A warm, spott3r welcome to foodie and fitness fanatic, Natalia Bonanno! From CrossFit training to half marathons, Natalia inspires us on a variety of levels.
Natalia works as a food scientist and has always been into nutrition and fitness, but it really became a part of who she was when she started CrossFit about two years ago. Until then she always worked out to lose or maintain her weight, but never really enjoyed exercising. Once she started CrossFit she began to enjoy working out and revamped her fitness goals.
“I no longer strived to be skinny and focus on the number on the scale, but wanted to be fit and strong.”
When it comes to food, Natalia incorporates a lot of the basics of the paleo diet into her cooking and eating habits. She always looks for fresh, local and responsibly sourced foods while avoiding processed foods, cane sugar, gluten and dairy as much as she can.
Her favorite workout? Natalia loves to run but also enjoys variety so any CrossFit workout with running really gets her energized. Her very favorite is called the “Helen” saying that it’s quick and fun!
3 rounds:
400- meter run
21 kettle ball swings (with a 35-lb kettle bell)
12 pull ups
Natalia’s biggest fitness achievement to date?
“This year I competed in my first half marathon and first triathalon, both equally important to me because they really brought me out of my comfort zone and forced me to start running a lot.”
What motivates Natalia to get to the gym?
“The people. Since I go to the same CrossFit classes every day I always work out with the same people. The members along with my coach inspire me and motivate me to work harder and get stronger. If I wasn’t surrounded by such positive and encouraging people it would be really hard to get up at 5:30am for a 6am CrossFit class.”
Her current fitness goal?
“My current fitness goal is to be able to do a Muscle-up! The half marathon was enough distance running for me and a good challenge, so now I set mini goals to work towards in my CrossFit training.”
When asked what her biggest excuse for not working out is – and she says she doesn’t have one.
“I work out 6-7 days a week and the only days I take off are when I’m too sore to move, so resting is probably a good thing!”
What’s on Natalia’s iPod right now:
“Bulls on Parade” – Rage Against the Machines
“30 Something” – Jay-Z
“Turn Down for What” – DJ Snake and Lil Jon
(Because sometimes she just needs an upbeat goofy song to get her going!)
Natalia’s last words of wisdom:
“You have to find what you love. I don’t look at CrossFit or running as a chore because I truly enjoy it. Sometimes I’ll go out for a mile run and get so into it that I keep going for another five. With CrossFit, even the workouts that I dread doing I wind up liking when they’re done because I feel proud that I challenged myself and pushed through the workout.”
To keep up with Natalia’s fitness journey, visit our Instagram where she will be posting all week! You can get a head start by following her here.
Love the gym? Get some extra incentive by getting paid for your workouts. Find out if you are eligible for cash reimbursements here.
Learn more about a few of our other spott3r members, Britney, Lindsay, Wilhelmina, and Michelle!
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