Amanda Balionis has surely achieved a lot in her life, but one simple accomplishment remained out of her reach. Until now! Days before turning 40, she shared an Instagram video showing months of training, failed attempts, and the moment she finally achieved a goal she had set years ago.

“I feel like I just healed my childhood trauma from failing the pull-up part of the Fitness Test in elementary school 😅. I’ve never been able to do even a single pull-up. I made it my goal to do one before I turned 40. Officially accomplished that with 25 days to spare 🙃,” she wrote on Instagram. “I’m aware this is a chin-up we will be changing the grip now moving forward, but right now I’m celebrating feeling like the strongest girl in the world 😂 💪 also this was a great reminder that setting small goals for ourselves for the sake of it is so freaking fun.”

Born on June 20, 1986, Amanda Balionis is a fitness freak. She likes to do it in her own fun and humorous way by taking on difficult challenges and overcoming them, even if it means doing something she doesn’t like. In August 2025, she revealed her gym approach in a funny Instagram story.

“Reminder: we can do hard things even if we are SUPER dramatic while doing it. So tired but dragging my butt to the gym to at least finish that 10K.” To make it funnier and more relatable, she added Bebe Rexha’s “I’m The Drama” song to the story.

While she is joking about this school fitness trauma, she has faced many hardships with the same cheerful face and personality. One of these moments came back in 2018, when her father passed away. As a result, she gained 15 pounds immediately afterward.

She was able to heal after seeking therapy for over 11 months, and it was a very educational experience. It was during these months that she realized there was no point in lying to her body. Instead, she started listening to it, and that’s how she was able to overcome her physical health struggles, too.

“I recognize physical signs of stress and take steps to manage them… journaling, meditation, and long walks as ways to release tension,” she said about the pain caused by a pinched nerve at C4/C5 vertebrae.

While this was her personal milestone, her professional milestones are equally fun and cheerful.

Amanda Balionis’s Puppies and Golf turned 5

Amanda Balionis started Puppies and Golf simply to fill a void in her life. Although she was a CBS Sports reporter back then, too, and interacted with many athletes, she admitted to feeling a “familiar hollowness.”

That search for purpose led to the non-profit organization, and it turned five years old late last year. Puppies & Golf has distributed more than $600,000 in grants across its three major pillars: shelter support, rescue dog assistance, and military veteran partnerships.

The organization’s foundation dates back to 2014. This was when Balionis volunteered with K9S For Warriors while with the PGA Tour in Jacksonville. Taking inspiration from that, she had a simple fundraising idea. It involved a “Puppies and Golf” shirt and a charity auction. The auction raised enough money to sponsor a service dog, and that’s how it all began.

After joining CBS Sports in 2020, Balionis began visiting animal shelters during travel. Taking that opportunity, she started sharing adoptable dogs on Instagram. The response, according to her, was “immediate and overwhelming.”

Five years after turning that idea into a growing nonprofit community, Amanda Balionis continues to prove that persistence can create meaningful change. That same mindset was visible when she continued strength training for years before conquering a goal that had stayed with her since childhood.