FitBoston = Fitness & Blogging & Fun


Alicia Benjamin (MeYouHealth), me, Lisa Johnson (Modern PIlates)
I wish you all could have been at FitBoston in Brookline yesterday with me to experience the fun and absorb the great info and tips!  From the moment I walked in and was met by Lisa Johnson with a hug as she handed out FitStudio (thank you @FitStudio and Sears!) t-shirts to all attending, to the moment I walked out four hours later with an extra goody bag (more on that and how you can score that a little later) and was in disbelief that four hours passed so quickly, it was all a great time!
It was (please note the caps!!) WONDERFUL to meet friends in person that I've tweeted with and emailed with and gotten to know a bit through Twitter and Facebook and through our blogs! 

The day started with Alicia Benjamin (@LexiMaven and the gal often behind the tweets @MeYouHealth) welcoming everyone and letting us know the agenda for the day as well as getting us up and moving to warm up our bodies! Such fun!  I was so happy to finally meet Alicia as I've considered her a friend for some time now and was truly honored to be part of their Blogger Well Being Challenge on the MeYouHealth / Daily Challenge site back in December of 2010! :)

Healthworks co-sponsored FitBoston
The Healthworks facility in Brookline is REALLY, REALLY nice! LOL  Like REALLY nice - I was kind of awe struck when I went into the locker rooms.  I could get used to having a workout experience like that on a regular basis.  And Nina from Healthworks was with us throughout the day and was a great Healthworks ambassador!  And - who'd a thunk it - at the end of the day when the raffle prizes were being awarded, *I* won the month free membership at Healthworks!  Just THRILLED!!

I've admired Lisa Johnson who owns Modern Pilates for a long time. On Twitter with her own name (did you know there are 7000+ Lisa Johnsons in the US? lol) and @ModernPilates, Lisa spoke about being a successful fitness blogger (she sure is!) and shared tips for beginner, intermediate and advanced bloggers. This was one of the high points of the day for me as I took notes like a mad woman and soaked in her advice.  Make no mistake about it, if you want to have your blog be a success, you need to be consistent and put aside the time in your life to 'work it'.

I was able to speak with Lisa a bit more at a break and she was very helpful in answering questions, offering suggestions!  Big huge thanks to her for helpful advice to everyone in attendance and, too, for leading us through pilates moves later in the afternoon!

Kurt Eng is a WordPress platform guru and aficionado and - even though I may have been the only one in the room who doesn't use WordPress to blog - his tips were just as valuable to me as anyone about where and when to spend your hard earned dollars (use free templates vs. purchasing developed art work for your blog) and what add-ons are best.  I was honestly way impressed when @KurtEng tweeted at midnight last night the top 10 apps he'd suggest when he couldn't remember them all off the top of his head when asked at FitBoston.  That was pretty cool of him!  Kurt is a founding organizer of the upcoming WordCamp Boston, too... follow him on Twitter for more info on that or follow @WordCampBoston.



Jacq Carly was the key-note speaker
 Did you know that Fitarella changed her Twitter name to her real name now?  :)  I didn't 'til yesterday so y'all need to check out @JacqCarly if you're looking for her!  Jacque is a force to be reckoned with... this gal has spunk and a great, positive attitude and that is what she keynoted about yesterday.  Live your life in the present, friends.  Yesterday is in the past, the future is what you make it...but don't be looking forward or backward so much that you don't enjoy the NOW.  Her 15 minutes in front of us all at FitBoston were inspiring to listen to and left everyone with an upbeat message of enjoy the now and be happy for who you are now - don't postpone your happiness for the person you're dreaming of becoming.  I've always loved that message and try to live it on a daily basis! 

I want to thank Alicia Benjamin for inviting the college student from Northeastern who volunteers at Girls LEAP.  This young woman (whose name I cannot remember... was it Nina?) stood in front of us all and spoke eloquently and from the heart on why Girls LEAP looks to empower young girls (and really women of all ages) in finding their voice and learning the basics of not just self defense but self offense... not allowing someone to steal your voice from you.  She skillfully showed us very basic moves of self defense and how saying "NO!" strongly and forcefully at the right time can make the difference between avoiding a bad situation and being the victim of one.  Bravo to this young woman and the Girls LEAP program.

Other great workout sessions included Rachel Kobey of Energize Studio demoing the http://www.fitnesstrampoline.com/.  Boy! am I glad I didn't volunteer to be on the tramp session... Rachel is a powerhouse and really put the gal volunteers through the paces.  I think my jaw fell open at least once watching the intensity of how fast Rachel was able to bounce and turn.  (I was watching her and having one of those movie things in my brain at the same time of me bouncing OFF the tramp and into another person... us all crashing to the wooden floor... lol!)

Sarah Rhines is a young entrepreneur who has launched SunCircles which are hula hoops for fitness.  She began her presentation with hoop dancing (I believe that is what she called it) and it was lyrical and so beautiful to watch.  Who knew a hoop could be so artistic?  I didn't but do now! :)  We then were invited to try hooping with different intentions (core, bat wings, etc.) and it was great fun.  I hope she does well in her business... Sarah personally makes each hoop and can ship it off to you. : )

In the breakout sessions we were offered a number of choices and the owner (Dan Fitzgerald) of South End Athletic Company was on hand to talk with the runners in the group and offer running tips.  Other break off groups included TRX Training, table or chair massage, and interval workout advice on maximizing your training.  I opted for the interval training and was fortunate to meet Hannah of Healthworks and learn about high intensity bursts of interval training (we focused on the treadmill and pumping up the incline for 30 seconds at a time) - and finding your own personal measure of 1-10 for "pushing yourself forward" as you advance.  I probably met with Hannah for less than 10 minutes and came away with new techniques to try for my regular routine.  How awesome is that!? She was great!

Finally got to meet Boston Sports Woman!
 Just a shout out here to Kathy McConnell of Boston Sports Woman who is organizing a January event: Be Healthy Boston.  (Kathy is a lot of fun to massage kale and avocado salads with.  I'm just saying...) And she is a powerhouse of Boston women's sports info... do check her out on Twitter @bos_sportswoman and on her blogs as well as the http://www.behealthyboston.com/ site.  It was so fun to finally meet this lady in person after having tweeted back 'n forth with her for a couple of years! :)

I'll have to post more later in the week about the fun bloggers and fitness folks I met on Saturday.  But while I'm working on THAT post, I do have a fun announcement.  @MeYouHealth (Alicia) and @ModernPilates (Lisa Johnson) offered up a bag full of goodies to one of the Healthy Loser Gal readers

I'll be sending the bag off to one random winner and it is chuck full of great giveaways from FitBoston including:

FitStudio sportswear shirt
Mix1 all natural vanilla protein shake
Whole Foods Cranberry Trail Mix
Taza Ginger Chocolate (OH MY IS THIS GOOD!)
Delicious Pretzel Crisps and a Reusable Grocery Bag
Bearded Brothers Mighty Maca Chocolate Energy Bar
Luna Peanut Butter Cookie
Attune Foods (Yay!) Probiotic Chocolate Bar AND Free Coupons
And - if you're local to the Boston area - a 7 day pass to Healthworks to use before July ends!
Plus other fun little surprises!

All you have to do to be entered in the giveaway is to follow @MeYouHealth, @ModernPilates and me on Twitter or Facebook and then leave a comment here on what inspires you to be fit? : )  So easy!  I'll be picking the winner randomly on Thursday morning and will let you know who won by noontime EST on the 14th! :)

Yesterday was so much fun - congrats to the organizers on pulling off a great event - I think Roni Noone of Fitbloggin would be proud of you! :)  Thank you to all the sponsors for making the great event possible and to all the other participants for making it so worthwhile and fun!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan ~ HealthyLoserGal

7 comments:

MizFit July 11, 2011 at 6:52 AM  

SO SO SO FUN!!

we austinites dropped the medicineball on this one :)

Jacqueline/Fitarella July 11, 2011 at 9:34 AM  

Was so GREAT to see your beautiful smiling face in the audience! I'm s bummed we didnt get a chance to hug or chat, but next time for sure!! Thank you so much for your kind words. I loved being there with such an amazing group of women :-)

Boston Sports Woman July 11, 2011 at 12:09 PM  

I was so happy to finally meet you in Person!!!! Can't wait to see you again. Do sign-up for the Be Healthy Boston two day wellness retreat!

Roxanne July 11, 2011 at 12:56 PM  

This sounds like so much fun. I'm now following everyone on twitter (@twentybirds)

I actually have this dream of finally being able to run the Charles River Espanade from my place in Brighton through the Harvard Bridge (maybe even farther!) someday :)

Anonymous July 12, 2011 at 10:13 PM  

My running group inspires me to be fit. We have everyone from people qualifying for the Olympic trials to individuals just trying to run a mile without stopping, it is truly motivational. (I'm following all of you lovely folks on Twitter @RunningJewess)

So sad that I no longer live in Boston, I went to Healthworks for a while and loved it.

HealthyLoserGal July 15, 2011 at 12:05 AM  

Roxanne - you've won the Swag Bag from FitBoston! Congrats! :) Would you send me your mailing address via email and I'll get it off to you in the mail on Saturday? Thanks!

seekelisbod.com July 15, 2011 at 12:50 PM  

Sounds like fun to me!