Fashion Week’s Secret Healthy Hide-Out—Find Out Where!

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The hot-ticket Fashion Week event, where the front row is a mat.

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Imagine 100 yoga mats in this room. (Photo: Gothic Hotel)

Every year Fashion Week tries to inject bits of wellness into the stiletto-wearing marathon of shows. But usually its nod to wellness is more (pouty) lip service than real programmatic heft. This season, however, a healthy sea change is taking place downtown, with the arrival of a chic wellness oasis that combines white-hot fitness classes and healthy food—and pairs it with indie fashion shows.

Called #FitnessFashionFood (or just #FFF, if you please), the week-long event launches Thursday at The High Line Hotel in Chelsea. So when the models at Creatures of Comfort, Billy Reid, and Harare aren't sashaying down the runways of the 8,000-square-foot cathedral-like ballroom, the couture-filled space will get all cardio- and yoga-fied. For example, fitness phenom Taryn Toomey takes over the venue with her super popular mat-based class followed by a healthy cocktail party catered by Daphne Cheng, creator of SuiteThreeOhSix.

Invited are models, fashion press, and armies of hair and make-up artists who can unwind with sessions with Elena Brower, Pilates pro Heather Anderson, Yoga for Bad People, Tone House, Strala Yoga, and Michael Olajide. And they'll refuel with pop-ups of foodie faves including Sakara Life, Dimes, Babycakes, Juice Press, and Nourish Kitchen + Table. And it's not just for fashion insiders—Well+Good readers can get in on this dream-team line up too by RSVPing here. It's bound to be a hot ticket event, where the front row is a mat.

FitnessFashionFood
(Photo: FitnessFashionFood)

The #FitnessFashionFood series is the chic brainchild of Linda Honan, a creative director who traded the stresses of ad agency life to work with many of up-and-coming fitness and food brands represented in the line-up. She partnered with Joel Fitzpatrick, production designer of Fashion Week at the High Line Hotel and a serious yogi. Both shared a vision for injecting some wellness and soulfulness into the world of fashion. While at the same time, says Honan, "adding what's so incredibly beautiful about the world of fashion, and bringing that into the fitness and wellness world."

How to convince the fashion set to sweat it out before—and during—a day of shows? Honan's thought of that, too. "Glam & Go will be available to touch up everyone's sweaty ponytails," she says.  "And the attendees working out will get the full runway treatment," since the post-coiffing action takes place in the same room as the runway models.

#FitnessFashionFood seems like a telling sign that the popular "strong is the new skinny" mantra is finally infiltrating the fashion world, too. —Alexia Brue

September 4–7, for more information, visit www.fffseries.com

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