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Two things I care VERY much about: being ACTIVE & being SAFE!

May 14, 2015

Happy Thursday, my loves! What an exciting week it’s been — I’ve been working on the final round of edits for Breaking Vegan (!!!), finalizing the free eBook you will all get for preordering the memoir, collaborating with some of my favorite people on upcoming projects, having the chance to update the bloggy every day (I love weeks like that), filmed a Q&A YouTube video, annndd tonight I am hosting a fun meet & greet smoothie event at Live Beaming!

I am super excited to share today’s post with you, because it’s about TWO things I care veryyy much about: A) how living a healthy, active lifestyle has empowered me to overcome personal struggle (my eating disorder among other things) and take control of my life. B) about educating women on safety & sexual assault (you’ll see why I am so passionate about this once you read on…!)

I have teamed up with the awesome fitness brand Swoob and #1 pepper spray company Sabre to talk about why my healthy lifestyle AND empowering women to prioritize safety are both hugely important to me… and why I want that for all of you, too!

Swoob3The lifestyle and mission of Swoob immediately caught my attention, because their main goal is to help women harness our inner goddess power (hell yeah!) by way of providing comfortable, versatile activewear clothing that enables us to live an active lifestyle – that you’ll see me rocking in this post. Sports bra, pants & top! And let me be the first to tell you that living an active lifestyle isn’t all about getting our cardio on and burning calories – it’s about finding an exercise routine that works for us so that we can be the happiest, healthiest version of ourselves.

I for one have dabbled in a LOT of different types of exercises and workouts before settling on my go-to favorites. And even now that I know what I love, I am still always open to trying new workouts and new places because sometimes a new gym/fitness studio/trainer/practice will take my breath away and I’ll wish I’d known about it all along! Plus, I love working out with friends so sometimes it’s fun to try something new that they love, and then I take them to a place that I love to do a workout that is already a part of my routine.

No matter what, at the end of each day, my go-to workouts are YOGA (all types) interspersed with some kind of running or high intensity interval training. I’ve talked about this a lot lately, but it’s hard for me to get over the fact that yoga is such an integral part of my life, and I actually worry about where I’d be / who I’d be without it. The physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of yoga all serve to recharge me, keep me strong and keep me SANE. I have been back into doing it every day lately, and my goal for while I am traveling over the next month and a half (starting next week!) is to stick with my daily practice no matter how busy my schedule gets. Yoga is so important to me, and it helps me maintain that empowered feeling over my body that I love so much.

Swoob2I have also recently been named the inaugural ambassador of Orange Theory Fitness in Brentwood, which is one of the most thrilling things fitness-wise that I have ever been involved with! OTF is an hour-long HIIT workout, and aside from single handedly training me for the half-marathon I ran in March, I have met so many incredible people in that space and community who inspire me to remain on top of my game when it comes to health and fitness. Surrounding myself with healthy, like-minded people is probably my favorite part of living a super active lifestyle.

I also wanted to make sure I participated in this campaign with Swoob and SABRE, because SABRE’s goals to generate awareness and educate women on safety and sexual assault are HUGELY important to me. Ready? Story time.

You all know that my mom is my very best friend in the world, and I have no idea what on earth I would do without her presence in my life day in and day out. When she was 19 years old, she was living in Los Angeles with a roommate, and she noticed a man following her at a distance when she was walking into her big apartment building one night. He was far enough away at first that she didn’t think much of it, but when she kept going up the stairs and he kept following her, she started to get a little worried. By the time she reached her door he full on attacked her — he held a gun to her head and told her she needed to come with him.

My mom, being the fiercely strong (yet very reserved and insanely calm in her regular life) woman that she is, fought and screamed and refused to go with him. She said that she would have rather died than go wherever he planned on taking her, and she stood her ground.

By the grace of GOD the attacker was scared off by her loud screams, knowing that someone would have come out and caught him before he could get her all the way back down to the parking lot.

My mom was lucky enough to get by unscathed, but the rest of the man’s victims were not so lucky. He went on to rape and injure over a dozen women over the course of the next several months… and the main reason my mom was able to escape him was because she was his first victim and he didn’t fully know what he was doing yet. FREAKY that he then developed such a strong routine that no one was able to get away from him.

Y I K E S .
SO, naturally, because I have grown up hearing that story and it gives me chills all over my body to think that something awful could have happened to my mom, such an innocent and amazing person, I am super passionate about educating women on safety and sexual assault. I grew up ALWAYS paying major attention to my surroundings because of the story my mom ingrained in me… and I want the same for everyone reading.

Hopefully we can all learn from what she and so many others have been through, and stay as SAFE, healthy, happy and empowered as we possibly can. Taking care of our bodies extends into safety just as much as it does into fitness and caring for our health and wellness.
It’s time to harness our inner goddess powers, YEAH?!

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I know you are all super strong, amazing women, OR you are a super strong amazing dude who has a wonderful woman (or several!) in your life. Let’s spread the word, and live the best lives we can.

So… time to get your workout on and buy some pepper spray! I know this wasn’t my most uplifting post in the world, but if it helps even one single person maintain a safe and active life- then I am a happy camper. If you’re further interested in Swoob x SABRE‘s campaign to bring awareness to safety and sexual assault, check out their video here.

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Runner Pepper Spray

Lots of love! Have a great Thursday, my boos!