Hello my sweet peeps,

So much thank you for a fun run at Ms. Health & Fitness 2020.

The support and kindness I felt over the last several weeks of this competition was truly overwhelming.

I had immense fear and insecurity in putting myself out there in such a public way, saying “look at me, vote for me, support me”.

Every single day of the contest I would look around my world and see women who I felt were more deserving of this title and every single day one of you would remind me, in one way or another, that I was that woman I was looking at.

One of my places of resistance to this contest originally was, “how do we measure health & fitness?”

If it’s purely patriarchal, classic, western measurements than I didn’t ever stand a chance.

If it’s a wholistic acknowledgement of wellness, adaptability, passion for movement, and physical fitness through the decades, damn straight that includes me among the top ranks!

I may be a homeschooled hippy who believes in “A for effort” but I count 6th place as among the top ranks, thank you all dearly for showing me that.

One of the main reasons I ran in this competition was to connect with people and help them on their journey of health and fitness. I wanted to make myself (more) present as a knowledgeable and available leader in the field.

You have all been so incredibly supportive to me and what I want more than ever is to do the same for you.

What do you need right now? What blog posts would be helpful to you? What workouts would you like to see on my (free) YouTube Channel? Do you need to connect with people over movement? Meditation resources? No request is to big!

Thank you all once again,

Ms. Gracefulfitness 😉

NUMBER 5
Facing My Fear of Failure

I am realizing that I’m not a “big dreamer”. Instead, I set my sights on achievable, small, realistic goals, preferably in private so if I do fall short, only I know.

mshealthandfitness2020 is the opposite of that; it’s loud and big and lofty and requires being very public about my goal and ambition.

The decision to compete was driven in part as a way to push myself out of this comfy little safe nest I’ve carefully built for myself and grow my wings stronger and sturdier.

It’s also gently forced me to reevaluate my idea of Failure and Success.

My sweet friends, I have to tell you, I feel successful already! The support my community has shown me is a reflection of me, it’s been overwhelming and wonderful to hear and see how I have inspired, taught, and connected with so many of you.

NUMBER 4
I Am Every Woman

I am beyond blessed with absolutely incredible women in my life. I always have been. Women who have inspired me, challenged me, pushed me, supported me, shown me myself in ways that shocked me sweetly. Women who have held me tight, flattered me, given me tough love.

Because of strong women, I became a dancer, a runner, a fitness instructor, a blogger, a mountain biker, a whitewater raft guide, a good listener, a yogi, and the woman I am today.

When examining within myself whether I was truly a candidate for this contest, I kept coming back to YES, for all the incredible women who brought me to this point, in honor of them, I am absolutely a candidate to WIN #mshealthandfitness2020

NUMBER 3
What Better Time to Celebrate Health & Wellness & Fitness

It goes without saying that the global anxiety around our collective health has been on overdrive since March.

My heart is with all of those around the world who are struggling with their physicality around the pandemic. Those of us who are feeling well & strong & energized have the responsibility to balance the scales a bit & celebrate our health & fitness.

An #attitudeofgratitude goes a long way when it comes to health.

NUMBER 2
I’m Not That Great With Follow Through

Or, to frame it in the more positive, this contest is challenging me to push through procrastination & the desire to “give up”.

As soon as I announced I was competing, I wanted to give up. Fear, embarrassment, insecurity, and self-doubt threw internal tantrums screaming, “just delete the announcements and give up now! If you do this thing, you really gotta do this thing. You must believe in yourself. You must be consistent. You must want to win and take many steps to do that!”

As easy as it would have been to listen to those emotions, something even louder overrode them.

The pandemic, all the “pivoting”, all the soul searching, and all the uncertainty and confusion has taught me something; if I don’t face this self-described “weakness” right now, when will I?

When will I ever get comfortable with self-promotion, following through, dreaming big, & asking for help to achieve these changes?

NUMBER 1
For FUN!

Health & fitness is fun! I love connecting with people around vitality, body autonomy, and basically anything movement centric.

I named my blog, and subsequently my brand, Gracefulfitness because it embraces the idea(l) that health, wellness, and fitness can be attained with ease, with grace, through fun, and with balance. It can be inclusive rather then exclusionary.

When health is approached with a lighthearted spirit of enjoyment, rather than seen as a chore or worse, a stressor, consistency becomes easy. Choices that support your overall well-being come gracefully and bring pleasure and fun into your life.

You DAILY VOTE & support in this endeavor means so much to me, thank you.

Vote here https://mshealthandfitness.com/2020/faith-levine