Stories from Kristina + Breanne

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “Superthinking…” I added this into my “routine” – if you can call it that right now – today! As Breanne and I are getting ready to launch our next ConfidenceFactor™ Challenge, there are so many things that we’re figuring out. What platform do we host it on? Should we include individual coaching again? What do we want to change from last time? And on and on. So many questions and three times more answers! And I’m finding them all. Nurse Kaden. Google all my questions. Find all the answers. Repeat every 3 hours! Every answer I could ever want. Many of them conflicting with one another. Different from what we are learning from mentors. How do we ever know what way to go! Enter Brooke Castillo… master coach! And Superthinking. With the basic idea to – use our brains! So often, we don’t use our own wisdom and the access we already have to our own answers. Instead, we ask people outside of ourselves all of our questions. Believing their brains will have all o...

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “30 inches…”   That’s how far Kaden can see now! First, he could only see far enough to find my face and my boobs… survival mode!   Now, he can look beyond me and Sennad as we snuggle him.   To the lit-up Christmas tree just a couple of feet away. To the pictures of Washington on the wall above the couch. To the faces of friends and family sitting near us.   And soon he’ll be seeing well beyond 30 inches.   Everyone says it will happen so fast. Too fast.   We’ll blink and suddenly he’ll no longer be a sweet little baby, staring into our eyes and the safety of our home.   He’ll be a middle schooler struggling with acne and crushes.   He’ll be a high schooler navigating social pressure, going to his first dance, and experiencing his first heartbreak.   Then he’ll be a young adult going to parties, staying up all night, and making big life decisions.   He’ll no longer be insulated by his 30-inch viewing rad...

  Shared by Breanne Smedley In the fall of 2007, I was a freshman in college. I was embarking on a new journey at Western Washington University as a student. Not a volleyball player. “Just” a student. Earlier in the year, I had decided to stop playing the sport I loved. Turned down a few offers that I had to play elsewhere and decided I wanted to go to Western. Maybe play some intramurals. Turns out, that first season not playing volleyball revealed something about me. I missed it. I went to every WWU volleyball game on campus. I wanted so badly to be out there. A part of my identity at the time was missing. I went back and forth for weeks about what I should do. Part of me just telling myself to let it go. That ship has sailed. Another part of me that couldn’t let go of the “what if?” And a big part holding me back from taking any action. Fear. “What if I get turned down?” “What if I put myself out there and I’m not good enough.” All valid points. They were very real possibilities...

  Shared by Breanne Smedley A few weeks ago, I was challenged to a 24 hour fast. 24 hours of no food. Only water and black coffee or tea. As someone who is pretty much snacking all day and looking forward to the next meal, 24 hours seemed brutal. But also as someone who is extremely interested in health and the impact that foods (or the lack thereof) have on our bodies and minds, I decided to give it a go. The GRIT program I’m in has a nutrition component called FUEL. Our head trainer, CJ Thomas gave us the rundown on why fasting can be beneficial to achieving peak energy and health. Improved metabolism. Increased energy. Better sleep. In researching further, I found that intermittent fasting (restricting your eating to a 12-8 hour window) can significantly improve cognition and protect nerve cells from dysfunction and degeneration through a process called autophagy. If there’s anything that scares me about aging, it’s losing my mind. Bring on the wrinkles. The gray hair. But the t...

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “Flabulous…” Growing, growing, growing. That’s what Kaden, my belly, my hips, and my thighs had been doing since February! In the beginning, it was really hard for me to accept. I’ve always been athletic, fit, and energized. Suddenly, I was sluggish and exhausted every day. Walking around like a sausage link in my clothes. BLOATED and CHUBBY… that’s how I felt! Eventually, I became more comfortable. I was able to revel in the wonder and strength of my body to grow a tiny little human. I was amazed with the changes. Loved my maternity clothes. And couldn’t wait to meet our sweet little guy! Now, I’m 6 weeks postpartum and feeling… FLABULOUS! Yes, flabulous! My favorite new word, created by my StoryAthlete buddy,  Ron Nedd ! Flabby + Fabulous There’s a lot of flab left on my belly, hips, and thighs. A physical reminder of our remarkable journey this year to bring Kaden into the world. And I feel fabulous in my skin as a new mom. More comfortable with...

  Shared by Kristina Smedley “Injured but going for it…” Momming is hard work!  When they say that you give your all to your little one, it’s no joke! I woke up this morning with a new injury. Somehow, it just appeared out of nowhere… in the middle of the night. Aching. Sorta numb. Seems a little swollen. I did just turn 37, but that’s not so old that new injuries just appear. All morning, I’m racking my brain for what in the heck I did to MY THUMB while sleeping!! My thumb! How can that possibly be hurting when I’m doing almost nothing but sitting around the house, nursing, changing diapers, and occasionally getting out for a walk, errand, or mom's group. Turns out it’s a real thing… tendonitis likely caused by how I’m holding him. Just like everything we jump into, there are new experiences around every corner. New challenges. New struggles. New ah-has and opportunities to make amazing memories. We can tiptoe and worry, or we can go for it and deal with the newness as it app...

  Shared by Breanne Smedley “Active change…” Yesterday was running day inside the GRIT challenge. Running is not my favorite. It ranks down there with burpees for me. But every Tuesday, for the past 10 weeks, I’ve run some version of a 5K. GRIT is a physical program within the StoryAthlete community, yet the goal is to strengthen our minds. To develop mental toughness and defeat our lesser selves through daily workouts, accountability, and community. And if you miss one day, you’re out. Plus you lose your team points, potentially making them ineligible to win the challenge. Meaning, I have no choice but to run every Tuesday. The 5K for the past 5 weeks has included stopping every ½ mile to complete push-ups, burpees, and mountain climbers. I’ve been doing the running portion on a treadmill. Because I’ve found on the treadmill, I have no choice. I put the speed where I want it, and make my legs keep up. However, yesterday I found out that I do have a choice. And when it comes to cho...