To your health
Wednesday, Sept. 23 — Happy Wednesday! I’m enjoying a bit of a reset in Montreal this week, but here’s the latest health and wellness news from Atlanta (and beyond).
🇺🇸 Last week, I wrote about Atlanta’s Allison Mercer representing Team USA at the IAU 100K World Championships in Ames, Spain. Allison finished the 62-mile race in 7:39:55, placing third among the masters woman. She was the 15th woman overall. Her U.S. teammates, Charlie Lawrence and Courtney Olsen, won their respective races.
⚡ Tom Holland has always been super fit. I’ll admit, I’ve watched his iconic “Umbrella” performance on “Lip Sync Battle” many times. But when the actor wanted to get in peak shape for Marvel’s “Spider-Man” films, he turned to electrical muscle stimulation (EMS). Proponents of this high-tech workout claim it activates more than 90% of the body’s muscle fibers, making basic exercises like squats and crunches even more intense. Learn more about this futuristic exercise method in this week’s feature story.
🛍️ For all you fitness girlies (and guys), the new ALO store opened at Ponce City Market last week. I’ve got a roundup of some of my favorite picks from the popular athleisure brand below.
💃🏽 Finally, for Hispanic Heritage Month, check out Georgia Voice and Rough Draft staff writer Katie Burkholder’s story on La Choloteca, Atlanta’s queer Latinx dance party.
Be well!
✨ Laura
💬 “How was your day?” “Fine.” Your teen probably isn’t shutting you out. Being asked face to face costs more at that age. Intown Psychology helps parents of anxious kids and teens. Get a free consultation. SPONSOR MESSAGE
How EMS Strength Training Suits Work
🔌 From Tom Holland to Sarah Michelle Gellar (aka “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”), celebrities can’t get enough of electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) workouts. Who doesn’t feel like a badass superhero in a high-tech, skintight suit? Whether in at-home or in-studio classes, these futuristic EMS workout suits transmit electrical pulses at controlled intervals. These pulses stimulate contractions in major muscle groups, simulating an intense strength-training session in a short amount of time.
💡 Read my story on how EMS workout suits work.
Your teen isn’t shutting you out
SPONSORED BY INTOWN PSYCHOLOGY
💬 “How was your day?” “Fine.” If that’s the whole conversation at your house, it probably isn’t that your teen doesn’t want to talk to you.
Research shows being watched raises physical arousal more in adolescence than at any other age, so a face-to-face question costs more than it looks. Try this: sit beside them, not across. Skip the first 20 minutes after school. Ask one specific thing, like “What was the most annoying part of today?”
🧡 Intown Psychology helps families of anxious kids and teens. Get a free consultation.
ALO Opens New Store at Ponce City Market
🤸♀️ LA-based lifestyle brand ALO opened a new store at Ponce City Market last Friday. The boutique will also host wellness events like fitness classes and mindfulness walks.
🛍️ Here are some of my top picks from the athleisure brand:
🧘🏼♀️ 7/8 High-Waist Airlift Legging: With high-compression fabric and a double-layered waistband, these leggings look stylish — and stay in place — for both Pilates sessions and long runs.
🍂 Accolade Crew Neck Pullover: Cozy and soft, this oversized sweatshirt is perfect for sweater weather.
🧦 Unisex Half-Crew Throwback Sock: Because you can never have too many pairs of crew socks.
Queer Latinx Dance Party La Choloteca Turns 10
🕺🏽 Hispanic Heritage Month, an annual celebration of the history and contributions of Hispanic and Latinx people, runs through Oct. 15. For La Choloteca, Atlanta’s queer Latinx dance party, the month also represents its 10th anniversary.
La Choloteca was born out of the desire from advocacy organizer and co-founder Josephine Figueroa – aka DJ La Superiorrr – to marry the worlds of queer nightlife and sexual education.
The Short List
🧴 Fall temperatures are finally here. Yes, I count anything under 90 degrees as fall. But your skin can take a beating in cooler, drier air. I’ve been a fan of Nécessaire’s body wash for a long time. The brand also has an amazing body retinol. It’s a repair serum for evening out skin tone and reducing fine lines and wrinkles.
🐴 This one is for our resident “critter beat” reporter, Cathy Cobbs: The Washington Post reports that spending just three minutes with a mini donkey or horse improved teens’ moods and reduced their anxiety.
🔎 Everyone’s favorite bumbling spies are back. I’m talking about Apple TV’s “Slow Horses,” a breezy thriller about dysfunctional MI5 agents. Gary Oldman is doing some of his best work as Jackson Lamb, their slovenly yet brilliant ringleader.
🎧 One of my favorite musical memories in recent years was listening to Josh Ritter sing “Homecoming” in Chattanooga’s Coolidge Park as the sun set over the Walnut Street Bridge. It’s one of my go-to fall songs. You can listen to the rest of them on my essential fall playlist.
💬 “How was your day?” “Fine.” Your teen probably isn’t shutting you out. Being asked face to face costs more at that age. Intown Psychology helps parents of anxious kids and teens. Get a free consultation. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Book It
🧘🏾♀️ One of the hardest Pilates classes I’ve ever taken in my life was from Kali Arnold. A former orthopedic surgeon, Kali is also a certified Pilates and yoga instructor.
She’s the owner of Sati Yoga & Wellness in Kirkwood, a non-heated studio that brings a trauma-informed approach to movement. This fall, she’s opening a second studio in Kirkwood, Sati Pilates & Wellness. Get on the mailing list ASAP, because I know the classes will book up quickly!
The Rundown
🐕 Blue Stone 5K-9: A Road Race for People & Pups, Sat., Sept. 26 at 8 a.m. at Century Springs East, Sandy Springs.
🔔 Flow into Stillness, a yoga and sound bath experience, Sun., Sept. 27 at 11 a.m. at SweetWater Brewing Company.
👟 L5P Wellness Walk, Sun., Sept. 27 at noon in Little Five Points.
