My Story

I grew up being very athletic! I was in gymnastics when I was young, and went on to play volleyball, basketball. I also ran the mile in track and did shot and discus. So in high school I was soo active that I could eat, eat, and eat and never gain a pound!! I had this beautiful stomach that was semi-defined!! AND the kicker is.. I thought I was BIG!! I have a bigger bone structure, so I was like a size9/10 sometimes 11/12.. So when all the other girls are 3-7's and you can't share clothes, you feel fat!! So when I graduated my eating habits stayed with me, but my active lifestyle went to the curb!!

I went to college in a smaller town of about 6,000ish.. There wasn't a lot to do there, but go out to eat!! I spent 4 and 1/2 years eating!! Runza! Magic Wok (best chinese ever!) Ron Don's (McDonalds) Coffee Shoppe!! Taco Bell!! Tacos and More!! All of my favs!!! mmmmmmmmmm!!!

In high school my skinniest (thank you mono) was about 155... graduated college at 215ish.. Yeah.. that is about 60 pounds ladies and gentleman.. And the kicker is, after college I got up to about 230!! Sooo That is 75 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!

The last 6 years have been a weight roller coaster! I would go on working out spurts.. I would go on healthy eating spurts.. I would ride my bike to work spurts.. I did the weight watchers thing a couple times... but the key word is SPURTS.. Everything was just a mini phase!! I would even take "before" pictures.. I have many sets of them!! There was a time my sophomore year in college where I had got back down to 190.. That was a great time for me!! I had a major confidence boost!! But, don't worry.. I put that weight back on real quick!! ha ha!!!

Along with this battle was the confidence issues!! I ALWAYS felt like the "fat girl"!! We would go to the bar, or parties and guys would come up to me.. and then ask me what my friends name was.. or tell me my friend is really hott!! LIKE REALLY!! Who does that??!! Anyways! ha ha!! I spent a lot of time feeling ugly! Well, I felt pretty from the neck up! ha ha!! I couldn't share clothes with my friends and roommates... I didn't really have any cute clothes because I was the awkward size that no one had clothes for me! I was too big for the normal sizes, and to small for the plus sizes.. So yes, shopping was never a fun adventure! Luckily I was spending all my money on food so I never had any to go shopping!! ha ha!!

This blog and my story isn't just about food and weight i promise!! ha ha!! There are some good things that came out of my college days!! There are a lot actually!! The best thing of all was getting a job working with individuals with disabilities!! I was soo lucky to find my passion for life so young!! One great thing was the friends I made while I was there!! Another great thing was the "voice" I discovered! I found my advocacy voice!! The voice that drives me to have passions and stand up for what I believe!! My friend Travis had me watch a film about 4 years ago that I believe was a turning point in my life!! We watched an inconvienent truth!! This film really just made me AWARE of the bigger picture!! And it was that awareness that has been driving me to continue to be a better person ever since!!

The next stop in my journey was in July of 2008.. My best friend Lindsay (you will hear her name quite frequently!!) told me about a book she had read called Quantum Wellness by Kathy Freston... Lindsay told me about the 21 day cleanse and about how she had decided to become a vegetarian on July 5th!! (Side note: Lindsay is such amazing person and mentor and I look up to her soo much!!) So when Lindsay said she was going to be a "vegetarian" I was thinking all kinds of things... I could never do that! Why would you do that? What are you going to eat?? Seriously?? Would you have to eat tofu?? I don't even like salads!! Sooooo.. Yeah!! All kinds of thoughts of craziness were going through my head... BUT Lindsay is such an amazing person that I knew there had to be something good behind this.. Soo I listened, and I am soo glad I did!! I went out and bought Quantum Wellness, and this was another great turning point in my life!! On August 16, 2008 I too became a vegetarian!!

At first I ate very healthy, I was losing weight and looking great! Feeling like a million dollars!! LOVED IT!! Then.. my diet began to consist of cheese.. some sort of starch (potatoes, noodles, corn).. pop..and chips... Sooo then I began to become the most unhealthiest I had ever been!! It was here that I got up to my heaviest of 230 pounds!! My mom jokes that I was a "funyun" vegetarian!! I was tired ALL the time!! I had headaches!! I was sooo lazy! I never wanted to do anything!! When I would go to my parents house I just wanted to sit around and watch and not particpate which is the opposite of who I really am!! I was getting sore throats and colds all the time!! I was just an unhealthy hott mess!!!! ha ha!!!

Well, don't worry! Lindsay saved the day AGAIN!!! In May of 2009 Lindsay went to a local Raw "cooking" class!! She learned about Green Lemonades and the world of raw foods!! Lindsay would read a book and then tell me about it and I would run out, buy it, and read it!! So we read Raw Detox Diet by Natalia Rose, Juicing Fasting and Detoxing by Cherie Calbom, and Green for Life by Victoria Boutenko!! Lindsay and I began the Kathy Freston 21-day cleanse on June 8, 2009.. Lindsay and I also decided to run a half marathon in September.. So the training began!! (I know this is MY story, and I keep saying WE, but Lindsay was such a major part of this story.. it really was WE!!) So we bought juicers and blenders and the love for greens began!!! WOW!!

This is where I began to really expierence life!!! What was I doing before!??? After some short lived detox headaches.. I was like how was I living any other way?? How was I letting food control me soo much that I was able to expierence life?? My headaches I was having - GONE! My tiredness - GONE!! Laziness - GONE!!! OMGosh!! It was just the best ever!!! I had gone to visit my best friend Susan in Colorado in July. (Side not: Susan has always been a runner, and had a great body and has always encouaged me to run/workout and wanted me to feel great and have the energy she had.) I went out to Colorado to visit her, and had confidence and this energy I had never had before!!! We went hiking on a mountain! We went up the gazillion stairs at red rocks! We walked EVERY where.. and for the first time in a LONG time I wanted to keep going!! I didn't want to stop... I wasn't feeling like I just wanted to "hang out" inside.. I WANTED to be this active!!! It was the best!! This is just feeding my drive for more!! I want this for my life!! I want to feed my body for this energy!! I almost feel like a crack addict!! I NEED more green smoothies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ha ha!!!!!

Sooo.. Lindsay and I DID run the half marathon!! Mind you Lindsay had her appendix out 13 days before we ran!!! YEAH! I told you she was amazing!! We did not run the entire thing.. We ran straight to mile 7 and then walked and ran to mile 12 and then ran the last 1.1 miles! Another great feeling in my life to cross that finish line!!!


Weight Update: I have a scale that weighs light.. so when I started it said I was 225. I was down to 185.. but thanks to thanksgiving, moving, and christmas I am 190! ha ha!!

At this current moment I am an aspiring vegan as I try to be as vegan as possible, but things are crazy as I just started a new job and so I do what I can when I can!! ha ha!! I am also not eating super healthy right now.. I have my green smoothies in morning.. and then its down hill from there!! But like I said I just moved to new city, started a new job, and now the holidays.. So January 4th is my vegan launch date!

I am soo excited to have this blog and to have the chance to share my journey and hopefully inspire others to feel this great!!!

Loves!!
Green-Teen