Santa Monica + NTC = Love
Santa Monica is a gorgeous city. Palm trees, ocean, sun and a killer fitness community made it possible for Nike to hold one of their best female focused fitness event's yet. Their Nike Training Club app has been popular for years and their live classes have been steadily growing since their introduction into Nike stores and 24 Hour Fitness gyms. This year they brought their top trainers, fashion, food and fitness classes to a weekend event focusing on staying active and crushing your training goals. Girls from across the country flew in to experience a life-changing fitness event that changes the way you train.
Fitness is about being healthy. It should also be about having fun with your friends, pushing boundaries and trying new things. All of these things were incorporated into this weekend. Nike knows fitness and they wanted to share that with us.
Friday evening began with a "Gilded Gear Up" night. Nike gave all participants a brand new, limited edition, Rose Gold Fuelband SE to track our movement all weekend long. They had an evening of hors d'oeuvres, water, champaign, chocolate covered strawberries, a nail art bar and a Q&A with Derek Hough from Dancing with the Stars fame and Joselynne Boshen, Nike Master Trainer and owner of Alpha Venice. We were treated like VIP's and every lady felt blessed to be a part.
I was able to meet up with old friends, new friends and some people I had only seen on Instagram. It was a great night geared towards fitness, fun and laughter. A perfect beginning to a weekend full of sweat-inducing NTC workouts designed to make you feel the burn! I was even asked to be in a video for Nike! Keep your eye out and you just might see me rocking my Rose Gold Fuelband, shopping for some new Nike gear and working out hard!
Saturday morning I woke up early and headed over to the event. After snatching some amazing Chai Tea and a blueberry muffin at the Urth Caffe, I charged my phone and got checked in. There were already a lot of ladies in line, waiting in anticipation of the fun and sweat to come! We were given wristbands that you could also scan at stations throughout the event to get photos and workout outfits from the Nike website sent to your phone. It was pretty high-tech and fun.
One of my first stops inside the tour was the life-size NTC sign facing the water. It was the perfect place for a photo opportunity and I took full advantage. The sign is similar to the "We Run" signs at the Nike Women's Marathon events. It was a great addition to the NTC tour and a great photo to post to Instagram! I know my photo feed was flooded with NTC Tour photos and I loved it!
The event started off with a breakfast from Whole Foods, nail art opportunities, a braiding station and photo opportunities around the venue. The breakfast was delicious and provided us with KIND bars, fresh pressed juices, yogurt, fruit and granola. Following breakfast was some pre-workout stretching and warm-up and then the opening show! We were all surprised by a dance performance by Derek Hough and a dance crew!
The event started off with a bang with a great workout from Marie Purvis and many Nike Master Trainers. Then we all broke off into our individual sessions. I was signed up for my first Flywheel sports cycling class, a Q & A with Olympic Gold Medalist, Gabby Douglas and Refinery 29 and an NTC Remix class with Marie Purvis! I don't do a lot of indoor cycling, but Flywheel is a totally different experience. It's high energy and there are weights involved. Yes, you heard me right. You cycle while you pump iron with shoulder presses, bicep curls and many other moves to make you feel the burn and work up a sweat. I loved and hated every minute of the class with instructor, Holly Rilinger, from NYC. Like they said this weekend: break a sweat, break some hearts.
Following Flywheel I was glad to have a short break while I heard Gabby Douglas talk about her fitness and health routine. She was super friendly and shared her thoughts on cross training with her brother - they often do sprint workouts together, fashion, training even when you don't feel like it, and her favorite TV shows. In many ways she is a great champion, but I also saw how much of a teenager and sweet young girl she is. It's amazing what she has accomplished. I was truly inspired. The photo below is when I was standing next to Skylar Diggins and Gabby Douglas before they were announced on stage.
After the talk it was time to break a sweat one more time! This class was all about getting fit with the toughest NTC drills and new moves from Marie Purvis. We did partner drills, body weight exercises, resistance band work and squats, so many squats! I definitely have been feeling a bit sore from this workout. It was a rough day getting out of bed Sunday morning!
Marie has certainly earned her title of Master Trainer and creator of the NTC app! Her workouts are no joke and are sure to get you in the best shape of your life. Failure is not an option. Her energy and passion was evident through the entire sweat session. I am so glad she was on hand to kick my booty yet again! Thanks, Marie!
The event neared the end around 6pm. After a final stretch and cool down, green confetti flew though the air to celebrate the conclusion of the first ever NTC Tour LA! I could not have been happier to be at the event and consider myself blessed to have been able to attend. Santa Monica is a beautiful city and a perfect surrounding for fitness events like this. With the beach, ocean and a gorgeous running trail just steps away, it's a fitness enthusiast's dream!
A huge thank you goes to everyone who helped make this event the massive success that it was. I can't wait to come back again, year after year, and see how it evolves and grows. After speaking to so many of the NTC Master Trainers and taking their classes, I know that one of my future goals is to one day share the stage with them as a Nike Master Trainer. Consider that my goal for 2015.
Friends and training buddies truly made this event great. I hope next year the event has even more activities on Friday and Sunday. I'm sure it will be even bigger and more sweat-inducing next year! Until then, I'll be training to become fitter and stronger.
The sun may have set on the NTC Tour 2014 but I know that big things are happening in 2015! Let's make the NTC movement a revolution in fitness. Take the world by storm and show men and women everywhere that fitness is a community event and sweating together can be both life-changing and fun!