Candies & Crunches is a lifestyle blog which I started in November 2013. It will provide you with a sneak peek into my life: a constant battle of having a sweet tooth and trying to stay fit at the same time! In my opinion, that’s how happiness and fitness meet! Wouldn’t you agree?
I don’t believe in dieting; the key is moderation. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with treating yourself with a piece of chocolate or two from time to time! After all, we are only human!
But hey! Who’s the person behind the blog???
Voila!
My name is Olena. I was born in Kyiv, Ukraine. I have a baby face, so you’ll have to keep guessing how old I am! HA!
In that part of the world, if you’re a girl, you’ll end up being either a dancer or a ballerina or playing piano or violin. But you already knew that! Anyhow, I ended up doing rhythmic gymnastics for almost 10 years. Surprise, surprise! At times, it was excruciatingly painful (countless hours of choreography, rehearsing and doing splits off two chairs). But you know what? I miss the discipline that came with it, it was an invaluable life experience!
In 2005, my family and I moved to beautiful Montreal, Canada.
And then it happened… A big course load at the university + being a barista at Starbucks => Olena x 1.5 (size-wise). Okay, it wasn’t thaaaaat bad , but those yummy blueberry muffins right out the oven…mmmmmm… and chai lattes every single morning definitely didn’t help my curves and rather enhanced them. And to be completely frank with you, I REALLY didn’t like that kind of enhancement to my body, DUH!
Fast forward a couple of more years, and I met the love of my life, Justin. Despite his Italian roots and his dad’s amazing cooking (oh, I’m so lucky!!! I wish I could invite you all to one of his dinners!), I started dropping weight naturally (woop woop!) by simply eating properly, moderating the amount of sweets and exercising on a regular basis. At the end of the day, it’s all about respecting our bodies, right?
Justin proposed on June 21, 2012 and we got married on August 31, 2013. It was the most beautiful day of my life, followed by the most wonderful honeymoon in Antigua…
And then we were simply focusing on enjoying our new life together and being healthy… So we got our German Shephed, Bella.
And then maybe (just MAYBE) because I wanted to be in the best shape of my life before, you know… how do I put it… before getting preggers, I decided to train for a Spartan Trifecta. It was the most fun fitness adventure of my life. Within the following year I completed the Spartan Sprint, Super and Beast (part 1, part 2) races!
Fast forward a few months and we were expecting our baby girl!
Our little princess Sofia was born in July 2015. She is our biggest blessing and joy!
I have so much planned for this year ahead, including my first half marathon and I’m super excited to share all those things with you soon!
I believe that we have only one life and we have to live it to the fullest, cherish those who are the closest to us, and make this world beautiful by smiling more!
It’s a great pleasure meeting you! Please, don’t be shy and say hi from time to time! I won’t bite, I PROMISE!!!
xoxo
Olena
candies & crunches 
You’re so beautiful! Lovely to meet you and thanks so much for stopping by my blog 🙂
Awww! You’re so sweet! It’s a pleasure if it is something of good quality! Keep it up! xoxo
Thanks! Keep it a secret, but it’s actually my second blog! I have another I’ve built up over a year but it’s a poetry blog so I keep it anonymous. It’s really daunting starting from scratch again now!!
I know how you feel! However, I would be curious to read some of your poetry. I say, post it sometime! You never know! xoxo
Ah it’s too personal to associate with my name online, but thanks! 🙂 That’s a lovely photo of you and your mister by the way!
Thanks!!! Keep in touch!
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Your name absolutely fits! You are gorgeous and from your Welcome page it’s clear that your are beautiful on the inside as well! I look forward to reading more of your blog. Best wishes for a Happy & Healthy New Year!
You’re such a sweetheart, Wendy! Thank you very much for stopping by! Happy New Year to you too! May it bring you lots of beautiful memories, good laughs and strong health! xoxo Olena
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Love your blog and your attitude! I definitely agree with living your life with balance. Also, you are super gorgeous 🙂
Thank you sooo much, Kim!
Hi,
Started running in 2011 and felt fit, loved it. But then I got injured and somehow the injuries are chasing me. As you understand, I could use some inspiration. Not giving up though. Actually this is a new year and a new shot at becoming fit again.
Will keep an eye on your blog, have the feeling that this one could inspire me.
Keep going!
Hi darling!
Oh, I can totally understand, injuries are no fun. At some point I had a really bad case of runner’s knee and it sat me back quite a bit. But then we have to realize that it’s all in our hands and work through the fears as most of the time the pain is psychological (or perseived) and not physical (especially after a while).
I hadn’t run for 4 weeks prior to yesterday because of various circumstances and it took me some courage to pump myself for a 10 km run. And you know what? Once I stepped on the treadmill, I was happy to be there. It was a very liberating feeling! Don’t push yourself too hard, sometimes baby steps are better than nothing.
I’m super happy that you passed by my blog and hope you will keep me up to date with your progress!
All the best!
xoxo
Olena
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❤
I’m so glad I stopped by 😀 Those pictures are gorgeous, especially the wedding ones! You’ve got yourself a new follower
That’s very sweet of you, Alissa! Thanks for stopping by. I’m definitely looking forward to getting to know you and learning from each other!
xoxo
Olena
Your wedding pictures are beautiful! I am glad we have connected through our blogs, and can encourage each other along this journey of life 🙂
Thank you so much, girl! I am happy too because I LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog and its concept. You’ve got the best hashtags around that’s for sure! ❤
xoxo
Olena
Your wedding dress is BEAUTIFUL!! So jealous you live in Montreal! I’ve been twice and it’s always amazing 🙂 Thanks for stopping by my blog!
You’re very welcome darling!!! I’ll be following you closely from now on: it’s definitely worth it. And thank you very much for your kind words!
xoxo
Olena
Hi girl, gotta say love the dress and I’m a big fan of sweets too…but seriously we always have to watch what our fitness/diet!
Hi dear!
Thank you very much for passing by and for your kind words. Yup, gotta watch it, and yet it is still possible to enjoy life at the same time 😀
xoxo
Olena
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Look forward to reading your blog from now on
Thank you so much for stopping by! It’s always great to hear that you enjoy reading what I have to say. Kep in touch!
xoxo
Olena
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I nominated you for a Liebster Award, so check out my blog post to find out more! http://jillsliwkanich.wordpress.com/2014/04/03/liebster-award-2/
Thanks once again, Jill, fornominating me. I am truly honored!
xoxo
Olena
Hi, Olena! Your intro is so sweet 🙂 I am excited to read more of your blog!
Ruthie
Thank you sooo much, Ruthie! I’m looking forward to getting to know you better!
xoxo
Olena
Olena-
I love your blog- Candies and Crunches is so creative and so true! I look forward to seeing more of your posts and following your blog : )
PS- your wedding pictures are GORGEOUS
-Marisa
You are such a sweetheart, Marisa. Thank you!
xoxo
Olena
What a beautiful journey you have had to get you to this point in your life so far – I look forward to following your future adventures! Thank you for sharing this with us! 😀
Thank you so much! I am looking to following your adventures too. So glad to have met you in this blog world ❤ xoxo
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Hey! I nominated you for the Liebster Award 🙂 https://trimwithjenn.com/2016/04/18/liebster-award/
Thank you, darling!