8 Ways Barbara Pierce Bush Gets Up And Out

This article originally appeared in the April 2016 issue of SELF.

Photography by Nadya Wasylko / Styled by Kate Sebbah

Barbara Pierce Bush thinks big, and not just because she’s part of that famous Texas family. The 34-year-old CEO and cofounder of Global Health Corps, a nonprofit dedicated to health equity, aims to improve care in some of the world’s poorest communities. A fan of cardio workouts, the New Yorker is usually up at 7 A.M. and lacing up her sneakers soon after. “Since I started running,” she says, “I haven’t stopped!”

1. Cat Call

“I use my iPhone as an alarm clock but also have a more effective, living alarm in my cat, Eleanor. She wakes me up at the same time every day, waiting to be fed and pushing me to get to the gym.”

2. Gratitude Attitude

“Before checking my phone, I write down three things I’m grateful for.”

3. Scenic Route

“The West Side Highway is a great path—I usually start in Tribeca and go up along the water. On weekends, I love running across the Williamsburg Bridge, running around in Brooklyn and then back to Manhattan across the Brooklyn Bridge.”

4. City-Girl Gear

“I’m a huge fan of Outdoor Voices and Nike! I wear Nike LunarGlide 7s for running and Outdoor Voices gear in gray, charcoal, navy and pale blue.”

5. Weekend Reads

“I’ve learned to love and protect my downtime. On days off, I read the newspaper in bed with coffee before meeting friends for a class or a run.”

6. Iced Coffee

“I drink it year-round—it’s my favorite luxury. The ladies at my coffee shop know me and have it waiting. That and a protein shake, and I’m good.”

7. Beauty Essentials

“I use Tatcha Camellia Beauty Oil [$95], EltaMD Renew Eye Gel [$50], Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow [$68] and black eyeliner. And I always carry ChapStick [$2]!”

8. Group SMS

“My mom and sister wake up before I do, so without fail, I have sweet text messages waiting.”

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Join us at the icuremelanoma 5k Saturday May 7.

 

We are proud to sponsor the icuremelanoma 5k this year and hope you’ll join us Saturday May 7 in support of Melanoma cancer research. We’ll have a booth at the event so be sure to stop by after the race. We’d love to get a group picture! A limited number of registrations are now available for $35. Once they are gone cost will go to $40 per participant. A Health and Wellness Fair will be at the race location promoting awareness of Melanoma cancer and a free skin cancer screening will be available for race participants the day before. For more information the event webpage is here. To register and join the Access Change Fitness + Nutrition INC. team click here . Looking forward to seeing our community out there supporting this worthy cause.

 

 

 

 

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Original Article: from Access Change

How To Be A Morning Person, Courtesy Of Under Our Sky’s Sofia Sanchez de Betak

This article originally appeared in the April 2016 issue of SELF.

For Sofia Sanchez de Betak, founder and art director of Under Our Sky, mornings are unpredictable. If she’s not at home in New York City or Paris, the 30-year-old art director could wake up almost anywhere—after all, she visits up to 15 countries each year. Pilates, Zumba, and stretching help her manage the effects of jet lag, as does coordinating her A.M. activities to the time zone she’s in. “I love sleeping more than anything else,” she says. “But I force myself to be a morning person!”

1. Sleep Strategy 
I like to wake up fresh. When I fly west, I try to stay up the entire flight. Then I go to bed early.

2. Light Breakfast
I cook oatmeal with chia, flaxseed, and fruit. I don’t like interacting with anyone before I have some food! Then I have whichever level of caffeine I need that day.

3. Cardio Kicks
I’ve been doing kickboxing and Zumba for four years. I feel like I’m progressing, and I like the energy.

4. Up-tempo Playlist
Latin music always helps me wake up—something upbeat like salsa, cumbia, merengue, or reggaetón.

5. Seine Scene
In Paris, I recently moved close to the river. I can’t resist going for a run in front of Notre Dame! It’s the perfect way to beat jet lag.

6. Glowing Skin
I wash with cold water, no cleanser. My dermatologist prescribed Roza gel [in the United States, Metrogel], and it keeps my skin clear. I use Clinique Moisture Surge [$39], which feels like silk, and SkinCeuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense SPF 50 [$34]. I really like the finish—it doesn’t shine.

7. Afternoon Travel
Once, I had a very early flight from Buenos Aires south to Patagonia, and I’d barely slept. When I was looking for my seat, I ran into a friend who told me the plane was going north instead—somehow I had gotten onto the wrong plane! There’s nothing worse than early flights.

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5 Warm-Up Stretches That Will Maximize Your Gym Workout

Patrik Giardino, Getty Images; Graphic by Jocelyn Runice

While it’s tempting to start your workout the second you walk out of the locker room, take a few minutes to focus on your warm-up first. A smart warm-up will help improve your speed, strength, endurance, flexibility…the list goes on. So while those first few minutes may feel like you’re not working up a sweat, you’re actually putting in some serious work. 

The primary purpose of a warm-up is to prepare the body for the rigorous demands of your workout, explains Jessica Matthews, M.S., assistant professor of exercise science at Miramar College and senior advisor for health and fitness education for the American Council on Exercise. “A well-rounded warm-up routine can help address underlying muscle imbalances and enhance your overall movement quality, while also gradually increasing your core body temperature in preparation for the activity to come,” she says.

A proper warm-up will also help decrease your risk for injury, explains assistant director of strength and conditioning at Princeton University Angie Brambley-Moyer, CSCS. “Adequate joint mobility, or range of motion around the joints, is imperative to perform loaded movement patterns safely and effectively,” Matthews adds.

An effective pre-workout routine includes something called dynamic stretching, which means you’re pretty much constantly moving while getting your blood pumping and muscles ready for action. Static stretches, on the other hand, are held in place. And you’ll want to save those stretches for after your workout, explains Brambley-Moyer.

Brambley-Moyer works closely with high-performing collegiate athletes—she trains the women’s basketball, volleyball, soccer, softball, and lacrosse teams, as well as the men’s hockey team, so she’s pretty much a pro at running a killer strength program in addition to the warm-ups that make them count. So what’s your game plan? To help make your pre-workout minutes count, try five of Brambley-Moyer’s go-to dynamic stretches below. 

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5 Super-Effective Ways To Strengthen And Tone Your Butt Without Any Equipment

Robin Lynne Gibson / Getty Images

These five exercises target your butt, hips, and thighs. Bonus: You don’t need any gym equipment to get the job done. The quick routine will only take a few minutes so try doing it first thing in the morning—because there’s nothing quite like an #UpNOut booty burn. Or, you can always add a few of the moves to the end of your regular training session. Just don’t forget to finish with the amazing glute stretch (below) that feels SO good. After two sets of these booty moves you’ll need it!

1. Clam With Raised Toes — do two sets of 12 reps on each side

• Lie on left side with left arm propping torso up, or extended on floor if that’s more comfortable.
• Keeping head in line with spine, bend knees forward and lift both feet off floor keeping your torso stable.
• Rotate right knee up, opening legs, then close right knee and immediately move into the next rep without lowering feet to floor.
• Do two sets of 12 reps on both sides.

2. Crab Extension — do two sets of 12 reps on each side

• Start in reverse tabletop position with feet planted on floor, knees bent, wrists below shoulders with fingers pointing away from body.
• Push through heels, lifting hips in air and reach right arm up and over. Pause, then lower to return to start and repeat on the opposite side. That’s 1 rep.
• Do two sets of 12 reps on both sides.

3. Narrow Squat With Foot Raised — do two sets of 12 reps on each side

• Stand facing table with hands gently resting on tabletop, feet close together with toes pointed forward.
• Pop left heel up, resting on the ball of left foot.
• Hinge hips back to lower into a narrow squat, keeping left foot raised. Return to standing.
• Do two sets of 12 reps on both sides.

4. Curtsy Kick — do two sets of 12 reps on each side

• Stand to left of table with right hand gently resting on tabletop.
• Step left leg back, crossing behind right leg, and bend both knees until right thigh is nearly parallel to floor.
• Straighten right leg and slowly swing left leg out to left, hovering above floor. Immediately move into the next rep. 
• Do two sets of 12 reps on both sides.

5. Star Glide — do two sets of 12 reps on each side

• Stand on left leg, with left knee slightly bent, hands on hips. Hold this quarter-squat position and extend right leg in front of body.
• Begin to draw a circle with right foot by extending it to the right, then behind body, in a slow, controlled motion.
• Reverse the movement and immediately move into the next rep without straightening the left leg. 
• Do two sets of 12 reps on both sides.

Now let’s stretch it out with a standing figure four stretch.

• Stand facing table with feet pointing forward. Lift left leg on tabletop, bending knee so shin is parallel to hips.
• Keeping the spine long, slowly bend over left leg.
• Hold for a few seconds then slowly return to standing.
• Repeat on the opposite side.

These go-to moves are from Crystal Stein, American College of Sports Medicine Health and Fitness Specialist and a Tier 3+ trainer at Equinox in NYC. (If you want even more of her ridiculously effective exercises, be sure to check out SELF’s 50 Shades Of Glutes.)

Credits: Katherine Mason at Wilhelmina Fitness; Hair by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Oribe; Makeup by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Nars.

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7 Ways Yoga Teacher Rachel Brathen Gets Up And Out

This article originally appeared in the April 2016 issue of SELF.

Photography by Nadya Wasylko / Styled by Kate Sebbah

For most of us, teaching yoga on a tropical island is a daydream. For Rachel Brathen, 27, it’s a thriving career. More than 1.8 million people follow the Aruba-based instructor on Instagram, where she shares pictures of beachside poses (and her many pets, including Penny Lane, a baby goat with 37,000 followers of her own). “There’s no typical morning,” Brathen says, but her days almost always kick off with plenty of Vinyasa flow.

1. Leisurely Start

“I usually wake up around seven. I don’t do well under stress, so I’d rather get up early than be rushing out the door.”

2. Digital Break

“I stay away from social media before 10 A.M. People are always shocked by that! The boundary keeps me more centered and lets me start the day better.”

3. Yoga Session

“I practice Vinyasa—it’s very dynamic and sweaty. I always do Sun Salutations. It’s a good way to build heat in the morning. If I have 20 minutes, I’ll do 10 of those and two or three poses to wind down, then Savasana.”

4. Eclectic Mix

“Sometimes, without music, I might lose motivation after 30 minutes. So I make new Spotify playlists almost every week. I like old-school hip-hop like Biggie Smalls and Tupac, and I’ve been playing a ton of Bon Iver and Alina Baraz.”

5. Super Smoothie

“My standard is called Everything I Have Left in the Fridge. I mix fruit with kale or chard, and I keep berries in the freezer—they take bitterness away from the greens.”

6. Protective Beauty 

“I wear a hat in the sun and Origins A Perfect World SPF 25 Age-Defense Moisturizer [$43] on my face. I air-dry my hair and use argan oil or Alba Botanica So Smooth Gardenia Hawaiian Anti-Frizz serum [$9] on my ends.”

7. Easy Transition

“I like staying in bed—not snoozing, because that delays the inevitable. But if you have five minutes to cuddle with whoever shares your bed—with a husband, a girlfriend, or five dogs and a goat!—it’s a nice transition from opening your eyes to actually waking up.”

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6 Incredible Dumbbell Exercises For Your Butt

PeopleImages / Getty

What’s the one piece of equipment that’s guaranteed to be at every gym in every city? Dumbbells. Sure the weights are basic, and expected, but training with them is incredibly effective. That’s why it’s important to have a few go-to dumbbell butt exercises in your repertoire—it’ll help keep your regular fitness routine feeling fresh and amps up the challenge of classic bodyweight exercises.

So grab a set of dumbbells, start with a five- or eight-pound set and go heavier when you can and get ready to lunge, squat, thrust, lift, and kick it.

1. Weighted Donkey Kick — do 12 reps on each side

Justin Steele; modeled by Astrid Swan. Hair and Makeup by Sacha Harford at NEXT ARTISTS

1. Start on all fours with hands under shoulders, knees below hips.
2. Bend left leg to 90 degrees and place one weight behind left knee.
3. Squeeze left leg to hold weight in place and kick left leg up into the air, then bring knee under hips.
4. That’s 1 rep, do 12 on each side.

2. Weighted Bridge — do 20 reps

Cheryl Carlin; Kim Hartwell at Wilhelmina Fitness; Hair by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Oribe; Makeup by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Nars.

1. Lie faceup with feet hip-width apart and heels near glutes.
2. Place weights on hips.
3. Drive through heels to raise hips off floor, pause at top and slowly lower back to mat.
4. Do 20 reps.

3. Weighted Squat — do 20 reps

Justin Steele; modeled by Astrid Swan. Hair and Makeup by Sacha Harford at NEXT ARTISTS

1. Stand tall and rest weights on shoulders.
2. Hinge at hips and lower into a deep squat keeping weight in heels and torso lift.
3. Stand to complete 1 rep, do 20 reps.

4. The Curtsy Kick — do 12 reps on each side

Cheryl Carlin; Kim Hartwell at Wilhelmina Fitness; Hair by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Oribe; Makeup by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Nars.

1. Hold weights in front of body at shoulder height.
2. Step right leg diagonally behind left leg and bend knees until front thigh is parallel to floor. Keep spine long, shoulders rolled down and back and abs tight.
3. Push through left heel to stand, and sweep right leg out to side with foot pointed.
4. Immediately move into the next rep. Do 12 reps on each side.

5. Lateral Leg Lift — do 12 reps on each side

Justin Steele; modeled by Astrid Swan. Hair and Makeup by Sacha Harford at NEXT ARTISTS

1. Lie on right side and place one weight above just above left knee on quad holding weight in place with left hand.
2. Lift left leg up and down a few inches.
3. Do 12 reps on each side.

6. Dumbbell Deadlift – do 20 reps

Cheryl Carlin; Kim Hartwell at Wilhelmina Fitness; Hair by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Oribe; Makeup by Leah Bennett for NEXT Artists using Nars.

1. Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding the dumbbells in front of thighs with palms facing body.
2. With a slight bend in knees, push hips back and slowly slide weights down legs toward floor while keeping spine long and abs tight.
3. Push through the heels to return to standing.
4. Do 20 reps.

These six moves are from Los Angeles-based trainer Astrid Swan and Crystal Stein, American College of Sports Medicine Health and Fitness Specialist and a Tier 3+ trainer at Equinox in NYC. If you want even more crazy-effective exercises, be sure to check out SELF’s 50 Shades Of Glutes.

And don’t forget to sign up for SELF’s #6WeeksToSummer Fitness Challenge to score all-new strength and cardio workouts.

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