Since I go to New York every few months and have done so many travel guides, I wanted to do something a little different and create a really specific guide to the city. You guys know that health and wellness is a big passion of mine, and it’s something I’m mindful about when I travel. Some cities make wellness more accessible than others, and New York is one of those cities.
While I’m all about balance when I travel, and love to try different restaurants, cities like New York make healthy living really easy. There’s so many different cafes and workout studios to choose from, that it never feels like you have to go out of your way to be good to your body. If I’m being honest, the fitness studios have such great classes that I wish I had time do 2 classes in one day!
What I also love doing is going to workout classes with friends instead of a super indulgent dinner. Don’t get me wrong, I love those dinners too, but when I’m traveling somewhere for a whole week, over-indulging every night is really hard on my body. Which is why I came up with this guide – so you have options!
I’m sure you guys will love these spots. And if you have any NYC recommendations I’d love to hear. And before we get into this guide, I know a lot of you may be interested in a more general guide to the city, which you can find here. Anyway, without further ado, here’s my healthy guide to New York!
Where to Sweat
New York is really the mecca of boutique fitness studios. There’s something there for absolutely everyone and the city is home to some of the most talented fitness instructors in the world. Here are some of my favourite studios:
ModelFIT: I’d actually planned on going to a ModelFIT class during my last trip to LA, but couldn’t make it because of the gnarliest cold. I was so bummed because I’d heard the best things, and was super eager to try it. So you can imagine my excitement when I saw they had a studio in New York. So this is class will give you one of the most major burns of your life. It starts off slow, but gets really hard, really fast. I didn’t think I’d sweat as much as I did!
Box + Flow: Boxing is without a doubt, my favourite workout. New York has so many great boxing studios that I was a little spoilt for choice. Box + Flow is a 50 minute box-fit workout. You start with a 10 minute warm-up which includes things like jumping jacks, planks, etc. Then you do 30 minutes of bag work where you move through different combinations. You also partner up and take turns holding the bag while the other person punches. You finish with a yoga type flow. If you’re looking for a good sweat, Box + Flow will most definitely get you there. But if you’re new to boxing and aren’t familiar with the moves, I would maybe go to a different studio and graduate to Box + Flow.
BodyRok: If you’re into reformer Pilates, I highly recommend you check out Zach’s class at FitHouse. Even if you’ve never used a reformer before, this is a great studio to start out at because every exercise has modifications. Zach was amazing – super attentive instructor who was really respectful of people’s individual fitness levels. It’s a challenging class – you’ll get a good burn but you won’t be dripping it sweat. It’s a good morning class to take before work.
FitHouse: This studio offers a whole bunch of workouts. I went to the Sculpt class with Nina Marchione. Where do I even begin? First things first, it is SERIOUSLY challenging. It works your mobility, balance, and works on building a lean physique through the use of repetitive movements using light-medium weights (you’ll feel the burn), and ankle weights. Nina was also an incredible instructor. She brought the energy and made tons of suggestions for modifications.
Physique57: I have yet to have found a barre class as challenging, effective, or fun as Chad’s class at Physique57. It’s a seriously toning workout, but you won’t sweat as much as you would in other classes. So this is a good one to go to either before work or at your lunch break.
Where to Eat
Brodo: Call me crazy, but I like to drink bone broth. It’s high in protein and nutrients, and at Brodo, it tastes phenomenal. They have a bunch of broths to choose from and different flavours as well. It truly lives up to the hype.
Dr. Smood: I ate here almost every single day. It’s a superfood cafe that has several locations around the city. Honestly, everything tastes good. My favourite thing is the Hawaj Smoothie.
Shoo Shoo: SUPER cute interior. Again this is healthy-ish. As in, you can make modifications/choose to eat healthy if you want to.
19 Cleveland: Hands down, one of my favourite brunch spots in the city. Their shakshuka is phenomenal, as is the Babaghanoush.
Westbourne: This is a vegan spot with uncompromising taste. You can’t go wrong with anything on the menu, but surprisingly, my favourite thing is the celery juice kombucha. Listen, I hate the taste of celery. But you can’t tell there’s celery in here! It just tastes weirdly refreshing.
Dimes: So I would categorize this as healthy-ish. It’s not a superfood cafe or anything like that, but if you’re in the mood for a delicious brunch and have dietary restrictions, you’ll have lots of options.
Little Beet Kitchen: This midtown spot has so many great options that I was lost for choice.
Where to Caffeinate
Ludlow Coffee Supply: My favourite cafe in LES. Great vibe, fast wifi, and most importantly, macadamia milk!
Maman: I mean, their oat milk latte is next level. And the patio in their SoHo location is so cute! Perfect for getting some Vitamin D (with sunscreen of course).
Happy Bones: This little cafe is usually packed on weekends (and most weekdays). But if you go in the morning, you’ll definitely get your own table, which is convenient because it’s a really great spot to people watch while sipping on coffee and banging out emails.
Cha Cha Matcha: K so I’ve mentioned Cha Cha Matcha on my guides before, but I can’t help but add it into this one as well. They just have the best matchas ever! My fave is their Beautiful Latte, which is a matcha latte with ashwagandha, honey and collagen.
PS – check out my 4 day guide to Milan and why Gstaad needs to be at the top of your travel bucketlist.