The journey.

I spent most of my life obese or overweight. Other than the occasional teasing at school or from joking family members, this never really was a hindrance to my life (thank God!). I was happy. I had plenty of friends. I was a dancer. I played sports throughout elementary, middle, and high school. My social life was fanTAStic (man oh man do I love to party!). Overall, I was able to enjoy plenty of what life had to offer.

Shortly after college (around 2008) and in search of a free physical activity to take part in, I found running. How simple! Put on a pair of shoes, go outside, move. No gym membership needed. I started running regularly, and from this point on, slowly started shedding pounds and inches off my waist. It wasn't really an active thought of "I need to lose weight!"...it just made me feel good to run. Then my eating changed. The more I ran, the more I watched what I ate so I could run better. faster. longer. Alas, my healthy lifestyle cycle had commenced. The more I delved into this cycle, the more pounds would come off, the more inches off my waist, the more compliments I would get. It was fantastic!

2011 was a landmark year for me. Not only did I run my first half marathon, I picked up long distance cycling, and I also found rock climbing. Climbing quickly became a passion/addiction I couldn't shake that really helped push me further and further into a healthier lifestyle. The summer of 2011 was spent rotating between Insanity workouts at home (dig deeper!), running, rock climbing, and swimming. Slowly yet surely, I could feel myself becoming more agile and much stronger. Loving my body more and understanding it's limits.

Now (2015), I find myself still running with several half marathons, 5ks, and every distance in between under my belt. I'll jump on a 60 mile bike ride on a beautiful day. I'm an avid rock climber dedicating about 6-12 hours of my week training for my sport and traveling to places I'd never even dreamed of visiting, much less climbing in (e.g., Kentucky, Northern Mexico [that's not Tijuana for partying =P], West Virginia...I even got some indoor climbing in in Germany and Switzerland!). And I'm a rock climbing instructor, sharing my passion for the sport to all those who are interested in learning. 

Never in my life did I ever think I would be an (amateur) athlete. Never. Don't get me wrong, I still live a pretty normal life. I work full-time in the public health field pushing my career further and further. I eat...almost EVERYTHING. I go out and party with friends 'til the wee hours of the morning. I just also make sure to fit in my run, or climbing session, or flying trapeze class, etc. between the mayhems of life. It's been a long and unending journey that's been a rollercoaster of ups and downs (I vividly remember dropping to my knees after an Insanity workout with my sister one day and yelling "F*ck this I don't care anymore, I just wanna be fat!"). I'm a whole 5'1" (on a good day) and weighed in nearing 200 lbs at my heaviest. I'm extremely proud to say that with all my hard work, dedication, and healthier lifestyle choices over the past 5 or 6 years, I'm now at 125 lbs. It's still a constant struggle (I'm a fatty at heart and would love to sustain myself off chocolate cake and ice cream for the rest of my life), but I wouldn't trade it for the world. You don't have to be a professional athlete to live a healthy life and excel at a sport. You could totally be an average joe with a blossoming non-athletic career; you just need the passion and drive for your sport of choice.  

This will be my venue to share with you my successes, struggles, tears of pain, squeals of joy, and everything that comes in between. I hope it inspires you with whatever goal(s) you have in mind, and I also hope I can learn from some of you as you go through your journeys! =] As we say in the climbing world, "Climb on!"