Gift Guide + Something Delicious

Happy Holidays! I know you've noticed I never poster a Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Half and 5K recap and it's because there isn't anything worth writing about. The 5K was a lovely evening but I can't say the same for the next day. Overall, I'm regularly taking classes at Mile High Run Club and Swerve, and doing Pilates, to get ready for 2019. I'm really hoping this is the year!

Ps. I started writing this a week ago and am so excited that I got into the Chicago Marathon for 2019 this morning! 

I wanted to share a few things that I think the fitness enthusiast in your life will love for the holidays this year! 

GO Girl Designs
Since I've started going back to fitness classes, I've had to remember to bring hair ties with me. GO Girl Designs makes bracelets that double as convenient hair tie holders so you always know where one is. Wearing a hair band around your wrist can be painful and it's been said that can even lead to infections. 

I toss my GO Girl in my purse so I always know when I grab it, there's a hair tie on it. Since it's the size of a bracelet, it's easy to find. GO Girl is avaialble in a variety of chic colors and designs. 

Through December 24, 2018,  if you use the code “GIFTS” at checkout, you'll receive 50% off of your purchase! Prices start at $20.

https://gogirldesign.com/

The Original Worm
The Worm played a big role in my recovery from my stress fracture and sprain. Developed by athlete Karen Atkins, The Original Worm is a portable body and muscle massage roller with a unique “worm-like” design that can easily mold to any individual’s body contours to provide support and comfort. It combines the benefits of therapy balls and a foam roller to relieve stiffness, pain, and stress in muscles and joints. 

I spent so much time rolling my foot out with this! I highly recommend investing in one, especially for travel. It can also be used on your neck, back, legs, etc. 

Prices start at $24.00

https://www.theoriginalworm.com/buy-now.html

YQ Yoplait
The last thing, while probably not a gift, is YQ Yoplait. I was pitched this while I was training for Las Vegas and who doesn't need fuel, especially yogurt? Because I'm mindful of sugar, I requested the plain version, no added flavor or sugars. Usually, that can be hit or miss but this was a hit! 

Aside from the cute packaging, the plain variety featured 17g of protein and 1g of sugar. It's just milk and cultures as the website says. 

If you've got the NYC Half or Boston on deck, I'd add this into your nutrition rotation! 

https://www.yqbyyoplait.com/find-us/

For the first time I am trying CBD products so stay tuned for my thoughts on that! 

XO,
Lynette

Those First Post-Injury Miles

As soon as the doctor cleared me last Monday to run, spin, hike, etc, I could not wait until Friday. It wasn't for the weekend, it was because it was going to be my first day to run! 

I was nervous the entire week. I had Pilates classes scheduled at Pilates on Fifth for Mon-Thurs so I made sure to really pay attention to what my body was saying. It was the first week I did all of my shoulder bridges and put any type of pressure on my foot. HELLO GLUTES! One of the things I was really being mindful of while at Pilates was putting pressure on my entire foot and keeping it flat. No going over to sides. 

Friday was a work from home day and it was beautiful out. As soon as I got home in the morning, I giddily put my running gear on- the laundry would have to wait. I answered a few early emails then prepped myself for this run. 

Since I dropped my marathon and will only be doing the half  (ps. I'm insanely bitter and sad about this), I knew I had flexibility with mileage. The doctor said to try one or two miles to start out with. I didn't map my route and I didn't wear a watch. This was a fun run and damn was it fun. I looked like a freak smiling the whole time but it felt amazing to be back out on the road.

I ran up a few small hills but otherwise steered clear of any major inclines. 

Once I got back to my avenue I felt like familiar oww in my foot and just stopped because why push it? I was also only 2 streets away from home so I felt accomplished. According to Apple health, I ran about 2.5 miles! I was excited to see that number, since I thought I was only going to hit about 1.5. 

I went home and stretched and rolled my foot out on my worm (actual review to come soon!). 

On Saturday, we went upstate and did some walking. We misread the weather and the hiking trail we like is a lot of rocks and steeps so we didn't want to chance it being it was so wet out. We found a Harvest Festival in Peekskill instead and walked to the brewery we enjoy. Overall my foot felt fine the entire day.

Sunday morning I woke up early to return the rental car. They gave me a Tahoe and it was gigantic so I didn't want to return it the night before in the dark and with a million cars around. I ran to the car, then back from the rental place. Again, feeling amazing! 

Today is going to be the bigger test- 3 miles in Central Park with hills and people whizzing by me. The goal is to enjoy the run, keep the slow pace and stop if things start hurting. I have a long ways to go before I can prepare to PR again but for now, I'm happy to be back, working on getting in shape, stronger and losing this injury weight. 

XO,
Lynette

Rock 'N Roll Las Vegas 2018

"And so...it begins. Actually began. As usual this post is late.

Mid-July I started "training" for my second marathon, Rock 'N Roll Las Vegas."

I started this post, the above quote, in August, when I was healthy albeit sweating to death every time I walked outside to run. For those who don't follow me on Instagram (@Lynette_Nicole for personal, @LynetteNicolePR for professional), I developed a stress fracture in my foot, and an ankle sprain, towards the end of August. It was painful, it was heartbreaking but it happened. 

After realizing just how much pain I was in I had to doctor shop to find someone who had MY best interest in mind, not their bank accounts. I haven't been to specialist of this sort in quite some time so I was in shock at our healthcare system. But that's not what this post is about. 

After days of seeing new doctors I stumbled upon Gotham Footcare. They have a huge roster of athletes (the x-ray tech mentioned they make their runners come back with their medals for pictures after races!) and my doctor is an athlete herself. 

Although the stress fracture didn't show up on the x-ray, she believed 100% that was the diagnosis and treated it as such. Which meant she said nothing where I am on my feet or putting pressure on that specific foot, and gave me this sexy footwear. Poor boyfriend :(

I hobbled around like that for 2 weeks, even doing the Cliff Walk in Newport, RI. There was a meltdown involved naturally. Unsure why everyone felt the need to comment! Yes, I'm doing this, yes, my doctor actually gave me permission. 

The day the doctor said no more running, spinning, etc, I got a monthly pass to Pilates on Fifth. I've gained 45 pounds the past year (which she said may have played a role) and was determined to keep some strength and fitness so when I add cardio back in, I'm not a little weakling. 

While I definitely feel strong, my weight hasn't budged and quite frankly I'm sooo sick of taking classes. I can't wait to teach some pop-ups this fall! 

2 weeks after I got the boot my hips felt a little uneven and I had a pain on my left thigh. I ended up taking it off and tried to wear sneakers and limit walking activities. 

Last Monday at a follow up appointment I was cleared to put slight pressure on my foot this week (1 shoulder bridge a day) and have another appointment this coming Monday where I am hoping to get the clearance to run. 

I've been given the green light on preparing for the half marathon vs the full, just to be ready for a hit to my ego regarding my performance. I'm hoping the Pilates I've been doing has been helping and I can dive into this training and enjoy Las Vegas. I was super excited for this flat marathon but plans pivot and to be quite honest, I haven't been in running shape in 3 years, since my last set of injuries. 

So here's to healthy legs, and getting back into that 8:45min/mile shape! 

XO,
Lynette

PR Intern Diaries: Amanda

Whoa are we behind with blog posts here! That just means we're super busy, in the best ways. Here's another one from our awesome summer intern!

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Like I talked about in my other post Cision is such a helpful tool in PR! This week is was especially useful when I made a media list for a pitch I was sending out for one of our clients, The Global Dog. I was really able to narrow my search between all different types of online media, and send the pitch out to the right people who will want to write about this client! It also makes it much easier to find a person’s email instead of searching for it on their website or online. Another useful resource is the bi-weekly memos Lynette sends to all her clients. This is the most organized way to see where your clients have had placements in the past, and ones that are in the works. It also makes it easy to see which clients you need to pitch more. Lastly, Google Drawings is super useful when doing clippings. It’s really easy to drag the screenshots onto the page and make it look clean and easy to read for your client. All these resources are extremely useful, and I will continue to use them throughout the summer!

I will definitely take these tools with me into the future. Next year I may not have access to Cision; however making memos and clippings will be helpful! At school I am part of the campuses student-run IMC firm. Each team gets a client, and I am hoping to be an account executive for my team. I will definitely make my own version of a memo for my client to keep them updated! I will also know how to do a clipping for them when they are placed in the local media.

Something that I think would make me more successful would be learning more, and being able to recognize editors and publications off the top of my head. Of course, this will come with time. It will make going through media list a lot faster because I will not have to look up every site and see what topics they write about, and if pitching my client to them is a good idea. I’m definitely going to take Lynette’s advice to follow editors and outlets on social media to get a better understanding of who they are, and what they like!

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More to come!

Xo,
Lynette

PR Intern Diaries: Amanda

Hi All! By now you've met Lynette Nicole PR's summer intern Amanda! She was featured on our Instagram last week. She's going to be sharing her experiences here moving forward. This week she's talking about things she's learned and done! 

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This week I learned a lot of the benefits of using Cision to make a media list. In Cision, you can really narrow down your topic and location. I was making a media list for an event for one of our clients, The Global Dog. I was able to find the best editors for the event because I was able to customize my search. I searched for editors from New York City who wrote about topics including pet/pet products and lifestyle. Using Cision, and finding the right editors to contact will make it much more likely they will respond, and attend an event!

This week Lynette and I moved Wellness Wednesday’s to Tuesday, and took a yoga class in Bryant Park. It was a super fun class, and easy to follow along. The instructor focused a lot on breathing, and recognizing the way we breath based on how we are feeling. She also gave recommendations of certain poses to do if we are feeling anxious, angry, or tired. The class was perfect for a beginner like myself. It definitely made we want to try more yoga and similar fitness classes this summer!

One cool thing I got to do this week was sit in on a meeting with the owner of Dog and Bone, where we are having an event for The Global Dog. The owner seemed really excited for the event, especially since she loves dogs just as much as The Global Dog founder, Laurie. It was so exciting seeing someone else love the ideas of one of our clients just as much as we do. I’m so excited to be working on this event, and to see it come to life!  

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Until next time!

Xo,

Lynette

NYC Half Recap

***I wrote this two months ago and just press publish 🙈

Surprise! If you didn't know, I ran the NYC Half three weeks ago (<-- see?). I didn't tell many people I was running it as I wasn't 100% sure what was going to happen. Similar to past years, I despise winter running so was under-trained and unmotivated. I was fortunate enough to get a few long runs in and ended this training cycle at 10.

Fortunately, the race didn't go as bad as I envisioned it would go- though that's not to say this wasn't a horrible race.

[Expo Time!]

I Uber'd to the start village with three of my teammates. We tried to stay huddled until the last possible minute because it was FREEZING. I was in the last corral of wave 1 and was having nightmare that I would be running this entire race alone, since I'm currently 2 minutes slower than NYRR thinks I am. Fortunately, a lot of people were still in line for the bathroom once the gun went off, or were taking it easy.

By the time we started, I couldn't really feel any parts of my body. I read an Instagram post where a girl cried because she couldn't feel her hands and I related to that so hard. I had a zip up over my long sleeve layer where my bib was and didn't take it off until well into mile 3.

The first mile went by super quick. It was flat and I found some people who were holding a steady pace so stayed behind them. Being so under-trained, I didn't want to get crazy. 

Mile 2 was the bridge which I was terrified of because under-trained + bridge = no good. I mustered up the energy to get up the bridge, which I'll admit had a beautiful view, and took it easy going down. There were a lot of people walking and stopping to take pictures which made me feel better about my own race.

In mile 3 I took my jacket off because I finally started feeling parts of my body. There were some rolling hills but nothing major. I was carrying a Poland Spring water bottle which I ended up tossing in mile 4 or 5 because it was bothering my back and arm. I decided to test my luck with water stations. I actually felt pretty strong on the FDR, I was just cruising along, enjoying the scenery and the empty space in front of me. By no means was a going at a fast pace, but I felt good. I surpassed the miles where I fell apart in Myrtle Beach (7) and headed over to Times Square.

[Spoiler: I finished!]

I always loved this part of the race because it always has the biggest crowd. Unfortunately, once the crown died down, I kind of did too. But then I finally saw Central Park and was like hallelujah!

I had an end-of-race plan which was to talk Cat Hill, in order to finish the second set of rolling hills strong. For some reason, I was on a roll and felt semi-decent, and decided to run up Cat Hill (note: run = totally trotting). Of course I felt like Superwoman when I got to the top.

I tackled some more hills and going into mile 13, literally I could see the mile 12 marker, my legs were like yea no more please. So I had to walk a little. They did it again towards the top of another rolling hill but at that point I was happy my body cooperated enough to get me to the finish line!

As of today, I'm gearing up to train for marathon #2. Look out for another post soon! 

XO,
Lynette

Bulldog Yoga Pop-Up

Last Wednesday, I was invited to attend a Bulldog Yoga pop-up at Haven's Kitchen. I'd never heard of Bulldog before so I was super intrigued to check it out. A bonus was that I used to work in the same office at the team who reps Bulldog so I had a feeling it had to be awesome. 

Bulldog Yoga was initially described to me as the invigorating, fitness and music-fueled yoga studio that's all about seizing the day, sweating it out, and not taking it all too seriously. I learned quickly via the teams' follow up that there was an online component that was actually the main focus. 

I ventured into the city to work from Coffeed, which was right next to Haven's Kitchen. After a super stressful day I could not wait for some yoga to help me relax and reset. 

When I arrived I headed up to the third floor which was super spacious and had private bathrooms. Both the PR and Bulldog teams we just hanging out greeting everyone. I loved how informal it was. If you know me, personally and in business, you know I am probably one of the least formal people ever. 

[Credit: Bulldog Yoga]

Eventually we made our way over to the mats that were set up. The founder gave a short speech about the brand which echoed what I mentioned above. He was so enthusiastic and excited. Then he introduced the instructor, whose name, in clear Lynette fashion, I've since forgotten. She was a tiny, bubbly yogi ready to get going! 

I freakin' loved this class. While I don't mind a traditional yoga class, there's a reason I tend to steer myself towards Y7, Flywheel, Overthrow, etc. The music! I love a good tune regardless of what I'm doing. When I teach Pilates I always toss on iHeartRadio so my students have something to listen to. 

The class I took was a 45-minute invigorate. The website describes it as "Look no further…this is your whole-body workout for the day. Invigorate is ambitious, stimulating and pretty darn aerobic."

That is pretty damn accurate. We did planks, warriors, down dogs, abs, you name it! 

The class flowed together great and I was sweating within the first 10 minutes. The instructor was clear, offered adjustments, and was genuinely happy to be there. 

She counted down in reps, which if you read my Lagree review you know I prefer!, offered modifications to make poses easier or harder, and made sure we were workin'. 

The music played a big factor for me. It made the 45 minutes fly by but also helped me power through the poses. Even though it wouldn't be considered 'zen' music, I was totally zenned out from beginning to end, even after until my train got stuck! 

If you have the opportunity to take a live Bulldog Yoga class, I highly recommend it. You'll leave feeling like a million bucks. 

For more information visit https://www.bulldogyoga.com/. 

I am testing out the online component and will be posting a review early April! 

XO,
Lynette

Lagree NY - Class Review

On Sunday, after a fantastic double date on Saturday with my bestest friend for 20 years and her husband, I headed to a new fitness class with some of my Hellgate teammates. 

Lagree NY recently opened in Astoria on 23rd Ave at 28th St. It was about a 20 minute walk from my apartment. 

According to the website,  The Lagree Fitness Method is a high intensity, low impact workout performed on the evolutionary Megaformer. It is intense on the muscles yet safe on the joints, spine and connective tissues. The movements performed are slow and controlled which activate the slow twitch muscle fibers (your fat burning muscles). The method focuses on five key elements to reach effective muscle stimulation: Tempo, Duration, Range of Motion, Resistance and Angle. Lagree effectively combines strength, cardio, endurance, balance, core and flexibility not only in one session but in each and every move. 

[Credit: Lagree NY Facebook]

So think SLT! 

Since I'm a big Pilates reformer fan, I wasn't intimidated by the machine itself. I knew the workout would be a little more intense than a reformer class and I was excited to test it out. 

When we arrived, we each signed a waiver and one of the instructors went over the basics of the machines and demo'd a few moves. 

Then, it was time for us to start our class. 

The instructor wasted no time and the first thing we did was plank it out. As something with sensitive wrists, I would be cautious of this move. While my core was shaking the normal amount, and my legs, calves, arms and back were engaged, it killed my wrists since you're on a machine and there is not mat support. I'll admit I dropped down a few times! You're allowed to utilize your forearms here as well. 

After the warm-up, we went into legs, which included hamstrings, glutes and inner and outer thighs. The goal is, like in Pilates, to use slow and controlled movements. 

[Credit: Lagree NY Facebook]

I prefer rep countdowns but the instructor uses seconds and minutes which can be a little frustrating. When I teach, I use rep countdowns so perhaps that's the reason! 

One of my favorite moves was one the reminded me of Dolphin, where you start in a plank and use that lower core to lift your hips to the sky. What a burn! 

The class ended with some stretching on the machine. 

Overall, I really enjoyed the class and am going to return for a few more this month, especially before the NYC Half Marathon. 

Just a note- for those who work in the industry or have knowledge of boutique studios in-depth like me, contrary to normal boutique fitness practices, this studio does not allow purchase of new the member package after you've taken a trial class.

I can't wait to get back on the megaformer and burn those muscles so I can get up those Central Park hills in 3 weeks! 

For more info, visit http://lagreeny.com/

XO,
Lynette