect storm came together that brought yourself, Brian Lee and Kobe Brant together to create Art of Sport?

MM: I had just finished up a business.

Brian was stepping down from Honest Company and he has had an amazing career as he started Legal Zoom and went onto build Honest Company. We both found ourselves in LA at an opportune time where we were open to new ideas. I have a background as an athlete as I played sports growing up and I was a rower in college. I experienced first hand the problems with my skin (sunburns, dandruff, pain in my

joints, dry skin from showering a lot) and it never dawned on me as much as I felt the brands that I chose – the technical clothes that I chose to wear that was a pain point to me and I needed the best. I also needed the best when it came to nutrition and what I put into my body.

There wasn’t a lot of innovation, questionable chemicals were used and there weren’t any exciting inclusions that you typically see in food and in beverage. We thought, hang on a second, how had no one touched application in the way that Nike has done for Apparel or that Gatorade has done for food. So he and I fell in love with that concept and it really spoke to both of us and he and I saw an interesting path to building awareness and community among athletes and really build an authentic player in the space. It started with the science piece and we wanted to educate ourselves on what is possible in the skincare space and what can we do that’s different out there.

We brought on board the Chief Sci ence and Innovation Director from P&G. He had a ton of experience over the years. We also brought the Science Officer from Honest Co who is very focused on taking things out of things.

So the combination of him and her looking at it from both lenses on how we can innovate and also how we can be clean and better for you, drove our early innovation. We then decided as a sports brand, that we should be bringing athletes into the business – deeply into the business and embedding them from day 1. That’s where we got to before door knocking and Kobe Bryant opened the door.

AM: Not a bad person to start with.

MM: We were just going from door to door and he was like the last door we knocked on ha! No, he was the first door that we knocked on and he has as an athlete, the ability to understand

what it means to push your body to the limit and he is someone who had to will his body to become the best. He wasn’t necessarily born perfectly and that journey and arc in his career gives him a huge amount pf perspective. We really enjoyed the early days of sitting down with Kobe and really going through every phase of the business. Then we assembled an amazing athlete team around us including people like James Harden, Javier Baez and Juju Smith-Schuster and some phenomenal athletes.

AM: It’s great that your across various types of sports which is amazing.

MM: Yeah. That was something that dawned on us pretty early on that the variety and diversity of people. Never mind athletes – but a modern take on how to build a business as opposed to doing that retroactively down the trail. So different body types, different ethnicities, different

genders, different ages – all of that came into play for us. It was exciting to have a conversation with Sage Erickson who is a Surf Champion who is in the water and in the sun and has specific needs on how to protect herself in those environments. But then also Ken Roczon who is a Motor Cross World Champion – he almost tore his arm off during a motor cross accident. So for him, the pain cream became really interesting discussion for him because it just wasn’t about feeling good, smelling good and your skin feeling good. It was about the process. It was about an ongoing process to stay on top. That was really meaningful contribution to the business I think.

AM: You guys came to market last fall of 2018. What are the product assortments that you currently have in the brand and what are possible innova-

tions that you guys are thinking about such as having CBD as apart of your assortment etc?

nuts and a cool way to launch a product.

I had never launched a product on pretty much the biggest sales day in the US.

MM: We initially had an interesting discussion early on. The mission for us was to own application and to develop products that athletes would trust to put on their skin every day. So when that’s the starting point, how many or few products does that fall under? A lot though right? It could be a few or a lot. We really wanted to narrow in so we looked at the daily essentials that athletes are applying to their skin, multiple times a day. If we’re going to be true to the lifecycle of the athletes from morning until night, what are the skin products that take us out of the bathroom and into the field. That’s why we developed a pain cream and a sunscreen.

So when we launched, we had a deodorant, a soap, a body wash, a sunscreen and a pain cream. But we thought, if we are going to tackle this problem, we’re not going to short change the idea and play a close game. We’re going to go heavy and hard at the space.

AM: Are there categories that you are interested in adding in like lip care?

Over time, what we found was that even though we have only been in the market for under a year (that’s the beauty of online businesses because you get feedback so fast) – we had a lot of requests for body lotion which we launched recently. People didn’t want to exactly use the body wash for their hair as it was a 3-in-1. So we developed a new 2-in-1 conditioner which has been really great and has some nice botanicals in there. We also, which was a lot of fun, partnered with Amazon for Prime Day and we launched 2 products that were exclusive to Prime Day Customers on those days with Kobe Bryant.

MM: People just think it’s a product that you’re getting out there. But you have to get the packaging dialed in and then you have to get the secondary packaging.

Sometimes there is an outer case as well and before you know it, there are hundreds of things that you’re pushing forward.

It went totally bananas and it took a lot of work to get prepared, but what was so awesome was that Amazon recognized how hard we were leaning in and they included us in their press release to the world about Prime Day. So in the course of the month leading into this, pretty much any news outlet that covered Prime Day was also covering The Art of Sport. It was

AM: So what should we keep our eye out for in terms of the brand as we continue through the summer, go into the fall and with the holidays season?

MM: We try to keep a very open mind where it comes to where we could go. I think that one lesson I have always known as an entrepreneur is focus. To try and make sure that whatever you put out is the best that is out there as you can go too wide too fast. In fact, that was probably one of the greatest lessons that Brian took away from Honest Co. They did a lot of products and they were incredible, but they had a lot out there and it put too much strain on them as a start-up.

AM: Especially coming from a background of production/wholesale we have worked with a number of brands that have had a lot in their assortment; however, they are large companies that have been around for a number of years that can support that flow to implement that initiative.

AM: Absolutely, plus the continuity of everything making sense in the packaging that it’s in.

MM: Absolutely.

with the holidays season?

MM: Art of Sport, the way that we thought about it, it’s a big brand platform

that allows us to speak to different ages and demographics across the nation in all different socio-economic classes as well.

There’s an aspect of this where we can get out there in front of the community at a grassroots level which is very exciting.

We attend a lot of sporting events across the country. Sometimes it’s a 10K event for the kids combine in the south and sometimes it’s a 4K girls volleyball tournament in Washington State. That’s been a phenomenal exercise for the business.

To that point, we have always believed that the brand could be everywhere and it should be everywhere. We want to get our product in the hands of every gym bag, locker room and bathroom in the country. We started on the Art of Sport. com where people can subscribe to the product on the site. We also launched on

Amazon which again, is pretty unconventional and opening up to new platforms as opposed to being constrained to the platforms that you choose. We saw amazing traction on Amazon. The next logical step for us is to think about how our product and brand comes to life offline. The grassroots piece is one exercise for that.

There is a lot of talk about retail dying but there are a lot of retailers that are absolutely thriving and that’s not going to go away. That’s what is on our horizon in terms of what we are thinking about right now. In terms of where products are concerned, we live in an interesting lane where there are brands that are all natural and then you have brands that are sort of all chemical. The problem with all natural is that they can be great, but they

them. We live in the middle lane. We can look at an antiperspirant deodorant with aluminum and we can make it better.

We can think about clinical products for your scalp, face, toes and feet that a lot of Americans need that without chemicals won’t work. On the other side of the spectrum there’s looking at pain creams and you mentioned CBD earlier where the natural worlds can play it’s part in a bigger way then what it has had. That’s a long way to answer your questions as our Product Development Road Map has a couple of great products that live in that lane that will do their job to transform some of those product categories.

AM: So what is your title and your day to day like?

can also be expensive and they also fail you sometimes because they don’t work.

There are a lot of deodorant brands that are out there that just don’t last. If you're in a dress shirt at work and you're about to give a presentation, you can't have a big sweat stains. That’s because those products by default are unable to look at safe chemicals that could perform when you need them. That happens in sunscreen as well. If it’s all mineral. On the other end of the spectrum, the all chemical guys are pretty much an expression of an industry that doesn’t have to innovate and is focused on the most cheapest cost effective product that they can make. So by default, switching out chemicals from a low quality one to a high quality one isn’t that important. Thinking about botanicals and those great inclusions is not relevant for

MM: My title is that I’m the Co-Founder and the CEO. So, I run and build the business. My day to day because my background is in making things and building things, I’m pretty fluent and obsessive on getting into the weeds and bringing those things to a good place. Sometimes in the lifecycle of a business when you are trending in the right direction, CEOs can be sort of primarily focused on raising capital, hiring and sort of evangelizing the brands. Those things to me are important factors and will be more important to me, but my role from day one has been about designing, the packaging, the language that we use on website to literally art directing James Harden and telling him how to hold the product.

There is nothing that’s beneath me so I’m the Chief Receptionist and the Chief Toilet Cleaner. There’s nothing that’s too good for me to do.

AM: So what are 3 things that are always in your carry-on?

MM: Interesting. Probably the usual things that everyone mentions, a credit card, a laptop and a phone.

AM: Most people do not mention that ha!

MM: Wait, that’s bizarre – how do they do anything and get things done?

AM: They’re taking their headphones or maybe a blanket ha!

MM: Maybe I should leave the laptop behind and grab that. I wish it was more interesting, but the reality is that most of my travel is for work and what matters is that I get work done. I have also turned into that guy who is perfectly happy going to the airport with a toothbrush and my laptop and figuring it out once I get there.

really live in the present. When I spend time with him, my world is forced to slow down. He appreciates the simple things in life. I like to walk and take in the world around me, but for him going to a movie and having a nice burger is the highlight of his year. I think that that teaches me a lot. @ArtofSport

AM: What does it have to have?

MM: I have never understood how anyone sleeps with synthetic materials so all of that imitation cotton like substance is beyond me and I can't figure it out. Bedding is important, but I can’t travel with my bed. My Achilles heel is actually sound. I pick up on a lot of sound so I have to drown it out so when you said headphones, I thought “damnit, I should have said that.”

AM: In terms of #TRIBEGOALS, who are 3 people that you either know or follow socially that inspire you?

MM: Wow that’s an interesting one.

Well, it might sound like a cop out. It’s my brother, my mom and my dad. I grew up and we moved around a lot and I grew up in 9 different countries.

We probably moved 40 times total across places. My nuclear family was always there or within a reasonable distance. My dad’s story is quite interesting – he’s a post WWII refugee and part refugee in Europe and my mother ran off from home when she was 16 and met my dad in Somalia and she is a fascinating women. Very strong mother in addition to juggling a pretty difficult household. My brother is mentally handicapped so what has been interesting there is I tend to live in the future and overthink things. He can only

You can hear Matthias Metternich's interview next month on our show, #TRIBEGOALS which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

ATHLEISURE LIST: BRIDGEHAMPTON, NY

A ROOM AT THE BEACH A Room at the Beach opened in 2018 in Bridgehampton, NY. Founded by Lucy Swift Weber and Charles Lemonides, two passionate entrepreneurs and travel-enthusiasts, were interested in creating a boutique hotel as an expression of their love for The Hamptons.

When staying at A Room at the Beach, there are a number of in-room amenities that include: Frette linens and robes, full-sized Malin & Goetz toiletries, and personal Nespresso machines. Gourmet minibars are stocked with Casa Dragones tequila and treats from L&W Market, the latest offshoot of the Almond group, co-owned by Charles’s brother Eric.

With only 10 rooms at the hotel, they were designed via the founder's inspired travels of their favorite places around the world, including Marrakesh, Harbour Island, Tulum, and Ireland. Unfussy, barefoot luxury is what defines this Hamptons destination.

The hotel is a short walk away from the charming hamlet of Bridgehampton and is just two and a half miles from some of the Hampton's most beautiful beaches. It is also a mile away from the popular Wolffer Estate Vineyard and three miles from Sag Harbor.

The classic structure was rebuilt in a soft cedar exterior and up-to-date interiors. To create a sense of it being all about the outdoors they built an expansive, well defined deck in the front and put doors in each shower to the back. The star of the property is the parallen rows of redwoods that pull you out into the center of the property.

Each room is meticulously decorated with its own look and feel to bring to life the best of the locale's treasures.

AthleisureMag.com

Guests are welcomed to enjoy the sauna, outdoor pool, and expansive garden. Serena & Lily bicycles are available for a quick excursion to the beach, the nearest park, or the best fishing spot. Beach passes are available to all guests and Weber grills are also available throughout the property. Yoga is additionally offered to guests every

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A ROOM AT THE BEACH

weekend.

There is always the ability to book the hotel for a private event as well.

2668 Montauk Hwy, Bridgehampton, NY 11932

PHOTOS COURTESY | A Room at the Beach

www.iwantaroomatthebeach.com

Jul 2019

@ARoomAtTheBeach

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AthleisureMag.com

ATHLEISURE LIST: NYC, Chicago, Nashville, Philly, DC, Atlanta, Boston

CITY WINERY + CITY VINEYARD

Fans of City Winery will want to also keep City Winery Pop-up as its a sister location. City Vineyard has a number of wines to enjoy as well as entertainment. City Winery Pop-up opened on July 25th, 2019. These vino oriented destinations are founded by Michael Dorf who is also the CEO.

Winery will reopen on Pier 57 in early 2020. City Winery is known for its intimate concerts and their house-made wines. City Winery is a concert venue, wine making facility and restaurant all in one! It's for those that are passionate about wine, music and culinary arts. In addition to concerts, there are opportunities to enjoy food and wine classes as well as to have private events.

When you're enjoying their housemade wines (Soho-Vignon Blanc, Rosè of Syrah, Pinot Noir) at City Winery Pop-up, we suggest the Chickpea hummus and the burrata. At City Vineyard, we have two words - Seafood Platter.

With the closing of City Winery, guests can go to Rockefeller Plaza to enjoy their pop-up. In addition, this fall, City Winery will open in Philadelphia as well as in the Hudson Valley. Make sure to visit their website to see an array of events such as Vino Vinyasa which is held on the rooftop of City Vineyard with their next one taking place on Aug 11th.

Each location has its draw from City Vineyard having a rooftop that is open for the summer and allows for weekend brunches with patio seating throughout the year.

City Winery's last show with Joan Osborne takes place on July 31st. City

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In addition to a number of upcoming

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events and location opening, Michael Dorf's book Indulge Your Senses: Scaling Intimacy in a Digital World.

CITY WINERY POP UP Rockefeller Plaza NY, NY 10111

PHOTOS COURTESY | City Winery

CITY VINEYARD Pier 26 NY, NY 10013 www.citywinery.com @citywinerynyc @cityvineyardnyc *Check the site for more locations.

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Go! crispygreen.com

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Inspiration doesn’t just occur.

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Reserved for those who get out and go. Fueled by nature. Motivated by spirit. How do you go?

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SHOPPING THE MARKETS OF ITALY OR GRABBING A MEAL? When it comes to culinary destinations, Eataly is one that allows you to purchase your favorite Italian treats, meats and wines in their market. It also has a number of restaurants whether you're popping in for a quick bite, doing takeout or simply want to sit down to a decadent meal. We sat down with Dino Borri, Eataly's USA's VP of Global Partnerships to get the rundown on their Flatiron property, charcuterie boards and summer wines.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Tell us about your background and how you came to Eataly?

DINO BORRI: I currently serve as Eataly USA’s VP of Global Partnerships. I was born and raised in Bra, a small town in Piemonte, Italy, and the home of the Slow Food movement and the world’s first University of Gastronomic Sciences. I got my start in the food industry in 2000, when Slow Food hired me to organize and coordinate all of our gastronomic events. In 2008, I started collaborating with Eataly Torino, where I soon became the person in charge of opening new Eataly stores all around the world. I lived in Japan for one year, where I curated the opening of all the Eataly locations in Japan. In 2010, I moved to America to launch the first US location in New York City’s Flatiron District. Living and breathing high-quality food and Mediterranean lifestyle, I am now concentrating on developing key partnerships and relationships with like-minded Italian brands abroad for Eataly.

AM: What is the purpose behind Eataly and how does this destination allow shoppers and guests to connect with the various regions of Eataly?

DB: Focused on providing high-quality, sustainable products for all, Eataly is the largest Italian retail and dining experience in the world, transforming the way consumers experience food, beverage and, culture. At Eataly, guests have the unique opportunity to experience Italian culture

through markets, counters, cafés, restaurants, and educational offerings that explore the best food and beverage options Italy’s 20 regions and the world has to offer. Since Oscar Farinetti first opened Eataly Torino Italy in 2007, his philosophy – to provide high-quality food, celebrate biodiversity, and create a place to eat, shop, and learn – has spread to 39 stores across the world, including our US flagship NYC Flatiron (2010), Chicago (2013), NYC Downtown (2016), Boston (2016), L.A. (2017), Vegas (2018), Toronto (opening in 2019), and Dallas (opening in 2020).

AM: Why is Eataly a great destination for those that are popping in to enjoy a number of your restaurants or to shop its market?

DB: Eataly offers traditional and authentic

Italian food in a vibrant ambiance. At the store, customers can eat what they shop and shop what they eat. One of the best aspects of Eataly is that all of our restaurants, counters, products, and experts, have a story to tell. Each time you come to Eataly, there is something new to explore and learn, no matter whether you’re sitting down to a relaxed meal or simply buying your evening groceries.

AM: Does Eataly have a different vibe or offering depending on which location you go to?

DB: Yes. Each Eataly is customized to its local market and unique from any other store. The stores all have different restaurants, layouts, products, and counters. In addition, we work with local producers in each city in addition to our Italian produc-

ers.

AM: With the summer being upon us, what are 3 items that you would suggest we should incorporate into our Charcuterie boards?

DB: Culatello di Zibello DOP - Culatello is one of the most prized salumi in Italy: mentions of this delicacy date back to the 15th century. Culatello is produced in the flatlands located north of Parma, near the Po River, and Eataly is the first to be able to sell this delicacy with DOP status imported from Italy.

Quattro Portoni Casatica Cheese - This is a semi-seasoned cheese with a flowering crust, and pearly white, soft center. Made with buffalo milk, the flavor is delicate and creamy with a velvety texture.

Lingue Di Suocera – light, crispy, and made from all-natural ingredients, these long flatbreads – in fact, their name translates to “tongues” thanks to their shape – are a flavorful vehicle for the salumi and cheeses on your antipasto board.

Il Mongetto Cheese Condiment Set - Sweet additions like the fig, pear, or quince jam in this condiment set are a perfect compliment to soft cheeses and savory cured meats. This set by Il Mongetto is made with top quality fruits and artisanal production methods in Piemonte.

AM: In terms of wines and sweet treats, what are 3 items that we should keep in mind?

DB: Spritz Bianco – Made with Sangiovese Bianco, St. Germaine, Soda Water, FarmOne Basil. The Spritz Bianco is a refreshing alternative to summer’s most popular cocktail. This Spritz is offered at SERRA FIORITA by Birreria within Eataly NYC Flatiron, our seasonal restaurant on the roof that now reflects the Italian countryside in the summertime.

Riesling Borgogno - Langhe DOC Riesling – Made from young Riesling vines in the Langhe valley by one of the oldest winemakers in Piemonte, the crisp freshness and pleasant acidity of this white make it a versatile wine that pairs well with summer dishes like fish and vegetables.

Mandarinata - Made by Ligurian producer Niasca Portofino, Mandarinata is a pleasantly sweet and refreshing soda made from concentrated juice of mandarins from the Tigullio Gulf. Excellent on its own, this soda also pairs perfectly in a cocktail for a classic Italian aperitivo. *Please note that all of these products listed can either be found in one of Eataly’s stores or online.

PHOTOS COURTESY | EATALY @EatalyFlatiron

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Stay connected and follow us across our social channels on @AthleisureMag!

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BingelyBooks In addition to being able to make the recipes, the book also provides a few tips and notes so that you understand the cultural context of these meals as well as having culinary insight.

Meals included in this book can include those that are sweet, savory, classical, regional (Chinese Pineapple Buns, Scottish Morning Rolls Egyptian Ful Medames, etc.).

MRS. EVERYTHING: A NOVEL Atria Books Jennifer Weiner

BREAKFAST: THE COOKBOOK Phaidon Emily Elyse Miller

Whether you eat it or not, we have all heard that, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." Many also enjoy the concept of having breakfast for dinner. Whatever your preference, this cookbook focuses on a collection of hundreds of home-cooking recipes that are enjoyed globally!

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When change takes place, are you doing it or is something outside of you that is doing this?

We're introduced to Jo and Bethie Kaufman who grew up in 1950s Detroit with a life that definitely had the foundation of potential. Jo navigated life as a bookish tomboy who believes that life should be fair. Bethie is the classic good girl who is feminine and pretty. Although she aspires to have a traditional life, she also has those star qualities that could take her to the next level.

Life has a funny way of changing things up as we watch the evolution of these girls with free love, Vietnam, Woodstock and women's lib taking place among their own traumas and tragedies.

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In this non-fiction book, therapist Lori Gottlieb with patients and a practice in Los Angeles finds herself in the midst of a crisis. She begins seeing Wendell, a quirky and seasoned therapist. She realizes that the very things that her patients come to her are issues that she has about her own life. This book mixes humor and wisdom and examines her world as a clinician and patient and peels back the layers of truth and fiction that we tell ourselves as we toggle back and forth between the natural duality that exists in our lives.

These events create a bit of a switch up with Bethie being up for any adventure, embacing the counterculture and able to do anything as long as she doesn't have to settle down. Jo has become a proper mother in Connecticut and witness the change around her without having to participate.

Both sisters realize that the life that they are living isn't what they want and that their paths or dreams weren't what they envisioned them to be.

MAYBE YOU SHOULD TALK TO SOMEONE Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Lori Gottlieb Jul 2019

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BingelyStreaming alize that you have heard it a million years. Hearing from a number of people who have added to sonic sound, sonic seasoning and more is definitely something that you can enjoy while you're getting a lot of work done and reminiscing on why this resonates with you - thus the beauty of sound design.

VERONICA MARS Hulu Originals

TWENTY THOUSAND HERTZ Spotify We were listening to an episode that gives a bit of background on Wondery's 1865, and one of their guests was Dallas Taylor, host of Twenty Thousand Hertz. His specialty is sound design and in this very bingeable podcast they explore sound! Why are earworms so catchy, why are you nostalgic for notifications that were within ICQ's universe or the start up sounds that your device makes? Dallas reveals the stories beging the most recognizable and interesting sounds.

In addition, he also looks at the history of how certain sounds that may have been made centuries ago, continue to exist today such as the iconic Wilhelm scream (if you don't know it, once you hear it, you reAthleisureMag.com

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Not only did many people hgave Veronica Mars circled on their calendar, but it dropped early during the month of July! With Hulo Originals presenting one of our favorite towns, affluent Neptune - we continue to merge the past with the present. In addition to Veronica still being a PI and working with her father, we realize that under her thick skin, she's still one to fight for the underdog to get to the truth.

The season begings with Spring Break and seeing familiar as well as new characters and withing moments, there is a crime to solve due to a number of people dying in an explosion. It becomes a serial nature when more incidents pop up. We also catch up with Veronica's love life with Logan and one her best friend Wallace whose life has defintiely continued on since we have last checked in with him. As always Veronica Mars is a mix between dark humor, mystery and learning about oneself through the interactions with others. It's defintiely worth the wait to see how it unravels.

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ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK Netflix Originals Each summer we check in with the women of Litchfield and the characters that are adjacent to the prisoners; however, with season 7 being the final season - we are in a series of transitions! We see inmates that did their time come back to prison, those that left in previous seasons to see where they are since we have left them and those that are navigating job changes that formerly worked with the prison system.

Characters grapple with decisions that they have made, changes they wish to make and the fact that at the end of the day, they lean on their community for direction, hope and the ability to understand what they ultimately want in life based on their own choices.

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LUXURIOUS RENTAL RESIDENCES DESIGNED BY ROCKWELL GROUP 605 W 42ND STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10036 T. 212.588.0042 I #LIVEATSKY I LIVEATSKY.COM

Astute readers know that this time last year, Propel Co:Labs Fitness Festival had one of its stops here in NYC along with LA and Chicago. We had a great time working out beside Gunnar Peterson, Harley Pasternak, Akin's Army and more. We talked with them about a number of fitness tips, focuses and more. This month, the event took place in LA with the same energy with a number of new and old friends. We're sharing a few conversations with Gunnar Peterson, Harley Pasternak, Casey Ho, Simone de la Rue and Angela Manuel-Davis.

We kicked off with Gunnar Peterson .

ATHLEISURE MAG: What tips do you have for those just beginning their fitness journey?

GUNNAR PETERSON: Enjoy the process.

Obviously short- and long-term goals are great, but if you can find a way to enjoy what you’re doing in the moment, you’re going to be so much better off throughout the whole thing – not to mention, your goals will be there sooner than you know.

AM: What advice would you have for those struggling to find motivation?

GP: The motivation comes from inside. I’m not a big believer that the trainer motivates – I don’t know what I can say to you if you’ve decided you’re not doing something. And I also don’t think that’s incumbent upon the trainer. People decide for themselves. They have their own reasons and get after it because they’ve decided to make that change. It can be family, job, tired of feeling low energy – whatever it is, just draw on that from the inside and don’t deny it.

AM: What is the Propel Co:Labs Fitness Festival all about?

GP: To me, the Propel Co:Labs Fitness Festival is all about bringing a relatively disjointed fitness community together and on even ground. Even when you’re here, you’ll notice people who are yoga people,

weight people, and people who are way more cardio-intensive – and there’s such a great comradery and feeling here. This is what fitness should be. Propel makes this what fitness should be about – community. Here, people are sharing information and also being receptive to other fitness professionals, which is why it’s such a great event.

AM: Tell us about the class you’ll be leading with Luke Milton?

GP: I can’t tell you – it’s totally top secret.

Actually, Luke and I have a similar philosophy in terms of peripheral action and planes of motion. The environment created in the workout is all because of how the movements are sequenced. So, when we developed this, it was so fun and totally logical. For us, the goal is up-down-updown, switching it up the whole time, upper-body, lower-body, core. And moving people in that way, very specifically and thought out, helps them get the most out of the workout.

AM: Why are electrolytes important?

GP: We lose electrolytes when we sweat, and with Propel, you replenish them. You can workout harder and longer. Propel is helping everyone here do more – their bodies are ready to go sooner and to keep pushing – and that’s really what it’s all about.

One of the exciting things about attending a festival of this nature is that you're able to try out a number of methods that allow you to enhance what you already do. You also have the opportunity to hear about the methods and the reason why these celebrity fitness trainers do them. Last year, we enjoyed connecting with Harley Pasternak and once again, he didn't disappoint.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Tell us about the class you’ll be leading at the Propel Co:Labs fitness festival.

HARLEY PASTERNAK: We are doing a really exciting class today that will require no

equipment whatsoever – just absolutely tons of energy and a high pain threshold.

We will be focusing on the lower body, and the class is called ‘Butt my legs hurt’ – get it? All kinds of iso-lateral (one side at a time) lower body movements. Variations of lunges from regular lunges, skater lunges, reverse lunges, lateral lunges and jump lunges. Then during the rest in between, we’ll be doing hip thrusts and pike planks. So a little bit abs, a little bit of glutes as your rest period, which is kind of insane. Let’s just say, I will be everyone’s pain in the butt today.

AM: Are lunges enough for a lower body workout?

HP: If you were to have one lower body workout, lunges would be one of my favorites. But, it does not train your upper body. It will elevate your heart rate, so I like variations, and with the addition of the hip thrust we’re getting the posterior chain.

rocks? What are the small rocks, the gravel, the sand, and what’s the water? And for me, staying in shape and exercising is definitely one of the larger of this, and not something to try and jam in at the end of the day.

AM: What’s the best fitness advice you’ve ever received?

HP: Make the process the goal. It’s not about the number on the scale or having a certain aesthetic. You have indirect control over those, but not direct. So focus on the things you have control over. How many steps did you take today? Did you workout today? How did you eat today?

Those things you can control. So focusing on the process, not the end goal.

Also, understand that we only have one set of joints. As I get older, focus on what do you need to do, not what you can do.

What’s the least you need to do to get the most results.

AM: What would you add to balance out the upper body?

AM: What’s your favorite workout song at the moment?

HP: I really focus on the posterior chain, so a back row of some kind with a TRX or dumbbell – something for your rhomboids. I’d put in a triceps movement, maybe a laying dumbbell triceps extension with a hip thrust together – I call those a Harley. It’s butt and back with your arms at the same time. Those moves, combined with the lunge variations, as well as a stiff leg deadlift for your hamstrings and lower back.

HP: There’s something about the cadence of ‘Love Lock Down’ from Kanye’s 808 Heartbeats. Cause that’s how I teach people to do resistance training – that cadence is timeless.

AM: With your busy schedule, how do you manage to fit workouts into your schedule?

GP: It's the other way around. I build my schedule around my workouts - they're a priority to me. It’s that old analogy of – if you fill a fish tank full of rocks, and it looks full, there’s still room for small rocks, gravel, sand, and water. But if you do it in any other order, it won't work. So you have to decide in your life, what are those big

AM: Why is being strong important beyond appearance?

HP: There’s a confidence that spills into every other aspect of your life when you feel strong. That confidence just oozes everywhere. You’re staying functional in everyday tasks and less likely to get hurt.

AM: Tell us what its like training your celebrity clientele?

HP: I’m very lucky, cause having clients who make a living off how they look instills a motivation that is unrivaled by any other population. They’re as motivated as can be. They’re a minute early and putting in everything they can, cause they know

their identity and their profession is very much tied to looking great.

AM: What is the biggest health and or wellness myth you’d like to bust?

HP: Celery juice! Go away! It’s not harmful and it won’t hurt you, but it’s totally pointless and does nothing positive for you. Juicing in itself is pretty pointless, but juicing one of the least nutritionally dense vegetables that exists in nature today, and throwing out the fiber to drink it with water and the dye that comes in the vegetable, and people thinking it’s going to fix their autoimmune diseases and cancer and weight management – it’s just really pointless.

As is the case of our previous celebrity fitness trainers, Simone de la Rue is someone that we have enjoyed doing her method.

She has also been in Revenge Body with Khloe Kardashian on E! As a new mom, we looked forward to finding out how she prioritizes what's important as well as her fitness.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What are you doing here at Propel Co:Labs today?

SIMONE DE LA RUE: I am here to share my love of fitness and encourage people to hydrate with Propel! Hydration and your water intake is a huge assistance in weight loss, so drink, drink, drink!

I am here at Propel Co:Labs to share my brand which is Body By Simone, which is all about dance-based fitness. I taught class this morning in the festival hanger with my team to an amazing crowd of people that came out to sweat. [Propel Co: Labs] is really building a community in an inclusive ego free environment where we all come together to sweat.

AM: As a new mom how do you find time to keep fitness a priority in your life?

SDLR: It’s all about juggling. The most important thing is that you have to have a schedule, which is difficult with a child.

Meal prep is a massive thing. If you prepare all your food and then put it in the freezer, that’s setting you up for the week where you’ll make great decisions and won’t order takeout. Secondly, as a new mum, finding time exercise. You don’t have to do an hour straight—you can choose to do 10 minutes in the morning or half an hour in the morning and possible another 30 minutes at night, but it's just finding that time for you that is so important.

AM: What’s the best fitness advice you’ve ever received?

SDLR: Set realistic goals. When you say to yourself I’m going to work out for two hours today and completely change your diet you set yourself up for failure because that's unrealistic. Set achievable goals and on day one just try and stay in the room, or gym, or class. And then the next day improve on that—add another 10 or 20 minutes to your workout or eliminate one item from your diet, whether that be sugar, caffeine alcohol. If you go cold turkey on day one, it’s likely you’re going to binge or give up.

AM: What is the biggest health and or wellness myth you’d like to bust?

SDLR: Just get up and do something. Just get your butt off the couch. There’s not one workout that’s going to give you your dream body so the most important thing is to find something that you connect with and will motivate you. So, the myth is that there is one workout that is the best for you.

AM: What keeps you motivated?

SDLR: My business has always kept me motivated because I have so many staff that I have to take care of. My clients also motivate me! They usually come in with a different goal whether that’s a Grammy appearance or Oscar red-carpet or film— which is exciting. Now, my biggest motivation is my son! I want to get up and be the best version of myself for him, I want to be a great role model for him so that he

can see me in the best light.

We have interviewed Casey Ho previously as we love her 30 day challenges, fun fitness YouTube videos and her perky attitude as the founder of Popilates. With her first time joining this fitness festival, we wanted to find out about what her session involved, her favorite movements during her workout and how she stays motivated.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Tell us about the class you’ll be leading at the Propel Co:Labs fitness festival.

CASEY HO: It’s called Abs of Envy by PIIT 28. So obviously it’s going to be an abs focused class because I’m a Pilates instructor—it’s going to be core crazy! PIIT stands for Pilates intense interval training, it’s a 30-minute class which has cardio intervals with the toning aspects of Pilates with abs—so basically prepare to die!

AM: Why did you decide to partner with Propel Co:Labs Fitness Festival?

CH: I love that Propel is putting on a live fitness event to bring people together and also bringing together the best fitness studios in LA because I’m a big class pass user so I’ve been to a lot of these studios, so it’s really cool see all these amazing trainers get together in this environment.

I love that Propel is doing this because yes [teaching classes] online is a big deal, but [teaching] in person is an even bigger deal because real in-person relationships are being built.

AM: With your busy schedule, how do you manage to fit workouts into your schedule?

CH: I always workout in the morning. 7:15 is my time and I don’t miss is unless I’m feeling tired or traveling. I set aside time in my schedule like a set anything, I make it a date in my calendar so I don’t miss it.

AM: What keeps you motivated?

CH: What keeps me motivated is keeping

this happiness level inside me—just feeling whole and healthy. There have been points where I have not been happy with myself and it’s taken a lot to get to this stage so that keeps me motivated staying balanced and harmonious. Also, my husband and my dog!

AM: Favorite workout/movement at the moment?

CH: Of the moment, I’m super into deep stretching and I’m not talking about yoga!

I mean I’m in a split and someone is pushing on me to the point that you’re almost crying—but after your splits are even lower! I’m taking this new class as SM Stretching in Beverly Hills and its run by a rhyme gymnast and she’s kind of hard on you and I love it!

AM: What’s the best fitness advice you’ve ever received?

CH: Find the joy in working out. Don’t keep doing the thing that feels like a chore. For a while I felt like I had to do the hardest thing and feel like I was dying every time I finished a class or I wasn’t pushing myself enough, but that wasn’t true. It’s the [workout] you can stick to that will make you happy.

AM: Why is being strong important beyond appearance?

CH: It’s important to be strong so you don’t break later, so you can live longer, so you’re able to carry 17 grocery bags from your car to the house in one trip! Obviously, strength is what matters, vanity is just a side effect AM: What is the biggest health and or wellness myth you’d like to bust?

CH: No one diet or workout program is going to work for everyone. Everyone needs to realize that your fitness journey is entirely individual in your self-discovery.

AM: What is your mantra you like to live by?

CH: Give yourself the 100% chance to succeed because you’ll never know if you don’t. Whether you give your 100 and you fail or you give yourself 100 and you don’t fail—you’ve got to go 100 every time or you’ll live a life of regret.

A fitness festival of this nature is all about taking in the positivity, workouts that are offered and sampling what makes the most sense for you. We took a few moments to chat with Angela Manuel-Davis to find out how she was energized by the participation, her approach to working out and more.

ATHLEISURE MAG: So what are you doing a Propel Co:Labs today?

ANGELA MANUEL-DAVIS: So today at Propel Co:Labs I am leading a class on AMDIO method, which is Angela Manuel-Davis changed from the inside out. So, I’m going to be pushing and challenging everyone that shows up to close the gap between where they are and where they dream to be in their life!

AM: What was it like on the Co:labs festival stage?

AMD: It was incredible being on the Co:Labs festival stage! People really came open and ready to receive—the energy was high and I really feel like every single person that walked in walked out different.

AM: How do you fit time in your busy schedule?

AMD: You have to make it a priority. Life can take over and there’s always going to be a number of things that seem more important but if you do not make it a priority to take care of yourself you won't be able to take care of anything else or anyone else. So, it's about making yourself a priority and understanding that the stronger you are, the stronger you are for others.

AM: What keeps you motivated?

AMD: Living a purpose driven life keeps me motivated. Every single day I wake up and I’m really interested in operating in my gifts and talents that’ve been given to me personally and encouraging others to do the same—that’s my purpose in life.

So, living a purpose driven life for sure.

AM: What’s the best fitness advice you’ve ever received?

AMD: Best fitness advice I’ve ever received is that the recovery time is just as valuable as the time I put in the workout. Sometimes we get so caught up in the workout and we go super hard and we don’t remember that the recovery is when the benefits of the workout find their rightful places.

AM: What is the biggest health and or wellness myth you’d like to bust?

AMD: Spinning doesn’t give you big legs.

PHOTOS COURTESY | Jessica Nash for Propel Co:Labs Fitness Festival

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is sending one lucky beer-loving couple on an expense-paid “royal wedding” at its annual Oktoberfest celebration festival. The celebration harkens back to the very first Oktoberfest, which was held in Munich in 1810 to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen.

The brewery is searching for an engaged couple whose love for craft beer matches their love for each other. A special panel of judges will select the couple to tie the knot on September 27, 2019 at Sierra Nevada’s brewery in Chico, California. The winners will receive two round trip plane tickets to Chico, transportation from the airport, a honeymoon suite before and after the wedding, and food, drink, entertainment, and revelry for a wedding party of 50 guests. The ceremony will be officiated during the festival in front of thousands of people.

“Love. It inspires our passion to create great beer and it certainly drives the human condition,” said Sierra Nevada spokesperson Robin Gregory. “We are taking Oktoberfest back to its origins as a celebration of the joining of two individuals and two families in front of 3,200 new friends.”

To enter the contest, couples must upload a short video (one minute or less) making the case for why they’d be the perfect candidates to wed at Sierra Nevada's 2019 Oktoberfest Royal Wedding.

Sierra Nevada fans will narrow the candidates down to five finalists via social media voting, and a panel of expert judges will select the winning couple. Contest submissions can be made between July 15-August 8 at Oktoberfestwedding.sierranevada.com.

Each Oktoberfest, Sierra Nevada partners with a German brewery for its collaboration Oktoberfest beer. This year, 200-year-old, family-owned Bitburger Brewery and Sierra Nevada have brewed an Oktoberfest with a secret blend of

hops which has never before been shared outside the Bitburger brewery walls.

The recipe features what Bitburger calls Siegelhopfen, meaning “sealed hops,” that complement the beer’s strong malt backbone. The flavors are married together with the help of a custom German yeast -- another house ingredient gifted for the first time ever.

VOWS AND BRAUS CONTEST FROM SIERRA NEVADA CELEBRATING THE FIRST OKTOBERFEST ROYAL WEDDING

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