The Skinny On Manhattan →
This is my fitness and lifestyle blog, created with the goal of eating, drinking, working out – enjoying everything Manhattan has to offer – and living to tell the tale, all the while looking fabulously fit and feeling awesomely healthy. That's all.
Besides a chatty outlet for something I enjoy, this is a perpetually fun social media experiment for me to see what gets the most hits, shares and love. The short answer: Anything that tells you how to "Get thin quick". And pictures of cake. *Sigh*
Scroll down for a sampling of what I cover.
1- Current food news: Here's a post I did when there was a big pork shortage scare.
All of last week, everyone seemed to be on about the grand global bacon shortage predicted for 2013: Aporkalypse, Porkapolypse and my personal favorite – Hammageddon.
Apparently, a major drought in the midwest has driven up the price of pork feed which has forced some hog farmers to downsize their herd (more deets here). So of course people have already begun hoarding bacon and in general, seem to be freaking out.
I say we take this as an opportunity to try something healthier: chicken bacon. I actually didn't know such a thing even existed till last week when I was walking through the Fairway on 86th Street, looking for dinner... more
2- This was an important one for me - blowing up impossible body standards always is.
CONTEMPLATING THE THIGH GAP and other anatomical improbabilities
The "thigh gap" never seems to stay out of the news for long. Considering this week is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, it makes sense it's back; there are way too many who have driven themselves to extremes trying to achieve it. The first I began to hear of it was early last year when I saw Good Morning America interview teen girls because the thigh gap was their latest obsession. Not having one made you positively grotesque.
What's a thigh gap? It's the space between your upper inner-thighs. Or in my case, the space that does not exist between my upper inner-thighs. I will spare you photographic evidence of its absence. (You're welcome!)
The interview with the girls was distressing, especially because of how young they were. Not that thigh gaps discussions in fashion and glamor mags for grown women are any better – it's become one more imperfection to add to our list.
3- Diet: This post was one of a series of posts on a 21-day detox diet challenge that served as a how-to, as well as a journal of my own experience. Posts ranged from detox-friendly restaurants, cravings, the latest exercise craze, mental melodrama and finally, insights. I complemented it with a complete Detox Food Diary on Pinterest to give my readers ideas for what they could eat.
DAY 20: REFLECTING ON HOW I COULDA WOULDA SHOULDA MADE DETOX EASIER. AND HOW YOU CAN.
Diet: This post was one of a series of posts on a 21-day detox diet challenge that served as a how-to, as well as a journal of my own experience. Posts ranged from detox-friendly restaurants, cravings, the latest exercise craze, mental melodrama and finally, insights. I complemented it with a complete Detox Food Diary on Pinterest to give my readers ideas for what they could eat.
It's Detox Eve. (Or would that have been the night before I started the Detox Challenge?) Regardless. What I'm trying to say is tomorrow is weigh-in. I'm so beside myself excited that we're almost done. And that (so far) I've lasted through it. So I'm taking a moment to reflect on some 'wisdom gained'. At least that's my positive spin on what I'd really call 'foolishness in hindsight'. So to future detoxers of this and any program, here goes:
1. Don't binge before detox.
Seriously. Don't go eating cupcakes and ordering extra glasses of wine and hog your own dessert after dinner when you normally share just because you're about to give it all up. It's 21 days. Not a life sentence. And you'll be wasting precious detox time undoing what didn't even exist till you thought about going on detox. It's incredibly dumb. How do I know? Well, I have a friend...
2. Start seriously exercising right from Day 1 of detox.
Even if you're feeling tired (especially if you're feeling tired!). Ironically, exercising when tired will give you a lot more energy. (Check out my post on how that works. Clearly, I should have done the same.)... more
My Detox Pinterest Board:
Follow Preethi Mahadeviah's board 21-Day Detox Food Diary on Pinterest.
4- Exercise in the city: This post featured a cool class to shake up the exercise routine.
SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER AT BARRY'S BOOTCAMP
When my friend Sudie sent a bunch of us an email asking if we wanted to do an exercise class with her, I had to do a double take on the date and time the woman was suggesting: It was a Saturday night.
I could have sworn it was a typo – except that this was apparently no ordinary bootcamp – it was Barry’s Dance Party Bootcamp.
How could I not be intrigued?
The idea of working out on a Saturday night, however, was a bit of sacrilege to me. But I’ve learned over the course of my life that I end up doing pretty much anything to which I’ve ever said “never” (21-Day Detox Challenge, anyone?). So I didn’t waste time mulling it over. I was in.
Come Saturday at 6:45 pm, a bunch of my favorite bootcamp peeps had assembled in front of the velvet ropes at Barry’s.
What a riot! They gave us all glow-in-the-dark neon bracelets and had some kind of disco king with a large afro running around (he’d be helping us through our workout). An awesome ‘hostess’ offered us energy shots upon entrance – (non-alcoholic, ice-cold and sweet - I normally would have skipped it except that it was a Saturday night!)... more
5- Product reviews: Here's a post about my favorite things. Because I wannabe Oprah.
POST-IRENE TOUCH-UP WITH EDWARD BESS
Monday, after the hurricane kinda sorta hit NYC, my friend Sheeba and I decided to go do our part to aid economic losses incurred by the city due to weekend closure, with a quick stop at Bergdorf's on 5th Ave. We headed straight to the Edward Bess counter downstairs and were thrilled to bump into the man himself.
I first met Edward Bess last year while on a search for my next favorite lipstick color. I was at Bergdorf's with Sheeba then, as well. (FYI, I pretty much do all my makeup shopping with her – ever since she introduced me to my very first eyeshadow 13 years ago at Urban Outfitters in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The girl knows her stuff. And unlike me, knows how to apply it like an expert as well.)
That day, a woman from some other makeup counter told us we had to check out the Edward Bess colors, especially because he was at his counter himself. Sheeba was very excited about meeting a designer with his own makeup line. I was mortified. God alone knew what crap I had on my face. Plus I was more like a toddler with a crayon as far as wearing makeup was concerned at the time. Of course, it didn't matter. He was a sweetheart and reduced us to giggling girls with his charm. Quite the scene, considering he's in his young 20s and so talented...more
6- Fads: The chocolate cake diet was just begging to be taken apart. With this post, I learned that picture of cake = increased readership. Go figure.
IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE
You know how the rest of this saying goes, right?
I’m inspired this morning by an article I read that states the following ‘finding’:
Chocolate cake for breakfast will help you LOSE weight and keep it off, claim scientists.
Seriously? This doesn’t even have the intrigue of the made-famous-by-Beyonce Master Cleanse (the cayenne-pepper and maple syrup in lemon juice diet). Or even the quasi-healthy ring that Japan’s Morning Banana diet had to it. This just sounds plain stupid. But I can bet you this article cheered up any number of people. And at least some of those happy people reached for that piece of chocolate cake.
Whenever you see an article like this one that runs clear of just basic common sense, I would recommend you either:
a) ignore it completely OR
b) sit down and read it in its entirety.
Just for fun, let’s entertain option ‘b’... more
7- Food travelogs: This post is food porn. But it's Italian food porn, therefore classy and justified. I also do a sick amount of research and planning for my trips so I share.
THE MAKINGS OF A SOUVENIR STOMACH: ROME
A few days back, we were asked to write down our goals for this month's bootcamp. Mine were no-brainers: lose the pounds and fat that I gained over my two weeks in Italy.
I've already started blogging about that. So just for fun (and possibly a little self-torture), I thought I'd take you through the good stuff that now has me now working off 4 pounds and 2.3% of my body fat. I'll also give you my two cents on the places I visited since there appears to be a wild number of you headed to Italy this summer.
We'll start with Rome.
Pizza: The best, non-touristy neighborhood to eat in Rome (not heading too far out of the historic center, that is) is over the river in Trastevere. Of course, Rick Steves had us walking through this neighborhood with a podcast, so there are plenty of tourists, but nothing close to the other side of the river. Plus, you see lots of locals here which to me, is always a good sign. And this is where we headed for our first pizza dinner in Rome.
Dar Poeta is a pizza place that I read about on TripAdvisor (an awesome site to help with your trip planning, by the way – lot of reviews on hotels, B&Bs, restaurants, tourist attractions and the like, plus forums where many amazing people will help with your questions). I wanted to go to Dar Poeta because I read it had the best pizza in Rome. I would soon learn that there are a gazillion places that supposedly have the best pizza in Rome. Along with the best gelato. And the best granita. And the best tartufo. The claims are best used as a loose guide of places that may be good... more