PSA: Join us in Morocco in August for a yoga retreat that will take you deeper into your personal practice. If online is more your jam, we now have video bundles available for all levels. Don't forget that you'll get a free gift when you screenshot your review of our app to Lauren. And lastly, our book, Namaslay, is available for preorder.
In today's post I wanted to formally introduce Lauren (even though most of you guys know about her already) and our newest addition to the YBC team, Madison. Both will be writing with more frequency on YBC, so I thought i'd be fun to do a little Q&A with them!
Most of you guys know of Lauren from her DIY posts, but I realized I never really formally introduced her on the blog. Lauren's official title is Marketing Director, but she is honestly my right hand woman and does so much more than marketing for YBC. She started with us just over a year ago and was the pioneering force behind the YBC Official App.
1) What did you do before working with YBC?
Before coming to YBC I took a few years off from "Corporate America" and lived and traveled around Europe for about 3 years. Before that, I worked at ESPN in the Emerging Technology Department where I helped to develop future project concepts and internally market on-air technology to production. You know that continuously scrolling line at the bottom of the channel? My co-workers developed that!
2) What's your favorite thing about working with YBC so far?
I love the small company vibe – there's nothing else like it. I really enjoy seeing my ideas come to light but best of all – I love having a close connection to the YBC Community.
3) Favorite brand of activewear and why?
Okay, quick confession: up until I jumped on board with YBC I owned MAYBE two pairs of yoga leggings (they were most certainly purchased at Marshalls or TJ Maxx). I just didn’t get the whole 'spend an arm and a leg' thing on clothes you workout and sweat in. Then Candace came into my life and I was forever changed. I have traded in my jeans for high quality yoga leggings and I still can't believe I lived the jean life for so long!
I'm still finding my way around the athletic wear world but if I had to choose, I'd have to say Alo wins my vote - the Moto Leggings, to be exact... I actually have them in 3 different colors and almost never take them off.
4) Favorite summer read you could read again and again?
Oh man, this is a tough one. I'm going to be completely cliché and go with The Notebook or anything by Emily Giffin – they're the perfect feel good read for summer.
5) Go-to snack?
Toasted homemade style sourdough bread, drizzled with an authentic extra virgin olive oil, mashed avocado topped with fresh squeezed lemon, salt and pepper – SO GOOD.
But, if I'm feeling lazy I'll go for frozen grapes (especially in the summer!)
6) What's the last trip you took or your next trip coming up?
I was just in Key West, Florida for my sister's Bachelorette – we had the best time! I got home on Monday and on Wednesday I made a 13 hour drive to Sun Valley, Idaho (where I'm writing from now!). I'm excited for July because I don't have any travel plans!
7) Tell us something weird about yourself.
I have double jointed thumbs haha I guess that’s pretty weird!
Also, something else that’s not so weird but comes in handy around the office is my photographic memory. For as long as I can remember I've been able to recall almost anything I look at. All my friends and family call me the Queen of Finding Things because I almost always remember where I've seen something laying around.
Madison, YBC's intern
YBC is growing big time, and we really needed someone to come on board. But not just anyone. We needed someone who was a self starter. Someone motivated. Someone smart. Someone who doesn't take no for an answer. Someone feisty. And luckily, we found her! Her name is Madison, and she's moved up to Connecticut from Virginia to intern for us. I am thrilled to have her on board. She's taken over the YBC Sneak Peek account, has been helping us behind the scenes, and is going to be doing some blog posts in the near future, so I wanted to introduce her. You can find her on twitter if you'd like to give her a warm welcome!
1) What did you do before working with YBC?
College lyf. I am a proud newly-grad of the University of Virginia. I received my degree in Philosophy and Gender Studies.
2) What's your favorite thing about working with YBC so far?
So, this is my second week in, which means I still have a lot to learn and experience, but I am so thrilled with the opportunity to brainstorm and create original content for the blog. I’m pumped about exploring new concepts and ideas that the YBC readership can really engage with.
3) Favorite brand of activewear and why?
Fabletics is a current fave. They offer good quality leggings and have killer sales (like this, this and this - all on sale!) - I'm not about the buying things at full price life.
4) Favorite summer read you could read again and again?
I don’t often return to books I have already read, simply because there are so many great books I still need to read, but Dorothy Allison’s short memoir Two or Three Things I Know For Sure is a book I can come back to again and again. It is a beautiful and heartbreaking story of survival and self-acceptance. Her radical display of self-love and self-creation deeply resonates with me.
5) Go-to snack?
Hummus or peanut butter.
6) What's the last trip you took or your next trip coming up?
I took a $pRinG BREAK trip with one of my close friends a few months ago. We did a Southern road trip through Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. Now that I live closer to NYC, I definitely intend on visiting soon.
7) Tell us something weird about yourself.
It is really hard for me to make time to watch a movie, and yet pretty easy for me to binge watch six episodes of a TV show. Somehow, experiencing an entire narrative arc in about an hour and thirty minutes is more exhausting than watching several hours of television in which relatively little happens.
And that about does it! Thanks so much for reading, and feel free to let us know in the comments below what kind of posts you'd love to see more of on YBC!