We've had our sights set on Shauna Harrison for quite a while. Her
inspiring Instagram feed (she's got more than 80k followers) motivates us to make it to the gym, Pilates class, or wherever so we can sweat every day. Shauna has a public health PhD and is a self-proclaimed nerd, hip hop head, yogi and jock. This woman loves it all! We caught up with her for a little Q&A sesh that only inspires us more.
Here it is...
ToeSox: There’s more than 95K posts tagged with #sweataday - that is amazing! When did you start #sweataday and what has been the most rewarding or interesting part of this Instagram tag?
Shauna: Thank you! #SWEATADAY started January 1, 2013. At the time I had been participating in one of the first yoga challenges that I am aware of called #yogaaday and was noticing a handful of other yoga challenges pop up on Instagram. I wanted to create something that was both yoga and fitness because I hadn't seen anything like it up to that point. I started the challenge with daily exercises that participants could do for as much time/as many reps as they deemed challenging for them. I really wanted it to be inclusive for any age or fitness level as possible. Slowly the community began to grow and we had men and women of all ages, from little kids through seniors, posting their #SWEATADAY videos and pics. The most rewarding part was actually just that -- seeing the community grow. Especially telling of this were the classrooms of kids that we had participating right along with us for quite awhile. I got to go visit the schools a few times since my friend Kaitlin was one of the teachers leading the way. It was pretty amazing.
When it comes to hip hop are you old school or new school? Give us 3 songs you would play in your Muscle and Flow class today?
I would say definitely old school. As a hip hop head, you can't really grow up in the 80's and 90's and not just swoon for the old school. There are some new artists/songs that I love too, but man that hip hop from back in the day was unparalleled! Ok, only three songs? But there are SO many! (in Muscle & Flow playlists alone I have 3.5 days worth of music!) Looking through, 3 songs that get a lot of rotation in Muscle & Flow specifically are: Poison (I mean, come on!), Dark Fantasy, and Collard Greens.
What is your go-to sweat sesh when you’re stressed?
Pretty much anything that makes me sweat will de-stress me (sweat FTW!) but when I REALLY have
some emotional release that needs to happen, I go one of two directions -- either I go for hill runs or to yoga.
Can you give us 3 tips for how to stay on track over the holidays?
I 100% believe in balance. Enjoy the holidays and all that comes with that, but all in balance. There are, obviously, a lot of foods that aren't the healthiest around and you don't have to be scared to touch them. Just eat them in moderation and keep the rest of your fuel super nourishing nutritionally. Same goes for movement. With travel and family obligations and weather issues, sometimes it's hard to find time to get in your normal training routine. That's ok. Plan accordingly,
fit in shorter workouts where you can, try new things with your family/friends, look to winter sports. I find the more you stress about trying to keep everything perfect (whether during the holidays or anytime), the more off balance you become.
Is there anything your learned in all your years of school that you don’t agree with?
HA! So many things. I think that is really the value of going so deeply into academia. It's all about exploration of knowledge, constant questioning, thinking critically, learning how to research for yourself, understanding what research results really mean, feeling like you've learned so much and then realizing you know nothing. These "skills" never leave you. But if I had agreed with everything I learned, I don't think I would've been doing it right.
What is the first thing you do when you wake up?
On a good morning, I get up to put water on for my matcha or hot lemon water and meditate. On most actual mornings, I check my phone. *insert monkey covering eyes emoji* At least I'm honest. *shrugs*
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