Self-Care Sunday: Cryotherapy

I have been dying to try cryotherapy and finally got the chance this week thanks to Advanced Cryo NYC! I'll be working with them for the next several months and can't wait to see how weekly cryotherapy makes me feel. My body is my instrument and my career is based on my physical health, so for this Self-Care Sunday I decided to cross something off of my self-care bucket list.

The cryogenic chamber

Cryotherapy is essentially a more tolerable ice bath. It's a full-body treatment that reduces inflammation and flushes out toxins to aid in muscle recovery. It also alleviates joint pain and releases a rush of endorphins, elevating your mood. You can burn up to 800 calories in one session because of the involuntary shivering that occurs during the treatment. Once you step into the cryogenic chamber, you are exposed to temperatures below -200 degrees Farenheit. A cryotherapy session lasts for three minutes. During this time you remove outer layers of clothing, but are given thick socks and gloves to wear to protect your hands and feet.

I was a little hesitant to try it, because it is an extreme method. I have done ice baths before, but knew this would be more intense. I don't know how cold I was expecting it to be, but it wasn't an unbearable temperature. It was very cold, and the shock of the air hitting my skin for the first time caught me off guard. My nurse told me that a lot of people march in place to help stay warm. That definitely helped! It also helped to hold a conversation with her to keep me distracted from checking the time. I wouldn't describe the cold as uncomfortable; it was unpleasant but totally doable.

To test the benefit of cryotherapy and muscle recovery, I did two workouts the morning of my session. Before my session, I had taken four days off. Normally, my body would be wrecked by a two-a-day, especially after taking a break from working out. I felt immediate relief after my cryotherapy session. I wasn't sore at all; it was shocking! When I woke up the next morning, I felt no soreness or pain. A few hours after the session I felt the mood-boosting effect. The nurse suggested next time that I try cryotherapy before my workout, so that the endorphins from both the treatment and my workout hit at the same time.

My first cryotherapy session was amazing. I am a believer and I can't wait to see the long-term effects once I start having weekly sessions. If you have been curious about cryo, try it out! It is a great way to give yourself love and care.

Self-Care Sunday: Show Up for Yourself!

When was the last time you took a minute to recognize your own worth? We receive compliments and affirmation from others, but do we give it to ourselves? And if so, how often? I am starting a new series on my blog: Self-Care Sunday. Every Sunday I will be sharing tips and tricks that I use to give myself love.

Today's theme is showing up for yourself. Living in New York City has made this lesson absolutely necessary for me. I have learned that if I don't show up for myself, no one else will. This shows up in several ways. If I don't show up for myself and choose to eat junk food and skip my workouts, the only person losing out is me. If I don't show up for myself and miss dance auditions, I will never book a job. Showing up for yourself should be a daily occurrence, in small and big ways. You will never be alone as long as you show up for you.

Sometimes I need to write down the reasons why I deserve love. It absolutely helps to journal my thoughts and self-care activities. Physically interacting with these reminders by writing them down helps you get involved with the practice on another level. I've created a printable worksheet with a few questions to help you practice self-love this week.

The last question on my worksheet is: How are you going to show up for yourself this week? I'll share my answer with you. This week I am going to spend one day outside and give myself a day to connect to nature.

If you click on the preview for the worksheet, it will open up the printable file. Open up, print off, and send yourself as much love as you need!

Love and light always,

My Fitness Journey

I never worried about fitness until I was in college. Dancing kept me in top shape growing up and allowed me the freedom to eat as much McDonald's as my heart desired. I encountered a problem when I started college and continued to live the McDonald's and Ben & Jerry's lifestyle. I had always been warned about the "Freshman 15", but thought I was safe because I didn't drink or party. I thought any weight gain by my changing body would be counteracted by the amount of dancing I was doing. Boy, was I wrong.

My first fitness Instagram post!

Because I'm tall, my body had more room to hide the extra pounds I was packing on and I didn't notice that my body had changed until I had gained almost 25 pounds. I became unhappy with the way I looked so I started hiding my body with layers of dark clothing. Summer came around and I was determined to do something about my weight. I had started seeing ads for the Tone It Up program, a nutrition and exercise plan created by women for women. It was quite a financial investment at the time so I started doing their free workout videos on Youtube to see if I even liked their method. I fell in love with it. Karena Dawn and Katrina Scott, the team behind TIU, had such beautiful and accepting energy. I decided to purchase the plan and become a member. For almost three years I religiously followed the plan. I never felt restricted or pressured to eat less. I was actually eating more than ever before: five small meals a day with healthy snacks between meals. The nutrition portion of the TIU plan (created by a registered dietician) focused on eating "Lean, Clean, and Green" which meant lots of green vegetables and lean protein.

Fitness blogger in action

What I loved most about the Tone It Up plan was how adaptable it is. The plan is totally customizable to every member. The workouts are all 30 minutes or less and require little equipment, so there was no excuse for me to skip my workouts. They are also really fun and offer modifications for every level, so you can start from the beginning and build yourself up. On the TIU plan I lost the weight that I had gained during my freshman year. I formed a workout routine that made me feel good (a mix of cardio, strength training, and Pilates). And by creating a fitness-based Instagram to keep me accountable, I found an online community that kept me inspired and feeling supported. That's when HealthyBunhead was born! (If you have ever been curious about TIU - please ask me! I also recommend these three workouts, which are my favorites: Love Your Body HIIT Routine, Bikini Series Arms Routine, and the Fat-Burning Treadmill Workout.)

I continued to follow the Tone It Up plan until I moved to New York City in January 2016. When I was adjusting to my new home I was very unhappy and felt so alone. I would reward myself with food for making it through the day. Chips and cookies became my closest friends when I had no one else. Again I packed on the pounds. When I was pressured to lose weight by a program I was participating in, I gained even more. All of my progress and confidence was lost.

At IMAXShift, my home

My roommate in NYC at the time was teaching cycling classes at a boutique gym and kindly guested me into her class once a week. I fell immediately in love with the bike. I craved it. I felt like every day spent without a bike was wasted. A new cycling studio opened up in Brooklyn and I couldn't wait to try it. I signed up for the first class that fit into my schedule, not knowing how greatly my life would be impacted. IMAXShift (the new cycling studio) became my home. Bree Branker (my first IMAX instructor) became my life coach and greatest role model. In that studio I began to see glimpses of the person I could be. I pushed myself to new limits, I set new goals, I found a new family. Around the same time IMAX came into my life, I began my job at ivivva (lululemon) and found an incredible new team that supported my fitness goals.

Working in fitness keeps me in all of New York's hottest studios and learning from the best trainers in the world. In addition to my spinning addiction, I have added weekly bootcamp classes (Akin's Army) with Bree which have completely challenged me outside of where I thought my comfort zone was. Bootcamp is the hardest class I have ever taken, without a doubt. The first time I went to bootcamp, I laughed at the idea of ever returning. I was grateful to have survived one class and I was never going back. But I went back. And I went back again. I set a goal of attending 10 classes and before I knew it, I had gone to 15. Now it has become my happy place. I know I am capable of making it through class so I am trying to set my standards higher. It is (and always will be) incredibly difficult, but I love pushing limits and I love the amazing community.

GIRL GANG after Akin's Army

Exercise and the fitness world have changed my life. It is my passion and my constant. Fitness taught me that I can show up for myself and be my own support. Right now I am working toward my personal training certification from the National Academy of Sports Medicine, which I am expecting to complete in September. My goal is to be a group fitness instructor, specifically spinning. I want to help others discover how much a bike can add to their life, like it has to mine.

"A bicycle ride is a flight from sadness."
- James E. Starss