This Year Make Every Season, Bikini Season

A short post on resolutions, bikini season, and my past year

2016 is just a few days away! Maybe you have thought about a resolution, maybe you have blown it off. Well this year, I urge you to make a resolution that you will keep, one that sets you up for success.

My resolution for this year is to make every season, bikini season. Winter can make it very difficult to think about wearing a bathing suit, because if you're anything like me, you are hiding away in an oversized sweater. Sure the sweater covers the fat and you don't have to worry about it, but what follows winter? Spring and summer, aka Bikini Season. When it's nice and warm outside, chances are, you won't want to be wearing a sweater. So this year don't wait for bikini season to come around to push you to get into shape, treat every season like it is bikini season.

There's no better feeling than feeling good about your body all year long. Last year, in early March, I decided to get into shape for "bikini season", and I did. But I wish I would have started earlier. Don't put yourself in a time crunch, go ahead and get started, what's stopping you?

Watching myself progress, was an amazing feeling, one that, if you are ready to, you should feel. It's easy to say you're going to eat a little healthier and go to the gym a little bit more, but to actually do so is completely different, and this year, if you set your mind to it, you can do it. 2016 should be the best year of your life, as 2015 was by far the best of mine. In 2015 I completely changed the track of my life. I went from being a stressed out, overweight, college student, to being a confident, healthy, and fit, college student, and I've never been happier.

Now is your chance. Make every season, bikini season, by sticking to your goals of eating right and working out. 2015 may have been my year, but 2016 is yours!

Get started by referring to my previous blog posts on how to go about starting and have an amazing new year :)

A good post to get you started...

http://stressedtoskinny.blogspot.com/2015/06/how-to-change-your-life-and-get-rid-of.html

Tips for a Healthy Exam Week

That time of year has quickly come around again, unfortunately. Exams. This can be a very stressful time for college students, and stress leads to some very unhealthy habits. Here are my tips on being successful this exam week:

1. Sleep: Sleep is obviously crucial for your health and well-being. With little to no sleep, the body does not function well, which leads to bad food choices and lack of motivation. Aim to get at least 6 hours of sleep a night, I would normally say 8, but I know that for most people this can be close to impossible during exams. 
2. Take a study break: Taking a short study break here and there is very important! Take this even a step further by going to the gym, going on a walk, or doing an ab routine. This will help you reduce some of the stress and then you will be able to come back to your studying with fresh eyes. 
3. Stick to your normal eating habits: Continue to eat healthy foods at the times you normally would during the day! Try to avoid eating foods that will make you tired, and stick to healthy greens and proteins. Also, don't overdose on caffeine this week. A cup of coffee won't kill you, but too much caffeine is not good for anyone. Another exam week temptation to avoid is late night snacking. Late night snacking is the cause of weight gain for many college students, as tempting as it is, don't do it. Try not to eat three hours before you go to bed!
4. Exercise: Taking thirty minutes out of your day to exercise is easy! Plus, who wouldn't want a thirty minute break to procrastinate at the gym?! Working out is an amazing stress reliever. You will leave the gym, or wherever you workout, with less stress and lots of positive endorphins. 
5. Meditation: Stress is the worst part of exam week. It hits most students hard, and many end up as balls of stress. You'd be amazed at how much a little deep breathing and meditation can help. When I'm feeling stressed, I turn to meditation. I use a guide online called www.calm.com. Calm.com has so many great options, including how much time you can choose to meditate, so you can do 2 minutes to an hour. I have found that 5 minutes is the perfect amount of time to calm my nerves. Try it for yourself! 

I hope these tips help you get through exam week! Have a fitastic Wednesday :)

5 Tips to Making this December Your Healthiest Yet

Update: I had a wonderful thanksgiving and break last week. I ate so many sweet potatoes, I may just turn into one. But overall, I made healthy choices in the food department, and I worked out every day (twice on Thanksgiving, miraculously). I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving as well!

Anyways...

Still feeling bloated and tired from Thanksgiving? Feeling like you are on a slippery slope to an unhealthy end to this year? Well, November is now in the past, and so is that Thanksgiving feast, so jump into December with a healthy attitude! Listed is 5 tips to making this December, which is usually a time filled with unhealthy choices, your healthiest yet, so that you can end the year right :)

1. Drink LOTS of water- Up your water intake this December! It's so easy to get wrapped up in the excitement of hot chocolate and holiday flavored coffees, that sometimes we forget about our best friend, water. It's important to drink water throughout the day to keep your body healthy. Sometimes when you think you are hungry, you might really just be dehydrated. Personally, I wake up every morning and drink about 20 oz of water before doing anything, but even just a cup will do! If you prefer hot drinks in the winter, drink hot water with a slice of lemon, not only will you be hydrating, but it will also serve as a natural detox! 
2. Set several small goals and one large goal- To keep yourself on track set goals. Set a large goal first, for example, lose 5 lbs this December. Then set small, attainable goals that will get you to the larger goal, for example, go to the gym five times a week and only allow yourself one treat a week. These are just examples, and it's up to you to come up with your own goals, but it is important to have goals to keep yourself on track this month, and every month. 
3. Don't rely on the gym- It's getting cold and motivation is low. Perhaps you don't feel like leaving the house to go to the gym. Well..... that's no problem at all! Don't rely on getting your exercise in the gym, but also don't just not workout because you can't make it to the gym. Working out in your living room, or wherever you have space, is easy. Go through my workouts I've posted, and watch some youtube videos, because I know it isn't always easy. This is also important to consider when you are traveling. You can do jumping jacks and push ups anywhere, trust me! 
4. Make your own meals when you can- Around the holidays eating dinner at a restaurant is a common occurrence, at least for me.  If this is also the case for you, try to restrain from eating food on the run or in a restaurant when you don't have to. Obviously, it's okay to get together with the girls on Friday night or with the family, but on a Tuesday, stay in and make a healthy home cooked meal. Plan ahead and try to eat healthy throughout the whole week, so when your weekend restaurant trips come around, then you won't feel as bad. You can even make it one of your small goals to cut back on your restaurant food intake. 
5. Build willpower and use it- It may be hard to restrain from the Christmas cookies and eggnog, but use willpower. While having a cookie here and there is okay (MODERATION), use your willpower to not eat too much. It is important to build willpower, and this is the perfect chance to do so. Tell yourself that you don't need another cookie or another cup of hot chocolate. Restrain yourself and give yourself the useful gift of willpower this December. 

I hope this helps you end the year in a healthy way!

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!