If you enjoy running and hiking, you may just fall for the hybrid of trail running. Although there’s definitely a lot to consider when opting for this intense yet rewarding way of running, one thing you absolutely shouldn’t overlook is the gear you opt for.
First timers can turn to Under Armour for some great pieces that can help any newbie to the trails tackle a run like an expert. Check out these eight pieces to add to your shopping list.
On Saturday, November 7—four days after Election Day and exactly 48 years after Joe Biden was first elected to the U.S. Senate—it was officially announced that Biden and Kamala Harris will be the next president and vice president of the United States.
In the end, the two received the most votes ever cast for a U.S. presidential ticket, an especially impressive feat when you consider the election occurred in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“America, I’m honored that you have chosen me to lead our great country,” Biden tweeted. “The work ahead of us will be hard, but I promise you this: I will be a President for all Americans—whether you voted for me or not.”
He then addressed the American people in Wilmington, Delaware for his first speech as president-elect.
“This is a time to heal in America. Now this campaign is over. What is the will of the people? What is our mandate? I believe it’s this: Americans have called upon us to marshal the forces of decency, the forces of fairness, to marshal the forces of science, and the forces of hope in the great battles of our time. The battle to control the virus, the battle to build prosperity, the battle to secure your family’s healthcare. The battle to achieve racial justice and root out systemic racism in this country. The battle to save our planet by getting the climate under control. The battle to restore decency, defend democracy, to give everybody in this country a fair shot. That’s all they’re asking for. A fair shot,” he said in a wide-ranging speech that touched on coronavirus, racial injustice, climate change, and bringing the country together.
What I must admit has surprised me, tonight, we are seeing all over this nation, all cities and all parts of the country, indeed across the world, an outpouring of joy, of hope, renewed faith in tomorrow to bring a better day. And I’m humbled by the trust and confidence you’ve placed in me. I pledge to be a president who seeks not to divide but unify, who doesn’t see red states or blue states, only sees the United States. I’ll work with all my heart, with the confidence of the whole people, to win the confidence of all of you, and for that is what America, I believe, is about. It’s about people, and that’s what our administration will be all about. I sought this office to restore the soul of America, to rebuild the backbone of this nation, the middle class, and to make America respected around the world again. And to unite us here at home. It’s the honor of my lifetime that so many millions of Americans have voted for that vision, and now the work of making that vision is real. It’s a task, the task, of our time.
Folks, as I said many times before, I’m Jill’s husband, and I would not be here without the love and tireless support of Jill and my son Hunter and Ashley, my daughter, and all our grandchildren, and their spouses, and all our family. They’re in my heart. Jill’s a mom, a military mom, an educator. She’s dedicated her life to education, but teaching isn’t just what she does, it’s who she is. For American educators, this is a great day for you all. You’re gonna have one of your own in the White House, and Jill’s gonna make a great first lady; I’m so proud of her.
I’ll have the honor of serving with a fantastic vice president, you just heard from, Kamala Harris. She makes history as the first woman, the first woman from South Asian descent, the first daughter of immigrants ever elected in this country. Don’t tell me it’s not possible in the United States. It’s long overdue, and we’re reminded tonight of those who fought so hard for so many years to make this happen, but once again, America’s bent the arc of the moral universe more toward justice. Kamala, Doug, like it or not, you’re family. You’re going to become an honorary Biden; there’s no way out. For all those of you who volunteered to work the polls in the middle of the pandemic, local elected officials, you deserve a special thanks from the entire nation. My campaign team and all the volunteers and all who gave so much of themselves to make this moment possible, I owe you. I owe you everything. And all those who supported us, I’m proud of the campaign we built and ran, I’m proud of the coalition we put together. The broadest and most diverse coalition in history. Democrats, Republicans, Independents, progressives, moderates, conservatives, young, old, urban, suburban, rural, gay, straight, transgender, white, Latina, Asian, Native American. I mean it. Especially in those moments when this campaign was at its lowest ebb, the African American community stood up again for me. You’ve always had my back. I said at the outset, I wanted to represent this campaign to represent and look like America. We’ve done that. Now that’s what the administration can look like and act like.
For all those of you who voted for President Trump, I understand the disappointment tonight. I’ve lost a couple times myself. But now, let’s give each other a chance. It’s time to put away the harsh rhetoric, lower the temperature, see each other again, listen to each other again, and to make progress. We have to stop treating our opponents as our enemies. They are not our enemies; they are Americans. They are Americans. The Bible tells us to everything there is a season: A time to build, a time to reap and a time to sow, and a time to heal. This is a time to heal in America. Now this campaign is over. What is the will of the people? What is our mandate? I believe it’s this: Americans have called upon us to marshal the forces of decency, the forces of fairness, to marshal the forces of science, and the forces of hope in the great battles of our time. The battle to control the virus, the battle to build prosperity, the battle to secure your family’s healthcare. The battle to achieve racial justice and root out systemic racism in this country. The battle to save our planet by getting the climate under control. The battle to restore decency, defend democracy, to give everybody in this country a fair shot. That’s all they’re asking for. A fair shot. Folks, our work begins with getting COVID under control.
We cannot endure the economy, restore our vitality or relish life’s most precious moments: Hugging our grandchildren, our children, on birthdays, weddings, graduations, all the moments that matter most to us, until we get it under control. On Monday, I will name a group of leading scientists and experts as transition advisors to help take the Biden/Harris COVID plan and convert it into an action blueprint that will start on January 20, 2021. That plan will be built on bedrock science, it will be constructed out of compassion, empathy and concern. I will spare no effort—none—or any commitment to turn around this pandemic.
Folks, I’m a proud Democrat, and I will govern as an American president. I’ll work as hard for those who didn’t vote for me as those who did. Let this grim era of demonization in America begin and end here and now. Refusal of Democrats and Republicans to cooperate with one another. It’s not some mysterious force beyond our control: it’s a decision, a choice we make. And if we can decide not to cooperate, then we can decide to cooperate, and I believe that this is part of the mandate given to us and the American people. They want us to cooperate in their interest, and that’s the choice I’ll make. And I’ll call on Congress, Democrats and Republicans alike, to make that choice with me.
The American story is about slowly yet steadily widening the opportunities in America. And make no mistake, too many dreams have been deferred too long. We must make the promise of the country real for everybody, no matter their race, their identity, or their disability. Folks, America has always been shaped by inflection points, by moments in time where we made hard decisions about who we are and what we want to be. Lincoln, in 1860, coming to save the union, FDR in 1932, promising a beleaguered country a new deal. JFK, in 1960, pledging a new frontier, and 12 years ago, when Barack Obama made history, he told us ‘Yes we can.’ Folks, we stand at an inflection point. We have an opportunity to defeat despair, to build a nation of prosperity and purpose. We can do it, I know we can. I’ve long talked about the battle for the soul of America. We must restore the soul of America. Our nation is shaped by the constant battle between our better angels and our darkest impulses, and what presidents say in this battle matters. It’s time for our better angels to prevail. Tonight, the whole world is watching America, and I believe at our best America is a beacon for the globe. We will lead, not only by the example of our power, but by the power of our example. I’ve always believed—many have heard me say—I’ve always believed we can define America by one word: Possibilities. That, in America, everyone should be given the opportunity to go as far as their dreams and God-given ability will take them. I believe in the possibilities in this country.
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Soccer fans have gotten used to seeing Alex Morgan in one of two uniforms: the red, white, and blue of the US national team, or the bright purple of the NWSL’s Orlando Pride. But in September, Morgan announced she’d be adding a new jersey to her collection, and for the first time in her career, it would be one from England. Morgan would be playing for Tottenham, a pro club based in London.
It was a big decision, but the rationale was simple. “I really just wanted to play soccer,” the two-time World Cup winner and Olympic gold medalist told POPSUGAR. “I wanted to get back and be able to play consistent games.” The coronavirus was making that complicated in the US, where the NWSL schedule was on shaky ground, and Morgan was itching to play regularly after taking a year off for her pregnancy (more on that later).
As for Tottenham: “Who wouldn’t want to live in London and play for one of the most recognizable clubs in the world?” Morgan said. “I jumped on this opportunity and I’m really happy to be here.”
Let’s rewind and set the scene. When Morgan revealed she was pregnant last October, fresh off a World Cup victory and with the Olympics around the corner, many wondered whether she’d be in game shape for Tokyo. Her due date was in April; the Olympics were set to start at the end of July. But the US National Team forward was confident, stating that she absolutely intended to return in time.
Morgan, along with thousands of other athletes, was thrown into a tailspin when the 2020 Olympics were postponed. In the end, though, she saw the silver lining. “It was actually a weight off my shoulders that I didn’t realize was there,” Morgan explained. “I knew at that point, I can just let Charlie come whenever she was ready.”
The extra time came in handy, when Charlie, Morgan’s first daughter with husband Servando Carrasco, arrived 10 days past her due date. “At that point I was happy for her to take her time,” Morgan said. “I didn’t need to rush back to anything.”
Given her goal of getting to the Olympics, back when it was still set for 2020, Morgan’s pregnancy fitness routine was intense. She took indoor cycling classes twice a week and went for runs until she was 36 weeks pregnant, then switched to daily five-mile walks. “I did a lot of prenatal yoga, too,” Morgan added. “I absolutely loved prenatal yoga because it was my time to mentally and physically feel really good, and also just check in with my baby growing inside of me.”
Now, Morgan said, “my focus is completely soccer.” She’s doing a lot of work in the gym, spending an hour and a half per session working her upper body, lower body, and core. Her favorite core exercise, Morgan added, is the classic dead bug move. “I feel like that works all of your core,” she said. “It’s one of the moves I do before training to get my core feeling activated almost every day.” She’s also out on the field five days a week.
The hard work has paid off; she said her body was back to competition shape about five months after giving birth. It’s a fast turnaround, but Morgan said it didn’t feel forced. “I wanted to get back into shape and I wanted to get back on the soccer field, but I didn’t feel rushed to do that,” she explained. “I just felt like that’s everything I’ve known in life and that’s what makes me happy. And now I have this little girl that makes me happy as well.”
“I don’t know if in my playing career, in my lifetime, we will see true equality. But I know for a fact we’re getting closer.”
Morgan, Carrasco, and Charlie are now together in London as she preps for her Tottenham debut. Sadly missing out on the fun are Morgan’s two rescue dogs, Blue and Kona, who are back home in Florida, though she’s keeping them top of mind thanks to a new partnership with Stella & Chewy’s natural pet food. Morgan is supporting the brand’s National Adopt a Senior Pet Month campaign, which covers adoption fees for senior pets rescued from US or Canadian shelters in November.
Morgan said she’s always wanted to experience pregnancy and feel what it’s like to have “a human growing inside me.” Now that she has, she said that having Charlie was a “beautiful process,” and one that’s changed her relationship with her body. “I’m very amazed with what the female body can do and go through and endure,” she said. It’s been extra motivation toward the fight for equal pay, a movement she and the USWNT are leading on and off the field in spite of setbacks.
“Having Charlie now, I feel proud of the work that I’ve put in, the hours and hours and hours I’ve put in outside of the soccer field to create equality,” Morgan said. “I don’t know if work is ever going to be done. I don’t know if in my playing career, in my lifetime, we will see true equality. But I know for a fact we’re getting closer.”
Joe Biden is the President-Elect of the United States, but he’s also grandfather to seven grandchildren. Today, his oldest grandchild, Naomi, tweeted a photo of her and her cousins hugging their grandfather after his win.
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“11.07.20,” the photo caption reads.
She also posted this throwback of her grandparents from when they were first married:
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Naomi has also posted in recent days about Donald Trump’s response to the election and mail-in ballots.
“Preventable deaths between when he learned the corona virus was deadly and when he told us as he is about the record number of mail-in ballots cast,” she tweeted.
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“The case of Trump v. Reality
Cause of action: ‘he was winning’ but the ‘numbers started miraculously getting whittled away in secret’
Legal claims: ‘writing down things, the workers, and doing a lot of bad things'”
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She also empathized with the rest of us clamoring to share the news with our family group chat:
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When Trump’s granddaughters were interviewed in August, they said this, collectively, about their grandfather:
“He’s always eating ice cream. Usually, it’s vanilla…the Breyer’s that have half chocolate, half vanilla. He likes ice cream in hidden ways.” “Eating it in the freezer so that my grandma doesn’t see,” Natalie Biden chimed in.
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They all also added that their grandfather talks to them every day, and if he doesn’t hear from his grandchildren, he’ll call them to ask what’s wrong.
“He always calls with the same energy even after he’s just done 15 interviews in a row,” Maisy Biden said in the interview.
“I don’t necessarily pick up every day, but I have a lot of voicemails,” Finnegan added.
Looks like they’ll be getting a lot of calls from the White House in just a few short months!
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Back in October, I brought you a three-minute plank series that my boyfriend does at fire academy during some of his training sessions. I like it for two reasons: it doesn’t use any equipment and it includes exercises I’m familiar with. At the same time, though, it’s more challenging than you’d expect. That’s why I’m a fan of another bodyweight workout my boyfriend does as a firefighter that involves two moves you’ve definitely done (or at least seen) before: a push-up and a kneeling overhead shoulder press.
This circuit brings heat to your triceps, chest, and shoulders and is structured as a pyramid (or ladder). You do two push-ups and two kneeling overhead shoulder presses, then four, six, eight, 10, and 12. Once you hit 12 reps of each exercise, you go back down to 10, eight, six, four, and two reps. To make the workout even harder, don’t take any rest in between the exercises.
Directions: Before getting started make sure to warm up your upper body. Follow the pyramid structure for the two exercises, increasing by increments of two until you get to 12 reps, then decreasing by increments of two until you get back down to two reps. You’ll start with two reps of push-ups and two reps of presses. You can do this exact structure that my boyfriend does, or you can modify it to the 2-4-6-8 structure that I like, going up to eight reps instead. Make sure to cool down afterward (try these upper-body stretches).
Continue reading to see instructions for and visuals of the two exercises. I hope this is the upper-body burn you were looking for! It sure is in my book.
Hailey Bieber, Justin Bieber’s wife of two years, gave one of the bluntest responses ever to pregnancy rumors about her, taking aim at U.S. tabloid Us Weekly in the process. Hailey wrote that she wasn’t pregnant, getting ahead of an alleged story the publication was planning to run.
“Since I know you guys were about to break your lil story @usweekly I’m not pregnant. So please stop writing false stories from your ‘sources’ and focus on what’s important aka the election.” Hailey, who endorsed Democratic nominee Joe Biden, wrote election in blue and added blue hearts.
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Hailey’s Instagram Story comes days after a blind-item Instagram Story on celebrity gossip account DeuxMoi first sparked rumors that Hailey could possibly be expecting. The blind item, titled “Baby Baby”, said, “Two A-listers will be announcing a pregnancy in a few months…keep an eye out. Not sure how soon but soon!”
Other sources came to DeuxMoi to deny Hailey was the woman in the blind item. (DeuxMoi takes submissions from everyone and does not independently confirm any claims, leaving its reader to decide what they do and don’t believe.)
Hailey spoke recently about wanting to start a family eventually with Justin but not imminently. Hailey told Vogue Italia in its October issue, per Entertainment Tonight‘s English translation of the interview, that “the strange thing is that I’ve always wanted to have children early, but now that I’m married, I feel less of an urge. I am an ambitious girl with many projects. It will happen, but not now.” Hailey is just 23.
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Working from home isn’t new to me, so I didn’t expect the lifestyle changes that came with the COVID-19 pandemic to have much of an impact on my life. I’m used to multi-tasking throughout the day — squeezing in a workout between clients or throwing in a load of laundry on my way to grab my lunch. So, I figured spending more time at home would be a chance to get in great shape. Without the back and forth to school or out-of-the-house meetings, I’d have enough time to work out twice a day, right? Boy, was I wrong.
Home workouts were already built into my routine. Instead of traveling to and from the gym, I’ve always used that extra time to move my body at home. But even though that part of my routine hadn’t changed, I started to notice a difference in my body about a month into the pandemic. Not having actually found the time to squeeze in an extra workout with everyone home all the time, I realized I was otherwise pretty sedentary, and it had started to take a toll.
From that moment on, I did my best to move around as much as possible, but it wasn’t until I found the FLEXISPOT Height Adjustable Cycle Desk Bike ($350, originally $490) that I started to feel like myself again. I originally saw the bike on TikTok — where one person had raved about it — and though it was little more than I wanted to spend, I decided to give it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised at how much it helped.
What I love most about this piece of equipment is its flexibility. Unlike other stationary workout equipment, it’s lightweight and adjustable. Whether I want to cycle while writing an article or step off the pedals and use the bike as a standing desk, the FLEXISPOT works for me. I can adjust the desk’s angle up and down if I’m reading or move it closer to me if I’m answering emails for work. It’s also built on wheels, making it easy to move around the house. I’ve even taken it outside while my son had “recess,” so I could stay active, work, and keep an eye on him.
Like most stationary bikes, you can also adjust the resistance. It offers eight levels to choose from, so I can use it for light movement or crank it up to burn more calories. It’s also compact, so I sneak it right into the corner of my office without losing any additional space.
This bike desk was a game changer for me — it helped me get back to looking and feeling as healthy as I did when the pandemic began. If you too are looking for a piece of equipment to help you stay more active while you’re working from home, give this one a try.
HBO Max’s Gossip Girl reboot has begun filming in New York City amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and paparazzi got the first look at two members of the cast in costume, filming a scene. How is the fashion of this revived series looking? Well, very different than any Blair Waldorf or Serena van der Woodsen looks, at least based off of Eli Brown and Whitney Peak’s characters’ style:
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The two may have been filming a date scene, with Brown giving Peak his corduroy jacket at one point, although that’s not entirely clear. In some photos, they have masks on, perhaps between takes as the COVID-19 pandemic is not expected to be a plot point in the show.
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Here’s a glimpse at the original Gossip Girl‘s fashion, for comparison:
James DevaneyGetty Images
Details about Brown and Peak’s characters haven’t been given yet, but Deadline reported earlier this year that the two are a part of the show’s “leading trio,” in addition to Emily Alyn Lind.
Lind’s character, Audrey “has been in a long term relationship and is beginning to wonder what more could be out there,” according to Deadline’s description of her.
Lind has not been photographed filming the series yet, but she shared a shot on her Instagram Story from day one of filming. She was in the makeup chair, so no clothes were visible:
The original costume designer from Gossip Girl, Eric Daman, is behind the looks for the new show, too. In a statement to Teen Vogue in April, Daman said, “OMGG I am sooo thrilled to be a part of the new GG Generation! It has been incredible to see the youth of today discovering and bingeing GG during these times!! Very excited to delight and inspire all of the GG Fans, new and OG, with some delicious, trendsetting fashions for this new era! Can’t Wait!! XoXo, E.”
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Miss festivals? Gucci does too. So as much of Europe heads into lockdown 2.0, the Italian label today announced GucciFest, a virtual fashion film festival that will be streamed on YouTube, Weibo, and the dedicated site GucciFest.com from November 16 to 22.
The main attraction will be the debut of the miniseries, Ouverture of Something That Never Ended, co-directed by filmmaker Gus Van Sant and Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele, which will be presented in seven parts.
The cinematic spectacle was shot in Rome and centers around artist and performer Silvia Calderoni as she goes about her day. Also making appearances is a VIP section-worthy crew of brand ambassadors including Harry Styles, Billie Eilish, Jeremy O. Harris, and Florence Welch. Each episode will be released daily throughout GucciFest.
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Ouverture of Something That Never Ended comes after Michele’s “trilogy of love,” which began with a show at Milan Fashion Week in February and concluded with the digital presentation of the Epilogue collection in July. Two months prior, Michele penned “Notes from the Silence,” an open letter relaying his intention to eschew the traditional fashion calendar, permanently limiting the number of fashion shows that Gucci produces every year down to two. The collection for GucciFest is the first to follow this objective.
GucciFest will also screen fashion films from 15 emerging designers: Ahluwalia, Shanel Campbell, Stefan Cooke, Cormio, Charles De Vilmorin, JordanLuca, Mowalola, Yueqi Qi, Rave Review, Gui Rosa, Rui, Bianca Saunders, Collina Strada, Boramy Viguier, and Gareth Wrighton. All were handpicked by Michele for their strong points of view.
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After returning from Afghanistan with severe PTSD, Kelsi Sheren began crafting jewellery. Now she has a business that is paying it forward.
There’s no dearth of fashion brands that were founded with a sense of purpose, from amplifying local artisanry to supporting myriad charitable endeavours. The industry has become a place where community and globally focused initiatives are able to flourish. But you don’t often see ingenuity in both design and philanthropy springing forth from the depths of extreme despair—and that’s where Canadian accessories brand Brass & Unity finds itself uniquely positioned.
When self-professed fashion outsider Kelsi Sheren launched the label in 2016, she was driven by an intense personal aspiration. At the age of 18, she had applied to join the Canadian Armed Forces after a “serendipitous” encounter with a WWII veteran. “I chose to go into the military because of somebody I met while I was in school in Ottawa,” she recalls. Sheren was studying tourism travel services at Algonquin College to escape from her small-town Ontario life, and shortly after her classes began, she found herself on a bus with an elderly veteran.
“I wanted to know her story, so I started asking her questions,” says Sheren. “Next thing I knew, I was off the bus and walking to the college to quit, and I joined the Army the next day. This woman had a massive impact on the way I looked at the world after our conversation… It wasn’t necessarily what she said that was compelling; it was the way she carried herself. She must have been in her 90s—she had a chest full of medals and a badass attitude. It looked like she had lived a thousand lives, and there was something in her face that was intriguing to me. I never saw her again, but meeting her was a turning point in my life. I was meant to meet her. I strongly believe that.”
Sheren went to Afghanistan shortly after enlisting in late 2007. A year into her tour, she was injured and sent home after being diagnosed with severe post-traumatic stress disorder. “I couldn’t function any longer,” she says. In addition to the physical and mental trauma (which she still grapples with today), Sheren returned to Canada “with no help and no support” from the military. “I spent six months contemplating suicide on a daily basis and almost following through with it multiple times,” she says.
Treatment for Sheren’s trauma included a cocktail of medications that left her feeling “zonked out,” but she received a more constructive suggestion during a therapy session after she relocated to British Columbia with her husband. “My doctor is a veteran who served in Rwanda during the genocide,” she says. “He knows how to handle people like me.” He recommended that she try art therapy, which “sounded hilarious to me,” she recalls, given that she grew up following more active pursuits, like tae kwon do and motocross.
She decided to give it a try since she was spending most of her days pacing or staying in bed. The light bulb moment came after she awoke from a dream about starting a jewellery business where the proceeds from sales went to charity. Sheren, who says she’d never worn fashion jewellery before starting Brass & Unity, suddenly found herself intently studying the healing properties of crystals and devising ways to craft these elements into something wearable. “My husband went to work one morning at seven and came home at five and I was in the same position—still working,” she says. “And I hadn’t had a flashback all day.”
Her brand has since achieved international renown, and she has patented the use of spent casings and bullets in her jewellery and sunglasses. The eyewear is particularly meaningful to Sheren because it was the one way she could claim a sense of identity during her military service. “When I was in the military, sunglasses were the one thing we could more or less personalize in our uniform,” she says. “They were my only form of individuality.”
Sheren has also set her sights on promoting the upcoming release of her memoir, Brass and Unity. The book gives an open and graphic account of her past and candidly expresses how the aftermath of her military service affected not only her own life but that of so many others. These experiences were the inspiration for Brass & Unity’s corporate mandate of donating 20 per cent of its net profits to veteran charities around the world, and the brand also launched a personal protective equipment program when the COVID-19 crisis made such supplies scarce.
Brass & Unity is nominated for a Canadian Arts & Fashion Award this year in its Fashion Impact Award category, but Sheren points out that her philanthropic drive was more a primary motivator for starting the brand than being part of the fashion industry. “I needed to find a way to help my friends,” she says, adding that she “lost more friends to suicide post-service than [she] lost in Afghanistan.”
Waxing philosophical about where she’s been and where she’s headed, Sheren cuts right to the chase: “If you don’t go through a journey, what are you doing?”
Stretching is an important part of exercise that can protect you from injury and improve your flexibility. However, sometimes people focus on stretching certain parts of their bodies, like their backs and legs, and end up neglecting others, like their wrists.
Between working out and typing on a laptop for an extended period of time, the activities you may engage in on a daily basis can leave your wrists feeling super sore. If that sounds familiar, there’s no need to worry. Arianna Elizabeth, a fitness influencer and certified yoga instructor, has a wrist-stretching warmup that might help.
The stretching sequence in the 10-minute YouTube video is meant to be used as a warmup before a yoga session. “It is super important to definitely stretch your wrists out before you start,” Elizabeth explains in the video. “Especially if you’re not super familiar with Down Dog, sometimes it can feel like there’s a lot of pressure on your wrists.”
For people with weaker wrists in particular, which Elizabeth stresses is totally normal, warming up with some stretches is a key step in strengthening them.
Elizabeth talks viewers through exercises such as wrist circles, flexing your wrists, and rolling your wrists out with your fingers interlaced. She then transitions into a tabletop position on her hands and knees, and eventually into Downward Facing Dog. The Downward Facing Dog portion of the stretch is optional, though she gives helpful tips on how to make the position more comfortable.
Check out the video to try the stretches for yourself, and remember to take rest breaks or make modifications whenever you need them.
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Following a long Election Day—that has turned into a nail-biting Election Week—former Georgia candidate for governor, Stacey Abrams, is now earning much-earned recognition for her work to help turn the state “purple” in 2020. Georgia has gone Republican in presidential elections since 1992, but record voter turnout has seen over 2.4 million votes for presidential candidate Joe Biden, giving him an extremely narrow lead over President Donald Trump. In the past two years, Abrams has worked tirelessly to recruit voters of color in Georgia, helping to register an estimated 800,000 since 2018, according to Newsweek.
Another humble fact about the voting rights activist? She’s a successful romance novelist, having written her first book, Rules of Engagement, during her third year as a student at Yale University. Under the pseudonym Selena Montgomery, the politician penned eight books, with the last (Deception) published in 2009. She also wrote a memoir in 2018 and is gearing up to release the political thriller, While Justice Sleeps, in May 2021.
“The act of writing is integral to who I am,” she told the Washington Post in 2018. “I’m a writer, a politician, a tax attorney, a civic leader and an entrepreneur. I am proud of what I’ve accomplished.”
Her romantic suspense novels include the love stories of a lawyer and sheriff, two undercover agents, and a sexy ethnobotanist—all with the goal of illustrating that Black women can be “as adventurous and attractive as any white woman” in fiction, as she told The Washington Post.
“Telling a well-crafted story is hard. Full stop,” she said. “Regardless of genre, good writing is good writing. Romance is one of the oldest forms of storytelling, and I’m honored to be in the company of extraordinary writers.”
So if you’re as interested in her imagination as you are her politics, you can find a full list of Abrams’—sorry, Selena Montgomery’s—books below.
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If there was ever a moment that truly encapsulates the title of Lolo Zouai’s 2019 debut album, High Highs to Low Lows, it’s the one we’re living in right now. Like many of us, Zouai’s year started off on a high: The French-Algerian singer was slated to join the European leg of Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia tour as the opening act from April to June. But a global pandemic reared its head in February and postponed the tour indefinitely. That could be considered one of the “low lows” on Zouai’s list, depending on what day you ask her, but today, she’s optimistic. “At first, I was just staying at home [in Los Angeles] and playing a lot of Scrabble,” she tells me over the phone. Then she decided to move back to Brooklyn and turn her apartment into a makeshift studio, where she wrote, produced, and recorded her own songs during quarantine.
Now, the highs keep rolling in. The current period of stillness brought Zouai back to her early days of making music in her bedroom and forced her to find new ways to channel her creativity: “I started doing things I said I would always do [but] never had the time,” she says, referencing therapy sessions, guitar lessons, and a newfound painting hobby. “I was always focused on something else.” However, she’s still adjusting to performing at-home for virtual concerts, including a set at New York Phillips Gallery earlier in September. “It’s not as fun because you don’t get the energy back from the audience, but there’s nothing we can do right now but wait and be safe,” she says. “Being an artist is about being able to adjust to the times, and get creative and figure out ways to make it work.” Read on for Zouai’s thoughts on the artistic process, personal style, and her post-COVID plans.
I definitely was low for a very long time. It’s really hard to accept what’s going on with everything. I’ve been making a lot of music and trying to separate myself from social media and remember who I am at the core. It’s so easy to get caught up in the music industry if you don’t have a good head on your shoulders. I try to stay grounded. I’ve been more focused on my mental health and myself as a human versus myself as an artist. I’m trying to remember that I’m a person and I need take care of myself so I can be the best artist I can be. Whenever I’m in a better place, I write better music and I don’t doubt myself. I’m building up to be at the high so that when the world opens up again and I can go on that tour with Dua Lipa, I’m ready for it.
I recorded my whole album in this gritty basement. It’s a music studio that has a lot of history in it—super grungy and gritty—and that comes through in my music. It brings the lo-fi to the pop sounds, because I never want to lose that authenticity. I never want to lose the feeling of being in my bedroom and recording. New York brings me there, to my early days. I don’t want everything to be too polished; there has to be some grit and feeling and emotion. That’s similar to my apartment in New York; my apartment is probably from the 1930s but it’s still charming.
I remember hearing a lot of Destiny’s Child and Aaliyah and Brandy. Now, Jazmine Sullivan is one of the many that inspires me.
I love the attitude, the feeling: Everything from that era was confident and sexy. The same with clothes; I just love vintage clothing. First of all, [it’s] so much better for the environment, and you have a bigger chance of your outfit being unique. Like with the internet, there’s access to everything at vintage shops. So many people have good stylists and you can get influenced by seeing what other people are wearing, but then if you walk into a thrift store and buy something you like, you have no idea where it’s from, you have no idea who wore it before. That’s way more exciting than fast fashion, which is horrible for our planet.
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I do love anything oversized. I grew up being prude and I realized I can show my body. I’m learning to be more comfortable with my body, but I just love anything I feel super comfortable in. An oversize blazer gives me that masculine energy. I like statement pieces. Then, I’ll think of the bottom. I’ll be like, “Oh, I want to wear these pants, I want to wear this skirt.” Next I’ll do the shirt, and then I’ll do the shoes and then the jacket.
I have a lot of big necklaces, like chokers, and I usually just throw those on at the end. I don’t want to do too much, you know? Really, my favorite accessory is doing a bold eyeliner look. I think that’s the best accessory.
I don’t know. Maybe Chanel. No, I mean, I have a lot of makeup that I keep. I’m still exploring eyeliners. I just like black liquid eyeliner.
If you have a voice and people look up to you in any way, it’s important to let them know who you are and what you believe in and what you stand for. Being silent wasn’t an option, and I don’t think anybody should have been silent. We’re not politicians, but we’re humans and we feel. It’s important that people understand who I am and that I’m not trying to make money off anything. I’m just a person that cares about society and shit. But I think it was important to sit down and think, “Okay, what do I want to say?” And I didn’t want to take up too much space either, because it wasn’t my place to take that much space.
I want to share my feelings and be myself through my music. By sharing my personal stories, other people relate. I don’t think I need to try too hard find the message, because my message is in my music with my experiences. I want to help other people feel good.
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There’s nothing quite like fresh flowers arriving on your doorstep like clockwork.
As we prepare to hunker down for the winter, look to flower subscriptions to add some colour and cheer to your home. These Toronto flower subscription plans offer a multitude of options, ranging from bouquets to vase arrangements, from plants to florals, from monochrome to multi-coloured, and beyond. Place a single order set to a schedule of your choosing, and then sit back as fresh flowers arrive on your doorstep like clockwork.
Botany Floral Studio
Subscription options from this Toronto floral studio are offered under four different collection types: Botany Boho, a mix of greenery and wildflowers; Monochrome, featuring white blooms and multiple textures; Signature, for “the most discerning flower enthusiast;” and Orchid Club, offering orchids in a variety of colours. Subscribers can choose the starting date and then create a routine of having flowers delivered weekly, monthly, or each season (every 12 weeks.)
Crown Flora
Choose from a 4-week or 6-week subscription at a variety of price points, ranging from $25 per floral bouquet to $125. Crown Flora chooses a fresh and seasonal selection of florals and greens for each order, with arrangements varying in size, colour and flower types due to availability. Each bouquet is hand arranged from start to finish and will reflect the price point selected in terms of the type of flower used, labour and design work for the bouquet.
Heart & Thorn
This plant and flower subscription offers bouquets ranging from seasonal flowers to orchids and exotics to succulents and cacti. The flowers are imported directly from farms located in Ecuador and Colombia. Customers can choose from weekly, fortnightly or monthly subscription packages, in a size of their choosing, with first-time subscribers also receiving a free vase or planter on their first delivery. With warehouses in New Jersey, New York and Toronto, Heart & Thorn delivers to all cities across Canada, the United States and most international destinations (except remote locations).
Sweetpea’s
This Toronto flower shop offers customers the more affordable option of paying for each order on the day it goes out, as opposed to paying the entire subscription sum at once. There’s a six order minimum for each subscription, which features “eco- and socially-responsible flowers.” Options include bouquets or vase arrangements of flowers grouped by pastel hues, jewel tones, multicoloured, white or seasonal florals. The company offers free Toronto-wide delivery on a weekly, biweekly or monthly schedule.
Wild North Flowers
Choose from either a hand-tied bouquet subscription or a vase arrangement, on a monthly or bimonthly schedule. Bouquets come at two price points ($90 and $125) while vase arrangements offer three options ($85, $100 and $125). The company uses entirely Ontario-grown flowers all year long.
Coriander Girl
With outposts in both Toronto and Prince Edward County, this florist offers deliveries and flower subscription plans in both locations. Choose from a 6-month subscription starting at $300 or a 12-month plan starting at $600. Each arrangement comprises of ethically-sourced, seasonal blooms.
Posy Lane Flowers
This florist offers a mix of focal flowers like ranunculus, anemones and roses, mixed with wildflowers like solidago, thistles, veronica and foliage. Their “Posy of the Week,” which comes in three different sizes, is uploaded to their website and social media accounts every Wednesday, with deliveries going out each Thursday to locations within Toronto, Mississauga, Etobicoke and Scarborough.
A burp is a common sign that you’re, well, experiencing some gas. Chest pain, on the other hand, is a gas symptom that’s way less discussed.
“Gas can cause more than just pain in the belly. Gas can be described as a stabbing pain or tightness in the chest, which mimics chest pain,” Dr. Monisha Bhanote, MD, FCAP, an integrative medicine physician, said.
According to Dr. Bhanote, gas is created in the body two ways: by swallowing air and through the digestive process.
When one eats or drinks too quickly, they can swallow air, which may lead to gas accumulation in the stomach; so, eating slower could help, she explained.
As for digestion, Dr. Bhanote said that not all of the sugar, starch, and fiber one consumes is broken down in the small intestine. It passes onto the large intestine, where bacteria further breaks it down into carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and methane, which eventually leaves the body.
“Certain foods may also increase gas in individuals. This varies based not only on the food but on the bacterial colonization of the individual’s gastrointestinal tract. Common culprits may include cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli and cabbage [and] whole grains, as well as dairy products, soft drinks, beans, and some fruits.”
Those experiencing chest pain should always consult a doctor about a diagnosis and treatment — Dr. Bhanote stressed this if your gas is persistent and severe enough to affect your daily activities or cause changes in bowel movements, constipation, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, or bloody stools. And if you’re experiencing prolonged abdominal or chest pain that is out of the ordinary, Dr. Bhanote said to seek immediate care.
One topic worth discussing with your doctor is how to reduce gas by adjusting your eating habits. Dr. Bhanote suggested exploring possible food intolerances and eliminating unnecessary contributors to gas production, like carbonated beverages and sugar substitutes.
Slowing down when eating, avoiding drinking through a straw, and passing on chewing gum are easy ways to avoiding swallowing access air, she added.
And if you’re unable to prevent gas from building up, there are some holistic approaches you can take (with a doctor’s permission!) to feel better.
“Some herbal teas can aid in the digestive process and reduce gas. These may include any combination of ginger, peppermint, chamomile, or anise.”
Additionaly, you can drink a glass of water with added apple cider vinegar before a meal to help prevent gas and bloating, Dr. Bhanote said. Getting active after a meal can also help by moving nutrients through your body more efficiently.
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When we find ourselves in times of trouble, Steve Kornacki comes to us—clad in khakis and armed with a glowing map of the U.S. As the uncertainty of November 4 stretched into hours and days, the MSNBC political correspondent was a pillar of statistics. While we panicked, stress ate, and screamed into the ether, Kornacki remained our dutiful guardian, immune to human needs like food and sleep.
Amid our anxiety fever dream, people wondered, Is Steve Kornacki ok? Everyone from Chrissy Teigen to Roxane Gay tweeted about his condition. Has he changed his shirt? Eaten a snack? Shut his eyes for more than a brief moment? Late into day three of vote counting, Kornacki tweeted, “Forget grabbing sleep, there’s still votes coming in in PA. I’m heading back to the studio. In the old days, there was USA Up All Night. Tonight, it’ll be MSNBC Up All Night. Come on along for the ride.”
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It appears that many people have joined Kornacki for the ride—and developed feelings along the way. Just as millions of votes began to pour in from Florida, then Wisconsin, and now Pennsylvania, Kornacki thirst tweets surged. Some coined him a “korsnacki.” Others preferred math or map daddy. If America is a John Hughes movie, it’s chosen the nerdy best friend over the popular quarterback. Kornacki would never pretend not to know you in the cafeteria. Kornacki would always help you cram for that calculus exam. And, yes, he’ll deliver comprehensive political analysis on fumes alone. Nice guys may finish last, but Kornacki will be the first to tabulate complex electoral results, stealing hearts in the process.
Ahead, some of the thirstiest Kornacki tweets to emerge while we wait.
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This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.
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The perfect gift for all the beauty lovers on your holiday lists.
The holidays are right around the corner, and if you’ve got a beauty lover or two on your list, we’ve found the perfect present. Cheekbone Beauty, the Indigenous-owned cosmetics line run by Jenn Harper, has teamed up with Métis artist Christi Belcourt on a limited edition lipstick trio which launches today.
The vegan lipsticks are all made (and hand poured) in Canada with sustainably-sourced ingredients and are housed in biodegradable packaging. Belcourt designed the custom box which the products are housed in, decorating it with her signature floral motif meant to evoke customary Métis beadwork designs. According to a release, “this painting is called This Painting is a Mirror because it reflects to the viewer all the beauty that is already within them.”
The kit includes three rich hues: an oxblood red called MAKOC (which is the world for land in Lakota, the Siouan language), a pink nude with taupe undertones called NUNA (the word for land in Inuktitut, the language of the Inuit people) and a ’90s-inspired brown called OOXOR (the word for land or earth in the language of the TONGVA people). The shades will only be available as part of this collaboration.
Speaking of the collaboration, Harper said in a release, “At Cheekbone Beauty we share Christi Belcourt’s same zaagi’idiwin (or mutual love) for Indigenous youth. Learning we both are creating places using colour where our youth feel seen and heard. Helping them see the beauty in their reflections. We share a strong appreciation for all of creation. We are overjoyed to have this opportunity to work with an iconic Indigenous artist.”
Plus, $5 from every purchase will be donated to The Onaman Collective, which was formed in 2014 by Belcourt, Isaac Murdoch and Erin Konsmo, “to preserve and recover traditional knowledge, develop traditional art skills and create new ways for traditional teachings in the arts to carry on within the next generations through the youth.”
The Cheekbone Beauty x Christi Belcourt limited-edition collection is $125 and is exclusively available here.
Whether you have limited space for plyometrics and calisthenics, or you’re trying to be a little kinder to your joints (hello, knees!), there are some easy substitutions you can make to classic high-impact cardio exercises. To get the best modifications, we talked to two low-impact experts.
“Just because these moves are low-impact doesn’t mean you won’t work up a sweat,” Lexy Parsons, a yoga instructor and IIN health coach, told POPSUGAR. “You can still get your heart rate up, and these moves can be just as challenging as a high-impact alternative. Low-impact doesn’t mean low-intensity! It’s all about the intensity you bring to it.”
There are several added benefits of switching to low-impact moves, including that they’re more accessible to the elderly, injured, and pregnant populations. “It’s no secret that high-impact and high-intensity cardio workouts burn fat at a faster rate and in a short period,” said Amina Barnes, an NASM-certified personal trainer. “But for beginners, especially those who’ve had previous injuries, it’s important to start slowly and improve your strength and mobility over time. Lower-impact exercise moves allow you to leave one foot on the ground and tend to be gentler on your joints and muscles.”
In addition, you’ll be building functional strength. “These exercises are incredibly stabilizing; you’re fine-tuning your body in a way,” Parsons explained. “You’ll gain more flexibility and control, while working your core.” Barnes agreed, adding: “There are so many low-impact alternative exercise moves that still give you an intense, heart-pumping workout without increasing your risk for injury and muscle fatigue.” Here are five of the best.
Before any races were even called this November, women had made history. A record number of women ran for office in 2020—surpassing the record set just two years prior. More Republican women ran for U.S. House seats than ever before, and a number of women were poised to bring new representation to the halls of Congress and to their state legislatures. Here, as we wait to find out about the rest of the 2020 election, read about some of the candidates who are already making headlines:
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New Mexico has elected a woman of color in each of its three congressional districts, creating the largest all-women congressional delegation in the country’s history and the state’s first all-female delegation. Rep. Deb Haaland was re-elected in the 1st district, while Republican Yvette Herrell and Democrat Teresa Leger Fernandez were elected for their first terms in the 2nd and 3rd district, respectively. Leger Fernandez will also be the first woman to represent her district.
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McBride has been elected to Delaware’s state Senate and will become the highest-ranking openly transgender official in the nation, as well as the first openly transgender state senator in U.S. history. She was also the first openly transgender person to work at the White House, during President Barack Obama’s administration, and she became the first openly transgender person to speak at a major party’s national convention in 2016.
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Byers, a member of the Chickasaw Nation, has been elected to Kansas’s state legislature and will become the first openly transgender lawmaker in the state. She is also an admired teacher, having been named educator of the year by the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network in 2018 for her work as a music educator.
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Small has been elected to Vermont’s state legislature and will become the first openly transgender lawmaker in the state. Small is currently the director of the health and wellness program at the Pride Center of Vermont and is also known for her drag persona, Nikki Champagne.
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After winning in Missouri’s 1st congressional district, Bush will become the first Black woman to represent the state in Congress. Bush, a single mother, former nurse, and Black Lives Matter activist, was a leader in the Ferguson protests. This was her second time running for the seat.
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Rayner-Goolsby has been elected to Florida’s state House and will become the first openly LGBTQ+ Black woman in the state’s legislature. She’s also the founder and principal attorney of Civil Liberty Law and a former assistant public defender.
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After winning her election, Jackson will become the first openly LGBTQ+ member of Georgia’s state Senate. According to The Advocate, Jackson is an Episcopal priest and social justice advocate who lives on a farm with her partner.
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According to The Appeal, Simmons will now become the first person formerly convicted of a felony to be elected to the Washington state legislature. Simmons is an attorney who co-founded the Civil Survival Project, which provides legal services for the formerly incarcerated.
This post will be updated as more races are called.
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60 years of Swinton.
In honour of her 60th birthday, we’re celebrating modern fashion icon Tilda Swinton with a look back at some of her most memorable red carpet looks. From relaxed suiting to sleek gowns, Swinton oozes style. Her effortless looks from designers like Chanel, Jil Sander and Schiaparelli are among the most sophisticated to grace the red carpet. Her wardrobe full of designs by longtime friend Haider Ackermann, in particular, has helped solidify her place on best dressed lists with architectural looks skimming her statuesque figure. Known for making our jaws drop, there’s no shortage of swoon-inducing looks from the Scottish actress.
Click through for some of the most iconic red carpet looks we’ve seen on Tilda Swinton.
Since the K-beauty boom in the mid 2010s, the entire skincare-loving world has levelled up their routines, taking their steps into the double digits with cleansers, toners, mists, essences, waters, serums, oils, creams, gels…the list goes on.
And while that multi-step routine has its doubters, the fact remains: Executing a beauty routine is some quality self-care that makes a lot of people feel good. Of course, there is also science behind it, and the benefits of those products you’re massaging into your face are aplenty. If you need more non-science (but equally as valuable) arguments for a quality skincare routine, Rihanna just blessed us with the release of a Fenty Beauty night cream.
If you’re still mostly focused on your morning, pre-Zoom makeup routine and simply quickly cleansing and applying whatever cream is within reach before you crash, or—shudder—doing nothing at all in the evening, we have some news for you: Your nighttime skincare routine is arguably more important that what you do in the morning. So, we consulted two skincare experts to get all the details on what you can do to get some serious beauty sleep.
Your circadian rhythm, AKA your body clock, is the 24-hour cycle of physiological and behavioural changes driven by the light and darkness around you. While you sleep, it moves your skin cells into peak regeneration mode, and they do their best to undo the day’s damage from things like pollution and UV rays. “You’re in protection mode during the day and you’re in recovery mode at night,” says Janice James, Estée Lauder’s Education Lead in Toronto.
Read this next: PSA: You’re Probably Overusing These Skincare Ingredients
While your skin is in that nighttime recovery mode, that’s also when it’s at its most permeable. So, whatever products you’re applying will absorb better than they would during the day. “There’s no wind, and no hands or masks touching your face,” says Dr. Sandy Skotnicki, dermatologist and author of Beyond Soap. “You are typically also warmer in bed, which causes dilation of blood vessels and better potential penetration of actives.”
But: Your skin also faces some challenges at night. Although it isn’t facing all those daytime external aggressors, it is experiencing more moisture loss. “Between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m., that’s when your skin is losing the most moisture. And as you get older, that increases even more,” says James. Thanks to that aforementioned body clock, your sebum production is at its lowest while you sleep, too. Without that protective barrier of natural oils on your skin, even more moisture can escape.
Develop a solid routine, and stick with it. James recommends cleansing to remove dirt, makeup and oil, followed by a serum to repair, restore and renew skin, then a moisturizing treatment to nourish, and an eye cream for good measure. “Even if you protect your skin as much as you can during the day, there’s so much damage that’s coming from the environment,” she says. “When you go to bed, your skin is trying to recover from all of that damage, and as you get older you’re just not able to do that as effectively as you could before. [The right products] set your skin up so it can do its job while you’re sleeping at night.”
Dr. Skotnicki offers some suggestions for exactly what ingredients you should be looking for in those nighttime products. “At night, you should cleanse, apply a serum with retinol or peptides, and then use a moisturizer with more retinol or peptides,” she says. Retinol, or vitamin A, activates your skin’s natural repairing abilities, fending off wrinkles and uneven skin tone. That, along with the fact that it makes your skin more susceptible to UV rays (so, you don’t want to use it during the day), makes it ideal for nighttime use. Peptides are amino acids that trigger your skin’s natural collagen and elastin production, making it appear firmer, and they also help hydrate skin.
If you’re under 30 and prone to breakouts, Dr. Skotnicki also recommends a beta hydroxy acid (BHA) or alpha hydroxy acid (AHA) nighttime product twice weekly. Those acids will chemically exfoliate dead skin cells and help with natural cell turnover.
Read this next: Do You *Really* Need Eye Cream?
In case you haven’t yet realized, moisturizing is essentially the cornerstone of a solid nighttime skincare routine. Thus, Dr. Skotnicki recommends hydrating and barrier repairing ingredients, like ceramides, natural seed oils, lipids and hyaluronic acid.
James also highlights hyaluronic acid, which happens to be one of the star ingredients in Estée Lauder’s newly-reformulated cult classic, Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Multi-Recovery Complex. In 1982, Advanced Night Repair was the first serum created specifically for nighttime use, and now, new developments have made it an even more effective overnight treatment.
“We’ve added high levels of hyaluronic acid to lock in moisture for 72 hours, which helps create an environment for repair to happen in,” says James. Another addition to the previous Advanced Night Repair formula is Chronolux Power Signal Technology. That technology is powered by a combo of yeast extract and peptides that increases the natural renewal of skin cells and the production of collagen. “When you use it every night, it reduces the look of advanced aging, lines, wrinkles, uneven skin tone, dehydration, pore minimizing and firmness,” says James.
Fragrance. “I think fragrance is unnecessary in skincare and it can lead to irritation, which you certainly don’t need at night. If you want a little scent in your skincare, use it in the morning,” says Dr. Skotnicki. She also suggests limiting exfoliation to just one night a week. “Your skin is [exfoliating] already on its own, so a product or mask that helps this process can be done once a week, but you shouldn’t ever do it nightly.”
Cleansing! “You need to take all of that makeup off so your skin can breathe and focus on what it should be doing,” says James. “I always double-cleanse at night, once to remove all the makeup and another to clean the skin. It’s a pampering experience I really love, and it makes me feel good before I start applying everything else.”
Read this next: Should You Be Wearing Sunscreen Indoors?
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With 4.8 million votes in, Rev. Raphael Warnock is leading incumbent Republican Kelly Loeffler in a hotly-contested Senate race in Georgia that appears bound for a runoff in January. It’s a race that saw major Democratic support for Warnock, including endorsements from Barack Obama, Kamala Harris, and Stacey Abrams, and a huge influx of fundraising money, with his campaign bringing in $13 million between July and September. Contributing their own voices of support: a wave of WNBA players, fueled by reasons both societal and personal.
The players’ support dates back to August. The WNBA was midway through a season dedicated to social justice, with players wearing Black Lives Matter and #SayHerName shirts, taking every opportunity to further the conversation around racial injustice — something they’ve been doing for years. But Senator Kelly Loeffler, a coowner of the Atlanta Dream, had publicly opposed these moves. “The truth is, we need less — not more politics in sports,” she wrote in a letter to the WNBA commissioner. Supporting a “particular political agenda undermines the potential of the sport and sends a message of exclusion.”
Instead of continuing to speak about Loeffler’s comments — thus giving her more publicity — players took a stand for Warnock, her opponent. “Rev. Warnock is somebody who supports everything that we support and just happens to be running in that seat,” Dream forward Elizabeth Williams told ESPN at the time. “It just worked out really well.” Players took their support into the arena, where many wore Vote Warnock shirts to show their support. “We definitely decided to wear it because he’s for Black Lives Matter,” Dream guard Chennedy Carter added. “He supports the league and the movement, and we support him. We’re voting for Warnock.”
Now, their candidate is heading to a crucial runoff against Loeffler in January — per Georgia’s election laws, a runoff is required because no candidate secured over 50 percent of the vote — and the players are still all-in. “This is huge!” Williams tweeted. “Let’s support @ReverendWarnock through this January runoff!” “Time to flip Georgia blue,” added WNBA champ Sue Bird, who came up with the idea to wear Vote Warnock shirts.
Read more of the players’ messages of support ahead.
“It’s pretty wild how you can take the things you had as a child and remix them for who you are today,” actress and animal advocate Kat Graham says while prepping her vegan Gouda-filled burgers. In today’s episode of “Mama, I Made It,” she invites us into her kitchen for the gourmet take on that classic comfort food. According to Graham, who stars in Emperor and Cut Throat City, she has long been perfecting her cruelty-free cooking. Prior to booking her role on The Vampire Diaries, Graham even began culinary school. Watch as she talks about how her childhood cultivated a love of food and why cooking tools are kind of like makeup brushes.
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Halfway through my semester of Western Massage 1 in 2015, I walked into class 15 minutes late. Everyone I knew was already paired up to practice massaging each other’s legs. A guy named Ron, a personal trainer with muscles braided like challah and a handsome smile, looked relieved when he saw me and asked if we could work together. The idea of undressing and being caressed by a man I didn’t know seemed risky. I was squeamish enough doing that with women. But I didn’t want to come off as prudish, so I said okay.
I had enrolled in massage class at the Pacific College of Health and Science as part of my research for a book on the sense of touch, but also to help heal my own aversion. Ever since childhood, I’d never been at ease throwing my arms around someone or holding their hand when they’re upset. I was hoping that touching strangers in the course would help me get over whatever I feared. Ron held a sheet over my body as I wriggled out of black sweatpants, a Pacific College T-shirt, and a bra. I hadn’t shaved in a week, so I cringed as he uncovered my right leg. He felt me tense up and placed his hands gently on my lower back. It was sweet of him, and it made me question what I was so afraid of, especially in a roomful of people. Why had I come to equate any touch, particularly a man’s, with danger? As Ron continued, I calmed myself by recognizing he was just a student learning a lesson; my body may as well have been a textbook. Soon I fell asleep on the table.
I’ve been thinking about that day recently, as I’ve heard the different ways people predict we’ll behave when the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us. Some think we will come out of this period valuing human contact more than ever, and envision a magical time when we’ll give hugs to strangers. It’s appealing to hope that tough times will push us to cling to each other, but what massage school taught me is that our unconscious scripts about touch can make us override this instinct, especially after long periods of keeping our distance.
Touch is a basic need when we’re babies, but many of us leave it behind as we get older. One reason is introversion, a personality trait some experts believe is likely innate. Babies who grow up to be introverted adults tend to be highly reactive when they are young. Reactive infants and children can be sensitive to every sight, sound, smell, and touch, and they need to retreat inward to process their feelings. Over time, this could make them more hesitant to reach out to others. But temperament is only part of the puzzle: Upbringing also matters. If when we cried as babies, our parents were responsive to our needs, this created a positive feedback loop, making us more likely to seek the comfort of others.
I was an extremely reactive kid, a natural-born introvert. I threw a fit the first time my feet touched a sandbox. A family trip to Disneyland turned into a nightmare for everyone involved because I was afraid of everything I saw. I come from a stoic family—let’s just say we’re not huggers—so I decided that rather than reaching out for help, I should handle my emotions on my own. My father noticed. He joked that I was a “touch-me-not”—a type of plant that folds in on itself when stroked—because I would pull away when he came too close. Neither of us understood then that what I was actually rejecting was my need for physical affection.
In massage school, I started peeling back those layers. Each week, we learned new parts of a basic full-body massage: how to rub the back, then the legs, then the front of the body. As the semester progressed, the sensations of my body became more salient: I wondered how long my breathing had been shallow, and the muscles in my neck so tight. With more awareness, I got better at telling my massage partners where my problem areas were. We took turns giving and receiving massages, asking for permission to continue and to see if we were applying proper pressure. For the first time, I was requesting the kind of touch I wanted. In this safe space, where I was engaging in touch without any of the interpersonal dynamics that can make it scary in the real world, I learned that it didn’t make me soft, needy, or dependent to enjoy being touched by another person. I also started to rethink all the messages I’d absorbed over the years that made me even more touch-averse. In my mind, touch could be a sign of coercion. I thought men only touched women when they wanted sex; that people who were showy with affection were inauthentic.
By avoiding touch, I hadn’t let myself appreciate how biologically beneficial the presence of another person can be. Kory Floyd, PhD, a professor of interpersonal communication at the University of Arizona, coined the term skin hunger to describe what can occur when we lack affectionate touch. In a 2014 study, he found people who lack this type of touch experienced more loneliness, depression, anxiety, and immune disorders. Touch also contributes to personal connection. We tip waiters more who briefly touch us (just two seconds—otherwise the tips start to decrease), and teachers who gently touch their students are better at coaxing them into solving math problems. A 2010 study published in the journal Emotion analyzed 30 NBA teams during the 2008–09 basketball season and found that the number of early-season high fives, half-hugs, and fist bumps could predict cooperative behavior. Through touch, the teams performed better, both as individuals and as a group.
My massage classmates and I bonded faster than any group I’d been part of in years. They made me realize how much I’d wanted the warmth of others. With time, even outside of school, I was able to express the desire for connection I had always hidden. I initiated hugs with friends, and, in my work as a journalism professor, comforted students who came to me with problems. By allowing myself to touch people more—and letting myself express how it made me feel—I became more aware of my need for physical contact. Massage school was the exposure therapy I needed to overcome the emotional and physical awkwardness that had plagued me.
During this pandemic, it can feel like there’s an immediate risk to physical contact. What we shouldn’t forget is that there may be another type of danger in keeping our distance. In a study conducted this April at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, about 60 percent of 260 people surveyed said they’d experienced touch deprivation during this time of social isolation—a feeling that was associated with stress, anxiety, depression, fatigue, sleep disturbance, and even symptoms of post-traumatic stress. Even though many of us didn’t engage in a lot of touching before the quarantine, we can feel its loss more acutely when we can’t have it, says Tiffany Field, PhD, director of the university’s Touch Research Institute and lead author of the study. Which makes this a good time to reconsider its importance: “Hopefully now we’ll appreciate that it’s critical for our health,” Field says. As we keep our distance, we could spend some time reminding ourselves how touch makes us feel: the pleasure of a loving embrace from a partner, roommate, family member, or pet, or even from rolling tennis balls up and down the soles of our feet. Our need for touch is easy to ignore, but it’s important to our personal and social health. If we truly want to be more connected to one another when this is over, we first need to get in touch with ourselves.
This article appears in the October 2020 issue of ELLE.
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