Hey friends! Happy weekend! Sorry for the sporadic posting – GRIT Fitness is growing like crazy and it’s my birthday weekend which means my blogging time has been cut substantially. BUT I wanted to check in and share a few pics from last night! One of my Turbo Kick clients/friends threw me a little Friday night pool party at her lovely pied a terre in Highland Park, TX. I loved the decor so much I had to post pics – very Pinterest worthy don’t you think?
Tonight, the partying continues as I host a party at the Social House in Uptown Dallas. I’ll post a full update and lots of photos tomorrow. Have a wonderful weekend. xoxo, Brit
Hey friends! I hope your week is off to a great start. Mine is pretty awesome! Lots of exciting stuff happening at my fitness studio including new instructors coming on board, fun fitness events and the launch of several new class formats. That said, I’ve had minimal time to meal prep and have had to rely 100% on takeout the past couple of weeks. Instead of grabbing fatty fast food, I’ve chosen healthier takeout options that are actually pretty darn tasty.
Below are my top 5 picks for healthy eats on the go. I chose these based on the following criteria: delicious taste, price (under $10), high protein and low sugar, under 400 calories and includes at least 2 servings of fruits/veggies. To me, these factors are most important when considering nutrition, value and convenience. So without further or do…here’s my list!
I must say the greek salad at Zoe’s Kitchen has been come my new lunch “crack” – I could eat it every single day. It’s topped with caramelized onions and served over savory marinated potatoes – what a combo!
Hey friends! I just finished teaching my 6am GRIT HIIT class at my studio and I’m feeling energized and ready to take on the day. Here’s the workout we did this morning in case you want to give it a whirl on your own! (Do 20 seconds of each exercise then rest for 20 seconds, repeat each round 4 times continuously before moving on to the next round)
GRIT HIIT – June 18, 2015
Round 1
Triple step side to side
Skater leap holding medicine ball
Round 2
Plank Froggers
Forward lunge with medicine ball overhead press
Round 3
Hop on one leg, side to side and front to back (2 rounds right, 2 rounds left)
Side squat with knee raise back to center holding medicine ball
Round 4
Wood chop jumps swinging medicine ball between legs
Chair pose twist jumps alternating sides
Round 5
Plank spider knee pulls (same knee to same elbow)
Full sit up with medicine ball
Today is an extra special day because we’re celebrating 5 months of business of GRIT Fitness! (check out the little slide show I made in honor of our clients and staff) Time flies when you’re having the time of your life. I’m so grateful for every single person who’s taken a class, attended an event or simply shared an encouraging word. I have 100% confidence that the best is yet to come. Here’s to the next 5 months…and the next…and the next!
Image: GRIT Fitness Flexin Flow class at the Westin Galleria Dallas Summer Sweat Series on June 14, 2015
Hey hey friends! I hope your weekend was good to you! I enjoyed another fun, busy weekend of fitness fun. Our studio, GRIT Fitness, has a new partnership with the Westin Galleria Dallas called the “Summer Sweat Series.” Each month this summer we do a free fitness event at the hotel followed by a pool party – hey! Yesterday was our first event in during which we led a free Flexin’ Flow class. Huge shout out to our GRIT Fitness instructor and my dear friend, Maria Rowe for leading the pack! Follow her blog at www.marlizrowe.com. The turn out was amazing as you can see blow…
Post workout photo – yay for sweat & smiles!
After class we posed for a fun group photo before enjoying free Sangria and passed bites! Also, the Westin and other Galleria retailers raffled off 22 gifts including a free weekend stay at the hotel. Holler!
Me, Maria and Kortani posing by the pool after Maria’s booty-kickin’ Flexin’ Flow class!
After class we kicked it by the pool and celebrated yet another awesome fitness event! I’m so grateful for my energetic team and the corporate partnerships that we’ve developed and strengthened over the past 2 years. This is only beginning of even bigger things to come!
If you live in Dallas, join us for our next event on July 12th. We’ll lead a free Zumba/Dance Club Cardio workout followed by a pool party. CLICK HERE to RSVP and get more details. Hope to see you there. Happy Monday! xoxo, Brit
Image: Maria, Annabel and Me after Maria’s Friday morning Flexin’ Flow class
Hey Hey Happy Monday! I hope you had a wonderful weekend! Mine was full of b-day celebrations – 4 of my closest friends have birthdays this week which means my calendar was full of pool time and partying – yippee! (Shout out to Jen Kelm, Melissa Bass, Cerise Manns and Leslie Jerome – I LOVE YOU ALL) As icing on the cake my fitness studio, GRIT Fitness, was featured in the Dallas Morning News. We are moving on up! Here’s a quick run down of my weekend shenanigans…
On Friday morning, I woke up bright and early to take Maria’s Flexin’ Flow class. I always encourage the instructors at my studio to take each others’ classes as it helps us grow as teachers and makes our team feel cohesive and supported. Me and Annabel (who teaches Dance Club Cardio and Turbo Kick) thoroughly enjoyed Maria’s Friday morning class and all 3 of us posed for a little post workout photo 🙂
On Friday night, I celebrated the b-day of my childhood best friend, Leslie. She lives in Memphis right now with her husband BUT they are moving back to Texas next month. I’m so excited! If you recall, I was a bridesmaid in Leslie’s beautiful Southern Charm wedding a few months ago. She and I had a blast at dinner and drinks on Friday night.
Me and Leslie at HG Supply in Lower Greenville, Dallas, TX
On Saturday morning I taught my usual Flexin’ Flow class at the W Dallas Hotel on the 16th floor wet deck. It was super hot and sweaty but tons of fun. We had a huge crowd on Saturday, over 90 people. Afterwards of a few of my friends from the Junior League stayed on the wet deck and we enjoyed post-workout mimosas at the pool bar. Check out this awesome review from D Town Sweat from Saturday’s class.
Miranda, Maria, Coral and Me about to enjoy post-workout mimosas
Sunday morning started with a chill trip to Starbucks where I grabbed the Sunday paper to check out our feature. I was so pumped to see that our article made the front page of the Health section! CLICK HERE to read the full article by Special Contributor Kimber Westphall (Twitter @fit_trip_Kimber). I’m so grateful that Kimber chose to reach out to me and put the spotlight on my new little business. She and I also made a cool video together which you can view below…
The b-day festivities continued on Sunday afternoon with Melissa’s birthday pool party. Melissa and I met last summer when she attended my Flexin Flow class at the W hotel. Overtime we became friends and now she teaches Flexin’ Flow at GRIT fitness. It’s great to see her grow into an amazing yoga and fitness instructor. We spent the whole day chillin’ outside, jammin’ to good music and drinking delicious cocktails. It felt good to truly refrain from working all day and just enjoy some fun in the sun!
Melissa posing with her birthday cake! Happy 28thCoral, Melissa, Maria and Me enjoying the party…hanging out in something other than workout clothes for once!
Today I’m back to the grind. I’m writing this blog post from my favorite coffee shop, MudSmith, as I enjoy an egg/avocado sandwich and prepare for my classes this week. This weekend was awesome and I’m looking forward to an even more amazing week ahead. I wish you the same. xoxo, Brit
Hey friends! I hope your week is off to an amazing start! I’m excited to be back in Dallas after a WONDERFUL weekend in Boston. I didn’t quite stick to my Liquid Detox Plan as I had hoped (oops) but I felt great at my 5 year Harvard Business School reunion! Did any of you stick the plan? If so , how did it go?
My weekend in Beantown was filled with inspiring discussions, informative sessions and LOTS of partying. Here’s a quick recap of how it went down…
I arrived on Wednesday (a day early) to meet with my Professor, Tom Eisenmann, Co-Chair of the HBS Rock Center for Entrepreneurship. He’s been helping me with my business plan / investor pitch to grow GRIT Fitness to 4 studios by the end of the next year. Fingers crossed I raise all the money I need by the end of this Summer and we keep the fitness party going in Dallas…and beyond!
Then all of my classmates made it to campus and the socializing began! We enjoyed 2 days of classes and seminars to stay abreast of the latest business theories and insights. Between sessions we got to catch up and enjoy refreshments. Here are a few pics of me reconnecting with my classmates and getting my learn on!
HBS Section B Class of 2010 – reunited! (or half of us at least)
When the first night rolled round we were ready to PARTY! During business school I could party all night and wake up early the next day feeling refreshed. Now…not so much. Let’s just say I’m struggling a bit as I write this blog post. BUT it was worth it! My best girlfriends/classmates traveled from across the globe (Paris, South Africa, Uruguay, Shanghai, etc.) to come together for this one special weekend – so I had a duty to RALLY! Let’s just say, we didn’t miss a beat. I had SO MUCH fun dancing, eating, drinking and pre-gaming in our baller AirBNB rental property…
Headed the 1st party of the weekend in our Summer Whites….and yellow 🙂
We wrapped up the weekend with a swanky gala at Top of the Hub with our entire class. It was really cool to get all dressed up and savor the final night. Sigh…so great.
As I mentioned, I was really inspired by my experience this weekend. Here are a few points that stuck with me and I hope positively impact you as much as they did me…
Pursue fulfillment instead of success – I’m actually pretty proud of myself in this regard. Quitting my consulting job and pursuing a fitness career (fulfillment) instead of success (financial security) has been the best decision of my life. Whether or not I’m successful, at least I’m fulfilled.
The journey is the reward – Actually achieving a goal is anticlimactic. I got the promotion…or I got married…now what? The process of pursuing the goal is the fun part. Enjoy the journey, it IS the reward.
All we have is now – The only moment that matters is the present one. For all we know the past may have never happened and future is not promised. I’m going to try to put down my cell phone more and enjoy the awesome moments of each day.
HOW is more important than WHAT – Information is free flowing these days so simply knowing facts isn’t that impressive. Knowing HOW to use information is where the real value lies.
Have a wonderful day. I love you to pieces! xoxo, Brit
If you’re like me, you often associate taking a break with “taking an opportunity to throw your healthy habits out of the window.” I’ll be honest, in the midst of a demanding day, my afternoon pick-me-up sometimes comes in the form of a sugar cookie. However, I’m trying to proactively plan for my midday lull and have healthy options on hand to help power through my day. Here are 5 healthy ways to take a midday break and rejuvenate:
1. Write Down A Positive Affirmation – You guys know I’m a big believer in the power of positive thinking. When I’m bored or distracted in the afternoon, sometimes I’ll search for a positive quote, write it down and then say it out load. It makes me feel empowered and ready to take on the rest of the day.
2. Enjoy A Healthy Snack – I recently discovered Chobani Flip Greek Yogurt and I’m obsessed. I love that I can enjoy tasty flavors like Almond Coco Loco and Salted Caramel Crunch without compromising nutrition. Chobani Flip Greek Yogurt is a much better afternoon snack than my sugar cookie.
3. Get Active – Go for a 10-minute walk or knock out my super efficient 10-minute Cardio Abs Workout. Physical activity gets endorphins flowing and will instantly boost your mood and energy.
4. Escape With A Novel – Instead of sitting still for hours to enjoy a new book, I keep one in my bag and read it in 10-minute increments. It’s the perfect way to escape from my daily grind and give myself an enjoyable mental break.
5. Enjoy A Glass Of Lemon Water – Lemons are loaded with nutrients and lemon water helps aid in digestion. Also, I find lemon water tastier and more refreshing than regular tap water. Here’s an interesting article sharing 10 benefits of lemon water.
I hope these midday rejuvenation ideas are helpful. Here’s to enjoying healthier options to refresh for an awesome day and an amazing life! “To love this life is to live it naturally.” – Chobani
xoxo, Brit
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Chobani through their partnership with POPSUGAR Select. While I was compensated to write a post about Chobani Flip Greek Yogurt, all opinions are my own.
Image: Harvard Business School, Section B, Class of 2010
Hola friends! I’m traveling to Boston next week for my 5 year business school reunion – I’M SO EXCITED! There are tons of fun events on the reunion agenda including professional development classes, parties and most importantly, a black tie gala! My best girl friends/classmates and I rented an awesome house in Brookline and we’re planning to party it up! (Now let’s just hope my 30-year-old body can do the things my 25-year-old body could.)
Obviously, I want to look my absolute best when seeing my classmates. However, my current diet is a bit of a stumbling block. Recently I’ve been enjoying chips and guacamole and sugar cookies for lunch (yeah – just keeping’ it real). I’ve gotten pretty sloppy with my diet in recent weeks as I feel like I’m always stretched for time causing me to grab whatever food is readily available. Teaching 10 -13 classes per week is a blessing and a curse. On the good side, I don’t gain weight despite my poor eating, but on the bad side I don’t feel wonderful and am depriving my body of adequate nutrition. SO in preparation for my 5 year reunion and as a gift to my body, I created a 1 Day Liquid Detox to cleanse my digestive system and kick off my 4 day healthier eating plan. Here are the details of my detox in case you want to join along…
I’ll do this 1 day liquid detox tomorrow and then for the next 4 days I plan to follow these diet principles…
NO sodium (salt makes you look bloated)
NO coffee (caffeine dehydrates you)
NO food after 8pm
Drink 2 Liters of water per day
Eat 2 apples every day (lots of fiber – wink wink)
My diet will mostly consist of a raw/grilled/steam veggies, fruits and grilled or baked chicken and fish. There are so many meal options with these foods, so I don’t expect to feel deprived. I’ll continue to teach my classes as usual to ensure adequate cardio and strength training. Feel free to follow me on Instagram or Twitter @gritbybrit as I share my progress. AND I encourage you to join me 🙂
Here’s to kicking off a happy, healthy Summer (and looking HOT at my reunion)! XOXO, Brit
Hey Gang! I’m especially proud of the the playlist I made for my spin class tomorrow, so I wanted to share. CLICK HERE to listen on Spotify AND be sure to follow me on Spotify (Brittani Rettig) for tunes to energize your workouts! I post every single playlist from all of my classes!
Also, on an unrelated note, I just set up a Snapchat account so please add me @ gritbybrit!
Last on somewhat related note, I’ve been hard at work on a new barre/pilates inspired class (powerbelle™) I’m launching at GRIT Fitness this summer. I incorporated several moves from this “Love Handle Eliminator” workout from the GRIT by Brit YouTube archives. Check it out!
I truly believe that variety is the spice of life, so I encourage your shake up your weekly fitness routine! I’m trying to push myself out of my comfort zone too. I’m not a big fan of barre classes, but I definitely appreciated the value of isometric resistance training and small repetitive movements to sculpt long lean muscles. That said, in my new powerbelle™ class, we’ll use gliding discs and resistance bands to intensify traditional barre and pilates exercises. And of course we’ll rock out to a jammin’ playlist because great music is SO critical for an amazing fitness experience 🙂
I hope your week is going well. Chat soon! xoxo, Brit
Whoa what a weekend! I had my first partnership with NIKE – one of my all time favorite brands. Last week NIKE reached out to me to choreograph a fitness/fashion show for their pop up shop at Nordstrom here in Dallas! This was such an amazing opportunity, because it stretched my abilities…big time! A wise mentor once told me, “if you’re fully prepared for an opportunity, that means the opportunity isn’t that great. It’s the scary opportunities that you aren’t fully prepared for that propel you to the next level.” Well let me tell ya, the NIKE show we pulled off this weekend was DEFINITELY a stretch opportunity! I’m so excited to share that the event was a huge success and exceeded expectations! Here’s a quick recap of how everything went down…
On Friday, a fabulous group of NIKE Trainers from the University of Texas at Austin drove up to Dallas to star in the Pop-In show alongside some of my very own GRIT Fitness instructors. We immediately clicked and I LOVED how psyched they were after me and my sister, Kortani, showed them the routine.After a practicing all Friday afternoon, the girls then had a dress rehearsal Saturday morning at Nordstrom Dallas NorthPark Center (while I was busy teaching my signature Flexin’ Flow class at the W Dallas Hotel) – ahh if only I could be in 2 places at once.
Here’s a quick pic of my class on Saturday morning…
After teaching my Flexin’ Flow class on the W Hotel Wetdeck, I quickly changed clothes (no shower – ewww) and jetted over the NorthPark to do one final run through with the girls before the first show at noon! Here’s a pic of us backstage after running through the routine one final time…
And here’s a pic of the crew on the elevator to the first floor getting ready to go on stage for the first performance!
The show went off without a hitch and was SO much fun! We got lots of cheers from the crowd! Here’s a link to the video of the full 10 minute performance. Afterwards, these sporty sister girls posed for the camera to show off all of their hot NIKE gear and hot bodies 🙂
After the first show, we chilled backstage and watched a video of the first performance..and ate a yummy lunch. Then around 2:40 we got ready for the 2nd show.
The 2nd show also went off without a hitch and I was super excited that some my best friends / GRIT Fitness clients came to support us!
All in all Saturday was a HUGE success. Today I’m feeling accomplished and VERY blessed! Wishing you a wonderful week ahead. JUST DO IT! xoxo, Brit
