When restaurant owner Alexander Nicholas, of New York, NY, was invited to compete in Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge, the seasoned athlete didn’t hesitate to sign on. A Reebok-sponsored, champion Spartan Race competitor, obstacle racing is Nicholas’s specialty. He finished first out of 5,000 at Spartan Hawaii and has competed in numerous additional Spartan Races, as well as a Mexican … [Read more...]
New York-Native Uses Focus, Flexibility and Balance of Yoga in Extreme Broken Skull Challenge
What does a 27-year-old tattoo designer and aspiring yoga teacher from New York have in common with a 34-year-old Wealth Management COO and powerlifter from Florida? They both are battling for $10,000 in the latest extreme competition reality show, Broken Skull Challenge, airing on Sunday, Aug. 10. In Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge, eight elite athletes go head-to-head with everyday men … [Read more...]
Heeding the Call to Teach the Healing of Yoga
I still remember the day I sat in my then-rheumatologist’s office more than a decade ago, fatigued and broken, seeking yet another treatment, desperate for solutions. Seemingly helpless in the fight against insomnia, suffering from daily migraines, brain fog and digestion problems and saddled with excruciating pain, numbness and pins-and-needles sensation of misbehaving nerves, I was so physically … [Read more...]
Former WCW wrestling champion Diamond Dallas Page breathes new life into fitness with DDP Yoga
If you’re going to describe Diamond Dallas Page’s signature workout program, whatever you do, don’t just call it yoga. Despite its moniker, DDP Yoga, the former pro wrestler wants to make clear that “It Ain’t Your Mama’s Yoga.” “When people hear yoga, they think humming and chanting,” Page said in an interview. “This is made for people who wouldn’t be caught dead doing yoga.” Before a crippling … [Read more...]
Find Fitness, Culture and Community at Run or Dye 5K & The Color Festivals
The colorful Run or Dye 5K is hitting locations all over the country this summer. The playful fitness event, featuring dashes of colored dye, is open to all—athletes and loungers, old and young. Children aged 6 and under can even participate for free. The 5 km race is non-competitive and not timed. Participants are welcome to run, walk, or even skip and dance the route at their own paces. There … [Read more...]
Senior Powerlifter Shows Dreams Can Come True At Any Age
When 71-year-old Ray Fougnier was in his late teens and early 20s, he dreamed of competing internationally in weightlifting, specifically in the Olympics. Then work, marriage and a family took over as top priorities. Little did Fougnier know that a half-century later, he would get to see his vision for international competition come true—he will be competing at the 2014 International Powerlifting … [Read more...]
Connecticut runner moves beyond tragic event to train for 2014 Boston Marathon
After a lifetime of imagining the day, West Hartford native Elizabeth Lynch was awed as she stood at the starting line, ready to compete in her first Boston Marathon last year. Ever since she watched her mother first run the race when Lynch was 7, she dreamed of the day she too would tackle the route. At 15, she sprinted Heartbreak Hill with her older brother as he ran the marathon. Then in 2013, … [Read more...]
Yoga Meets People With Movement Disorders Wherever You Are
Toward the end of 2013, I was looking for more tools to not only help me serve clients as a health coach, but to also become a part of my own healing regimen. I had studied and become certified as a holistic health coach, specializing in nutrition at IIN. I had studied as a women’s fitness specialist with NASM. I had even taking the first steps toward getting certified to teach various mind-body … [Read more...]
For #VionicWalkabout in New England Winter, Do I Have to Walk Outside?
It shouldn’t surprise me that the beginning of my 28-day commitment to #VionicWalkabout Quest for Good Health would begin in the midst of some of our coldest days of winter. This is New England after all. I figure there are four options to start on the right foot with my new Zen walking shoes: 1. Hit the gym (or my parents’ house) – Claim a treadmill and walk nowhere for a half-hour. As long as … [Read more...]
These Zen Shoes Were Made for Walking
I was born with what one physician noted in his doctor notes as “grossly flat feet.” While they aren’t the prettiest feet in the world, I believe what my doctor meant by “grossly” was that I had completely flat footsies, with no hint of an arch at all. What this really meant for me was years of shin splints, as well as foot, knee and, sometimes, even lower back pain, when standing or running … [Read more...]