Jen's Story

Way back when, I used to be a 3-sport athlete (cross country, basketball, and soccer) and then played soccer for 4 years in college (and ran 1 year of track, too). I never used to have to pay attention to what I ate or make extra effort to work out to lose or maintain weight. Fast forward into my late 20s, I continued my same diet, but I was far from active anymore. That combined with life stressors and changes began to add up. I gained unhealthy habits along with many unhealthy pounds. Food became my happy place; especially after a hard night’s work (I work night shift). The worse the food, the better. That feeling of carb happy would be short lived… guilt and unhappiness would soon follow and the cycle would continue; for years.

January 2018 I wanted to change. I started to make a change- try to eat better and come to CrossFit more, but I guess I really didn’t want it with all my heart. I was still really inconsistent with my eating and exercise habits. I lost a little bit of weight, but not a great deal. One morning in June 2018, I woke up and broke down. I was so tired of being sick and tired. I wasn’t happy with myself, had bad planter fasciitis, and my knees would always hurt. I also didn’t want to have to continue to buy bigger clothes. I didn’t want this for the rest of my life. If I continued this path, I knew my quality of life would just get worse. At that moment I was 100% committed. I finally came to terms that I will have a new baseline; I didn’t put the 3 sport athlete expectation in the forefront of my mind. I promised myself I wouldn’t be as cruel to myself as I had been. I also didn’t put a firm deadline on my journey. I learned that, for me personally, I can be on a different path; I’m not an all-or-nothing person in that aspect. I’d try to cut out certain foods cold turkey in the past and I’d crash and burn (and actually gain more weight). But that’s just me. Everyone is different.
I finally wanted this enough that I was okay that this would take time. I didn’t put on 90lbs overnight and I won’t lose it overnight either. I began to be more committed to CrossFit and started to count calories. I wanted to initially take note of my portions. I started with a goal of 2500cal/day, and slowly decreased over time. Now I’m at 1580cal/day. I’m slowly incorporating healthier choices as well. Some days I go over a ton and others I’m below. It’s a balance. I’ve been consistently counting calories for 305 days in a row now; even on vacations and “bad” days.

My husband started here at U Can in February. Even if we don’t make it to the same class, having a PIC has made us both more consistent than we have ever been. That, combined with the incredible community that we have has had a huge impact in my life in more ways than one. I’ve met some amazing people and friends that I’m so thankful for. How this gym is, is stemmed from the top. We have the best coaches. They truly care and it shows. I’ve been to many different gyms and none compare to U Can. I know I wouldn’t be where I’m at if it weren’t for all of y’all. This week (April 15th, 2019) I hit a 60lb weight loss. My planter fasciitis and knee pain has completely resolved, too. I still have a ways to go, but I’m not as stressed out about it as I used to be. Thank you to everyone at U Can for making this journey enjoyable. I’m excited for what this next year will bring.
#slowandsteadywinstherace #onepoundatatime #itsaboutthejourney #believeinyourself #smallchangesarebigchanges #ificanucan #bestboxontheblock #ucancrossfit