hard work – GRIT By Brit

10 Thoughts GRITTY People Reject

July 16, 2014 No Comments

Happy Hump Day gang! As I sit in my home office enjoying my week of vacation, I started a stream of consciousness of thoughts/statements that I absolutely hate to hear. So, I wanted to write a post to reject each and every one of them…

My best days are behind me – Gritty people believe that the best is always yet to come. If we can’t hope for a brighter and better future, what’s the point of working hard? Or waking up every day?
My dreams don’t matter – Our dreams are unique. They drive our passions and ultimately our purpose in life. Gritty people value their dreams and pursue them.
I’ve reached my limit – We have no limits! We are only limited by our minds and the restrictions that we put on ourselves. Gritty people continuously work harder, dream bigger and expect more out of life.
I’m cursed – None of us are cursed! In fact, believing that we are cursed will actually bring about bad situations. Suffering is a fundamental part of the human experience, but in the grand scheme of things, good always outweighs bad. Gritty people strive to stay positive!
I’m not supposed to be happy – All of us are given the gift of life and have duty to live life abundantly. That means we are supposed to experience joy, peace, service, happiness and purpose. Why even live if we are doomed for gloom? You are supposed to be happy – gritty people accept this truth!
I’m weak – This is one of the most powerful lies that can ruin your whole life if you start to believe it. Gritty people know that they are powerful beyond measure. You are so much stronger than you think!
This is as good as it gets – When we start to accept this thought, we are likely to settle for less than optimal circumstances. Now I’m not saying that we should never experience bad times, but we must always believe that we can make situations better with hard work, faith and confidence.
What he/she did is unforgivable – EVERYTHING is forgivable. Gritty people understand that holding a grudge is like “drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.” – Buddha
I have no control over this situation – While we can’t control all of life’s circumstances, we can always control how we respond. Our responses to situations have so much influence on the outcomes. Gritty people take control of their lives.
I am the victim – Gritty people accept responsibility for themselves and for their happiness. Despite wrong doings by others, gritty people refuse to be the victim. Victims are weak. Weak is not a good look.

I know each of you are gritty already, so help spread these powerful truths to those you love.

xoxo, Brit

Inspiration & Motivation

It doesn’t get easier, you just get better!

July 25, 2013 No Comments

Hey gang – hope your week has exceeded your expectations! Just wanted to spread a little mid-week motivation. I saw this quote and it really hit me. Throughout my life, I’ve always operated under the assumption that some day…when I’m “happily married, super skinny, working at my dream job with 3 adorable kids,” then suddenly my life would be EASY. The reality is that day will probably come, but it won’t be BLISS. It’s going to be freaking HARD. I’m going to have to continue to work my butt off every single day to maintain a healthy and balanced life.

Hardships in life are inevitable, they will never go away. But the good news is that we are constantly changing, growing and adapting. Those hardship will likely feel easier because we get stronger, healthier, more patient and smarter. We are powerful beyond measure and more than capable of handling anything that life throws in our direction. So keep working hard and continuously improve at whatever you love (and at whatever you hate). Life doesn’t get easier, you just get better!

Good, Better, Best, never let it rest until your Good is Better and your Better is BEST! xoxo, Brit

Inspiration & Motivation

To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the GIFT

June 2, 2013 No Comments

Happy Sunday! You guys know on Sundays I like to spread a little encouragement/inspiration, so today I want to share something that’s been heavy on my heart = Appreciating and Maximizing the GIFT of Life

What is the “gift’? That IS the question. To me the “gift” is the privilege of having a human life. As humans, unlike any other species, we have the ability to be BE and DO whatever we want. Why?

Because we have free will
Because we can change

With hard work, can be WHATEVER we want to be and that’s amazing!

If we are weak, we can make ourselves strong.
If we are dumb, we can study and become smart.
If we are lonely, we can find companions.

The list goes on and on. However, with this amazing “gift,” also comes a huge responsibility. To me, that responsibility is to promote peace, abundant living and encouragement to others. The cool thing is that we each fulfill our responsibility in different ways. For me it’s through sharing fitness. What is it for you?

While we all have different passions and different ways of encouraging each other, one thing that we have in common is that we have to continuously work REALLY HARD to perfect our craft. It’s a life-long journey, but it’s so rewarding to know that our lives have a purpose and that we each play a crucial role in helping others live a better life.

As you start your week, I encourage you to think about your “gift.” Are you making the most of it? Are you giving your best?

Work hard, dream big, help others! Lots of luv, Brit

Inspiration & Motivation

4-week challenge ‘Euro Style’ COMPLETE: Sexy, Sexy, Sexy

August 14, 2012 2 Comments

Jenny has officially completed my 4-week challenge and she looks SMOKIN’ HOT! Below you can read her final update and see pics from her challenge completion photo shoot.

Lookin’ FIT 50’s style – way to go Jenny!

Jenny’s biggest lessons of the 4 Week Challenge:

At 28, diet is much more important than it used to be, and all the changes that I used to see so fast take more time.
Also, it is so important for me to keep my workouts fresh, so I don’t burn out or lose motivation.
And finally, slow down a bit – getting sick really sets one back with regard to working out, so it is important to make sure that i’m not pushing myself too hard and wearing myself down.

Regardless, this past four weeks have been great – I look better, feel better and have done some great new workouts that have really re-motivated me! I’m more toned, but I still have my curves as you can see above 🙂

If you missed any of Jenny’s earlier updates, you can catch up here:

Kick Start – Full Plan, Week 1 , Week 2, Week 3

Inspiration & Motivation

SPEAK it into Existence!

May 13, 2012 3 Comments

“I’m going to shoot a workout video on May 12, 2012”

– Brit on 1/24/12

Guess what? I did! In less than 5 months, with help of the most amazing friends and family, yesterday we shot GRIT Ultimate Body Burn Vol.1 – WOW! Let me preface this by saying that I have ZERO video or audio production experience, I’m not a full-time fitness professional (I’m a management consultant by day) and I’ve only been a group fitness instructor for 1 year. However, a simple statement that I made to a friend on Jan 24, 2012 became a reality due to enthusiasm and the amazing power of the tongue!

Now let me keep it real, there were SEVERAL bumps in the road: getting legal clearance for music was a nightmare, writing choreography took many sleepless nights and my credit card is suffering from underestimating the cost of video equipment rentals. However, I feel more alive and energized than I have in years because I did something that most, including myself, considered impossible – and it all starting with SPEAKING out my goal. Even though we still have a lot of post production work to do, this is one of most challenging and inspiring experiences of my life so I wanted to share it with you. Now, I challenge YOU to BELIEVE in whatever it is that you want to achieve. You ARE what you SAY you are. So, NAME it, CLAIM it, and DO it – GRIT!

“Death and Life are in the power of the tongue…” (Proverbs 18:21)

GRIT 010 — Me and my GRIT girlz chillin’ in between cuts

GRIT 003 — The amazing Phil Wall to the far right (www.philwallproductions.com) my buddy and partner in crime – the genius one man crew who made the shoot a success!

GRIT 007 — Got free labor from my lil’ bro – he was our “audio technician”

GRIT 009 — Standing AB work – yeah buddy!

GRIT 002 — Celebrating (silly pose) after we finished the shoot!

Inspiration & Motivation

How bad do you want it?

April 20, 2012 7 Comments

“When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, THEN you’ll be successful.”

Happy Friday – the weekend is almost here! As you end one week and start another, I challenge you to think about what you “REALLY” want out of life. Everyone says they want to be fit, healthy, happy, successful…but think about the SPECIFIC things you want and HOW BAD you really want them.

As a fitness instructor, I hear people tell me over and over again, “I really want to lose weight” or “I really want to get in shape.” They want these things for several reasons:

Health benefits
Longer life
More energy
Wear cute clothes
Increase self-confidence
Better dating life
and the list goes on and on…

But the question isn’t, “How bad do you want these things?” The REAL question is, “What are you willing to SACRIFICE to get these things?”

A friend of mine sent me this video which pretty much sums up the essence of the 2nd question and the essence of GRIT. Watch, listen closely to the man speaking in the background (especially at the end) and think about how hard you are willing to work to get what you REALLY want. Because whatever you desire, YOU CAN HAVE IT!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsSC2vx7zFQ&w=560&h=315]