Name: Amanda Grace Wing
Year of Birth: 1984
Height: 5’ 7’’
Weight: 131 (80 + lbs lighter than my heaviest weight of 214 in the 6th grade)
Birthplace: Sunny San Diego
Current Residence: Upstate New York
Sports: Running, boxing, weight training

Why did you become vegan?
I was raised vegetarian and was vegetarian most of my life. My mother was vegetarian when she was pregnant with me. However, growing up I ate a lot of dairy. Eventually I became lactose intolerant and started trying meat (which I never liked). My weight was a struggle for me since I was very small. After trying everything, I started eating a clean diet and returned to a mainly vegetarian diet which helped me lose 70 lbs.

I read Brendan Braizer’s book Thrive many times before becoming fully vegan. At the time I wasn’t eating dairy or meat except fish and eggs very occasionally. Everything in the book rang true for me nutritionally and I wanted to commit fully to a vegan lifestyle. Ultimately my decision to become fully vegan was a moral and environmental one.

When and why did you become interested in fitness?
I always wanted to be active or participate in sports but being overweight most of my life, I felt uncomfortable in my own skin and didn’t know where to start.

I started working out seriously January 3, 2010. I could only run for one minute at a time.

The main reason I became interested in fitness was to lose weight and gain a sense of self confidence and pride in my body. I never imagined it would take me so far. From a slow and steady start, I built up to running half marathons, boxing, lifting weights and participating in any aspect of fitness I could find! Our bodies are capable of so much more than we realize!

How would you describe your nutrition program?
Food is my fuel. I’m disciplined with my nutrition program because I know that only with the proper fuel, will my body run its best. My nutrition has evolved greatly over time. I now rarely eat anything out of a package. For me it’s always whole foods, high raw. Fruit is wonderful and I love the energy it gives me.

I eat small meals every three hours so I always bring my food with me in a cooler and plan ahead so I’m never without clean, vegan food.

My system is sensitive and doesn’t do well with soy or lots of nuts. For protein I usually chose quinoa, hemp or pumpkin seeds, leafy greens and beans.

My average food intake in a day looks like this:

AM: Large green smoothie

AM Snack: Quinoa and chia breakfast with berries

Lunch: Large salad with beans of some kind for protein

PM Snack: Fruit

Dinner: Large salad, quinoa or beans for protein

After dinner: Fruit

How would you describe your training program?
I love being active and pushing my body to its full potential. Now that fitness is such a huge part of my life, I always make time to work out. I typically go to the gym early in the morning or do a road run before the sun comes up. In the evening I usually take a boxing class or do Zumba. I lift weights 3x a week, box 2-3x a week, run 4x a week, and take Zumba 1x a week. I always take a rest day to recover.