What an Experience! The 2015 A Healthy U Conference

On Saturday I attended the 2nd Annual A Healthy U Conference in New York City. I first heard about the conference on Instagram and then on a blog I read often.

I follow Nellie on Instagram and that’s how I initially found out about the conference. Its always great to meet IG friends in real life!

Surprisingly I didn’t have a race on either day of the weekend so I decided to attend the conference. The speaker lineup was amazing and I was really looking forward to all the tidbits of knowledge I would learn.

I hopped on a Metro North train around noon to make sure I got there in plenty of time. Luckily I’m only about a 45-60 minutes from NYC by train. Once I arrived I was greeted by smiling faces and I checked in quickly. I grabbed a seat to get ready for the 1st panel.

Waiting for the first panel!

While I was waiting I had a great conversation with Jennifer Turner (one of the panelists). She was very confident and she offered such great advice. Soon the first panel started. The topic was ‘Unblock what’s stopping you form being your best”. The panel featured Aeshia DeVore Branch – Founder of PrettyGirlsSweat, Vanessa Cunningham – Nutrition & Wellness Expert and Jennifer Turner – Founder of Mad Cool Fitness. Each women gave great advice on how we can stop self-sabotaging ourselves (Sometimes we can be our won worst enemy!). The panel members also discussed the importance of planning ahead. Aeshia mentioned that on Sundays she plans out her whole schedule for the week. Jennifer mentioned getting up early in the mornings to fit in her workouts. At this time, one of the hosts for the event, Kimberly Brown, suggested a book that helped her with her morning routine, The Morning Miracle. I looked it up online and the book looks excellent so I’ll purchase it soon. During the session they provided tons of tips on how to do this, but there were a few things that stuck with me:

• “You must invest in yourself” – We have to find the time to do this because if we won’t even take the time to do this, then who will?
• “You need to have energy to give energy” – This particularly applies to women, especially moms that are always on the go, but never find time for themselves. In order to give energy to help others, you must have energy. This energy comes from taking care of yourself by exercising and eating right.
• “We all have time for a workout” – A workout doesn’t have to be a 60 minute high-intensity sweat session. Just start off by trying to find 15 minutes a day, and then maybe that can turn to 30 minutes on some days. Jennifer also said something that was so funny and accurate – “People always say they don’t have time to workout but if I told you there was a million dollar check waiting for you at the gym, you would be there, right?”. The whole room erupted in laughter, it was a great part of the panel.

Jennifer Turner

Aeshia DeVore Branch

Vanessa Cunningham

• How do you get motivation to run when you don’t want to? Think to yourself, “When else will you get it done?” Stick to your training as much as possible so that you are prepared on race day. You don’t want any regrets at the start or finish line at a race. You want to run your best.
• Tips for running in the heat – wear lightweight clothing with light colors, a hat or visor, drink water and use sunblock. 
• How do you know if you are hydrated enough? You should make sure you are hydrating and drinking enough water 2-3 days out before your race. Your pee should be a light yellow color. If your pee is clear, then you are over hydrated, which is not good (I had no clue there was such a thing!)
• Sweat wicking clothes –  To keep it “wicking”, do not use fabric softener sheets. I did not know this! I always use fabric softener sheet, oops…
• Make sure you are cross training – Some popular options include hot yoga, spinning, boot camp and body weight exercises such as planks for core work. By incorporating cross training you will feel stronger and prevent injuries
• Must have running hear – A good sports bra, running sneakers, foam roller, GPS watch, and a Road ID bracelet

Nykia and Michele with the moderator and one of the event hosts, Nellie

Michele from NYCRunningMama

HOORAY!!

Michele and I #RunAllDay

Tons of yummy options!

After the networking break, it was time for the keynote speaker, Lita Lewis – motivational speaker, fitness guru, founder of #ThickFit, and all around fitness rock star! I can’t really say enough good things about Lita. During her session she share her unique background and also about the important of setting goals. I’m a huge, huge believer in setting goals so it was nice to hear about this perspective from someone in the fitness industry. My most important takeaways from her talk were:

• There will always be hurdles to jump through when trying to reach your goal, and that’s OK!
• Feed your soul feed your spirit. This is so important
• Being the best version of yourself is what’s beautiful and strong
• Making goals and sharing those goals puts u on the fast track to completing them

When the conference was over it was time to get our swag bags – and they did not disappoint!

All the goodies inside the swag bag!

I left the conference with a renewed sense of energy. My energy has been kind of “blah” lately so I think this conference was just what I needed. I am already looking forward to the next conference in 2016!