Krista Assid

Name: Krista Assid
Year of Birth: 1972
Height:5'6
Weight: 125
Birthplace: Hartford ct
Current Residence: Manchester ct
Sports: I cycle, swim, lift weights and teach a spin class at my local gym.

Tell us a little about yourself, what you do for a living, what hobbies / interests / passions you have
I am a full time hairdresser and owner of Scissor Kids a special hair salon for children in Glastonbury ct. I have a passion for health, fitness and veganisim.

Why did you become vegan?
I became vegan 3 months out from my first figure competition. I already wasn't eating beef and pork for years. I felt really good eating clean on the typical figure diet, I watched the movie..."forks over knives" and "vegacated" and that was it! I thought that if I feel this good now imagine how much better I could feel being vegan! Plus my love for animals. I decided that I would never even give one penny towards the violence, madness, and suffering that goes on in the factory farms. So I veganized my coaches meal plan against his wishes. I could never go back to eating meat and dairy again.

When and why did you become interested in fitness?
I have been into fitness for about 7 years now. I joined a gym 7 years ago and never looked back! Then I got certified in spin, then certified in personal training.

How would you describe your nutrition program?
Right now my nutrition program is raw but when I was training for my first figure competition I ate a lot of tofu ( too much in my opinion ) oatmeal, fruit, big salads with beans, stir fries with brown rice or quinoa. Now I'm trying a new approach as I'm training for my second show coming up in nov 2013. I'm hiring a raw vegan coach. Right now I'm just eating lots of raw ripe fruits, big salads, raw soaked over night oats with protein powder, green juice and green smoothies.



How would you describe your training program?
Mondays I teach spin class for 45 minutes, then I eat 2 bananas to recover. Then I do arms and chest. I usually always change routines week to week. I'll do machines one week. Cables the next week and dumb bells the next week to always change it up. I usually do 4 different arm exercises and 3 different chest exercises. 4 sets each exercise. Then I eat 2 more bananas after weight training. I normally do 1/4 c over night soaked oats before I spin with a banana and berries, 1 scoop sun warrior raw protein powder, hemp and flax seeds and lots of cinnamon.

Tuesdays I swim laps for about 30 min and I get a mile in which is about 65 laps.

Wednesdays I do back and shoulders. 3-4 different exercises for back and 3-4 for shoulders 4 sets each.

Thursdays I swim again.

Fridays I do legs and glutes. I have a bad back so I don't go too heavy and I usually do single leg workouts like single leg dead lifts and single leg leg press, step ups on the bench, single leg ham string curls, single leg kick backs. Lunges, and lots of squats but not loaded. I usually do 100 squats 3 times a week. I also do seated calf raises, usually 4 sets each exercise.

Saturday & Sunday I'm usually off from the gym. Sometimes on Sundays I do yoga

I'm training now for my second show in October as a raw vegan, a little cooked low fat vegan once a week or less. I love my new raw diet! It's a modified version of 80/10/10 (80% carbs from lots of fruits and some veggies, 10% fat 10% protein) but I take in a bit more protein then that with my sun warrior protein powder. I won't stop until I place as a vegan!

What are some common misconceptions about veganism?
The biggest misconception about veganisim is the protein myth. Everybody thinks that you need an abundant amount of protein to build muscle when you don't. You need to lift weights. Everyone asks me "where do you get your protein?" Like its a big deal. My answer is spinach! Every food has protein in it and we as humans don't need the amount of protein that we were thought to believe all thanks to the FDA and the meat and dairy industry.

What advice do you have for people who are thinking of becoming vegan?
My advice to those just starting out with veganisim is to stick with it because the longer your vegan the better your overall health and well being is and the better you will start to feel! It's so worth it!

Do you have any other thoughts you'd like to share?
Becoming vegan has changed my life... I feel alive! Fresh! Happy! Healthy! Clean! And I clean conscious as well