Hamptons Wellness Week Hits Bridgehampton June 2

Anastasia Gavalas and Kiley DeMarco don’t want to completely transform your life, not right away. They want to help you get on track, making small changes that add up to a healthier way of being.

Gavalas and DeMarco founded Hamptons Wellness Week (HWW) in 2013 to help others enjoy their lives more. These two know something about stress, time management and the need for me-time. Gavalas is the mother of five children, aged 12 to 20, and DeMarco has one toddler daughter—and a baby daughter due in October. Whew.

So where do they find the time to do all that they do? They make it. Gavalas encourages everyone to “get some good sleep. Meditate! Start your day off right with intention and you’ll handle it very differently.”

After all, we can’t change the way that other people treat us, only the way that we respond. DeMarco suggests. “Don’t book yourself back-to-back, don’t put yourself in a situation in which you need to rush. Take your time. [Embrace] the mindset of slowing down in general throughout the day.”

But Hamptons Wellness Week is jam-packed with classes and events from Westhampton to Montauk. And all kinds of discounts and deals are available. The week officially kicks off this Saturday, June 2, from 8 a.m. to noon at the Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton. Admission is free but an R.S.V.P. is required on the website hamptonswellnessweek.com. There you’ll also find a lot of information about the week’s activities. You can check Instagram and Facebook for updates. Originally held in January, Hamptons Wellness Week has undergone adjustment every year, so it now takes place in June, a time when the locals are still circulating and everyone is poised for positive change. And this year there’s more shopping! Gavalas says that success comes “when listening to our intuition—there’s always tweaking and new products we’re willing to try.”

Expect deals on all kinds of health and wellness experiences like fitness classes, wellness services, healthy eats, products, master instructors from New York and more. HWW has welcomed both local and national wellness brands and businesses to be part of wellness for the Hamptons mind, body and soul.

This whirlwind of wellness also concludes at the Topping Rose House in Bridgehampton with a “Hamptons Wellness Farmers Market” and family-friendly activities, including classes, on Saturday, June 9, from 9 a.m.–1 p.m. The featured farmer is Bridgehampton’s “Mushroom Man,” David Falkowski, of Open Minded Organics. He now offers a range of hemp products including oils that he says “just bring clarity.” DeMarco, a nutritionist, says she’s excited about trying some Watermelon Road fruit jerky, which is sugar-free and vegan. Look for board shorts made from recycled water bottles, natural spray tans and, a crowd favorite, Opa! on the Go Greek food truck. Gavalas says she’s going to try a new AKT dance cardio class and some teas from Southampton’s Plain-T. As Gavalas points out, there are “really interesting people out here who’ve gone on introspective journeys and developed a unique wellness approach.”

Of course, these moms have also organized Hamptons Wellness Week events that are kid-friendly. In fact, the nonprofit that Gavalas founded to create communities of empowerment for children locally and globally, Wing it Project, will be on hand assisting kids to make a pair of their own unique fabric wings. She says their events are always “very inclusive so people try out new things. Really casual daytime events.” They strongly suggest that, to get into the swing, you should “just show up.”

Gavalas, who lives in Bridgehampton, and Sag Harborite DeMarco agree that the beauty of the East End is a factor, perhaps a driving force, in all that they do. Gavalas says, “be mindful and enjoy the best of the best.”

Interestingly, these two first met at Wölffer Estate Vineyards in Sagaponack, where they were making a point of integrating what’s local. They immediately recognized their shared interest for improving themselves and their community in creative ways. And the East End is better place for it.