I'm Kaylenne "Kay" Brown, and I've been sweating, teaching, dancing, training and motivating others in the fitness industry for 15 years. I'm an expert in the area of weight loss, strength and conditioning, exercise, and dance. I'm also the proud owner of Sweat N Swag Fitness, LLC.
I became a vegan back in 2013. My transition was an interesting one. You see, eating meat has always been tricky for me. When I was a little girl, born and raised in South Carolina, I was surrounded by meat. I wasn't fond of the texture and I LOVED (still do) animals. Growing up with southern roots along with everything southern fried and smothered to the side...I had to literally be forced to eat everything on my plate. The funny thing was I would always "pick around" the meat on my plate, but would gorge myself on vegetables.
However, as I got older, I didn't feel the need to consume a lot of meat. Of course this was considered "weird" because that's how we were all raised...Eat meat and more meat! It wasn't until I started noticing how many of my loved ones began to suffer from lifestyle diseases. Mentions of my family members having heart attacks, high blood pressure, Type II Diabetes, and hypertension were things that I knew to be diet associated and I wanted no part of that lifestyle.
It wasn't until 2004 I decided to experiment with being a vegetarian. Majority of the time, I ate meat and animal by-products in social settings. Occasionally I would prepare meat for a family meal, but I usually opted for a bowl of veggies or fruit. I was loving the way I felt when I didn't eat meat, but it proved difficult at times because of the training environment while on active duty in the Marine Corps. I would ask health professionals how to "survive" the training while not eating meat...I was told that it wasn't possible that in order for me to maintain a "constant state of readiness" for training, that one must consume animal protein because it is "good for you." This occasional vegetarian status went on for years until 2013 when I decided that I had enough.
The year 2013 was a year of culminating events. I had surgery on my achilles and I was under a lot of stress from my job, not to mention being mentally and physically drained from trying to "recover" from my injury. I was told that my training was going to be delayed by 9 months and that my mobility in my foot would never be the same again. This was devastating as a dancer and as a Marine. I wasn't really sure how to cope from being on the move and "healthy" to sitting around waiting to heal. So, I used my time wisely and began to read more books and articles on how to heal my body in a more natural holistic way.
In my healing process, I adopted yoga, among other aspects of fitness, and began to phase out animal products completely. I began to feel better, had more energy, not to mention more flexibility. Before I knew it, I was vegan! I haven't looked back. I love the way I feel and how I have the energy to go above and beyond previous levels of training. Because I believe in helping others become the best versions of themselves, I became the living example for my family (my husband and daughter) and they are also vegan. It's like a dream come true! We are living each day with true purpose and are physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy. I've always been a veggie lover and had my sentiments when it come to eating "meat." I love animals. I've always been active and after reading many articles and books on plant-based living, I felt that I could take that knowledge and help others.
Prior to Sweat N Swag™ Kay was an active duty Marine was an active duty Marine officer and fitness enthusiast. She has a bachelor's degree in Dance, and is a certified Flexistretcher Strength and Conditioning Coach. These days, she spends her time dancing and helping others become the "true version" of themselves while staying true to her mission of "Making the world better, ONE healthy body at a time!" She loves her veggies, loves hanging out with her family and might have a Pinterest obsession with all things fitness, wonder woman, and vegan recipes.
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Vote for Kay's business to her her win one of ten small business grants from FedEx, including the $25,000 grand prize. Vote HERE.
