- Tell us about yourself.
My name is Danielle Esposito (most call me Dee) - and I'm from Queens, New York! I'm a Senior Strategist for an inbound marketing agency - so I basically help our clients get "found" on the internet - SEO, content marketing, lead generation - all those fun digital assets.
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Favorite CED shirt or tank?
I love the Spartan one, of course :) I also love "Courage Over Comfort"
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What’s one fitness / health goal you’re working toward?
My most recent goals have included diving in to Endurance events. I completed my first Ultra Beast this season and I'm currently working towards finishing a Hurricane Heat 12 Hour Endurance Event. I found myself this season leaning heavily towards the endurance world - because it's something new, something different, and I really love how much it makes you rely on your mind to help get you through. It's the perfect combination between physical and mental strength.
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What’s one BIG (non-fitness) goal you’re competing to achieve right now?
A big non-fitness goal? Hmmm... I guess all the typical personal stuff - aside from my goal of being a homeowner, I'm focused on my career at the moment. I strive every day to be better and do better work. Whether that means diving in to new certifications or just doing what I can to continually improve, I LOVE what I do - so it makes it easy to keep testing myself.
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What’s one obstacle you’re proud to have overcome in life?
Definitely getting in to fitness. I was always little and then the early-20's happened, and booze happened, and late night meals happened, and I found myself at my heaviest weight and suddenly going from XS's to XL's seemingly overnight. I was totally lost - and dumbfounded - "How did this happen!?" I remember seeing an old picture of myself and I just couldn't believe how I let myself lose that person. I think a lot of people can fall in to the "well that's just what happens when you get older" excuse - but I didn't want that to be me. I found a boot camp and eventually found Spartan Race, and now with CrossFit in the mix my entire life has changed. I lost 40lbs, I'm stronger than ever and I'm not even slightly focused on the weight anymore - it's all about performance. Once I changed my mindset to solely focusing on improving my race time, or my clean or what have you, the 'body' stuff just kind of happened on its own. It's that whole "a watched pot never boils" analogy - stop focusing on that one aspect, and it'll happen while you're enjoying yourself while reaching those tangible fitness goals.
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Favorite quote
I have SO MANY (total quote nerd) - but a recent one I love is "You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there."
I really needed that quote when I DNFed my most recent attempt at the 12 hour endurance race. I had to remind myself that failure is needed in order to succeed - and those who don't take risks at all are the ones that are really failing.
- What does Compete Every Day mean to you?
I love this company and what it stands for. The community aspect is something that I think a lot of people need during their own journey, and having this outlet to not only wear quality clothing but to have this entire universe and all of these resources to help them really dial it all in is so wonderful... and totally unique.
- Who/what do you compete for?
I compete for myself, of course - for overcoming my own obstacles and zoning in on my goals - but a lot of what I do is for other people. There's NOTHING better to me than when I get messages from people telling me they went o the gym that day or signed up for a race because of me. I think my honesty and showing my failures and my journey really resonates with people, because sometimes, especially when you get in to that plateau or fall in to a dark space where you think you just will never make it, seeing someone else's story right there can help people see that their own goals ARE attainable - it's happened before and it WILL HAPPEN FOR YOU TOO. A lot of what I put out there is to help others.
Danielle Esposito, @dee_espo