I'm Thankful for Change

This year, I have so much to be thankful for! One thing that I am especially grateful for this year is change. I'm thankful that I decided to make a change in my life, because that change brought me so many more things to be thankful for. I am so lucky to be happy and healthy this year. When I made this huge change in my life I had no idea how many great things would come as a result. Change has brought me happiness, friends, and a better life in general. On that note, I am ESPECIALLY thankful for the people who have supported me through it all. Thank you to my family, friends, and followers who keep me motivated!

If this year you don't feel as though you have a lot to be thankful for, maybe it is time to make a change in your life. If next year you want to be thankful for health and happiness, start your journey after Thanksgiving, it's never to late to change the course of your life!

5 Random things I'm thankful for:

1. Skinny Pop
2. Sweet Potatoes 
3. The Stair Master
4. The students in my cycling class that brighten my Mondays and Wednesdays :) 
5. Thanksgiving break- it's about time we had a break!!

5 Ways to Stay Happy and Healthy this Holiday Season

It's amazing how fast this semester is going for me, it flew by! Thanksgiving is only two weeks away, which means holiday season is right around the corner. Holidays are great! They mean lots of quality time with family and friends, but they also mean lots of fattening foods. No need to be anxious though, I am here to help! Here are 5 ways that you can remain healthy this holiday season:

1. Treat food as an experience- Treating food as an experience basically means consuming in moderation and really taking in what you are eating. Instead of eating too much of one thing, just try everything. It's better if you take a piece of turkey, a spoonful of mashed potatoes, a spoonful of mac and cheese, and a spoonful of green bean casserole, than say eating a whole plate of mashed potatoes. Never eat to much of one thing, everything is okay in moderation. Make sure when you eat foods that you don't normally eat, like pumpkin pie, bread, or mashed potatoes, that you are aware of what you are eating. Think about the food. When you think about how rich the food is, you are less likely to go for seconds. Enjoy the rich qualities of holiday food, but in moderation :)
2. Stop standing and eating- During the holidays I often find myself standing around a table full of food, mingling with friends, and before I know it I ate half the plate of cookies. DO NOT BE THE COOKIE MONSTER. Mingle while standing and find a seat when you are ready to eat. When you are standing and grabbing food, you aren't processing what you are eating, and you often forget that you ate anything at all. Be mindful about your food decisions, step away from the table, grab a seat, and eat mindfully. 
3. Plan accordingly- If you know you have a weekend filled with holiday parties, make sure you eat well all week and get some good workouts in. Don't starve yourself or binge, just eat as your healthy self normally would, without letting yourself cheat too much. Also, don't go to a party hungry. If you know you are going to a holiday party snack on some nuts before, because nuts suppress appetite. If you go to a holiday party starving, you will probably end up eating way too much, and a lot of food that are not necessarily healthy options. 
4. Make the best decisions you can in the moment- Choose your best options. You know what is healthy and what is not. You know that your plate should include a portion of protein and good carbs (vegetables, fruits, etc.). However, when presented with the overwhelming platter of unhealthy options, it can be difficult to make the right decisions. Find what's healthy first, and then take a little bit of those things that you have been craving, but ask yourself first if you really want it. 
5. Keep your thoughts healthy and happy.- Think happy and healthy thoughts. Keep your mind thinking about how your choices affect your health and factor in your happiness. If what makes you happy during a holiday is a piece of pie, have a piece of pie, but not two. If what makes you happy is going for a walk with a friend, go for a walk. Stay healthy, but also stay happy, because those two things co-exist. When your thoughts and body are happy, you are more likely to make healthy choices. 

Also keep in mind that the holidays do not excuse you from exercising. Keep up the hard work in the gym or wherever you workout! It will pay off :) 

Good luck this Holiday season! I will try to post some more helpful holiday tips, as well as healthy recipes, in the weeks to come.

Let Your Insecurities Be Your Motivation

If you've read my background, or some of my other posts, you probably know that I've suffered from insecurity and self consciousness for most of my young adulthood and teenage years. The worst feeling in the world is when you realize something is wrong with you. Maybe it's that zit on your chin, that bump on your nose, or maybe that pudge in your stomach. For me it was the latter. I looked at the extra poundage that I had and I let it take over my life. The extra weight decided that I would be a recluse and make poor eating decisions, until one day, I had enough. Instead of being insecure, I decided I needed a change. So I took my insecurities, and made them my motivation.

From the day I took a picture of my overweight stomach, I looked at it everyday. I didn't necessarily look at other peoples stomachs and decide those were what I wanted, but I looked at my own stomach, and decided that it was the stomach I never wanted to have again. By looking at the picture everyday, I constantly pushed myself to do something. To change. I couldn't just look at the picture and say I was going to change, but I had to put in work. So when I looked at my stomach, I told myself I needed to run the extra mile and skip the dessert.

I no longer have that problem. I love the way my stomach looks now and I am confident in it and myself, but don't get me wrong, there are plenty of days where I still find something wrong and start to feel insecure. But I've learned to not let the insecurity take over my life. I still decide to change when something is not okay in my eyes. A few weeks ago I decided that I needed to tone my arms more because I didn't like how they looked, and so I worked on them.

So what is holding you back? What is your greatest insecurity? Whether it be something small or something big, make the change. Your change may be life changing, or something very small, but change is change, and it is usually for the better. Take the things that make you insecure and self conscious and use them as your motivation to change.

Have an awesome week :)

Healthy Goals of the Week

This week I'm trying something new to keep me on track, and I'm hoping you will try it too!

When I was losing weight I had everything planned out, my meals, my workouts, and all of that fun stuff. I wrote down my plans for the week on Sundays, and while this did, however, help me to lose weight and stay on track, I don't feel that it is necessary to micro manage your life in order to be healthy. SO I haven't been planning things out lately and things have been great! I've trusted myself to make good, healthy decisions and I have, but I do miss having some sort of structure. Instead of planning everything out, I have decided to make two lists on Sundays: one for healthy eating goals and one for my fitness goals for the week ahead.

I want you all to join me, by making your own lists on Sundays! It's very simple, just create 3 goals for both fitness and healthy eating that you think you can stick to and will help you live a healthy life. As an example, I will share my lists!

3 Healthy Eating Goals for the Week:

1. Only eat one spoonful of peanut butter a day (instead of 3- I have an addiction...its bad...)
2. Only allow yourself 3 non-fat lattes this week
3. No eating after 8:30 (try to limit late night snacking to only when I'm REALLY hungry)

3 Fitness Goals for the Week: 

1. Work extra hard on lower abs this week
2. Go on the stair climber at least twice, in addition to regular cardio 
3. Do at least 100 squats by Sunday (No squats on Monday and Tuesday because of cycling)

These are my goals and you are welcome to use them or adapt them to your own life, but it is highly unlikely, especially for the eating goals, that we face the exact same problems and have the same goals. Create your own goals and place them somewhere where you look everyday, for me it's my bulletin board, but a mirror, or on the fridge, would also be good places! I also posted quotes next to my goals to help motivate me :)

So challenge yourself and not only meet your goals, but exceed them. Give it your all this week!