Challenger Krysten Vazquez’s Journey in TFRT: A Midway Update

TFRT 2023 has reached beyond its midway point. Our athletes just completed their halfway InBody scans, and are excited to see their final results in upcoming weeks.

One of our challenge competitors, Krysten Vazquez, has shown improvements in her energy and mood while seeing benefits of strength training in other facets of her life.

Read more of Krysten’s experience below:

What made you decide to sign up for the TFRT challenge?

I signed up for the TFRT challenge because I was tired of making excuses for being complacent. Prior to COVID, I was at my peak fitness capacity; I had just run the NYC marathon and I felt really empowered in my body. When COVID hit, all the gyms closed and I lost my connection to movement. Between the lack of consistent gym workouts and the stress of working in healthcare during the pandemic, I gained weight. I had been trying to lose weight since then, but every time I’d go to the gym, I didn’t feel motivated. TFRT was a great opportunity for me to truly join the Tone House community and push myself mentally. It was time for me to finally say “no excuses! Just commit and do it!” So I did! And I’m really grateful because it’s been amazing thus far!

How have your nutritional habits changed since starting the challenge?

Since I started the challenge, I went with Ryan’s recommendation and downloaded the Lose It app. Once I started tracking my food intake, it became abundantly clear to me that I was eating virtually no protein and definitely more calories than necessary for weight loss, which made it really obvious why I hadn’t lost any weight. I was hesitant to start tracking macros and calories because I have a history of an eating disorder and body dysmorphia, but I felt like I’d done a lot of work with myself and a food therapist to really fix my relationship with food so I gave it a go. Using the numbers as a range really helped me to relax and not obsess, and I promised myself this information was just data to help me get on track. Since then, I’ve really upped my protein intake, incorporating more lentils, plant-based protein powders, quinoa, tofu and healthy sources of protein. I’ve also done less snacking and really worked on glucose regulation. Starting my days with what most would call a lunch/dinner-type meal instead of traditional breakfast has really helped stabilize my blood sugar, so I stopped having crashes a few hours after eating, mood swings and sugar cravings. The nutrition component has really been a game changer.

What has been the process working with Ryan? What are you tracking with your nutrition?

Working with Ryan has been great! I’ve had two calls with him already, which have been super helpful. The first was really seeing what needed to be improved with my nutrition in order to achieve my goals, I’d call that the blueprint. Really, that mainly consisted of staying in a caloric range and increasing protein consumption. The second meeting was actually how to best keep my goals in my back pocket and not lose my progress, as I’ve been out of the country so nutrition is always a lot harder.

In regard to training, what have your weeks been looking like?

With regards to training, my weeks have pretty much looked like 3-4 strength classes on the Turf and 1 conditioning class per week. I absolutely love yoga, so I try to do two vinyasa classes and a yin class as well, which complements the lifting. I’ve learned flexibility and supple muscles really help with the strength component and overall body agility. And then of course, I live in NYC without a car, so I walk and Citi Bike most of the time, with the bus and train thrown into the mix.

What improvements have you noticed now that we’re at the halfway point?

Off-scale improvements have been how my clothes fit looser now. I’ve also noticed less fat in the abdominal region than before. As mentioned, due to regulating my glucose and supplementing more protein, my energy levels and mood have become much more stable. The strength training has really helped with core improvement and just overall strength and agility which has definitely rippled into my yoga practice and speedwork and pretty much all aspects of my life. My InBody was pretty awesome! Showed I had lost 2% body fat, which I was very stoked about, but I went in with no expectations since I’ve never done one of these challenges before.

How has the overall experience with the TFRT been so far? Any words of encouragement for athletes wishing to hit their nutrition and fitness goals?

 The overall experience has been awesome! Like I said, what drew me to Tone House, besides the serving of humble pie every time I go, is the teamwork and camaraderie vibe. I love feeling supported and thriving with the energy of the class (especially Natalia’s Latin vibes, thank you!!). For all athletes, my advice would be to remain consistent and not worry so much about the end result. Good things take time. Results take time. If you put your head down and grind and just worry about yourself, everything else will fall into place. That’s the mentality I’ve been carrying through this challenge and I hope others are, too! Thank you for this opportunity to improve my overall health and wellbeing!

Interested in Nutrition services from our in-House Sports Dietitian, Ryan Turner, RD, CSSD? Schedule a complementary discovery call to discuss your current habits and fitness goals to determine if you are a good fit for Nutrition services.