Hurdle with Emily Abbate

Not all that long ago, CrossFit’s “Fittest Woman On Earth” wasn’t working out at all. In 2011, she was enrolled in the nursing program at Queensland University of Technology, and felt as though she was in a total rut. “I had gained weight, I didn’t feel like I was doing what I wanted to do.” In episode 52, I sit down with Tia-Clair Toomey for a refreshingly honest conversation about her rise to th...

We all have 24 hours in a day (including Beyoncé). It’s normal to wonder how you can make the most of them. Ever since embracing life as a freelance journalist and solopreneur at the beginning of 2017, I’ve homed in on certain strategies to squeeze out every ounce of productivity from the moment I wake up in the morning until my head hits the pillow at night. In today’s #hurdlemoment, I share my s...

Happy Marathon Monday! If you’ve never heard of running legend Kathrine Switzer, then you’re in for a treat. Not only because she has a stellar 2:51:37 marathon PR (for comparison, I ran my first HALF marathon in 2:43:33). In 1967, the Syracuse University student became the first woman to ever run the Boston Marathon as a registered entrant. In her #hurdlemoment—now a photo seen around the world—r...

Today, I’m a certified run coach and seven-time marathoner. But not too long ago, I could barely run a mile without wanting to pass out. In today’s #hurdlemoment, I share my tried-and-true tips on how to start running—and stay running. I totally understand why you might feel intimidated. Picking up any new hobby can definitely feel overwhelming. The good news? With the right attitude, you too will...

Listening to Joe Holder talk is fascinating. Not necessarily because of the vocabulary that he uses—which is admittedly impressive—but because he’s so darn knowledgeable about his craft. A health and wellness consultant based in New York City who regularly works with major brands like Nike, Whoop, and Smart Water, the New Jersey-born trainer is constantly studying to better his performance—both in...

Mornings are pretty polarizing, right? Either you love them and fully embrace the phrase “the early bird gets the worm,” or you’re more of a snooze button enthusiast. If you’re the latter, you may want to reconsider your daily kickoff, and here’s why: Research shows that morning people are more proactive, happier, and more consistent with their workout routines. In today’s episode, I’m answering t...

Seven years ago, Daina Trout, her husband, and her best friend launched Health-Ade with $600 in their pocket. Today, more than 120,000 bottles of the brand’s 14 flavors (with five more to launch this year) are brewed every single day and shipped to 20,000+ stores around the country. In episode 49, Trout tells me about the difficulties they experienced building the business from the ground up and t...

No one has the perfect life, but you have the opportunity (key word: “opportunity”) to get pretty darn close. In #hurdlemoment—my new bite-size series launching today—I offer easy-to-digest tips and strategies to get over the speed bumps we face on the regular. The goal of this brand new Hurdle offering? Give #hurdlers a little motivation every Wednesday, in the form of a quickie episode, complete...

If you want to build your booty, Bec Donlan is your girl. After relocating to the U.S. from Australia six years ago, the personal trainer built a name for herself as the designer of derrieres with a splash of fun (she sells her own loop resistance bands at her website). In 2017, the self-proclaimed “cakemaker” was teaching up to five group fitness classes and 45 personal training clients a week wh...

Jeff Provenzano studied at New York City’s School of Visual Arts, but the last thing he wanted to do after college was get a job in graphic design. After taking a break from the books and tackling his first tandem jump with friends, he was absolutely hooked. In episode 47, we talk about the #hurdlemoment he faced post-grad, diving head first into his passions (pun intended), relocating to Arizona...

Denyelle Bruno was born to stand out. The California native realized a couple of life-shaking things in her teen years: that she was a lesbian and had natural passion for leadership. Today, the President and CEO of fast-casual favorite Tender Greens has a remarkable resume that includes impressive gigs at big brands like Peet's Coffee and Tea, Macy's, Apple, and Drybar. In episode 46, Denyelle tal...

The second you meet bubbly personal trainer and Training Mate founder Luke Milton, you’ll want to be his best friend. It’s no wonder he attracts great celebrity clientele like Khloe Kardashian, Elle McPherson, Rachel McAdams, and Teri Hatcher. One night in 2011, the former Australian professional rugby player was working late when he was involved in a serious hit and run car accident. It landed hi...

In 2015, Rachel Drori was hangry. Working at Gilt Groupe, she didn’t have enough time to recipe plan and cook healthy meals every single day. Come 3 p.m., she’d grab whatever was available for convenience sake—like a bar or trail mix—instead of putting good, clean food into her body. She felt totally depleted, and to make matters worse, was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called Hashimito’s...

There’s no better way to describe Alex Williamson than kind. The Chief Brand Officer at Bumble has had more than her fair share of #hurdlemoments. From dealing with her mother’s breast cancer diagnosis to finding out she had fibromyalgia in her early 20s, these challenges have help shape her into the woman she is today. Williamson even tells me about a recent divorce that drove her to try a digita...

Today, GT Dave is often referred to as the “king of kombucha.” But in late 1994, he was brewing small batches of the fermented tea in his parents’ kitchen. At the time, his mom was diagnosed with a highly aggressive form of breast cancer. When she healed, she shared with doctors that she’d been drinking her son’s very pungent, homemade tea that experts said helped her fight the battle. As a teenag...

At age 15, Juice Press founder Marcus Antebi entered a 3-month drug rehab program, and he’s been sober ever since. In episode 41, the Brooklyn native tells me about how he leaned into athletic interests like skydiving and Muay Thai in his young adulthood and became really focused on the quality of the foods he was putting into his body. In 2010, the vegetarian opened up the first Juice Press in th...

Forty. Episodes (!!!). This live pod comes from a discussion I had last week in collaboration with WeWork Labs, featuring past Hurdlers Adam Kallen of Jane Motorcycles, Jessy Dover of Dagne Dover, and Marah Lidey and Naomi Hirabayashi of Shine. We laughed a lot, and we talked about a lot of great stuff—from what it means to live a balanced lifestyle (and what that looks like for busy entrepreneurs...

To say that Carolyn Kylstra has had an impressive career path as a journalist would be a total understatement. From stints at Men’s Health and Cosmopolitan to Women’s Health and BuzzFeed, now she’s the editor-in-chief of SELF at Condé Nast. But her rise to the top wasn’t exactly smooth sailing. In her #hurdlemoment, the new mom shares that she found out she was pregnant around the same time her en...

When we feel like we’re waiting for instructions (gimme a sign!) we can forget our power. That’s just one example of the you-got-this texts that more than 2 million Shine users receive on a daily basis. App co-founders Marah Lidey and Naomi Hirabayashi met working at a non-profit just over 8 years ago, and they immediately hit it off. Becoming fast friends, the duo leaned into each other to get th...

Special episode alert! Live from the Tory Burch store on Rodeo Drive in Los Angeles, I’m sitting down with Nichelle Hines—the chief ride officer at Cycle House—and Sarah Larson Levey, the founder and CEO of Y7 Studio. This conversation is about as real as it gets. Hines shares how the writer’s strike of 2008 turned her life upside down and lead her down a path she never expected, and Sarah dishes...

In 2013, the now-CEO was working as a consultant — tired, traveling constantly, and 40 pounds overweight. Fitness wasn’t a priority for him because—in his words—it was hard to make it a priority. The catch: he wanted to be healthier. In his #hurdlemoment, Ethan dropped 40 pounds by building the first version of Aaptiv, which brings top-level digital-only, audio-based training sessions with persona...

Ever since she was a young girl, Ali Feller had her heart set on working in the publishing industry. Not just any job in publishing, though: Editor-in-chief of a teen dance magazine, perfect for someone who grew up on stage. By 25 (!!) she landed it. Right off the bat, she was working crazy hours, in endless meetings, on set at photoshoot after photoshoot living that New York City grind life that...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HURDLE! Exactly one year ago today, Hurdle hit iTunes. In this combo anniversary/year-end episode, I’m giddily recapping eight of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned from 365 days behind the microphone, including some gems from fan-favorites including Hayden Slater, Kirsty Godso, Robin Arzon, and more. A huge, huge thank you to all of the listeners, guests, and everyone else who...

In his early 20s, Mark Hunter was known as a thriving photographer nicknamed “The Cobra Snake”. He was a fixture in the New York and L.A. party scenes, traveling all over the country and world to snap everyone from Kings of Leon to Lindsay Lohan. Known for his wacky outfits and great aesthetic, his #hurdlemoment coincided with the rise of Instagram. With social media—as he puts it—everyone’s a pho...

Ryan Flaherty’s got, from my point of view, one of the most awesome jobs in the world. The Senior Director of Performance at Nike spends his days doing everything from crafting content for the Nike Training Club app, editing scripts for Nike’s podcast Trained, programming workouts for big-name athletes including Serena Williams, sitting on the Nike Performance Council, and so much more. It’s crazy...