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Candice Kumai’s Tips for a Healthier Life

You guys are amazing! You know how to make a girl smile, that’s for sure! Thank you so much for the kind tweets, comments, messages, and texts regarding Sunday’s NYC Half Marathon! My hamstrings are craving some time on the foam roller and after a long day of work on Monday my mind and body appreciated 2 days off. Tomorrow I’m going to jump back into it with an evening workout at As1 with fellow FitMapped Ambassadors. Based on the RateYourBurn reviews and the images on Google, I’m scared!

But, back to tonight’s post! There is nothing I love more than hearing about a person’s health journey or the way they weave their health beliefs into their everyday life. I think you can learn a great deal about a person, their priorities, and personality just from hearing them speak about health. Tonight, thanks to the New York Junior League, I was able to listen to Candice Kumai speak for an hour on her philosophies, favorite New York City restaurants, and some of her favorite workouts. The small group setting presentation was casual enough that the true person came out but formal enough for a slide show and Q&A portion.

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This very talented 30 year old attributes much of her beliefs and practices to her Japanese heritage. In just a short time, the model turned food writer has been a Top Chef competitor, judge on Iron Chef America, authored multiple books, and is now in the new E! Television show, Playing with Fire. This new reality series marks the first time E! has tapped into food. She promises it includes tears, drama, insanity in the kitchen, and a bit of restaurant reality!

The train of thought hour long conversation allowed attendees to catch a glimpse into her daily health practices while she shared some of her top tips with us.

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  • Drink 10 cups of water per day to flush out toxins and negative energy.
  • Avoid highly acidic coffee, soda, or diet soda. Instead, enjoy plenty of kombucha, tea, or lemon water. Her favorite teas include Tazo green ginger and Yogi Detox.
  • Start each day with a positive mantra that allows you to start with a clean slate. Her favorite is to live each day as it is.
  • Eliminate processed foods as much as possible.
  • Practice the 75% rule. Only eat until you’re 75% full and eat a plate filled with 57% produce.
  • She absolutely loves to use coconut oil for cooking and as a moisturizer.
  • Sleep is key for a healthy life.
  • Make your bedroom a sanctuary by bringing candles, relaxing music, soft pillows, and magazines into the space.
  • Her favorite NYC fitness spots include Soul Cycle and Pure Barre.
  • Her favorite NYC restaurants are ABC Kitchen, Hearth, Marc Forgione, Perry Street, Marrow, Catch, Five Leaves in Brooklyn, Soba Totto, and Terroir Wine Bar.

Overall it was a great night and I left with a few great tips and a restaurant or two that we need to add to our list!

How about you? What are your tips for a healthier life?

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New York Junior League Winter Ball

Oh New York Junior League Winter Ball how you never fail to deliver an amazing New York City evening complete with delicious beverages, a great band, amazing gowns, and lots of dancing in a beautiful venue.This is my 3rd year attending (see last year’s recap here) our league’s largest event of the year which is a fundraiser for our many community partners.

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This years gown, thanks to your recommendations, was my favorite thus far! I used Rent the Runway for the first time and finally understand why there is so much hype. After reading all of your suggestions, I decided to go big or go home and rent the Badgley Mischka Glitz Gown! I’ve learned over the years that strapless dresses don’t compliment my figure and therefore have moved towards either deep v-neck or strappy dresses instead as you can tell from the above pictures. This gown rents for $160 but thanks to the January Birchbox, I had a $50 gift card that I applied. While $100 may seem like a lot for a rental, it would be very difficult to find a gown for under that price and I find that I rarely wear gowns a second time. In addition, there are dresses and accessories of all price points on Rent the Runway. I’ve marked a few of their adorable summer dresses as possible rentals for events this summer and most are $25!

In addition to the gown, I was able to add a piece of jewelry for just $10 thanks to a promotional code. They took the guess work out of accessorizing this dress by having their stylist choose earrings.

As a few people on Instagram and Facebook have asked for more details behind my look, here are the specifics:

Hair: blow out at DREAMDRY (Rachel Zoe’s new blow out bar located in Flatiron which is quickly making a name for itself after only 3 weeks by being less expensive than competitors while still delivering a luxury, relaxing experience. Full review to follow in a separate post.)2013-03-02 17.11.33

Makeup: I did my makeup myself as the past few times I’ve had my makeup done by a professional I haven’t been crazy about the look. Instead, I invested in a new lip stick and liner to ensure that I brought a bit of a statement to my normal makeup style. Since Dolce&Gabbana Makeup is one of our brands, I was excited to finally try their popular red lipstick which is definitely one of the signature items! The woman at Sephora recommended Dolce&Gabbana Lipliner in Fire and Dolce&Gabbana Classic Cream Lipstick in Devil. Per her suggestion, I lined my lips and colored them in with the liner before applying the lipstick. This extra step ensured that even when my lipstick wore off on a wine glass, there would still be color. The only other change I made was a thicker than normal application of both  liquid eye liner and mascara.

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The entire evening was so much fun, especially since Bo and I had the pleasure of finally meeting JP and Blake, two of Laura’s friends from college who live in Dallas. The 5 of us spent the evening dancing with Theodora, Shannon, and Jen! It was also a great chance for Bo to meet some of the amazing ladies on my committee and in the League whom I talk about so often!

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As you can tell from the pictures, it was a great chance for us to all let loose and toast a great year with the league.

Your Turn: Rent the Runway? Yay or Nay?  Do you prefer to own or rent for special occasions?

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Playing in the Dirt

After a wonderful double date at Ofrenda last night which included more than a few end of the week drinks, waking up this morning wasn’t easy.

In fact, it took me over 45 minutes just to get dressed and moving. Luckily, I had somewhere to be and people to see! This morning, Theodora and I volunteered at Sara D Roosevelt Park in the Lower East Side with the NYJL Playground Improvement Project.

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Over the past 20 years, the program has grown into a major effort and collaboration with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. Parks and PIP partner annually to restore and rejuvenate parks throughout Manhattan, all of which require immediate attention and have the potential for the greatest impact on the surrounding community.

I decided to kill two birds with one stone and run the 1.6 miles down to the playground instead of taking a cab or subway. It was faster, easier, and helped me wake up.

When I arrived, I realized that a bagel and coffee wasn’t what my body was craving. Luckily, I was able to pick up my own breakfast, exactly what I was craving, from Whole Foods. I enjoyed an unpictured banana and coconut water. Both helped me recover from last night’s sodium filled dinner and the long week.

IMG_1835 (640x478)We spent the morning in destruction mode. Our challenge was to remove all the weeds, foreign plants, and debris from a large flower bed. We were also warned to watch out for glass, shredded cans, and needles. Luckily, no one in our group had to go to the lab after the park to get tested. 😉 Our group had a blast with this task and spent most of the time laughing in the dirt.

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IMG_1836 (640x478) IMG_1832 (640x478)  By the time lunch arrived, we had more than 15 large black bags filled with debris!

IMG_1834 (640x478) In case you were wondering, the Junior League doesn’t mess around with their box lunches!

IMG_1841 (640x478) IMG_1843 (478x640) I ate half the krinkle sticks, half the fruit cup, and 3/4 of the sandwich. I took off the cheese and as much mayonnaise as possible. This lunch was delicious but left me craving a nap instead of more gardening.

Our afternoon task was to rejuvenate our newly emptied gardens with new plants and shrubs! There were two flat bed trucks filled with over 100 plants!

IMG_1830 (640x478)This task was definitely harder than the morning destruction. Digging perfectly sized holes is not as easy as it looks; especially when you’re digging through trash, concrete, and sandy dirt!

IMG_1846 (640x478) IMG_1844 (478x640) IMG_1845 (640x478)Volunteering, spending time in the dirt, and enjoying fresh air with friends was a great way to spend the morning. It’s so rare that I’m able to garden in New York City since I don’t have a yard or any personal green space. If you’re interested in volunteering through the Playground Improvement Project, click here for more information!

Since I have a bridal shower dinner tonight at The Standard, I left an hour early. I ran the 1.6 miles back home up 2nd Avenue, taking in all the tourists, activity, and street fairs. The city was alive this afternoon once the sun came out! You can really tell that people are trying to summon Spring through their clothes and attitudes. Every restaurant was packed, even at 2:30, with people enjoying the fresh air.

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