About

The Basics

Hi there!!  My name is Jenny and I’m a 28 year old trying to make the best of what life has to offer.  I currently work in Event Operations which keeps me very busy!  Luckily, I love to be active and my line of work is the perfect excuse to constantly be on the go.  Over the past couple of years I have become extremely interested in fitness and nutrition and strive to lead a healthier lifestyle.  I’ve hit some speed bumps along the way (mostly in the form of ice cream) but have really learned a lot about myself throughout this process.  I would by no means consider myself an expert on anything nutrition or fitness related but I have found what works for me and have incorporated it into my daily routines to help improve my lifestyle.  I started reading various fitness, health and food blogs and found myself wanting to start one of my own!  After some encouragement from my guy and my best friend (you’ll be hearing lots about them along this journey) I decided to go for it…so here it is my friends!

It's me, Jenny!!!

Fitness Background

Growing up I played basketball year round.  I started playing (after MUCH persuasion from my parents) at the age of 5 only because my sister did.  I hated every second of going to practice and playing in games…possibly because not even my sister would pass me the ball and I would run around with no idea what was going on yelling “pass me the ball”…something Katie will never let me forget.

Anyhow, around the age of 8 I fell in love with the sport and could not get enough of it.  I was a varsity player through my 4 years of high school and then continued on to play D3 basketball in college.  I was never really in to any other sports and definitely was not a runner!  When we would have to run a mile before basketball practice on occasion, I would be the girl complaining about how far it was and finding any excuse to get out of it!  Sprinting, now that I didn’t mind…but distance…(yes, I thought a mile was DISTANCE back then) was my worst enemy!  After college I became pretty lazy and lacked any motivation to go to the gym or do any type of workout.  I blamed it on being “burnt out” from all of the basketball I played over the years and wanted a break.  Basically it was an excuse to not take proper care of my body.  I started playing in a few social sports leagues; basketball, soccer, kickball and two hand touch football and got the itch to be active again.  On top of that I wanted to lose those few extra pounds I had put on through college and after graduation and one day it happened, I laced up my tennis shoes and went for a run.  From there it is history…

I started running longer and further and would push myself to better my time with each run and before long I learned a few things about myself.  First, I learned that I was in fact a runner – I just had to find that runner in me!!  Second, I hadn’t lost my competitive edge that I had when I was playing basketball.  I constantly wanted to do better with my runs and before I knew it I was running 8 minute miles, something I never imagined even being able attempt.  Pretty soon, I went from running 3 miles to 10 miles and then on to my first half marathon and eventually my first full marathon in October 2011.

Happily running my 1st half marathon

I got back into a serious workout groove and haven’t looked back since.  Sure, I’ve had my moments months where I have lost motivation for one reason or another and just plain stopped working out and being active but I’ve done my best to always bounce back…so far, so good.  I’m currently in a really good groove and I love everything about how it feels.  I love being able to wake up and run 14 miles if I want to.  I love feeling good in my body.

Health & Nutrition Background

I was never really “skinny” when I was growing up but I wouldn’t say I was “fat” either.  I was always stuck in that in between stage, a little chubby, the girl that held on to her baby fat.  My sister always described me as “big-boned” and I thought I was destined to always be that way.  I was so active and playing so much basketball but was also eating whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted and by no means in a healthy way in the least.  You wouldn’t catch me a day in high school without a bag of skittles in my uniform pocket and a Dr. Pepper in my book bag.  I snacked on Cool Ranch Doritos, fried food, ice cream, candy and cake constantly.  Lunches were full of bagels overstuffed with cream cheese or a mayo mess of tuna.  Healthy was by no means an adjective that described me. Throughout college my diet was filled with dining hall food (aka waffles with ice cream on top), beer and late night pizza and cheese steaks.  I enjoyed myself to the max and was happy doing it!

Once I graduated from college, basketball ended and my workout habits changed drastically.  Unfortunately, my eating habits did not.  When I reached my heaviest weight ever, I knew I wanted to make a change.  I had started running and working out and new the next thing to change had to be my eating habits.  I started counting calories and being very specific about what I ate.  Before I knew it, I was not only feeling the results but I was seeing them as well.  I learned what it meant to feel healthy and it felt good. Really good.  Great actually!

I eventually got down to my smallest size ever, as in I never wore clothes in my current sizes before – not even in high school!  My weight still tends to fluctuate by 5 pounds here and there but for the most part I’m happy with where I am.  Sure, I have my bad streaks and I may gain back more than those 5 pounds but that’s what I’m trying to change.  One thing I will never do though is limit myself in what I eat.  Without letting my sweet tooth take over on occasion I would be one miserable girl to be around!  I need my ice cream!  If I’ve learned one thing through my trials and tribulations with weight, it is everything in moderation.  It’s a lesson I seem to learn over and over again…

Is this considered moderation? Yes, I finished it all...on my own!

Ultimately, I want to keep myself at the weight that I feel comfortable with and I’m hoping that with the help of this blog and all those out there in the blogging community I can keep myself on the right track for a healthy life full of love, food, and fitness.