Physical Wellness Panel
January 29th | 12 PM EST
Amanda Malcolm- Brown
“Set your life up like your well, for success!”
Amanda Malcolm-Brown is a health, lifestyle and accountability coach who supports hospitality professionals, DJs/musicians and other nightlife aficionados in creating healthy and balanced lives. She is the team lead for Strength in the City San Diego and a co-producer for Daybreaker San Diego, two event-based organizations dedicated to health, wellness, inclusivity and community.
Amanda spent over 15 years working in the bar and restaurant industry; when she wasn’t behind the bar she was DJing at nightclubs and music festivals. After years of witnessing her peers struggle with mental and physical health as well as facing her own health challenges, she switched gears and turned her interest in health and wellness into a lifestyle and a business. She obtained a health coaching certification from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and is currently pursuing a personal training certification from the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). Through coaching and events she advocates mindfulness, movement, nutrition, and mental health awareness to support people in living their healthiest, happiest, most epic lives.
Jessica Santiago
“I found comfort in my two worlds merging into one!”
Jessica Santiago, a native New Yorker, moved to Miami in 2017 to further her passion and career in health, wellness and fitness while looking for new challenges behind the bar. Since then, she has successfully accomplished both goals, while building relationships and partnerships in both industries.
Jessica’s passion to help and empower others through their health met the artistic and purposeful attention to detail in 2013 when she obtained an AAS in Food Service Administration and Dietetic Nutrition. Both of her drastically different worlds finally had their opportunity to collide as one.
Pushing her limits even further, in 2015 she decided to take on competitive bodybuilding while bartending full time. Proving that there can be a balance between life behind the bar and life lifting bars became her new motivation to help others find the same balance that helped her.
The opportunity to represent Miami as the Wellness Ambassador for the FOH - Mindfulness Matters X Perrier Expressions initiative is one partnership that she does not take lightly. Daily she speaks to clients and colleagues alike about the importance of a balanced lifestyle (both in and out of work) and mindfulness in all aspects of your life. Jessica is excited to share with you her non-alcoholic beverage featuring Perrier which is a reflection of the city she represents and the experiences she has gained from her years working behind the bar and her fitness career.
Ashley Danford
"You never know who you inspiring. Everything should be viewed as play, otherwise what's the point? Great change often comes from small actions.”
Ashley’s journey in hospitality started at the same time she embarked on the path of yoga at the age of 16. Always being one to seek out opportunities to connect and experience the many facets of life, it came as no surprise that she found herself working behind a bar. For her, it was such a gift to make a birthday celebration extra special, be a listening ear, or brighten someone’s day. However, over the years she realized her work behind the bar wasn’t aligning with her studies in yoga. After 7 years in the spirit industry, she stepped away from the bar to turn her attention to helping people heal. Today she focuses on connecting people to their human nature through teaching yoga and meditation, as well as her work in plant medicine. She is dedicated to helping people live a more present, connected, and fulfilled life.
Erika Ancien
“Have a beginners mindset. Every single one of us didn’t know where to start. We all had someone in our circle that inspired us.”
Erika is originally from Australia, but California raised, and has always had a love of fitness, outdoors and healthy living. She worked extensively in corporate sales, until she made the switch to the wellness world. She has been in the fitness and wellness industry now for close to 4 years, as a group instructor and private trainer. Beginning as a Yoga Sculpt teacher, she discovered her joy of teaching and soon realized she wanted to be able to help a broader range of clients and obtained her 200 RYT Yoga Certification, as well as the NASM Personal Training Certification.
She utilizes key aspects of both yoga and training, allowing her to specialize in areas of weight loss, stamina, rehabilitation, strength, mobility, and flexibility. Currently, she teaches both Iyengar-influenced Vinyasa and Sculpt Yoga, as well as Circuit Training, and HIIT classes.
She has made it her mission to help her clients train both the mind and body for a lifetime of health and happiness. Combining her knowledge and passion for yoga, healthy living, and the fundamentals of strength training, she brings out lasting results by using the power of the mind-body connection to help optimize your life!
Simone Mayers
"Life is about direction rather than speed!”
Simone is a DC native, former bartender who has created a bridge between her love for people and passion for living a holistic lifestyle. She has created safe spaces for people to be in tune with their body/mind/soul connection through movement, meditation and the power of the breath. Her mission is to empower others with the tools to self heal, self nurture & self love. She is a Reiki Practitioner, Yoga Instructor, meditation leader & Wellness Coach.
Thank you to our panelists and to Perrier.
View the segment here.
