My Paris Wellness Guide
How I maintain a healthy routine in one of the world's most indulgent cities plus my quick and easy shrimp wonton soup recipe.
For nearly six years now I’ve spent 4-5 months out of the year in Paris— where the Sporty & Rich headquarters as well as my team of 35 employees are based. I first visited Paris in 2018 and fell in love immediately. The only caveat is its not the easiest city to be healthy in for many reasons, mainly because a key component of French culture is indulging and eating for pleasure rather than for function— something I can totally get behind but not all the time every time. My routine is one of the things that keeps me happiest and sane and I try to stick to it no matter where I am in the world. Sometimes, it’s more difficult than others but if you’re disciplined enough, you can stick to it. It took me a couple of years to master my healthy, balanced lifestyle whilst in Paris but I’m pleased to say I’ve pretty much nailed it and I feel as good and sometimes even better, than I do when I’m in LA (my home base and the mecca of all things health).
First and foremost, Paris is a walking city so by default you’re going to be active and moving your body everyday no matter what you’re doing or where you stay. This is the one thing that LA is missing, and driving to go for a walk feels pretty lame I must admit. Paris also surprisingly has a very wide variety of food and not all of it is drenched in cream and butter. It’s also home to some of the most beautiful gyms and spas I’ve ever been to and as one of the beauty capitals of the world, there is an endless amount of high quality beauty treatments that keep French girls looking effortlessly stunning.
One of the keys to sticking to your routine when traveling is to get adjusted to the time zone as quickly as possible. To do this, I will sleep the entire flight (if it’s a red eye which it usually is) so that I can arrive rested and go on about the day as normal. I’ll drink 2 liters of water on the flight and avoid eating anything processed, overly-salted, and anything that’s sugary or doesn’t digest well. Fasting is the best option for flying because it’s very hard for your body to digest anything at that high of an altitude but, on an 11+ hour flight it’s difficult to not eat anything at all. My go to is a salad with protein, berries, gluten free crackers, olives, yogurt and lots and lots of ginger tea. I’ll also load up on immune-strengthening supplements such as vitamin C, zinc, colloidal silver and colostrum.
When I arrive, I’ll try to stay up until at least 9 or 10 PM so I’m not exhausted the next day. You’ll want to hydrate more than usual the first few days after arriving because naturally, flying makes you dehydrated. I am for at least 3 liters per day. I also bring all of my vitamins with me wherever I go, even if it means having to bring an extra luggage. It’s important to keep your routine as close to the one you have at home as possible so your body doesn’t get confused and most things won’t show any results if you aren’t consistent with them.
For fitness, I’ll make sure to walk at least 10k steps a day. My favorite workout spot is Blanche in the 9th or Burning Bar in the 16th. In LA, I do heated mat Pilates everyday and Burning Bar is the closest thing to it in Paris. Every instructor I’ve tried is great and even though the classes are in French, you don’t need to speak the language to follow along. My favorite thing about Burning Bar is that they have a sauna, steam room and gym as well. After a class I’ll do 45/60 minutes of interval jogging on the treadmill. I like doing 1 minute jog and 1 minute walk at a 1.5 incline (any higher and it builds my leg muscles too much). I’ll then do lymphatic massages twice per week to help de-bloat and keep my lymph flowing which helps remove any toxin build-up. The best practitioners I’ve tried are Laure Carpentier and The Aesthetic Club.
People are always surprised when I say that I’m able to easily eat healthy in Paris. If you know where to go, it’s not hard at all. I’ll mostly eat either Asian or Italian food while there (fun fact- Paris has some of the best Asian cuisine in the world from Japanese, Chinese or Vietnamese). The thing about Paris is that you can find any type of cuisine done at the highest level. My go-to for food is japanese- I’ll eat a lot of salads and pickled vegetables, rolls and sashimi or shabu-shabu (beef with vegetables and rice). In the mornings I’ll have yogurt with berries or scrambled eggs with avocado. Lunch is usually sushi as well as dinner or, fish and salad, cooked vegetables, steak, roasted chicken and rice or mashed potatoes. Because of the jet lag I’ll usually crash around 3/4 pm so I’ll snack on prunes, nuts or fresh fruit. I don’t take caffeine so this isn’t an option for me (it spikes your cortisol too much). Of course I also allow myself to enjoy croissants, baguette’s and all of the other incredible treats Paris has to offer, you can’t not! When I do eat these types of foods, I’ll just make sure to load up on gluten/dairy/sugar specific digestive enzymes beforehand. Moderation is key and as long as you’re eating primarily nutrient-dense foods, it’s perfectly fine to eat pastries, pasta, french fries etc.
Below I’ve listed some of my top wellness destinations in Paris from the best hair salon to food spots, the most luxurious spas and more.
BEAUTY:
Yu-Bi Nail Salon
Laure Carpentier Lymphatic Massage
The Aesthetic Club Lymphatic Massage
Sculptural Transformation Facial + Acupuncture with Elaine Huntzinger
Carboxytherapy Facial with Mayumi Oda
FITNESS:
Burning Bar
Reformation Pilates
Le Tigre
Blanche
Barry’s Bootcamp
SPA:
The Ritz Club
Bulgari Hotel
L’Institut Guerlain 68
FOOD:
Ine
DokiDoki
Ha Noi 1988
Sushi B
Diep
Le Petit Thaï
Le Voltaire
Kaito
Figue Juice Bar
Copains
Kitchen
Mar’co
JanTchi
Le Grand Colbert
Casa Bini
Enni Udon
Yen
THE RECIPE
This easy to make shrimp wonton soup recipe is one of my favorites and isn’t as time-intensive as you would think. I love making this for dinner along with a fresh salad. It’s comforting, healthy, filling and extremely flavorful.
INGREDIENTS:
Wontons:
Fresh wonton wrappers (can find at most grocery stores or asian specialty stores)
1lb Raw shrimp
Scallions
1 tbsp grated ginger
2 tbsp Tamari or low sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp pressed garlic
Soup:
4 cups organic chicken broth
Scallions
2 tbsp avocado oil
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp chili oil
1 bunch bokchoy
DIRECTIONS:
Peel, devein and wash the shrimp.
Mince well until shrimp becomes smooth and paste-like.
Add to a large mixing bowl along with finely minced scallions, grated ginger, pressed garlic and Tamari. Mix well until combined.
Grab your wonton wrappers and a small bowl of room-temperature water.
Fill the centre of the wonton with approx. 1 tbsp of the shrimp filling. You don’t want them to be too stuffed otherwise they will explode in the soup.
Gently use your fingers to line all four edges of the wrapper with water, fold the bottom half of the wrapper and align with the top, press until it sticks together. Bring the bottom two sides of the wrapper to meet and add more water to attach together.
For the soup, simply sautée the scallions, avocado oil and sesame oil in a pot. Add the chicken broth and boil on medium. Add the chili oil and bok choy, cook until slightly tender.
Carefully add wontons to the soup base and boil for about 5 minutes or until they all float to the top.
Top with fresh scallion and enjoy!
I love these tips! Can you do a Substack on meals you love making when at home in LA? Or a day in the life? 💗 What is your favorite studio for hot Pilates in LA?
i tried this dumpling recipe ! my first attempt & found it to be lacking on the salt flavour in the broth … any suggestions?