By Malia Warren
“Have you ever been to a gym before?”
Not really the first thing you want to hear when touring a gym for the first time, right? Luckily for the Kaminsky sisters, they didn’t let this affect the start of their fitness journey.
Sisters Reana and Alex Kaminsky come from a background of elite sports. Their childhood was filled with all the sports but ultimately they both ended up playing basketball competitively. Alex shifted to golf her senior year of high school but the theme remained the same with both of them - playing sports was a way to challenge themselves physically and exercise for fun!
At some point between life, jobs, and well, more life, the sisters found themselves with a few extra pounds that they weren’t expecting. They started with small changes, like daily walks, but the move toward a healthier lifestyle wasn’t moving forward like they wanted.
Sitting on the couch one day, they looked at each other and said, “We need to do something. We need to do something tomorrow.”
Reana and Alex, affectionately called “Re Al” by friends and family, embarked on a journey to improve their eating habits with the Whole30® lifestyle. This change consists mostly of eating no sugar, no alcohol, no grains, or legumes, among other things like avoiding the scale for the 30 days. The intention is to remove these foods and then reintroduce them slowly to see the possible negative effects they have on your body.
This change in lifestyle totally overhauled the sisters’ lives - all for the better. Together they lost over 100 lbs EACH, appeared on The Doctor’s show, among other publications, and started their lifestyle brand, getREAL, which encourages everyone to be their true and authentic selves.
It’s hard enough to start on a fitness journey, but when you’ve got people surrounding you that are supportive and encouraging - you can do anything! Imagine being able to embark on a fitness journey with your sister and being able to share the good, the bad, and the ugly with your closest family member.
Though some sibling rivalry existed throughout their journey, as is expected with sisters, it was never about who lost more weight or who was doing “better.” It was always about motivating each other to be their best selves.
“It was more of a competition within us, surprisingly,” says Reana of working out with her sister. “As we got more into the Chuze Fitness team training workouts it is a fun competition on who can get the highest watts on the rower, etc.”
“Working out with Re was helpful and encouraging, and made it a lot easier because everyone in the household had common goals,” says Alex. “We were able to support each other and keep each other accountable.”
Despite getting into this journey during the lockdown in 2020, they found that it actually helped their goals a little, being that some distractions were no longer there. Although the gyms were closed, this gave them extra time to prepare meals, go on walks, and hold each other accountable doing home workouts provided by Chuze.
Being open with their journey on YouTube and Instagram was something that helped keep them motivated. Friends stepped in to go on walks and the team at Chuze Fitness in Highlands Ranch, CO saw the athlete in them and encouraged the sisters along their journey.
Working out has always been about pursuing their physical health in ways that were fun but challenging. Group fitness classes keep it fun and interesting but these sisters can also dish up a mean game of tennis when they team up together!
The accomplishments continued when they completed a Tough Mudder in 2021 - an experience they’ll never forget! I did try to talk them into doing a Spartan though, so stay tuned.
All of these positive vibes led to positive changes. And then getREAL was born.
If you’re looking to support a brand that wants to empower you to truly be your best self and live your best life, then getREAL is it.
If you’re reading this and looking for motivation, I hope you found some reading about the Kaminsky sisters. Whether you’re in the middle of your fitness journey, or ready to start after a funk, we’ll leave you with a little inspiration:
“Just START. It won’t be perfect. You will not know everything, and you will learn more about yourself along the way. A little change daily goes a long way. Don’t let fear of the unknown or the fear of how long it will take you hold you back from starting. Changing your lifestyle is just that, your lifestyle for the rest of your life. Commitment > Motivation.”
Reana and Alex Kaminsky
Who has been your biggest motivation on your Fitness Journey?
If you have any questions or you would like to be a guest blogger, please email us at hello@liftingthedream.com
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