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Since launching her fashion business in the ’80s, Cynthia Rowley has firmly established herself as a wildly successful American designer whose work is rooted in her colorful, carefree aesthetic. Prints and sporty silhouettes are at the core of her collections, and the designer often looks to her own pursuits when creating her line—designing wetsuits, for example, since she’s an avid surfer.
Rowley also happens to be a perennial optimist, telling us in 2014 that she follows Andy Warhol’s advice in saying “yes” to everything, which is why we approached her to share a page from her food and fitness diary as part of our ongoing series in which we ask interesting people to spill their health routines, wellness secrets, guilty pleasures, and—in this case—to share the best cocktail to have after a long surf session.
I start an average day by:
At 7 a.m., I check Susan Miller‘s Astrology Zone. I swim a few laps and then drop my daughter off at school. My husband and I have coffee and go over the day, and I’m to work by 9 a.m.
For breakfast I had:
Coffee and a granola bar—and fruit when I got to work.
The one thing I’d never eat is:
I’ll eat anything, but a chai latte is not my cup of tea.
The three ingredients you’ll always find in my kitchen are:
Love, patience, and all the ingredients to make an apple pie. Just kidding. When you have kids, you find that as long as you have cereal and milk, there’s something to eat.
For lunch I had:
For lunch, I usually bring leftovers from dinner the night before since I’m so busy. This time it was pasta with veggies.
My all-time favorite workout:
A five-hour surf session.
My go-to healthy restaurant:
New York City’s Cafe Cluny.
If I need to shape up before a big event …:
I wish I had time to do that, but I just get up and go.
Today I snacked on:
Watermelon, sourdough pretzels, and black licorice.
The health trend I just can’t get behind is:
Cleansing.
My go-to cocktail:
I’m not really that picky. An ice-cold beer after a surf, wine with dinner, tequila for a rager.
Today I’m having for dinner:
I’m actually going to try the Tequila Lime Chicken Kabobs recipe that [StyleCaster] posted earlier!
I’m obsessed with these Instagram accounts:
Mary Helen Bowers (@Balletbeautiful)
Base Body Babes (@basebodybabes)
Lindsey Vonn (@lindseyvonn)
Bianca Cheah (@biancamaycheah)
My signature healthy dish is:
Fish kabobs loaded with veggies and the catch of the day.
My (edible!) guilty pleasure is:
CuRious candy.
My biggest health tip for travelers:
Pack as many healthy snacks as you can carry—granola bars, nuts, olives, dried fruit, and dark chocolate for an energy blast.
The top three songs on my workout playlist right now are:
“The Passenger” by Iggy Pop
“Beyond the Reef” by Buddy Merrill
“The Great Defector” by Bell X1
My go-to activewear pieces are:
Every wetsuit [from Rowley’s activewear line]. And print leggings.
My go-to health app:
The Citi Bike app.
The best part of my job is:
Having an idea and being able to make it a reality. Also, working with fun, like-minded, creative people.