Healthy Chicks

I value my time more than anything. While often times I feel like I don’t have enough time to do everything I want in a day, I feel I do a pretty good job balancing my time between my relationship, my friendships and my career. Have I perfected it? No. Have I gotten better? Yes.

Then there’s my “me time,” something I’m still working on every day to create more of. I’m beginning to realize that me time is perhaps the most meaningful, precious time of all because without me time, well, time sort of just tick-tocks on by.

Yesterday I had an extremely busy, action-packed day where I barely had a minute to stop & breathe. I was OK with it because I knew I had my 6:30 p.m. roofdeck yoga to look forward to. Some Rachel time on the mat on a beautiful roofdeck overseeing Boston. That right there got me through a somewhat stressful afternoon.

I left myself a fair amount of time to get to yoga as I always do, and skipped off with my mat and water bottle to catch the T. “Sweet, it’s early! I LOVE when that happens,” I thought to … Read More!

I spent this past weekend on Cape Cod with a group of college girlfriends celebrating our friend’s bachelorette party. As I was looking around at the group of ladies (some whom I hadn’t seen in years), I couldn’t stop admiring how beautiful everyone is.

And no, I’m not talking about just on the outside. It’s no question that everyone rocked their LBD and looked absolutely glowing, but what I’m talking about is the beauty that comes from within. Inner & outer beauty are connected and if you can express them both then girl, you’ve got it goin’ onnn!

Here are 5 Ways to Be Beautiful From The Inside Out:

1. Don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself & let loose: True beauties aren’t afraid to make a fool out of themselves and have a good time. This sort of inner-child playfulness is downright attractive!

2. Be True To YOU: What I love about all my friends is that we are all so incredibly different and that’s OK. Our group of friends is made up of free spirits, creatives, party-hoppers, sporty gals, accountants and entrepreneurs alike. We all have completely different tastes in clothes, music, men, you name it. But … Read More!

Spinning has quickly become one of my favorite exercises of late. Why’s that, you ask? Well of course I love a good, sweat-inducing, body-sculpting workout, but that’s not the main reason why I’ve fallen in love with spin. What really put me head over heels is the way it makes me feel. There’s nothing like 45+ juicy minutes of straight-up adrenaline mixed with loud beats pumping through the speakers to get you motivated!

Thus far, I’ve been taking classes at Recycle Studio which I adore for their top-notch teachers and comfortable, boutique feel. (Take Christina’s class…she’ll make you sweat ’til the very end) But unfortunately there aren’t many other spin studios around the Boston area, especially for those who don’t live right in the city.

That’s why I was super excited for the opening of The Handle Bar, the city’s newest spin studio located in South Boston (right off Broadway Station on the Red Line.) And I was lucky enough to be invited to try the class with up to 10 of my friends (spin shoe rental included.) SCORE!

While The Handle Bar isn’t right in Downtown Boston, it’s just a quick 10 minute trip from Park Street Station, … Read More!

Many of us live on a schedule, and make choices based on habits. Most of the time, our decisions are based on what’s right or in the norm versus how we’re feeling.

We eat the boring iceberg salad with fat-free dressing because we’re trying to slim down, even though we may really want the juicy, grass-fed burger. We sign up for 5 cardio classes in one work-week to stay in shape, even though we may really need some yoga (or heck, even a nap.) We do what’s right and punish ourselves for being “bad” when we do what we presume to be wrong.

How is this behavior showing up in your life?

This week, I’ve been lacking on the fitness front and old me would have beat myself up about it. New me realizes my body needed rest, nourishment and replenishing. Instead of ignoring my body’s signals by forcing myself to run it off on the treadmill for hours (old me), I now understand the beauty of looking within and taking a break. And this morning’s 7 a.m. Vinyasa flow at Back Bay Yoga with the lovely Cara Gilman totally hit the spot.

After all, our bodies are smart, and … Read More!

I live a very fast-paced, go-go-go, give it my all, “you can sleep when you’re dead” lifestyle most of the time (as I assume most blossoming entrepreneurs do.) It’s full of passion, excitement, life and color! Staying up late letting the creative juices flow…parking it at coffee shops for the day to hit last-minute deadlines…taking chances…booking meetings…picking up the phone…showing up…saying “Yes.”

I won’t lie: while it’s wildly inspiring and entertaining sometimes it can be plain exhausting. Exhausting to the point of burn out, fatigue and “enough.” Does that mean I’m not cut out for it? Not one bit.

You see, what I realized lately is that you don’t have to pick one or the other: the “play it safe” unplugged life or the fast ‘n’ furious audacious life. Rather, they can play off each other and you can have the best of both worlds. You can create your perfect blend.

How? By slowing down (when you need to). It’s wonderful to live a life full of wild excitement, but if you suddenly get too wrapped up in being “on” all the time, that may be a sign that it’s time for you to slow down, take a break … Read More!

I get it, you’re busy & don’t have time in the morning. (Who does these days?) But that doesn’t mean you’ve gotta settle for a leftover cookie, OJ from the office vending machine or a plain bagel with cream cheese for your breakfast of champions. We all know that processed, high-sugar, packaged meals don’t quite serve us so well – especially when we rely on them to fuel our energy.

But what are we to do when we’re on a time crunch? Trust me, I don’t like spending an hour on breakfast either. Um, we have lives…I totally get it!

That’s why I’ve come up with a variety of go-to meals that are quick, easy and nourish me all in one. Know that your perfect breakfast will be different than mine, as we are all different and what works for one may not work for another. (This is something I work on further with my private clients!)

But that being said, I wanted to share with you one of my favorite breakfasts when I’m pressed for time. Enjoy!

The Mexi Breakfast Burrito {Gluten Free & Dairy Free}

What Ya Need:

• 1 brown rice tortilla wrap (I buy mine at Trader

I used to think that starting over was impossible — it seemed completely out of my reach.

If I over-indulged for a weekend in college, I’d punish myself for being “bad” and “ruining” my diet by starving myself and stuffing my face with sugar-free, low-cal crap.

And if I made a mistake, chose the wrong path or felt “stuck” in a life I didn’t love, I’d think there was nothing I could do about it. This is just how it is. It’s “too late.”

I now know it’s never too late to start over & create the life you want for yourself. With this new mindset, I’ve left jobs that didn’t feel right to me, let go of a toxic “relationship” that was draining me, broke up with the scale, and released the thoughts “I can’t.”

By doing so, I have found a career path that makes me stay up late at night feeling inspired, I know what real love feels like, I have developed a healthy & fun relationship with food and I now tell myself “I can do it” as much as possible.

You see, it truly is never too late. Your life is like a blank … Read More!

Happy first day of summer ladies! The day has finally come…let the celebrations commence. I don’t know about you, but summer didn’t always bring up warm, happy, fuzzy feelings for me. In fact, it gave me a whole lot of anxiety to tell you the truth.

Pool parties, beach days, bikinis, BBQs, and heck even my birthday brought up lots of negative emotions for me. “Why can’t I have her body?” “How can I hide my ginormous, fat thighs at the beach?” “What can I do to work off all the ‘bad food’ I ate last night?” “Great…another birthday…another year…and I’m still single AND heavier than last year.”

Oh the endless guilt, self-hate and body-bashing. It was pure torture.

Once I quit dieting and began to fall in love with life, the weight started to come off, the negative emotions started to fade and I started to be a little nicer to my body.

Alas, summer has by far become my favorite season once again. Without further adieu, here are 40 reasons why summer gets my heart pumpin’!

1. Camping trips with zero makeup, zero distractions and zero drama

2. My birthday. July 5th that is. It’s a day to … Read More!