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Here Are The 3 Rules That Empower Me To Sweat
I believe in the power of sweat. I believe in the power of women. I believe in YOU.
The significance and beauty of what can happen when women come together is magical, and the importance of that support within the fitness world is paramount. This is why I love CALIA by Carrie Underwood: a line that is dedicated to empowering women everywhere, making it easier for us to work in working out.
My goal each day is to create a supportive space where women can come to express themselves, whether that’s through yoga and breath, or shaking out your worries on the dance floor. Regardless of who you are and what you look like, you deserve to feel great about your body, to wear clothes that make you feel good and motivated to sweat your way through embracing joy, physicality and strength.
This is especially important when it comes to motivating yourself to fit a workout into your already busy day. If you aren’t stoked about your activewear, or even worse, if you’re worried about how it’s going to feel on your body while you’re putting your heart and soul into your sweat session, you’re that much less likely to actually get out the door and into your activity of choice.
Maintaining a daily jam-packed schedule of classes, private clients, and rehearsals has taught me a couple of great tricks to squeeze in my own workouts each day and stay motivated along the way. I’m so excited to share my tips with you, and hope that they will make it easier for you to work on working out.
1. Know your staples and keep them handy.
Years of dancing professionally instilled an appreciation for movement and my obsession with music, but after a series of dance-related injuries, I found my way to yoga. Ever since, yoga has become my foundation that keeps me grounded and centered in life. It’s important for me to feel comfortable and supported on my mat, which is why CALIA by Carrie Underwood’s leggings are my go-to—for high quality fabric that keeps me feeling cozy while still supporting my active practice. I love a good, challenging yoga practice for it’s ability to calm my mind while also bringing balance to my body, but it’s really hard to stay present and focused on your breath if you’re worried about whether or not your leggings are falling down, or your sports bra is pinching your skin. When I find a supportive sports bra or a pair of yoga leggings that feel amazing, I rejoice in the moment of having found a staple, and I’ll save up in order to invest in multiple pairs. Now that you have your go-to pieces, keep them handy! Set out your workout attire the night before, or keep a pair of shoes and a staple outfit in your car or at the office so don’t have any excuses to skip your precious active time!
2. Fit it in where you can get it in.
One of my favorite quotes is by Swami Vivekananda: “The world is the gymnasium where we come to make ourselves strong.” To me, this means that we can look at every opportunity as a chance to move, to enjoy what our bodies are able to do, and to remember the joy in play! The world is a playground, and everywhere you look there are great chances to get moving. This week, I challenge you to try one of these sneaky mini workouts:
- Morning squats while brushing your teeth to jumpstart your day.
- Count how many calf raises you can perform while waiting in line at the grocery store.
- Hop on the monkey bars with your kids at the playground.
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator (I know, you’ve heard this a million times, but it works).
- TV Challenge: fit in your push-ups and planks during commercial breaks.
- Try and squeeze mini breaks in for movement when using the computer.
These opportunities are all around us, and it quickly becomes a fun game to see where you can fit in play and a little workout. Fit it in where you can get it in!
3. Find an activity that you LOVE.
It is so easy to make excuses to skip the gym if the smell of the weight room grosses you out, but if you find an activity that brings a smile to your face and makes you break a sweat, you’ve found your fitness golden ticket! If you’re still searching for that special one, ask a friend to try out a couple of different classes with you. Test out everything from boxing, to barre, a spin class or hiking! You might just surprise yourself with how excited you get for the chance to workout once you find your sweat soul mate. For me, it’s dance. Dance is and always will be, my first love. There is nothing as exciting and liberating as letting it all go and dancing out whatever you might be feeling to an incredible song. Dance allows me to express what cannot be put into words and is my preferred form of medicine. The tanks and bottoms by CALIA by Carrie Underwood allow me to move with ease and feel stylish doing so!
As women, we have enough stuff to worry about day in and day out; your activewear shouldn’t be an added stress. I am beyond grateful to CALIA by Carrie Underwood for creating an inspirational and trend-forward line that is helping women to live their best, sweatiest, and most active lives!
