I have been legally blind since birth due to a congenital condition called Achromatopsia. Legally blind means that even with correction your vision is worse than 20/200 which is the biggest E on the eye chart. Due to this condition, I have reduced visual acuity 20/400-20/600, severe light sensitivity and am totally color blind. This has affected my life in many ways; for example, I have never driven, I never did sports or PE throughout my school years and I have a very difficult time recognizing people or being able to see if they are waving to me for example.
I attended San Diego State University and studied Computer Science and spent a few years working as a computer programmer. I also am a certified Montessori Primary Teacher.
My journey into bodybuilding began in 1995 when I was very overweight and joined a gym for the first time. You can read all about my transformation here. In 2002, I competed in my first bodybuilding competition. I did two more that year and one in 2003. Having come from being overweight, I had a fear of getting "fat" again so I switched to figure for 2004 and 2006 thinking it was a way to continue to compete but also stay small. In 2007, my trainer, Jeremy Minihan, suggested I go back to bodybuilding and that is what I did for Jr Nationals that year. I couldn't be happier! I truly enjoy every aspect of bodybuilding: the heavy lifting, making necessary changes to my physique, watching the changes unfold as I diet for a show and being up on stage knowing I put everything I had into it. I have met so many wonderful people doing this sport. I knew I had obtained success in bodybuilding by winning the middle weight class and the overall at the 2009 NPC Jr Nationals. I was so excited and shocked! I could not believe that was me; the once fat person who didn't want to be seen was the overall winner in a national level bodybuilding competiton. Words can't descibe the feeling. This only added fuel to my desire to continue to strive for higher goals. And, most recently I reached another goal by bringing my best overall package to the 2011 IFBB North American Championships, a Pro Qualifier, where I placed first in open middleweight and 1st in over 35 middleweight.
