Health, Wellness, And All That Good Stuff

July 7th 2017

Take care of your body and it will take care of you~

I never really knew what healthy felt like until I started realizing I wasn’t. I think it was around senior year of high school when I realized that I wasn’t feeling as great as I used to feel. I spent my entire life in and out of various physical activities and senior year was the first full year that I wasn’t in anything at all. I had quit dance around the age of 17 but stayed active through my job at a theatre camp over the summers. But senior year, I hit a low and started to lose that level of fit that I had grown to take for granted.

I had always been pretty effortlessly in shape my entire life. I wasn’t super fit or athletic, but my body was definitely capable and strong. It sort of runs in my family to be in shape. However, around the age of 18 I found myself feeling more bloated and gaining weight more rapidly than ever before. Mentally, I wasn’t in a good place either. However, I learned to overcome these things by making some small, gradual, life changes. That being said, I recently realized that I have never really put my tips out there to help other people, so here is a quick list of small life changes that will:

1. Healthy Body = Healthy Mind- It has been seen that living a healthier lifestyle greatly contributes to self-esteem and self confidence. That being said, my first tip is to envision your ideal self…and I don’t just mean thin or super ripped….I mean your full ideal self. Don’t try to envision this unattainable personal standard for yourself. Picture something realistic that you could achieve. Keep that image in your head and strive towards it. Every step closer to the person you wish to become will become so much more meaningful than staring at the scale for reassurance.
2. Sleep enough- I have preached this point so many times but going from someone who barely ever sleeps to someone who likes being in bed and asleep by 10:30 every night, I can tell you it makes a difference. Sleep repairs your body. If you find that going to zumba classes or spin classes or to the gym is your absolute jam, then you’re gonna put a strain on those muscles. Sleep repairs the wear and tear you put on your muscles every day and putting off sleep is like denying your body of time to fix itself! Your body does so much for you, help it out and rest.
3. Pay attention to your body- Your body will tell you what it wants. If you are hungry, eat, don’t starve yourself. If you are thirsty, drink water. Your metabolism knows how to do its job and what it needs to do its job, all it needs is for you to listen. This also goes for physical activity. Understand that you have physical limits and they aren’t always the same from day to day. Don’t overdo it. When your body says stop, stop.
4. Find something to get passionate about- This is a big one for me because I found it super hard to get passionate about going to the gym until I realized that taking classes and other alternate activities could fill the hole of not wanting to go to a gym. I love yoga, which is obvious if you read my blog at all. Yoga is something that is part of my daily life and will soon be part of my professional life too. My passion for it keeps me in shape. Find something that excites you to do and then put yourself fully into it.
5. Remember why you’re doing this- Don’t get fit or lose weight to impress or please other people, it’ll consume you. I used to lose weight to look better to other people and I got so nervous when I didn’t see myself making progress that I would sleep through meals to avoid extra food or count calories out of fear that I would be a let down. Change your lifestyle because you know it’ll be good for you, not because you feel you have to. You want to make yourself feel good, not pressured.
6. Lastly, progress, not perfection- You don’t have to make a full 180 with your life overnight. You can take it all in small steps. Don’t push yourself to be this crazy perfect person. Push yourself to be the person you know you can be but don’t break yourself down for nothing getting there right away. Progress is a far greater reward than perfection. If you could be perfect then you could never experience the joy of watching yourself grow.

I know these tips were sort of common sense, but I feel like a reminder every now and then can really give you what you need to get yourself back on track. So, to a healthier and brighter tomorrow!

Jess~