There are many moving pieces in my life and I made it that way. Looking back it's been a bit of an evolution. I have always had an interest in the body and helping people too, so my current job fits me. When I first moved to LA I worked at Gold's Gym in Venice, wow, what a scene! Being fresh to California there was a lot to take in. I met a bunch of great people, had fun and then it was time to move on.
As a recent graduate with a degree in Health promotion fitness management I was unsure of what I "suppose to do" and still searching for what I wanted to do. Next stop was UCLA. I worked as an administrative assistant in their dermatology department. I was interested in the science of dermatology, and again, met a great group of people, but found sitting at a desk was not for me. I got tired of doing it and finally realized that I needed to stop, so I did.
Next move was to fitness. I got a job at Equinox as a personal trainer, but needed some additional income to make it all work, so lululemon was my part time gig for a while. They were the perfect combination at the time. During this period I met Karen, who was opening a gym for teens. I started to give more and more time to this and eventually left both jobs and we opened up O2 MAX. I continued to train people renting space from various gyms.
Then a friend introduced me to CrossFit. I tried it and found it both challenging and fun. Lifting especially made me feel at home. I got no strange looks for picking up heavy weights just word of encouragement to do more. And everyone was SO friendly. I've continued to come back since my first time in 2008. After a couple years of CrossFitting for fitness and competition I decided it would be great to teach it. So, into the CrossFit LA instructor training program I went. Now, I still train private clients both in and out of the gym, I run the CrossFit LA kids program and coach the adults at CrossFit LA along with cooking for this wonderful blog!
I'm happy with this process and love what I do. My favorite thing is helping people do things they thought they couldn't in addition to getting them stronger!
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Roasted Butternut squash soup with kale
1 butternut squash2 boxes organic low sodium vegetable broth
1/3 bag trader Joes kale (pre cut)
1 onion-chopped
2 Tbps crushed garlic
salt
pepper
olive oil
about 1 tsp each curry powder, cumin and cloves
Start of by roasting your squash. This can be done ahead of time. Or use already roasted squash. Chop in half, de-seed and drizzle with olive oil. Place on baking sheet skin side down and bake in oven at 400 degrees under tender appx 30-40min. When done and cool, scoop out squash with spoon, discarding peel.
1. In stock pot saute add in a small amount of olive oil and chopped onions, cook until soft and brown. Then add in garlic and cook for 1-2min.
2. Next add in cooked squash and vegetable broth
3. Cook for 10-15 min until squash is slightly softer then blend with an immersion blender.
4. Add in spices and cook for about 30 more minutes
5. Add in kale and cook until desired tenderness.
6. Serve and enjoy!