My 36 hour trip to Fort Worth, Texas was as memorable as it possibly could have been! We paid a visit to the Stockyards, a touristy place that feels like Old Texas to an outsider. You can see my Instagram for more pictures. The other Oakley ambassadors to join me in the picture below were Marni, Lacey, Christine and our Oakley go-to wonder woman Chelsea. We met up with the rest of our crew at the restaurant.
The restaurant we ate dinner at boasted that their cows were “corn fed.” I wanted to slip them a note that this is probably not something to brag about seeing as cows should be eating grass and it’s probably pure GMO corn. But nevertheless, I felt compelled to try the beef and it was good. I ordered a filet Mignon with shrimp.ย The shrimp were my security blanket since the last few times I’ve ordered it, I have not liked it.
We woke up Friday morning for the Oakley Progression Session, a search for our next Oakley Ambassador! The event was advertised in Shape Magazine. It was held the day before their adventure 5k race, the Diva Dash. Two hundred people were invited to the OPSFitness event and broken up into 4 groups. Michelle Lovitt, on the left below, is a celebrity trainer. She’s appeared in many magazines and has trained/traveled with many celebs. I could have spent all day picking her brain regarding exercise physiology. Christine to my right is a coach at the winter Oakley Progression Sessions which sound amazing. She helps teach the participants how to get better at snowboarding. I guess the OPSFitness event in the winter is like $250 BUT you get new goggles from Oakley, yoga, lunch and dinner for 2 days, a lift ticket to the mountain it’s held at, lessons, and more winter gear (this is from memory). I need to go to this event next year for sure. Lastly, Lacey on the right is an amazing yoga instructor at Core Power which I reviewed this winter. She rocks.
Lacey teaches her 45 minute yoga class under this cool tent that became the safe haven during the little downpour we experienced.ย
Oakley also DRIVES this trailer across country to the Diva Dash OPSFitness event! It’s been to Boulder and San Diego over the past few months. Inside is a retail store featuring the hottest new Oakley styles.
After Bootcamp with Cari and Carrie, the participants either went to listen to Marni’s nutrition talk, had lunch at a gluten-free vegetarian foot truck (who knew this existed in Fort Worth!?) or they got to hang out at the social media tent with me, Michelle and Christine while waiting for their opportunity to interview to be the next ambassador.
About half way through the event, there were a few lightning bolts spotted and claps of thunder. Not gonna lie, but it was a little nerve wracking but we were fine under the tents. Probably not the safest, but we survived! I was jealous of the gals under the yoga tent who got to experience a pretty cool shavasana with real rain as the backdrop. If you recognize Cari below, that’s because she has shot a bunch of videos for ExerciseTV and appeared in a bunch of fitness magazines. I used to do her workouts all the time OnDemand in my apartment when I was working full time for Diet.com. The rain only lasted a few minutes at a time and I was told it was typical weather for the area.
The food truck was amazing. Everyone got complementary lunch from it. If I lived here, I would eat at this thing everyday. I had a salad and some bbq tacos. There was a mango and and avocado ceviche tostado which I wanted but it ran out before I could have a taste! If you live in the Dallas area, go to this food truck even if you are not vegetarian. SO GOOD!
At the end, we had a group picture right before the winner was announced. I was a sweaty mess thanks to the 80 degree weather with lots of humidity. I got so dizzy during the Bombshell Bootcamp I thought I was going to throw up! Congrats to Layla the winner who I will get to hang out with in NYC in a couple weekends for the Oakley 10K Mini.ย
I flew back Friday afternoon after the event so that I could be back in town for Memorial Day weekend along with the other ambassadors. My flight was delayed 2 hours and we experienced the worst turbulence ever. I’ve flown a lot but I have never been so scared in my life. I wish I didn’t have to fly for a long time, but I’ll back in the air in just 3 weeks.
Happy to be taking the train to NYC for the 10k! Have you even been to Texas? Did you think it had healthy options? And before you say it, yes I know Austin is different!
I live in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and there are definitely healthy options if you know where to look. I agree that healthy choices aren’t always easily accessible to people visiting, but I think that this is because the majority of people who visit Texas come looking for a ‘typical Texan meal,’ which they think consists of a huge steak, mashed potatoes, etc. This is especially true in the more central and touristy areas of Dallas and Ft. Worth. I have seriously been to other states where people asked if Texans ride horses to get places and wear cowboy hats all the time, so I guess it is understandable that a lot of restaurants and tourist attractions just play into the stereotypes. I have nothing but love for my home and I really hope you enjoyed your time here, even if the weather and food wasn’t exactly what you expected!
I loved it! My steak was delicious and so were the veggie options at the food truck! The hotel lobby garden salad was fabulous as well. Wish I had more time to go out and explore. The airport was my least favorite place haha -- then again, that is the case with most cities! Can’t wait to visit Austin this fall!!!
“The worst turbulence ever”. A flight like a roller coaster ride. ๐ That isn’t funny.
Greetings from Hamburg,Germany
P.S. Why don’t you reply my mails I have sent you ๐
looks like a great trip! ๐
It was so great to meet you at the Progression Session -- you’re super inspiring! And it was tons of fun. SOO glad you commented on the “corn-fed” steak … I just moved back to Texas after 10 years away, and I didn’t know much about nutrition before. So when I saw this for the first time on a menu recently, I actually asked the waiter WHY in the world they would be advertising it. He looked at me like I had 3 heads and said “everyone knows corn-fed tastes better.” Haha! Glad you had the same reaction as me, though ๐
haha good to know I’m not the only one. It was so odd to me but it did taste good :/ I’m going to be a pescatarian very soon I think anyway…
Interesting! Looking forward to hearing about it!
It was so nice meeting you Sarah! The OP session was a lot more fun than I anticipated it to be, so that’s always good! I loved everything about the day. Yoga was awesome because I’ve never actually taken a real yoga lesson before and boy it was pretty tough! The food was absolutely delicious, I’ve actually even looked up their schedule & found a local food truck spot and I’m so excited to try them out. I didn’t expect their vegetarian plates to taste that awesome but it was delicious. The workouts were killer and meeting all of yall was fun.
-Angel