"I put the 'Kristina' in Kristina 8K"

"Throughout my life I've pictured myself as a lot of different things, but never once did I picture myself as a spokesperson for anything. If I had let my imagination wonder in that direction, I might have imagined myself as the spokesperson for a chocolate company, or perhaps a shoe company (high heels, not running), but never ever would I have imagined being the spokesperson for a fitness/weight loss challenge. Yet, here I am, Kristina of the Kristina 8K!

The response to the Kristina 8K has been amazing and I have been completely overwhelmed by the support and encouragement I've received from so many women who I don't even know! I look forward to meeting you all on June 26th and thanking you personally, but for now a written thank you will have to do: Thank you to everyone who signed up for my event and encouraged your girlfriends to sign up, and thank you for the support you have given me in doing so!!

By April 1st I had lost 50 pounds, and weighed 183 lbs, but I had completely plateaued. Despite running 4 times a week and watching what I was eating, I could not manage to move a pound! So Stephanie (owner of Sweet Spot Skirts) and I challenged each other to lose 8 pounds before the Kristina 8K, and so the 8K Challenge was born. Stephanie and I have spent a lot of time over the past month talking about food and exercise, and she came up with a low carb/high protein plan to help jump start my metabolism again.  I am happy to report that as of May 1st, I have lost an additional 4.4 pounds, dropping my weight to 178.6! If you would like to join the 8K Challenge, I would love to hear from you! You don't have to commit to 8lbs, it can be any amount you choose, just set a goal and we'll work on it together, supporting and encouraging each other as we go.

Please don't read too much into my words; I am NOT a weight loss guru, I hold no easy secrets to success, I'm just a mom who was unhappy with her reflection in the mirror and the numbers on the scale and decided to change. In making these changes, I have learned a lot about myself, and I want to share with you one of the most surprising things I've discovered: for the longest time I had been focused on my weight and on the numbers I was seeing when I stepped on the scale. As I started to lose weight, my focus changed, and suddenly the numbers didn't really matter. It didn't matter if I lost one pound in a week or five, what mattered was that at the end of the day, I knew I was doing something to better myself and my family. I knew I was setting a good example for my beautiful daughter who unfortunately will grow up in a society that puts way too much focus on how women look. As I obsessed less about numbers I was able to focus more on the important things in my life, like the fact that my butt could finally go down the slide at the park with my daughter and not get stuck halfway down! Weight is just a number, 'healthy' is a lifestyle, and one worth embracing!!!"

~Kristina

Note:  The Vancouver event is full, but limited spots still remain for the Seattle location.  Find info here and read more about Kristina's story.