Heya lovelies!
I hope you're all doing well and having a great day. I'm once again starting the day with fruit breakfast and a jog, which seems to be the winning combo for me at the moment. Now I only wish it won't rain when I get out, though, haha!
As I've been promising, here's my take on healthy lifestyle, detox, and that sorts of stuff. This post is not read through by any experts, so for the real advice, consult someone who has a degree on the matter - or is an enthusiast, and therefore knows everything there is to know. I'm still learning, so there probably is a ton of things I could do better, but you know, I'll get there.
Where I started
My reason for doing this is
not weight loss but rather to feel better about my body, get a healthier life and to make the most out of my life. I've been missing proper exercise for a couple of years, so it was desperately time to do something about that. Here's a couple of photos of my body from day one. It's not that bad, but it's definitely not a very sporty body. My worst problem area is my middle body, especially the stomach. I have the tendency to suffer from bloating, so this journey is a lot about finding out what makes my body act weird like that.
What you can't see here is that for months now, I've been fighting a thing called "skinny fat". Which means that even though my weight isn't an issue, my body lacks muscle and has fat there instead. This is mostly caused in my case by stressing out, not working out, and eating very badly. Skinny fat may not sound like a big deal, but what I've read, it can evolve to a really bad thing. That's why I decided it's time for change, and time to get back into the shape I was a couple of years ago.
Eating habits
I'm the worst eater, I can stand without food for hours if I just focus into doing something. That is super unhealthy, and combined with the stress, it made my appetite practically disappear. This spring, I've been learning to eat bigger portions again, but also, I've learned how to make better choices with my food. I've also tried to learn the importance of drinking enough water, which is super important now that I'm exercising more.
Here are some examples of my basic foods I've eaten the past couple of weeks:
Lots of fresh stuff, veggies, fruit, berries... Plenty of water and fluids (mostly without sugar, caffeine or alcohol), and enough protein to keep my muscles healthy. Basically I just try to eat everything in neat balance, cutting off just unnecessary sugar, fat and empty calories. That way, I can keep on eating lot, but it won't start to hinder my progress. One important thing about my new diet (well, not diet, really, but more like eating habits) is that I refuse to eat overly lot of the processed foods. I hate what all the additional substances do to the body - and not to mention, to your metabolism - so I try to minimize them from my foods altogether. One great thing that has come out of this, is that even though I like candies, I don't crave for them anymore. I've kicked my sugar addiction at least from that aspect, which I'm really proud of. I rather buy fresh berries or a pomegranate, and snack on that instead.
I also did a small detox to cleanse my body and prepare it for the new lifestyle. I added loads of water into my diet, made some of that lemon water, and drank green tea to boots my metabolism - or, I think I should say my usage of water or something. Anyway, the point is to get rid of the junk my body had stored during stressful months and to make the body open for change.It worked wonders for me, and it reminded how important it is to keep the body hydrated. Also, most of you know that a detox also removes that nasty bloating, so it's really good for you. I could've gone all fluids on the detox, but because my job requires quite a lot physical stuff, I kept eating solid food through that. I must say, tough, sometimes I really want to try the all-fluids one for a few days.
Exercise
I go jogging 3-4 times per week, and on those days I tend to do some other exercise as well, like sit-ups etc., yoga or dancing. I know they say things like "no pain, no gain", but my mentality is to keep it fun for me. That way, it feels like fun me-time instead of something I
have to do in order to look good. So even though I don't mind the pain here and there when the muscle gets trained, I don't expect pain from every single workout.
But the main point here, too, is that the workout removes stress, which then works wonders for the body, since no stress means no bloating. The stress ruined my metabolism so completely that it desperately need this. I could post here some exact exercises that I do, but I really don't have the knowledge to say which suits for who, so I'll just give you an idea what I do. You always need to find out what works just for you, and you can always ask from someone who knows more. But my training isn't that hard, so if you expect super visible results, you should consult someone else. :)
My average week of exercise:
4 x 45-60 min jog in a speed that gets the sweat on (and increasing the speed as the stamina gets better)
2-3 x muscular exercise, about 30-45 min (meaning sit-ups and such, you can find great ones from
here)
1-2 x dancing for 30-45 min, with the help of videos, yay for YouTube (if Shakira swears on this, what's not to believe?)
+ stretching after every workout, including some yoga-like breathing exercises.
So yeah, my exercising is really more about feeling good than about really gaining muscle. Though I try to get a bit of muscle visible, too. :D
Now
These photos were taken yesterday afternoon, so you should see the bloating, but somehow it's not there! Yay! I'm already quite happy with the results, but of course I would like to perfect the abs just a little more. That might take a little more time than these results, but I'm cool with that. As long as I can hold the body in this point, I'm more than happy!
Well, okay, I'd be lying if I didn't admit I try to perfect the abs still, but I don't feel the pressure for it as much. (And lol for the marks here and there on the body, didn't notice them until now! Oh well)
Extra
Many of you might notice the difference on my skin tone between the first photos and the last ones. It's because I've used a tanning lotion, and tanning mousse. I know one shouldn't put all the chemicals on their skin, but a bit of tan makes me feel healthier (I do know it's silly) so that's why. I don't get the color too well from the sun as it is, my natural skin color practically reflects the sunlight and I get burned easily, so I don't feel good about lying sunbathing for hours. And solarium/sunbed, that's even worse! You get the dangerous UV rays, but not the vitamins (except on some new ones, I've heard), it makes your skin older prematurely, and if you use solarium regularly, you increase the risk of getting skin cancer for 75%.
So think twice before tanning. I know it looks good, but no one should risk their health for brown skin. Ever.
So that's my progress so far, I still feel insecure about sharing this as I am so self-conscious about my body, but since my friend L asked for tips and such on Instagram, I thought why not. I'm telling you L, you can do it, it's just about teaching yourself new habits by learning what works your body! You have my full support, honey! ♥
I hope you like this post, I'm sure there are many others out there, too, hoping to get in shape for the beach and all. You can do it! And you don't need to starve for yourself. Two weeks can make all the difference, so imagine what two months can do ♥
I'm off now, to get my much needed workout. ;)
Have a fabulously healthy day! ♥
Blog ya later,
xoxo
Johanna
