Hi, I’m Amber! I’m a twenty-something with a penchant for powdered peanut butter, the color pink, working out and promoting positive vibes! I love food, always have and always will, even if I’ve had to revamp my entire diet these last few years. I don’t let my diagnosis of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Celiac Disease limit my lifestyle, but instead use them as a means to educate others about the seriousness of having a digestive disorder and how food can truly be the best medicine. Instead of throwing a pity party for myself and all the foods I cannot eat, I use my dietary restrictions as inspiration for creating Gluten Free, Lactose Free, and IBS Friendly Recipes. I blog over at Eatsandexercisebyamber.com sharing easy recipes, GF/IBS Living Tips, the promotion of positive body image and positive vibes. I believe that in order to be healthy, you must at first be happy and love yourself.
Working out and eating healthy were never priorities of mine growing up and through out high school. I laughed at the idea of people who exercised for fun and gagged at the sight of anything green on my plate. Now, I have at least a plateful of veggies at every meal and love going to the gym.
I’ve gone through many fitness and food phases. My beginning stages in the fitness world were heavily revolved around cardio and I thought that carbohydrates were the enemy, not my friend. I wasn’t trying to become faster or stronger with working out; I was, like many women in America, just trying to be skinny. After forcing myself to finish Shaun T’s cruel and unusual punishment of Insanity, I had reached a plateau for working out. I was NOT going to complete the program again and I did not want to go back to being a Cardio Bunny. Through classes at my local gym, I found HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) but I was still using the elliptical like it was my day job! I would lift a few weights here or there but it wasn’t a focus or goal of mine until I suffered a herniated disc injury and had to re learn how to work out with a personal trainer. I began lifting my senior year of college and fell in love, but I still couldn’t ditch that, “ must do cardio mindset” and I was still having a “less is more” attitude when it came to eating.
I became extremely ill, over the course of three years with my digestive issues and ended up suffering another injury. After eliminating all the foods that were making me sick, I started fresh, and found that carbs WERE my friends, even if Women’s Health and Cosmopolitan seemed to disagree. I wasn’t allowed to do any cardio per my injury, which ended up being another blessing in disguise. Since stopping cardio, I’ve become leaner and stronger than I ever was, and to top it all off, I am eating more than ever.
Lifting weights has boosted my confidence and appreciation and love for my body. Self-love, body-love and fear of food are things that I think majority of women struggle with and I want to help them overcome those struggles. I’ve stood in front of the mirror and picked myself apart or felt guilty after indulging in a sweet treat before, but why? Because society tells us women that in order to be beautiful we must only eat 1,500 calories a day, be stick thin with no muscle tone, wear makeup, and not lift weights. WELL, I DISAGREE, Be your own kind of beautiful. To me, being beautiful is being happy and healthy. And being healthy is doing what works best for you and your body. We are all different, therefore we must do what is best for ourselves, not what others tell you to do or magazines insist on.
Be You, BeYOUtiful <3
