A woman of many talents, Heather Thomson, CEO of HTCo, is an inventor, designer, entrepreneur, podcaster, philanthropist, licensed health and wellness coach, and an avid adventurer. She has more than 25 years of experience in the fashion industry, serving as founding design director for the Sean “Diddy” Combs line, Sean John, and as co-creative director alongside Beyonce Knowles and Jennifer Lopez to launch and develop their respective labels. In 2008, Thomson founded an innovative and fashion-forward collection of shapewear. She also served as a leading member of the Bravo reality series, The Real Housewives of New York City. Today, Thomson enjoys focusing on her passions, including her podcast “In MY Heart” and her organic superfood brand, Beyond Fresh. She also enjoys leading wellness retreats and adventure around the globe. Here, she shares some of the ways she puts wellness front and center in her own life.
What does wellness mean to you?
It’s a personal journey toward innermost peace and harmony. A journey that is yours, that is mine, alone. It’s not about what someone else thinks you should be. It’s not about what society dictates we’re supposed to be. It is seeking and finding what we know too be true about ourselves. And, while we should definitely hunt and gather for help along the way, the true path to wellness is to understand. It is no one else’s journey but our own.
What are your favorite things to do to maintain your personal wellbeing?
Nature to me is true nurture. It’s getting outside every day, either for a stroll in Central Park, losing my feet in the sand, playing catch with my dog, or on a mountainside pushing my limits. In the boundless beauty and harshest realities and enormity of Mother Nature’s power is where I truly open my heart to myself and to the divine.
Is there a specific fitness activity that you love and why?
Hiking, trekking, climbing, skiing…breathing in the air, taking in the beauty of nature, exhilarating myself in it, pushing my limits in it, the meditation in it. I find myself awe struck by the absolute power and the beauty of the great outdoors—it is where I find myself, reinvent myself, and nurture my soul.
What is your favorite healthy food, and do you have a favorite way of preparing it?
I find simple food to be my favorite to prepare for myself, the perfection in an apple, so perfectly packaged, the avocado perfect in its form, the tomato, the onion, a cucumber pickled into a crunchy dill spear, and sprouts, loaded all together on a whole grain super-seed bread. I love making beans and rice and can’t live without hummus!
What is your favorite healthy beverage (alcoholic or non-alcoholic), and do you have any insider tips for preparing it?
I make sparkling water with hints of real fruit. We have a soda stream that makes it easy, and I squeeze-in all sorts of fruit juices. I am a red wine lover! I think it’s delicious, and it’s a great source of antioxidants. And nothing beats the refreshing nature of a clean, crisp pilsner or a juicy IPA after a day in the mountains. It just feels good for the soul!
What is your greatest wellness achievement?
Self-awareness, and with that, finding self-love.
What do you think is the most exciting wellness innovation you have recently discovered?
For me, it begins and ends with the old and ancient wellness therapies like chakra clearing, breathwork, and aromatherapy. Most recently, I have been experimenting with sound-frequency energies and got a singing bowl. The vibrations and tones are so soothing, and it helps me find my Zen.
What is your idea of balanced healthy happiness?
Finding one’s truth and standing in it. The inner voice of self and self-reflection to me is the most powerful tool to our happiness there is. Within that light, everything else will fall into its proper balance or fall away from your life naturally.
What is your favorite place for a healthy vacation or escape?
Either the mountains or the sea.
How do you celebrate small victories?
I work to keep a balanced perspective in place. Nothing is one-sided. Our achievements and our failures, I try to maintain that all must be considered as part of life’s journey. And I celebrate victory or achievement by saying, “Today was a good day,” and feeling that joy and embracing it with gratitude. I also find myself encouraged to understand the lessons in the losses when things don’t work out or go as planned. I work hard to push through these days, weeks, events, knowing I needed the lesson to be learned, so I can move freely to the next step, toward what the Universe has planned for me, and so I work to practice gratitude through loss, too.
What brings you joy?
The love of my family and my extended family of friends and experiencing this beautiful and painful journey that it is to be human together is my heart. Bringing actions of grace to others and seeing people in peace in their world brings me joy.
