This Is How My Body Transformed After Doing 2 Years of CrossFit

Intermittent fasting was a little difficult at first because I was definitely hungry by 9 or 10 a.m. I slowly worked my way up to waiting until noon for my first meal of the day, and after a few weeks, my body was used to it. I also found that stopping my last meal by 7 p.m. prevented bloat and helped me sleep better, which improved my performance at CrossFit. I was hitting PRs in both my front and back squats, I was running faster, and I was able to move up in dumbbell weight.

What I Ate

Here's an example of a day's worth of food:

• Lunch (around noon or 1 p.m.): big kale salad with carrots, red and yellow bell peppers, celery, cucumber, steamed green beans, avocado, baked tofu, and sunflower seeds
• Snack (around 3 p.m.): banana with almond butter coupled with a protein shake, or a homemade vegan RX bar coupled with Kite Hill unsweetened almond milk yoghurt
• Dinner (around 5:30 or 6 p.m.) huge Buddha bowl with sauteed chickpeas, steamed broccoli, edamame, roasted sweet potato, greens, and a drizzle of peanut sauce
• Snack (around 6:45 p.m.): a few handfuls of nuts with fresh raspberries or Trader Joe's dried bananas. Or, for a treat, vegan ice cream with frozen bananas and cherries.

I eat a mostly plant-based, whole-foods diet, but do eat eggs a couple times a month (from my friend's backyard chickens). My stomach bloats easily, so I don't drink alcohol and I limit my sugar, refined carb, and whole grain intake, which helps immensely. I also drink about 80 to 100 ounces of water a day.

After the CrossFit Open, in April, when the weather began to warm up, I was inspired to run outside more. I ended up suffering a knee injury that forced me to take a little break from CrossFit and from running. I went about once a week for those next couple months, did lots of walking and yoga, saw a PT, and took time to heal.

About a month before I hit two years, I went back about two or three times a week and modified what I needed to. My knee wasn't 100 percent, but it was getting there. As much as it sucked taking a break from those intense workouts and from my CrossFit family, it made me realise that CrossFit would always be there for me.

Over my two-year journey, I learned that I'm stronger than I think and that I have the capacity to push myself past my comfort zone. I learned that I really like how a barbell feels in my hands, that I'm actually a little competitive, and that when I'm doing CrossFit regularly, I feel my best.

As a woman who has struggled with body-image issues her whole life, it brings tears to my eyes to think that, thanks to CrossFit, I'm not hung up about the number of pounds on the scale, but am now more concerned with the number of pounds I can lift. It's a huge breakthrough! And as a mother of a daughter, I love that I can lead by example and show her how awesome it is for a woman to be strong.

I'm excited to see what the next year brings, to crush some more goals (muscle up, you crazy complex exercises — I'm coming for ya!), and to continue getting stronger.