“Don’t try to do motherhood alone.”
We love this quote from Brianna Hunstiger, a local mom and FIT4MOM instructor. We had the chance to chat with Brianna about all things motherhood, her passion behind connection and movement and what sets FIT4MOM apart from other group workouts. Hi Bri!
Thanks for taking the time to chat with us! Let’s start with some of the basics…
Where are you from? I’m originally from Crawford, Texas, just outside of Waco. I met my husband Kyle while we were both living in Nashville for work. We moved around a few times for his career, we have lived in Nashville, Boston, and Philadelphia…and finally decided to move back to Texas in 2018. We settled in The Woodlands and have been here for 6 years!
How many kiddos do you have and how old are they? I have three amazing kiddos, Brooklyn, 8; Jackson, 5; and Zoey, 2. I’m also mom to two fur babies, my dogs, Barney and Poppy.
What are your favorite local things to do? Stroller Strides of course! We spend most mornings with our mom village at FIT4MOM The Woodlands. I love it because it fills up our mornings with sunshine, exercise, playgroups, and friends (for my kids and for me!). We also loveThe Woodlands Children’s Museum and Play Street, walking the waterway, riding bikes on the trails around our neighborhood and checking out all the amazing pools and splash pads in The Woodlands. Last but not least, you can often find us at the George and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Library in Sterling Ridge.
Our mission is to Give Moms the Gift of Time — What are your best time-saving tips/resources as a mom?
Don’t try to do motherhood alone. One of the reasons I started FIT4MOM The Woodlands is because it gave me so much joy as a new mom. I was a Texas girl living in Pennsylvania when my oldest was born, and I knew NOBODY. Then I found FIT4MOM and everything changed. I found that ‘village’ that everyone talks about and it really is the game changer. Put yourself out there…whether it is a church group, a book club, your neighbors, a workout group…find a group of moms who are in the trenches with you. It makes all the difference to know that you aren’t alone in motherhood.
If you have the resources and means to do so, find a way to outsource the jobs in motherhood that you don’t like or aren’t good at. Personally, grocery shopping, meal planning, and cooking are not my forte! So, our family uses Hello Fresh meal delivery service a few times a week, as well as Instacart for grocery delivery because it just makes that part of our life so much easier. Right now, chasing around 3 little ones takes up most of my time, energy, and mental capacity…so I don’t mind paying a little extra for convenience!
Have everything ready to go the night before. Lay out kids’ clothes, snacks, lunches, backpacks, water bottles etc. the night before so you can grab and go. I’m not naturally a morning person, but this little tip has made my life so much easier in the mornings!
Let’s chat about your other baby, FIT4MOM The Woodlands! We provide fitness classes for moms; our mission is to help moms find their strength in motherhood. We have a class for every stage of motherhood! FIT4MOM is most well known for our Stroller Strides program, where you can bring your little ones in the stroller and get a great outdoor workout, while also connecting with your littles and making new mom friends! We also provide classes for prenatal moms (FIT4BABY), and for moms who want to work out without kiddos in tow (Body Boost, Body Well, and Strides 360).
At FIT4MOM, you get a great workout, but you also get SO much more. We provide social activities, playgroups, family workouts, community service projects, book club, moms nights out and tons of other ways to stay connected within the community. Moms come for the workout, but stay for the village.
Reason for opening/passion behind it? When my oldest was born in 2016, I was living in Pennsylvania and knew ZERO moms in our area! I loved my baby, and my husband was so helpful and present…but I was lonely and struggled with my mental health postpartum. I started googling things like “mommy and me activities” and “how to find mom friends” and stumbled upon FIT4MOM. I attended my first Stroller Strides class with my 6 week old baby and LOVED it! I finally felt connected to a group of women who understood what I was going through. I found support, camaraderie and a great place to work out with my baby in tow. I became a Stroller Strides and FIT4BABY Prenatal fitness instructor with my franchise in PA.
Then, my husband got the opportunity to move our family back to my home state of Texas.
When we settled in The Woodlands, I knew I wanted to be a part of a local FIT4MOM franchise. Turns out, there wasn’t one in the area. So, I opened FIT4MOM The Woodlands in 2018 to provide the same supportive, positive, uplifting village that I had when my daughter was born.
Plans for the future? Growing my franchise to reach all the moms in The Woodlands area. There are several class types that I’d like to offer in the future, including a run club, a mom-only strength-based class called Body Ignite, and even more prenatal fitness classes.
What are some of your biggest challenges you are currently facing within your business? Balancing my business with motherhood is always the biggest challenge! My kids are still young, and require a lot of time and energy from me, so finding time to dedicate to both them and the business (and my husband, friends, other family members, housework, the list goes on!) is a challenge.
We love the passion you have for FIT4MOM – it’s so much more than a workout! As mothers, we give so much of ourselves to our families, what is something you do for just yourself? I’m a part of a local book club and have found SO much joy in reading a good book lately.
What is the best mom advice you have ever been given, or your own advice to mamas out there? Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle or end. Motherhood is challenging enough as it is and there are a million ways to be a great mom. You don’t have to be like the mom on Instagram or the mom down the street or even the mom you were yesterday! I think right now in the age of social media, it’s easy to believe that other people’s highlight reels are their everyday life, but that’s simply not true! We all have hard days as well as great days, and I think it’s important to give yourself grace as a mom. You’re exactly the mom who was meant for your kids, and you are doing a great job!
Favorite local spots:
Coffee: Brooklyn Cafe in Panther Creek and Third Gen Coffee
Place to grab drinks: Cru Wine Bar at Market Street
Mention North Houston Moms to waive your enrollment fee!