Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Brianna Amendola. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Brianna, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We love heartwarming stories – do you have a heartwarming story from your career to share?

My first career job out of college was as a fitness professional for the healthy aging department of a non-profit in Denver. I taught fitness and wellness classes for seniors and those at our affordable housing units. I started to incorporate meditation sessions at the end of my classes, and seeing how intrigued people became after their first meditation experience still makes me smile when I think about it.

I’d have 70-year-olds come up to me telling me how these meditations were the highlights of their week, asking for me to teach them how to use YouTube on their phones so they could look up guided meditations on their own, write down book recommendations for them, and so much more. It was the sweetest thing ever seeing the awe in their faces that something like this exists. It was a really great thing to be a part of that I’ll always hold close to my heart.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’ve been working in the fitness industry since 2016. I’ve been passionate about health and fitness since a very young age. I grew up in a sports family and played sports all throughout my youth, and learned early on that I’m at my happiest when I’m moving my body. We had to take a career exploration class in high school and I remember jokingly asking if I could be excused from having to take it because I already knew I wanted to pursue a career in exercise physiology at the age of what, like, 16?

In addition to growing up in a sports family, I also grew up around a lot of physical and mental health challenges among family members. I saw firsthand how allopathic medicine sometimes fails those with chronic conditions and doesn’t take into account treating the whole person- mind, body, and soul. This further sparked my interest in overall health and well-being.

It wasn’t until my senior year of college that I was put on the path I’m currently on. I went into school wanting to work with athletes being a strength and conditioning coach, but I felt like my vision got absolutely rocked by my own life circumstances. I’ve struggled with health issues growing up and by senior year of college I developed an at the time undiagnosed autoimmune disorder that made it hard to get out of bed most days. I had to go on medical disability and I almost wasn’t able to graduate on time due to the amount of time I lost from this illness. I wasn’t able to exercise at all aside from walks. During that time it hit me- how on earth am I going to train high-level athletes in the gym when I myself can’t even exercise? I felt like I was having an identity crisis, and this took a massive toll on my mental health.

It was during this period that I became fascinated with holistic and alternative medicine. I started exploring different ways I could move my body that wouldn’t leave me bedridden after, and that’s when I was introduced to yoga and meditation. Growing up in a hardcore sports family and wanting to train high-level athletes, there was absolutely nothing about yoga that interested me. If it didn’t involve lifting heavy weights and jumping high, I thought it was a waste of time. Now, yoga is my main passion in life and it means the absolute world to me.

Getting into yoga and holistic health practices completely changed the trajectory of my life. It gave me my life back and made it 10x better. I saw what it did for me, and I know one of my purposes in life is to teach others what these modalities can do for themselves.

From my studies, education, work history, and lived experience, I know how deeply intertwined one’s health is with every part of their inner and outer being. I use the word “Whole-Being” a lot when explaining my approach to wellness. This means I take into account a person’s physical, behavioral, environmental, spiritual, and socioeconomic well-being. In my work, I really focus on nervous system regulation, movement, and helping others explore their spirituality and recognize the interconnectedness of all things.

Every day I’m super thankful that my “path” switched up and I ended up where I’m at now. Right now you can find me teaching yoga classes around Denver, holding healing workshops within communities, and creating and sharing educational content amongst my Yoga & Whole-being health Instagram @BalancingWithBri and my friends and mine Science & Spirituality podcast on Spotify “BEING With Britt and Bri”

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

Vulnerability. Most practitioners in this field have their own lived experiences that inspired them to get into this field of work. Clients are drawn to practitioners who will understand them and their unique needs. Getting comfortable with sharing your story and humanness is what will inspire others to take action in their own life and draw those in need of your work toward your offerings.

I always jokingly say “To make it, ya gotta learn to embrace the cringe” I’ve been doing this work for years, and still, when I share something online or in front of a group of people about myself that makes me feel “exposed”, I sometimes cringe. If you’re human, it will almost never feel 100% natural to stand up and reveal your insecurities to the world around you. But, when you do this, you’re showing others that whatever it is they’re dealing with, they can get through it. Your story is someone else’s survival guide.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I love this question and I’m going to answer it from a different angle. I think the ability to unlearn is one of the greatest tools a human can have. There isn’t just one lesson I’ve had to unlearn, I think my whole life is a never-ending series of unlearning. Unlearning limiting beliefs, unlearning habits that don’t serve me, and unlearning the expectations of society. Unlearning helps me reconnect with my core, ever-changing self. Constantly unlearning all these things allows me, my ideas, and my offerings to constantly evolve and change. I don’t keep myself in a box, and I also don’t place others in a box. The freedom this creates in my life, relationships, and career is my favorite way to go through life.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/balancingwithbri/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/briannaamendola/
• Podcast: https://spotify.link/jqtHqePgBDb
• Other: Yoga schedule signups: https://rootedheartyw.com/

Image Credits
Toni Lemma Photography