Guest Post: Brittany from GotheXtraMile

Hello, lovely people! Matty and I are still kickin’ it down in the Hamptons. We are both really excited for today, as we have plans to visit a vineyard! In the mean time, I have another scheduled guest post for you from the light-hearted and hysterical Brittany! She and I are kindred spirits (she is majoring in journalism!) and have a love for challenging workouts. We also have tendencies to be a tad…oh, I don’t know…klutzy? Like I said, kindred spirits.

Hi there, everyone! My name is Brittany and I blog over at GOtheXtraMile. If you don’t know me, please come say hi! I love meeting new bloggers and readers.

Thanks to Heather for letting me take over her blog while she’s on her awesome little getaway!

I thought I’d chat a little about my personal relationship with fitness and how it has evolved over the years. We all have our own stories about how we got started, what we like, and what keeps us motivated.

Lets start with way back in the day. I was ALWAYS active. I was in soccer, constantly outside with my friends, skateboarding (I even went to the skate park, haha), rollerblading, running around, etc.

The summer after third grade, I got into cheerleading. That was my main form of fitness from then on. We would practice for hours each day, jumping, stunting, and, of course, conditioning after every practice.

Think laps, sit ups, lunges, and much more. I was the weird one who LOVED doing lunges around the track.

This is an example. We would always be doing push-ups and our coaches loved it. Haha.

Anyway, once I started high school, things changed. I was still in cheerleading, but my mom suggested I go to the gym with her. “Gym? Are you serious? I don’t want people to see me working out. What do I need to go there for.” Yeah, I was embarrassed to workout in front of people! Not sure why, but I guess I was just intimidated.

Finally, I agreed to take a fitness class with her. The first class was hard, and I almost passed out. I have the type of mentality that doesn’t give up, so back to the gym I went. Each and every time I went, it got easier. And I fell more in love with it. That’s where my real love of fitness started. I was in love with fitness classes and took them all the time.

I did NOT like cardio, so I stuck with the full body weight classes at my gym.

Then one day, I ventured into spinning. This turned cardio completely around for me. I absolutely loved it. I loved getting my heart rate up, pushing myself, dripping sweat, and the endorphins I got after the class.

After I was spinning for a while, I decided I really wanted to challenge myself to run. I had always hated running, but for some reason it appealed to me now more than ever. As anything else, it was hard at first. However, I refused to give up. I enjoyed challenging myself and doing things I never thought I could do. I had always dreamed of running a half marathon, so I knew I had to do one.

Eventually, I began falling in love with running. So, I signed up for my first 5K.

I finished in about 25 minutes, and I felt on top of the world. I loved the feeling of racing and knew I wanted more. So, I signed up for a 10K.

Little did I know, it was a trail run. To say I was nervous was an understatement. I finished the race in under an hour, and I was immediately hooked on racing. I could not wait to run a half marathon. So, I signed up for the half. Every long training run made me even more excited. There is no better feeling than doing something you never imagined you could do before. Finally, it was time.

I ran my first half marathon at Disney in February. Crossing that finish line was one of the best feelings ever. That race was TOUGH. My entire body hurt, but it was so, so worth it.

After my half marathon, I needed a break from running. I had been training for months, so I knew I needed to take a break and switch things up a bit. I decided to try Jamie Eason’s live fit trainer, and little did I know I would fall in love with heavy lifting. It seems like I fall in love with everything, huh?

I can’t help it! I am infatuated with fitness.

The live fit trainer had me lifting 4-6 days a week, with separating body parts. Increasing my weights and waking up super sore the next day gave me that same sense of accomplishment I got when I finished my runs during my half marathon training.

Seeing progress in myself is always one of my biggest motivators. Weight training allows me to feel STRONG and powerful. I love that.

Nowadays, I enjoy doing any form of fitness. I usually prefer weight training lately, but I try switching it up. Between circuit workouts, cardio, yoga, heavy lifting, walking, fitness classes, tabatas, running, and much more.

My love of fitness isn’t going anywhere, but it is constantly changing and keeping me interested. One of my absolute favorite quotes, that I think everyone should take into consideration, pretty much sums up my fitness outlook.

“Strive for progress, not perfection.”

Thanks for reading!