Ngo + Kindra gym co-owner, personal trainer + father
gym co-owner + mother
gym co-owner + mother
@catchngo
@iconoclastnyc
@kindraxoxo
iconoclastfitness.com
ngookafor.com
How has your beauty routine changed since you met Kindra?
Ngo: My beauty routine before Kindra was wake up, shower, put deodorant on, then apply lotion. It didn’t matter what type of lotion it was. As long as it prevented my skin from looking dry and ashy, it went on my face. And then I walked out of the door. When I met Kindra, it became moisturizing my face, worrying about breakouts and my pores. I didn't even think about pores before. I'm like, "What are pores?” Cleanser, toner, mask—I don't have time for that. But then I watch Kindra do it, and she gets pleasure from it. I'm like, "I'm not opposed to pleasure, so let me see what this is all about.” And I tried some of it, and I kept some of it. In my soul, I'm still the Vaseline guy. But these days, I get home from work, and I make sure I scrub my face so I don't break out. Kindra was like, “You're a gym owner now. You can't have bumps on your face.” So now I have a facial scrub.
Do you have a signature beauty look?
Kindra: A red lip! And I have since, secretly, I was in the sixth grade. (My mom knows now that I’d get to school and attempt to put on lipstick.) I've been rocking it every school picture, every yearbook photo, ever since. I call it my coffee for the face. I do not feel awake or alive without it on. I got married in a red lip, and the joke is I'm going to be buried in a red lip. Red has always been my favorite color. I felt like nudes or naturals were kind of boring. Red is fun and vivid. Covid masks kind of put a wrench in my red lipstick game, but I'm back on it now.
What’s always in your bag?
Kindra: Supergoop! Unseen Sunscreen SPF 40. I love it because it’s exactly how it's marketed—it's unseen. I can't tell you how challenging it is to find sunscreen for Black and Brown kids, or even for myself, that doesn't leave a white cast. I really appreciate that this product has zero of that. I can put it on myself and my children, and we're all still the same complexion that we were when we woke up. It's not ashy, it's not gray. It's literally transparent. That is my most, most favorite thing about it. Also, it’s easy to layer with my makeup and doesn’t feel heavy.
Any gym essentials?
Ngo: Due to the fact that I go back-to-back with clients, I use a deodorant spray after my sessions because it’s not overwhelming. I’m not able to take showers after every single client workout, so I refresh with the spray instead.
What’s your secret to great skin?
Kindra: Tata Harper Illuminating Moisturizer. I'm a big fan of skin that’s dewy or has a glow to it. This particular moisturizer, even on the bottle, it says "With Diamond Radiance." I love it so much. You look radiant, you look dewy, it looks like you have like a little bit of glow. According to my son, it looks like you're sparkling.
What’s your most recent beauty find?
Kindra: La Mer eye concentrate. It makes me feel awake. I discovered it through one of our clients, and it's just delicious. It's creamy, and moisturizing, and not super heavy, and it doesn't affect my contacts. And it comes with this really wonderful application tool, so you don't waste anything.
What’s the best part about being a dad?
Ngo: The opportunity to raise people in this world and give them a life that you did not. An opportunity to add amazing people to the world because you have the ability to give them strength, power, love, safety, protection—everything they need to thrive. An opportunity to create an amazing human being.
How does your family celebrate the holidays?
Kindra: I love all traditions, all holidays. As soon as Christmas trees come out, we go to this spot in Harlem and buy a tree and decorate it together. We play music throughout the house—a lot of Luther Vandross, Anita Baker, Mariah Carey. We haven't gone as far as matching PJs, but we definitely stay cozy Christmas morning. We open presents, we put batteries in everything and we just disconnect. We FaceTime with others later in the evening, but during the day, we really just try to bond with our unit and watch movies and eat goodies.
What’s one of the most beautiful things about your wife?
Ngo: Her compassion and ability to care about what people feel is something that I don't organically have. Something I learned from being with Kindra is looking at people, figuring out what motivates them, what makes them happy, why they feel the way they feel.
What does family mean to you?
Kindra: Family, for me, is everything. It is for me, and I would say for Ngo, our primary focus. Everything revolves around the quality of these kids' lives. But also, helping them become really great humans. That's spending a lot of quality time trying to keep them connected, keeping their bond strong. There’s a four-year age difference, but we definitely to instill in our son, Hey, play with your sister. Teach your sister, be a good leader, be a good teacher. And it's funny to watch them create their own relationship. They wrestle; she's wearing his clothes now. She goes to him for comfort if she hurts herself or she feels a little sad. At the end of the day, it’s really what matters most.
Where do you find your confidence?
Ngo: In my experiences. I found my confidence in the fear of not doing and of having regret. A lot of my confidence comes from being sick as a kid and missing out until about the age of 13. Now, I have to do everything, try everything, feel everything, in order to live a full life. I could be dead tomorrow, but I'm alive right now. That's all that matters. It's this moment.
How important is self-care to you?
Kindra: I'm trying to be more mindful and thoughtful about mothering myself. I find that I'm able to achieve that on Sundays because the gym closes at 2:00 pm, Ngo's home earlier, and I can disappear easily. So that's when I'm shaving my legs, doing a foot mask, doing a face mask. I try to watch one of my episodes of Super Soul Sunday, while I'm on the Peloton. I'm trying to get it all in at least one day a week because Monday to Friday is just so hectic that I usually don't have time. But my intention is to find a day just to soak in the love for my damn self.
