What Living a Healthier Lifestyle Has Taught Me

I am changing it up a bit this week on my posting schedule! Trying a few new things since I have the time this week :)

My sophomore year of college I decided to make a lifestyle change. I decided that I was going to be a healthier version of myself. That was the easy part. I had no idea there would be so many struggles along the way - I mean, if you eat better and work out how can it be hard?? Well, trust me, it can be hard.

Here are a few things I have learned along the way.

1|| Being healthy includes a combination of eating well AND exercising

Don't get me wrong, just changing one habit (i.e. exercising when you never did or eating healthier in general ) is great, but if you want to see major results you need to change both. 

2|| Start with small changes and work your way up

In the beginning of my lifestyle change I made small changes. I cut out all pop/soda, I switched from white bread and white rice to wheat bread and brown rice, I ate smaller portion sizes, I started packing my meals, and I started listening to my body. If I was full I was done eating. Now I eat healthier than ever before and crave fruit and veggies. Crazy how that happens, right?!

3|| Don't get too crazed in your eating ways that you don't enjoy yourself

Eat dessert people. I knew I could not cut out all sweets or I would go crazy and binge later. In order to satisfy my sweet tooth I save dessert for special events or if I am absolutely craving something - ahem, female problems. 

4|| Set goals for yourself

While you know a lifestyle change is a definite positive, keeping the motivation to continue to eat well and get your butt to the gym is hard. We live busy lives and trying to incorporate something that may make us moan on days is difficult. Set little goals for yourself in order to keep motivated. I decided not to do a weight goal (but you certainly can!) and instead I opted for a how hard I workout goal. For example, when I first started doing cardio it was rough. I worked my way from a rough 20 minute cardio session to an easy 30 minute session. Once I was able to cardio it up for 30 minutes comfortably, I started adding intervals.

5|| You will take a few steps back

Be realistic with yourself and your workouts. I still have and will always have days where I struggle to do something that is normally easy. There are days I feel so crappy or tired that I don't even make it to the gym because I know it is not worth it. There are other days where I am struggling to do a workout that is normally easy. It happens. Just keep on going!

6|| Finding a routine that works best for you is hard

Incredibly hard! I am still working on this! There is no set amount of time/cardio/weight that will make you lose weight. Everyone's body is different and our bodies will react different to the same workout than someone else's. So I started out doing just cardio and learned that I have to do lots of high intensity intervals in order to lose weight (most people do). I did lose weight but then I decided that I wanted to be more toned so I started with weight and then started doing full body HIIT workouts. The full body HIIT workouts are great but I gained weight - granted it was muscle - but I was annoyed that my thighs weren't fitting into my jeans even though I liked the way I looked. Now I have swapped a day of full body HIIT for an extra day of high intensity cardio. It's all about adapting and changing! So far I am liking how this is working out and will keep it up for a while unless I feel that something else needs to be altered. 

Phew, just thinking about a lifestyle change can seem exhausting but I can promise you that I am incredibly happy with my choice and am so thrilled that I took the plunge. It is a tough road physically and mentally so I wanted to shed some light on some of the frustrations you will likely encounter.