FROM MINDFULNESS APPS TO DIET HACKS, L.A.’S GROUNDED GURUS HAVE A WEALTH OF WELLNESS KNOWLEDGE TO SHARE.
MIA RIGDEN PHOTO BY MORGAN FOITLE
MIA RIGDEN
MS, CNS, Board-certified Nutritionist & Author miarigden.com
Erewhon Strawberry Glaze smoothie, erewhonmarket.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Lunya washable silk sleep mask, lunya.co. PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Rosewood Miramar Beach, rosewoodhotels.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Santa Monica-based Mia Rigden’s love of food runs in the family. “My grandmother was a dietician and my family loves to cook,” she says. After studying at The French Culinary Institute and pursuing a career in restaurant PR, she realized that indulging in food, travel and hospitality didn’t always leave her feeling her best. She experimented with trendy juice cleanses and detoxes in her 20s, but felt that type of extreme wellness was at odds with her career and her passions. She eventually enrolled in the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, going on to pursue a master’s in nutrition and, later, her board certification. Now, Rigden is one of L.A.’s most sought-after nutritionists, partly for her doable approach to eating well. “I have two hard-and-fast rules for all of my clients: It has to be easy, and you have to like the food,” she explains. “We have to find ways to fit nutrition into our lives, not the other way around.” Rigden, who grew up in Mill Valley, recently debuted her cookbook, Foodwise (Simon & Schuster), in January. “Foodwise is a guide to feeling your very best and loving what you eat,” she says. “It includes a 21-day whole-foods program, The Reset, and 100 recipes to help you find the most supportive foods and routines for your body and learn how to integrate them into your everyday life.” Sounds delicious!
Nike Air Max Scorpion, nike.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Moon Juice SuperYou, moonjuice.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Mia Rigden The Well Journal: A Guided Journal for Mindful Eating and Better Living, amazon.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
WAKE-UP TIME:
6:30AM
BREAKFAST:
Smoothie
DIET:
Delicious
DOPPELGÄNGER:
Kate Hudson, so they say
NEMESIS:
Netflix
ESCAPE:
Kauai or Santa Barbara
WEAKNESS:
A dirty martini
UNIFORM:
Jeans, T-shirt, blazer, sneakers, dad hat
HOTEL:
Rosewood
WORKOUT:
Karen Lord Pilates
LAST MEAL:
Sushi
SUPPLEMENTS:
Needed Women’s Multi and Women’s Omega-3+; Seed DS-01 Daily Synbiotic; Moon Juice Magnesi-om; Moon Juice SuperYou
MENTOR:
My grandmother—an ardent student of nutrition with a fun-loving, approachable and delicious approach to food and cooking
WORKOUT SHOES:
Nike
WORKOUT OUTFIT:
Always matching
WORKOUT PLAYLIST:
Electronic/dance
WORKOUT BUDDY:
I fly solo.
BEST ADVICE:
Assume positive intent.
PHILANTHROPY:
Women’s health organizations, especially Planned Parenthood
MANTRA:
It feels good to feel good.
STREAMING NOW:
Pamela, a Love Story
DINNER:
Protein and veg, ideally before 7PM
SOULMATE:
My husband, Jamie!
BEDTIME:
10PM-ish
ON MY NIGHTSTAND:
The Well Journal: A Guided Journal for Mindful Eating and Better Living
THEME SONG TO YOUR LIFE:
“This Must Be the Place” by Talking Heads
3 DESERT ISLAND ESSENTIALS:
Lunya eye mask, beach chair and a cozy blanket
ZODIAC:
Leo
DR. JASON WERSLAND PHOTO BY JOONAS KENTT AMIES
DR. JASON WERSLAND
Co-founder & Chief Wellness Officer, Therabody Inc. therabody.com
Valerie Confections Durango darkened milk chocolate bar with roasted almonds, smoked salt and cocoa nibs, valerieconfections.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Lululemon License to Train linerless 7-inch short, lululemon.com.
Therabody TheraFace Pro, therabody.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Growing up in Utah, Dr. Jason Wersland was super active, playing soccer, football, golf and rugby. “I discovered that a close family friend was a chiropractor for a professional sports team, which was a pivotal moment for me,” he says. “I realized I had the potential to incorporate my interest in wellness and physiology, my love for sports, and my innate ability to help heal and educate, and the beginning of a dream was born.” After a traumatic motorcycle accident left him with debilitating chronic muscle and nerve pain, Wersland saw a gap in the market for relief in the form of powerful percussive therapy. He designed a few prototypes before launching the first-ever percussive therapy device: Theragun. “While the Theragun was the start of what’s since become Therabody, over the years, we’ve become a holistic ecosystem of wellness products, content and services,” Wersland explains, noting some of the brand’s innovative new products, including TheraFace Pro, JetBoots and Smart Goggles. “Therabody is a wellness brand that is passionate about innovation for both body and mind.” So, what’s next? “We have some really cutting-edge innovations launching this year, but they’re all top secret for now.”
Adidas 4DFWD 2 running shoes, adidas.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Athletic Greens AG1, athleticgreens.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
WAKE-UP TIME:
6:30AM
BREAKFAST:
Athletic Greens, hot water with lemon and an egg white sandwich
DIET:
Protein-focused
NEMESIS:
If I do, then it’s about my thinking, not them.
ESCAPE:
Working out and meditation
WEAKNESS
Chocolate
UNIFORM
Black on black and a Therabody hat: my version of Johnny Cash
WORKOUT
HIIT and weight training
LAST MEAL
Fatburger
SUPPLEMENTS
Athletic Greens, omegas, magnesium and multivitamins
WELLNESS APP
Therabody app or Oura
WELLNESS TOOLS
Therabody products
MENTOR
Dr. Dennis Colonello
WORKOUT SHOES
Adidas
WORKOUT OUTFIT
John John Florence has a great line that I love. Legends. Lululemon.
WORKOUT PLAYLIST
Running stations on Spotify
BEST ADVICE
1.Serve others. 2. Find a support system you can lean on.
SOULMATE
My wife
BEDTIME
10:30PM
ON MY NIGHTSTAND
TheraFace, mouth tape and a Theragun Mini
3 DESERT ISLAND ESSENTIALS
Theragun, cellphone and my wife
ZODIAC
Gemini
MEGAN ROUP PHOTO COURTESY OF MEGAN ROUP
MEGAN ROUP
Celebrity Trainer & Founder, The Sculpt Society thesculptsociety.com
Jenni Kayne alpaca Cocoon crew neck sweater in ivory, jennikayne.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
The Sculpt Society app, thesculptsociety.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Pamela, a Love Story on Netflix is Roup’s go-to show PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
“I spent a period of my life over-exercising, yo-yo dieting and thinking that I needed to spend hours doing cardio,” says The Sculpt Society founder Megan Roup. “I wanted to create a class that felt fun and effective and combined sculpt and easy dance cardio in an approachable way. Movement has had such an impact on my life and I knew I had to share this feeling and workout with other women.” What makes Roup’s training and fitness approach effective is a less-is-more philosophy. “Consistently fitting in 10-minute workouts throughout the week is just as or more impactful than spending an hour at the gym,” she says. “My goal is to give you a great workout in less than an hour.” While Roup’s classes are extremely popular online, she’s also currently teaching IRL on the weekends at 3rd Street Dance in West Hollywood. And if that’s not enough, she’s about to launch a unique program with Saltair founder, model and mom Iskra Lawrence. Called “7 Days of Self-Love,” the program will live permanently on the TSS app. “It includes a curation of inclusive movement, self-care rituals... really delicious recipes, intimate chats and journal prompts,” says Roup. “It’s a really refreshing and self-reflecting program, great for all fitness levels if you’re looking for a boost of confidence.”
Santa Monica Proper Hotel, properhotel.com PHOTO BY THE INGALLS
The infrared sauna at Den Mother, denmother.com. PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
Dagne Dover Landon carryall bag in Dune, dagnedover.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
WAKE-UP TIME:
6 to 6:15AM
BREAKFAST:
Apple and almond butter or eggs on toast
DIET:
No diets: I am an intuitive eater.
DOPPELGÄNGER:
Leighton Meester, Winnie from The Wonder Years, Heather Graham, Keira Knightley
NEMESIS:
Diet culture
ESCAPE:
Movement
WEAKNESS:
Infrared sauna
UNIFORM:
Jeans and a sweater
HOTEL:
Santa Monica Proper Hotel
WORKOUT:
The Sculpt Society
LAST MEAL:
Bean and cheese burrito with a side of guac and chips
SUPPLEMENTS:
Seed and Ritual multivitamin
WELLNESS APP:
The Sculpt Society
WORKOUT SHOES:
New Balance 1080v12
WORKOUT OUTFIT:
The Sculpt Society Athleisure
WORKOUT PLAYLIST:
’90s hip-hop
BEST ADVICE:
If you’re in the room, you belong in the room.
PHILANTHROPY:
Baby2Baby
MANTRA:
I am worthy.
STREAMING NOW:
Pamela, a Love Story
DINNER:
Burger and a Greek salad
SOULMATE:
My husband
BEDTIME:
9:30/10PM
ON MY NIGHTSTAND:
Anything by Colleen Hoover
THEME SONG TO YOUR LIFE:
“Show Me Love” by Robyn
GYM BAG:
Dagne Dover
3 DESERT ISLAND ESSENTIALS:
SPF, chips and a deck of cards
YESTERDAY:
Magic
ZODIAC:
Sagittarius
KEITH HODGES PHOTO BY STAN EVANS
KEITH HODGES
CPT/Strength & Conditioning Coach, Corrective Exercises Specialist & Founder, Mind in Muscle Coaching mindinmusclecoaching.com
Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills, fourseasons.com/losangeles. PHOTO BY DON RIDDLE
Apple Watch, apple.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
“My approach to fitness and training may seem complex to some, but it’s really simple,” says Keith Hodges. “I remain a student and I’m always willing to learn. I’m not married to one specific training philosophy.” Hodges, founder of Mind in Muscle Coaching, has slowly worked his way up to where he is in his career, starting at the front desk of a gym, while at the same time learning from books and magazines. “I couldn’t afford a personal trainer, so I read [Arnold Schwarzenegger’s] Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding and got a subscription to Muscle & Fitness magazine to teach myself about weightlifting, nutrition and supplementation,” he shares. “I never planned on coaching for a living. As a matter of fact, I would tell people I would never train people for a living.” But, after moving to L.A. for a career in a corporate fitness setting and hating it, training is where he landed. “What separates me from the majority of people in the fitness industry is application,” he says. “There are people with more experience and credentials than myself, but I’ve been really successful because of my ability to adapt and apply what I’ve learned.”
Hodges always keeps a jump rope in his gym bag PHOTO BY MALERAPASO/ISTOCK.COM
Hoka Bondi X running shoes, hoka.com PHOTO COURTESY OF BRANDS
WORKOUT:
Functional weight training and running
LAST MEAL:
Steak, sweet potatoes and broccolini
SUPPLEMENTS:
Daily multivitamin, trace minerals, plant-based protein, Himalayan pink sea salt
WELLNESS APP:
Nike running app
WELLNESS TOOL:
Apple Watch
MENTOR:
Tarik Brooks and Carlos Woods
WORKOUT SHOES:
Nike Metcon, Hoka Bondi X
WORKOUT OUTFIT:
Pants or shorts, a compression shirt and training shoes
WORKOUT PLAYLIST:
JAY-Z, DMX
WORKOUT BUDDY:
Jamaar Wilson
BEST ADVICE:
Stay positive and be thankful no matter what.
PHILANTHROPY:
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention
MANTRA:
I will not lose.
STREAMING NOW:
SportsCenter
DINNER:
6 to 8 ounces of protein, 1 to 2 cups of a starch, 1 to 2 cups of vegetables
SOULMATE:
To be determined
BEDTIME:
No later than 11PM ON MY NIGHT STAND:
Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself by Dr. Joe Dispenza and a Baccarat Rouge 540 candle
THEME SONG TO YOUR LIFE:
“No More Pain” by Tupac
GYM BAG:
Jump rope, ab wheel, weighted vest and weightlifting chalk
3 DESERT ESSENTIALS:
A saltwater filter/purifier, fishing net and a first-aid kit
YESTERDAY:
Went for a run, meal prepped and relaxed
ZODIAC:
Aries
Photography by:
