When it comes to eating right and exercising my life is a series of, “I’ll start on Monday”…
After a (week)end of eating badly and slothing around at home, I get ready for bed that faithful Sunday night and promise myself that this week I will turn it all around. This time next week I’m going to have been in a work out routine and have had no sugar or carbs all week. On the one hand, I don’t ever really have a huge significant binge moment where I stop dead in my tracks and cram my mouth with everything and anything I can find. I just sort of lose interest and get over it, probably by Wednesday or Thursday. I’ll blame the weather for being too cold to want to workout, my day too busy to cook a nutritious meal or any other reason that seems valid at the time. You see a healthy lifestyle takes time and effort and you have to be consistent. Something I definitely have not mastered yet. There is a seriously lazy gal hiding deep down inside me guys.
When it comes to exercising running is my go-to activity. It’s relaxing, works your whole body at once and you can do it from anywhere at anytime. All you need is a pair of sneakers and you’re good to go. My running track record has been very up and down, backwards and forwards – just all over the place. In school I was on the athletics and cross-country team and grew up watching my Dad run countless marathons, so running has always been a thing in my life. Towards the end of Varsity I took it very seriously for a while and trained myself to run a half marathon. A personal victory for sure when I actually managed to pull it off. I also use to do rhythmic gymnastics for a long time when I was younger so the flexibility and fitness aspect has always been instilled me and so despite my ‘stop start’ approach to exercise, I always manage to get back into it pretty easily whenever I do choose to. For example, I did another half marathon earlier this year which I WAS NOT prepared for but went ahead with anyway and still somehow managed to complete in time.
I’ve probably never experienced my body at its optimal performance level before as my eating and exercising is so sporadic and inconsistent. Even when I was at my best fitness level I still was eating processed, quick and easy food that never gave my body the nutrition it needed to perform what I was expecting of it. I don’t eat a lot of food but what I do eat is usually not very good for me. I am however aware of this and consciously trying to get better which in my mind is at least a start?
Check out a post I wrote about a juice cleanse I did and to read more about my eating habits.
Nothing says ‘time to workout’ the same way cute workout clothes do. As with most things in life, cute clothes get me excited! In this case, excited to get up and get moving. Having had some bad experiences in the past (and just generally not enjoying the stigma that is attached with it these days), I stay clear of the gym – the one place my cute outfits were on full display (yay and nay). So these days my cute workout attire is beneficial to me alone or some passer-by in the forest on my jogs. For some reason everyone seems to think the only way you can work out is by going to the gym? The amount of exercise you can get done at home just by using resources around you is amazing. You don’t have to have a spin bike or anything intense like that. Working out at home, the park, the promenade – wherever you like to clock up the miles, saves money, usually always saves time and you have the added bonus of getting down and dirty and sweaty in the comfort of your own space. If this still doesn’t sound convincing there are some helpful and informative fitness app’s you can download and workout off of your phone which I use religiously when running and doing fitness exercises.
Look out for a post to come on some of my favourite fitness app’s to help with your workouts and manage your fitness journey.
Along with the numerous online trends we see everyday, fitness and this idea of a healthy lifestyle is one that continues to grow and bombard us. From fitness models, to fitness bloggers to personal trainers, the list is endless with influencers who are telling us how we should be working out, what food to eat and how we should look and feel. All of whom by the way are actual #goals and keep me constantly striving to better myself. They have great advice and tips and tricks to help you. Out of the many trends circulating this decade, the fitness trend is definitely not one I have a problem with. Eating right and taking care of your body is more important than even I probably realize and it’s great that working out has become such a ‘cool’ thing to do. Although it’s been said over and over again I felt the need to reiterate it here on my blog as well because I do feel very strongly that you have to keep in mind, everyone’s bodies are different. Everyone’s fitness journey will be different and what works for one person won’t necessarily work for another.
Set personal health and fitness goals that are obtainable to you and will matter to you. One of my goals right now is to be able to run a 5km in 30 minutes (which when you’ve let yourself become as unfit as I have, is a big goal). To someone else that’s probably so lame and so easy, but to me I can’t wait until I reach it. I’ll feel so proud of myself and generally happy to be back into my running. We all know when you feel good you’re a happier, nicer person because of it.
It’s so SO cliché to say but you have to stop comparing yourself to others! Social media gives us this intimate access into one another’s lives and its the easiest thing ever to become consumed with someone else’s life. I myself struggle with this all the time. I can however promise you that the moment you take your eyes off of everyone else and focus on your journey you’ll start seeing better results. It is process of course so don’t expect self-love to happen overnight. Give yourself time. So you don’t like the gym? So you workout way more than anyone else you know? So you hate working out altogether? Whatever the case may be, that’s okay. Despite what it can feel like, fitness is your friend. Living a healthy lifestyle is more than just what you eat and how often you train. It’s about living the best life YOU can live and finding what works best for you.
I’m the furthest thing from an exercise bunny or someone who should dish out fitness advice, I just wanted to share a bit of my story with eating and exercising because there’s got to be more than one “I’ll start on Monday” type of girl out there reading this. And you know what? We might not have it all figured out all the time, but to keep trying and starting over again and again is pretty impressive to me. I’m so excited for what is still to come in the future and you should be too. A healthier, happier you is right around the corner, you just need to go find her 🙂
Images by the talented Tegan Smith.
Leave a Reply