A blog by Brit Rettig Wold, CEO of GRIT Fitness
Happy Sunday guys and gals! I don’t have much to say to today. Just wanted to spread a little encouragement…
Life is short, but it’s also sweet. What are you doing to make the most of this life? What are doing to make your deepest dreams and desires come true? Whatever you are doing…keep on fighting! As long as you never quit, your dreams WILL become a reality. Why? Because you are powerful beyond measure and because the world is yours!
Say it…believe it #GRIT
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyAdFoB6YH4]
I was recently asked, “Brit, what’s the 1 fitness product that you can’t live without?” Without any hesitation, I quickly answered “my neon headbands!” However, in a very close 2nd place are my dumbbells. In all seriousness, with 2 medium/heavy dumbbells you can create fitness magic! That said, I’ve demonstrated 12 of my all time favorite dumbbell exercise for you.
If you want to create your own workout, simply pick 3 exercises that you like. Do 12 reps of each exercise. At the end of the circuit, run in place or do jumping jacks for 1 minute. Repeat the circuit 3 times. For example, your custom dumbbell workout could be…
REPEAT 3 TIMES!
See how easy that is to plan? Plus, the combination of dumbbell resistance exercises and cardio intervals gives you a total body workout while burning lots of calories – a good look 😉
Hey guys! I hope you are enjoying some Super-duper Spring Sunshine and taking your workouts outside like I recently recommended. BUT in case your outdoor running routine starts to get stale, here’s a way to keep it spicy! I’m happy to present my 3 Mile Tone Up Circuit!
What’s great about this workout is that is nicely combines long cardio endurance segments with body weight resistance training. This means that you are burning fat + adding definition to your muscles!
The overall workout takes about 45 minutes to complete. Expect to burn 400 – 600 calories!
As usual, workouts are ALWAYS more fun and more fierce when you do them with a friend. So grab a buddy and hit the trails – you’ll feel awesome when it’s over!
(ABOVE – me and my workout buddy after completing my 3 mile toning circuit at Lake Norman, North Carolina)
If anyone ever asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up, my answer was always (and still is ) a “Talk Show Host.” This weekend was like taking a step toward my childhood dream! My “fit friends” from SportyAfros.com and I got to share health and hair tips on Good Morning Texas (that’s me on the right) – woo hoo!
Then we got to share more tips during the Dallas/Fort Worth International Natural Hair Meet Up Day! I was a health and wellness expert panelist for the event and shared all of my GRIT by Brit health and fitness advice! I also disclosed my personal tips for keeping my hair healthy and well-maintained despite my long sweat sessions at the gym.
Below are Whitney Patterson and Alexandria Williams, the co-founders of SportyAfros.com and amazing hostesses of DFW’s International Natural Hair Meet up Day!
Each member of the panel, including me, lives a VERY active lifestyle. Obviously I’m a fitness instructor, but the panel also included a triathlete, a running coach and a personal trainer. While most would think that our love for fitness is what unites us, it’s actually our combined love for good health AND good hair.
That said, here are our Top 5 tips for a healthy body + gorgeous hair:
Keep these tips in mind as you continue on your healthy journey – I hope they help you as much as they’ve helped me. My mom (middle), little sister (left) and I want to wish you a wonderfully beautiful week!
So, I’ve officially completed the Dr. Oz 3 Day Detox. I personally wanted to try the detox because I’m a new vegetarian (5 months strong) and I’ve noticed that I’ve become sloppy (i.e. eating lots of simple carbs and fewer fruits and veggies). I’ve actually gained 3 pounds since I’ve become a vegetarian…not a good look. The Dr. Oz cleanse presented me with a great opportunity to get back on track it because it replaces meals with fruit/veggie drinks for 3 days. Click here to see the drink recipes. Overall, I give the Dr. Oz cleanse the “GRIT by Brit 2 thumbs up” and here’s why…
First off, I definitely got my fair share of veggies and fruits. Each drink consists of at least 3-4 servings of fruits/vegetables (sometimes more than I eat in an entire day). I feel like a born again vegetarian 🙂 Unlike most cleanses, each drink includes some sort of healthy fat (i.e. avocado, coconut oil, almond butter). This is really important because my body wasn’t deprived of essential nutrients AND I got an adequate amount of protein. Since I weight train 2-3 times per week, I HAVE to make sure that my protein intake is sufficient so that my muscles can repair themselves. I was also really impressed by how tasty each of the drinks are. I mean, who would guess blending mango, blueberries, cayenne pepper, avocado and coconut water would actually taste good?
Secondly, in only 3 days I lost 2.2 pounds 🙂 I’m 5’8″ and very muscular but I always try to keep my weight below 153 pounds. Still 1 more pound to go!
Also, I developed a new obsession = Epsom Salt and lavender oil baths! This was HEAVEN IN MY HOME! Daily soak sessions are a part of the Dr. Oz cleanse. Not only are they detoxifying, but they are SO relaxing and soothing! As a group fitness instructor I always have sore muscles and these baths were a perfect remedy for my muscle aches. I also discovered Dr. Teal’s Epsom + Lavender oil bath soak, so I can buy both ingredients already combined – yes!
Last, the cleanse has definitely helped me ween off coffee. I sometimes drink 4 cups a day…not good I know, but at least I’m honest. After going 3 days without coffee, I’ve realized that I don’t really need it. The cleanse calls for 1 cup of hot green tea ever morning which gave me a decent caffeine fix. However, I was a little groggy on some days without my Cup-a-Joe. This is something I’ll continue to work on.
Now that the cleanse is over, I’ve decided that this is not going to be a “one time thing” for me. I really loved the lunch drink, so today I’m having it for dinner before I head to yoga! I’m going to continue making these smoothies and drinking them as meal replacements every now and then. It’s an easy and efficient way to ensure I get enough fiber and my fruit/veggie fix.
If you are considering trying the Dr. Oz 3 Day Detox cleanse – I highly recommend it. Let me know how it goes!
It’s Spring – yippee! The sun is shining and skin is showing, so take your workout OUTSIDE. A recent study showed that exercising outdoors improves “mental well-being: compared with exercising indoors, exercising in natural environments was associated with greater feelings of revitalization increased energy and positive engagement, together with decreases in tension, confusion, anger and depression. Participants also reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction with outdoor activity and stated that they were more likely to repeat the activity at a later date.” Source: Outdoor Fit
Above: Me teaching PiYo on the Wet Deck at the W Dallas Hotel last Saturday
Not only are outdoor workouts fun, they also provide lots of extra health benefits. Here are my top 3 reason you should take your sweat session out doors this Spring:
Hey gang! Hope your week is off to an EXCELLENT start. Here’s a 10 minute HIIT (high intensity interval training) workout video that I shot in Central Park NYC. The workout is intense and efficient! You need to 2 medium/heavy dumbbells (at least 8 pounds for women and 15 pounds for men). To get the most out of the workout, do NOT take breaks unless I say so! 🙂
HIIT works because it forces us to push to our highest level of perceived exertion for short periods of time. This increases our anaerobic threshold, which burns a TON of calories during and AFTER the workout. Try the workout for yourself and let me know what you think. It’s a great way to get sexy for summer! #heygurlhey #heyboyhey
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUs5sGt87RY]
So, some of my best friends have been ranting and raving about the great results they’ve had with the Dr. Oz Juice Cleanse. Have any of you tried the cleanse before? Were you successful? Obviously, I have serious FOMO (fear of missing out) and have to try it for myself. I already went shopping and bought all of my ingredients (see pic below).
I’m especially excited about bathing in Epsom Salt every night! Growing up, my mother (a true country woman) would ALWAYS make me bathe in Epsom Salt to help soothe mosquito bites, achy muscles or open scrapes from playground accidents. No matter the issue, an Epsom Salt bath was her go-to cure.
What’s really interesting about this “cleanse” is that the drinks actually include A LOT of food. I spent $90 at Central Market today buying all of the ingredients. If you look closely at each of the drinks, they each include almost 4 full servings of fruits and veggies – that’s AMAZING! I have a feeling that the drinks are going to be very filling 😉
Also, I’m infatuated with Coconut Oil right now. I like to use it on my skin and in my hair for deep conditioning, but never have I ingested it. This will be a first. Last, the almond butter, almond milk and flax seeds are nice additions to help ensure I get sufficient protein Altogether, this cleanse is HEALTHY, BALANCED and LEGIT according to GRIT by Brit!
Follow me on Twitter @GRITbyBrit for my pictures and progress updates over the next 3 days. Also, please share your cleanse stories if you’ve decided to try it too!
Hope you had a great weekend – CHOOSE to have a great week ahead!
Show your body and your self some love this Summer by joining me for FREE PiYo classes! In case you’ve never heard of PiYo, it’s a Pilates / Yoga fusion workout. Click here to learn more about it.
I’ve partnered up with the amazing W Dallas Hotel – Victory Park to bring this free fitness gift to you. It’s going down every Saturday morning at 8:30 am on the glorious 16th floor Wet Deck – breathtaking views are in abundance!
So grab your yoga mat and a friend and be ready to sweat. I guarantee this is the BEST fitness class Dallas has to offer. See you on Saturday! (All details are in the flyer below)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBNKC7SaTsE]
I hope you guys had a great Cinco de Mayo holiday weekend. I spent my weekend in California celebrating a friend’s wedding – it was amazing! The sun was shining and I finally got to wear some of my favorite sundresses. On that note, nothing looks better in a sleeveless sundress than nice toned arms. So, check out this arm workout that I designed to get you on a “Michelle Obama level.” You’ll need 2 medium dumbbells to complete the exercises. This is a nice workout to tag on to the end of a cardio sweat session. You can workout with me in real-time by watching the video (click play above) or do the workout on your own (follow the instructions below). Either way, be sure to try it out and let me know how it goes!
Enjoy rockin’ those sundresses #getitgurl
