Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Bradley U chapter.

When life gives lemons, you make lemonade.

It’s not that easy to follow when the lemons you are given are rotten. But, aside from this cringe phrase and, I guess, metaphor, life can either be given to you softly or in a more difficult manner where you have steps to achieve for the individual life you desire.

Now, this isn’t remotely about me achieving these particular goals. It’s more so going to be about finding a different way to surpass these steps into something else. Growing up, it was never my initial thought that I am who I am today because I was a very introverted person when I was younger.

Last year in 2020, I started to weight lift with my roommate at the time (shoutout Alivia), and let me tell you, I saw how that was going to change my life. Around this time, I was still in the cardio regime, so that lifting would be something different. Within a few months, I fell in love with feeling stronger and more confident.

Weight lifting has taught me a handful of things about my mental and physical life while also helping me understand who I need to surround myself with. Within a year of weight lifting, I have been able to gain friends and lose friends because, as I said, I knew who I should keep around me.

There was a lot to learn about weight lifting like form, nutrients, correct mobility, endurance and more. But after reading and watching lots of informational content about weight lifting, I feel a lot more confident in what I am doing.

Coming into an atmosphere full of men, it took me a while to get used to being a female. I would hide when working out and be hesitant about trying new workouts for a while. Then, after attaining my records, I learned not to care.

Besides understanding who I should be and how I should feel, I have been able to teach my wonderful roommates, Valerie and Tori, weight lifting. I’ve watched them also become stronger and more confident in themselves. I found a way to jump my steps and find the correct “path” I saw myself in. With that being said:

When I was handed those lemons, I wasn’t sure what I would do with them. But now, I was able to not only make lemonade but also make lemon bars.

Anna Brandon

Bradley U '22

Hi! I am Anna and a senior at Bradley University. I am a journalism major and a professional writing minor. I am a contributor to the Bradley Scout as well. I have always been a writer and a storyteller; I can’t wait to have what I love as my career. Besides writing, I like to paint, work out, and watch crime shows.