girl crush

today’s installment of the girl crush series features my friend, and technically {gulp} boss, angela leigh.

angela is the group exercise director for the orange county equinox irvine, and teaches some of the best classes in southern california.

from spin, to kettle balls, to the oc’s newest craze, METCON3, angela packs her classes to the brim with her boundless energy and enthusiasm.

but it is on the yoga mat where angela truly blossoms. people from all over love angela’s grounding, unadulterated, potent vinyasa flow classes. she teaches one hundred percent from the heart and it shows.

she recently started her own personal blog, purleigh living, where she streams her positive energy out into the written word.

here’s a little more about our girl angela:

name 5 bottom of the jar products?

burt’s bees anti-age serum, aveeno tinted moisturizer, chloe roll on perfume, victoria secret volume clear gloss and a touch of sun bare escentuals mineral bronzer.

who is your style icon and why?

jennifer aniston. everything is so simple but also sassy. i want every dress she wears.

what is your summer fashion must have item?

i am loving my old jean cut off shorts…pair them with a plaid button down or simple white tank. loving it. also, i am having a love affair with fedoras (even though the NYC boyfriend doesn’t like when i wear them).

finish the sentence….i can never leave the house without:

my ipod and headphones…i need to be able to escape sometimes.

what advice would you give your 25-year-old self?

let go girl!!!!…living with a wall in front of you is not worth it. trust, love and embrace connection. do not be so fuckin’ afraid everyone is going to hurt you or stab you in the back. live in love not fear.

as a the group exercise manager for equinox irvine and newly named lululemon ambassador, you are in the trenches of fitness fun. what are you currently excited about in the fitness world?

i am so psyched to see the collaboration of modalities. the 30 minute cycle coupled with 30 minutes of yoga or pilates. i am loving the metabolic conditioning programs that are rolling out. i am also excited about the primal connection to fitness. body weight training and how our breath and energetic bodies influence our physical bodies – sooo good! there are so many talented inventors, presentations and innovators. i am just super blessed to be in the business and know some of these great minds.

what is your go to regime to stay healthy, fit and sane?

i mix it up all the time. something different all the time. i train with chris long, personal trainer manager at equinox irvine, three times a week and that nearly kills me, but i still come back for more. i throw myself upside down everyday into a handstand, this keeps me sane and light. i have a simple home yoga practice that i do daily that sets me right for the day…routine and commitment to the yoga mat first and then i spread my wings into every other area of the fitness world. i am loving TRX training right now and doug katona is inspiring me to lift some heavy weights around and i am feeling and seeing a difference in my energy and strength. in short…mix it up, keep it fresh.

what are your must have healthy foods? what are your guilty pleasure foods?

must have healthy foods. green juices. i am drinking two a day for energy and my skin has gotten so much better from it too. currently loving greenleaf “make your own salads”. a breakfast omelette with egg whites, turkey bacon and spinach is my favorite meal to start the day with. guilty pleasure foods. dark chocolate covered acai berries, almonds, marshmallows, peanut butter cups…i could go on and on, but you cover it with dark chocolate i am in.

what is your favorite yoga pose and why?

i am in love with the handstand, adho muhka vrksasana. for the first three years (out of four total) i have been practicing yoga i let fear take this pose from me, i would not touch it unless i was glued to a wall, and now i cannot stay off my hands……far, far, far away from a wall. there is something so empowering about standing on your hands and looking straight down and forward into the feeling of maybe falling. i love it. now seeing how i can expand the handstand practice into transitions and find the handstand in any pose on and off the mat. i have a few yoga mammas in my life but one of them inspired me to jump out of a plane recently and that jumped changed my perspective on life and love in general. now i love hand stands and i love to love.

what are your favorite things about living in southern california?

sunrises, sunsets, hikes, beach, the amazing yoga, diversity and opportunity

what are your least favorite things about southern california?

images, obligation to “keep up”, attention to shit that isn’t really important, traffic and the lack of snow.

thank you beautiful friend for letting us glimpse into your life. you have so many crushable qualities, but you know i was sold the day i saw you rock the roger rabbit*** like nobody’s business…damn girl!

wednesday happy m’loves.

****for those of you who watched that roger rabbit video—-yes, that was the whitest family in america folks, your christmas hip-hop music doesn’t fool me.