My Fitness Biography

For the past three and a half years, I have been subjecting myself to the torture of boot camp at Carrie Kukuda's Get a Grip Total Fitness.  Carrie is a nut about positive reinforcement and posts an article about member achievements in her weekly e-newsletter.  When Carrie asked me to submit a fitness biography for her "Spotlight Sunday," my first reaction was to feel honored: My trainer considered me a success!  Then the panic set in: How would I write a positive story while staying true to my personality?  I'm not known for having a sunny disposition.  In fact, I'm downright surly at boot camp most days (Carrie deserves a medal for all of the sass, eye-rolling, and colorful language that she suffers).  Contributing to the success of Carrie's business was important to me, however, so I set off to find my voice.  I have had no feedback about the motivational efficacy of my story, but I am pleased with what I came up with, regardless:

I hate to exercise.  That is what I have told myself and others since I was in the sixth grade.  I believe that I was blessed with asthma because it allowed me to sit on the bleachers during my high school P.E. classes and think that the elusive “endorphin rush” is a myth propagated by the fitness shoe industry.  I have been unhappy with my weight for as long as I can remember (despite my diminutive stature, I have always been “thicker” than others), but in my teens and early twenties, I was active enough that legitimate exercise was not required to keep my size under control.  When I hit twenty-five, however, all of that changed.

 

Suddenly, I couldn’t drop a couple of pounds simply by skipping lunch and dinner.  If I was going to control my weight, I would have to exercise.  I gave walking a try, but found it boring.  I tried a couple of exercise videos, but always managed to find excuses to avoid using them regularly.  Nothing I tried interested me enough to stick with it, so I threw in the towel and gained forty pounds.  I was absolutely miserable; I was sickened by what I saw in the mirror, but my negative attitude towards fitness prevented me from taking action.  I was immobilized.

 

After some time, my very concerned mother gently confronted me about my weight.  She reminded me that I come from a family with diabetes, heart disease and stroke on both sides and, if I wanted to live a long, healthy, pain-free life, I would have to get up off the couch and MOVE!  My eyes were opened.  I would lose the extra pounds and become a fitness fanatic!  While my will was forever changed, one thing hadn’t: I still hated to exercise.  I tried EVERYTHING to stay interested.  The Firm DVDs?  Tried them.  Stationary bike?  Tried it.  Pilates, yoga, NYC Ballet, and rebounding?  Tried it, tried it, tried it and tried it.  I was sticking with it, but dreaded every single workout.  Just when I was becoming desperate for something new, my dear friend, Jessica Herndon, told me about Carrie Kukuda.

 

Jessica had been attending Carrie’s workouts with great success.  At that point in my journey, I was fit enough to not be intimidated by the idea of “boot camp” and was intrigued by the novelty.  On January 4^th, armed with like-minded companions, Shea Graff and Heather Thomas, I began my own adventure with Carrie.

 

I’m not going to lie – I’m still not a big fan of exercise.  But one thing that Carrie’s workouts offer (and others have not) is TOTAL FREEDOM FROM BOREDOM!  I never know what kind of workout I’m walking in to from day to day.  Carrie keeps my mind stimulated and my muscles confused.  Another unexpected bonus from working out with Carrie is the second family I’m suddenly a part of; there is always someone there to keep me entertained and hold me accountable.  Both of these benefits keep me coming back and have yielded amazing results.  I am stronger than I’ve ever been, have better energy, and have lost countless inches.  If you are on the fence about working out or just looking for something new, I promise that Carrie and Get A Grip Total Fitness will NOT disappoint!

 Carrie Kukuda, Kelly Simms, Me, & Deb Milburn at Miles for Moffitt 2013