Hey! Thanks so much for clicking this page.
I didn’t think anyone would be interested enough in reading this, so it means the world that you did.
About Amanda:
I grew up in Ventura, California—a small beach community in Southern California but found myself living in an ice rink for a good chunk of my childhood. I was a figure skater to the bone, committed and with lots of promise in my early teens. It wasn’t until I was plagued with some bad injuries, a broken tailbone (twice), that I deiced it was time to explore other sports. I moved on to dance with a dance company, become a high school and competitive cheerleader and ran track. I went on to study hospitality at UNLV, where I couldn’t have been further away from my purpose. I could never understand why I was never motivated and lacked the type of work ethic my peers had.
After hitting a low point, I came back to the ice. It was my saving grace at the time—and showed me a new level of commitment and work ethic I had carried with me all along. I was successful on the adult competitive circuit, and it’s still something I’m proud of. I am 2015 Championship Gold Ladies National Champion—with many other national podium finishes, sectional wins and artistic awards under my belt. I was on the brink of a professional skating career when I decided to move to San Francisco and join the corporate life like the majority of people I knew.
It turns out, I’m not meant for that life either. I made the most money I ever have in those years, but I was also the unhappiest. I hung up my heels and pencil skirt, left my corporate job, and found myself in the world of fitness as a fitness instructor and back to coaching figure skating. It turns out living in San Francisco without a 100k start-up salary is difficult, and I reached complete burnout.
In my mental and physical breakdown, I was dealing with an eating disorder I had slowly stepped into during my years as a figure skater, and it only worsened. It was then, with tears streaming down my face as I laid on my San Francisco apartment floor, that I decided to move to Hawaii. I didn’t think I was serious about it until I was. A few months later I packed my bags, left the city hustle, took a one-way flight across the Pacific, and settled down in the small North Shore community on Kauai.
It was here that the real work began. I went into recovery for my eating disorder, and decided that my pain, my struggles, would become my purpose. This Fall, I plan on attending Bauman College remotely to study Holistic Nutrition—so I can ultimately help other skaters develop healthy relationships with their body and food. Until then, I plan to write and tell my story, to bring awareness to the growing need for advocates and resources for this serious problem.
When I’m not trying to change the world, you can find me on the beach, surfing, writing, teaching fitness classes or taking naps. Life is good, and it’s only just about to get better.
