Tuesday, February 5, 2019
How's that for a title? But for real. Show of hands. How many of us have made resolutions this year to up our fitness game? ✋ Having two children made my body change. Like, change change.. I have curves in places I didn't even know could have curves. I have loose skin and stretchmarks and weight allllllll in my belly and thighs. I'll be 31 this year and I'll be damned if I'm not in the best shape of my life this summer so I've made some resolutions goals to get me on track.



Truth: Fitness resolutions are daunting. And the word "resolution" sucks, am I right? It sounds so permanent and that you have only one shot to make it. This chick is switchin' up the game. I've come up with five ways to hit those resolutions so hard, they won't even see it coming!

1. SWITCH OUT THE WORD "RESOLUTION" FOR THE WORD "GOAL".

I've switched out the world "resolution" for the word "goal" which is kind of the same thing but my brain seems to like the latter word better. Hey, whatever it takes to get goin', am I right? When I think of the word "goal", I think of a finish line that might have a few bumps and falls to get there, but we did it and that's makes me way more motivated to get back on board if I slip up which, by the way, is totally fine!

2. BUY THE CUTE CLOTHES.

Hi. I'm an enabler. Honest to God, I'm the worst person to shop with. "Should I get this?" Me: ABSOLUTELY. It could be a wall-sized poster of Aaron Carter and I'd be like, "Girl. You can find room for that." Anyway, I'm here to tell you that some times, okay, a lot of times, when you look good, you feel good (and vice versa). So grab yourself those super cute Adidas sneakers you've been eyeing (and while you're at it, grab some that cute tank too), slip those babies on and get to work! If you can't afford new gear, check out the sales or head on over to a Plato's Closet (I'm obsessed with this store!) and treat yourself!



3. PUT A STRAW IN IT.

And while you're in a "treat yourself" kind of mood, get yourself a cute water bottle - preferably one with a straw! Your water intake is especially important when working out for obvious reasons (like hi, dehydration) but it's also a major helper with weight loss as it kind of acts like an appetite suppressant since it fills you up when you drink it. Drinking water also boosts your metabolism and flushes out waste!

I know, it seems kind of silly but there's just something about an aesthetically pleasing water bottle with a straw that makes me want to drink out of it. Hear me out. There's actually a science behind it! Research shows we take longer sips when drinking from a straw. Our lips form a vacuum around the straw that seals out all the air meaning more water being ingested. The act of sucking is naturally soothing to us - like when we were babies with a bottle, binky, thumb or breast. So, boom! SCIENCE. (Source: Care2.com)

4. FIND A WORK OUT THAT WORKS FOR YOU.

Finding a work out that you like doing is a total game changer! Whether it's dancing, lifting, running, cardio, HIIT, all of the above, none of the above - try them all. Find something that you get excited about. Heck, switch it up. You don't have to really follow anything. Find something that challenges you. Hey, you might not look forward to it all the time, but you'll never regret it after it's done. I tried so many different work outs but I ended up really liking Kayla Itsines' BBG on the Sweat app. It's so tough and I dread it a lot of times but it's a workout that has it's own food program, schedule that works for me and an easy-to-follow work out plan that I can fit into my day.

5. BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE.

Ah, the toughest tip of all. Thankfully, you don't need to have workout buddies to be held accountable although they totally help and can make working out a lot more fun but if you're schedules don't sync with your friends, I have a solution. I leave the notifications on my fitness app/food log in app so that multiple times a day, it reminds or alerts me to track my food or, "Hey! Your work out starts in a few minutes!", "Hey! You haven't logged your food in yet." If you don't want to download an app, simply setting reminders gets the same point across. Another tip is to set "reward goals" where you when you hit a certain goal, you reward yourself. It's more motivation than being held accountable but having smaller goals to hit may seem easier on a smaller scale.


In case you haven't heard it today: 

You GOT this.
You're not going to regret it once it's over.
With challenge, comes change.

How are you keeping up with your fitness resolutions?