It's a time of year when we're all thinking about the people we're grateful for. Those who lift us up, who support us everyday, and who go the extra mile. That support system is the very foundation behind the HOVR Phantom SE, the latest running sneaker from Under Armour. So we've teamed up with UA to tell the stories of 15 incredible human phantoms who crush it behind-the-scenes in some of today's most exciting industries.
With that in mind, Highsnobiety presents the Phantom 15: an eclectic mix of individuals across the sports, fashion, media, and entertainment industries. These folks represent a wide range of pursuits, like Rumble Boxing founder Noah Neiman and roving NYC haircutter Julien Howard (aka the Velo Barber), and spoke to us about how they juggle their busy careers while still making an effort to keep fit.
Just like these industry phantoms who come from diverse backgrounds, the HOVR Phantom SE isn’t your average running sneaker. Its aerodynamic design and focus on comfort will make them the most versatile running shoe in your rotation, and might even inspire an impromptu workout session.
Olivia Wong - Professional dancer Kelvin Trautman - Environmentalist & off-road runner Tobias Ellehamer - Director & choreographer Julian Connor - Chief Technology Officer, Grailed Stelios Phili - Record producer Noah Neiman - Co-founder, Rumble Boxing Austin Mills - TV host & social media personality Julien Howard - Traveling barber Ysabelle Capitule - Dancer & choreographer Rachel Johnson - Stylist to the NBA Geron Mckinley - Model Sam Tooley - Endurance coach Jason Suarez - Photographer & runner Bobby Hicks - Filmmaker, photographer, & model Glen Coco Orepeza - Celebrity hairstylist These interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity.
Olivia Wong
Wong is a professional dancer.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? You have to remember you've got to take care of yourself first. It's so important to not indulge yourself in toxic things. So even when I get on Instagram or something I only follow people that truly inspire me, like fitness gurus or entrepreneurs, my friends who are constantly pushing me to be better. I surround myself with people who inspire me and I feel like when you do this, it makes that busy schedule or busy lifestyle not seem busy anymore but more productive.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? In this industry, we are dancing every day. So we are constantly active. It can be super demanding on the body. We could be in an eight-hour rehearsal for a week straight. The job isn't just to show up, but it's to show up prepared. Doctors can't go into surgery with no sleep or not mentally prepared and that's just like dancers, too. I eat maybe five or six meals throughout the day, which is a lot. I drink so much water and then I stretch usually before and right after training during rehearsals. And it's just important in all aspects.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? My main fitness training comes from dancing and just cardio, in general. Almost every day I'll meditate. But when I can, I take ballet twice a week at 8 a.m., which is the perfect thing to set me up for a really productive day. One of my goals is to start personal training to get more into lifting so I can build muscle.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? I think mentality is key. First and foremost, I think your body, if your mind is right, the body will follow. I'll do affirmations in the morning. I'll take time to say things I'm grateful for, and then right after that, I'll go either make a smoothie or if I even have more time than that, I'll make a big breakfast. But no matter if I have 10 minutes or 30, I think it's possible to optimize whatever time you have to make your body and mind that priority. Whether it's meditating, stretching, doing squats, or even resting even, 'cause that's important. You should really put yourself first during that time of your hectic schedule so you feel grounded throughout your day.
Kelvin Trautman
Trautman is an environmentalist and off-road runner/photographer and filmmaker. He's shot for brands, including Red Bull and Patagonia, and for publications, including National Geographic, The New York Times, and Outside Magazine.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I think the secret is to never not be fit. The secret is to just keep kicking over. I'm fortunate, and I purposefully pick assignments where you do have to be physically fit. If you do enough of those back to back, by default you are in shape. I come from an adventure-sport competitive background. So the process of training, and knowing what it takes to be good enough to do the things that we end up doing, is something that I've done for a long time. I really enjoy pushing my own physical boundaries. It's like being a professional athlete, but without the pressure of winning and training all the time.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to?
Variety is something that I try and interject into my training regimen as a way to keep me motivated because I don't have the goal of a race, or some big expedition per se, as an athlete might have. I'm weary of lacking motivation, and so trying to interject as much variety in the type of sports that I do. I really enjoy adventure racing, where it's biking, it's kayaking, it's running, it's climbing.
Tobias Ellehammer
Ellehammer is a director and choreographer.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? To me, it’s about turning it into a habit, and with that incorporating into my lifestyle that I must get the obligatory workout done. No matter how hectic my schedule gets, I just know I have to find the time. If I need to get up really early or hit the gym in the late hours, that’s how it must be. The reward is always how if feel after.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? Dance is a whole lifestyle, but first and foremost it’s FUN. Many people find working out boring and that’s usually the main and biggest challenge for them to get it done. Dance offers a fun alternative where you’re not only sweating but also socializing and allowing yourself to listen to your body and soul. That’s what I call an all-round workout and it makes you feel incredible afterwards.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? As a working choreographer I have to constantly keep my body and my core strong and fit so that I am still able to do my work to the best of my abilities. I workout 6 days a week and do cardio for 3 of them. Then add all my professional work on top of that, which includes stuff like teaching masterclasses and choreographing for various artists, work that is all usually heavy on the cardio side. In the gym, I use my own bodyweight rather than weights to keep my body as organic and flexible as possible and also so that I don’t limit my dancing range. It usually involves pull ups, dips, different versions of push ups and sit ups, loads of planking and plenty of lower back exercises. Cardio-wise I usually jump on the indoor bicycle, but sometimes I swim also. I always finish with a long yoga inspired stretch and a quick meditation to find balance.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? My advice would be to start with your diet. It means everything for your wellbeing. Then start slowly and gradually build up when it comes to staying active. Even if you only do 10 minutes a day to begin with, I still promise you will feel a difference. Maybe you can even join a dance class somewhere to relieve yourself from all the daily stress and make both your body and your soul feel better afterwards.
Julian Connor
Connor is the chief technical officer at Grailed, a men's fashion marketplace.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I generally work 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. every day and most days I'm in meetings or have to do very pressing things throughout the entirety of the day, so I don't even have time to step out for lunch. Some people like to step out and exercise in the middle of the day and that's not available to me. I need to derive joy from exercise, whether it's in the moment, how I feel after, or whom I do it with.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? In fashion in particular there's this idea of taking care of yourself as being the number one rule of style. I think Rick Owens pioneered that thought, I guess formally, but it's sort of like subscribing to the look-good-feel-good mentality. When you're looking fresh, you've got some fresh new kicks, it's a complete game changer. You conduct yourself on a whole other level when you're feeling good about yourself. You're confident. It resonates with a lot of people in the industry.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? I played in college as well and also was a gymnast until I was 15. Now, I still play soccer a little bit here and there, probably twice a week on a good week. But then I do a lot of yoga. Yoga is my new thing for the last five or six years. I try to do yoga three times a week. And for me it's not only about the act of doing yoga, it's also something I do with a few friends. So, I have a ritual every Tuesday that I do with one of my best friends, where we'll go to a yoga class and grab dinner and drinks afterwards. It's sort of like a little bit of therapy for both of us.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? I would totally recommend scheduling it into your calendar and having it be part of your life. For me, there has to be some level of accountability. For example, if I want to bail on Tuesday yoga, I have to also bail on my friend, not just the class. And if I want to bail on soccer, I would bail on my team. I can't just bail on soccer. So for me, the accountability piece goes really, really far. And there's also an element of inertia. It's so much harder to begin exercising from scratch than it is to just continue for some sort of routine, ritual, or regimen.
Stelios Phili
Phili is a New York-based record producer who’s made tracks for A$AP Ferg, Young Thug, and Big Sean. He's also composed runway music for Mark McNairy and En Noir.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? A morning workout is great for hectic schedules. I like to exercise as soon as I wake up because it's very peaceful and it doesn't break up the day. A solid workout can be short—overdoing it actually makes you weaker. This is the perfect thing to tell yourself when you're low on time.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? A music producer is like any other freelance job—you get to make your own schedule. As your own boss, you can force yourself to exercise. When I get in a morning workout, I feel a lot better about spending eight hours a day in a studio looking at a computer.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? At my most disciplined, I work out for 45 minutes, three to five days a week. I would describe my exercise style as non-aspirational—I just want to be healthy and fit. I do crunches, pull-downs, leg presses, running, stretches, and hand weights. After that, I walk my golden doodle, which definitely counts.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? My advice is to work out with the intention of staying in shape, rather than getting muscular. When your body feels good, it's a lot easier to be creative. Don't worry about looking like Brad Pitt in Fight Club—I tried that for a day and it was a terrible way to live. There's a lot of benefit to a simple and manageable regimen.
Noah Neiman
Neiman is the co-founder of Rumble Boxing.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? The most impactful fitness routine is the one that becomes intertwined with your lifestyle. It’s prioritized just like watching your favorite show. It’s built into the fabric of your day, because the efficacy of any training regimen is consistency and effort. Even 10 minutes of jump rope and some squats, done multiple times per day whenever you can, is impactful. I always prioritize my time working out because I have the foresight to know how it improves every other aspect of my life. The body gets stronger, emotionally and physically, and we’re better able to put in the work outside of the gym setting to be happy and successful. My favorite Prime Time Deion Sanders line is, “You look good, you feel good. You feel good, you play good. You play good, they PAY good.”
How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? We make time for what we make time for. We’re creatures of movement. Stagnancy creates lethargy and depression. We have to find a way to get that physical work in and invest in ourselves in order to truly live up to our potential. So if that means I have to skip a tv show, some time playing Call of Duty. I HAVE to make the time. I eliminated the option NOT to.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? My whole foundation of not just my career, but my lifestyle has been dedicated to promoting the importance of fitness AS a lifestyle. I’ve always used physical exertion as a means to keep my emotions in check and be stronger mentally. The moment I started taking care of my physical body, I found my wild emotions were easier to control. I found discipline for myself through jiu jitsu and boxing. That reason is the main reason I was so passionate about opening Rumble Boxing. I wanted to create a workout that tapped into fitness, but also our need for powerful lifestyle experiences.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? You can catch me at Rumble Boxing teaching 2-3 classes a day and taking 1-2 classes a day. Strength training with weights, jumping rope, high end conditioning runs, and boxing are the staples of all of my workouts. Rumble Boxing and our newest studio Rumble Training are two high end fitness boutiques that utilize almost all of the above training methodologies, because that’s what I personally love to do and have found it’s not just effective, but fun!!! Rumble boxing is a 45 minute workout utilizing the sweet science of boxing and strength training with weights. The music, art, and vibes tap into the lifestyle elements we love.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? To tap into the great philosopher Lil Wayne, “Repetition is the father of learning. I repeat. Repetition is the father of learning.” A phrase so important I have it tatted on my arm. Life is a skill. Every aspect and elements of our lifestyle has to be trained through repetition. It’s hard as hell to form new routines, but the more you can just force exercise into your routine, the more you understand how impactful it is on every aspect of your life.
Austin Mills
Mills is a basketball player, TV host, and social media personality.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? There is always time. You will always be tired. Whether it’s waking up early or going to the gym late. You can always fit an hour into your schedule. Sometimes even 30 minutes. A mile run and some push ups and sit ups.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? In a multitude of ways. For my own personal content, my brand is mainly sports. So I’m usually on a basketball court filming and doing some sort of cardio. When it comes to being on camera, I always want to be in tip top shape. The way you present yourself is very important and staying in shape is key. Especially if I ever have to take my shirt off on camera.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? I do. That’s the best way to stay on track. Routine. I play basketball on Monday and Wednesday nights, and weekends in leagues or organized pick-ups. I do chest and back lift days on Monday and Thursday. I do bicep and tricep lift days on Tuesday & Friday. I also try to sneak a steam, sauna, or cold tub in there when I have time.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? Wake up an hour earlier and go start your day with a workout. It’s a great way to start the day. And if you miss it, go at night. Night workouts sometimes are great for clearing the mind. Lastly, try to eat less. I know people say you need breakfast, but I don’t buy it. I feel more energized when I just have a coffee. Then I’m less inclined to have a big lunch.
Julien Howard aka The Velo Barber
Howard is a barber that travels the city giving cuts. His clients include celebs and athletes, including Bryce Harper and Serge Ibaka. He's also worked runway shows for John Varvatos and Original Penguin.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I combined my health workout with my job. I started biking to all my clients, and to work so I can stay active and stay in shape.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? As a barber it's my job to ensure people look their best. A big part of that is being an example, so if I'm healthy, people want to be healthy because they look up to us for advice whether it is with hair, fashion, or health. We like to ensure they look their best inside and out. Sometimes that means even being their therapist — mental health is key.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? Every Sunday morning I wake up early and go for extended bike ride for a little adventure. Usually 60-80 miles. on bike eat a delicious breakfast, have a coffee, then head back to the city. Getting out of the city is one of the healthiest ways mentally and physically for me to relax recharge and get some air in my lungs.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? The most important thing I can say is if you don't have the time to be active, make it a priority to eat as healthy as possible, and at least try to exercise once a week. Take the stairs everywhere you can, walk as much as you can. Eat right, eat clean, hydration is key! Make sure you drink water. Your body is a temple, take care of it.
Ysabelle Capitule
Capitule is a professional dancer and choreographer.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? Fortunately I’ve been put in a position where my schedule actually involves excessive hours of cardio. However, I do have some days when I’m busy with normal stuff and don’t have time nor the energy to bust out some cardio or muscle work. On those days I tend to make sure I eat right, maybe even choose to take the stairs or park a little farther when running errands to rack up the amount of steps I take in a day. For me, staying in shape doesn’t always have to involve tons of exercise for hours and hours everyday. Watching what you eat and counting your steps still does the trick.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? As a professional dancer, a healthy lifestyle is the only lifestyle. And the reason I say that is I have actually put myself in a position where I was eating bad and not taking care of my body, while still having to keep up with rehearsals, classes, performances, and teaching. Dance as a sport alone is very rigorous, therefore in order for your body to survive, being healthy is a necessity. Countless hours of physical, mental, and emotional work doesn’t only promote a healthy lifestyle, but requires a healthy lifestyle.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? Unfortunately I do not have a specific fitness regimen that I keep up, but whenever I am active it always involves some sort of cardio, and a whole lot of it. With dancing, I like to add in 30 minutes to 1 hour of muscle work such as: sit ups, squats, planks, leg lifts, etc. to maintain a toned body. As a dancer I don’t feel the need to be “ripped” but I like having some definition on my body as a everyday look, and having strong muscles makes dancing much easier, physically.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? Some advice I would give to someone who is very busy like me, but wants to stay healthy is to eat right, drink a lot of water, sleep a good amount of hours each day, and rest when your body tells you to. If you have time and the strength within a packed day, a short and sweet 10-15 minute workout with a good meal always seems to do the deed. Always listen to your body and never allow yourself to be overworked.
Being healthy doesn’t always involve just a work out routine and a salad. You have to physically take care of your body and then tend to your personal needs.
Rachel Johnson
Johnson is a stylist credited with making over the NBA. Her work with athletes led to diversity and inclusion within the fashion community.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I focus mostly on strength training. I find pursuing strength goals gives me the body I am striving for. It also takes up substantially less time than other forms of exercises. Even after long breaks from strength training, I maintain most of my strength. So if I am unable to train for a month, I don't feel like I am starting over from square one. Discipline is key.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? I have worked with some of the most elite, well conditioned athletes in the world. Just being in the presence of their greatness and witnessing their processes via workouts, diet, discipline and work ethic is a major point of inspiration for me.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? My fitness regimen changes based on my available time. When I have more time I focus on setting personal strength records focusing on squats, deadlifts and bench presses. When I am busy, I focus on maintenance and diet. My goal is to stay active at least 3 days a week.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? Folks who are extremely busy are usually successful people who thrive in goal-setting environments. My advice is to focus on short & long term goal. The game changer for me has been meeting my trainer, Ali Ghavami at Kaeos Fitness in Englewood. He helps me set goals and is a master at moving the goal post seamlessly upon completion of those goals.
Geron McKinley
McKinley is a model who's appeared in campaigns for Rihanna’s PUMA collection, Givenchy, Fear of God, and Hermes. He started a non-profit for his hometown, Compton, that offers scholarships for local kids.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I think I’m able to balance everything I have going on because I’ve been prioritizing it. Sometimes I fall off track because my priorities get outta line, but part of being a juggling act is tightening up to keep that flow going.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? My current profession does have its pros when it comes to a healthy lifestyle. To keep it completely blunt, if I don’t keep up with my health, like anyone else, I’m more than likely out of a job.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? I don’t have a specific regimen but I do try and switch up my workouts as much as I can to stay away from feeling like it’s a routine.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy?
My advice would simply be to prioritize your health. Business is cool and so is making money, but if you don’t look after your health then you won’t be here long enough to enjoy it, or worse case, live long enough to make it.
Sam Tooley
Tooley is an endurance coach and the founder of AlphaFitClub.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I schedule my training sessions just like I would any other meeting. Owning multiple gyms, running an online business, starting a foundation can get hectic - if I really wanted, there is always something I 'could' be doing to build them but I know if I don't take care of myself, all of that will go down the drain as well. I make it a point to sit down at the beginning of the week, look at what training sessions need to be done, and figure out how I can best fit them in my schedule without adding any unnecessary stress. Once it goes in the calendar, unless there is an emergency, it's non negotiable.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? I own Alpha Performance which is a private and semi-private training facility out of Garwood, New Jersey and just launched Alpha Fit Club, a group fitness concept in my hometown of Westfield. While there's obviously a direct correlation to helping people create a healthy lifestyle, a backbone of each of the business is that we believe the workouts, the community, the vibe of the gyms as a whole is a catalyst for making changes outside of the gym as well. It's about showing up and doing the work surrounded by a group of like minded, positive people who want to help you be better than you were yesterday. It sounds cliché and cheesy, but you can feel it when you walk in either of the gyms.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? Right now I am training for an Ironman, so my regimen is rather absurd. I'll swim 2-3x per week, bike 3x per week, and run 4-5x per week. Fitting it all in can be tricky and certainly calls for some early mornings, but I'm loving it. My background was originally in running, then I devoted myself to strength training. I saw a gap in the market when I moved back home. Endurance athletes LOVE endurance sports but fear the weight room and misunderstood the benefits it could hold for them. I wanted to squash that once in for all and show that it's not just going to make you faster, but you're going to stay healthy in the long haul. That's key.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? My advice is always to prioritize - figure out what you want, why you want it, and what you're willing to do to get it. Sometimes those components don't always match up. You can want to do an Ironman, but you may not be willing to sacrifice the friends and family time that it may take in order to do so - that's totally fine. You may want to transform your body and get leaner and stronger, but when you dig deep and ask hard questions - you may want it for reasons you're not so happy with.
Sometimes we have to get real with ourselves to make sure we are actually enjoying the journey and willing to see it through before we make commitments. Going after large scale fitness and performance goals requires a lot of that.
Jason Suarez
Suarez is a photographer and runner.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I mean I don’t think I still have this figured out. I struggle with this a lot. I’m pretty good at keeping a some sort of routine while I’m at home but on the road is a different story. But I do know what helps me is signing up for races, marathons specifically, you can’t BS your way though that race. Now I’m not telling you to go sign up for a marathon, but mentally, it helps me prioritize getting in workouts while I’m on the road. One of the things I learned this year was that your workout doesn’t have to be this huge event where you need to block out an hour or so. It can just be a 20 minute run or jog; it’s all about just moving.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? In order for me to keep up with subjects that I’m shooting, or simply getting from one side of town to another while shooting a marathon, I have to run. I also have to run with equipment. So I have to have some sort of fitness year round. The last few years I’ve done just enough to get by, but it’s not where I want it to be, it’s a work in progress.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? Not really, I mean I do stretch every morning and do some band work and whatever exercise my PT recommends me to do. Things are a little different at the moment because I’m marathon training, so I’m doing things that normally I wouldn’t do. But I’m hoping I keep going with the habits I picked up the last few months.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? One thing that I do now is take snacks with me. This might sound so simple, but drink a bunch of water. I used to think I needed soda to get through the day or events. It gave me a temporary fix and I wouldn’t go hungry, so I’d skip meals. But the crash at the end of the night was brutal. I also just felt like trash by the end of the week with how much soda I would consume. Trail mix, water, and some fruit makes a huge difference between meals. Like I said before, on your busy days 20 minutes of being active is all you really need and it’ll make a world of difference.
Bobby Hicks
Hicks is a filmmaker, photographer, model, and social media personality.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? I'm juggling more projects than I would ever encourage anyone to tackle, whilst staying active. But there is always time to be had. I'm a firm believer in planning your days. If you can set a schedule for yourself, it's a lot easier to visualize what you need to do and when you need to do it, so when I'm busy with a load of tasks for the day, seeing them broken down gives me the focus I need to get in my training. You don't need to kill yourself every day, and times like right now, I usually only find about 30 minutes to train, so I make it count.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? There is nothing about my field that directly promotes a healthy lifestyle over any other field, but it does allow me the ability to choose my locations. That alone is a huge gift to staying in shape, but it also forces you to be creative and work with minimal equipment, since I might not always be near a proper gym.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? I train in a sport called Girevoy (Kettlebell Sport). It's a sport that is based on endurance under weight load for a time of 10 minutes. My specific drill is Long Cycle (The Clean and Jerk), where I take two 24kg competition-style kettlebells and swing them to my chest and then explosively press above my head, over and over, until my time is up or I can't handle it anymore and drop. I love this sport so much because it's 100% mental and pushes you way beyond what you think your body can do. I know some of the strongest men and women in any field, and when they have to do Clean and Jerks for more than 2 minutes, they're sucking wind, and it doesn't even matter what the weight is.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? Find an activity that excites you. The most important thing for anyone to consider when trying to develop a habit is to find pleasure in the process, not the result. If your main concern is to look good, and you've a long way before you're there, it's a broken foundation to walk on, so be sure to find an activity that brings you joy, like hiking, swimming, weight lifting or yoga. I personally think everyone should incorporate some kind of resistance training into their lives because it's been clinically proven to be the most effective way to lose body fat and live longer, but sometimes it helps to prime your body with a simpler activity before you jump into the deep end of the pool.
Glen Coco Oropeza
Oropeza is a celebrity hairstylist.
Many people claim they don't have time to stay active. How do you balance a hectic schedule with staying in shape? Every week before I start my crazy schedule I go over each day of clients and figure out where I can plug in either a group fitness class or a personal training session. It's easier for me to sign up for classes/training sessions at the beginning of the week so I hold myself accountable and it's already factored in to my day.
In what ways does your profession help to promote a healthy lifestyle? Being surrounded by some of the most beautiful, healthy people gives me motivation and encourages me to keep up a healthy lifestyle. We’re constantly on the go, so keeping healthy snacks on hand is helpful so I stay charged and away from the not so healthy set food.
Do you have a specific fitness regimen that you keep to? I try to work out 4-5 days a week when my schedule permits. Usually 2-3 personal training sessions and 2 group fitness classes or a hike. It's so important to stay in shape and keep my body strong because my job is so physical.
What advice would you give someone who lives an extremely busy lifestyle, but still wants to ensure they’re staying active and healthy? My advice is to do your best to be physical, whether it's a walk or quick 15 min ab workout as soon as you wake up. Eat as clean as possible, not only will that help with how you function on a daily basis but it will prevent you from getting sick and having to miss work. It's a whole mind, body, soul connection. I can’t be the best version of myself for my clients without taking care of my mind/body first.
