Gah.
Anyway, this frigid weather has caused me to slack on my workouts and my mood reflects that. I mean, I've been working out, but not REALLY. I've not gotten in a good, kick-me-own-ass kind of sweat that makes me feel amazing afterward. I've not given my all when working out and to be honest, I've only gotten my heart rate up 50% of the time I've worked out.
I've been a slacker.
However, yesterday I decided to get back to it and I'm feeling amazing this morning after another workout...this time yoga balance and stretching practice.
Because I've been active most of my life, I thought I'd pass along some tricks I use to get my booty in gear when I get the blahs.
1. Buy new workout attire! This is what I did yesterday and it worked like a charm! Retail therapy is called that for a reason. haha! Seriously though. You don't have to spend hundreds of dollars on a whole new workout wardrobe. Just grab a new pair of pants and a sports bra or tank. I bought two new pairs of pants at Meijer. They were buy one get one 50% off.
2. Start slow...take a walk with your child or dog. Do a bit of stretching. Just doing something simple like this will help you remember how amazing you feel when you get in a good workout. Your body will crave the movement.
3. Team up with a friend! This is crucial. Even if it's only through social media, team up with a friend to motivate each other and hold each other accountable. Don't have anyone else to do this with? Add me as a friend on Facebook. I'm running a free 7 Day Fitness Challenge starting March 2nd. Let me know you want in an I'll add you. :)
4. Write down everything you eat. Food journals are used by doctors and therapists to help people with eating disorders from over eating to anorexia and bulimia. Don't want to lug a notebook everywhere you go? Down load the My Fitness Pal app! It makes it easy to keep track of what you're eating and how many calories you've consumed.
5. Drink more water! What does thi have to do with getting active? When you're dehydrated, you naturally don't want to be active, because your body NEES water. Have you ever seen a plant that needs water? It's not reaching up to the sun...it's wilting, trying to conserve every ounce of energy it has left. Give it water and what happens? You got it! Within an hour it's back to itself. How much water to you need per day? Here's a handy infographic:
6. Rock your playlist! Music is a great motivator. Make a fresh new playlist and get going!
7. Change up your routine. Maybe you're bored out of your mind with weights and push-ups! Well, then stop doing them! Again, this is where a group can help you. In a group of other fitness enthusiasts, you can discover new workouts to keep things interesting. Boredom is not your friend for a number of reasons.
~ You won't want to keep doing the same thing over and over and over. It's like when you get a new job and at first it's so exciting and the days fly by and you have energy at the end of the day to go out and hang with friends....and then one day it's not so exciting, the days drag by and you're counting down the days until the weekend....and you find yourself on the couch each night until you go to bed feeling less than satisfied. It's because your brain has figured it all out and your neurons are firing accordingly. Your workout routine has to be varied.
~ Your body will figure it out and you'll find yourself at a plateau. This is especially true if you're very rigid with your caloric intake as well as following a rigid routine. Eventually you won't see results, because your body will realize..."oh, I get only this many calories and we're doing this...AGAIN." Cool, then I'll be sure to conserve this much....and you'll plateau. Mark my word.
8. Set a goal and SHARE this goal with others...but ONLY with those you know will support you. If you do not have supportive people around you, then I suggest you - find new people to spend your time with and also...add me on Facebook and I'll get you in one of my groups. Seriously! Support is vital. I want to see you succeed. "But you don't even know me." You say...it doesn't matter. My big picture goal is to help people (with emphasis on women) feel amazing and comfortable in their own skin. It's my mission and I'm not even kidding.
I know what it's like to start getting healthy when you're surrounded by people who criticize you, who make tongue-in-cheek comments to you or behind your back, who behave in passive aggressive ways in regards to what you're doing. And when you reach for something not-so-healthy, they say, "Really, YOU'RE going to eat THAT?!"
I know what it's like and it makes it all very hard. You have to be super intrinsically motivated to overcome that. Thankfully, especially concerning health and wellness, I AM very intrinsically motivated. It's a fact though, that most people are not.
9. Stop thinking you have to be a certain size, look a certain way, do a certain thing to be in shape and feel great! Stop this. You are setting yourself up for disappointment or worse. There is no size on earth that will make you happy. You do not have to look like a model to be beautiful. You do not have to have muscles and a 6-pack to be in amazing shape. Stop comparing yourself to others!
You are you.
You are beautiful.
You are AMAZING...
Please remember this:
Healthy takes on many images, but they all have these things in common light-heartedness, compassion, and a deeply held sense of happiness. I don't care what size you are. I don't care how amazing you think you look, if you do not feel like THIS, then you are not healthy.
Health has to do with SO MUCH MORE than the physical. It's about balance of the physical, mental, and emotional sides us us.
If you need help with this, or you just want a supportive group of people to share your journey with, please do not hesitate to add me on Facebook. I'll help you. We'll share our struggles and celebrate our successes.
You can do it.
xoxo,
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