Run247's Paul Shanley takes a step into another world when he visits ELLE HQ
They do say it's not what you know but who you know, and this was very much the case for my invite to go along to the launch of ELLE Magazine's running club #ELLEfit.
My ticket to a peak inside the world of fashion was provided by an old friend and trainer, Tim Weeks (www.timweeks.co.uk), who mentioned the launch and asked if I would like to come along and help. Now, it might come as a surprise to some of you, but I do spend a bit of time looking at what I am going to wear and I do try to keep up with some of the latest trends, but this was definitely a step into another world and not just because this was women's fashion.
The event was at ELLE HQ, just around the corner from Carnaby Street, London and as well as seeing the ELLE offices, visitors were also treated to step into the world famous ELLE Fashion Cupboard.
After a quick chat and a pre-run briefing from Tim, we all snapped our glowsticks and gave them a shake and headed out into the London night for a run. Running in London is always good fun and this run didn't disappoint. We covered just over 6k of the capital, visiting some of the sites of London (with the odd stop to stretch and take photos).
On our return to ELLE HQ we were treated to some Glaceau SmartWater (www.drinksmartwater.com), SaVse smoothies (www.savsesmoothies.com), Rooted protein bites and some activbod body and skin products (www.activbod.com).
You can watch a video of the evening (including the ELLE glowstick relay - the next big event for 2015?):
In the business and fashion world, ELLE has a reputation for breaking new boundaries and the London office operates a hot desk system with a unique (certainly in the world of fashion publishing), workflow plan, created after every Monday morning meeting (a good article on that here: www.businessoffashion.com/2014/05/rebooting-elle.html).
Regular running is something the team at ELLE have been doing for a while now, not only to keep in shape, but also to improve productivity and teamwork in the office.
ELLE's Editor-In-Chief Lorraine Candy is a regular runner and as well as having done a number of races, finds the time spent running with the team a great way to escape the office and return rejuvenated. Having a regular run is also a way that Lorraine can assure she feels connected with the team.
This group run around London was all about all of us running together and making sure everyone felt a part of it.
If you want to join the ELLEfit run club, then you need to subscribe to the magazine and become an ELLE Insider (www.elleuk.com/febinsider).
You can find out more from Amy Lawrenson, Associate Health and Beauty Editor (@amylawrenson) here: www.elleuk.com/beauty/health-fitness/the-elle-fit-run-club-launch-lorraine-candy-tim-weeks
The February issue of Runners World (www.runnersworld.co.uk) also has a good interview with Lorraine which is worth a read.
You can follow and interact with the team at: @elleukrunning, @elleuk and #ELLEFIT
