Hello Beautiful,
Getting healthy means more than just eating a salad or going for a run. Getting healthy includes having a healthy mental state and healthy relationships. Being healthy also means being happy. When you restrict yourself to a diet or counting calories, you can damage your perception of what being healthy really means.
When you begin to research ways to be healthy and happy, you have to accommodate yourself. It’s easy to look at someone super fit and healthy and say I am going to do that. But, you have to be aware that everybody is different. Literally, every “body” functions differently and must be nourished in various ways.
Disclaimer: I’m not a health expert and I’m not perfect. These things I am sharing are things I continue to work on everyday. I’m not a pro, but that’s the point of working on yourself. You don’t ever stop, it’s a continuous exercise until it becomes a habit. Nobody is perfect. We are all working towards becoming the best versions of ourselves.
With that being said, I just want to share the top 5 things that helped me get inspired to live a more healthy lifestyle. Once again, I am still working on these things daily until they become a habit.
Eat Yummy Food!
Wait! What? Yes, I said eat yummy food. Yummy food that will nourish your body and give you energy. Food is a key factor to becoming healthy, what you put into your body determines your overall health. You want to eat foods that energize you and are filled with good nutrients. Foods that are fresh and not processed. I know how difficult it can be to eat clean on a college budget, but it is possible. (grocery shopping haul to come!)
The key to eating fresh and clean is finding recipes you like, and finding meals that work for you. Everyone has different tastes and learning to eat healthy takes some trial and error. Do research, try new things and repeat.
Progress is still Progress
Something I have learned in my healthy living journey is that no matter the progress you make, it is still progress. Every baby step will eventually add up to big leaps. The little victories should still be celebrated because when you put any journey into perspective, you realize that every piece counts. It all adds up to equal the final product.
Celebrate your small wins, and never lose faith because you aren’t “making progress” because you are!
Listen to your Body
Learn what your body wants and how it reacts to different foods and exercises. I sort of explained this in the first point, but this practice is the best way to achieve a healthy lifestyle. I’ve mentioned the YouTuber, Sarah’s Day before on my blog because she was part of my inspiration to get back to working on myself. Listen to your body is her motto. She lives by this method and I believe it is an effective method too. I think this because our body tells us how it feels in different cues, think about when you’ve ate a really sugary donut or something, how did you feel? I know when I eat too much sugar in a day, my tummy hurts. That’s when you listen to your body. How is it functioning? Are you properly digesting your food? How do you feel?
All of these things describe what it means to listen to your body. You don’t have to count calories to be healthy, you can simply buy good food and see how you feel. Same goes for working out, you don’t have to follow a plan; just do what feels best and works for your body. If you need a day to rest, relax and enjoy some tea…do it. LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!
Do What You Want
In regards to exercise, do what you want. What I mean by this is you do not have to follow everyone else. Sure, there are millions of workout plans on the internet and videos to buy. But, just do what feels right for you and works for you. Everyone is different and our bodies can react differently to certain workouts. Of course, you can still do your research and try out new methods but don’t hold yourself to one regimen. I personally enjoy high-intensity exercises! I’m not much for lifting weights, but sometimes I do it to change up my routine.
When it comes to being healthy and exercising, just know that your lifestyle is completely up to you. You do not have to be or do anything you don’t want to.
Love Yourself + Your Beauty
Trust me, I know what a battle it can be to wake up everyday and just be obsessed with yourself. It’s not possible. We all have insecurities we struggle with and we must face them everyday. The trick is to realize the everyone has them, even the most perfect people. You may think it’s just you, but there are thousands of people who probably struggle with similar things.
I’ve explained this in recent post, but you have to realize that beauty is different in everyone’s eyes. Flowers are pretty, but so are sunsets. Flowers don’t take any beauty away from the sunset. Same goes for you. Just because you don’t look like the models you see on social media, doesn’t mean you’re less beautiful.
In order to truly live a healthy + happy life, you must love yourself and work on becoming comfortable with who you are. You are so unique and beautiful. Embrace your flaws, know that they make you who you are. Fall in love with the process of getting healthy and being happy. Find new ways to make yourself happy everyday. Never stop learning more about yourself.
I hope from this post you can takeaway a few things. One being to get to know yourself and learn what is best for your body. Do your research, try new things and keep working hard. Another takeaway is loving yourself through the process. Every day throws something new at us, learn to go with the flow of things and trust the process. Some days will be quiet days spent in a cafe and other days will be spent smashing a workout in the gym. It’s about balance.
Lastly, remember that part of being healthy and happy includes taking care of your mind too. Don’t overwhelm yourself with a strict schedule or crazy diets. Take time to journal, drink tea and read a good book. It also means finding time to spend with people you love, people who inspire you. That may not be a point above, but it’s equally important. Your health goes beyond muscle tone.
Looking for more posts like this? Check out 20 Things to a Happy + Healthy Life, Farm Fresh Salad Recipe or I’m not Perfect, I Know.
Thank you for reading PYM today. I know some of this may have been slightly repetitive but these are the things that have helped me understand what it meant to be “healthy”, and hopefully thy can help you too.
xo, Lyss
