Live Consciously Mindfulness & Meditation
MNDFL CEO Ellie Burrows Loves Long Meditations and Sweet Potato Fries
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As part of her training to become a Vedic Meditation teacher, MNDFL CEO Ellie Burrows is currently meditating two hours a day. However, part of the inspiration for her now super popular group meditation studio came at a time when she was moving very quickly, not sitting still.
It came from her experience sweating at dance cardio workout studio Body by Simone (BBS).
“Simone [De La Rue, founder of BBS] has been not only a dear friend but also a mentor. I love the community, teachers, and vibe of her studio, and that combo helped me get really consistent with exercise,” Burrows says. “I wanted to build a similar accountability structure around my meditation practice, so MNDFL was heavily influenced by the boutique studio format.”
Burrows, a former film executive, teamed up with co-founder Lodro Rinzler—a renowned teacher known for his Buddhism-meets-modernity approach—and New York City’s first group meditation studio was born.
RELATED: 6 Common Meditation Mistakes That Are Holding You Back
MNDFL now has three locations, and many other similar businesses have entered the space. Soon, Burrows will add herself to the line-up of teachers at the studio. To get to know her a little better before you sit down and breathe deeply, we asked her to share the details of her busy, unique Nutritious Life.
How Does Ellie Burrows Live a Nutritious Life?
If you had to name your healthy diet, what would you call it? Conscious and Clean with Room for Pleasure.
What’s your go-to breakfast? Most of my go-to meals are seasonal dependent! In the colder months, I opt for scrambled eggs with spinach in ghee. In the warmer months, I usually make a yummy shake with one of Dr. Frank Lipman’s Be Well protein powders as a base. It usually also includes some sort of healthy fat like coconut cream or coconut milk, cacao powder, and a few Sun Potion powders.
Your go-to workday lunch? In the colder months, veggie-based soup and steamed veggies. In the warmer months, a salad loaded with veggies and fats or low-mercury sushi. When it comes to lunch, I’ve never met a sweet potato fry I didn’t like. And my favorite place to have a work lunch is at ABCV.
RELATED: 17 Surprising, Tasty Ways to Eat Sweet Potatoes
Your go-to workday dinner? In the winter, I like to eat Kitchari, root veggies, non-soy based veggie burgers (insert sweet potato fries here too). In the summer, wild-caught fish, grilled veggies, and some sort of fermented or pickled add-on like sauerkraut.
What’s the one food you always have in your fridge? Eggs.
The one food you’d never buy? Processed meat.
Your favorite food indulgence? Chocolate chip cookies and pasta.
Other than water, what do you sip regularly? My morning shakes! Matcha sometimes, but not every morning. Tequila and red wine sometimes, but not every weekend. Sigh, lambrusco in the summer.
How often do you exercise, and what’s your workout of choice? I exercise about four to five times a week. I love to dance, and I’ve been going to Body By Simone since 2011. In addition to BBS, MNDFL COO Jo Lanus and I do duet pilates with Krissy Tate once a week. And, I also like to hit up ModelFit, The Class, and SLT when I can.
Which workout would you NEVER do? The other two Bs: bootcamps and boxing. I find that the weights in those classes are generally too heavy for me, and I’d rather dance than run any day. Also, I just don’t love the whole boxing glove, sore knuckles, punching bag thing. Sorry, I’m not sorry. But to each his/her/their own!
What’s your go-to tool for managing stress? Meditation, duh. A full night’s sleep.
How do you pamper yourself when you need it? Extra long meditations. Sleeping in. Any kind of bodywork (massage, acupuncture, chiropractor). And of course, most importantly, time with my beloveds.
Do you have a favorite health gadget? The human body. It can do some seriously impressive stuff.
How do you express and spread love? I try to live as open-hearted and transparent a life as possible. I aspire to fill my life with compassion—compassion for myself, for others, and for society. Some days it’s easier to do than others. MNDFL holds space for us to practice doing just that. I often ask myself if I making decisions from a place of fear or love. I try to be aware of how I’m occurring in any given moment and take responsibility for my actions: Am I being as kind as I can be? And it’s important to note that I live a ridiculously privileged life and to not lose sight of that. So I’m often asking myself if I’m using that privilege to make the world a kinder place.
What does it mean to you to “live consciously”? To live a life filled with a true awareness of the self and how that self is occurring in any given moment. To live a live where intention is always the subtext.
What’s your weirdest healthy habit? I have to meditate twice a day.
Which healthy habit do you wish you had more time for? Meditation. I always wish there was more time for that.
Lightning Round
Meditation or massage? Duh.
A hot shower or a soothing bath? Soothing bath.
Almond butter or peanut butter? Almond, preferably raw.
Coffee or tea? Matcha or homemade chai (the old school way).
A long run outside or a dark spin class? Neither.
The Nutritious Life Editors are a team of healthy lifestyle enthusiasts who not only subscribe to — and live! — the 8 Pillars of a Nutritious Life, but also have access to some of the savviest thought leaders in the health and wellness space — including our founder and resident dietitian, Keri Glassman. From the hottest trends in wellness to the latest medical science, we stay on top of it all in order to deliver the info YOU need to live your most nutritious life.
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