About

Hi there!

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I’m Alison, and welcome to Daily Moves and Grooves, a space where I…

  1. Express my love for Jesus Christ, God of the Universe.
  2. Show the absurd amounts of nut butter I eat.
  3. Try to be uplifting and encouraging, especially when it comes to eating disorders, exercise addiction, and body image.
  4. Find joy and significance in life’s big and little moments.
  5. Embarrass myself.
  6. Don’t take myself too seriously.
  7. Have conversations with YOU!

Quick Tidbits

Blog started: August 2013

Age: 24

School and major: Boston University; Physical Therapy

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One of my favorite quotes: “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.” – St. Teresa of Calcutta

My Story

My journey toward healthier living started off with good intentions. I wanted to eat whole foods that were better for my body and its activity. However, my image of “healthy” skewed as I aimed to lose weight when I really did not need to. Health to me became a thing of vanity. My focus slowly turned away from eating whole foods to eating well-thought-out portions at certain times. I started avoiding all “junk” foods and barely ever indulged in desserts. I started counting calories, and I shortchanged myself by underestimating my daily caloric needs and overestimating the caloric values of food “just in case.” All the while, I was increasing my exercise and dancing more. All of this would have been fantastic if I needed to lose weight, but I did not need to. I needed to be growing because I had not even hit puberty yet. No good, right? Of course, I started losing weight fairly quickly. Thank God for my parents, dance teachers, and friends, because when they noticed my lack of energy and drawn face, they helped pull me out of my disorder before it got really bad.

In the past 1.5 years, with the support of my family and some doctors, I believe I have made enormous progress. I no longer count calories, I enjoy all foods in moderation, and I’m focused on living healthily in both body AND soul. Reading blogs has helped me cope with my issues, which is why I have come to love them so much.

Read more about my recovery and thoughts on my eating disorder in these posts:

Evaluating My Workouts: Doing What’s Best For Me Right Now

I Used to Have Hips

Resting: I Don’t Think I’m Doing It Right

A Different Kind of Discipline

I’m Okay With That

The Way I See Myself Has Changed

A Different Kind of Discipline

Finally Balanced

My Eating Disorder: Looking Back and Moving Forward

The Eating and Exercise Disorder Demons That Stick Around

Reflecting on My Exercise…Again

My Faith

My faith is the most important thing to me. Each and every day, God reveals his love to me in ways that can make me overjoyed or make me upset–at the time. I am ceaselessly amazed at His works and I offer this blog up to Him for His glory.

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My Family

I am super duper close with my kin (<–do people even say that anymore?). My immediate family consists of my dad (aka Pop), my mom (aka Madre, the best hostess of all time), and my brother Ben (my bff).

They are the most supportive, patient, loving people. I really don’t know how they deal with me sometimes. I actually feel like I’m “that odd one” in the family. Ha. But anyway, God knew that my mom, dad, and brother would be the right people to help me thrive. Thank you. 

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More about Ben: We speak in British accents with each other and like to hike together.

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Food

I show a lot of it on Moves and Grooves. Sometimes I chuck food photos into my posts, often I show my eats through What I Ate Wednesday, and other times I share some of my spur-of-the-moment, amateur recipes.

I like to keep things wholesome and nutritious most of the time, but definitely not all the time. I don’t really like to use the term 80/20, because sometimes it’s 70/30, 60/40, or even 50/50. ‘Tis what ’tis, and we’ll all float on alright.

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Favorite foods: Nut butter, Greek yogurt, salmon, avocado toast, crab cakes, ice cream, tacos, sushi, sweet potato fries, gyros… I’ll stop there. Nut butter takes first prize though.

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Favorite meal: breakfast

Favorite dessert: peach cobbler a la mode

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Moves (Fitness)

Being able to exercise is fun, good for ya, and it’s a blessing. I’ve only recently truly grasped the concept of fitness to optimize my ability to do things, rather than to change the way I look. Shifting into this mindset has made fitness so much more enjoyable for me!

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Favorite ways to move: burpees (for real), dance, walking, yoga, ultimate frisbee, circuit workouts…almost anything (unless it involves a ball)!

Oh and let me explain the name of my blog!

DAILY MOVES AND GROOVES

It’s catchy, but I still get embarrassed when I say it out loud to other people. Nevertheless, this is how it pertains to me:

1) I like to move on a daily basis, whether it involves a hard workout or just walking around the house in between studying.

2) I like to dance (aka groove).

3) Food makes me want to dance (see #2).

4) I strive to move closer to God on a daily basis.

Some may say that’s a stretch, but let’s roll with it 🙂

Thanks so much for stopping by, and I hope you join me as I move and groove on the daily!

Follow me:

On the right sidebar, you can follow me via email or RSS (feedly, bloglovin, etc.)!

Also follow my Instagram and Twitter @alison_grooves

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dailymovesandgrooves

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40 thoughts on “About”

  1. You’re adorable and I’m creepy because I just followed your blog and instagram within two minutes of scanning your posts..excited to read more! Healthy living blogs literally changed my life, and I always love coming across a new one with a writer who seems awesome!

    Reply

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  6. I love your story, Alison. I used to be a dancer myself…ballet, tap, jazz, and pointe for 17 years. I miss it so much! I would love to take some adult classes. It kept me in good shape for a very long time. You seem to have such a sweet family. Family is everything!!

    Reply

  7. Pingback: Evaluating My Workouts: Doing What’s Best For Me Right Now | Daily Moves and Grooves

  10. I just found your blog through WIAW… I love it!

    I love that you’re a dancer! I’m an actress, so it’s cool to find another HLB that’s artistically inclined, haha. I’m definitely going to be reading your blog from now on!

    Reply

  11. Wow, you’re so young! Keep up the awesome drive you have going there. It’s great to see how aware you are of healthy eating. You have a bright future ahead! Glad to have found you on WIAW. Looking forward to reading more:)

    Reply

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  14. Hey Alison 🙂 I’ve seen your linkup on Amanda and Arman’s blogs before and I just now decided to check it out. I’m seriously in love (in a platonic way, I promise); you and I have so much in common, and your blog is adorable! I’m really looking forward to reading more from you. 🙂

    Reply

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  16. Just found your blog and I love your attitude about fitness, faith, food….pretty much everything haha! Can’t wait to read more of your posts!

    Reply

  17. It was really cool to see you have been attending Boston University because my oldest sister is at Boston University for the summer with “Navigators.” It’s a Christian organization :).

    Reply

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