when the goop wellness summit was announced to be coming to the vancouver home of our own Amanda… we knew we had to go and spend the day ‘gooping it up’.
The actual term ‘wellness’ brings up so many different things to different people. For me, personally, the term is a general and broad definition whereby we look to be able to define not only the things that make us healthy from the traditional sense (think diet and exercise) but also what makes us happy, well-rounded, confident, and mentally strong. To me, it’s about the taking a look at your whole life, and being able to say that you’re well from all angles – not just how you fit in your jeans. Having come to the realization only recently that I should probably start taking better care of the whole version of myself, I was excited to see that Gwyneth Paltrow’s ‘Goop’ was coming to Vancouver, where I live. Here are all the details about wellness I learned – and what I didn’t – and how I spent the day in Stanley Park learning what it was like to Goop.
[dropcap type=”background”]I[/dropcap]t’s 6am on a Saturday morning, but we’re up and getting into our fanciest athleisure clothes – easily the hardest dress code I’ve ever had to dress for an event in – which can only mean one thing. It’s Goop’s first international wellness day here in Vancouver. Armed in head-to-toe Lululemon and accompanied by my always up for fun mom, I made the trip to Stanley Park, located just west of Vancouver’s downtown core. The event was held in a quaint building, covered in greenery, called the Stanley Park Pavillion.
Upon arrival, we checked in and picked up our team assignment; we were team moonstone and were given a wooden bead necklace with some grey beads in order to ensure we attended all of the breakout events at the designated times.
Breakfast was beautiful chia pudding cups decorated with ornate fruits… And the popular coffee bar was brewing up all the oatmilk lattés you could drink. I’m not much of breakfast person (or coffee) so I had a tea loaded with some of the collagen that was available in the same manner you’d find creamer or sugar at a traditional coffee bar. There was collagen everywhere – in your coffee, in your smoothies… It was probably in the fridges full of drinks too. There was not too much time to spend waiting around, as after security & coffee lines, it was time to kickoff! The schedule was jam-packed with events.
We began our day learning all about Goop’s skincare line, and learned how to give ourselves facials at home. While I was not entirely in love with the thought of taking off all my makeup in front of 200 strangers, it was strangely cathartic to do so, and then watch as dozens of women smooshed their faces into the massaging moves which were designed to decrease inflammation and promote drainage. I enjoyed the class as it wasn’t about trying to get you to purchase Goop’s products, rather letting you experience them, and was more about the technique and how-to that you could replicate at home.
Next up was a yoga class, hosted by Lululemon. The class was fantastic – it was led by a yoga teacher who was thorough in explaining the concepts to those unfamiliar and yet also skilled enough to challenge those who knew what they were doing. It was held in an outdoor glass greenhouse type venue, and with the leaves all around it made for quite the unique experience. Plus Lululemon gifted all participants a pair of their yoga pants after the class, which was a definite perk.
After lunch, we visited a medium and attended various talks. I’ll do a whole post on the medium at a later time (yes, they did choose us to be involved in a conversation with the deceased) but I really enjoyed the talks, hosted by Elise Loehnen, Goop’s Creative Director (who I have to admit I did not recognize until I heard her voice and I definitely was judging her choice of red pleated skirt & sweater as “athleisure” before the summit began). There were talks on Gut Health, Anxiety and Potential all held by names that Goop devotees or even just casual podcast listeners would be familiar with.
Tell us about the swag!
At the end of the day, all attendees were presented with a swag bag from the Goop team in addition to goodies received throughout the day. The swag in Vancouver contained:
- Lululemon Tote Bag
- Lululemon Yoga Pants (given out during yoga breakout session)
- Goop Water Bottle
- Goop Tote Bag
- Goop Martini Bath Soak
- Goop Glacial Body Cleanser
- Goop ‘Why am I so Effing Tired’ vitamin capsules
- Goop Facial Oil
- Goop’s Fall 2018 Magazine Issue
- Vitruvi Frankincense Essential Oil (given out during a talk)
- Youtheory Vanilla Collagen Powder
- Various Coupons and Gift Cards (like $20 off at Native Shoes or free alkalinized water)
Was it worth it?
The main question I’ve been asked since the event was if it was worth the price of admission, which was admittedly a steep $400 CAD per ticket. (not to mention to price of my athleisure outfits – one of which is seen at left)
My answer? Yes.
Not only did we walk away with “swag” valued at well over $400 (see above), but the largest value in the day for me came from two other elements: one, the day was a brilliant reminder of needing to dedicate the time and energy to me. It’s easy to sometimes think of self-care as just reading a trashy romance novel while lying on the couch, but in reality it needs to include more things that feed your mind, nourish your body and force you to engage in new, healthier behaviours. For me, this was evident in some of the conversations that happened about anxiety, angst and gut health. And two, it gave me some new techniques and tricks to actually incorporate into my day-to-day life. Things like facial massages to improve drainage and get rid of dark circles, new techniques to try to improve gut health including foods to eat, and some anxiety diminishing real-life tools to use.
At the end of the day, the summit capped off with a wine & cocktail reception – and I definitely wasn’t going to miss out on trying out the wine! I had a great day, learned a lot and felt very much like the day spent dedicated to me and my wellness was well worth it. Cheers!
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