A BIG THANK YOU to our primary sponsor, Arnold and Oroweat, who helped make this epic weekend possible.

Check out Arnold and Oroweat’s Facebook page for official photographs of:

• The Open Sky Cocktail Party
• Saturday’s Events
• Tastebud Tour of Chicago
• Thomas Bagel Thins Breakfast

Can’t get enough of the HLS? Either can we!

We really want to hear about your Summit experiences, so please leave the links to your posts about the Summit and your time in Chicago in the comments section of this post.

The cocktail party is being held at LaSalle Power Co (500 North La Salle Drive;  Chicago, IL 60654-7109), which is approximately 1 mile from the Congress Plaza Hotel.  You may walk, take a cab, or use public transit.  Groups will likely be meeting in the hotel lobby at 5:45 PM to travel together.  Refer to Then Heather Said’s directions below.

Public Transportation Directions from The Congress Plaza hotel to LaSalle Power Co for the cocktail party Friday night:

1. Exit Hotel onto S Michigan and turn right, headed south.
2. Take first Right onto E. Harrison
3. Follow E. Harrison until you reach the Harrison L terminal.
4. Get on the Red Line headed north, destination Howard
5. Get off the train on Grand Ave
6. Walk westward on Grand Ave, 3 blocks
7. Turn left on N. LaSalle – the LaSalle Power Co is ahea

Exciting news!

Thomas’ Bagel Thins are hosting a Bon Voyage Breakfast for all Healthy Living Summit attendees!

This amazing breakfast spread will take place on Sunday from 7 AM to 11 AM on Sunday morning in the Buckingham conference room. At the breakfast, attendees will have a chance to try the latest innovation from Thomas’ – 110 calorie Bagel Thins – and even make their very own cream cheese spread, by choosing from a variety of artisanal ingredients to mix into fresh cream cheese.

Can you say, “Holy yum!?”  Hope to see you there!

Hello 2010 Healthy Living Summit Attendees!

We are so looking forward to meeting all of you at this year’s Summit! SUBWAY® restaurants value the balance of eating well and being active. That is why we’d like to treat you to an evening of core fusion yoga at Exhale Spa in Chicago. Core fusion yoga is a mixture of cardio and core movements set to music—it’s guaranteed to leave you feeling stretched and strengthened! To learn more about core fusion yoga, visit the Exhale Spa website.

The hour-long class will begin at 7pm on Saturday.  Transportation will be provided to and from the hotel. Space is limited so please RSVP by Thursday, August 12th to aredman@zocalogroup.com.

We look forward to meeting you in a couple weeks!

Update: The class is now full! Thanks for signing up everyone!

A few great Chicago recommendations to see, do, and eat from Sarah O.! If you have your own must-sees, leave them in the comments!

Eats

Uncommon Ground (on Clark) – Amazing local food and fun cocktail menu; they have a certified organic garden on the roof. I’ve been there for dinner a dozen times, but never tried their brunch although I’ve heard it’s amazing. This is near Wrigley Field, so a train or cab ride from downtown.

Deleece (on Southport) – A seasonably changing menu; reasonably priced wines. This is kind of far from downtown, so may not be in the cards for a short trip.

Hannah’s Bretzel – A good breakfast or lunch spot; mostly organic menu and awesome bread! There’s two locations downtown, I would assume the one on Michigan Ave is probably closer to where you are staying.

Decero – An upscale taqueria; great fresh flavors. It’s good for a group b/c you can get a platter of tacos to share. The guac and margaritas are not to be missed.

Drinks

Signature Lounge – The lounge is located on the 96^th floor of the Hancock building. I would recommend stopping there for a cocktail one night…it’s kind of pricey but it has AMAZING views of the city. Go for one drink and then head somewhere else for dinner.

To Do’s

Lakefront path – My absolute favorite place in the city, I’ve spent many early morning runs on it. It’s a juxtaposition of the feeling of the city and nature. Beautiful views of the park, beach and lake as well as the skyline and Lake Shore Drive. I’m usually heading south on it and my favorite part is the strip just north of Fullerton when you are heading south – it’s gorgeous!

Shopping – The obvious shopping is on Michigan Ave, but if you want to check out some “less touristy” areas here are a couple –

* Armitage (between Halsted and Racine)

* Southport (between School and Grace)

Public transportation

Transit In Chicago - Google maps is linked in with the CTA, so if you look up directions, you can select public transportation as an option.

Thursday Night Event

YumUniverse Launch Party: Join YumUniverse on August 12, 2010 from 7-10pm at the Chicago Urban Art Society in Chicago’s hip Pilsen neighborhood for an evening of organic drinks and treats, raffles and free massages.  RSVP here or here.

Meet all the Summit speakers before you see them at the HLS. Check out the agenda for more information about each speaker’s presentation.

Gena Hamshaw

Gena Hamshaw is a certified clinical nutritionist who works with clients in New York and worldwide. Gena’s main goal is to educate men and women about the nuts and bolts of plant based diets, separating fact from fiction and encouraging a balanced, reasonable approach. She helps her clients break cycles of dieting and food faddism and settle into a lifestyle that is sustainable and tailored to individual need. She writes about body image, green living, and a plant-based lifestyle on her blog, Choosing Raw. Gena is a regular columnist for VegNews magazine and a blogger for Whole Living Daily, a part of Martha Stewart’s Whole Living Magazine.

In her other life, Gena works as a full time book editor at New York’s distinguished publishing house Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. On weekends, you can find her strolling through Manhattan’s Upper West Side with her iPod and a bushel of raw kale.

Anne P.

Anne is the writer behind the food and fitness blog fANNEtastic food. A 27 year old editor living in Washington, D.C., Anne uses her blog as a way to motivate others to lead happier, healthier lives through nutrition and exercise, whether encouraging them to try healthy twists on a traditional recipe, to go running for the first time, or to embrace yoga.

After a number of unsatisfying cubicle jobs and an amazing year teaching English in Prague, Anne has decided to follow her dreams of becoming a Registered Dietitian. She spent the past year working part time and taking prerequisites at a local community college, and will move south in August to start a 2.5 year MPH-Nutrition at UNC Chapel Hill. Stop by her blog for delicious recipes, health and fitness tips, travel photography, and general awesome-ness.

Sana Waheed

SuperSana documents Sana’s life as she balances college and living a healthy lifestyle. The blog showcases her new found love of running as she has recovered from a spine fracture. Sana is also passionate about volunteering and is currently working on a initiative to have homeless shelters incorporate fresh vegetables into their daily meals.

Julie Grice

In September 2009, Julie created Savvy Eats, a healthy living blog focused on “Smart Food, Smart Fitness and Smart Life.” She creates recipes using local, simple and natural foods, and chronicles her training for an upcoming cycling trip through Italy. Savvy Eats also features the “Brain Food 101” series, which explains the science behind food, and the “Savvy Garden” series, which details her experiences with vegetable gardening.

Heather Shugarman

Then Heather Said developed as Heather Shugarman ran her way to the bright side after her broken engagement, finding a healthier lifestyle along the way. Through her dedication to make one healthy decision, then make another, she has lost 40 pounds (and counting). Heather shares a genuine, honest look into several aspects of her life, noting that healthy living is more than nutrition and fitness.

Sarah Hart-Unger

Sarah Hart-Unger of Chapel Hill, NC, fell in love with time management and organization while trying to balance her own busy life during medical school and pediatrics residency.  By prioritizing, planning, and organizing, she managed to get through these tough years while maintaining a healthy lifestyle and also carving out the time to write about it all daily at her blog, The Shu Box. Now pursuing fellowship training at Duke in pediatric endocrinology, her passions outside of work include running (she completed several marathons during the medical school/residency years), cooking, spending time with her husband and family, and thinking about how to best savor the limited time we each have on this planet!  She adores organization tools with great design, and she is particularly inspired by the concept of mindfulness and recently by Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project.

Sabrina Garibian

Sabrina shares her passion for food through her healthy recipes, creative menus, and interesting dining experiences. She loves to dine out with her friends, family, and husband, and enjoys exploring both her city of Philadelphia and all the places she visits. She believes that local, organic, wholesome ingredients are the ones we should put into our bodies. Entertaining while maintaining a healthy lifestyle can be difficult, but Sabrina shares the tools to make it easy. She is the writer behind the healthy living blog RhodeyGirl Tests, and she also writes for DishKebab & uwishunu. Sabrina will leave you hungry for more!

Heather Calcote, RD

Heather Calcote is a Registered Dietitian (RD), Marathoner and Social Media Consultant living and working in the Washington DC area. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Nutritional Sciences from Penn State, and continued her education in Dietetics through the University of Maryland College Park. Heather is a Public Health Dietitian, with an expertise in and passion for Prenatal and Pediatric nutrition. Since becoming an RD, she has also gained experience in Sports Nutrition by working with Rebecca Scritchfield (Elite Nutrition DC), leading group education classes, and contributing monthly articles to various Fitness/Health related websites. She maintains her own site, DietitianOnTheRun.com, and also works as a Consultant, on all things Social Media, for local Dietitians and Dietetic students. When she’s not working, there is a training plan in effect for her next running race, bike ride or strength-training challenge!

Rebecca Scritchfield, RD

Rebecca Scritchfield, RD is a registered dietitian specializing in healthy weight management and sports nutrition. She is an expert on realistic behavior changes for life-long health and wellness without questionable dieting techniques. She is a recreational athlete, competing in triathlons, marathons, and ultra endurance events. Rebecca is creator of Nurture PrinciplesTM motivational workshops, which she presents with Bernie Salazar, a “runner up” from NBC’s The Biggest Loser. Rebecca serves as a knowledge expert to the media, with publications in Oxygen, Women’s Running, Rachel Ray and television appearances in the D.C. market. She has worked as a spokesperson for several companies, including Starbucks, Kashi, and Fruit 2o. She is on the advisory board for Nutrition Blog Network – a collection of blogs written by dietitians. Rebecca received a master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University and was recognized by American Dietetic Association in 2009 as “Young Dietitian of the Year”.

Lin Cong

Lin is a food enthusiast who lives in Chicagoland and blogs about her life on Tea Time With Lin.  Despite living in the Midwest, she is still a Jersey girl at heart and loves wearing animal prints when no one is looking.  Lin graduated from Duke University in 2009 with a degree in Economics, Philosophy and a minor in Chinese.  As a self-proclaimed geek, she loves numbers and cool gadgets.  She uses her geekiness to help her friends and family create reasonable budgets for healthier lifestyles.  Lin became vegan earlier this year and is always looking for new foods to try.  She loves to cook and to share her recipes online.  In her spare time, Lin likes to read blogs, workout, and to watch reality television.

Morgan Shuker

Morgan is a healthy living blogger at Life After Bagels.  The most common question Morgan is asked is “how do you do it?”  The “it” refers to: working full time, being a part time university student, blogging, plus all the family and social demands.  Like all of us, she is trying to keep all the balls in the air.   In her career, Morgan has managed teams of every shape and size.  Her expertise are in planning, execution, and problem solving.  She is delighted to be speaking along with Kath and Sarah at the Time Management and Organization Session.

Andrea Moore

Andrea is fairly new to the blogging world, but running has been a part of her life since her sophomore year of high school. About a year ago, she decided to take her love for running to the next level and started training for two half-marathons. A new healthy lifestyle and exercise regime inspired Andrea to start reading healthy living blogs, which in turn led to a blog of her own, Run, Eat, Date, Sleep. The blog features Andrea’s race recaps, product reviews, and her weight loss successes. In the year Andrea has been writing REDS, she’s lost 25 pounds and run many races, including the Disney Princess Half Marathon and the NYC Half Marathon. Next on her agenda- the 2011 Walt Disney World Marathon.

Chandra Wheetley

After making many lifestyle changes to better her health and lose weight, Chandra has been on a mission to help others look and feel their best every day. Through her own journey, she found a passion for fitness and nutrition but has never lost sight of the fun in life. “Healthy never has to be boring!” is her main motto. She is now certified as a NASM Personal Trainer, BodyPump instructor, Turbo Kick instructor, and is currently studying for her ACE certification. Chandra enjoys living an active, healthy lifestyle and wants to share her experience and knowledge so others can do the same! Chandra blogs at Chandra’s Shenanigan’s.

Corey Kelly

Before the end of Corey’s first yoga class, he knew he would teach. He spent the first 45 minutes of the class glancing at the clock, and when he finally thought it was almost over, the teacher said “Now we’re warmed up, and the real yoga is about to begin.” He realized it was a two hour class, took a deep breath, and surrendered to the yoga. He didn’t look at the clock again. As soon as class was over, he called his wife to tell her that he was going to teach. Now Corey dedicates himself to helping others make a difference – for both students and teachers to feel like they made a difference that day. He is inspired by working with students facing challenges who come back every day, and by practicing yoga as a student more than as a teacher.  Corey teaches at Tri Balance Yoga in Schaumburg, IL.

Nicole Carpenter

Nicole Carpenter is a vegan blogger and photographer from New Haven, CT.  She is self-taught and manages her own photography business, Nicole Lee Photography.  Although mostly a portrait and wedding business, Nicole’s is very passionate about food photography.  Nicole has been writing and taking photos for her personal blog, Another One Bites The Crust, for almost three years.  Besides photography, Nicole is interested in veganism, feminism, health-care, video games, and bikes.

Evan Thomas

Evan Thomas documents his college living, eating, and fitness on his blog, Food Makes Fun Fuel. His blog started in May of ‘09 with the concept that healthy food makes for a healthy runner. Underlying throughout all of his blog recipes are cost-effective, healthy, and gluten-free foods that all result in a balanced lifestyle. Currently he attends Brown University in Providence majoring in Classics and lives outside of Boston in his childhood between semesters. He has completed 2 half-marathons in the Spring of ‘09 and is considering running the Providence Marathon in 2010. His favorite fueling food is 365 brand crunchy peanut butter.

The official Healthy Living Summit OpenSky Cocktail Party will be hosted at LaSalle Power Co on Friday night from 6 PM to 9 PM.

LaSalle Power Co. is located on historic La Salle Boulevard in Chicago’s vibrant River North area and is about 1.3 miles from the hotel (you may walk or take a cab).  The signature design of this 20,000 square foot restaurant and live music venue is an ode to legendary rock clubs like CBGB. The three-level space brings a complete nightlife and dining experience to River North.

The OpenSky Cocktail Party includes rockin’ music, one drink ticket, heavy appetizers, and a fun photobooth so you can snag pictures with your favorite blends (blog friends!).  The dress code ranges from “night out” to full cocktail attire - just make sure you’re comfortable!

This event is for Healthy Living Summit ticketholders ONLY and identification will be checked at the door. Attendees under the age of 21 will be required to wear wristbands, cannot drink alcohol, and must vacate the premises at 9 PM.