I posted on Twitter last night that while it’s ok to be freaking out (and valid!), it’s also ok to be calm. I choose to stay calm because my nervous system depends on it. My body and my mind go through so much on a daily basis with Lyme, more than I could even begin to describe here, and falling asleep panicking about a virus that would compromise my respiratory system in full if I caught it is TOO MUCH for my mind to handle at this time.

I know people have very strong opinions about how to handle the virus and where to go from here, and I will be the first to say no one is wrong. I think people should choose to handle it and deal with it in whichever way makes the most sense for them and the people close to them. Interestingly enough, my best friend sent me a photo last night taken from a psychic’s book written in 2008 that predicted this pandemic would come in 2020! The psychic also said the virus would leave as quickly as it came… which is the feeling I have had about it as well.

So again, I don’t ever want to discount how anyone is feeling or how this is affecting anyone’s life. I know I have a lot of people who read my blog who suffer from anxiety and/or chronic illness, and for us it’s extremely important to not let our mental health take a backseat during this time. There is a lot going on in the cosmos right now with this week’s full moon (a very intense super moon!), daylight savings which my body still can’t seem to shake, the global fear spreading like wildfire (which those of us who are HSP’s are soaking in, big time), just to name a few. Be kind to yourselves and do what you need to do during this time to feel good, it’s the best we can do.

The final words I will say on the subject for now are that my friend Jenna Zoe brought up a really good point today — that when something like this happens to the world it’s important to take note that it happens for all of us for different reasons. People are all affected in different ways. For some of us, this is a call for solitude. A call to draw inward, spend time alone, reflect, perhaps start a project we’ve been putting off — I know that’s what I am doing!

Someone sent me a quote last night that said, “be wary of spiritual teachers who are not addressing this pandemic” and my thoughts on that are — yes, it’s important to address a global issue and be a calming voice to those who need it. But it’s also important not to tell anyone how to be who they are or to teach how they teach.

For example, I went to yoga the other night and the teacher made jokes about Corona for, no exaggeration, the first TWENTY MINUTES of class. And then throughout the rest of the class as well. It was exhausting and disappointing because I went to yoga that night to escape the chaos — not to dwell on it. But would I waste my energy getting frustrated with that teacher because of his dwelling on it? No, because I recognize he is doing what he feels right and what he feels needs to be said about the subject. So instead I embrace him for who he is, and love him wholly as a teacher and wouldn’t want to change his unique perspective.

When you live from a place of love, and see love in all things, in all people, in all circumstances, it’s hard (impossible) to be mad at anyone or any situation.

So now that I’ve shared my thoughts on Corona, and I really hope they bring you some peace in whichever way you can receive today, I wanted to share the fun story of picking out my wedding dress last year, since I realized I never got to share because my dress was a surprise for almost a whole year after I got it!

I hope that amidst the chaos everyone is feeling today, this brief little story can put a smile on your face, the way watching reality TV or reading a good fiction book has been doing for me this week.  Picking out a wedding dress is such a fantasy for a bride to be, something even I (someone who did not envision anything about my wedding ahead of time) was thrilled to do. So I hope this brings you some joy and brings you to fantasy land today!

SO!!! Picking out my wedding dress…

Last January I was sick — REALLY sick — with Lyme and mold and was deep in the midst of healing, and most days I was too tired to get out of bed let alone go to a store to try on wedding dresses, let alone go to multiple stores with a big group of my closest friends and family to try on wedding dresses. But alas, I did it and I loved it, which goes to show that when doing something for a fun purpose (like our wedding!) with people you love, sometimes that’s the greatest healer of all.

The first place we went was LoHo Bridal on Melrose. It was just me, my mom, and my dad. The following day my two best friends from childhood were flying in from SF, and we had appointments at some of the bigger stores. So the next day it was me and my four maids of honor + my parents! I fully planned on not finding anything I loved on that first day, but you never know what you’re going to find…

What I had in mind for my wedding dress was… flowy, bohemian, lacy, detailed, with lots going on. Basically those bohemian bridal dresses you see on all of the Aussie blogs where the bride is wearing a flower crown and getting married on a long, colorful, gorgeous Moroccan Rug surrounded by Victorian candles and guests sitting on plush pillows at sunset. THAT is what I envisioned.

So of course my dad, being him, pulls the most simple yet elegant looking dress off the rack to add into my room. Immediately I look at him and say, “That is NOT what I am looking for.”

But he, my mom, and the girl helping us all say, “Just try it, you never know! Then you can rule out what you don’t like!”

So right away I try on some of the big, bohemian, flowy dresses that I had imagined myself in. We came to LoHo because it has a big selection of those boho brands that felt so me. When I slipped them on and walked out to show them, I felt… drowned in the dresses. They were pretty, but they also reminded me of what I would wear in my everyday life. Exhibit A: my entire closet when it comes to dresses.

They were big and had a lot going on, so overall what you could see and notice was the DRESS but not the GIRL inside of the dress. You couldn’t see my shape really, and there were so many clamps on the dress (standard for trying on wedding dresses) I looked like I was part of a circus! We all agreed the dresses drowned me a bit.

Then, the third dress I tried on was the one my dad put in the room. I was mostly slipping it on to get it out of the way. But when I put it on, something clicked. Holy shit, I thought. This is my wedding dress. I am getting married in this.

My mom snapped this photo the first time I put it on. Look at my dad in the background.. his excitement (and the pointing- LOL so him) is palpable… I feel it through the photo!

I walked out to show the three of them and their jaws dropped. My dad teared up. It fit like a GLOVE. It was so beyond obvious that it had to be mine. My mom and I looked at each other with a knowing like… this is the one. It was so obvious in fact, that I had my dad stand up and pretend walk me down the aisle because we needed a visual of the wedding day!

But of course it was only the third dress I tried on, so I continued trying on the others with an open mind (or trying to have an open mind), while my dad continued to say, “Nope, we’ve found the one.”

The dress was a Spanish brand I hadn’t yet heard of, called Pronovias. Based out of Barcelona, his designs are all simple, understated, elegant, and basically one of a kind.

We put it on hold and still went to the appointments the next day with my friends, and every time I came out in a dress my dad was like, “NOPE, we have the one.” Byron knows what he likes!

I found some others that I liked, and I even had a brand send me about 12 dresses to try on for free (SO KIND!!!!) that they were going to gift to me, but even with those nothing held a candle to the one I had tried on at LoHo.

So after we tried on dresses at the big department store appointment, we called LoHo to see if we could bring my friends back to show them the one. They squeezed us in and we went over there. Once I tried the dress on for my maids of honor (my four best friends for life), it was even more obvious this had to be the one. Some of them cried, all of them said I acted differently in the dress. I acted like a BRIDE. I acted more confident in this dress. It was so clear.

I felt like ME in the dress more than anything!!!! My favorite part about it was the buttons down the back, and the way it fit like a glove, and the way it hugged my curves and showed the shape of my body and made me the centerpiece rather than the dress. I loved the little cape in the back and the way it went low in the front while still being super elegant and classy. I loved how timeless it was, how it could be worn in any era, how it literally felt like it was made for my body.

The day we picked the dress! Feeling so loved and supported with my humans.  

I also loved that I had never seen anyone wear anything like it. Although it was simple and classic, I was used to seeing the same types of wedding dresses over and over (all gorgeous) — and I liked that this one felt different. It felt bridal in the sense that I would never wear a dress like this in my daily life, the way I would wear the boho ones. Special was an understatement.

We got the dress that day and I successfully kept the secret from Jonathan for THE WHOLE YEAR!!!! If you know me, then you know that this is next to impossible. I CANNOT keep my mouth shut when I am excited about something. He didn’t want to know a thing — not the color, the shape, whether it had sleeves or touched the ground… NOTHING. If anyone even breathed the words “wedding dress” in his direction, he flipped and left the room.

So during our first look when he got that first glimpse of me in the dress, you guys… it was everything. There are no words. He cried and laughed and “convulse sobbed” (the term we came up with that day ) and couldn’t speak. He walked around me in a circle SPEECHLESS.

First look, baby!

When I asked him what he thought I would have chosen, he said, “Something lacy!! Something bohemian! Something flowy and big and… not this!” And, that felt like the best thing to hear in the world. He was as surprised as I was, and he loved it as much as I did. It was perfect. It was everything.

Our first look was one of my favorite parts of the wedding day, for sure. Also when I slipped my dress on for my bridesmaids and walked out in it for the first time, that was another favorite part of the day. Everyone was shocked that it was so simple, yet not shocked because the dress just made sense — and with my hair and my overall vibe the bohemian-ness still completely came to life, but with an elegant twist.

When I came out to show my bridesmaids! With my maid of honor Jill.  

Jonathan and I recorded a podcast episode together about the wedding that I will be sharing in about two weeks, so stay tuned for that, and then I still need to get my Part III Wedding Recap up! PLUS we got our wedding video back this week so I will be sharing that soon too. For now I just wanted to share the fun dress experience with you, and I hope it lifted your spirits today — and if you’re a future bride, gave you some inspiration!

More first look magic!

With my groom.  

Walking out to show my bridesmaids… ahhh! That moment!

Not to mention, can we talk about how special it is that my DAD picked out my wedding dress?!?! He is the best forever. And this moment with him, our dance, was everything and more.

Wedding photos by Tynan Daniels & Tony Modugno of Via Imagery. Highly recommend!! They are everything!!!

Remember… do you today, this weekend, next week — have boundaries with the fear floating around. Take all the precautions you need, but also don’t be afraid to live. We’ve got this and things will start looking up soon. I love you all! Would love to hear your thoughts on ALL of this!!!

I am headed back to Bali TONIGHT for the rest of the month of April… and I am so unbelievably excited I could burst.

I will be writing a full blog post about why I am going on this solo trip and what has inspired me to embark on a new way of life — a life I will be contemplating in Bali and diving deep into so that when I return I will be able to incorporate my new way of living into my daily life.

The SHORT STORY: I am sick and tired of being sick and tired. I have not been well this year, which you can read the most about here.

The FULL STORY: Coming soon. Not sure how soon, because I am playing my blog writing schedule very much by ear while I am there. Could be Day One, could be deep into the trip. We shall see!

Anyway, I wanted to share one big ol’ LOVING LATELY post before I head out on my trip to leave you angels with all sorts of things I have been loving these days!

LOVING LATELY // 3.4.18

DIGITAL DETOX & LUCID DREAMING //

Lately I have been taking an hour to two hours off of from my phone before I go to sleep, largely thanks to Jonathan for being really good about reminding me how important it is and how much I want to stay on top of it.

I won’t lie, when he’s not with me I still have a tendency to check my phone like a maniac right up until I get in bed. What can I say, I love responding to you guys and commenting back on IG and scrolling all of the accounts that I love. But I will say, that is more of a daytime thing and not something I want to focus on at night anymore.

The last several nights Jonathan and I (and Huddy, of course) have stretched, done yoga on the floor, meditated, written poetry, and just soaked each other in rather than being on our phones or staying in workaholic mode. It has been so nice, and has reminded me what this life is all about. It’s about CONNECTION… in real life, not on the screens.

Anyway, thanks to taking time off of my phone before bed, I have gotten into this incredible subconscious pre-dream DREAM MODE before sleep every night. It’s this incredible frame of mine where I am able to exist with so much awareness inside of my subconscious. I have seen so much from Tibetan Sanskrit texts that I was able to READ (no joke — past life memory of sorts?!) to random memories from childhood that have been lodged in my subconscious for years, to dream state ideas and places that I go while asleep — but WHILE I am awake.

Sometimes I am jolted back to reality because my rashes have still been so terrible that I will remember that my entire body is itchy and on fire. If you’ve ever had eczema, you know that nighttime is the worst. My acupuncturist says it’s because it’s the YIN time of day, which is the time of the blood. Since rashes are inflammation of the blood and blood flow constriction, it makes a ton of sense.

Regardless, I dive back into my lucid dreams pretty easily once I am able to re-relax myself, and for a chronic insomniac like myself… it’s been an amazing way to drift back off to sleep and avoid insomnia.

If you’ve never done it… TRY IT! I promise it isn’t that hard. Meditate before bed, light some candles, clear your mind, brain dump your day into a journal, and see where your mind takes you when you lay down.

LIVING IN SWIMSUITS & COZY CLOTHES //

I am sooooo into living in swimsuits lately. Maybe its the fact that my body has been broken out in head to toe rashes for 4 months straight (you can def see them in these photos) so anything that BARELY covers my skin is key, or maybe its the fact that something in me ignited this year and I have never been more comfortable in my skin or proud of my own body before. Regardless… I am ABOUT the swimsuits right now. And the beachy clothing.

And living at the beach. I know so man of you reading don’t live near the beach so you may not feel me on this one, but you know what it feels like when it’s summertime. Now envision summertime pretty much year round — and that’s been life in LA lately. It’s been the warmest, sunniest winter. And now that I am heading to Bali I am just going to take the beachwear to the next level!

Lately I have been LOVING the site Backcountry annnddd I’ll tell ya why. The main thing I love about them is that you don’t have to sacrifice fashion for function when it comes to swimwear. When you have boobs like this sista over here (oh hey), the last thing you want is a super flimsy (yet cute, but flimsy AF) bathing suit where you have to worry about your boobs falling out of if you even stand up from your lounge chair. I don’t know about you, but I’m about the surfing, paddle boarding, beach yoga, and ocean dips. Ya feel me?

I also love Backcountry because they have not only Swimwear but the cutest Spring Lifestyle Collection. You babes are going to love what you see — some of my most favorite brands there are from Seafolly to Vitamin A, and I even got these badass ray bans there! So PINK and so fun!

Also, these Prana shorts are my fave. Fun fact? I hosted an event with Prana in Manhattan Beach back in the day when I was a new yoga teacher! They are the kindest company, and SoCal locals.

And I highly doubt it will come as a shock to you guys that I am a Birkenstock person. I mean… isn’t it written all over me?

Anyway, long story short, Backcountry is your one stop shop for all things swimwear, spring looks, and comfy beachy clothes. You guys are always asking me what I am loving on the fashion front so I wanted to share more!

MANIFESTATION //

Let’s talk about manifestation. It is SO REAL. Check out this Manifesting 101 post I did a few months back for the basics.

But now I wanna update you some of the things I have manifested into my life!

For one, a few months ago I told Jonathan I was going to manifest having Trevor Hall on my podcast. He has been one of my spiritual idols and my #1 favorite musician since I was about 14 years old. I had no connections to him when I told the universe I wanted him on the pod, but very shortly after I started meeting people who knew him. One thing lead to the next, and I had him on for the first time back in December.

Fast forward to today… my SECOND (not first, but second!) episode with Trevor came out today. On today’s episode we are talking everything from his spiritual practices, to his latest album (check it out, it’s everything), to how he met his wife. CHECK OUT the ep, and let us know what you think!

Secondly, several months back all I wanted in my life was to be surrounded by healers, intuitives, and conscious doctors who could help me get to the bottom of my health and skin issues. Lately, my days are filled with appointments with incredible healers from shamanic facialists, to shamanic medicine readers, to straight up shamans, to reiki masters, medical mediums, kundalini gurus, and more.

These are not necessarily people I have sought out! Almost all of these people have come to me in one form or another to be of service in different areas I am struggling with. It has been incredible not only from a healing standpoint, but also just from a high vibe standpoint of being surrounded by such magical humans.

Also, this trip to Bali was 100% manifested!

I have also booked about 5 more DREAM GUESTS on the podcast to the point where its almost making me laugh how accurately the universe responds when we send it the message that we KNOW what we want.

MY YOGA HOME PRACTICE //

I have not been able to go to my regular heated yoga studios for MONTHS because of everything my skin has been going through. Truly, right now, I have bright red welts all over my chest, arms, stomach, and legs. It feels like they’re on fire. One of the worst things I could do for my skin is move and twist and sweat in a hot room.

It’s been ROUGH, because yoga is a part of my identity. I didn’t miss a single day at the yoga studio for years. YEARS. This is no exaggeration, this is legit how much it means to me.

But the blessing in disguise is that I have really created a yoga home practice in a brand new way. Last year I got pretty into doing yoga at home because I was doubling up on the yoga during my teacher training — yoga at home, yoga in the studio, teaching yoga, all of it. That is how I created my Soul on Fire Yoga E-Book, purely for people who wanted to practice at home but weren’t sure where to begin!

I have been loving practicing on my floor lately, in the comfort of my own home where I can hang with my Squeak, stretch, flow, make up my own flows, blast my own music, improve upon poses that I have always wanted to master but don’t get touched on often in classes, and more. It has been empowering in a big way, and so enjoyable.

JADE ROLLING & GEMSTONE ROLLING //

I wrote this post on jade rolling and if you haven’t checked it out, pop on over there! Jade rolling, gemstone rolling, and all around lymphatic drainage has been an absolute game changer for my skin lately.

I have also been getting weekly FACIALS from the best of the best in LA. I am working on a fave facials in LA blog post that will be up very soon! Not sure how soon… since I am going to take time to myself in Bali, but it will be up whenever it’s supposed to be.

Boom! What are YOU loving lately?! TELL MEEEE.

Also, check out Backcountry and their amaze swimsuits and Spring looks! If you get this Seafolly suit from this post, SEND ME A PIC! Tag me on IG #tbbmademedoit and it will make me smile. Functional and adorable, all at the same time. You can shop the looks below!

WISH ME LUCK on my flight to Bali toniiiiiight!! So, so, so ready to be there and bliss the F out. Will take you all along for the ride, in whichever way feels the best. <3 ALL OF MY LOVE.

This week is FLYING BY.

I am finishing my YOGA EBOOK (it comes out on Monday — WHAT?!?! Have you preordered?!?? If so comment below and tell me!!!), I spent the day doing yoga on a YACHT with some of my fave humans all day yesterday (check Insta to see more!), today was Christina‘s birthday so we spent the morning at Next Health getting pampered with cryotherapy, cryo facials, B12 shots, and more — all around, this week has been NUTS.

One thing I am super stoked to share on the fitness front is that I have been getting back into running lately.

You know I took a huge break from running after my Panchakarma last September. All my body craved for the first time in years was of course low intensity exercise and all the slow, juicy, sweaty, yogi flows.

And then about a month ago the switch flipped again, and one afternoon (after a particularly awful yoga audition that left me with serious residual anxiety) the only thing on planet earth my body wanted from me was to go on a long, sweaty, spontaneous RUN to let it all OUT.

So, um, duh — I listened. I came home, slipped on my running shoes and RAN. For 6 MILES. And it felt SO FREAKING GOOD, I can’t even tell you.

After keeping it chill for so long, my body didn’t even know what to do with itself with all of those endorphins.

Although this particular month has been CRAZY so I haven’t been able to incorporate running into my routine as much as I’d like, I am working it back in here and there and it feels amazing.

RUNNING INSPIRATIONS //

I also have to say, having running inspirations in my life has made running a lot more fun and inspired for me this time around. Before, it was all about pushing myself to my limits and trying to get my body ready for a full-blown marathon.

It was a lot of me, me, me — even though I didn’t think of it that way at the time.

This year, I am really just feeling the FUN in running.

My soul sista Emily Nolan (you guys know her from Episode 16 of the podcast!) is running the PARIS MARATHON this weekend, and watching her train and arrive in Paris this week has me feeling all sorts of fluttery butterflies for her and the whole racing process.

My <3 Jonathan (you guys know him from the podcast also, Episode 11) is such a running inspiration to me. He paced me in my first & only (so far) marathon last year, ran the L.A. Marathon a few weeks ago, is training for some crazy long races this summer, and leads run classes from time to time at Orangetheory here in L.A.

His dedication and his love for running inspires me to no end. Like, way more than he knows.

Between those two and countless other runners I have in my life from my marathon team to the fitness blogging world, I am always inspired to sweat outside. And lately, the form of sweat that’s been calling me again is RUNNING.

With a lot of yoga mixed in. Like a lot.

I believe we should constantly allow ourselves to evolve. That’s why I never define myself or the way I work out. My preferences are ALWAYS changing, and I really enjoy switching it up!

I AM looking for a half or a full to do this summer + end of the year… taking any and all RECS!

So what am I into running in these days?

I’ve gotten so many nice comments from you guys about my activewear go-to’s lately!

It makes me super happy because I literally live in activewear… and by that I mean I truly do NOT wear anything else! One or two nights a week I’ll change out of it, and that’s about it.

But when it comes to running I am pretty picky.

I like my running clothes to be comfy, to fit well, to be sweat-wicking, to feel like they’re barely there (yes, I don’t want them bugging me), and to of course be bright & fun because that’s a fun plus with all running clothes.(You want the cars to see you!!!)

Right now my number one favorite is lululemon‘s new Nulux line. The material seriously feels like it’s BARELY THERE.

It feels like a cloud on my skin, TBH.

The Fast and Free Crops pictured in these photos are incredibly comfy to run in, and they are SOFTER than life. It feels like I am wearing nothing weighing me down which I am all about.

And this Fast and Free Sports Bra is RIGHT up my alley, is super flattering on my body type (or at least I feel amazing in it!!!) and I LOVE these hydrangea & jet stream colors.

I have been living in this bra. I ran in it earlier this week and then wore it in a different color to cryotherapy today… YEP. Obsessed.

If you like these clothes as much as I do or agree about the barely-there necessity when it comes to running, shop the post below and give my ALL-TIME FAVE brand lululemon some love!!!

Thoughts?! What kinds of workouts are you into right now? Tell me all! I will also talk more soon about how I healed my cortisol imbalances so that I could start running again without getting acne flareups, holding onto water weight from the hormone probs, etc! I know a lot of you have asked and I am an open book, so soon it’s time to TELL.

Shop the post, my babes //

Today we are talking THREE STEPS on how to move intuitively! But first…

Thank you so much for the positive words about my post yesterday on  being in charge of the content we consume + this week’s podcast episode with my home girl Lee From America.

I was so inspired by much of what Lee had to say in our conversation, from her journey toward healing her hormones to her favorite Instagram accounts to follow, to her obsession with Outdoor Voices technical apparel! (She was wearing it when we recorded, so we fan girled hard about it for a few minutes during the ep!)

So of course after we talked I had to snag some cute, colorful pieces for myself.

When I spoke at Create + Cultivate in Chicago a few years ago, the founder & CEO of Outdoor Voices Ty Haney was also there speaking about the brand and her journey — and I was pretty in love with her mission & philosophy from then forward!

I’m wearing all OV in this post, and will link to each individual outfit piece you can shop at the bottom!

Their clothing fits PERFECTLY with my philosophy on intuitive movement, finding the fun & play within everyday life, and dropping expectations on ourselves to be an “athlete” and just MOVE in a way that feels ridiculously good in our bodies.

These tri-colored warmup leggings are my FAVORITE. And look how cute they are matching the plant wall behind me!

My Philosophy on Intuitive Movement //

You’ve probably noticed the shift on my outlook on exercise over the years. Maybe you’ve seen my recent articles on outlets like SELF & MindBodyGreen about how I scaled my exercise routine back to the basics and have felt healthier and more balanced than ever before.

Today I’m going to take it a step further and share even more with you about what I’ve discovered since really tuning in and listening to my body when it comes to exercise.

Because guess what?

Fitness is a JOURNEY, and I am still riding along! I knew after my Panchakarma I needed rest, rest, rest and all of the light movement modalities like restorative yoga flows and long walks.

I was also FILLED TO THE BRIM during that time with commitments and crazy amounts of yoga in my TT, so I didn’t have a lot of heartspace for my previous loves like running + HIIT.

I also knew that once I finished my 500-hour yoga teacher training, I would probably want to reintroduce more cardio into my life again because I would have more space + time in my schedule to get back into some of my fave workouts.

I was right about that. Now that my training has been over for a couple of months, I’ve started to dive back into Orangetheory HIIT classes (my fave), running outside again, a little bit of personal training, and some rigorous SWEATY vinyasa classes that just weren’t calling to me earlier this year and at the end of 2016.

This sports bra is probably one of the most flattering crop tops I’ve ever worn. Girlfriend has boobs, and TINY sports bras don’t do it for me. I love the little strap around the back that adds extra cuteness AND extra support. 

So, where do I stand now? //

Something I have been madly in love with lately is intuitive movement. Is this a legit term? I’m not sure. Did I make it up? I doubt it.

Moving intuitively is something I am writing a lot about in my upcoming yoga ebook Soul on Fire. It’s all about… LISTENING TO YOUR BODY (surprise, surprise!) and moving in a way that feels good to you from the inside out.

It’s about letting go of the expectations and pressures that we put on ourselves to be “super fit,” to be high performance athletes, to be cardio bunnies, to be anything other than exactly who we are.

I have been super inspired by one of my fave podcasts, The Lifestylist by Luke Storey, and a bunch of interviews he’s done recently about movement versus “exercise.”

The thing is, movement IS exercise. Whether you’re walking your dog, running errands all day, sitting on your yoga mat and stretching it alllll out, or taking a traditional workout class — you’re moving. You’re flowing your body. It’s awesome.

What we don’t want is to be sedentary! I am a huge proponent of walking and stretching every few hours, especially for those of us who sit at a desk or spend a lot of time in front of the computer.

So let’s dive into the tips! Outdoor Voices is a brand that puts a heavy emphasis on the fact that MOVEMENT IS PLAY! It’s FUN. There shouldn’t be any competitiveness or traditional ideology stuck in our head about what it’s SUPPOSED to look like. Flawed is beautiful. Flawed is fun. I wouldn’t trade FLAWED for the world.

Three Steps to Learning How to Move Intuitively. //

1. Get to know yourself on a spiritual, soul-level level. This requires some deep, internal work. Journaling, meditation, kundalini yoga (breath work, linking breath to movement, chanting), therapy, and tapping into your intuition through self-care & downtime are all ways to strengthen your relationship with yourself. I know it can sound like a little much at first, but TALK to yourself. Get clear on what your goals are, what you need in order to achieve them, and what your biggest challenges are. For me, the biggest challenge ALWAYS is to slow down (*IN EVERY ASPECT OF LIFE*) — so working on slowing down through movement & breath is super helpful for me.

2. Let go of exercising to look a certain way, and instead move to FEEL good. Once I started to REALLY begin to move in a way that made me feel amazing, it became a lot less about pavement-pounding and a lot more legs up the wall with a block under my head. That said, some days are WAY more running type of days for me because I need to get my anxiety out! It’s just not an everyday thing like it used to be. Moving intuitively for me can also mean moving like a straight up animal on my yoga mat. It can mean a FUN, sweat-free acro yoga flow that leads me sore for weeks (lol). It’s all sorts of stuff, and the fun thing is that every day is different.

3. Keep in mind that moving throughout the day & not fatiguing yourself in a SUPER intense workout class is actually better for your hormones and your body in the long run. Think about it! If you move SUPER HARD for one hour in a crazy hard workout class and then sit around at a desk and lay in bed when you get home, your cortisol is spiking UP then shooting back down. What about walking on your lunch break, stretching when you wake up in the morning, and going on a light jog in the evening? Steady, steady, steady!! For those of us who can get pretty extreme, this is a fun alternative.

Hope this helps, and hope you loooooove these cutie clothes as much as I do. I just love them! I love their messaging & the fact that these clothes are flattering on all bodies. Women run companies that encourage PLAY are just my fave. Shop the post below!! XO 

So, a lot of you who have been following for a long time have been wondering, and asking me… “What happened to TBV Apparel? Is it still a thing?”

First of all, YES!

You can shop our brand new styles HERE if you wanna skip the full story below (even though it’s a goodie…). We relaunched THIS MORNING and I am kind of over the moon about our brand new STYLES (SO COMFY & TRENDY) and PHRASES!

Second of all, we took a little 5-6 month hiatus to figure ourselves out and get back to the root of what our brand was about.

Thirdly, we’ve changed our name to The Balanced Blonde Apparel, because DUH it fits us way better at this point, as the line is an extension of all things TBB & what I share with you guys on here.

Fourthly, story time.

Story, Story Time!

Tynan & I started TBV Apparel as The Blonde Vegan Apparel back in 2014 as an extension of my blog and an exciting new way to connect with you guys. At that time, selling merchandise on my BLOG was a foreign concept to me and every single little thing about having physical product to share with you guys made us over the moon happy and inspired.

( Check out our first blog post EVER about TBV Apparel with pics from our first ever shoot… talk about memory lane. 2014! )

All of our models were our friends, and our phrases ranged from “Oh Kale Yes!” to “Is Vodka Vegan?” to “Yoga Junkie.” Our sales far exceeded anything we’d imagined they might be, so we kept going. And kept going. And creating new phrases and selling and shooting and selling!

Then Cole joined our team later that year, the boys printed and designed like crazy, and we tried out all sorts of things as far as growth and branding.

This year, we even went so far as to dabble with the idea of breaking into the actual fashion industry. We went to meetings downtown, checked out fabric houses and cut & sew factories, talked to a bunch of people who are killing it in the clothing space, and highly considered manufacturing our very OWN TBB shirts + styles.

Then… it hit us. Like a ton of bricks. We are not looking to get into the fashion industry. It’s a whole separate business, and would require so much time and effort it would take us away from everything else that we do and love.

I am happy being a blogger full-time, and the exciting new endeavors with teaching yoga feel like the perfect addition to my brand. I don’t know the first thing about fashion (that would be my mom!), but I do know that the main mission and purpose of my blog is to spread good vibes, happiness, health and wellness with all of YOU.

Our new LIST tee… I am obsessing. Hardcore.

So, fast forward to the present.

Once we decided we didn’t want to break into the fashion industry, it took us some time to regroup. And to be honest — the hiatus was AWESOME and so refreshing. We all got to work on projects outside of TBB Apparel that set our souls on fire.

I started my podcast, dove into my 500-hour yoga training, traveled a ton, did my PANCHAKARMA, and soaked in more me-time. Tynan has been shooting weddings like crazy, making YouTube vids and even shot a killer music video. Cole went on a 250+ mile backpacking trip across the John Muir trail, and has found a passion for wilderness photography that is pretty out of this world.

Needless to say, we all have a lot of passions we were eager to explore. We started printing these tees on a whim, and we still love bringing them to you, but we needed to figure out the reasons WHY we loved bringing them to you.

I figured out my reason why — to continue spreading the inspiration & good vibes OFF of the Internet, in t-shirt form, that I try to spread here on the blog.

I took creating these new phrases very seriously, because now that the clothing line is DIRECTLY correlated to TBB (same name and everything!) I knew they had to reflect ideas + notions + musings straight from my heart.

So that’s exactly what they do. From BE YOU to LOVE YOURSELF to CHILLIN WITH MY OMIES & some new fun lists of all of my favorite things in life… I hope these tees inspire you, make some good holiday gifts for your loved ones, and motivate you to live your happiest, healthiest, most inspired, most SOUL ON FIRE life.

That being said, once we sell out of these styles… our next move is up in the air! So we wanted to release these tees for the holidays, all with brand new and very TBB-esque phrases, so that you can shop & enjoy!

Get them while they’re hot and while they’re HERE. Once we start running out of sizes, well… as I said, up in the air! Spontaneity up in here.

Love you guys so much and thank you endlessly for following along in this journey and supporting. It has been an incredible ride these last three and a half years, and I am so excited to see where the journey continues moving. 2017 — BRING. IT. ON!

Oh, and shop your hearts out!!!! You will LOVE the new blends of our tees, and the muscle tanks are PERFECTION for everything from workouts to lifestyle to everything in between.

I die. I die.

Also say hi to our GORG MODEL, Carlyn Bryan, all over the new site!!! She is a rockstar, my little sister, and one of my dearest humans on earth. She KILLED ITTTT and is a true TBB girl.

Thoughts?! Questions?! Leave any and all below. Love all of you immensely.

Lately I feel like wearable tech has been all over the board. I tried some fitness tracking bands that didn’t work well, were way too hard to figure out how to use (read: impossible), needed to be charged all the time when I seriously can hardly remember to charge my cellphone & laptop… you understand how it goes.

So, needless to say, I was pretty freakin’ stoked when I heard that Garmin, a company I’ve loved & used trusty car navigators from since HIGH SCHOOL, had come out with an activity tracker band!

Basically, I my thoughts before trying it were, how could such a well-known and respected company like Garmin release a fitness band and not have it be super legit?

Answer: they couldn’t! They know what’s up.

Some Perks of Garmin’s Activity Tracker that I LOVEEEE the Most //

* It is SLEEK, tiny & cute, and basically fits on your wrist like an Apple Watch or any other small activity tracker or bracelet… without getting in the way or being too bulky if you’re taking an exercise class.

* The display screen is easy to read, easy to USE (thank god), and you can navigate between it showing your stats like steps, distance, calories, heart rate, floors climbed & activity intensity.

* I particularly love to track my steps… call me crazy, but it becomes addictive in a really fun way for me to track my steps and pay attention to when I have days that go above 10,000 (the average goal to hit for an active person).

Wanna know a secret, BTW? Lately I haven’t been hitting 10,000 steps at all — but that’s okay! I am doing SO MUCH YOGA, which doesn’t really require very many steps, haha, unless you count stepping to the front of your mat. I’m being easy on myself which actually feels really good… part of my current self-care lifestyle vibes.

* The vivosmart HR can easily connect to your PHONE to receive calls, texts, email and basically any other type of notification you want to receive. Obvi we know I love receiving my texts while I workout… I am a text-a-holic. Email, I’m kind of more take it or leave it — I like to take email breaks while I sweat!

* There is a moving bar and vibration alert that reminds you to stay active if you’ve been sedentary for too long! I LOVE this reminder because as a writer who sits down for most of the day… I am a firm believer in getting up every 30 minutes to an hour to stretch and move around, even briefly. It’s good for our hormones to do that, because sitting for too long messes with cortisol!

* Since the vivosmart HR tracks our heart rate & the intensity of our activity… it’s GREAT to wear during yoga! I had never really come across a band before that works for yoga classes and actually tracks heart rate versus just distance / steps. So now… I get to see how hard I’m working in vinyasa classes, which has been eye-opening to see. (Spoilers: SO MANY CALORIES are burned in hot yoga, holy shit!)

* The vivosmart HR has also inspired me to STRETCH MORE after my workouts, because it’s fun to watch my heart rate go down after an intense workout without totally coming to a standstill. They say that the faster your heart rate comes down, the more in shape you are… which I’ve always taken to heart. Good stuff to know!

ALSO, after sitting out the Monterey Bay Half Marathon a few weeks ago to listen to my body and take it easy… I am now feeling super inspired to get out there and RUN more again.

I’ve really missed running in my life. It’s like a fast-paced moving meditation, where I can jog out my thoughts and straight up let them go… all while getting super sweaty and getting my cardio & heart rate way up.

So, this activity tracker has INSPIRED me to get out there and run more often again, because I can track everything from my steps to my distance to my calories burned! Pretty awesome — knowledge is power when it comes to fitness… that’s what I always say.

So! What do you guys think? Have you tried it, or is there any other wearable tech you’ve been into lately? Would love to hear!

FTC Disclosure: I was compensated by Garmin to write this post, but all opinions are my own after experiencing the product itself, as always!

If you followed along on my Thanksgiving adventures via Instagram + Snapchat, then you now well know that I was in the beautiful town of Carmel by the Sea, and that I was freakin’ obsessed with every single ounce of the mountain beauty and soaking in all the down time with my family.

Yes, DOWN TIME. Real down time, enjoyed by YOURS TRULY! What a concept, right?

This year has been a doozy. So much awesome stuff has happened, and my career has grown and evolved at a rapid, zooming pace. It’s pretty much everything I’ve wanted and dreamt of — yet also it’s been a challenge to find time to slow down, connect with the people I love most, and stay present in each moment.

And hang on, before you think this is one of those “poor me, I’m so busy!” type of posts — stop right there. I’m not that kind of gal. I don’t think it’s cool to be busy, or that there is anything more impressive about me or any other busy person just because I have a lot going on.

I’ve CHOSEN to have a lot going on… I’ve said YES to a million and one things this year, and while it’s been awesome for my career — it’s taken a toll on my overall wellness routine & my life and heart as a whole.

Soon I’ll share with you guys a few measures I have taken to reconnect to myself and unwind the busy-busy-busy-ness without sacrificing success in my career. (You already know about my Panchakarma and yoga training, but those have only been the beginnings of a pretty big life transformation.)

So Just How Am I Choosing to Slow Down?

Anyway, one thing I’ve learned is that being in nature — specifically in the mountains, forest, and colder climates (not snowing but colder beachy climates) really reconnects me to my core and my ability to slow down. And it works fast… which, even though I’m trying to slow down, I really appreciate.

That’s why I have been heading up to the mountains of Big Sur, Carmel and Monterey as much as possible this season.

And on top of the reconnection to nature, being with people I really love most and feel completely comfortable and myself with is the second thing. People where I don’t always have to feel so “ON.” Where I can literally just sit at dinner in silence for 10+ minutes or talk incessantly about how much I relate to yogic principles and the universe’s eccentricities and not feel like a weirdo.

So, this Thanksgiving in Carmel with my family was… well… nothing short of magical.

I needed it. Needed it so badly, you guys. It’s hard to explain how much I needed it.

Something happened in Carmel,  between the adventures in Big Sur and watching the epic ocean waves crash onto the shore and bundling up for long beach walks with my dad and taking in the foresty streets with NO ADDRESSES on them — the houses only have names there! How cool is that?

And that something that happened was that I reconnected to who I am at my core.

I didn’t think I had necessarily lost that person… but yes, even though I have been telling myself to slow the heck down for a long time, I finally realized in Carmel that there is a massive difference between telling yourself you’ll slow down and actually slowing down.

Every minute that I was there I made a conscious effort to be present. And on top of being present, I made a conscious effort to have fun. Sometimes when I am with my family I can fall into a mood where I am not necessarily having fun — I’m just kind of there, and obsessing about all the other things I have to do. (Ugh, how annoying??)

So I knew this time around that I did NOT want to be that way. It never leaves me feeling fulfilled, recharged or proud of the way I’ve acted. If anything, it makes me feel sort of guilty and sad when I look back on it.

This time around I took every opportunity to be in the present moment, put my phone away, disconnect from work, and do the things that would make me happiest and have the most fun.

We adventured all over Big Sur, explored cute coffee shops in Carmel, I got to see my dad’s old lot where he used to have a house (I am still beyond depressed that he sold it TOO SOON!!), and I said “no” (politely) to Black Friday shopping with the ladies in my fam in favor of a long-ass beach walk and some yoga in my hotel room to reconnect.

Because at the end of the day, why spend time doing anything that is not going to make us feel fully alive and present? I learned long ago not to force myself through any situation… and now I know what to do with myself instead of just dragging myself along in situations where I KNOW I will not be fully present or enjoyable to be around.

Lil’ Adventures in Carmel by the Sea

One of my absolute favorite moments on this trip was exploring little nooks and crannies of downtown Carmel with my dad.

My dad is my hero — the most kind, generous, selfless, hilarious, and giving person that I know. My mom is the one who everyone knows I am close with because she is my best friend and we do everything together… but my dad is that awesome person in the background who I really bond with in a few ways: by exploring together, taking photos together (a new passion of his, and obvi a longtime passion of mine!), and being outside together for long, long walks where he gives the best business and life advice ever.

So on our last evening in Carmel we set out on a little photoshoot adventure together that resulted in all of the photos in this post!

I was bundled up from head to toe in my cozy, cozy clothes from Express. This faux rabbit jacket saved my life from the excessive coldness that was my entire experience in Carmel!

Per usual, I did not pack enough warm clothes (I am such a So Cal freak who literally does not understand cold weather climates even though I grew up in Nor Cal)… so this Express outfit was my warmest, most weather-appropriate outfit that I brought on the trip.

Otherwise, I stole my mom’s clothes every day. *WHOOPS*

And I’ll be honest… it was my mom’s idea for me to get the tights — lol. Thank god she thought of it, because even the thought of my bare legs in the chilly-chilly, drizzly nights in Carmel freaks me out to think about!!

This is also for sure my new favorite dress… it’s so comfy, and so versatile. I dressed it up with these black booties and the jacket, but I can also dress it down with flats and my hair in my signature lil’ top knot for errands around town.

Anyway, my dad and I hit up all of our favorite Carmel spots while taking these photos. We took them by the cozy fireplace at our hotel, on our walk into town outside all of our favorite little haunts, and at my number one fave coffee shop on earth… Carmel Roasting Co.

Then we had to run (literally, sprint) back to our hotel to meet our fam to walk to our final dinner in town… we got so caught up in what we were doing, hours passed without us hardly realizing it!

Taking pics with my dad is a fun new tradition we’ve gotten into over the years… now that he finally understands blogging and appreciates what I do for a living!

I am so grateful for the little Nor Cal mountain towns I get to visit and my amazing family for reminding me to slow down — our lives are so precious, and rushing through life gets us NOWHERE.

I am super dedicated to continue exploring this notion of slowing down as we move into the end of the year and 2017… it is my top goal — to be present, slow down and enjoy every little adventure that life presents me with.

Also, you can shop my looks from Carmel below! How was everyone else’s Thanksgiving? Would love to hear your fam traditions and what you were all up to! XO

Actually, I can remember the first Lululemon outfit I ever bought (or that my parents bought for me, let’s be real – I was young). I was about fourteen years old, had just started getting into yoga, and stumbled into a Lulu store at Fashion Island in Newport Beach with my family.

I tried on all the fun, bright prints and wound up going with a rockin’ dark grey short-short (I mean as SHORT as short comes!) with a hot pink waistband and hot pink drawstrings, and a matching low-cut dark grey top with hot pink trimming.

Don’t you love the things we can get away with when we’re fourteen and barely have any semblance of hips + curves?

I also got a white splatter-painted kind of tank with black and hot pink tie-dye on it. Like I said, it was rockin’. I felt stylish AF rolling up to yoga, also decked out with all the best mats + Yogi Toes on the market, because I was young & impressionable and very much believed there was no other way to yoga!

Here was said splatter-paint top, at Wanderlust yoga + music festival

BEFORE Wanderlust was the cool kid place to be, with my sissy Lisa!

The really awesome thing was, I felt good about myself when I wore those clothes. I felt like I legit yogi, even though truth be told, I hardly knew what I was doing at all back then.

Over the years, I started cultivating more Lululemon pieces. I got more and more into yoga, did several teacher trainings, dove headfirst into the yogi life, and the only thing that made SENSE for any family member to buy me (then AND now) was Lululemon.

Oh, and for the record, the dark grey + hot pink short shorts and matching top stayed in my wardrobe for a good 7 years before I finally said au revoir and replaced them with some newer, more age-appropriate (and hip-having, curve-having appropriate) looks.

Reglardless, Lulu is still MY JAM. The Lululemon store in Brentwood is one of my homes away from home… right down the street from me, and each and every girl and guy who works in there has become a close friend. I love that they are community oriented, always support what I’m up to and plan lots of fun events for our wellness-minded neighborhood to get together and sweat. (And lots of them were in Monterey with me this weekend!)

My Current Fave Lululemon Outfit //

So! After saying bye-bye to some of my very early-day Lululemon looks, I still have a closet full of their clothes. Some super current, and some pants I have legit had for over a decade. At least we know they last for a long time! The fabric is so comfy and durable and moisture-wicking and truly like no other.

Something I love about my most current Lulu pieces — showcased in this post — is that they are perfect for this WEIRD transition period between Fall and Winter!

Fall in LA is basically just like Summer, and then Winter comes on and we’re like wait… it’s sort of getting cold out. I kind of need to leave the house with a jacket today, I think.

And boom — my perfect Define Jacket does the trick! It’s light enough that I am not overly hot and uncomfortable putting it on after a sweaty yoga class, but keeps me warm when the weather starts to cool off.

Specifically being in MONTEREY all weekend, where these photos were taken (SO FREAKING GORGEOUS THERE) — I really needed something light-ish but thick enough to keep me warm!

I was lucky enough to teach a little outdoor yoga sesh to my girlfriends on the beach AT SUNSET in Monterey. If you could have heard the ocean waves crashing, you’d know why it makes me smile to even type about the thought of this situation.

It was epic, to say the least.

These high-waisted Like Nothing 7/8 Tights feel like WEARING NOTHING in the best way. They are so soft, thin, and barely feel like they’re there! So obvi they leave room for optimal movement and flow.

Fun fact: I also taught my first yoga class at So Cal Hot Yoga in Brentwood last night IN these pants!! So yeah, I really love them.

Also, the sports bra I had on underneath was also da coolest, but it was too chilly to take off my layers for the photos!

And this grey racerback tank is my all-time favorite for yoga and for running… you can wear whatever supportive bra you’d like underneath, so it works for all bodies + bust sizes, unlike some other tank top styles.

To shop my Lululemon looks (and some other similar pieces that I also own + wear the crap out of + love), you can directly shop the post below! Hope you enjoyyyy.

What are your fave workout brands + styles you go for?! Are you a Lulu girl too? Also… sunsets in Monterey are literally unbeatable. 

Today we are going to talk about time management, and how it directly relates to my fitness routine. “What? Really?! How?” You’re thinking. I know. Well, for several reasons. I’ll get to those in a sec, but first I wanna tell you that I’ve partnered with G-Shock S Series for this post to walk you through a day in the life of my fitness & wellness routine. Woo woo!

After I started wearing the watch and giving some thought to its role in the structure of my life, I realized that time management literally has everything to do with my daily fitness routine.

Why?

Let me tell you.

With work, I am all over the board. I’m either blogging, jotting down notes for book #2, in TBV Apparel meetings, at a photo shoot, trying new healthy restaurants for the blog, filming YouTube vids, hosting wellness events, collaborating with awesome like-minded peeps, the list goes on.

When it comes to exercise, the same applies. I am a HIIT freak (hello, OrangeTheory!), a distance runner, a yogi lover who is only getting more and more obsessed with yoga by the day (after 10+ years of practice), and I also like to hike, spin, do Pilates; you name it — I love it.

The three main workouts I rotate throughout the week are running, yoga and OrangeTheory (OTF Brentwood all the way!). My ideal day would consist of all three, and miraculously, sometimes it DOES. And the only answer for why I’m able to do that, why I’m able to “squeeze it in” despite my hectic life sched, is because of effective time management.

I manage my time so that I can do what I like, when I want to, how I like it, and how I know I need to in order to feel my best.

Ya feel me? Let’s get into more deets about this.

I used to be someone who was terrible at managing my time. Especially when I first started blogging full-time. I would spend, I kid you not, an hour and a half replying to the sweetest & most heartfelt emails that I received, and then another whopping two hours answering peoples’ questions in such radically honest detail that by the time I finished emailing for the day I felt like I’d just written five new blog posts.

And you can guess what happened after that… I wasn’t able to write the blog posts, because I was too mentally wiped out from the emails!

FITNESS & WELLNESS

That time management issue also trickled into my fitness and wellness routine. I would work, work, work all day and then sprint out the door to make it to a yoga class at night and then be so entirely blissed out and zen afterward to only come home and realize that I had more work to do because I had been emailing people back all day instead of writing my blog posts.

Not good! Not the kind of life I want to live at least. I want to live in the moment, be present, and let exercise be a part of my life versus something I’m just doing to check off the list. Exercising makes me feel whole, it makes me feel like ME, and I find that I feel my absolute best when I am active throughout the day instead of having one little “spurt” of a major workout in the morning or in the evening. Also, my body looks/feels stronger when I am able to get out and walk/run/stretch/move throughout the day instead of sitting for 298329842947 hours in a row.

Right?!? Do you feel that way too?

Let’s dip into what my CURRENT daily fitness routine looks like and why I am so much better at managing my time now:

Morning:

As you know, I am ALL ABOUT that digital detox in the mornings. I don’t look at my phone for a good 45 minutes to an hour after I wake up (sometimes longer if I can swing it), and I put great care into how I spend that first little portion of my day. When I used to wake up and immediately hop on my phone it would inundate my brain with other peoples’ thoughts/ideas/questions/images/comments, rather than allowing myself to tap into my own creativity and spend time in my head.

It’s important to be in our heads sometimes to reflect and check in, because it reminds us what we WANT and how we will get there. What I want, most of all, is to live a happy, healthy, balanced, active life rooted in wellness and surrounded by awesome, loving, inspiring people. That’s what I want at my core. And being able to tap into that in the morning keeps me grounded, and helps me wire my day as such.

Thanks to my G-Shock S Series, I can wake up and have my morning routine without having to worry about looking at my phone for the time. If I even glance at my phone for the time during my “detox” period, I end up seeing a text or an email that pulls me out of that creative, calm vibe.

It also helps me stay on track all morning so I know how much time to spend making tea, making breakfast, cuddling with Huddy, stretching on my yoga mat, etc. When about an hour is passed, I know it’s time to get a bit of work done before I head to my OrangeTheory workout and get my heart pumpin’! THEN it’s work time. I told you I have priorities!

Afternoon:

I usually head to OrangeTheory at 9:30am for my hourlong HIIT class. My watch has been an awesome addition to the class because I like to test my strength by holding timed planks, and checking the time that it takes to walk to and from OrangeTheory because I totally count that time/distance as part of my daily wellness routine and vibe.

After OrangeTheory, I head home to get the bulk of my work done. That’s when my watch really comes in the most handy, because it helps me manage my time as I mentioned above. While I work, I try to never sit for more than an hour and a half at a time without at least getting up and stretching/walking for 10-15 mins (it’s also good for your hormones to move every hour or so like that!).

I also like to incorporate lunches and afternoon hangouts with friends, because that’s another thing that recharges me and keeps me motivated and inspired when I get back to my work.

And time at the beach!! On a weekend, I am all about those beach runs, healthy Rawvolution cafe lunches, and partner yoga poses in the sand.

Evening:

If I’ve been legitimately effective in my time management (some days are better than others!), I can usually start to wind down around 6pm and start thinking about what my night is going to look like. When it comes to wellness, it’s just as important to schedule in dinners with friends and walks with people you love as it is to hit up a nighttime yoga class or go on an evening run. I like to mix it up and incorporate both so I have all the balance.

My typical night would consist of making dinner, going on a walk in Brentwood with one of my BFF’s (and using the reflective LED light on my G-Shock, duh!), and getting in bed around 9:30pm for my nightly digital detox to read a book, cuddle with Huddy, or journal.

Night:

Lastly, you guys know that I have been getting pretty heavily into meditating, thanks to Ayurveda. Some people like to meditate in the morning, but I like to do it at night!

You may not consider meditating a form of “fitness,” but I need to get my heart rate pumping before I am able to fully zen out and meditate. It’s something I like to do at the end of a sweaty yoga class or a long running sesh. To me, meditating fits right in with my fitness routine because it keeps me feeling relaxed, replenished and in sync with what I really want.

That’s what fitness is all ABOUT, am I right??!! It’s something that helps connect us to our very core and keep us feeling our absolute best. So we can go out into the world, be passionate, kick ass, and share our most authentic selves with the world.

Then I get up the next day to do it all over again. Every day is different, but that’s a general overview of what I am going for each day, and how managing my time effectively has been a life saver!

Thoughts? Anyone else have effective time management skills to share with me? Do tell! I can still use all the help I can get! 

FTC Disclosure: I was compensated by G-Shock S Series to write this post, but all opinions are my own — as always!

There’s also a GIVEAWAY (!!!!) in there of my current favorite beverage, soooo keep your eyes peeled.

LOVING LATELY ► ▷ ▸ ▹ ►

Partner Yoga: I think I’ve mentioned a time or two how obsessed I’ve gotten with The Southern Yogi & Jessica Olie on Instagram. Their partner yoga has inspired me to try new things in my practice, especially since yoga is becoming such a big part of my life again (300-hr training starting in June — ahhh!). Luckily my BFF Alexi is down to try a bunch of poses with me, and we’ve been having so much fun playing around with them. We snapped a few of these pics last Sunday… More to come! WITH matching outfits next time. We aren’t messing around.

Cooking at HOME: I go through waves with cooking at home. I really, really like to do it, and I feel so much better when I am consistently eating home-prepped meals, but I also let time get away from me and end up eating out so much. I make plans to meet friends for dinner, grab lunch while I’m out after a workout or in-between meetings, etc. This past Sunday I spent a ton of time at the farmer’s market picking out things that I knew would be perfect for a good meal prep sesh.

I ended up filling about 8 tupperware with sautéed veggies, ground chicken and this delicious sun-dried tomato and egg white dip that I found at the farmer’s market. I made some black beans and brown rice on the side that I’ve been incorporating too. Then I made the BESTTTT muffins that are a play on my superfood cookies dough balls — I will share the recipe once I perfect it a little more!! They taste amazing now but need a little more density to their consistency.

Aloe Gloe: Okay I am downright obsessed with aloe water right now, and the brand Aloe Gloe is organic, made in California, low in sugar, and full of more than 200 biologically active amino acids, vitamins, antioxidants, enzymes and minerals. Aloe water is great for your skin, cardiovascular system, and your digestion/tummy!

They have been kind enough to partner with me for a GIVEAWAYYYY so that one of you guys will get to try a box of their four different Aloe Gloe flavors! They have original (my favorite), white grape, lemonade, and coconut.

To enter, simply comment on this post telling me why you’d like to try the product — and bonus parts for following them on Instagram!

People Who are KIND + GOOD VIBEY: Some people suck my energy, as I am reminded from time to time. Luckily I am surrounded by people who have great energy and shine so much light and positivity. Occasionally when I am not, and I spend a good chunk of time with someone who sucks my energy out of me, it reminds me to pour even more energy & love into those people who have proven time and again to be so wonderful. The reminder of being around energy-suckers isn’t always fun, but it happens to the best of us and I think its only necessary to remind us WHO/WHAT is important in our lives!

Cute graphic tees: We are going through a little TBV Apparel rebrand right now, which I am so beyond stoked about. But that doesn’t mean I don’t also fall in love with / get inspiration from other lines sometimes. I am totally in love with this Ohm Boy tee from Rie + Ryn. The line is designed by two best friends who share a mutual love for yoga and music — YES — and is all about street to studio wear. My kinda stuff! I love, love.

Rocked it yesterday at Bondi Harvest in Santa Monica with my TBB team discussing new APP developments!! EEK!

Spotify’s “Discover Weekly:” I may have been the last one to the game on this one, but I’m obsessed with it right now and have discovered some major gems… Including a song called “Weathered” by Jack Garratt. It’s so good and I wanna find a way to incorporate it into one of my videos!!

OKAY. That’s it for now because I’m running out the door to make it to OrangeTheory to work out with some of my BFF’s this morning. What are YOU loving lately?! Oh, and be sure to enter the Aloe Gloe giveaway!! XO 

Thanks so much for your comments & love on my gluten-free toast 6 ways post yesterday. I have been getting back in the kitchen lately in a very real way to create recipes for you guys — which, as we know, is something I sort of didn’t do a lot of for a long while!

It’s been so healing being back in the kitchen. I had no idea how much I missed the creativity of recipe development, food photography, and healthifying the foods & desserts we all know and love.

That being said, I’d love recommendations for foods you want to see me recreate in a healthy way! This blog is all about bringing you guys what you want to see and keeping you happy — because you allow me to do what I do. So shoot in your suggestions & recs! #TBBKitchen is back, baby.

Yesterday‘s Yumness…!

TBB x REVOLVE

And the lifestyle content isn’t going anywhere! Today is a photo journal style post of a super fun TBB x REVOLVE collab.

I had the best time at their brand new SHOWROOM a couple of weeks ago picking out goodies for my trip to Austin, and basically fell in love with everything TULAROSA that I laid my eyes on.

Tula’s Sara Dress… Obsession. | Raye The Label Shoes… Life. Felt like such a ballerina. (This full look coming to bloggy soon too!)

Tularosa is REVOLVE’s bohemian, flowy, hippie, very TBB-esque line. Needless to say I connect with it like woah.

My other REVOLVE fav is Lovers + Friends. It still has that boho vibe but with a little more of a sophistocated day-to-night flare.

If my entire closet could be comprised of Tula + Lovers (minus my activewear collection, obvs), I’d be the happiest girl on earth. I think I’ll set out to make it happen.

TBB x Tularosa Wonderland //

Photo Journal Style, BABY.

This starry top is everything & more. | & the Serene shorts are the absolute comfiest.

Close up of the Belton Top. DREAMZ!

Even closer up. Luv. 

And a close up of the shortski shorts! Also great to travel in — trekked around Austin in these babes.

Yeah, I’m lookin at you!

More Tularosa x TBB to come… Lots of cutie flowy outfits to share with you guys. <3 You can shop the looks below if you love as much as I do!

How’s everyone’s Tuesday going?!