S.L.A.M.er of the Month – January
Meet Brooke Sinden of Stroller Strong Moms, Savannah!
Hi! My name is Brooke and I am Georgia born and raised! I’m a University of Georgia grad and was a young professional in Atlanta for 7 years before meeting my husband, Andy. I didn’t know much about the military life nor ever expected to be an Army wife! But, he quickly swept me off my feet and we were off to Tennessee, then Columbus, Georgia, then Alabama, and now back to Savannah, Georgia. We have three awesome children who keep us busy and fill our lives with joy – Ella – 5, Knox -3, and Ryder – 9 months.
I have always been in and out of fitness…although, I would never consider myself an athlete. I’m pretty sure I’ve held a membership to a gym since highschool. My workouts consisted of mostly treadmill/elliptical/stairmaster machines…with some outdoor bootcamps, spin, and group fitness classes thrown in there. I occasionally ran (ok, mostly walked) 5k/10k’s and even 2 half marathons. My weight fluctuated over my college years and twenties. Up and down with how much time I was spending in the gym…or the new diet fad…or indulging in too much good food and cocktails with my girlfriends! Before our wedding, I decided to invest in a personal trainer and really watch what I ate. That was probably the fittest I had ever been. Then the wedding came, and I stopped with the personal trainer. I started back to my normal gym routine…ate what I wanted…and moved my skinny jeans to the back of the closest. We moved to Columbus, GA and knew that we wanted to start our family while there. I ended up going on on a modified bed rest early on in my pregnancy and was not allowed to work out. I gained 40 lbs that pregnancy. After the birth of our daughter, I went to the gym a few times. But, I hated leaving her in the childcare at the gym. I would find myself checking on her after 20 or 30 minutes and leaving. A friend (who was unfortunately moving) told me about Stroller Strong Moms shortly after the birth in August. It took me until February to work myself up to go. I wouldn’t know anyone. Class fell right during the baby’s morning nap. It wouldn’t be as good of a workout as my spin class. All excuses that didn’t matter after I actually took the leap and tried it out! Everyone was so friendly! I got a great workout! The baby napped in the stroller! SSM was a perfect fit for us!
Unfortunately, I was only able to participate a few months before the Army moved us. I joined a gym again. My almost one year old still hated the childcare. I would spend less than an hour or even worse this time – they would come get me! I stopped going to the gym and started running. I took up couch to 5k and ran my first entire 5k without walking. We were only in AL for a year and knew we wanted to land back at Ft Stewart in GA. I saw on Facebook that SSM was starting in Savannah so that only sweetened the deal! I knew before we moved that I was going to start right away!
A few days after we were settled in Savannah, I went to my first class. And I have been going consistently ever since! I joined up the last half my second pregnancy. And, I worked out up until my due date pregnancy #2 and #3. I only gained 25 lbs both those pregnancies. After my first pregnancy I felt like I was never going to lose those last 10-15 lbs. But, I did after pregnancy #2 and #3 with the help of SSM!
SSM has been such a blessing during this season of life. I have made so many mommy friends. My kids have made their first friends. Fitness is a lifestyle that my kids are exposed to almost every single day. I feel more like an athlete than I ever have (although I’m still a work in progress)! A personal goal of mine after baby #3 was to run a half marathon without walking. With the help of my SLAM fam – encouragement, friends watching baby #3 so I could squeeze in a training run, motivation from watching other amazing mommies accomplish their goals – I was able to RUN the entire Savannah Rock and Roll half in November! I am so proud of myself for accomplishing something in my 30’s, 7 months post baby, and three kids later…that I couldn’t push myself to do in my 20’s! Every run I get a little faster, every push up a little stronger, every plank a little longer.
I’m so thankful for this village!
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