GRIT By Brit – Page 5 – A blog by Brit Rettig Wold, CEO of GRIT Fitness

Celebrating 1 Year of Business at GRIT Fitness

January 28, 2016 No Comments

Hey hey friends! My baby (GRIT Fitness) turned 1-year-old this week – YAY! It feels like yesterday I wrote this post recapping our grand opening party. It’s crazy how much good stuff happens in 365 days.

We kicked off the business birthday celebration with a Friday night VINO + VINYASA (wine + yoga) party at my studio. Over 50 members of our GRIT Family came out to celebrate! The party was complete with wine, cupcakes and my favorite birthday jamz (e.g. Rhianna Birthday Cake).

We’ve kept the party going all week with themed classes. (See above our full list of themed classes – I’m pretty proud of our creativity here). Today was our final round of themed classes, “Crunk Party HIIT’s” = High Intensity Interval Training classes set to our favorite party songs. Lots of sweat and lot of smiles guaranteed!

Some of my rockstar instructors and advisory board members at the Vino & Vinyasa party. From left to right: Emily H. Emily T., Annabel, Ariana & Tarra

As I reflect on the past year I pinch myself because I can’t believe this is really happening! Just over a year ago I was a traveling management consultant, disengaged with my career and pouring myself into this blog as a way to escape my “real life”. But now this is my life. We really did it! We built a business and a community out of a simple idea and lot of hard work. The accomplishments and experiences (good and bad) from this past year give me so much confidence and hope that the best really is yet to come…

Me and Jenny, our VERY 1st member at GRIT in January 2015 – thanks for the loyalty Jenny!

In only 1 year we’ve grown to over 2,500 active members, 15 instructors, 35 classes per week and 7 original class formats – WOW! As I said in the last post, “teamwork makes the dream work.” But the best part of the journey are the personal relationships I’ve made with the #GRITFAM and they’ve made with each other. Nothing is more important than family – #GRITFAM included!

Sophie (Maria’s Daughter), Me, Maria & Jenny smiling after the sweating Flexin’ Flow class at the Vino & Vinyasa party

Stay tuned my friends…this is only the beginning of the GRIT Fitness revolution. I have some exciting news to share in the coming weeks and I want you to be the first to know!

THANKS SO MUCH for following my journey to and through healthy living and entrepreneurship. xoxo, Brit

Dallas GRIT Fitness, Inspiration & Motivation

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

January 26, 2016 No Comments

Hey Friends – happy 2016! First off, my sincere apologies for the sporadic blog posting. We have been crazy busy at GRIT Fitness with a rush of new members who are ready to get fit and feel fabulous in 2016. I’m not one for excuses, so I’ll just say “my bad” and start doing better. Most posts coming – I promise!

To kick off the New Year, my team and I met for an inspirational brainstorming and goal setting session. We chatted about things that were going well at GRIT and things that we can do better. We also spent time articulating our vision of an “amazing fitness experience” and then set some team and personal goals around that vision.

Fortunately, I had a great boss back in my consulting days who taught me about setting SMART Goals: Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic and Time Bound. What are your goals for 2016? I encourage you to also set smart goals – they are more effective for driving to results!

As a small business owner and new entrepreneur I value this quality time with my team. Sure, I see these ladies everyday as sweat and smile during our classes at GRIT, but the most important thing I’ve learned during my first year as an entrepreneur is that my business success is 100% dependent on the engagement and performance of my team. Without my team – I have nothing! #realtalk

As a self-proclaimed “independent woman” this was a tough pill for me to swallow because a part of me prides myself on developing the concept for GRIT Fitness on my own and getting it up and running by leveraging my skills and experience. But as we continue to grow, there are SO MANY things that I simply can’t do by myself and SO MANY things that I just don’t know. I have to develop and empower my team to be leaders in their own right, take risks and to share their gifts with others.

While I absolutely LOVE group fitness and feel so blessed to wake up every day and pursue my passion, I get so much more joy from serving my team and creating a foundation for us all to pursue our passions together. I’ve learned that “it’s great to do what you love, but even greater with the great team.” Teamwork really does make the dream work. xoxo,Brit

Maria, GRIT Body Sculpt & HIIT instructor, showing off her mug

Dallas GRIT Fitness, Inspiration & Motivation

GRIT Fitness 2016 New Year Challenge

January 7, 2016 No Comments

Happy 2016 my friends! I hope you rang in the new year with those you love. I enjoyed New Year’s day by teaching SOLD OUT back-to-back classes at my studio at “Brit’s 2016 Sweaty Surprise” class. Essentially, I picked all of my favorite songs from 2015 and choreographed a mash-up workout of kickboxing, body sculpting and dance exercises. It was a one hour of good old sweaty fun.

To keep the momentum going, I’m hosting a #NEWYEARBESTYOU challenge for our GRIT family. If you don’t live in Dallas, you can still participate! All you have to do is write down one personal goal of how you will be your best self this year and email it to [email protected]. Then you must complete 15 workouts that are each at least 30 minutes long before the end of January. Share your progress by posting 15 post-workout pics to Instagram and use the hashtag #newyearbestyou. Everyone who completes the challenge will earn our newest “I’m Allergic to Basic Workouts Tank Top” #dontbebasic. Let’s do this thang!

If you live in Dallas, come join the challenge in person! We are offering a killer New Year deal for unlimited classes and official membership to the GRIT Family. For only $105 per month you can join the party, take the challenge and hang out with me (which I hope you want to do)! Here’s the link to sign up: REGISTER NOW

Alright gang, let’s make 2016 the best year of our lives and let’s do it as a team! Here’s to a happy, healthy New Year! xoxo, Brit

Just for Fun

If at first you don’t succeed, pick yourself up and try again

December 14, 2015 No Comments

Good morning friends! I hope you’re ready to kick-start an amazing week. This weekend I enjoyed not 1, not 2 but 3 fabulous holiday parties and today I’m in major need of a sweat session to burn off holiday cookies and champagne (sooooooo good!)

I wanted to share update with you that I hope gives you hope and encouragement. If you recall, a few weeks ago I traveled to San Antonio to participate in the local SBA InnovateHer business pitch contest and I didn’t win. (You can read my recap here). I expressed my disappointment, but resolved to keep pushing forward to make the vision of my business come to life.

Me making my pitch (once again) at the InnovateHER pitch competition in Dallas, TX

Well…today I’m happy to announce that I recently competed in another local SBA InnovateHer business pitch contest and I won 1st place! This means that my business pitch will be submitted to Washington, DC for the national competition after all. I’m overjoyed and feeling proud of myself for not giving up after my setback. I’ll be honest, I had to give myself a major pep talk to go at it again after losing the week before. But I figured I had nothing to lose but my pride. It was worth it!

As icing on the cake I connected with a fabulous group of Dallas women entrepreneurs. We’ve already hung out since the competition and I invited them to come represent their brands at the #GIRLBOSS women-owned business showcase to take place at my fitness studio this Saturday!

Me with the judges and fellow contestants in the Dallas, TX InnovateHER pitch contest – November 2015

My ultimate mission with the GRIT by Brit blog and the GRIT Fitness studio is help others develop the mental grit needed to best their lives. Each day I have to practice perseverance to make it a habit. It’s not easy, but I believe we can train ourselves to be “gritty.” By choosing not to quit in the business plan competitions, I’ll more readily persevere through the next challenge I face.

That said, I don’t believe failure is anybody’s destiny. Life if too good for that 🙂

xoxo,Brit

Dallas GRIT Fitness, Dallas, TX

‘Tis the season to be fit – join Dallas GRIT Fitness!

December 8, 2015 No Comments

Happy Tuesday friends! Today I’m sharing a shameless plug for my start-up company, Dallas GRIT Fitness. We are coming up on our 1 year anniversary and I’m so excited – so much has happened in only 12 months. I still remember writing this blog post about our grand opening festivities 🙂 If you live in Dallas, come check us out! I promise you won’t regret it.

BONUS: We just finalized our new promo video. You can watch it on our Facebook page!

GRIT Fitness offers an energetic set of music-driven classes that each provide an intense workout and an engaging…
Posted by GRIT Fitness on Thursday, December 3, 2015

Okay that’s all for now. I’ll be back with my 2015 Holiday Gift Picsks later this week. Hope you have a fabulous day! xoxo, Brit

Uncategorized

Awesome Activity Tracker for Girls on the Go

December 2, 2015 No Comments

Hey friends! I hope this post finds you joyous and well. Today I’m super excited to share that I finally found the perfect activity tracker! Over the past month I’ve been wearing the vívofit 2 by Garmin and I’m super impressed by the data accuracy, added features, functionality and most importantly the battery life. The vívofit 2 is perfect for girls on the go since it has a 1 year+ battery life and stays on 24/7. That means I don’t have to charge it or put it on sleep mode.

I also love that all of the info I want is easily accessed on my wrist: time, date, my step goal, distance, calories burned and Move Bar. The Move Bar is super effective at giving me the nudge I need to get up from behind my laptop and move around a bit. You can find more product facts about the vívofit 2 here: www.garmin.com/vivofit

I especially appreciate the detailed health data that helps me make healthier lifestyle choices. For instance, I observed that on days I teach at GRIT Fitness I always hit my activity/step goal. However on non-teaching days, my vívofit 2 has made very clear that I need to increase my activity. It’s not best for my body to be super active on some days and not on others – consistency is key! Now I try to stand instead of sit while doing administrative work for my business. I also try to take the stairs instead of the elevator and park far away from the door when running errands.

Here’s a screen shot of my steps on a day that I teach classes…crushing it 🙂

And here’s my sleep data from each night last week (I didn’t wear my vívofit 2 on Wednesday and Thursday nights so disregard that data) …

Last but not least, the vívofit 2 has interchangeable bands so I can swap out the colors to coordinate with my outfit! I’ve owned several activity trackers over the past 3 years and this is the first that allows me to enjoy a variety of colors at the same time. Here are the other bands I have – yay for pastels!

If you’re in the market for a new or improved activity tracker I highly recommend the vívofit 2. And with the holidays just around the corner, it’s a perfect gift idea!

Enjoy and have fun staying active. xoxo, Brit

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Garmin through their partnership with POPSUGAR Select. While I was compensated to write a post about vívofit 2, all opinions are my own.

Total Body

Holiday Hotel Gym Workout

November 30, 2015 No Comments

Hola friends! I just got back to Dallas from an awesome Thanksgiving getaway to Florida! It was so nice to spend quality time with my immediate family and enjoy some fun in the sun. I definitely ate a little more than I should have (oops) but fortunately my sister and I hit up our hotel gym a couple of times for a fun and efficient workout.

Above is the workout that we did on Saturday morning. It took about 30 minutes and left us both sweaty and feeling ready to inhale more pecan pie! (haha) If you’re traveling this holiday season and looking for a fun hotel gym workout to spice up your routine, give this one a whirl. I’ve also included a short instructional video below just to prove I practice what I preach 🙂

Enjoy! xoxo, Brit

Dallas GRIT Fitness, Dallas, TX

#LUKESGRIT Challenge – Complimentary Fitness Classes in Dallas this Holiday Season!

November 29, 2015 No Comments

Hey Hey friends! I hope you had an awesome Thanksgiving Holiday and ate lots of yummy food that you love 🙂 No need to feel guilty for indulging because I have five, free, super-fun workouts in store for you this holiday season. If you live in Dallas, come join me and my friends from Luke’s Locker for the #LUKESGRIT Challenge! Me and 3 instructors from my studio will teach a sweaty series of high energy, motivating classes during the month of December.

The #LUKESGRIT challenge aims to provide a fun environment that encourages women to stay active during the holiday season. Generous prizes from Luke’s Locker will be awarded to those who complete 3 or more community classes in the month of December.

The challenge begins this Sunday, Dec. 6th with a kick off “GRIT mash up” class and shopping event at Luke’s Locker – Mockingbird, Dallas, TX. Each week following, members of the Dallas community can participate in a complimentary community workout at the GRIT Fitness studio located at 3821 Ross Ave. Dallas, TX 75204.

KICK OFF DETAILS

Date: Sunday, December 6, 2015
Time: 10:00am
Location: Luke’s Locker 3046 Mockingbird Ln, Dallas, TX 75205
Cost: Free & open to the Dallas community
Details: Enjoy a 1-hour “mash up” workout led by GRIT Fitness instructors, followed by refreshments and shopping. The kick-off class will consist of Dance Cardio, Body Sculpting and Cardio Kick Boxing. Space is limited – class participants must register online!

SIGN UP FOR COMPLIMENTARY CLASSES

Kick Off – GRIT Mash Up Workout – 12/6, 10:00am at Luke’s Locker – Mockingbird, Dallas, TX
Class 1 – Dance Club Cardio, 12/9, 7:30pm at GRIT FITNESS
Class 2 – Turbo Kick, 12/16, 6:30pm at GRIT FITNESS
Class 3 – GRIT HIIT, 12/23, 6:00pm at GRIT FITNESS
Class 4 – Body Sculpt Express, 12/30, 5:15pm at GRIT FITNESS

You can visit the GRIT Fitness website to read the description of each class format. I hope to see you there! xoxo, Brit

Lifestyle

My 2nd Business Pitch Contest

November 23, 2015 No Comments

Brit Rettig- Business Pitch at InnovateHer

Hey Friends! Last week my mom and I made road trip down to San Antonio, TX where I competed in the InnovateHER Women’s Business Pitch Competition sponsored by the SBA (Small Business Administration). It was a bittersweet experience as I practiced all week, picked out the perfect outfit and thought through all of the questions the judges may ask. Alas, I didn’t win 🙁

However, I felt really great about my pitch delivery. Unlike the competition I recently won at the Dallas Entrepreneur Center (DEC), this was a true “pitch” competition meaning I only got 2 minutes to speak and could only have 1 slide on the screen. That said I had to prioritize the most critical aspects of my business plan and immediately excite the judges. This experience definitely pushed me past my comfort zone and elevated me to a new level of public speaking and handling high-pressure situations. Also, I got to the meet the founders of these 4 awesome, female-owned start up companies – I highly suggest you check them out and show them some love!

The 5 Finalists – Me and the fierce female entreprenuers who presented our businesses to the judges – I was so inspired by their awesome ideas, passion & energy!

In the spirit of “keeping it real” I was super bummed about the outcome (I even shed a few tears when I was alone in the lady’s room). Honestly after watching the video of my pitch, there wasn’t anything I thought I could have significantly improved. Fortunately, my competitive nature is getting the best of me and now I’m even more motivated to spread the positive vibes of GRIT Fitness and impact women all over the world! #CantStopWontStop

Before I went to bed that night, I came across this post that gave me so much peace, hope and purpose.

“I want to be in the arena. I want to be brave with my life. And when we make the choice to dare greatly, we sign up to get our asses kicked. We can choose courage or we can choose comfort, but we can’t have both. Not at the same time. Vulnerability is not winning or losing; it’s having the courage to show up and be seen when we have no control over the outcome. Vulnerability is not weakness; it’s our greatest measure of courage.”
― Brené Brown, Rising Strong

I remember being in my corporate career with my steady paycheck and awesome expense account and thinking to myself, “I want more than this. I want to take a risk with my life and pursue my dream.” Now I’m living boldly and there are several ups and downs, but boy is it exciting! I hope this quote positively impacts you as much as it did me.

Keep up the good work ladies and shout out to all of the #GIRLBOSS chicks out there! xoxo, Brit

Me and my Mama Kay enjoying margaritas and Mexican food on the San Antonio River Walk after the competition – you can find a silver lining in EVERY experience if you just look for it!

Just for Fun, Lifestyle

Blog Buddies Turned Soul Sisters

November 20, 2015 No Comments

TGIF Friends! This has been such an amazing week. Before I headed to San Antonio to compete in the SBA (Small Business Administration) InnovateHER Pitch competition (more details on that coming in a later post) I got a surprise visit from one of my dearest blog buddies, Chelle! Chelle writes a blog called EveryDay Polish and we connected when I hosted a GRIT Tank top giveaway last year. I asked my readers, “What does GRIT mean to you?” and Chelle won by providing this answer…

Keep in mind that Chelle lives in Connecticut and we’ve never met in person but we keep in touch online and have followed each other’s blogs of over a year. I was overjoyed when she made trip to Texas and a surprise visit at my noon HIIT class on Monday!

Moments like these give me so much purpose and motivation. I’m not going to lie, blogging and running small business can be exhausting and overwhelming. However, knowing that I’m able to positively impact the lives of others by simply being myself and sharing my life-story, is so amazing!

Have you connected with any of your blog buddies?

Wishing you a wonderful weekend! xoxo, Brit

Brit and Blog Buddy Chelle — No longer “Blog Buddies,” now “Soul Sisters”