Ricochet Woman: A Profile on Elena Luna

   Friday, Friday, gotta get down on Friday. Get down at Gregory Gym, that is.

  While many students and faculty rushed home on Good Friday, Elena Luna, health promotion junior, found comfort in exercising late that afternoon. With the clinking sound of weights added to bars, feet pounding on treadmills, perspiration proliferating throughout the weight room, Luna embraced the atmosphere as her own. 

Elena Luna (above) often collages "before and after" photos
as part of her progress. Photo courtesy by Elena Luna

Over the past year, Luna has undergone a weight loss journey like none other, acting upon a change in lifestyle of exercise and specific dieting that’s removed her from being “morbidly obese” at over 200 pounds. A member of Sigma Phi Lambda, the university’s Christian sorority, Luna accredits a devotional given last spring as her epiphany for living healthier.

“I remember sitting in chapter meeting one day, and one of the girls was lecturing on sins that the church doesn’t recognize,” Luna said.  “I just really felt like that was God’s way of being like, ‘Hey Elena, look. Your biggest sin is gluttony. You’re worshipping food; you’re turning to this every time.’ and that’s when I really knew that I needed to change my life.”

Luna, who now weighs 155 pounds, remains consistent in her exercise routine of running, weight lifting and especially CrossFit, a core strengthening and conditioning program.

Luna (above) completes planks,
which focus on the abdominal core.
Photo by Olivia Suarez

“My favorite kind of training would probably be CrossFit training,” Luna said. “And I think that that’s the highest level training that I’ve reached so far and also the hardest because it pushes me physically, mentally, and spiritually. It challenges me in all three ways that I need to be challenged because we do some pretty hard things.”

Although Luna mostly trains by herself, she doesn’t rule out seeking help about exercise.

“Anything I do I’m always finding someone who knows something, who knows more than I do, because I always think that there’s someone out there that’s smarter,” Luna said.  “And so if I can find someone and just ask them any question, I’m learning, or I can give them advice.”

In addition to gaining more insight on workouts, Luna also enjoys trying new things, including marathon running. She considers her completion of the Austin Half Marathon earlier this year as one of her biggest accomplishments.

Luna (above) shows the "Hook 'em" sign after completing
the Austin Half Marathon. Photo courtesy by Elena Luna

“I’m such an overachiever that when I decided that I was going to do something, I wanted to maybe go for the biggest thing possible,” Luna said.  “I was the only person in my family to ever run that long of a distance.”

According to Luna, her participation in the race stemmed from an indescribable desire.

“It took me a whole year to prepare for it, but that was my big deal, running a half marathon,” Luna said. “I know that some people never even run a half marathon in their life or people just don’t understand why you can run for 13 miles. It’s just one of those things you know, I can’t explain. I just want to run, and that was what made me want to start doing that.”

Luna and her friend Maykei Nguyen celebrate their completion
of the Austin Half Marathon. The two both ran 13.1 miles.
Photo courtesy by Elena Luna

She intends to complete the full Austin Marathon next year. On top of that, she hopes to reach her new goal weight.

“Taking into consideration with my body height, I should be between 130 and 150 pounds,” Luna said. “The first goal weight I set for myself was 150 and I’m only five pounds away from that. But I changed it to 135 so I see a flat stomach, because I want to be able to wear short shorts or throw on a bikini or just do things I guess girls my age would do.”

Luna also said that the goal at first was “just to be thin” but that it’s transformed into the hope of becoming “strong, both in fitness and spiritually strong as well.”

Even with all of the successes she’s made, Luna said she experienced some difficulty on her weight loss journey.

“There was a time where I went a whole semester without losing any weight and that was a big setback for me,” Luna said.  “It was kind of discouraging because I knew that I was doing everything correctly, yet my body wasn't responding to it.”

Luna witnessing her weight “drop from the 200 pound range to the 100 pound range” triumphed this setback. Having her clothes feel loose is another thing she takes satisfaction in.

Luna's roommate Katie Keith (left) and Luna
(right) both fit in Luna's old rain jacket.
Photo courtesy by Elena Luna

“I track (my progress) by my clothes size,” Luna said.  “I used to track it by the scale, but that’s not always the best method because I put on a lot of muscle, so my weight’s definitely increased. But going by my clothes size or dress sizes I can definitely see that I’ve decreased significantly.”

Luna currently follows the Paleolithic “Paleo” diet, which mimics the diet of cavemen.

“It’s meat, lots of vegetables and nuts, a little bit of fruit, and water: tons and tons of water,” Luna said. “It’s really hard to not eat certain things because they don’t follow the Paleo lifestyle, but it’s definitely rewarding to see how much I've disciplined myself to follow that lifestyle.”

Keith (left) and Luna (right) at the Texas
         Independence Day Run.
Photo courtesy by Elena Luna

While Luna treats herself to the occasional pancake with peanut butter—her biggest temptation—she aims to stay on track, highlighting the importance of eating right.

“You can live in the gym all day long, but if you don’t eat right, then there’s not going to be change,” Luna said. “Your diet can prevent so many things like bad cholesterol and heart disease and diabetes. And yes, working out is good, but your diet is the most important.”

Nutrition senior Daniel Magoon agrees with Luna on that aspect.

"While many people do find positive results with certain diets and lifestyles, across the board, the combination of healthy diets and frequent exercise yields the best (and healthiest) results overall," Magoon said. "You can lose weight by exercising, but if you have a poor diet, the weight will not stay off. It's a balance between the two that creates a person's healthy lifestyle."

Luna's newly adopted lifestyle influences her roommates, as well. 

"Her fitness routines have inspired our apartment to be more health conscious in our eating habits," Katie Keith, communication sciences and disorders junior, said. "I began running with Elena last year when her journey began and have continued to train with her and increase my own workout goals as well."

Although Keith doesn’t engage in the Paleo diet, she altered her diet to make more health conscious food choices consisting of more vegetables, fruits, and protein. 

All in all, Luna is most thankful for the impact her journey’s made on her faith.

“I’ve become a lot more firm in my walk (with God),” Luna said.  “ I've become more humble and I've learned to just cling to God and just know that as long as He’s the center, everything else will fall into place as it needs to be.”

Luna (above) does squat repetitions in the Gregory Gym
weight room. Photo by Olivia Suarez

Luna also seeks advice from Sigma Phi Lambda President Erin Howell.

“This relationship started with her asking me to be her mentor, but I've learned just as much, if not more, from her,” Howell said. “It's been such an honor seeing her grow over the past year, and I know that only the Lord could have instigated such radical change. Because we've been friends for so long, I haven't just seen a change in her body; I've seen a change in her spirit, in her heart.”

The social work senior said that Luna's commitment to physical, spiritual, and emotional health really inspired her "to get up and get moving."

Luna (left) and Howell (right) at the Fall 2012
Sigma Phi Lambda Initiation Ceremony.
Photo courtesy by Elena Luna

"While I'm encouraging her spirtual walk, she's giving me fitness tips and motivation to take care of my body," Howell said.

As Luna's Friday workout drew to a close, she smiled and shared one of the most essential parts of the whole process: loving herself.

One thing I try to tell people is that I don't work out because I hate my body, I work out because I love my body," Luna said. "This is the only place where I'm going to have to live."

UPDATE: Luna no longer engages in the Paleo diet. Her reasoning behind that is simple: lack of satisfaction. 

"I wasn't happy doing it! It was so restrictive and I couldn't enjoy the things that I really like and it just made me miserable," Luna said.

Instead, Luna opts for a more tolerable alternative: moderation.

"Moderation is significant because even too much of a good thing can be a bad thing," Luna said. "If I'm not eating the things I enjoy, then I am not living."