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So a few weeks ago, I took a hot yoga class for a work promotion. While hot yoga is something I’d never think to do on my own, I thought it would be a good idea to take the class, understand the practice and get some good footage along the way. What I didn’t expect was that I’d actually fall in love with it.

I’ll be honest with you, I didn’t like it at all at first. In fact, I felt uncomfortable, hot and overwhelmed a good portion of my first class. However, it’s the after effect that really did it for me. I’ve never felt so healthy, connected and energized in my life. It just makes you feel so alive. In addition to aiding with weight loss and digestion, hot yoga works wonders for your mind, body and spirit, making it a miracle yoga in my mind.

Since my first class, I’ve taken two more and can honestly say I completely love it. OK, that’s an understatement. . . I’m 100% obsessed. If you’re looking for something to change up your run-of-the-mill workout, challenge you and make you look and feel beautiful, then hot yoga is definitely for … Read More!

1. Roof deck bars are officially opened, making for a refreshing, scenic alternative to the typical crowded, sweat-filled bar.

2. You can get away with showing a little too much leg, back or chest (in a classy way, of course). Hey, it’s summer after all!

3. Large pitchers of iced tea, lemonade, lemon water (with fresh mint), and other summery sips. . .mmm

4. Sweaty men with their shirts off. . . running, walking, biking everywhere.

5. Now that the weather’s nice, you can get away with ordering a Sex on the Beach, Pineapple Vodka (with an umbrella of course), and other beachy, girly drinks.

6. Flip flops, every day all day. Enough said.

7. Picnics ‘n’ parties booked every weekend ’til the end of August… Read More!

So after an extremely fun weekend with my girlfriends in DC, I inevitably was cursed with a terrible cold: sore throat, runny nose, headache, sore body, stuffiness, the whole gamut. While all I’ve wanted to do the past few days was pop massive amounts of Advil and hibernate away in my bed, I knew that was neither healthy nor rational. After all, my family (especially my mom) has always been a fan of natural remedies, so I decided to give it a try and low and behold I am 100% better (few).

Below, find some natural remedies I use when I feel a cold coming on, or it’s too late and I’m already full blown sick. Trust me, they work. . . give it a shot!

1. Drink Massive Amounts of H20: I mean massive, not your typical 6-8 glasses. The past few days, I straight up guzzled Nalgene after Nalgene. When you drink lots of water, you pee more and rid your body of all those nasty toxins. It’s a surefire, no fail way to detoxify your bod, and I swear by it each and every time. Not that you shouldn’t be drinking a heck of a lot of … Read More!

While Happy Hours and Cocktail Parties are indeed a great time, they’re usually far from healthy, making me far from happy. Not that I’m expecting a platter of fruit, water and nonfat everything, but it would be nice to have a little variety. These days, “Girls Night Out” consists of salty chips, fattening cupcakes, sugar-overdosed fruity cocktails (that taste more like cough medicine then an alcoholic beverage) and sliders, or our excuse to eat burgers “guilt free.” All of the sudden an innocent hour turns into an entire day’s worth of calories and a bloated upset stomach the next day.

I don’t know about you, but whenever I eat crappy, salty, high fat eats, I wake up the next day feeling absolutely terrible. A grumbling stomach, jeans that don’t fit, a few new pimples and baggy eyes make me anything but a happy girl. Take a deep breath and relax. This is a healthier happier guide for all of you healthy chicks out there who still like to have fun and party now and again. Hey, who doesn’t?

Host Girls’ Night Out at Your Own Home: If the shindig takes place in your own home, you get to control … Read More!

When the weather gets warmer, our craving for cold treats skyrockets as well, or at least mine does. A nice cold margarita , ice cream sundae or Fudgesicle suddenly looks a whole lot better than it did minus a few degrees. So with all this 70-degree Boston weather lately, my sweet tooth is off the wall.

But just ’cause temptations set in doesn’t mean you need to finish an entire gallon of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream or pound 5 martinis. That can’t be healthy (or smart) for anyone. Um, hello, swim suit season is coming up! Don’t worry, girl; I’ve got you covered with some better choices to tame those uncontrollable cravings so you don’t have to miss out on all the fun after all (and you’ll still look killer in a bikini)!

Fro Yo: Rather than diving into a giant ice cream sundae, why not opt for some Fro Yo instead? And no, I’m not talking about the supermarket crap you’ll find loaded with fat and sugar! Opt for some fresh, non fat frozen yogurt at a local ice cream/gelato shop. You’ll find many eateries these days carry the healthy varieties, from sugar free to fat free, … Read More!

So, I just got back from a two week trip in New Zealand and was taken aback at how different the country is from the U.S. There I saw the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen, got a taste of the New Zealand culture, and was able to experience the “adventure capital of the world” with everything from skydiving, bungee jumping and other extreme sports. But the most notable difference between our two countries is how incredibly healthy the people live over there.

Usually vacation consists of beers, burgers and chips, but no, not in New Zealand. I’ve never experienced such a healthy, wholesome vacation in my entire life, with a plethora of fresh food and endless outdoor activities. Throughout the two weeks, I did a little research and took note of some of the healthy habits the “Kiwis” practice. What stunned me most was that they don’t even charge extra for eating healthy as they do in the States. You want a salad instead of fries, a special type of bread? No problem, free of cost. If only we could live a little more like that in the U.S.

Alas now, I’ll share with you some of the things … Read More!

Bikini season is here and that means lookin’ and feelin’ sexy in teeny bikini’s, little bitty shorts and cutesy dresses! This year, I will not even consider the dreaded four letter word D-I-E-T. There will be none of that nasty Cayenne pepper juice that the celebrities use, and no cabbage soup (ew). Dieting is for those going on spring break who want to drop 15 pounds for the big vacay, and then gain back 30 with all the beer and crappy food. No, that’s not very “Healthy Chick”-like.

Instead, we healthy chicks want to focus on sculpting sexy muscles, toning our bods and burning fat. Looking beautiful and shiny and glowing on the outside and feeling even more beautiful and shiny and glowing on the inside.

That’s why this year, I researched foods to help build muscle and burn fat. I came across this lovely article called “20 Super Foods You Need to Build Muscle and Lose Fat” at StrongLifts.com, and thought it was only fair to share it with you.

After reading this, you’ll definitely want to stock your fridge with these magical fat burners! Here goes:

1. Whole Eggs: Yup, turns out you don’t have to eat those … Read More!

I think often in life we get far too wrapped up in all the drama (i.e. the 5 pound winter weight gain, the guy who just wants to be “friends”, the coworker you butt heads with, the “eh” job) that we forget what the whole purpose of life is; that is to be happy and enjoy it to the fullest.

I know for me, when things aren’t going too well, I beat myself up and it’s hard for me to see the positive light at the end of the tunnel. Instead I turn into this negative monster, where I think everything’s bad when in reality it’s not. In fact, it’s not at all. My life is splendid really.

Take last week for example. I got so down on myself all because things weren’t working out in my love life, and the job I hold isn’t my “dream job”, so instead of working at it, I instead got fed up and turned into Miss Negative Nancy.

But, that’s not who I am. I am no negative Nancy. I never have been. So why lately have I been so damn hard on myself? I’ve realized these past couple of months, I started … Read More!

A few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to see Real Housewive’s of New York star Bethenny Frankel speak about her new book, “The Skinny Girl Dish” at Barnes and Noble in Boston.

While many fans were there ranting and raving about meeting a “celebrity,” I went to hear her speak about healthy living. You see, I have been a big fan of Bethenny for more than a year, because her first novel, “Naturally Thin” helped me get over my fear of food, enabling me to look at it as exciting, energizing, fueling and decadent. That’s what Bethenny’s motto is all about: shutting out your negative “food noise” and embracing it, because after all that’s what a naturally thin person does.

Anyway, at her book signing, Bethenny opened up the floor for questions, and I asked her what her biggest guilty pleasure was, expecting her to say something like chocolate cake or greasy pizza. But rather, I was impressed by her response.

“Well, I don’t really have a guilty pleasure, because I feel you can eat whatever you want in moderation. A little of this, a little of that. Although my current obsession is red velvet cake, or even just … Read More!

Every year when Lent comes along, hundreds of people give something up, something they feel life would be a little trickier without. I remember when I was 10 I gave up lollipops, when I didn’t even really like them to try and beat the system. It was my most easy, breazy Lent by far. In high school I gave up bread, which was a little trickier seeing as though I used to be a bread-and-butter fanatic. Then in college I gave up peanut butter for 40 days, my one “guilty pleasure”/addiction which was absolutely miserable. In the end of it all, I had gained about 5 pounds from my lack of a healthy fat in my diet, and had a psychotic peanut butter binge session early Easter morning. I don’t really see how that’s benefiting me, my faith or anyone for that matter. In the movie “40 Days and 40 Nights,” Josh Hartnett gives up sex, which is also stupid because sex is actually healthy for you and that’s not doing anybody any good either.

So, I’ve concluded that this year I will instead do something to better myself, and others around me who I love. I have decided that … Read More!