pep rally {with clinique}

Jacket: Eddie Bauer; Leggings: Lululemon; Shoes: Nike; Sunglasses: Celine

Lately, with my schedule a bit in flux these days with both the weather and NYFW kicking into high gear, I've been squeezing my workouts in during the mornings. If it's warm enough (which thank goodness, it has been lately!), I'll opt for a morning run along the Hudson (around 6am, eep!). If it's a bit chillier, or there's fresh snow on the ground, I'll head to my trusty Equinox or a Barry's Bootcamp class to wake up.

I've always considered myself an early riser -- and when the mood strikes me just right -- I love working out in the mornings. It's a great way to energize your day and by the time most folks are just thinking about their first cup of coffee, you've already covered a few miles or did your fair share of squats to get your booty looking fresh for summer.

For early mornings like these, I keep my beauty routine simple, with a fresh layer of BB cream and moisturizer to perk up my skin. The folks over at Clinique recently introduced me to their new eye cream, Pep-Start, which I've been testing out for my undereye area, right after applying my all over facial moisturizer. If you're like me, your under eye area is probably super sensitive when you first wake up (meaning I sometimes look like a zombie on the treadmill), but Pep-Start has been an easy step in my routine that actually perks up my skin (i.e. it feels more plump, making my eyes pop just a tad bit more). 

As for this past Wednesday's early morning workout with Clinique? Well let's just say I experienced my first 7am dance/rave/Daybreaker event. In short, I thought I was signed up for 7am yoga. Instead, I was greeted by fire acrobats, Knicks City Dancers and a ton of glow sticks. But that's another story, for another day, perhaps? ;)

Have you guys tried out Pep-Start yet? You can snag your own at Sephora right here.

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with Clinique. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations!

monday motivation {5 things that get me up and going}

Sweater, Tank, Bra, Pants and Bag: Calia by Carrie Underwood; Shoes: Nike Free; Sunglasses: Ray-Ban; Headphones: Gift from ShopStyle (similar here); Fitness tracker: Jawbone Up3

Since we're hot off the heels of our first (of many) long holiday breaks, let's talk fitness again, shall we? 

But first: this is the part where I hang my head a bit.

If you recall, a few weeks back I confided in all of you that I would be running my second marathon in many, many, many years this April in Paris. And if you happen to follow me on Snapchat, you probably got annoyed with the amount of running updates I was posting over there. That is until about two weeks ago, when it hit me. 

The wintertime "nahhh."

Are you familiar with it? That feeling when you know you really should be heading out for a long run and/or workout but something just always seems to get in the way. "Oh, waiting for the FedEx guy to arrive." "Oh, I really should organize my magazines by color and issue date." "Oh, silly daylight savings! I should just wait until I get that extra hour back to the day."

I'm usually pretty good at shaking this feeling, but something about the past two weeks (between a lot of last minute projects and a darn cold), I just couldn't seem to rise above the wintertime "nahhh." I guess when it came down to it, #NetflixAndChill just sounded better (and warmer). Which then, of course, got me thinking, I should revisit some of my fool-proof ways to get motivated again because that marathon sure as hell isn't going to run itself.

So in no particular order, here's how I get my butt into gear:

1. Pick up new workout gear. This probably comes as no surprise to anyone -- pick up a few cute new bras and running pants and I get excited to sport them all. I was recently introduce to the line Calia by Carrie Underwood back in September during Fashion Week and have been loving all of her separates (which I'm wearing here). 

2. Playlists. Playlists. Playlists. Give a girl the right tunes (or at least this girl) and she can run for miles. Lately I've been jamming out to a lot of Billy Joel, Bowie and Bieber (I know, I know, but something about his last album is just too good!).

3. Try a new workout class with friends. Nothing gets you moving like a few good girlfriends pushing you. Lately, we've been hooked on Equinox's barre classes (great for toning and lengthening). And I may have picked up a few leotards just for the occasion. ;)

4. Treat myself to a new restaurant if I meet my running goal for the week. Up this week? If I crush my 12 mile run this Saturday, I have my sights set on The Waverly Inn (because it just looks so romantic every time I pass it while walking Elvis).

5. Pick out my marathon present. They say eye on the prize, right? Well, in this case, I'm keeping my eye on a little visit to Chanel when I'm in Paris post-marathon to scoop up a new bag baby. Until then, let's think about this as the Chanel carrot, forcing me to run just a bit faster and just a bit longer.  

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with Equinox. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations! 

26.2 miles

Bra: Old Navy: Pants: Old Navy; Sweater: Eddie Bauer; Shoes: Nike; Sunglasses: Karen Walker

Let's shift gears a bit today and talk about fitness. 

Since moving to New York, it's been a huge goal for me to get back into a regular fitness routine (I even put it on my 30 before 30 list right here). And if you met me in elementary, middle or high school, this really wouldn't come as a surprise. I've always been on a sports team of some sort. Soccer. Basketball. Volleyball. Softball. Heck, I may have even played on my high school's golf team for a season (for the record, I was and still am awful). 

Nothing quite fit like running though. I did track throughout high school and while I prided myself in the short distance sprints, it wasn't until I started doing longer distances in college that I really hit my stride (pun intended). It wasn't necessarily just about the cardio for me (even though that's a great added bonus) -- I mainly love the head space it gives me. Give me an early morning when no one else is out, a scenic several mile route, a great playlist and I could run for hours, just thinking about work, problems I'm trying to solve and any goals that I've been mulling over/contemplating. 

Unfortunately, as I get older (and therefore busier), it gets harder and harder to block dedicated time for things like that. But if the past recent months have taught me anything, it's not impossible! If you follow me on Snapchat, you may have noticed I've been getting my butt out pretty regularly, either to the Hudson River running path or even up to the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis reservoir up in Central Park to bust out 3 or more miles. I find that it's a great way to see your own city and if you catch New York at those early morning hours, it can be pretty darn magical with no one else in your way. 

And if you happen to follow me over on Instagram, you may have noticed that as of last week, fresh off the heels of our Utah road trip, I signed up for a marathon in Paris, taking place in April. I technically ran my first marathon back in 2006 in Vegas, and despite my better judgement, ignored any core and muscle training and solely focused on cardio training. I finished the race (right around 4 hours or so), but my body was an absolute mess afterward. Muscles and joints that hadn't been properly introduced or prepped for the occasion ached and quite honestly, bothered me for months afterward. 

This time around, I'm taking a slightly different approach. Focusing on this running plan and partnering with Equinox and their personal trainers to help with the strength training and overall body toning (hello arms!).

Over the next few months, I'll be sharing my progress, both mileage wise and strength-wise here on the blog, and I do hope you'll follow along (and heck, maybe even join me?). And it all starts TODAY!

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with Equinox. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations!