At some point, you have to call yourself on your own BS. You have to quit blaming others or your circumstances or your environment. You have to quit making excuses. You have to man up and admit that YOU are the reason why you haven't reached your goals. 

​My friend, if you want to reach your goals, if you want to achieve great things, you have to actively work towards them. You have to get rid of the excuses and the what ifs. You have to visualize yourself winning. 

I know not every day is going to be easy. I know you aren't going to want to work on your goals every day. I know this because I don't. I get into ruts. I want to give up when things get hard. But I also know that nothing changes if nothing changes. 

So I have to dig deep, quit the excuses, and do the work. Just as you do. 

Far too often, we are the only thing standing in our way. We think of all the things that could go wrong. We think of the what ifs and the negatives. But what if (those two dreaded words) you focus on the positive? What if you envision winning and achieving all your goals? What if you actually make it? 

We're one week out from 2022 and I'm calling myself on my BS. I've made excuses. I've looked at the negatives. I've wanted to call it quits. But I'm ready to turn it around. I'm tired of making excuses. I'm tired of being the only thing standing in my way. 

I'm ready to make some changes. I'm ready to do the hard work. I'm ready to turn my thoughts around. I'm ready to win.

How about you? Where are you as we head into 2022?

Remember, if you aren't actively working towards your goals, then the only person to blame is yourself.

Take responsibility for your actions....or inactions, if that's the case. Step up and take charge. I'm all in. Are you? 

Enjoy your week! I can't wait to be back in 2022 stronger than ever! 

With love and wellness,
​Whitney

How often do you put off doing things because you think they're going to be too long, too hard, too much? And then how often, when you end up doing them, do they turn out to be much easier, much cheaper, much less than you thought they'd be? 

This happens to me. All. The. Time. 

Why? Because I put things off...especially the things I don't want to do. Or the things that I know are going to be a pain. Or I *think* are going to be a pain. And then, when I do them, they turn out to be so much easier and quicker than I ever imagined. 

This is a super toxic trait I have. I go through my list and get the things I want to get done, done. And then I just push the others to the bottom of the list. And continue pushing them down until they are the last things I need to do and it's to the point where I NEED to do them. 

I can name a few that happened just this past week. Calling the vet to make appointments for the dogs (seriously, this took all of 5 minutes but I've put it off for weeks), calling my health insurance to see if Gabriel would still be covered next year (a long story, but again, all of 5 minutes), and making the appointment to get our sink/garbage disposal fixed. 

We've been dealing with issues with our kitchen sink and garbage disposal for MONTHS. We've just dealt with it and put off calling to get it fixed because we thought it would be this long, expensive process to fix it. Y'all...it took 30 minutes and $150 to fix it. So much easier and less expensive than I ever imagined. Yet, I complained about it for months until finally calling to set up the appointment.

We often spend so much time worrying about things that may never come to fruition. And then all we've done is wasted our time and energy worrying over nothing. 

But let's be honest...we're all sort of like this. We get the things we want to do finished, because we enjoy doing those things. And then there are the things that we dislike, find trivial, or just don't want to do...and we put those off. When, in reality, they could be the easiest things to do. 

Much like 2021, when I decided to vacuum every Sunday, I'm going to make 2022 my year of getting the trivial stuff done...the stuff I don't want to do...the hard stuff...the not fun stuff. I'm not going to continue putting it off and pushing it down the list. Instead, I'm going to put it at the top of the list and get it done first. 

No more worrying over something that may never even happen...aka, worrying it will be harder or longer or more expensive. 

3, 2, 1...Go. Much like a CrossFit workout. 

Just get it done. 

How about you? What are you planning to focus on in 2022? 

I hope you have a beautiful week. Enjoy this holiday season with your friends and family. 

With love and wellness,
​Whitney

You, my dear friend, are enough. 

Yes, let me repeat that. 

You. Are. Enough. 

I know that I have gone through life thinking I wasn't enough. I wasn't good enough. Pretty enough. Smart enough. Tall enough. Skinny enough. Strong enough. [Fill in the blank] enough. 

And I also know that so many others have gone through life thinking the exact same thing. 

Where does this come from? Why do we go through life thinking we aren't enough? 

Easy.

We play the comparison game. We look at what everyone else has or does or looks like and we think we have to measure up. And when we don't, we get these thoughts that we aren't enough. 

Let me just tell you...you are enough. Exactly as you are. 

And if you aren't enough or worse, you're too much for others, then they aren't your people! 

It took me entirely too long to be okay with who I am. I am quirky. Emotional. Caring and giving (almost too a fault). Trusting (again, almost to a fault). I have my own way of thinking and doing things...and that's okay! It doesn't make me any better or any worse than anyone else. And it doesn't make me too much or not enough! 

I love who I am. And I don't apologize anymore for who I am. And I don't put myself down for not "being" enough...of whatever it is I'm trying to do. 

I know that I am always growing and learning. And I'm okay saying "I don't know" if I don't have the answer. And I'm even more okay learning all the things I don't know...or want to know. I like proving myself wrong, as well as proving others wrong. And I like being ENOUGH for everything! 

That's the beauty of this life. We are the only thing standing in our way. We are the only thing thinking we aren't enough. Or at least we are the only ones that matter who are thinking that. 

Start believing in yourself. Remove those negative thoughts. Remove those "not enough" thoughts. 

Because regardless of what is going on in this life, you are enough. You are beautifully, wonderfully enough! 

And if you need the reminder, hit me up. I will gladly tell you that, again and again. 

Have a beautiful week! And remember...You. Are. Enough.

With love and wellness,
Whitney

I hope you all had a beautiful Thanksgiving. We were able to spend it with both sides of Nick's family, so we got to enjoy two yummy meals. Never a bad thing if you ask me! 

We also celebrated Malachi's 7th birthday, so we had a busy Thanksgiving week. 

With that said, I took the week off from writing my blog post. I enjoyed the time with Nick and our friends and family and took the pressure off myself to have it all done. 

And now we're at Cyber Monday! Drop some of the best deals you've found. It's time for me to start Christmas shopping (yes...start!)! How about y'all? Where are you with your Christmas shopping?

I hope you have a beautiful week and that you score some amazing deals today. 

With love and wellness,
​Whitney 

Some days are just hard. Some days it feels like everything is falling apart around you. Some days it feels like everyone is against you and all you hear is negative feedback or talk.

But here's the key. Not every day is hard. Not every day is like this. And most important, you can't allow yourself to stay in the hard days. 

Yes, life is going to hand you lemons every now and again. And getting what you want, going after what you want, isn't always going to come easy. There will be roadblocks and naysayers and things that happen that make you question whether you're doing the right thing. 

But there will also be supporters and believers in you and wide open roads leading you exactly where you're supposed to go. 

It's all about how you view it, how you take it in, and how you process it. 

I've had a few rough days here recently. Where I'm questioning myself and what I'm doing in my professional life. I've allowed myself to listen to the negative talk and the voices in my head saying I can't do this and it's brought me down. I've allowed it to take up precious rent in my head. 

And frankly, I'm over it. I don't like this place. I don't like holding on to the negative thoughts and the hard days. I want to learn from them, take it and make it something positive. But in order to do that, I have to let it go.  Because there will always be something negative that can bring you down. 

My friends, it is a choice. You can choose to hold on to the negative, the bad stuff, the naysayers and voices in your head. Or you can choose to take it as a lesson and learn from it. Turn it around and make it something positive. And frankly, shut the naysayers and the voices in your head up. 

There will always be people telling you you should do something this way or that way, or you can't do something, or you are silly for even trying. But if they aren't doing it, living it, understanding the ins and outs of it, who are they to tell you what you can or can't do, what you should or shouldn't do? 

You are never going to please everyone...it's just not possible. With one choice, you'll make some people unhappy while others are wildly happy. And with another, the opposite is true. In the end, it's about doing what makes you happy and will benefit you, your family, and any of your businesses should you run them. 

Yes, some days are hard. But do you stay there, or do you learn from it and continue to grow? 

I hope you have a beautiful week and an amazing Thanksgiving with friends and family. And I hope you don't stay in the hard days. 

With love and wellness,
​Whitney

Nick and I were watching a movie this weekend and one of the characters ended up hanging off the side of a blown up wooden bridge. As I watched this very fit man start to pull himself up, I wondered what it would be like if he wasn't able to do it. If all he was was a muscular man but with no strength. If he wasn't able to use those very nice looking muscles. 

And it made me think about why I used to workout when I was younger. I mean, I've always been into fitness and working out, whether it was running or step aerobics or Jazzercize (yes, I did it...don't judge me). But I did it because I wanted to look good. I wanted to feel good in my skin. It never occurred to me that I also wanted to be strong (bear with me here). 

This all came to fruition when I was coming home from overseas and was trying to lift my very heavy backpack over my head into the overhead bin and I couldn't. I wasn't strong enough. I had to ask the man next to me for help. And yes, this memory very clearly stands out for me. I never wanted to feel that way again. 

I'd heard about CrossFit for awhile, but I had negative connotations towards it. I'd heard it was a cult and that everyone who did it "drank the koolaid," whatever that meant. I don't even know why I listened to any of those people because there really was no reason for me not to try it. 

Yet, I was still nervous and very intimidated by it. It still took me several years to actually step foot in a CrossFit gym. And I still remember that day...walking in to a room full of people working out on a pull-up rig...something I couldn't do. But I was there...I'd committed to trying it so I stayed. 

After my foundation sessions, I went to my first workout of the day, or WOD as we call them, and I can remember that plain as day too. I truly thought I was fit and in shape when I started CrossFit, but this workout...well, it humbled me, to say the least. 

It was the benchmark workout Jackie, which is 1000m row, 50 thrusters with an empty barbell, and 30 pull-ups. To say I went out hot in the row would be an understatement. I gave it all I had thinking I had to push and would be able to do it all, no problem. I got through the thrusters with only hitting myself in the bridge of my nose once. And I used a thick green band for my pull-ups. 

I don't even remember my time or how I felt immediately after, but let's just say I drove home and laid on the floor in my bedroom for about 20 minutes trying not to throw up. I went way too hard in that workout...I know that now. But I can also tell you that I went back the next day and the next and the next. 

I absolutely fell in love with CrossFit. I fell in love with the workouts, the process, the movements, the growth. I was not only loving how I felt and looked, but I loved how it crossed over into my every day life. It truly is functional fitness. 

Another memory that stands out for me is when my sister in law was in town with her son. He was super fussy while I was making dinner and didn't want to be put down. I made dinner with one hand all the while holding him in the other arm. It was at that moment I realized CrossFit wasn't just making me stronger in the gym, it was making me stronger outside of the gym too! 

And I knew then I wouldn't have an issue lifting a heavy bag into the overhead bin anymore! 

I no longer just wanted to look good, I wanted to be stronger and fitter for every day life. I wanted to build up the muscles around my knees so they would stay strong after my knee surgeries. I wanted to strengthen my back to help my scoliosis. And let's be real, I wanted to be able to carry all my groceries in at one time. 

When people ask why I love CrossFit, this is it. The functional fitness part of it is awesome. Plus the workouts and the challenges of them are fun, and I've made some amazing friends and family from it. Shoot...I met my husband because of it. 

I wish I had started sooner and hadn't let the opinions of others influence me to stay away for so long. If you've been thinking about it, heard about it, wondered what it was like, come see me. I know it can be intimidating but it really is one of the best things I've ever done.

What you see on TV is the best of the best...that's not your average CrossFit gym. So don't let it scare you...come check it out and form your own opinion. 

I hope you have a beautiful week. And hopefully I'll see you cross fitting soon! 

With love and wellness,
​Whitney