Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending Fitness Magazine’s Meet & Tweet event in New York City.
I was able to attend the event thanks to FitFluential and was very excited to meet some of my favorite bloggers, see old blogging friends, meet the people who work for Fitness magazine and chat with sponsors of the event.
The event began at 10 a.m. and I walked there from the hotel where I was staying with Theodora and Anne (pictured below), Tina and Courtney.
I was so, so excited to see Courtney (above) again after many months apart. She’s one of my best blogging buddies and ended up staying with me in the hotel last night after an all-too-enthusiastic reunion in the hotel lobby that morning. Quality time, baby!
From the moment I arrived, I felt like I didn’t stop chatting until the event ended. Everyone was so friendly and excited to be there. I loved meeting Heather and Caitlin for the first time!
And Mia Hamm!
Crazy, right!?
She was signing little soccer balls and I had her sign one for Ryan since he’s way more into soccer than I am and played throughout high school.
Annnd she definitely signed the soccer ball, “To Bryan.”
I didn’t have the heart to correct her and figured Ryan would get a bigger kick out of her signing something for “Bryan” anyway. (If any of you out there happen to know a soccer fan named Bryan that would love this soccer ball, shoot me an email and I can send it to you so a real Bryan can cherish it!)
Attendees of the event were encouraged to walk around and visit all of the sponsor tables and fill out a card, earning stars for visiting each booth that you could then turn in for a swag bag full of goodies at the end of the event.
Hello, Reebok! We shall meet again tomorrow! 
When I visited the Oakley booth, I was shocked to see sunglasses that were really cute!
For some reason, in the past I associated Oakley sunglasses with those goggle-like running sunglasses that aren’t the cutest, so when I saw their new line of performance sunglasses that are great for running but also look cute, I was impressed! They had little grippy things on the nose to keep them in place when you start sweating and they fit snuggly without being too tight. I think everyone was stoked to be able to bring a pair home.
The swag bag we got a the end of the event after visiting the sponsors was pretty amazing.
It was filled with everything from a CamelBak water bottle to a pair of Reebok sneakers. Lots of great goodies!
The event itself had a lineup of speakers who talked about a variety of topics ranging from why fad diets aren’t worth it, fitness, make-up and beauty tips and Q&A-style presentations.
The first half of the event flew by and by the time lunch rolled around, I was ready to eat!
The food was fantastic and they did a great job of providing healthy options that were both flavorful and delicious.
The farro salad was my favorite. I loved the chewy texture and the savory flavor from the hazelnut oil.
After lunch, my nerves started to kick in since I knew I would be speaking on a panel at 1:45 p.m.
The panel itself was basically a question and answer session all about blogging, freelance writing and building a presence online. I was a panelist along with Kelly Olexa, Carla Binberg and Tina Haupert.
I was worried no one from the audience would ask questions and we’d hear crickets, but people participated and our time on the stage passed by quickly and ended up being fun! I really enjoyed listening to the advice from my fellow panelists, so I hope the people in the audience enjoyed our time on stage!
Once I could finally breathe again after our panel was over, it was snack time! I grabbed two little funnels of apple slices and brie cheese and later went back for two mini cranberry white chocolate oatmeal cookies.
The apples and cheese were a perfect pick-me-up. Brie cheese is one of my favorites and I need to keep this combination in mind for future afternoon snacks!
The Meet & Tweet event concluded with a workout coordinated by KiwiSweat which was crazy energetic and very, very fun! I didn’t realize a legitimate workout was part of the event even though we were all told to wear fitness apparel, but it felt good to move and sweat a bit at the end of the day.
Thank you so much to Fitness Magazine and FitFluential for such a fun event!
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The entire event looks amazing from the speakers to food and swag.
I have two pairs of Oakley sunglasses- one for running and one for biking. They’re both amazing!
Those sunglasses are cute! I never wear sport sunglasses because they look AWFUL on my face! And um, hello swag bag! That’s some awesome stuff! Sounds like a great event!
Looks like so much fun!
What kind of shoes are you wearing in the last picture? I think they are mint green?? I am 99% sure that I need them.
I am wondering the same thing! Those shoes are soooo cute!
thank you! they’re nike frees and i got them for my bday!
thank you! they’re from dick’s sporting goods and are nike frees.
That looks and sounds like an awesome event! Those sunglasses are cute! 🙂 The swag bag looks so nice!
So fun! Awesome swag!
Wow, that entire event looks absolutely amazing!!! I’m so glad that your time speaking went well :). And too funny about the ball being signed for Bryan haha. Um, and I LOVE your shoes!!
That event looks so fun! That’s so awesome that you got to meet Mia Hamm! I’m a big soccer player/fan so I think that’s so great.
loved hearing you speak and I was shocked at how cute the Oakley sunglasses looked too, they’ve come a long way.
I have those Oakley sunglasses and am absolutely in love with them. I will never buy another type of sunglasses for running/outdoor activity wear.
Fun! Man, all of your guys have been super busy traveling lately! I love seeing all of the fun pictures of the different events!! 🙂
What an amazing event! It looks like it was really fun and well organized too!
Oooh, who made the bag that all the swag is in? That is adorable!! Also, I LOVE the sunglasses!
sonia kashuk!
Oooh, who made the bag that all the swag is in? That is adorable!! Also, I LOVE the sunglasses!
it looks like you had an amazing time! what a fantastic opportunity – and swag bag 😉
that bag design is just amazing! Looks like a great few days!
Sounds like a great event! Curious about KiwiSweat– was it a spin workout?
Love your shoes in the last pic 🙂
Ahh you have no idea how crazy jealous I am that I wasn’t there (and super duper proud of you at the same time for rocking your panel talk!!) This looks like such an amazing event. I’m with you on the Oakley thing – I’d normally associate them with the silver-y goggle-type sunglasses but those ones you found are really cute!
It was awesome to catch up with you, and you were hilarious on the panel! Good job 🙂
thank you! and i was hoping to find a way to sneak bailey into my suitcase… he was the cutest!
Oh, and Bailey enjoyed meeting you, too!
**Reuniiiiiited and it feeeeeels so gooooooooood.** 😀
Birkenstocks?!? Please show or tell what type! I am in the market for some new ones 🙂
So awesome they gave you Birks! I’ve been in love with them for about 14 years – I still remember buying my first pair with my first paycheck when I was 16. Now I have about 18 pairs, including a few pairs I wear to work at the hospital. We def need a pic of those 🙂
looks like so much fun! I’d love to attend next year. how do you sign up for trips like these?
how fun and what a great opportunity!! i love seeing some of my favorite healthy living bloggers all together. 🙂
Way to go, Julie! Public speaking is not always my favorite thing either. This event looks like such a blast! I need to start thinking about attending my first event as a blogger now. Would love to meet you as you sometime!
I got the biggest laugh out of the ball being signed to “Bryan”, rather than Ryan!!
The swag bag is incredible! How awesome to go to such a neat event AND leave with a nice bag full of freebies.
Looked like a great event! Can’t wait to hear how Boston goes. Your shoes in the last pic are so cute. What are they?
The bag filled with stuff… WOW!
Ahh! SO incredibly jealous, it looks like you had so much fun!!
Looks like a little slice of heaven to me! Wow! Congrats on being able to speak up there!
How cool! Yea, Courtney is one of my favorite of all time bloggers!
Go STSL!
And PBFingers, but I really didn’t need to say that 🙂
thats SO awesome..im sure you rocked it onstage.
i love that she signed the ball to bryan btw haha thats sort of hilarious
Looks like a fun event and great food and swag! My last name is Bryan, and my husband is a big soccer fan if you don’t find any other takers for the “Bryan” ball. 🙂
That event looks AWESOME! WHat a great swag bag–and free shoes?! Rockin’!
If you want, there is a trick you could use to erase the “B”! All you need is an expo marker. There is a chemical in the expo marker that cuts through permanent marker. The. All you do is wipe if off and voila, it’s good as new! (:
I have to say that for the past few of hours i have been hooked by the amazing articles on this site. Keep up the good work.
Do you know the model name of those Oakley sunglasses pictured? I’m in the market and would love a pair like that – looks cute and is functional!
Glad to hear it went well! It’s funny–no matter how many times I’ve spoken in front of large groups, I still get a little nervous. You just never quite know what to expect!
Hoping I’ll get to attend in the future!
This looks such a fun event!!! Are you going to do a post on specific questions people asked during the panel? I’d love to hear! 🙂
It’s official: you, court, and I are bag triplets.
glad ya’ll had fun! now we need to make it work for all THREE of us to be together at the same time. 😉
Looks like you ladies had a blast!
I am in love with your shoes! What style are they?
Great job on speaking, I would have had a heart attack. I hate public speaking, I am the worst at it. Looks like a fun event! Too bad she got Ryan’s name wrong 😉
What is the name of the style of the oakley’s you recieved?? They are super cute and I am in in the market for a new pair to run with!
Funnily enough, my brother’s name is Bryan, he was a soccer player (same with me) most of his life, but if I were to get it, all it would end up being is a new toy for my 2 year old nephew, and a signed Mia Hamm ball should not live that life! Oh, man, she was a total hero to me my entire high school soccer career.
That looks like an absolute blast Julie!! I would love to do something like that someday. P.S. I have those shoes, they are so cute and fun! Very lightweight.
You seem to have had one truly amazing day (not to talk about the goodie bag). I’m sure you did great and you truly deserv everything good that’s coming to you!
Wow, looks like so much fun!! Glad you are having a great trip 🙂 I love the Oakley sunglasses…one of these days I will spend more money on sunglasses, for right now I like not having to worry if they get banged up or lost!
Julie, thanks for the post! I’m getting obsessed with your site recently and was tracking back your earliest posts (hope I didn’t freak you out lol). It was amazing how much your reader pool expanded!
Thanks for all the inspiration – I tried some of your treadmill workouts and you convinced me that gym does not necessarily means boring! I love how the sweat pours down my face :p
I also tried your favourite sweet and salty egg-cheese-jam muffin, which is surprising good! I’ll make the PB protein bars tomorrow, will keep you updated! (but I’m only going to make half a batch so I won’t wolf the entire thing xD)
ps. can you tell us what’s in the bag of goodies? I’m so curious :p
I always think it’s cool/fun to see some of my favorite bloggers come together for events like this. You and Courtney (www.sweettoothsweetlife.com) write two of my favorite blogs I keep up with!
It was so fun hanging out yesterday! Have a great time in Boston!! 🙂
Hi julie.
I was looking online for the nike frees that you have becauser I LOVE the color but I can’t find them anywhere. I looked on Dick’s website also. Is there anyway that you could provide a link to them? Thanks so much!
Amber,
I actually bought the same Nike Frees that Julie has after seeing them on her post the other day. I am in love with coral pink and seafoam green lately! They are the Nike Free 3.0 V4’s in Tropical Twist (color). I found mine at Finish Line. Hope that helps!
here’s a link to them online: http://www.nike.com/nikeos/p/nikewomen/en_US/commerce?p=PDP&pid=461864&pgid=450902&cid=101101#?ll=en_US&ct=US